Practical Karate, Again

Yes, my friends, I am struggling to find my inner Soshin . Probably I am not humble enough (I knew that) but this week has been a challenge to my endurance. No, two months of inactivity and my injuries are not excuses for how bad I performed these days. I just joined a new club in my hometown and had a couple of classes there. I am mainly a karateka but decided to cross-train for a while in something new. Well, they just played with me. ALL of THEM. All the time. And this is hard to accept for someone with so many years of martial experience. You defeated so many people under so many different rule sets that being manhandled by so many people in so short time hurts.  It is difficult to accept. Me feeling like an ant Yes, struggling to not give up. My new training mates are expert grapplers. Really good. Better than 99% of other people I met in my life. And that made me think that all the crappy grappling that we see in most today's bunkai videos ar...

I just came across this picture of Osama Bin Laden wearing a karategi and a black belt... I am actually curious about who his Sensei is. Looks like he is from Taiwan (the flag) but I am not sure who he is. Anyone can recognize him? Anyone has any footage of Bin Laden doing kata or kumite ? That would be interesting to say the least. @practicalkarateagain in Facebook

One of my training mates gifted me with a Japanese flag on my BRAND NEW gi. Well, life. @practicalkarateagain in Facebook

In this great selfie you can see my perfectly bent nose, product of a street fight when I was 10, that I lost against someone twice my size.  No, not a product of my courage but an attack. Well, kids... This morning I went to visit my Sensei, Celedonio García to his dojo, Celvic , to remember old times. Fortunately (for him) he is on holidays so I could not see him, but I got inside to take some pics from the different rooms and feel some nostalgia. The place is big (three stories) and Sensei is always experimenting and moving the weight room, the aerobic room and the dojo around almost every summer. I have trained in four different rooms in this place lol. Oh, there he is: Being caught in a wrist lock by his daughter.  Good job training her, Sensei!! Next week classes start again and I will be there to polish my Shotokan, that is in need of an update. Oss Sensei!!! @practicalkaratea...

On this sunny morning I have decided to resume training. Not that I decided to stop, but I moved to Spain, I had an injury (yes, always) and a bit of laziness made me take a hiatus that has ended today (yesterday, actually). Beautiful endless beaches... Yes, I lost some of my fitness during this monthly break, but I am not going to lie to you... Time to get some work done, bus as you can see, my protuding left rib prevents me from crunching. Some running in the park before going back to the beach for a pose: Just imitating Tombatossals , mythological hero of my hometown, Castellón de la Plana. You can have some views to really scale the size of that statue:  Tombatossals And after training, a nice treat: Wild figs!!! I love them!!! @practicalkarateagain in Facebook

Good morning everyone. Sorry for the long time without writing. I am in Spain now trying to decide my future. News are coming soon, but today let me show you the new video that the Honbu Dojo of Yuzenkai has produced. I hope you like it! @practicalkarateagain in Facebook