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The 5 D’s of Self Defense

  • July 24, 2022
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One of my favorite lessons that I have learned from An-Shu Hayes was his five “D” approach to technique application. Each of the kata …

Mai-ai (Gap) vs. Ku-Kan

  • June 12, 2022
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“Mai-ai” and “Ku-kan” are two terms that have been regularly referenced in my To-Shin Do training by several different teachers. These terms can describe …

The Three Facets of the Warrior Mindset

  • May 24, 2022
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The Three Facets of the Warrior Mindset.  I always hesitate to use the word “warrior.” I’m not a warrior in the truest usage of …

Kuzushi “Taking or Maintaining Balance”

  • April 16, 2022
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The term “kuzushi” is typically used in our dojo when we are referring to taking our training partners’ balance or striving to maintain our …

Kamae: “Posture” or “Base”

  • March 17, 2022
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In our To-Shin Do training, we constantly refer to the concept of “Kamae”. An-Shu Stephen K. Hayes has defined it as “base”. We keep …

Ukemi: Receiving Skills

  • February 20, 2022
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Of all of the things that we practice in our taijutsu and jiu-jitsu training, what is the skill that we are most likely to …

Fall 2019 Tengu Training Review

  • November 22, 2019
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We deviated from our usual Tengu Training formula for the Fall 2019 Tengu Training Retreat. Rather than head up to “Shin Togakure” (a private …

Ninja Gear Review: TOPS Tom Brown Tracker

  • April 19, 2019
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As a younger man, I found the books written by Tom Brown Jr. about his survival training under “Grandfather” irresistible. I’m sure that I’ve …

Ninja Gear Review: Pathseeker

  • April 12, 2019
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Naked and Afraid star, To-Shin Do Ninjutsu Fourth Degree Black Belt, high level Filipino and Malaysian Martial Arts practitioner, author, speaker, and all around …