Posts under ‘Shuri-Ryu’

Future Black Belt
Originally uploaded by MikeOliveri.

Tonight I joined my dojo’s Black Belt Club. This means I’m making a commitment to earn my black belt, and I’ll get to attend some extra workouts to get help toward that goal.
It’s a longer contract, but after thinking about it for a few weeks I’ve decided that just means [...]

My Yoda
Originally uploaded by MikeOliveri.

The wife read yesterday’s blog post and says I’m full of crap. She then challenged me to try it myself.
So I did. At lunchtime, I tossed the Squirt up on my shoulders and did some karate. The Wife snapped this pic.
Two moves later, Squirt started screaming “I’m falling!” and decided my [...]

It seems like that’s the way everything’s coming these days.
In the fitness routine, my weight’s been stable for a month or so. Suddenly I’m seeing a drop again, and I finally lost another five pounds to meet last month’s goal (missed it by a day). It’s gone the same way since May: I’d shed a [...]

I’ve been bummed for the last couple of weeks leading up to Halloween. While I’m not a big holiday guy, I think Halloween is the last truly fun holiday left. Plus I’m a horror writer, so I’m kinda obligated. It may be watered down some and I’m still disappointed more kids don’t dress up as [...]

In Shuri-ryu’s version of the Wansu kata, there are three points where the karateka delivers a backfist punch to the opponent’s groin. Specifically, the sequence is a block, a punch, a simultaneous block and punch, followed by said backfist. I like to break down my kata and apply a memory aid to make it easier [...]

I’m kind of making up this fitness thing as I go, picking out the common threads from a number of sources and taking a common-sense approach that really boils down to “eating right + getting off your ass = weight loss.” Imagine my surprise when I saw Nate Southard say he’s taking some of my [...]

My left eye weeps steadily, forcing me to daub it with a tissue from time to time so it doesn’t get rubbed raw. It makes me feel like a James Bond villain, like I should be at the controls of an orbiting mind control laser (or at least playing baccarat Texas hold ‘em) rather than [...]

Nutshot!
Originally uploaded by MikeOliveri.

This is a perfect example of why it’s important to always wear a cup to karate.
After what felt like an eternity of waiting for Bill to take the first shot in our sparring match, I jumped in for a kick. He blocked and followed it up with a kick of his own.
Right [...]

I’ve got a fair amount of experience behind a gun, and though I’m not a sharpshooter I can hit my target and maintain a tight group. I’ve even done some defensive simulations through IDPA matches, which is a lot of fun on top of being practical. In short, while I don’t anticipate ever finding myself [...]

It seems almost counterproductive to step outside for a cigar following an hour-long karate workout, but I did it anyway. The Romeo y Julieta Reserva Real proved to be even more relaxing than normal, and the balmy weather and cool breeze rounded things out nicely.
I got to thinking about my health as I puffed, and [...]