Two days later, and my side muscles and shoulder muscles are still a little sore from training. This feeling is instructive: taijutsu should not be about strength or using muscle power. That’s why small folks, women, children etc can use it.
So, I train again tonight. Here are a few important things to remember:
That’s just a few.
Last night we were up late again, until past 1am. Jet lag is sneaky. I just wasn’t tired, and I was agitated, but I had a nice long talk with my fiance, and in the morning I felt better. I think I dreamed of Tokyo.
There was a koi pond in the garden of the shrine we visited in Harajuku. This kid was walking on the rocks and had a homemade fishing pole. He wanted to catch a fish. I don’t know if he ever did.
MORE PICTURES!!!!
Also, how is your hip pain that was bothering you so much before you left? Any progress there?
Ha ha funny thing about my leg problem. When I went to Tokyo, it kind of went away. I felt great! I trained for 3 days, 14 hours total, and felt fine.
Then I came back home and went to work for one day. And I am right back where I started.
THANKS, MY JOB!!!! FOR INJURING MY HIPS!
I asked for a standing workstation and was told I needed a doctor’s note, which I am trying to wrangle hopefully by end of day today. This is total bullshit. Maybe I will go to OSHA. I don’t even want to be here because sitting down HURTS ME.
I am also going to investigate getting a physical therapist and getting more intensive tests done.
Is taijutsu the kind of martial art that specializes in evasion? Would it be the best option to teach children (I mean for practical purposes before they grow up? For instance so that they can evade kidnappers?)
Yes it is absolutely a great art to teach children. In fact as you may or may not know, Brian teaches a kids martial arts class for kids 6-12.
It also teaches kids how to fall down gracefully (safely), or just be more graceful.
And number one, it builds confidence and self-awareness. Like, being aware of where you are, what is around you, and putting a sense of confidence out to others.
It’s a great art to teach kids before they grow up and after they grow up, too. The sad news is that there don’t seem to be many taijutsu kids classes around. There’s always aikido and judo I guess, but they focus so much on strength and striking, things kids don’t have yet.
When we have kids they will totally be ninjas.
Brian can answer this better than I can.
As Jane answered above, yes taijutsu is a good martial art for children. However, it really depends on what the child wants to learn. The bujinkan does not hold tournaments like ‘sport’ style martial arts (karate, taekwondo, judo, etc) which sometimes is what they may be looking for.
Our children’s class (ages 6-12) focuses heavily on ukemi (rolling and principles of falling safely) and the basics of movement, principles of balance manipulation, joint manipulation, striking and eventually some exercises with weapons. One major focus of taijutsu is to use natural body mechanics rather than muscle power to overcome an adversary.
The ‘martial’ portion of our kids class usually follows this three step structure:
1-Move the target so it doesn’t get hit.
2-Take the attacker’s balance.
3-Run (or, punch/kick/throw/etc if running is not an option)
To work these principles into a realistic ‘fight’ scenario I bring a pair of hulk hands to class and attack the kids (slowly, but in a manner that challenges them).
I could babble on and on so I’ll cut this off here…
If you’re interested in checking out a class for children or adults, email me your location (brian_church@yahoo.com) and I will provide you with a list of dojos.
Thanks to both of you for your prompt response! And congratulations on your engagement, Brian! I’ve heard a lot about you and I’m thrilled for the both of you.
Anyway, I’m pretty fascinated by the whole mind-body connection and Jane’s entry caught my attention. Just last Sunday I read a book that really disturbed me, “The Devil in the White City” which is about one of the first serial killers. And I got to thinking about ways in which a child would be able to defend herself against an adult. Obviously she wouldn’t be able to fight him off. A small child’s only defense would be evasion. So you can see how this particularly entry rang a bell with me.
Not that I have kids, mind you. But some years ago I made up my mind that all my kids would learn martial arts.
Thanks again. Also, Jane, I love these posts. They’re wonderful. I think you can easily include some historical background and expand them into a full-length book.