back in the day I took Issyn Ryu for a short time.
It blew away mostly all the other stuff I had seen
(TKD/Hap Ki Do) and, if MMA never come about,
I may have continued studying this art.
Cool stuff with lots of throws.
You mean Isshin-Ryu?
I have a brown belt ranking in Isshin Ryu. I liked it a lot before I got into Kyokushin and then Muay Thai.
Golden Arm, which do you like better/find more practical, the Muay Thai or the Kyokushin? (This question is not loaded or political, it's just a straight out question, which do you like better?)
1groovyunit, that is a good question. I really, really enjoyed the Kyokushin training. I was fortunate enough to train (in Okinawa, ironically) under the man who would later become the head of IKO2, Yasuhiro Shichinohe. A giant for a Japanese man, he was about 6'2" and 220 lbs. with a 400 lb. bench press. The training was brutal; he was there to make knockdown fighters, period. The punches were like boxing (only to the body, though)and the leg kicks were like Muay Thai. No pads, full contact, all the time. I limped away from every class. It was all about heart and spirit; that's why Kyokushin is referred to as "Budo karate".
That being said, I think that Muay Thai is a little more practical. More clinch work, punches to the head are allowed, and the training is designed to save the fighter for the fight. But Kyokushin had that almost mystical feeling to the training that made me feel like I was following in Mas Oyama's footsteps, y'know? That's the appeal of traditional martial arts in general, I think.
Thank you for the answer, and good luck
Mark
I did Isshinryu with legend Doug Noxen (sp?) back in the late 60's and
early 70's.
Hard core training, but I loved it.