The Truth About Rokas From @MartialArtsJourney

This is the martial arts journey of Rokas Leonavicius ‪@MartialArtsJourney‬ who founded The Ultimate Self-Defence Championship. Disillusioned by his Aikido experience, Rokas started exploring functional martial arts and combat sports like MMA.
Listen to this inspiring story of how to reinvent yourself through questioning dogmatic beliefs, applying critical thinking and rediscovering your true purpose on the path of martial arts.
You can follow Rokas journey: ‪@MartialArtsJourney‬ and ‪@Rokasleo‬
Visit my website to learn more about Karate: www.karatebyjes...
☯️ BIO: Jesse Enkamp a.k.a The Karate Nerd™ is a #1 Amazon Best-Selling Author, National Team Athlete, Keynote Speaker, Entrepreneur, Carrot Cake Lover & Founder of Seishin International - The World’s Leading Karate Lifestyle Brand.
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WARNING: The advice and movements shown in this video are for informational and educational purposes only. Consult a health professional before engaging in any exercise or martial arts program.
Music credit: Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0 - www.scottbucjkley.com.au

[@ett40146]

Rokas went from looking like a Pokémon trainer to looking like Baki the grappler.

[@Emiya_familia]

nicely comment!

[@mmareviewer.2372]

PokéDojo evolved.

[@voidlight0472]

I am so excited to see him using the cockroach dash

[@bomanhorsejack4379]

😂

[@SiberianBear-n1h]

I didn’t even recognize the guy. He now looks very athletic

[@hotpopcorncake]

Me too . I look at the roka name, I'm like "not the aikido roca guy I know". (See the clip of him) omg it's is him..

[@bastiaan0741]

@@hotpopcorncake Exactly!

[@dieselx999]

Looks like mma training made him look slightly more manly by his posture and looking more muscular and confident back then he just looked like a geek

[@phobia9358]

He sits differently too. Somehow he built confidence

[@notmyname3681]

Rokas looks like a different man since his switch. He still has the same relaxed calm and gentle air that he had before, but now he carries himself like a fighter. He is now somebody you would look at and think 'yeah, he can handle himself'.

[@bombastikderteutone6858]

Renegade Roach the Question is : is this a good thing

[@frontdeskstaff9359]

@@bombastikderteutone6858 Of course not. It would be way better if he was still insecure, full of doubt, and full of fear. Confidence in being able to protect yourself is ridiculous.

[@notmyname3681]

@@bombastikderteutone6858 Why would it not be?

[@BWater-yq3jx]

That's exactly what you want. The Conor McG thumbnail insert emphasises this. Conor can fight, but he's also the kind of person to get into pointless fights. Rokas' demeanour invites a friendly interaction... ✌️🙂 🤝 Conor's invites a punch in the face! 🖕😠 💥🤛

[@stevebrindle1724]

Confidence has an aura about it and Sensei Rokas shines with it!

[@Mr_Kujo]

Marvel: 'Infinity War is the most ambitious crossover event in history' Jesse:

[@KARATEbyJesse]

😂😂😂

[@raidenstark315]

And now arrowverse's crisis on infinite earths is the most ambitious crossover

[@ygal02]

I always admired the honesty of this guy. Not many are brave enough to be that honest.

[@stevebrindle1724]

Agreed, he is a great example to us martial artists, as Jessie is also. I am 66yrs old and have been training since my late teens, starting with 12 yrs of Wing Chun, then decades of WTF TKD reaching 3rd dan and I currently train at a great local Shotokan club. I believe that developing a good character is so important in martial arts training and these guys have achieved that it seems to me! A 9th dan TKD once told me that all martial arts are 80% the same, all around relaxation and breathing and the 20% differences are in the techniques the art concentrates on! It's about the student and the work he or she puts into their training in the end!

[@dtw4326]

Another interesting video sensei @jesseenkamp. Interested to know if your friend's decision to take the sport/MMA path was taken with/without exposure to advanced Aikido training strategies, including those learnt from Shihan in Japan that deal with multiple attackers, edged weapons, just like on the street (unlike the cage) and waza taught to disciples, live-in (uchi-deshi) students and those who use Aikido in self defense scenarios, including bouncers, French foreign legionaires etc. Also curious to hear of your friend's understanding of Kaeshi waza or Kaeshi no Kata (返の形, Forms of reversal) which, like the Go no sen-no-kata, focus on counter-attacks to techniques (just like those in judo)?

[@Elasciapurgrattar]

True, as an aikido practicioner myself, I have a lot of respect for him and I often found myself caressing the idea of joining a bjj or mma class... But maybe at 40 I'm just too old 😅

[@dtw4326]

@@Elasciapurgrattar in aikido terms this is shugyo where we ĺearn from other masters and styles.... not deviating from O Sensei's principles of self respect and protection through non violence. ✌

[@bajou4668]

@@Elasciapurgrattar Just do it. I was over 40 when I startet my journey in martial arts. It is hard, will stay hard in future, but it still is worth it.

[@treyz7847]

Salute to Rokas sensei. Martial arts is a lifelong journey, indeed. I've been following him ever since, and I love the lessons that he teaches in his videos

[@user-th9ek3jl7b]

Rokas did, what every Master/Sensei/etc should do: Evolve!

[@donnchadhmcginley3153]

Did he thought

[@user-th9ek3jl7b]

In would say it is a big improvement to let go your own Style and learn something new! He trains with one of the best MMA Coaches, so he gets some really good input. The founder of Aikido Ueshiba was also a tough fighter, who challenged and fought lots of other traditional martial artists, even before "inventing" Aikido. To become a real Martial Artist you have to find your own journey, thats what Rokas did.

[@SenseiEli]

Does evolving mean fighting in a ring? I don't think so! I love to watch MMA. I like to watch Boxing. But I would never want my kids do it! Do I have something primal that gives me thoughts about fights? Yes. Did I learn BJJ? Yes! Did I try to learn other striking methods of course! But I believe and I love what Karate gives every person! 95% of Karate students are not ring fighters nor competitors! From the 5% that might be (If they do specific training) most of them will not do that.... That is all....

[@Vitin2811]

@@donnchadhmcginley3153 i think he did

[@Vitin2811]

@@oldnatty61 a more effective one

[@grandwonder5858]

I am very impressed at how you two dudes from non-English speaking European countries are able to speak English so extremely fluently!

[@KARATEbyJesse]

Thank you 🙏 We learn it in school at a young age

[@julietpapa2657]

Theres some thing called school and it teaches you things

[@grandwonder5858]

@@julietpapa2657 How come this thing called “school” hasn’t taught the American much of anything?

[@F.A.--]

@@julietpapa2657 I remember another fighter telling Rokas he was impressed with his English because he didn't noticed any Lithuanian accent. I don't know about Lituania, but Jesse comes from an amazing country with a high level of education. I wish my country also had a school system that taught us languages at a younger age.

[@franciscordon9230]

Fantastic point, and often taken for granted.

[@Ilethsamael]

I trained in Aikido for some time when I was young. Most of techniques start with the opponent grabbing you or your wrists. This was motivated by my sensei like this:"Aikido is born in warring times when people would have a sword. If you have a sword and the opponent does not want you to use it, he will try to grab your wrists and that is where the techniques stem from." Thesword training part is not anymore part of a lot of Aikido teachings but that also means that the self defense part of Aikido is more a selfdefense from who does not want you to use your sword. It is only natural that it is not usable without weapons. The same blows that are thrown are a mimic of the sword techniques. It looks like it has been to watered down that the attack patterns have been almost completely taken away from it. Ther eis weapon training but I never saw unarmed training in my years.

[@ml5955]

I wish more martial artists would possess his level of humility and honesty. He has great potential in MMA.

[@mmareviewer.2372]

pretty brave coming out and just improving himself with honesty helping other people rather than being a coward and just avoiding what others could truly learn from what he has to teach... and learn.

[@wesbrown3831]

I enjoyed part 1... I don't enjoy the thumbs down. A personal journey of learning and growing is not to be judged by another's perception. Take it for what it is worth... Great interview, very interesting.

[@samuelyseta1825]

This man's courage to post that video of him not knowing what to do against an MMA fighter being a Aikido Sensei himself.... Man... you gotta have balls to to that. Respect!!!! Honesty and truth. That's a HONOR.!!!

[@fidelmercado2621]

Everytime I see your gym/dojo I am amazed. That facility is insane. Also Rokas' fight maturation has been amazing to follow. I binged a lot of it on quarantine.

[@christianboddum8783]

Traditionally, people came to Aikido from strong fighting backgrounds, looking for something different. Today it is kind of reversed. O'sensei was a man who could fight, and had proved himself in the Russo-japanese war, and was very strong, physically and technically. To be a fighter you have to fight, to be a student of Budo, you don't have to be a fighter. There is room for both in Aikido. I hope Rokas returns to Aikido at some point, with his new knowledge.

[@bojanbopsic5175]

True

[@antoniopedraza7715]

Ja ja ja ja.

[@dancinglover101]

The problem that I see here, is that they never tell you this when you go to register to an Aikido school. It might seem obvious to someone who has strong fighting background to look for something different, but it is not the case for most Aikido students. They are sold an image of an effective martial art and that is the reason most of them study Aikido.

[@Gofex1337]

Many go as far as to claim that Aikido is truly superior to every other martial arts, and that a good Aikido practitioner should be able to beat every other martial artist without much effort.

[@christianboddum8783]

@@FachrulRSiraj I think a very overlooked part of O'senseis change was his divine love encounter. Most focus on what happened in Japan during the war, but O'sensei was trying to use his influence during the war to make the military leaders change their thinking, he was already seeking a path of peace. When he saw it was futile, he went to do farming in Hokkaido (if I remember correctly).

[@martonberesdeak]

very honourable video about the confusion lot of martial artists have these days as mma seems to be the ultimate winner of the most effective fighting style. I am doing shotokan, my dad used to call it ballet. But then some dojo's got so savage spirit that you really get the sense of being a real fighter. Karate definitely needs to be able to reinvent itself otherwise it will dissappear as a rusty old practice. Thank you for the video

[@briton55]

One of the most honest and sincere conversations I've witnessed, bushido at its best.

[@solommn]

Rokas its the most honest, humble, brave person whose was capable to confront himself and his knowlege. A real martial artist. Jesse Enkamp thanks for the interview and specially for the respectfull and openess.

[@theinspiringleader713]

I love the way these two Senseis display respect for each other. True Martial Artists.

[@gregking7570]

Admirable sensei, very humble and sincere. Just how many persons like him?

[@denistay2729]

I did saw his video in the past and did never tought he became a real fighter one day. He suprise me so much now and i like that kind of persons very realy. i hope and wish for him just all the good things in life and sucsess. Great guy! My respect! Sorry for my bad english...

[@robbaldwin2402]

Worth noting that Morihei Ueshiba conceived of Aikido while under gunfire; he was already a soldier and had fought for years before deciding he no longer wanted to bring harm to his opponent. If a person who is unused to conflict and actively wants to avoid it decides to take up Aikido, they will likely fail to use it 100% of the time, because they cannot remain calm under pressure. If you watch the video with Rokas against the MMA fighter, you can see he is constantly tense and reverts immediately to an instinctive kind of defence. From my experience, I would say something like Aikido is what you would look at towards the end of a martial arts journey, when you have the confidence of knowing your body and the movements of others, otherwise fear will kick in and prevent harmony. (Edit: No disrespect to Rokas at all, and I wish him luck with his choices).

[@AikidoScholar]

THAT'S the point. I couldn't agree more.

[@KenpoKid77]

Seeing as how aikido stem from decades of study in jujutsu/aikijutsu and swordsmanship, I would have to agree with you. Aikido is very much an internal art, and specializes in defense against other, more offensive martial disciplines (jujutsu, karate, kenjutsu, etc.)

[@bongothom]

Well said.

[@s0m3cunt91]

Aikido is the epitome of a conceptual martial art.

[@joshelguapo5563]

Have you seen his channel?

[@IsmailAbdullah35]

This man is the full definition of Samurai.

[@misi1979]

I watch a few videos of Rokas..I likee His pation for the martial arts but the honesty when realize the flaws of the aikido..the switch and courage to change after admitting that maybe invested lot of time,energy,dedication and follow You'r heart...a real inspiration! Great interview Jesse!And good luck ROkas!:)

[@phobowl]

I’m a big admirer of Rokas. Many of us have transitioned from traditional martial arts to more combat oriented arts, in my case from TKD/karate to KB and BJJ. The biggest component to this transition is self honesty. Are you being honest that what you’re training is realistic or efficient? Are you honest enough to admit you’ll been wasting your time in an ineffective art? Bruce Lee asked the same questions in the 70s and challenged us to question what we were doing. He turned out to be right.

[@SharkyLoreOfficial]

God damn he got super masculine

[@KARATEbyJesse]

The haircut definitely helps 😉

[@jofferbathan9401]

His voice got different too.

[@MrFeatheredSerpent]

Testosterone shots. 😝

[@P1015532oni]

If you train more aggressively (spar more often), testosterone gets boosted naturally.

[@baqikenny]

@@P1015532oni true, but only if you also keep everything else consistently improving and balanced: diet, rest and mood(passion, motivation etc...), which he certainly did. If u look at a lot of muay thai fighters in poverty-prevailing regions of thailand, consistent and aggressive training is certainly on point to the point that it may shook a lot of western fighters, but their testosterone isn't really that high due to poverty (lack of good quality and amount of high-calorie nutrition, and much of test is often spent to recover from training injuries and illnesses in the tropical zone), tho their stand-up striking skill is absolutely world-class.

[@nlee2492]

I love how humble he was. Even showing his “before”, long before his journey/arrival to where he is now. Very impressive...

[@орчлонертөнццонх]

thank you jesse for reaching out to rokas and thank you rokas for sharing! Im a karate practitioner at the moment (an Aikido-ka in the past) so this video is really close to my heart!

[@kevlarchicken]

haunted bag in the background just casually swinging around

[@KARATEbyJesse]

RIGHT??!!! 😳😳😳

[@CameraDrumsKyokushin]

You made me rewind the video, you were right.

[@blockmasterscott]

I cannot stop watching that bag!

[@JuanMiguelQuezon]

Nah Master Ken was in the video training in the background, he was too fast that the camera couldn’t capture him

[@FrancisMaxino]

@@JuanMiguelQuezon Ha ha ahahaha

[@MiamiViceNarc]

Great interview. I have such immense respect for Rokas. You can tell he has true passion in martial arts.

[@frostymourne]

I seriously have mad respect for this guy. He believed in aikido for years, even open his dojo, realise there’s a problem with it. Made a video of himself being beaten by a mile by his MMA fighter friend to show how inefficient aikido is. Closed his dojo and pursue MMA.

[@winowarrior9392]

The way you guys connected in this is straight up heart-warming.

[@soufichan1791]

The guy is very honest with himself and truly appreciate it. We all have been there. One important point is aikido is an internal martial art if u have never met a master who has reached enlightenment trough aikido you cant say you have practised aikido. Internal martial arts have differnet dimesion and masters now are counted on fingers so its very difficult to put aikido in the sport contest.

[@zerocoll20]

This sensei is so calm, i need some aikido in my life.

[@tkdguy5494]

Jesse, I love how you don't back down from controversy. I'm curious, do you think MMA has hurt traditional martial arts in the sense that it is hard for a traditional sensei to make a living without teaching some form of MMA? I'm noticing more these days that a lot of traditional schools are adding Krav Maga or some type of MMA to their curriculum. I'm also curious if these types of things make you question Karate's effectiveness, or do you believe Karate can still be effective without supplementing from other arts?

[@raycorrea5147]

I have a lot of respect for Rokas Leonavicius, it takes a lot to move on to something different after practicing Aikido for so many years, hats off to you sir.

[@justinwallace269]

Introspection can be one of life’s most daunting tasks, but there’s nothing more fulfilling. In resisting the temptation of stagnation, Rokas took a harder path and will be all the better for it. I wish him luck in his journey with sincerity and respect. Never stop learning! Thanks for setting this interview up, Jesse! As always, you bring great content to the martial arts world 👍🏼

[@lazarbucevac145]

Only God knows who is more talkative between those two

[@KARATEbyJesse]

Actually neither of us talk very much unless we have to

[@matarahmadal_atif9359]

@@KARATEbyJesse yup your the experts 😉🌹

[@thedokkodoka4349]

love Rokas' transformation into a fighter and his channel

[@freddiepiras391]

So much respect for this dude

[@ThievNWalrus]

Holy Crap. I was hoping this guy would show up in your videos. Thanks!

[@game9848]

People forget that Morihei Ueshiba was a trained Spy for the Japanese military. He was a Officer who traveled around Asia, during War times. Plenty of opportunities to gain experience; before he created Aikido.

[@blkjmzbnd007]

Nothing but respect for this guy

[@gtdfirearmsllc4759]

Been watching some of this dude’s stuff for a while now. Appreciate his honesty and dedication. 👍

[@NoraTKD]

Great video, thank you for sharing your views and it is good to see you both interested in each other and share the passion for martial arts.

[@MrDrageris]

Rokas you are the Champion !!! The best man from Lithuania that i know so far , keep it up and best wishes from Sweden 🤗🤗🤗

[@MartialArtsJourney]

🙏

[@TheHideki6]

I love the honesty of this video. I bet it took a lot of will power for him to do that move. I guess what traditional martial arts teaches is being patient especially with ones self and the discipline to keep moving forward (including general decision making) Love both of your channels.

[@ChrisParayno]

Been following his journey from the beginning. Fantastic!!

[@tomasfrybl3597]

I know this guy for his Aikido videos... And I came across some youtube channels who made fun of him later on, so now I'm very happy that he embraced it and kept going like a man!!! Rokas, I knew you would not just sit back, and here you are, badass.

[@tomasfrybl3597]

And a lot of thanks to Jesse for inviting this man and his choice of questions. :)

[@GiC7]

Thanks great interview.

[@rabronin]

Is there a part 2 of this? I am very keen to watch more of this interview :)

[@tenpennygrim5884]

So impressed with Rokas' pursuit of truth. He left behind everything he knew to start over with MMA and find ways to make his techniques work against resisting opponents. I believe later he will be so much more effective as a teacher having years of sparring and fighting under his belt. All of the successful martial arts (in terms of fighting effectiveness) share training methods that involve live resistance.

[@maxwellhouse1362]

What a nice humble inner moment !! That,s make one proud about the spirit of this guy for sure

[@HomelessNinjaKennedy]

Rokas looks so much better now than he used to. He looks like a freaking stud now.

[@TobiasSample]

Hey! I watched that aikido vs MMA video. Man, it's great that you followed the path you saw in front of you. Also Jesse's interviewing questions were solid. It was good vid!

[@black.sasuke.uchiha]

I actually have watched BOTH of your channel for a LONG time and it’s amazing to see the progress bring made. Arigato!🥋🙏

[@cambridgecarpetcleaning]

Very good interview, sometimes life is about the journey and not the destination. My thoughts are irrelevant but for what it is worth I think all martial arts teach us something good and there is no bad or irrelevant martial art. There are just good and bad, or honest and dishonest Sensei. Traditional martial arts need to be kept along with traditional methods. Everything evolves but everything needs deep strong roots. Good luck and enjoy the ride.

[@sohrren]

It ended so abruptely !! :O Can't wait for part 2, thank you both of you !

[@hiranom20]

Glad to see the collab actualised. 👍🏿

[@gavinducco7915]

It was only a matter of time before these two met. Fantastic video!

[@gene7108]

It takes an incredible amount of courage and humility to do what Rokas did.

[@opn2000]

Jesse ,Your videos made me fall in love with the martial arts again, Blessings Brother .

[@seckinkoknar7799]

So strong character. A real martial artist ... Respects !

[@P1015532oni]

This interview is top-notch!

[@VNSnake1999]

I see why he couldn't make Aikido more effective. It will just become Judo.

[@frostymourne]

Đức Duy Nguyễn yup

[@VNSnake1999]

@Doctor Octagon I don't think MMA is a more effective form of Judo. MMA isn't even a martial art itself. You can say MMA has parts of Judo in it.

[@VNSnake1999]

@Doctor Octagon I got it. Thanks man.

[@joatanpereira4272]

@Doctor Octagon actually, Judo was always an art, and yes, Sumo influenced Judo but is not one of the martial arts that originated Judo. Judo comes from 2 martial arts: Kito-ryu jujutsu and Shinyo-ryu jujutsu, with influences from western wrestling and Sumo.

[@theomen49]

I went from aikido. Tried to find a judo school so I found the "next best thing", aka BJJ, and eventually doing MMA.

[@enduril122]

Whoa, sensei Rokas has self-actualized. His voice is naturally deeper than in his akido vids a year back, his manner has changed to be calmer, cooler, and self-assured. We self-actualize when we learn the life lessons we were meant to learn. Looks like Rokas's MMA journey has done just that for him. Often times its not what we learn, its how we learn it.

[@FrancisMaxino]

Like Bruce Lee, Rokas realised the limitations of his art which claims to be a way of self defence but is not effective on its own and most deifinitely not a fighting art that works against all opponents. In order to break through to the truth of unarmed combat he has discarded the useless, retained the useful and trimmed away the unessentials, hence within the realm of mixed martial arts free to take and use techniques that work for him as a martial artist and also the confidence to defend himself or others at a street level and in the MMA ring.

[@frowlandong2207]

I learned a lot, thanks for sharing those information. It's not easy to shift from traditional Aikido to MMA, but you did the right thing. Osu. God Bless. 👊

[@elliotfontanet6589]

I done aikido for 9 years now doing shotokan and BJJ

[@coachbulldog4917]

When did you start your shotokan journey?, im working on starting mine. I was training in Jiujitsu and unfortunately was injured to the point it will be a very long time before i can train again without restrictions. But i been wanting to start shotokan to help me build my physical foundation again.

[@elliotfontanet6589]

Been doing shotokan a year now and BJJ 2016 on and off. I actually do the gracie academy online and attend seminars when I can

[@elliotfontanet6589]

But no stranger to martial,arts did 4 years ninjitsu, 4 years veejitsu, 9 years aikido, mma 1 yr, yoshin ryu jujitsu 4 yrs, now shotokan and BJJ

[@elliotfontanet6589]

Started since I was 7 years old

[@coachbulldog4917]

@@elliotfontanet6589 pretty soild background. A few months shotokan karate years ago(not enough for an option there) 2 years boxing, about 5 years krav maga, and was in a total of 11 jujutsu (basically judo) before learning to be thrown before learning the proper break fall. Ill be doing the gracie combatives from home shortly. Bought it years ago and never found anyone interested to train. Train hard & stay safeHappy training!

[@wkuntjoro6130]

Enjoyable and meaningful conversation, honestly, I learn something (or many things) from you guys.

[@moneymagnetismnetwork]

With all due respect, I remember that video of his mma test. I also noticed his demure. His personality was so timid that in my opinion it was his lack of "the eye of the tiger", for lack of a better term. There are some Aikidokas that are brutal when they have to be and soft in their normal day. I dont think it was "Aikido" per se, that did not work for him, but he did not learn to apply and transform his Aikido to level up to today's combat needs as many teachers have. He spoke about being bullied and Aikido didnt give him that release he needed so he went after the brawler style which gave him more satisfaction. So it was him who had to grow and not the fault if ANY martial art.

[@Gutisusa]

Love the interview videos. Thank you. Enjoyed immensely and learned.

[@chrisasherang]

I love his experiences that Rokas faced. He shares a lot of valuable experiences that i can put it to use. My coach always said this " In BJJ you tap to learn, there is no losing in sparring/rolling. the moment you lose, is when you stepped off the mats and decide to quit training."

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Great quote

[@Kamingo170]

I remember seeing this dude's aikido videos out of curiosity a while back and it's cool to see how he changed.

[@MissesWitch]

He seemed like a really nice guy too

[@carlosfreitas1722]

Honesty is so rare to come by

[@amberlycarantes6064]

His story is very inspiring !

[@djsuter4410]

I see a young man that is pursuing his martial arts journey. I know many people who transition from one martial art to another as their goals change. The key is to get a foundation in one before moving on. All the best for his future.

[@Redlum90]

Very recognizable! I experienced the same shift in thinking, albeit in a shorter time frame. I started taking Aikido lessons to learn how to defend myself, but got disappointed by the fact that the focus wasn't on that. After one year I desided to quit and now I'm a passionate beginner at Krav Maga. I finally feel the self confidence you are mentioning!

[@canadiannavigator3346]

I've watched this man's jounrey for some time now. I'm completely amazed by the change in his physicality, demeanor, and appearance. Awesome.

[@seanwilliams1016]

Wow, I actually remember seeing that exact video about akido vs mma like yrs ago. Im so happen to see that he went to adapt and worked on perfecting himself.

[@BWater-yq3jx]

I could see the time counter nearly out at the last question, and I'm thinking... Rokas doesn't have time to answer it, oh noooo... 😱 "To be continued..." Cliffhanger!! 😖

[@confectionsofachocolatier3099]

Great interview. I started karate and because I was bullied and lucky my sensei had given us the tools to spar and to know what it feels like to be hit. Pressure testing.

[@mr.8999]

cool man 👍. my karate school does the same.

[@fadyalame3507]

@@mr.8999 very cool

[@amospizzey1]

I really respect this man . Truth is important. OSS 🥋🙏🏻

[@CaptPostmod]

Yeah. But can he write a better essay with Grammarly.

[@KARATEbyJesse]

😂👌

[@chadlpnemt]

Really good story! I think Rokas would do a great service to Aikido to learn to spar with it. Find out what moves are practical versus those that are not. I would be very interested to see what he came up with (I know this was somewhat addressed in the video here). His MMA sparring video was fantastic and I applaud him for that. But I think anyone versus an MMA fighter is going to end up on the short end of the deal. It would be interesting to see what it would do against an untrained street thug. In my kung fu class, if we spar freestyle and try to perform some techniques it's really hard to do because your partner knows it's coming, like a sweep. So we throw a lot of strikes and kicks and defense, and only if you time it right and/or your partner makes a mistake can you throw a technique in there. Anyway, respect to Rokas for his openness, I hope someday he will find a way to make Aikido practical in some way for defense. Defense, not fighting. I feel my kung fu has helped my defense, but no way would I want to stand and duke it out for half an hour. Like Jesse's video with Jake Mace, Jake would do his move and "get out of there." I think that's a great angle to look at it from. Jesse, thanks for all of your knowledge and videos!

[@KARATEbyJesse]

Thanks for chiming in and supporting my work! 👍

[@tomastelensky-vlog8723]

Amazing to see you two! :-) Jesse you are so good in doing interviews! :-)

[@Sam-ty8yt]

my highlight in every video is Jesse's respectful approach. acting like a real budoka.

[@KARATEbyJesse]

Thank you Sam!

[@mrgiogio16]

Top 10 anime crossovers of 2019:

[@MartialArtsJourney]

🤣

[@davidnino1300]

El mejor video en youtube sobre el tema ... best video in youtube about this matter

[@ninji5226]

If you want to be a better fighter, fight, there really is no secret behind it. It's the root of why most traditional martial arts take so much grief, they never put things into a live situation. It doesn't have to be balls to the walls kill each other either. My favorite dojo sessions were light sparring. Just chaotic movement with another human without the high risk of injury, and that did me wonders when we did go balls to the walls trying to kill each other. But fighting is only a facet of modern martial arts. It's exercise of the mind and body, its a social interaction and a chance to meet new people. It's great for becoming goal oriented, and developing good habits. "Self defense" in the modern era is about weapons of opportunity, guns, and getting out of a bad situation (as in, run if you can) far more that what block to employ for "X" attack.

[@tonycarangi1151]

I had a ni dan in Aikido and realized that it was worthless, I now have a black belt in an Okinawan karate , Uchi ryu. So, I have taken a similar journey

[@JYGamerDad]

Am I crazy or did the martial arts journey guys voice get deeper????

[@pabloqueiroz7230]

"for me truth is very important" !!!

[@lashermytube]

So essentially he didn't want to be an artist any more, he wanted to be a fighter.... The distinction between the two is far too often lost on folks. Find the beauty in what you're practicing.

[@Vitin2811]

I think he is just more interested in a more practical martial art overall.

[@lucian5389]

Yeah he realized martial arts dont work unless you combine them with others

[@ofadetergentsud]

My dad taught me one Aikido move when I was a kid and I managed to use it in a lot of real situations. I would send kids rolling across the ground when they messed with me. Sometimes it was multiple kids. They had no defense, even after they had already seen me do it. If you doubt Aikido, you are the problem.

[@kaleoarnold3709]

Right...

[@Oldhandlewasabitcringe]

Yea one time my dad showed me a chi no touch knockdown, and i used it in alot of real situations. Like against other kids when i was 10 sometimes i could knockdown the entire school in one go using my chi. If you doubt the effectivmess of my chi then you are the problem

[@ofadetergentsud]

@@Oldhandlewasabitcringe It was just a simple wrist/hand manipulation trick. You either throw yourself into a roll or something breaks. Maybe an MMA fighter could defend against it but these were 6th graders with no training. Most people have zero training.

[@kaleoarnold3709]

Octo pus Uh huh...

[@mjolnir9855]

Yo, your dojo is haunted. Just saying. That bag in the background on the far left sways for no reason - even when the others don’t. Evp session could be interesting. You probably being haunted by old Karate master. ;)

[@quickstep2408]

that's just jesse emitting his ki subconsciously

[@carltomacruz9138]

"The power of Funakoshi compels you!"

[@adsa869]

Damnnn shit...I just noticed it.

[@peterkhew7414]

Somebody farted.

[@firepanda282]

Holy shit I didn't even recognize him!

[@Phil-Lemon]

Aikido is a Gendai budō (現代武道) art centered around self perfection - not self protection like the older Koryū (古流 old style) or Kobudō (古武道 ancient martial arts) of Japanese/Okinawan lineages, as well as Chinese 拳法 quán fǎ boxing arts. To say that Aikido is ineffective in an area that it was not designed for has nothing to do with the art of Aikido, but more to do with how this Sensei misunderstood and misused it.

[@kashu7691]

He acknowledged that it's not designed for that

[@DemonEyes622]

he sounds deeper then how he talks on his own channel