Interview with Longtime Takahiko Ishikawa Student Bob Karr: The Impact of a Legend, Part II

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Bob Karr began learning judo at the age of thirteen in Ardmore, Pennsylvania. There, he met Thomas Blair, Joe Condello, Howie Wray, and many others. Within a year, Karr began to train with Takahiko Ishikawa in Philadelphia. As he trained under Ishikawa, Karr got to meet and practice with many strong and soon to be … Continue reading Interview with Longtime Takahiko Ishikawa Student Bob Karr: The Impact of a Legend, Part II

Interview with Longtime Takahiko Ishikawa Student Bob Karr: The Impact of a Legend, Part I

~ Antonio Aloia ~ Leave a comment

Bob Karr began learning judo at the age of thirteen in Ardmore, Pennsylvania. There, he met Thomas Blair, Joe Condello, Howie Wray, and many others. Within a year, Karr began to train with Takahiko Ishikawa in Philadelphia. As he trained under Ishikawa, Karr got to meet and practice with many strong and soon to be … Continue reading Interview with Longtime Takahiko Ishikawa Student Bob Karr: The Impact of a Legend, Part I

Animal Mode: Primal Self-Defense with Teeth, Nails, and Head by Michael Martin

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Before there were spears, clubs, or even sharpened stones, there was the body. The earliest martial art wasn’t passed down through scrolls or techniques — it was born in blood, instinct, and survival. Long before structured combat systems, early humans defended themselves with what nature gave them: teeth to bite, nails to claw, and a … Continue reading Animal Mode: Primal Self-Defense with Teeth, Nails, and Head by Michael Martin

Interview with Shinken-ryu Founder Prince Gharios: Attempting to Save Modern Aikido, Part II

~ Antonio Aloia ~ 1 Comment

Prince Gharios began aikido in Brazil in 1986 and during the rise of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, he was forced to look to other sources for a more direct aikido. By the mid-1990s, Prince Gharios found Steven Seagal and Tenshin Aikido, which gave him the tools and foundations to establish his own Shinken-ryu Aiki-Budo. Today, … Continue reading Interview with Shinken-ryu Founder Prince Gharios: Attempting to Save Modern Aikido, Part II

Interview with Shinken-ryu Founder Prince Gharios: Attempting to Save Modern Aikido, Part I

~ Antonio Aloia ~ 1 Comment

Prince Gharios began aikido in Brazil in 1986 and during the rise of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, he was forced to look to other sources for a more direct aikido. By the mid-1990s, Prince Gharios found Steven Seagal and Tenshin Aikido, which gave him the tools and foundations to establish his own Shinken-ryu Aiki-Budo. Today, … Continue reading Interview with Shinken-ryu Founder Prince Gharios: Attempting to Save Modern Aikido, Part I

Partnering Up Law Enforcement With Taekwondo by Brad Yakots

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The law enforcement profession has always been a tough field to work in.  Police officers respond to unfolding situations where the opportunity for injury or even worse is real.  The initial academy training and the number of iterations needed to correctly handle the myriad of situations an officer will encounter while maintaining the fitness standard … Continue reading Partnering Up Law Enforcement With Taekwondo by Brad Yakots

Interview with Budoshin Instructor John Valceanu: Traditional Jujitsu in the Modern Landscape, Part II

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John Valceanu teaches Budoshin Jujitsu while also training in judo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He also has a background in hapkido, which he practiced for about a decade. Many aspects of the different arts he practices are mirror images to him, and finding common principles continues to motivate him to train. Today, Valceanu took some time … Continue reading Interview with Budoshin Instructor John Valceanu: Traditional Jujitsu in the Modern Landscape, Part II

Interview with Budoshin Instructor John Valceanu: Traditional Jujitsu in the Modern Landscape, Part I

~ Antonio Aloia ~ Leave a comment

John Valceanu teaches Budoshin Jujitsu while also training in judo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He also has a background in hapkido, which he practiced for about a decade. Many aspects of the different arts he practices are mirror images to him, and finding common principles continues to motivate him to train. Today, Valceanu took some time … Continue reading Interview with Budoshin Instructor John Valceanu: Traditional Jujitsu in the Modern Landscape, Part I

By Example: Aiki in Real-Time Application from Judo Master Takahiko Ishikawa

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When the concept of aiki arises within the aikido paradigm, many practitioners default to a variety of sources; pointing directly to the founder, Morihei Ueshiba, to different Daito-ryu forms and practitioners, or to the more internal energy-leaning teachings, like zazen, across the martial arts’ resource community. Aiki, by definition, “usually refers to the principle of … Continue reading By Example: Aiki in Real-Time Application from Judo Master Takahiko Ishikawa

Form Over Function: A Slave to Aesthetics

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Within my library recently read Noel Perrin’s Giving Up the Gun. The book itself is quite dated in writing, sources, and historiography; however, it is still cited to certain extent within the modern English scholarship of Japanese history. The book is an overview of Japan’s reasons as to why the samurai of old willingly abandoned … Continue reading Form Over Function: A Slave to Aesthetics