The Taekwondo Face-Block

Here's a video of the (oddly enough) ever-so-popular taekwondo face-block.

No one quite uses the head and face to block an attack like these guys... Great kicking though, I'll definitely give him that much.

Poking Fun at Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

The Simpsons is a brilliant TV-show. Here's Homer being challenged to face his doom with Brazilian  jiu-jitsu.

Just to be clear, in case there are any haters out there - I love BJJ and grappling (as well as The Simpsons). In fact I train BJJ myself.

A Rare Karate Nutcase

Karate fight - Illustration from Flickr.com

This South-African dude is a rare karate nutcase for sure. For one he is a well known journalist and media figure losing his cool ...

...If you can claim that going absolutely mental is "losing your cool".

Then, this karateka not only goes mental, he absolutely beats up a female colleague! How about that for being ka-rotty ka-razy?

the "best" part though is that it appears he used his martial arts skills to beat up his female co-worker over something as trivial as singing...

Yes folks, singing...

Apparently, the female victim told the ka-razy journalist that he should stick to his day job and stop his vocal performance.

Apparently, he didn't take too kindly to the critic, and you can go here to read about the karate madman.

And if you want to know what happened to his day job, then the answer is that he don't have one right now... Bummer.

Anger in Aikido

Anger in aikido? Image from Wikipedia.org

What are we suggesting here ... anger in aikido? The art of peace, harmony and humanity? Noooh, say it ain't so!

What would O-Sensei say if this was even remotely true?

These nice folks in hakama are supposed to be the very embodiment of cool and tranquility - no room for primal anger or aggression here mate!

We'll it appears that at least one aikidoka takes it very personal that someone dare claim that his hero, non other than movie star Steven Seagal, has been choked out by a "simple" judoka, an old school hard man in the form of Judo Gene LeBell.

True or untrue - keep smiling, and read more about it here.

How to Choose a Martial Art

Here's Eddie Izzard's comedy take on how to choose a martial art. Brilliant observations :-)

Talent for Martial Arts

Talent or perseverance - From Flickr.com

You may or may not have what we may think of as talent for martial arts.

Similarly you may (or may not) believe yourself that you have the talent it takes to be good at it.

Without a doubt, some people takes faster to certain activities, and they seems to be able to do things without much of an effort.

Do these "naturally talented" people tend to stick with their martial arts training for any length of time? Sadly no. Almost without fail, they tend to get bored and quit before they get really good.

The ones that actually do become very good are the ones that stick to the training - the ones that have the perseverance and who show up again and again, class after class.

In other words: Talent is not nearly as important as perseverance, "just doing it".

We discuss the talent factor in this blog post. Remember to watch the video at the end!

Kung Fur Fighting

These cats may be doing a kata (in feline speak: Cata). Or, it may be actual kung fur (genuine animal style kung fu) fighting - what do you think?

Bad Taste of Martial Arts

Really mixed-up martial arts - From Flickr.

If you want a very bad taste of martial arts - the kind that make you cringe and run for cover - then simply dive into a mixture of extremists politics, fanatic religious views ... and a touch of martial arts.

Really mixed-up martial arts in all it's eh... glory.

Former action star great Chuck Norris have apparently lost all credibility and it's time to say goodbye to his "can't get farther to the right", Christian fanatic ramblings.

It's seriously not often that religious/political statements make me want to throw up, but this is darned close.

You can read more about the scary bland of religion and martial arts and far out religious views here.

The Suck-Factor in Traditional Martial Arts

Traditional martial arts sucks? From Flickr.

I'm sure you have heard a number of times how the suck-factor in traditional martial arts (TMA) can be very high?

It goes without saying that such statements in general comes from the people who don't do TMA, or who have done some bullshido/McDojo variety of it before - typically when they were children.

Those of us who find it very meaningful to do the more traditional arts like karate, taekwondo, judo and ju-jitsu, knows that there are lots of benefits associated with this type of training. Also, it should be quite self-explanatory that not everyone aim at being MMA fighters, or train the latest and greatest "street-approved combat style of self-defense.

That's all well and fine, but there still may be some elements of truth about the suck-factor in traditional martial arts. It appears that this is more than anything a problem in the USA, and you can read more about it here.

MMA Zombie Film

A zombie film/movie with mixed martial arts action..? Apparently that's what you get with 'Zombie Apocalypse'. Not at all sure if I'm ready for an MMA zombie film.

Just a bit curious whether it's zombies turning fighters or fighters turning zombies. It may be argued that some fighters are close to that state already...

Martial Arts Instructor Description

To balance out the naughty bit below, here's a very accurate martial arts instructor description. In my experience, it's basically a home run :-)

An accurate description of martial arts instructors at work...

MMA and Gay "Pron"

Not sure if this is the image the macho guys want of the UFC and mixed martial arts.. May be too close for comfort though?

And just in case you wonder, A. this is humor, and B. it does not represent my view on MMA and gay "pron" :-)

Maybe ... or maybe rather not

No Olympic MMA

No Olympic MMA - From Flickr.com

Whether you find it OK/fine, or you really get mad at the idea, here's the thing: There will be no Olympic MMA - or Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) for that matter.

Let me rephrase that a little bit before the hard-core mixed martial arts fans gets a full-blown seizure ... these sports will not be included in any foreseeable future.

Sure, the current fighting arts in the Olympic games are about as exiting to watch as drying paint - in other words extremely boring unless you're into that particular art/sport.

And sure enough, MMA is - whether we like it or not - a massive force to be reckoned with on the combat sports arena. It's action packed and intriguing in ways that say taekwondo or judo can never be.

Still, the chances that MMA - or other sports like BJJ - will be a part of the Olympic family any time soon is close to zero.

And no, I'm not the one saying so. I love BJJ (been doing it myself for some time) and I can't see why a modified version of MMA shouldn't be made to fit the Olympic program. There are others - people with more knowledge than me who says so.

Read more about it here.

Martial Arts Violence

Violence - Illustration from Flickr.com 

Make sure you check out the latest blog post about martial arts violence, discussing a rather stupid video posted by a well-known individual - said to be a philosopher.

This nit-wit somehow finds the opportunity to insult a lot of people doing martial arts, without even blinking.

He's basically claiming that the real reason that we do martial arts is that we use it to deal with our childhood abuse... Exactly ... you heard that right.

So you my martial arts friend have a checkered past, whether you admit it or not - whether you're aware of it  or not. You see, this individual is right and we - who actually do martial arts because we find the training enjoyable for a variety of reasons - are wrong.

This confused individual even has the nerves to get on his high horse and "feel genuinely sorry" for us.

You can read the full blog post here. I would love it if you left a comment. Also, hop over to YouTube and leave a comment there too - remember to vote his silly video rambling down, please!

It is really sad to see apparently intelligent individuals missing the boat completely as in this case.

The Krotty Lions

Here are the krotty lions - real dangerous creatures... And don't forget, never, ever let the size fool you!

Feel free to check out the Martial Arts Humor page on Facebook, found here. A 'like is always appreciated :-)'

Bruce Eee, Kung Fu Sound Effects

Oh man, those hilarious kung-fu movie sound effects - cracks me up every time. Bruce Eeee for sure! :-)

Just to be clear - this is not late great Bruce Lee of course. Here we're talking about the not so great Bruce Li...

Confuse-Us Speaks #26

BJJ - Illustration from Flickr.com

Before we go on to the subject of being confused - I'd like to remind you all about the new Martial Arts News site. Check it out!

The site/blog you're on right now will definitely be updated from time to time, but not as regularly as before. The main attention is going to be on the new site as far as martial arts news stuff is concerned.

Any way, lets bring master Confuse-Us on...

Silly me, I thought BJJ was a part of mixed martial arts/MMA, but hey, what do I know... At least this online article apparently states otherwise.

Chef Marc Vetri likes to fight. "As a chef you have to have an outlet to let off some steam," he says. Nearly two years ago, Mr. Vetri took up Brazilian jiu-jitsu, a mixed-martial art that focuses on ground fighting and self-defense.

"Brazilian jiu-jitsu, a mixed-martial art"... Okay... We all learn something as we go along I guess.

Ninja vs MMA

Well, not ninja vs MMA for real obviously. It's a fun Nexus commercial featuring non other than Georges St-Pierre fighting ninja. Don't see much of his MMA skills though... :-)

Jiu-Jitsu Choke Demo

Here's an "oh sh**" moment during a jiu-jitsu choke demo - could we possibly file this under the martial arts fail category?

Wonder if the uke (the guy getting choked) is too polite or respectful to tap...

MMA Ref Lost His Cool

MMA referee - Illustration from Flickr.com

First off, I briefly want to remind you all to check out our new site regarding martial arts news related stuff, found here.

Any feedback and comments - positive or negative - is highly appreciated.

Upwards and inwards... Apparently a MMA ref lost his cool when a cornerman got angry about his fighter losing an amateur bout in

Here's what nbcsports.com has to say about the incident - do remember to check out the whole piece.

The rise of Mixed Martial Arts fighting across this fair nation has spurned the creation of many smaller MMA events that pit rogue fighters against each other.These matches resemble more along the lines of street fights than MMA matches but occasionally you see something that makes the fight worth the watch. Check out this MMA referee trying to calm down this corner man after a knockout of his fighter at a small event in Texas.

And here's a video of the knockdown: