(Part 2) Top products from r/karate

Here is most of my library, broken down, with links and some thoughts on each.

Karate Specific

• The Bubishi by Patrick McCarty (Amazon) - I think this book needs to be in every library.
  
• Classical Kata of Okinawan Karate by Patrick McCarthy (Amazon) - One of the first books I purchased by McCarthy. Details older version of classic kata found in a lot of traditional styles.
  
• Karatedo by My Way of Life - Gichin Funakoshi (Amazon) - Great read! I really nice view at the life of Funakoshi.
  
• The Twenty Guiding Principles of Karate by Gichin Funakoshi (Amazon) - Another great read. While I'm no longer a practitioner of Shotokan, I believe the teachings of Funakoshi should be tought to every karateka.
  
• Okinawan Karate : Teachers, styles and secret techniques by Mark Bishop (Amazon) - Great amount of historical content, and helped link a few things together for me.
  
• The Study of China Hand Techniques by Morinobu Itoman (Lulu.com) - The only known publication by Itoman, this book detains original Okinawan Te, how it was taught, practiced, and some history. This was one of my best finds.
  
• The Essence of Okinawan Karate-do by Shoshin Nagamine (Amazon) - Great details on Matsubayashi Shorin-ryu kata, and some nice historical content.
  
• The Way of Kata by Lawrence Kane & Kris Wilder (Amazon) - Fantastic book on diving deeper into kata to find the application of the techniques.
  
• Classic Kata of Shorinji Ryu: Okinawan Karate Forms of Richard 'Biggie' Kim by Leroy Rodrigues (Amazon) - Not quite accurate as to the title, this book details the versions of shorinji-ryu kata as if they were taught by a Japanese school. Still able to use, as long as you understand what stances and techniques have changed between Okinawa and Japan.
  
• Black Belt Karate by Jordan Roth (Amazon) - This was a gift from a friend. I have a First Edition hard cover. Shotokan specific, and has some nice details on the kata.
  
• Karate-do Kyohan: The Master Text by Gichin Funakoshi (Amazon) - Love this book, especially for the historical content.
  
• Kempo Karate-do by Tsuyoshi Chitose (Shindokanbooks.com) - The only known book from Chitose, highlights his history, his thoughts and ideas for practicing karate-do as a way of life, and contains steps for practicing Henshu-Ho. Chitose is the creator of the style I study. I have this book for obvious reasons. Your mileage may vary.
  
  Kobujutsu Specific
  
  
• Okinawan Weaponry: Hidden methods, ancient myths of Kobudo & Te by Mark Bishop (Amazon) - Really great detail into the history of some of the weapons and the people who taught them from Okinawa.
  
• Okinawan Kobudo Vol 1 & 2 (Lulu.com) - Fantastic books detailing the kihon and kata of Okinawan Kobudo. Anyone who takes Ryukyu Kobujutsu, and doesn't want to spend hundreds of dollars on the original texts by Motokatsu Inoue, this is the next best thing.
  
• Bo: Karate Weapon of Self-Defense by Fumio Demura (Amazon) - Purchased it for the historical content. Doesn't actually apply to anything in Ryukyu Kobujutsu, but still a decent read. I also have his Nunchaku and Tonfa books.
  
  Other Martial Arts
  
  
• Applied Tai Chi Chuan by Nigel Sutton (Amazon) - A great introduction to Cheng Style Tai Chi, detailing some of the fundamentals and philosophy behind the teachings.
  
• Tai Chi Handbook by Herman Kauz (Amazon) - More Cheng Style Tai Chi, but this one has more emphasis on teaching the shortened form (37 steps).
  
• Tai Chi Chuan: Classical Yang Style: The Complete Long Form and Qigong by Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming (Amazon) - Just received this for Chirstmas, and looking forward to diving in. Includes some history of Tai Chi Chuan, Yang style Tai Chi, philosophy, and has instruction on the complete long form (108 steps)
  
• The Text-book of Ju-Jutsu as Practiced in Japan by Sadakazu Uyenishi (Amazon) - I have a very old version of this book (1930ish). Picked it up for the historical content, but still a great read.
  
• Tao of Jeet Kun Do by Bruce Lee (Amazon) - Notes on technique, form, and philosophy from Bruce Lee. Another must read for every martial artist, regardless of discipline.
  
• Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: The Ultimate Guide to Dominating Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Mixed Martial Arts Combat by Alexandrew Paiva (Amazon) - Excellent step by step illustrations on performing the basic techniques in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. Easy to understand and follow. Contains several tips on what to watch out for with each technique as well.
  
  Health and Anatomy
  
  
• The Anatomy of Martial Arts by Dr. Norman Link and Lily Chou (Amazon) - Decent book on the muscle groups used to perform specific techniques in martial arts. On it's own, not totally useful (but not useless), but with the next book, becomes gold!
  
• Bodyweight Strength Training Anatomy by Bret Contraris (Amazon) - Brilliant book that details what muscles are use for what type of action, and gives examples on body weight exercises that pin-point those specific muscle groups. My best purchase of 2014, especially when paired with the previous book.
  
• Martial Mechanics by Phillip Starr (Amazon) - Slightly Chinese Martial Arts specific, but contains great material on how to strengthen stances and fine-tune technique for striking arts.
  
  EDIT: I can't believe I forgot this one...
  
  
• The Little Black Book of Violence by Lawrence Kane & Kris Wilder (Amazon) - Fantastic book about situational awareness, what happens during fights, and the aftermath. LOVED this book.
  

If you can find the Demura books (example: https://www.amazon.com/Tonfa-Karate-Weapon-Self-Defense-Literary/dp/0897500806/) real cheap, they're worth it. I have the tonfa one and the sai one. There are some great youtubes out there as well. I've never tried any of the instructional DVDs.

I was fortunate because the class I was taking delved into some of the weapons. I wouldn't have been able to compete with the instruction I got there but the instructor was able to show us basic strikes and blocks.

I'm by no means an expert or anything and I would never rely on it in the real world, especially to block something but I can knock you pretty good with it and I have fun :)

You're sure to find The Book of Five Rings cheaply and/or at a library. I've only read excerpts, but a lot of it, surprizingly, sounded like Uechi to me.

Here's another easy find, written by the father of the author of Turning the Mind into an Ally: Shamballa Warrior

Kata were originally the distillation of fighting techniques. But because of the Japanese obsession with secrecy it is pretty clear that most - and by most I actually mean practically all - sensei have no idea of what the techniques actually are. "Bunkai" is the name for the application of the techniques contained in the kata, and most bunkai you are taught is bunk. Some sensei have made an effort to find more realistic bunkai - Iain Abernethy is one, Bill Burgar is another, and there are a few others, but take it as read that the bunkai you will be taught won't be remotely realistic.

Having said that, kata are a way to demonstrate your control of your body, your form, your technique; and for that reason they are important. They are the heart of karate, and while they are a pain to remember, once they are internalised they become the expression of your karate. And they are never perfect, they only get better with time.

https://www.amazon.com/te-Jitsu-Gichin-Funakoshi/dp/0920129226/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1535833630&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=to+te+jutsu&dpPl=1&dpID=51RZJ82cTYL&ref=plSrch

To-Te Jutsu is a reprint of Karate Jutsu.

https://www.amazon.ca/Karate-Do-Kyohan-Master-Empty-Hand/dp/1534962700/ref=asc_df_1534962700/?tag=googlemobshop-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=234376523249&hvpos=1o2&hvnetw=g&hvrand=7517370741472399832&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001291&hvtargid=pla-293946777986&psc=1

1rst Edition or Karate Do Kyohan (1935) is a superior text in every way


Edit: UK links


https://www.amazon.co.uk/Te-Jitsu-Gichin-Funakoshi/dp/0920129226

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Karate-Do-Kyohan-Master-Empty-Hand/dp/1534962700/ref=mp_s_a_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1535857264&sr=8-1-fkmr0&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=karate+do+kyohan+1st

Prey for Judgment by Gerald L. Orange

If you are set on learning kobudo from a book, please, please use this one: https://www.amazon.com/Fumio-Demuras-Weapons-Self-Defense-Complete/dp/0897502116

I read "Chojun", by Goran Powell, a while back and thoroughly enjoyed it.

​

Amazon UK link

Thanks for your comments everyone!

I also ended up picking up:

[Solo Training 2] (http://www.amazon.com/Solo-Training-Building-Effective-Grappling/dp/188033688X/)

[Timing in the Fighting Arts] (http://www.amazon.com/Timing-Fighting-Arts-Winning-Surviving-ebook/dp/B001GIOGLO/)

and for something a bit different [Warrior Speed] (http://www.amazon.com/Warrior-Speed-Ted-Weimann/dp/1880336383/)

Some people have posted second-by-second breakdowns... I'm far too lazy for that... er.... I mean, I try to confine myself to correcting one thing at once. Yeah, that's it.

What jumps out at me is that you are leaning forward. Not a little bit, but a lot. This breaks the mechanical linkage of your arm movements to your center of mass, which is why you have the appearance of being "arms-only" in a lot of what you are doing.

The major point of sanchin isn't to make loud breathing noises. It's to control and time tension and relaxation of abdominal muscles, and holding and releasing abdominal pressure. None of which matters for a fig if you aren't mechanically linking those arm movements to what you are doing with your body core.

I suggest consulting this book for more details than you ever imagined existed.

Practical bunkai is pretty much not taught by the Japanese instructors who came from the JKA. I was with the ISKF for over 20 years. Bunkai was only ever used for demonstrations at tournaments, and then it was only the pre-arranged multiple attackers doing karate techniques thing.

That's not to say that practical bunkai oyo is entirely absent from their group. I'm sure there are some high-level critical thinkers among their ranks. The author JD Swanson is a member of the ISKF.