Yo-yoing Martial Artists...

Yo-yo requires a certain discapline and drive that is found commonly in career martial artists. I myself am a Kempo karate instructor for two different dojos. So my question to you is; (if you study any martial art) What discaplines have you trained in and what rank (if applicable) have you attained?

I have my second degree black belt in Ashite-do Kempo (dav-ryu) and have studied Aikido, Shaolin Kempo, Iaido, Wing Chun, Judo, Jujitsu, Escrima, Chin-na, and Tai-chi outside my main system.

I throw a YYJ Dark Magic, a Yomega Maverick, and a Pocket Pro Zombie mainly. I want a YYJ SR-71 in the worst way though. so what about you?

definitely agree with the sentiment that yo-yoing and martial arts can rely upon/develop similar kinds of internal focus. i mainly practice aikido (nidan), as well as muso-shinden ryu iaido and shindo-muso ryu jodo. i studied tae kwon do and tai chā€™i chā€™uan in my youth.

iā€™ve alluded to training often in my blog.

always nice to meet another ā€˜yo-yo budokaā€™. :wink:

Hi, maybe mixing wing chun and 2 A would be somewhat possible adapting hand and knives techniques.

I was thinking the same thing, Iā€™m pretty sure it can be done, heck, it probably has been done already.

I quit, but I used to be a 1st degree brown belt in ISKF Shotokan Karate. ISKF- International Shotokan Karate Federation. Also, there are 3 degrees of brown before 1st degree black. I have down some basic Tae Kwon Do at some classes also. Nothing much past this though. I have always been interested in other martial arts, mainly Kempo and Tai-chi. As for my disciplines I would go to class twice a week for an hour and a half to two hours. I was quite fortunate because I had the privilege of having 2 sometimes 3 black belts train me at the same time. And every 3 months go to a clinic and usually test. :slight_smile: As for my main throws, (seeing as how you have posted yours) are my DM, New Breed, Protostar, and Zombie at the moment. :slight_smile:

Iā€™m a first degree black belt in tae kwon do. But the dojo shut down. My main throws are hatrick, trinity, and donā€™t forget campfire.

I take judo lessons from tim schwab, really a great teacher. Iā€™m not if itā€™s helped me with yoyoing a whole lot, but itā€™s at least kept me in shape.

In my youth I achieved the title of 3rd Degree Red Belt in Shaolin Kenpo (which at my particular school was one under a 1st Degree Black Belt. Also in the Marine Corps. I achieved Green Belt which is 2 under Black. My favorite throws currently are the YYF Frantic, YYJ Lyn Fury, MMZ (MinusMike FHZ), and Barco Energy.

Pretty interesting you should ask. I just participated in a martial arts demo today! I am a first degree brown belt. My teacher teaches many styles, so we learn how to spar, grapple, use weapons, and perform different styles of forms.
As for yoyos, I mostly use my hitman if I go out somewhere, but at home I might use my Senza Nome, Dv888, or Bully. I also have an atmosphere set up for 5a.

Iā€™m certainly not an expert about martial arts in any way, but thinking about it, I think yoyo would be more suited for chinese martial arts rather than japanese ones

canā€™t find the proper words to explain why tho, it has to do with flow and smoothness of movements in general, I find Karate maybe too ā€œhardā€ and not ā€œflowingā€ enough.

now I can be totally wrong, donā€™t quote me on this ???

Im currently take Vovinam (Vietnamese Martial Arts). Its more of a flowing art, but i also incorporate Muay Thai into it too. I currently throw SCLBs and Protostars.

I wonder if we could gather somehow?

wing chun would be nice with responsive/short strings yoyos IMO, 2A that is or maybe 5a as well, I donā€™t know
as advanced wing chun has techniques to use with a staff (5A ?) or dual knives (2A ?)

it would definately work with capoeira (spelling?)

on a slightly different note, what about yo yo and dancing (regular dancing, hip hop dancing) Some performances already are pretty close to it

I studied some Wing Chun but I donā€™t really have a rank. Iā€™m hopeā€™n to train again in the future but who knows. Iā€™m looking to get my oldest in Pai Lum soon.

For 2A you would need real short strings and 5A would have to be 9 1/2 feet to match the size of the staff, no sure how that would work out :smiley:

Lets figure this out! It sounds like a fun challenge to mix Martial Arts with Yo-yo - lets makes videos combining the two Somehow ā€¦ post 'em and be awesome like we are! Any of you guys in MA or NH for a collaboration?

I was more focused on the yo-yo, but one can see the martial arts creeping in.

Iā€™m in the middle of the U.S.Ā  It would be GREAT to meet more people, but I would have to do a lot of planning and spend some money I donā€™t quite have.

Sensei Dave, if you would like to keep an eye out for contests in your region (east coast~ish is pretty active), and contacted all of us again, and then hyped it once the date got close, I bet you could get a good turnout with other martial artists and yo-yoers.

-Jacob

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yes I mentionned the short strings, and I agree with staffā€™s length but it doesnā€™t mean itā€™s not adaptable ā€œas isā€, but Iā€™ve never been that far in WC so I canā€™t tell, Iā€™ll go back to training next year, maybe Iā€™ll try to figure out something

the point where I donā€™t see WC fit is that itā€™s a martial art that is not really ā€œartisticā€ while yo yoing purpose is at least remotely artistic

but I could imagine a punch combo with 2 yo yos spinning and probably some other techniques too, but any of em would require a total revamp including the yo yo moves instead of fists and also making sure the strings wouldnā€™t cross in any way, but a basic WC punch combo would definately work IMO, itā€™s probably worth trying but I donā€™t know any 2A

What about using Taiji (Tai Chi ) poses as the final beats of each trick? Say for example landing a modified trapeze on ā€œwild horse parts its maneā€? Maybe with any form or kata? A nunchaku form for 5a? I may try the Taiji thing but my 5a is lacking for such an endeavour. ::slight_smile:

to me, the idea of adding material thatā€™s ā€˜non-functionalā€™ to martial arts forms is frivolous and devoid of use. iā€™ve never understood the appeal of flowery martial arts ā€˜demosā€™ or techniques/forms that are so diluted by flashy performance that their connection with any martial efficacy has withered. i think that there are many similarities between yo-yoing and the martial arts in terms of how the brain approaches them and in terms of how material is disseminated/taught (just as said similarities are there in painting or sculpture or almost any pursuit that may inform our ā€˜way of lifeā€™). however, while both may inform each other, i donā€™t see any use in trying to artificially apply yo-yoing directly to the martial arts or vice versa.

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you need to get a hold of the whole form>function side of things ^^

and also dream a little, the manā€™s greatest achievements were done after some peopleā€™s craziest dreams

at one point we thought traveling past 100km/h would dislocate the human body, we walked on the moon, heck, youā€™re on the other side of the world and weā€™re discussing

I say dream on dreamer

pragmatism isnā€™t making anyoneā€™s life fun

then one day weā€™ll see a crazy vid mixing martial arts and yo yo and then people will just follow as usual.

Be positive man, mixing yo yo with martial arts might be pointless but itā€™ll definately look good enough to worth trying

no. while i appreciate the dismissive condescension, what you just posted represents everything that i detest about modern ā€˜showā€™ martial arts.

i prefaced the entire point by saying ā€˜for meā€™. it doesnā€™t matter to me how you interpret their application, but ā€˜for meā€™, the martial arts are not something i do ā€˜for funā€™. likewise, i donā€™t practice them to ā€˜look goodā€™. not everything that makes you a better, more complete person needs to be about fun or looking good. (thatā€™s not to say i donā€™t HAVE fun practicing martial arts - i do. i just donā€™t allow fun to guide my practice/study). i have plenty of aspects of my life that are all about fun (hi, yo-yoing).

and itā€™s not a matter of unwillingness to dream. iā€™ve seen a hundred martial arts demos that are ā€˜all flash, no smashā€™. iā€™m not impressed by someone in a sequin outfit doing some kind of artificial, 540-degree jump-spinning-hook-kick and iā€™d be even less impressed if they were doing 2a at the same time. itā€™s not that i believe itā€™s impossible. itā€™s that i believe that it represents the dilution of traditional martial principles; lessons that i think were useful and relevant and which our society is neglecting/forgetting. budo is about BU (protection/defense). occasionally, your practice will be fun and occasionally it might even look cool. but if youā€™re letting ANYTHING besides ā€˜BUā€™ dictate the terms of your studyā€¦ then i think your time would be better spent doing other things.

yo-yoā€™s are for play. yo-yoā€™s are for fun. the martial arts i study are decidedly not. it doesnā€™t make them less valuable.