Episode 175 - The Top 10 Reasons to Practice Forms

The practice of martial arts forms can be a controversial topic. Whether you call them kata, poomsae (poomse), tul, patterns, routines, sequences, forms or something else, they're important to your development as a martial artist. Here are our top 10 reasons why they should be part of every martial artist's training.

The Top 10 Reasons to Practice Forms - Episode 175

On today's episode of Martial Arts Radio we discuss the top ten reasons for practicing forms. Here's the outline:

Forms have been around as long as martial arts has, so it's unlikely that their practice is a waste of time, for any style.

1. Forms build muscle memory for techniques.
2. Forms develop movement outside of the pressure of combat.
3. Forms are something you can practice on your own.
4. Forms add variety to our training.
5. They're fun, or at least can be.
6. Practicing forms helps develop physical aspects of martial arts.
7. They help with the development of non-physical aspects.
8. Forms make you think about what you're doing.
9. Forms provide unification within a school or a system.
10. Forms can prime central nervous systems conditioning and build stronger neural pathways.

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Episode 174 - Sensei Jesse Enkamp

Sensei Jesse Enkamp is the host of Karate by Jesse and a self-proclaimed Karate nerd.

Sensei Jesse Enkamp - Episode 174

Generations of masters have come before us, and to not use their collective knowledge to improve our current understanding and practice of karate would be foolish in my opinion.

If you spend any time on social media looking at martial arts content, you'll know today's guest. Sensei Jesse Enkamp is the mind behind all of the wonderful material coming out of Karate by Jesse, and he's as passionate a martial artist as we've ever had on this show. The self-proclaimed karate nerd talks about his past, his goals in the martial arts and why he cares so much about what he's doing. If you've ever wondered what makes this guy tick, you're about to find out. Let's welcome him to the show.

Hey, do you like your shins? Do you hate clashing shins when you're sparring? If you do, you should check out our shin guards. Let's be honest, shin guards are sweaty, ours are, too. But, they're less sweaty than others and they actually stay in place. Not to mention we put an extra layer of foam right over your tibia - your shin bone - so you're sure to survive those brutal shin clashes. At events, I demo our shin guards by shin kicking door frames - full force. Check them out today at whistlekick.com

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Episode 173 - The Paradox of Belts

On today's episode, we discuss how martial arts belts are a contradiction - we respect them and hold them as important, yet our treatment of them varies between schools and even within a school

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Episode 172 - Coach Greg Amundson

Coach Greg Amundson is a practitioner of Aikido, Krav Maga & Jujitsu as well as a CrossFit athlete & coach, and author.

Coach Greg Amundson - Episode 172

"Being busy means we're at the mercy of other people. And being busy means that we're reactive. And being reactive is not the path of a warrior."

Coach Greg Amundson's professional resume reads like a modern day James Bond - CrossFit athlete, author, law enforcement, DEA special agent, fitness coach, business owner. That's not even the entire list. Even more impressive, many of those things happened at the same time, and quite a few are still happening. A legend in the CrossFit world, Coach Amundson has deep roots as a martial artist. Roots, according to him, that have given him the ability to live the life he now leads.

An amazing storyteller, Coach Greg Amundson took to our format and ran. Weaving together tales from his childhood, recent past and even appropriate legends he's been known to share in his classes. We discuss what it means to be a true warrior, and what the martial arts mind can accomplish. It was an honor and a privilege to speak with someone I've admired for a long time.

~jeremy

Today we want to remind everyone of all the things we offer - and why we do it. We've never been secretive about our business model, which is all about growing the martial arts industry. See, it's our belief that the more people participating in martial arts, the more customers we'll have. That's why we bring you this podcast, our Martial Arts Memes site and, most recently, Martial Arts Calendar - all for free. As our martial arts realm grows, we all benefit. Thanks for supporting that vision.

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Episode 171 - Coach Daniel Wu

Coach Daniel Wu is an actor, director and former Wushu competitor best known for his role as Sunny in AMC's Martial Arts show, Into the Badlands.

Coach Daniel Wu - Episode 171

"Fighting against somebody and you're backed into the corner it's up to you to figure out how to get out of there. You can give up, you can get knocked out, or you can fight your way back out. And, eventually, you figure out how to fight your way back out, and you learn from that. That is a direct correlation to life in general."

Listeners know I've been a fan of Into the Badlands since it aired. In fact, prior to even airing, I was excited.  Based on what I'd seen in trailers I was talking about on this very show. Here we are, a couple years later and Season 2 is about to air. As part of the promotional efforts for the show, AMC reached out to us and asked us to host Miss Emily Beecham (who plays The Widow) and Mr. Daniel Wu (who plays the lead character, Sunny) on the show. We said yes, of course, and here we are.

Coach Daniel, as he asked me to call him when I explained our traditions and etiquette for the show, didn't shy away from any subject that came up. We had some great conversation about martial arts philosophy and about how martial arts training changes as you age (which was fairly consistent with how we presented it on Episode 160)

Our conversations range from his upbringing to his admiration for the likes of Jet Li, Jackie Chan & Bruce Lee. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

~jeremy

 

For photo, video & show notes from this episode and others, please visit:

 

http://www.whistlekickmartialartsradio.com/171-daniel-wu/

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Episode 170 – Miss Emily Beecham

Miss Emily Beecham plays Minerva (aka The Widow) on the AMC Martial Arts show, Into The Badlands.

Miss Emily Beecham – Episode 170

I was blessed to have AMC approach us and inquire about interviews for both Miss Emily Beecham and Mr. Daniel Wu. Of course, we said yes, and did what we could to make schedules work (which, as you might imagine, was a bit difficult due to their extensive commitments.) It was an honor to speak with Miss Beecham, and we get some good insight into her character, Minerva, better known as The Widow.

We discuss what it’s like on set, her injuries, the way she views her character, and a lot more. It’s a fun conversation and one that gives you some great behind-the-scenes information into not only her life, but her character and the show overall.

For photos, video, and other show notes on this and other episodes, please visit:

 

http://www.whistlekickmartialartsradio.com/170-emily-beecham/

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Episode 169 - Sensei Damion Lupo

Sensei Damion Lupo is a long-time Aikido practitioner, author and the founder of Yokido, a fusion of Yoga and Aikido.

Sensei Damion Lupo - Episode 169

"If I'm in on something, you better look out, because I'm going all the way to wherever it is."

It's funny how things happen, sometimes. I was practicing some self-defense with a friend a couple months back and we got to talking about Yoga. Our conversation steered towards the similarities between martial arts and yoga, and the synergy that existed between the two. He mentioned someone who had fused them - a martial arts and yoga hybrid. Just a short time later, completely by coincidence, I was speaking with the very man he spoke of, Sensei Damion Lupo.

All of our guests are different, if you've listened to more than a few episodes, you know that. I enjoy finding common ground with each of our guests, but I also really appreciate where we differ. It's these different perspectives that have the most to offer me, and I found a fair amount of that in my time with Sensei Lupo. With a foundation rooted in martial arts, he views the world - and all its parts - with an attention that few people seem to have.

Did you know we sponsor the website MartialArtsMemes.com? Whenever we find a great martial art meme or someone sends one to us, we post it at our Martial Arts Memes website. Do check it out, have a laugh, and don't forget to send us any that we're missing!

 

For the rest of the show notes & other episodes, please visit:

 

http://www.whistlekickmartialartsradio.com/169-damion-lupo/

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Episode 168 - Reconciling Martial Arts Tradition with New Information

For show notes and other episodes, please visit:

 

http://www.whistlekickmartialartsradio.com/168-tradition-new-martial-arts-progress

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Episode 167 - Sempai Alysa Giudici

Sempai Alysa Giudici - Episode 167

Remember to always be a role model. To always just be humble and work hard no matter if anyone's watching or not.

It was from a news article online that I first discovered Sempai Alysa Giudici. We've had some younger martial artists on the show, and she certainly fits that profile. Every one of them has a common thread, though - their dedication to martial arts far surpasses their years. Sempai Giudici showed a maturity in the news article that inspired me to reach out. We chatted a bit and I knew that she belonged on the show. Here we are.

Our conversation is both expected and unexpected. On the one hand, we have a passionate martial artist who has no trouble describing their love for what they do. On the other, her focus and dedication are not typical of individuals her age, even martial artists with years of training. She's an exceptional individual and someone I greatly enjoyed speaking with.

We're proud to announce the release of the first edition of the book version of our Martial Arts Event course. How Not To Hold a Martial Arts Tournament is available on Amazon as a Kindle eBook, and soon to be available in print. The advice in our book and course is equally applicable to events of all sizes & all styles. While much of the book and course talks about competition, the instructions will be just as helpful for other martial arts events such as seminars.

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Episode 166 - Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Movie

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a martial arts movie release in 2000. The film has had a strong cultural impact on martial arts in the US.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Movie - Episode 166

Starring Michelle Yeoh, Chow Yun Fat, Ziyi Zhang

In this episode you'll learn about:

• What is Jet Li's connection to the movie?
• What language issues led them to dub the movie in some areas?
• What unexpected person edited the subtitles?
• Who did the stunts?
• What book series does it come from?
• What famed director choreographed the fight scenes?

And more!

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