Posts under ‘Shuri-Ryu’

We’re just about halfway through the year, so I thought I’d revisit some of the goals I’d set for myself for this year.
Goal 1: Cut 20 more pounds by October 1st.
So far not so good, but I’ve still got all summer to run. The knee is feeling better, so I may give it a shot [...]

That’s the sound my left knee makes. I’m assuming that’s not a good thing.
I worry it’s the result of a sparring match in karate class last week. I went in for a kick to my opponent’s ribs, and he raised his knee to block. The top of my shin, about an inch or so below [...]

Language is a funny thing, particularly when it’s translated through foreign understanding.
I learned a new kata on Saturday called Shudoso. It was developed by Robert Trias, the founder of Shuri-ryu, the style of karate I study. It’s short and sweet, but I was already losing the proper ending, so I hit Google to see what [...]

Here it is, proof that any monkey can learn taekwondo:

Okay, I’m just teasing the TKD folks out there.
I’m told Grand Master Robert Trias, the founder of Shuri-ryu, owned a chimpanzee and he taught it karate. He would even walk around with the chimp perched on his shoulders. The thought of a karate master with a [...]

Kata are an intriguing part of karate and other Eastern martial arts. They’re used for everything from the reinforcement of technique and self defense to spiritual development and physical excercise. In karate, each kata has a variety of movements and meanings, and each is often interpreted and applied differently from generation to generation and from [...]

I survived graduation night.
I got recruited to help out, so I spent most of the night lining up the new graduates before they went out onto the mat and helping tie their new belts onto them. This worked out well because it kept me busy rather than sweating my own pending performance. It proved an [...]

Tonight I was promoted to Sankyu, or 3rd-degree brown belt, in Shuri-ryu karate. That’s not something I’d ever thought I’d be able to say in my lifetime, but man does it feel good.
Not that it was an easy review or test, mind.
While I practiced my butt off for it, I have a bad habit of [...]

I’m coming up on two years studying Shuri-ryu with the Academy of Okinawan Karate, and I’m still surprised at how far I’ve progressed. My weight loss may have stalled out over the last year, but I’ve made huge strides in strength and flexibility.
A big part of that is my sensei has turned our advanced class [...]

Was there any doubt that writing would be a huge focus this year? Didn’t think so.
I solidified a relationship with a new publisher in ‘08, and our goal is to do a mix of comics and prose work. It’s still too early to announce specific projects, but I’ve written most of the script for the [...]

Personally, 2008 wasn’t so bad. On the fitness side, I started a running program over the summer and enjoyed moderate success. In the martial arts, I earned my green and then purple belts in Shuri-ryu karate, and I read some great books on the subject. I may not have lost a ton of weight like [...]