Saturday, December 29, 2007

Principles of Shotokan.

Hmmm..... What is the principle of shotokan movement and fighting philosophy? Good question, if you ask me.... And you would think i would have a precise answer..... hihi... Well, i do not, but i will try to discuss this a bit to see where my train of thought leads me.

As a beginner we are all fed "the shotokan kihon" which is nice, crisp and to the point. Back straight, move from the center as a unit, end with a contraction of the antagonistic muscles to make everything snap to sharp finish. Done properly, i would say this looks very nice, indeed. (Heck, i spent a big chunk of my life getting this)

However, this seems to not be the most efficient way of making power. And to illustrate my point: Boxers punch harder than us while leaning in every direction and not applying what shotokan stylists love to call kime...... Hmmmm.... Even the great shotokan stylists dont use this "kime" or back straight while aiming for maximum power.... Then why are we doing it so religiously?

My answer is that its a way of gaining control over your body. We must first get total command of our body, so that we can let go and move with total freedom. Problem is that so few people progress beyond the kyugrade way of rigid "in the box" karate. After 5 years (or 15) the shotokan kihon way of moving should become second nature and at this time one should break free and develop ones karate to the maximum potential. At this point i think one should let go of all the rules and only worry bout efficiancy of movement, output power, speed and the likes.

In my opinion, the great karateka of the world have this in common: They have broken free of the rigidness after mastering it. Some names spring to mind as great examples: (In no particular order) Edda Bløndal, Andre Bålerud, Jose Dos Santos, Janne Linn Oftedal, Koike Yutaka, Steve Ubl, Paolo Bolaffio, Richard Amos, Geir Larsen, Andre Bertel. This list is for me very inspirational cause it represents many possible directions to take your karate after your mastery of the kihon is completed. (Its never completed, i hear someone think.....) Well, then we have a problem.... ;-)

I suggest understanding proper bodymovement should be the top priority as your karatejourney starts. When you have control of the body, though, dont quit. At this point you have developed the tools to make your karate work. Dont just prepare to do karate, get your shodan or nidan, and then pack it in. Its at that point "real karate" starts.

Friday, December 14, 2007

Karate - quotes.

I hope this post will be a collection of funny, inspirational and thought-provoking little tidbits. (Yes, i am working on my vocalbulary....hihi)

In no particular order:

When i was a young man, many people blocked with their face.... Enoeda Keinosuke

The jumps in Chinte.... hmmm.... must be like the waves, you know.... Ueki Masaaki

Maybe better with more hips..... Kawasoe Masao

There is no such thing as perfect karate. Richard Amos

There is no first attack in karate. Funakoshi Gichin

Move your whole body at once, dont follow you limbs. Einar Hagen

Breathing.... Its quite simple really.... you breathe in and then out. Steve Ubl

I cant stand karate-politicians. Andre Bertel

Kihon good, kata very good, kumite ok, dogi very bad. Kawasoe Masao at my sankyu grading.

Jeg håper å få rista litt på juleribba. Andre Bålerud

When the fight starts, hit their nose. Eydis Lindal

And then you hit my face with your right hand..... Jan Spatzek (Just before Gusta whacked him in front of the class......)

DONT HIT YOUR MOTHER!!! Kato Sadashige after Bjørg missed the control test. (He followed the comment by whacking her on the head with the plastic bottle used in the test.... hihi)

And to finish my part of this i just wanna add some cool words in no particular order: Passionate, determined, spirited, driven, empathetic, committed, persistent, harmonious, upbeat, strong, yielding, unyielding, disciplined, striving, supportive, helpful, wonderful.

Hope you guys can add to my list of cool words and quotes in the comment-section.

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

He is coming back... And i will soon have his new DVD for sale...

No, not the governator... (I didnt even know Arnold had been to Iceland... hihi)

Last weekend of january, Richard Amos sensei is coming over here to let everyone know that maegeri should be going straight instead of at an angle, and that Iceland is not quite as cold as last time he was here.

:-D

Hopefully we can trick some other international guests to join in for this event, aswell. Infact, we dare you guys.... 3 days of training and for the seniors that just cant get enough: The schedule will be made so that it will be possible to do 11 hours training. In other words: Fabulous value for money and the opportunity to see Iceland should not be passed up, either. (It really is the coolest place and i do not mean that just in regards to the temperature)

Wo-hoo!!


From the 27/11 Amos senseis excellent first dvd will be available for purchase. Only a limited number available so dont wait in letting me know that you want one (price is 3000 isk and i guarantee that you will learn some enlightening stuff) This dvd is a must-have for everybody and since christmas is coming up....

:-D

Friday, November 09, 2007

Sport or no sport....

Hmmm..... I feel old.... No, thats not true..... I feel on the fringe of things is more precise.

I never did much sports, cause they bore me. The times i showed up for competitions, i usually won something, so its not that i am just down cause i have no successes. Its more that i really do not see the point. For me karate is all bout training, improving and plain just having fun. Deciding who is the "winner" or "loser" to me seems like a great way of shooting ourselves in the foot. (Not *that* many people can be the winner and how does the rest feel?)

Furthermore, when we look at how competitions are conducted, one often sees that its quite random who ultimately is determined the winner. Personal preference of the judges plays way too big part of the final result. Karate-do is (or should be, in my opinion) art, and who is qualified to decide who is more "arty"? This leads me to the conclusion that kata-competitions are *really* silly and should be skipped alltogether. Then kumite..... Hmmm.... Many points? Hardly seems to improve our ability to "kill with one blow"? Judges that are way inferior to the athletes they are passing judgements on? Rules that favor flashy techniques that leave you in big trouble in the real world? The overemphasis on being first in regards to timing? (Is it not cooler to be last....?) The constant discussions regarding how much contact? (Nobody seems to be any closer to agreeing what the correct level of contact should be, anyway) Coaches that reward aggressive behavior that puts our students at serious risk of injury? The fact that the competitions run for several hours and not even the families of the athletes can be bothered to show up?

In my opinion: Shobu ippon rules, 1 weightclass for males and one for females, no protectors except mouthguards + groinprotectors for males and breastprotectors for females. One competition pr year + the internal clubcompetition and maybe one friendly against another club.

This way we would not spend lots of energy supporting a style of karate that does very little to enhance our shotokan way of doing things. This would free up time and energy for trainingcamps, parties and oneday-events where everyone comes together to train. (And where everyone gets to do karate for more than 2 minutes....)

And good luck to all the participants of the IM.

:-)

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Greens.....

As some of you may have noticed, i have been drinking a fair amount of green stuff lately.... Why, i hear people ask..... Cause after listening to the worlds premier lifestyle coach, Tony Robbins, i am now certain that what we eat these days, is not what our bodies were designed to digest.

The consumption of excess amounts of sugar, carbohydrates (that transforms into sugar), dairy-products, alcohol and foods with face is a real problem for our health. All of these makes our inner balance go out of whack. (I am pretty sure that you like me have felt the extreme fatigue after binging on these kinds of foods.... We should maybe ask ourselfs why....?) The theory is that our body is too acidified and by eating wrong foods we compound the problem to a point where the body cant eliminate the acids successfully and we start to die..... (I may be paraphrasing a bit loosely, but not to the point of lying)

Tony Robbins Living Health-program is based on the research of microbiologist Dr Robert Young and below is a clip from CNN on Youtube.

I have not adopted all of his theories, but i have started in the right direction. I found a green powder that i mix in water and i also add some drops of a product called PH-booster. The two products together, makes it quite easy to alcalise and energize in a way that does not involve spending the whole day finding loads of different greens to prepare our alcalizing meals with.

Eventually i will move further and further into a greener diet, but for now i have just added 4 liters of greendrink a day, and after just 2 weeks on this, my cravings have noticeably diminished.

The products i use are found in Hagkaup and Heilsuhusid and is called Alkalive Green and Alkalive PH-booster, btw. In Iceland a month supply will cost just over 10.000 but ordered online through shopusa the cost will drop to about 8.000 (or less if you desire other products in addition to those 2) For more product-info: www.ph-ion.com

Dr Robert Young, author of the PH-Miracle

Thursday, October 11, 2007

The Law of Attraction

Hmmmm..... The law of attraction....... The Secret..... hmmm....... Does it work....? Weeeell.... For the last 20 years the idea have popped up in my life, and i actually do believe in it. Time to apply.

Great book: "As a man thinketh" by James Allen

Time to focus on what i want, instead of what i dont want. I am done thinking about being tired or having too little money. From now on: I have abundance of energy, health and enough money to experience what life really is made of. Furthermore, my maegeri will be fabulous by the end of december 2008 and at that time i am also living in my own house. It will have a serious, serious bathroom, a 50" television, a fridge that makes icecubes on its own and with a private parking-space for my incredibly cool Mazda MX-5.

Life rocks and so will i. I doubledare you to join me in this quest for happiness.

:-)

Sunday, September 30, 2007

Attitude / Training ethics...

In my opinion: Attitude and proper training-ethics are the two most important things, when it comes to improving anything. I furthermore think that both can be decided upon having or developing if you find yourself desiring some level of excellence.

Lets discuss karate as our topic of choice.... If you dont have either of those, then i predict that your karate will be very weak and lacking any kind of technical prowess (Yes, i toss in big words to look smart-ish.... hihi) Training-ethics without attitude is one step better, but the karate-result usually is something that looks very pleasing, but doesnt really work as self-defence or in kumite-competition. Attitude only, will also get you part of the way, if the goal is to become a well-rounded karateka. This groups advantage will be in the practical application, though. (I think they often can fight and win in the dojo or in the street)

With both attitude and a strong training-ethic, i think "real karate" is attainable. Attitude: Applying yourself mentally as hard as you can, never backing down. Training ethic: Make your classes a priority and do something extra all the time. Something extra, what do i mean? A trainingcamp or two pr year, some solo-training before or after class, a slow jog or two a week, a bit of pushups / situps every other day or whatever else you see your karate needs.

OR NOT!! And this part is important.... Do karate for *your* reasons and above all, have fun with it. Furthermore, dont give up on yourself if you have some lofty goals and dont put yourself down in the process. Its ok to be self-critical so that you dont stop trying hard, but its not productive to tell yourself that you are hopeless and should give up everything cause it will never improve.

ANYTHING you go after with your brain and body, will improve vastly over time. You have to go after it, though, or it wont get better, whatever it is you desire. (Wow, i sound way older than i feel.... :-$ )

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

The phone incident.....

My cellphone had a tragic, unfortunate impact with a hard object, so i have lost all my phone numbers... Feel free to email me your number so that i am not all alone in the world if i get another phone....

Any suggestions as to what phone would be cool to get? I think i want a decent camera on it and video is also nice to have in good quality. Not too big and no clamshell ideas, thanks.

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Marathon-update...

SORRY, BUT THIS POST HAS TO HAVE MORE THAN ITS SHARE OF BIG LETTERS..... ;-)

YES!! YOURS TRULY FINISHED HIS FIRST MARATHON AND HE IS DAMNED PROUD AND STILL HIGH!!!!

:-D

It really was a fabulous experience. The weather was perfect, the crowds were cheering us on and even though i was in pain for the latter stages, it was not as bad as last year when i only did half the distance. My Nikken Kenkotherm kneesupports did their job with my knees, my Polar A5 pulsegauge helped to make sure i didnt run too fast and the Powerade supplied by the organisers was very welcome.

I am adding a link to the best running resources i have found online after posting this, btw. Seeing as karate is not so super for aerobic workouts, you might wanna invest in some good shoes, a pulsegauge and then get out there a couple of times a week. Just as a healthy supplement, you know. If you keep your heartrate in the aerobic zone (for me 130 to 155 beats pr minute) then its not gonna be all that painful. (I used to hate running) Now that i dont run too fast anymore, i really love it. (Yes, i walked quite a bit in the marathon, but when i finished, that didnt matter at all)

In the last couple of kilometers, i tried to think back and compare this experience with other milestones in my life and could not come up with many that made me prouder. Shodan was a big thing for me cause i was mainly just a kid with only karate in my life at the time, but my other dangrades dont compare to the elation i felt when finishing my first, but definatly not last marathon.

Goal for next year: Laugarveginn (50km in very scenic nature, Reykjavik Marathon and a couple of halfmarathons in less than 2 hours. Eventually i will do a triathlon, but i have not set a date for that yet. Judging by how incredible i felt on saturday, its gonna rock even more than Pantera.

:-D

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Marathon-07

Well, its that time of year again..... Last year i was not prepared for more than 10 km of the Reykjavik Marathon, but struggled through 21 km and was very happy with the fact that i managed. This year i am slightly better prepared (i think), but i always had a dream of doing the full marathon distance....... (Actually, my dream is the Ironman in some fancy place, but thats a year or three away)

So, if the weather is cooperating, the body feels good and my general outlook on life is good, then i just might try to struggle through the whole race this time. I dont care at all what kind of time i will get, so if i do it, it will be starting at 0800 and just trying to make sure that i get to the finish in time, before everyone goes home.... hihi.....

And why, you may ask..... To prove that i can and to hopefully inspire somebody to reach a bit higher than usual and demand more from themselves in the process. Good luck to all the participants.

Wednesday, August 01, 2007

Private karateclasses

I have time available during the day in the week or in the afternoon on sundays, and have decided to offer private tuition. Your subject and you decide when we meet and i help to point your karate in the right direction. For now the price will be 3000 kr per hour, but this may have to be adjusted in the future, according to my energy-level and available time.

In my opinion this seems like a good idea, every now and then to keep on track and to know what to change and how to improve. One on one instruction for an hour will give you a better feedback than is available in a group setting. Furthermore, i think that it will be beneficial in terms of working *your* weakest point so that your next grading will go smoothly and more importantly; to weed out bad habits that may potentially hurt you in the long run.

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

WHO IS NR 1 ON GOOGLE????

ITS ME!!!!!!

:D

No, really.... Google Ubl sensei and see what happens.....

I am also one the first results page with several other searches and in the last couple of days i have had hits from UK, US, Slovenia, Japan, Selfoss, Rio de Janeiro and so on..... (www.statcounter.com suddenly gave me all sorts of stats on my page, check it out)

Other than that, not much to tell, but since i have so many readers now, i will try and update things a bit more often.....

:-)

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Nikken

While in Norway i came across some products that Richard Amos sensei recommended as support for my half bad knee. He had trouble with his knees on and off for several years, and after just a day with this support-thingy his knee was noticeably better.

I got kicked in the knee pretty badly, and feared that i wasnt gonna be able to complete the gashuko in Fredrikstad (this was the first day) Then after class i got this kneesupport and lo and behold, i was able to do all the classes and my knees are better than in many years.

Comfortable to wear for an extended period of time and only 3500 kr. I brought 8 of these with me back from Norway and i can possibly get more if we run out.

If you want more opinions, then Gisli, Gusta, Disa and Helga also have tried these so far. Ask em what they think of them. :-)

Thursday, July 05, 2007

Niiize update from Norway.....

Only 4 days until i come home to my niiize car and niiize apartment to teach niiize stuff to the niiize icelanders again. Vacation is pretty cool, but i have to admit that i feel lazy when not moving every day.

Ohwell, 28 degrees makes me wanna just stretch out in the sun.......

;-D

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Norway - 07

Jaujau...... I hate packing so i dont do it, instead of sleeping... (very clever....)

Anyways, only hours until 12 icelanders are off to the land of milk and honey. Gonna be fun (I have spoken)

If you need to get in touch with me before the 9th of july, the fastest way will be on my norwegian mobile: +47 45853944

A great gashuko in Fredrikstad and then a week with no karate at all. (WOW!! (Those weeks are quite rare))


Updates on how great the weather was and so on will follow shortly.

;-)

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

ICEHOT 2 :-D

Jaujau..... Icehot 2 is over, but the feeling of something very special remains. We arrived on sunday the 10th, unfortunatly without Steve Ubl sensei. He came a day late after a string of bad stuff on his flight. Good thing he was so awesome that he made up for the day he missed, many times over. His karate is so beyond anything i have ever seen from a shotokan karateka. The power, the way of applying techniques, the fluid and fast motions, the creativity of the bunkai, his politeness. All very impressive.

Richard Amos sensei was as usual impeccable. The trainings all in all was balanced and very, very informative. Add to that great weather, fabulous pasta, good location, beach-training, a decent tan and you understand why i am so excited. (Yes, i have decided to forget about the mosquitos and the crappy breakfast)

Other than that we need to find the handsome guy that talked the teachers into coming and made the superduper schedule........ (And give him a raise....... hihi)

;-D

Thursday, June 07, 2007

Makotokai

Well, i am impressed.

The Makotokai (truth group) main dojo that i am visiting in Trieste is really impressive. Great facility, friendly people and excellent trainings. And whats even cooler: They will all fight and even small girls hit pretty hard.

I am taking notes and will definatly incorporate some of their drills into our classes. Looking forward to see a bunch of you guys on sunday. (Hopefully my tan will be better than the present by then, though)

:D

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

ICEHOT 2 :-D

Our bi-annual gashuko in the sun is coming up shortly and i am very excited now.

Not only are we going to place that looks greener and more fab than Calpe, but this time we also have imported a worldclass teacher. NO!!!!! *TWO* worldclass teachers!!! :3D

Most of you guys met Richard Amos sensei last november and probably understood very well why i have travelled to train with him many times. This time he also brings the technical director of his organization. Steve Ubl sensei trained with Nakayama sensei in the early 70-ies. Ubl sensei is creating quite a buzz among the people who has trained with him, so i cant wait for this opportunity to train with the guy that i have heard described as "probably Nakayama sensei`s best student, ever..." - High praise coming from a japanese karate-instructor........(!!!)

This gashuko will also have visitors from as far away as Tanzania, California and Norway..... And for the first time, we will have a separate dangrade class. Exciting times, indeed. And for all the kyugrades: Keep the pedal to the metal and join in the dangrade class as soon as possible. Room for anyone at the top that is willing to do the work required.....

I am off a week early to get a fab tan and to train with an italian group in Trieste....

:-)

Monday, May 21, 2007

Handy?

Yeah, my new apartment is shaping up. Thanks to my extreme interior decorating skills i am dazzled with my layout of it all. And the new shelf...... Very impressive indeed. I enlisted Maggi to help me install it to perfection and it turned out perfectly. However, its the last time anyone should make anything from scratch. (The price of not shopping at Ikea is rather obvious, and we all question how they can make money with their great prices)

And now onto the more pressing issue...... (I am running out of dishes...... hihi) So, if u know anyone that can be trusted to install a dishwasher, i am all ears.... It needs to have the hoses routed through some cupboards and connected to the water in and out under the sink.

:-)

Monday, April 30, 2007

NEW APARTMENT!!!

Wow!!! Do i ever feel adult now, or what??? (Atleast when i think about that i bought an apartment......hihi) Its a little bit on the small side (42 sqm) but in a decent location and it has a proper oven, shower, cabletv and finally i am getting seriously connectted to the net again. All good.

Moving, though..... Not my favourite thing in the world...... Ohwell, the stuff lives at my new place and i am off to New York for almost 2 weeks.

:3D

Thursday, April 19, 2007

Countdown....

Weeee.......

1st of may i am off to train at the WTKO Honbudojo.

3rd of june, off to Trieste to train with Koike Yutaka`s hero, Paolo Bolaffio.

And on the 27th of june, 10 icelanders go and make Norway unsafe.

All good. (feel free to help me count down, btw..... hihi)

:-)

Saturday, March 31, 2007

Grading 31/4-07

Proud of you, guys. In no particular order:

Eythor
Bjørg
Maria
Åsa
Tommy
Thrøstur
Eyrun

Pass shodan.

Friday, March 23, 2007

Sweden.... :-)

Well, the icelanders are back to make Stockholm unsafe again...

Settled in at the hotel, and now we are apparently going shopping...

-----------

Its now sunday morning and i think we did better this year than i thought we would. 4 bronze and one silver was the result from yesterday. A couple of mistakes on our part, bit of bad luck and a bit of bad judging, but all in all; We did well.

:-)

Monday, March 19, 2007

Ramblings, the sequel

First installment of this series has been hidden due to excessive negativity on my part. And seeing as nothing of this really matters in the big scheme of things: Ohwell.

Thursday, March 15, 2007

UM-07

Apparently Breidablik and KAK is doing something right these days....... (A)

First and second place in the "best club" competition, again.....
Congratulations, guys. Just goes to show that basic simple
shotokan done right still works.

Highlights for me this time, in no particular order:

Heidas Bassai Dai
Gummis power
Åsa showed up when sick and won silver and gold.
Bjørgs Jion

The rest of the competitors from the 2 clubs also made
me proud to be teaching here. Keep it up guys.

And to help you guys realize how good
we are, check out this guy.......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFdDBwbU7Qk

Shortly i am planning to post some of our kata to compare..... (a)


:-)

Thursday, March 08, 2007

Is it a plane? Is it a bike? Is it this or that??

NOPE!!!! Its a toy!!!! :-D

My almost brand new Mazda MX5 might not have many doors or many seats...... The roof is also of questionable quality........

But......

WHO CARES!!!!!!????!?!!!???

Hihihi...... Bright red and not very practical but how fun is it on a regular scale?

Atleast 1000...... (weeeeeeee)

NIIIZE


Saturday, February 03, 2007

Wassup? 2 :-)

So, how do i like Iceland....? (Islandsk spøk..... haha...)
Apparently very well (Mjøg vel....)

I got here 1095 days ago, and have no plans of leaving.....
On 8/2-04, though..... I was lying in my bed, looking at
the ceiling and thinking: What the hell have you done???
I had signed up for 16 weeks of teaching up here, finished
one, and was in very serious pain everywhere. I was trying
to come up with a way i could get get out of the last 15 weeks,
but thats a secret..... (hihi)

Three years later, i think this was the best that could have
happened at the time. I am now half fit again, my karate is
being kept half sharp and things are looking pretty rosy.

Thanks guys for putting up with me and thanks to Andrè
for going home and talking me into coming here. (Now if
somebody just could find that weatherguy and beat him...)

;-D

Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Wassup? :-)

I am still alive.....

2007 so far: Lots of snow, started icelandic course (erfitt...)

A djøfunni:

2/2 - 4/2 Pat McCluskey in Thorshamar
16/2 - 18/2 Koike Yutaka at Haukar
30/3 - 1/4 Kawasoe Masao

Also seniorclasses on every other sunday:

For ikkyu and above, 1700 at Thorshamar, all shotokan-
stylists are welcome. 11/2 and 25/2 and so on.

Other than that, i am off to New York again 1/5 - 11/5....
Next year someone should join me.... Training almost privately
in the WTKO honbudojo is *very* special....

June is also looking very niiize... 3/6 - 10/6 in Trieste training
with Koikes italian hero, Paolo Bolaffio of www.makotokai.com
and then ICEHOT2 with Richard Amos and Steve Ubl for a week.

A week and a half to recover in Iceland, before we scoot off to
Norway to train in Fredrikstad with the world-class team of
Aidan Trimble (awesome 7th dan) Richard Amos (superawesome
6th dan), Tom Kompier (awesome 5th dan from Holland)
and Scott Langley (awesome 4th dan instructor-class graduate)

Week off to recover in Stavanger, and back to my fab blue house.
(I hope it dont get taken down.... Feel free to join me in the hoping)
 
Google+