World Of Swords

Kicks are one of the best and most powerful weapons you can develop. Not only are kicks cardio intensive, giving an instant sweat during a work out, but they are one of the most powerful weapons you can have in a fight. After all, most people don't know how to use their legs, and if you do, instant advantage.

Of course, kicks take a little extra hard work if they are going to be great. But if you take your time and do learn the types of kicks in a certain pattern...you can have power busting kicks of the first magnitude. That said, let's go over the proper order of kicks.

The first kick is merely standing and doing the kick. You don't have to have a stance, you can even put your hand on the wall, and do them at a moderate and easy on the body speed. The idea here is to look at your body examine how it has to move to generate efficient and effective kicks.

The second kick is going to be done from stationary stances. Take a kick like a simple front snap kick, low level to begin, higher as you get better, and learn how to apply it from the rear leg while standing in a front stance. Go through all the stances you know, one by one, kicking with the foot you are not standing on.

The third kick is to use your weight leg for the kicking. This means you kick with the leg you are standing on. Again, go through your stances, but this time figure out how to hop so that the leg you do not have weight on replaces the leg you are standing on, and the leg you are standing on does the kick.

The fourth kick is to explore the direction you are kicking in. This is going to require some quick contortions of the body. Simply do the third kick, described in the last paragraph, but this time kick first north, then set up and do the kick to the west, then the east, then the south.

Now, there are a few things you should remember as you go through these four stages. Don't be one of these people who do ten kicks per kick and then quit. Do a hundred kicks, three hundred, even five hundred kicks per kick.

The idea is to develop your legs so that they are as light and easy to use as your hands. So concentrate on learning how to relax while you do your kicks. Soon your kicks will be second nature, light and easy, marvelous little things of quick flick, and yet able to instantly end any fight.

The San Jose, CA based Strikeforce MMA promotion recently announced that they have signed Brazilian middleweight Ronaldo Jacare Souza to a multifight contract. He is expected to make his Strikeforce debut on the same October event as recently signed Fedor Emelianenko, which will be broadcast on the Showtime premium cable network.

In a statement released by the promotion, Souza expressed his pleasure at the signing:

I am very excited that I will have the opportunity to fight in STRIKEFORCE amongst many of the worlds best middleweight fighters. STRIKEFORCE has an extremely deep roster of top middleweight fighters. I am looking forward to the challenge and to taking my career to the next level.

Souza is better known in Japan simply as Ronaldo Jacare. He got the nickname in his hometown of Manaus, Brazil"its Portuguese for a species of alligator that is common to the area. He clearly likes the moniker, and is known for making ring entrances either shimmying on the ground like his reptilian namesake or making alligator jaws with his arms.

Hes also considered one of the best Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioners in the sport. He was a runner up in the 2008 DREAM Middleweight Grand Prix Tournament, losing in the finals to Gegard Mousasi. Jacare was in control of the fight until he got caught by a Mousasi upkick that knocked him unconscious. His only other loss in MMA competition came in his professional debut in 2003. In his last fight, he faced American Jason Mayhem Miller in a rematch of their DREAM tournament bout. This fight ended in a no contest after Mayhem was cut by an inadvertent illegal blow. Hes tentatively slated to face Miller again at DREAM 11 in October, though that hasnt been addressed either by Strikeforce or DREAM parents FEG. With the two promotions recently agreeing to a working relationship that includes a talent exchange, theres a possibility the matchup could be contested on the October Strikeforce event.

Souza, who took up Brazilian Jiu Jitsu at the age of 17, fought MMA legend Randy The Natural Couture to a draw in a grappling contest in 2006 and, shortly thereafter, began training at Xtreme Couture. He has since returned to training in his homeland but will reportedly train in the United States at least part time going forward.

MMA fans are already anticipating several excellent potential matchups for Jacare in Strikeforce, including an almost inevitable showdown with another of the worlds top middleweights, Jake Shields. Also of great interest would be a catchweight matchup between Souza and Shields Cesar Gracie Jiu Jitsu teammate, Nick Diaz.

UFC Ultimate fighter is fast becoming one of the biggest shows in America. Will it ever be the number one? Well, I guess that depends on who you ask. I personally think the sport is just going to continue getting bigger. Im not sure if it will ever be the number one sport though. This sport does appeal to a lot of age groups, which could be why the sport is expanding at such an incredible rate.

Why is UFC Ultimate Fighter show gaining such wide audiences? Is it because of the short, fast paced, 5 minute rounds, which can be a non-stop adrenaline rush! With fights ending in knockout or submissions before the first round even ends. Is it because the sport appeals to so many different age groups or is it because its new and exciting, will it phase out in a few years?

With the UFC being noticed now for being athletes, who train just as hard, perhaps even harder than normal athletes! Will this sport finally gain the respect it deserves? It used to be called a blood sport or cock fighting. In fact I believe some people still regard the sport as that. Do people realize the discipline involved now, the constant workouts for strength, conditioning and of course the martial arts training. With the fighters spending weeks in a house together with no television, phones, well basically any outside communication is banned. You can imagine the stress these fighters go through. Hopefully it will be worth it all for one fighter that will win a six figure UFC contract.

This sport has gone through some remarkable transformations over the years. The UFC has done remarkable things for MMA with the UFC Ultimate Fighter show. What one was viewed only by a few thousand people at most, to now broadcasted to millions of people over America.

With impressive sales and huge demand, the UFC is the number one place for fighters to go to. If you want to fight the best fighters in the world you will have to break into the UFC ranks. Once there you will be able to make a very nice living, well if youre good.

So if youre new to this sport, and you have just starting to follow the UFC Ultimate Fighter show you are in for a great ride. If youre already a fan and have been following the show for a while, Im sure you will agree with me, this is a fantastic sport which will only get bigger.