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Martial arts and fitness — All recent blog posts
Challenges of triathlon training
An interesting article in the Herald Tribune deals with the problematic nature of triathlon training.
Apart from the obvious level of physical ability required, most amateur athletes who compete in triathlon find that excelling equally in all three aspects of the race a difficult task.
link
The 19th century gym
If you were wondering "what the hell is that thing?" you may be surprised to hear that it is in fact the forefather of today's gym. This is one of many bizarre contraptions made by the Swedish physician Gustav Zander.
Cabinet magazine report:
Moony writes about it in the hebrew blog
CCTV in Britain failed to cut crime rates
The United Kingdom is leading the Orwellian world in the number of video surveillance cameras suctioned by the public in a futile effort to control terrorism.
It now seems that the huge investment and the anti privacy losses were for naught - Less then 3% of street robberies in London were solved using CCTV images.
The issues involving the spread and use both of state sanctioned surveillance and video equipped private phones has the Akban thinktank pondering the implications of this visibility, both for martial arts experts and for inexperienced citizens alike.
From Guardian.co.uk
New weapon: flickering light?
A strange one indeed, apparently strobe lights are the police force's weapon of the future. As explained on NewScientist:
And here I was thinking of a future with sinister looking high-powered laser guns.
They should also play some 70's disco B-side music as an accompaniment, so as to further shock the target.
link
Chinese knife owners no longer anonymous
In a move aimed at reducing violence in the lead up to the coming world Olympics, China has decreed that citizens must register their identities when buying potentially dangerous knives.
Probably a good idea, a simple scuffle can quickly escalate into a very bloody affair with the help of a knife. Not that only "dangerous" knives can cause serious injuries.
Sadly, US citizens can only dream of this kind of law, as even firearms regulations in the states are lax.
link
Today, on the eve of Remembrance Day , times of the lessons change
Today, on the eve of Remembrance Day to the memory of those who have lost their lives in defense of our lives here in Israel, the training will cease at exactly 20:00 when the one-minute air-raid siren will sound across the country.
Training for the afternoon groups will end at 19:30, training session for the veteran martial arts practitioners will include only the 1st segment and will end with the entrance of the Remembrance day at 8 P.M.
Exercise and mental health
A recent study found that as little as 20 minutes of physical activity a week can boost your mood. The more intensive the activity, the greater the effect.
Associating sports and physical activity with well being is hardly a new way of thinking, but the effect on mental health has so far never been measured.
Daily physical activity of any kind -- including housework, gardening, walking, and sports -- was associated with a 41 percent lower risk of psychological distress. But sports reduced the risk of mood lows the most -- by 33 percent."
Twenty minutes a week translates into just under three minutes a day, a good starting point for a daily exercise routine.
link
Research shows an unsteady diet may reduce lifespan
Recent research by Glasgow University may draw a connection between "crash dieting" (a term given to an unsteady diet with large fluctuations in daily food intake) and a lesser lifespan. During the research, scientists
This ties in with the simple rule that dieting alone cannot be a substitute for exercise. A weight loss regime that does not include exercise can force us into abnormal eating patterns, such as a "binge then diet" pattern, while not doing much to help us lose weight.
link
Building your own Iron Man suit
With the "Iron Man" movie release, the next few months are sure to see a flood of Iron Man must-have toys and gadgets. However, those more concerned with self-defense will not be satisfied with these trinkets. They will of course, like myself, want to build their own Iron Man suit in order to deal with common threats such as muggers, terrorists and roving bands of mutant ninja zombies.
At first this may seem like another botched garage DIY job, but as the guys at WIRED explain, creating your own full body armor isn't as complicated as it seems:
Akban's "Essential self-defense equipment" list also includes:
The Akban AHMD helmet
The Akban SUV
link to the article
Mind reading devices taking control of video games
Last month Emotive announced another device that's claiming to bridge the gap between thoughts and video game controllers.
The device reads EEG and transforms them into electrical signal to be used in a variety of systems.
This is not the first device that takes the gamer one step closer into the realm where virtual fighting can simulate reality. We reported on the Wii controller earlier this year.
I am not too happy about these tech development as I do not think anything can take the place of the Dojo. But I also know for sure - nothing will stop technology. Is this the beginning of the end for martial arts? We have already seen flight drones replacing real pilots. Are UFC fighters the obvious next step?
Necessity of outside training in karate – Okinawa and Hawaii
A refreshing article describes training outside in Karate as a necessary part of the student's regime.
The writer of the article, who practices old school Chibana Chosin Shorin Ryu and Ryukyu Kobudo, writes about old school karate groups that used to go out in Okinawa and practice in the dark of night.
I enjoyed reading about other martial arts and schools that like us, in Akban, use the benefits and the real advantage of training outside.
There is absolutely no substitute to outside training, a person who learned stepping only inside a dojo will be missing an important aspect of combat and will also have many other deficits that will inhibit his growth in martial arts. This is especially important in these modern times when everything that surrounds us is urban and man made.
link to the Karate article
Server downtime of Akban.org martial arts website fixed
Due to server downtime our website was down for a few hours, our apologies. A trusted team of top Akban-Bifugi experts with our hosts' team spent a nerve wrecking time trying to solve the puzzle and run an FSCK - File System Check. Thanks to Matt Guza we finally went online.
UFC organization signs another major deal with advertisers
The mixed martial arts media company of the UFC signed another deal with Anheuser-Busch, the manufacturers of Bud Light, the world’s best-selling beer.
This adds to another major deal with Harley Davidson. Both of these deals show the huge support and mainstream acceptance of this rising form of spectator sport.
I think I can safely predict the future popularity of this gladiator sport form and it's heroes.
Four Budo Ninjutsu students passed the 1st kyu tests
Four students passed the brown belt tests with flying colors.
These tests necessitate more then 6-7 years of dojo training and are a preliminary to the long time it takes (13 years)to collect enough experience for the 1st Dan (black belt) in dojos that graduated the Akban school.
Three veterans oversaw the tests that included all of the 1st kyu material in the test book.
Link to the Budo Ninjutsu grade requirements with videos of the techniques.
Not all schools need such a long time to prepare the students. We do and we still have mixed feelings about it.
Traditional weapons portal and Katori sword techniques
Added to the Akban-wiki, the martial arts and fitness encyclopedia are most of the weapon kata of Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū.
A new Traditional weapons portal is already on the Akban-wiki and includes, Seitei gata, Katori and Budo Ninjutsu. We also started to document western sword techniques, in that same portal.
Have fun exploring our growing Martial arts database.
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