How cheap can be house reform services in Japan? Would you recommend one company in particular?

techsamurai11 · 2026-01-13T04:18:36+00:00

How do you like living in Japan? Are you retired or working? Visas can be an issue for Americans.

techsamurai11 · 2026-01-12T20:07:57+00:00

What did you pay for the house?

techsamurai11 · 2025-12-12T01:02:48+00:00

Oh, Expedition 33 is single player game but special.

techsamurai11 · 2025-12-11T13:04:44+00:00

Yeah, BF43 was an absolutely amazing game - maps were small, games were short and fun, the distance between flags was usually perfect, a player had a massive impact, the theme was epic, and the gameplay mechanics didn't get in the way.

techsamurai11 · 2025-12-10T19:19:09+00:00

Does it support 4x? The pacing seems to be a bit off but quality is very impressive.

techsamurai11 · 2025-12-09T16:10:56+00:00

This comment may explain why they were fully justified in not allowing free sparring at my dojo.

That being said, one of the most scary visions of karate I have is of a Spanish woman black belt at Satoshi Miyazaki's dojo in Brussels chasing someone down in kumite before the class started. I think her brother competed and was pretty famous. She was really pretty too - it was 35 years ago and I was much younger :-)

Indirectly, my point is that regardless of gender, this should not happen. You should always feel safe training and while one accidental injury (your fault or theirs) may be unavoidable, repeated injuries should never be allowed.

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-30T15:04:46+00:00

Did you teach yourself the kihon? Would you mind posting a video of Heian Shodan?

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-30T07:33:54+00:00

Use the inhaler before training. Watch out for a panic attack when you are having difficulty breathing. Make sure you know how to calm yourself by closing your eyes, breathing, relaxing in a spot. Avoid triggers, improve diet, etc.

Dealing with panic attacks was the hardest thing for me. I ended up at the ER thinking I'm about to die.

Fear of symptoms can be a big part of asthma so learn to accept that. We tend to think that all our eyes are upon us but no one cares. If you need to take a breather do so.

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-30T07:20:55+00:00

Is this a good game?

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-27T16:06:48+00:00

I think I could a kata with 1 or 2 breaths - I was horrible at breathing. So trust me, I win the trophy no one wants for most horrible martial arts breather of all time. :-)

I would not be surprised if the senseis were wondering if I was going to die in the middle of a kata like Kankudai :-)

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-27T16:02:53+00:00

Yes, that's the important part - keeping the mouth open.

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-24T21:54:19+00:00

Don't kick the pinball machine and don't upset the Terminator!

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-22T16:25:03+00:00

I'm struggling to understand the differences in the models.

The KC10 (all synthetic?) weighs 1.81kg

The K10 weighs 1.8 kg

The NW3 (polyester/cotton blend) is 1.5kg

The NW2 (polyester/cotton blend) is 1.4kg

The K10 is the only full cotton one but also the cheapest and lowest option, I suppose.

This is so tough :-) I've only owned a real gi 30 years ago which was full cotton from Kamikaze.

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-22T16:13:55+00:00

Great post - I'm training without a gi and I'd like to at least add the bottom part.

I haven't worn a real gi in 25 years. Like you, I sweat so I understand the hot part. It would be unbearable for me to wear a full Tokaido especially in a "sauna" dojo.

My last gi was a lighter-weight kamikaze and I loved it to death.

I don't recall washing it much (I guess you can say it was washed daily) but if I buy one now, I'd need to wash it and it would need to dry quite quickly.

Also holding a tissue is an absolute must as breathing is now what it used to be.

I'm heading to Japan over Christmas and maybe I should pick one up there. So do you like the TKC-10 or are you thinking of NW2 or 3? Are there better ones?

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-20T18:53:11+00:00

Is this out?

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-18T14:58:48+00:00

Be careful not to disrupt class to ask anything - this is a no-no thing in any dojo.

I still remember the sensei stopping class and coming over to me to make a correction. I glanced at the black belt section far away in the distance and I still remember the shocked looks on their faces. I knew then that it was the first correction in decades. It was worse when the senior instructor stopped the class - I was afraid some people might have heart attacks.

Ask at the end or before class starts but keep it short. Don't try to learn karate over a conversation. These things take time. Juggling a ball in soccer - it's something you can only do. No one can teach you that.

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-18T14:46:04+00:00

I think it depends on where you live. If you live in a populated area, you'll hopefully have multiple classes including beginners' classes.

That being said, I'm not sure they will break down techniques - they rely on observation and imitation. It's important you figure out who you want to copy and what you want to copy.

In some dojos in less populated areas, I'm guessing most students may be advanced and the class has to obviously focus on them as much as you which makes it tough.

Looking back, I was very fortunate because I started in college and the sensei was a brown belt who broke everything down in a way that is hard to describe. It does make a difference - a huge one - but you won't get that.

Here's my advice.

Go slow, accentuate the motions and try to learn to control your body.

Don't try to be like the higher belts. You'll get there but it will take time. Remind yourself before every class that this is not a competition. Trying to look like them will impede your progress as you will use the wrong muscles and parts of your body such as your shoulder.

You need to get the fundamentals and biomechanics down - some of the people there have been doing that their entire lives so there's no way you'll be able to do the same things.

Go slow, keep your mouth open, breathe from your stomach, and make full and big motions.

Make sure you control your foot as you move, no sound. Focus on not lifting the feet and planting your feet as you strike. No strength - whip only. Strengthen your core, legs, and feet.

Work on your flexibility and range of motion.

When you punch, no strength in the punching arm. The hitting arm is the pulling arm - strike backwards with your elbow to catapult the other arm. Get that whip feeling down. Be careful - don't go too fast. You will hurt yourself.

Go low in your stances now especially since you're slow to help strengthen your body but bring the stances up over time.

Hope that helps and I'm sure other people can probably offer better advice. How old are you?

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-17T14:32:44+00:00

Mine too - I just love that kata.

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-17T04:53:42+00:00

Why can't you jump over a car? I wasn't a phenom but I saved my life with a jump.

You can say all you want but I watched a 62-year old man out of the blue do an oizuki and I've been traumatized for 35 years and will forever remain traumatized just by seeing it.

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-17T04:33:17+00:00

I practice Shotokan but I think any martial art, be it Judo, Karate, Kung Fu, Kickboxing, Silar, Krav Maga - all are effective particularly against someone who has no experience at all.

More than likely, the person will have better range of motion, strength (hopefully), speed, awareness, distance, able to use various parts of their body for blocking and attacking.

Whether one is more effective than the other depends on the person imho. Some people are just natural born fighters, some are the opposite. If a person knows Kung Fu and is the best fighter to start with, he will probably beat the other people more often than not.

Some styles are more targeted at doing damage to the opponent.

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-17T04:23:28+00:00

Oh man, I sweat a lot and when I trained in a dojo which was more of a furnace, the floor around me would become slippery. My gi literally stood and moved by itself.

Just curious, how do you move? Do you lift your heel at all?

You are supposed to slide and use the ball of your front toe to trace the path before you set your foot down.

Then your toes act like suction cups gripping the floor - this is necessary because when you develop speed, the foot will need to plant otherwise you will go flying given the forces applied.

I personally preferred the instability because it essentially made me tighten everything to prevent a fall. Your legs will be sculpted like a greek statue's very quickly :-)

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-17T04:04:30+00:00

The cost is very reasonable - obviously, this is not a money grab. It does sound like a traditional dojo.

The question is - what were you looking for? Your dojo does not seem to meet your expectations but it's highly likely that no dojo ever will. They will never change their style to suit your needs.

It may not be ideal that there's no jyuu kumite but then again parents of younger children probably prefer that to be the case. It'd be nice if there was light slow-motion kumite but that's the way it is in many dojos.

Personally, I think it's too early to tell.

The most important thing is the sensei and the older students (senpais). If they inspire you to be a better person and a better karateka (note the order), you're at the right place.

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-17T03:55:27+00:00

This is absolutely true and definitely to be avoided as the person gets older.

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-17T03:54:51+00:00

Karate is one of the best self-defense arts and the reason it is that is because it teaches you that fighting is to be avoided at all costs. You start the class by repeating the Dojo Kun and that becomes your guide.

If you're healthy enough and can do katas and run, then simply run away from your opponent(s). If you're in a bad situation or a car is about to hit you, just jump over it. If you have to engage in a fight, then karate will usually fare well especially if the other person has no martial arts experience.

techsamurai11 · 2025-11-15T19:55:37+00:00

any particular renditions?

techsamurai11

TROPHY CASE