Tatsu Dojo Martial Arts And Fitness

The air was thick and wet in the tiny garage that served as a makeshift dojo for a committed group of young men.  Like so many other summer days, this one was particularly brutal, mainly because we were nearing the end of a belt test for two boys.  One was attempting to achieve black belt, the other, brown (one grade below).  What these two did not know at the start of the test was that I had garnered the help and support of a couple of other seasoned martial artists; two str

How many of us go through each day thinking about the possibility of not being here tomorrow?  Something like a cancer diagnosis will definitely give you a different perspective, regardless of the severity, and no matter how much people love and care about you, they cannot understand that perspective unless they’re dealing with something similar.  But the rest of us go on with our day, trying to make it to Friday, to vacation and eventually retirement when we can lay it all d

Kashiima City Shrine, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan I had my first taste of Aikido summer training in Kashima City near Tokyo in August 1993.  Though not new to martial arts, I was very new to Japanese Budo , the “path to enlightenment through martial training.”  Training took place at a very old dojo near an older Kashima Shinto shrine and on our last day of training, we invited to partake in a ceremonial blessing.  I had never seen anything like and I was completely fascinated,

One of the things I miss most about Japanese culture is the practice of removing your shoes in many places like homes, resturants...and martial arts dojos. Now, there is a very functional reason for this: tatami mats. Tradidional tatami mats are made with a dense rice straw core, woven with a grass surface. They have a unique smell and texture that feels homey and quite. And, they are very suceptable to dirt and damage from shoes. Entrances like the one picutred here are

I have the privilege of having a tiny office in my home; my own little den with all of the books I’ve read, many I haven’t but they look...

Maintaining The Martial Mindset On a sweltering August afternoon, somewhere between Tokyo and Misawa City, Japan, I was riding the...

Every once in a while, especially in the summer, nobody shows up for advanced karate class.  Last night was one of those times, mostly...

Understanding Priorities In the movie, The Last Samurai, there is a famous scene where Tom Cruise's character has to face a well-trained,...

Why Some People Never Start Or Return To Karate Beginner's Karate Class At Tatsu Dojo I am very fortunate to have started martial arts...

The Structure And Science Of A Martial Art Rising Elbow Strike In Karate I don't believe that Dave Lowry, author of the book, The Karate...

What I Hope To Leave For My Kids And Students I don’t know if it’s like this so much anymore, but I got into martial arts because of two...

One of the unique aspects of traditional martial arts is the importance of training alone.  It is relatively easy to get in your car and drive to a dojo, dojang, kwoon or gym and spend an hour or more training with other people.  Indeed, one of the reasons we join such places is for the community and motivation.

(But) when you have to stabilize a weight as in a barbell squat, there are a lot of nerves and muscles operating at the same time.  This is considered a compound movement where we’re using multiple nerves and muscles in order to stabilize the load and complete the action.  But, this requires thorough training, just like martial arts. 

Issoyama Shihan, pouring out the spirit of Aikido. In United States Air Force basic training, we had a training instructor (TI), the...

Young men training in the "first Tatsu Dojo." Growing up is not for the faint of heart, especially the teen years.  Now, everyone has...

Well, that didn’t take long.  It’s only been a couple of months since (I thought) I wrote our last blog for a while, having felt burned...

These blogs began partially because of some sage advice from a trusted friend who wisely convinced me not  to publish a book about my...

My morning routine has in changed much in the last 15 years or so; get up early, pour myself a cup of coffee, find my beat up and...

Most people have heard of arts like karate, taekwondo, kung fu, judo and of course jujitsu.  But these are actually broad terms that generally define these martial arts.  And most of these arts have definitive styles of their own.

I’ve mentioned several times that I had the fortune to have had some great teachers who not only shared their knowledge but wisdom as...