Heartland Dojo

08/07/2026

These are photos from the jodo session on the first day of the USKK Symposium, led by Nate England Sensei, Jodo 5th Dan. We took the group through the first several kihon in the SMR Jodo curriculum, did some partner practice against the sword, and introduced a couple of the seitei kata.

I will also be teaching a jodo session at the Academy of Okinawan Karate's annual Kagami-Biraki Gasshuku in East Peoria, September 11th and 12th. Join us for a great weekend of martial arts practice!

Photos in this set courtesy of Angie Morgan, the USKK, and the IKKF.

08/04/2026

And now a batch of photos from Sunday at the USKK Symposium. We were able to grab lunch with a few of our fellow karateka from Kosho before hitting the road, and by all accounts, everyone had a great time!

08/02/2026

A few more photos from the afternoon sessions at the USKK Symposium in Cincinnati.

08/01/2026

Enjoying some great sessions and training at the annual USKK Symposium in Cincinnati!

07/29/2026

We're nearing the start of the school year, and class sizes are getting back to normal following vacations and summer sports! We worked a few sparring drills last night, and toward the end of class we fit some of the same strategies into self defense with some takedowns.

07/24/2026

Great example of the first four seitei kata established by the All Japan Kendo Federation. We also love jodo for its beauty and a loose similarity to our kobudo training, but the deeper we get into jodo, the more we learn about the sword and jodo's martial application. It's also a low-impact exercise with a lot of functional movements that improve proprioception, balance, and flexibility. It's an art many of our fellow jodoka have been able to continue practicing as they advance in age, or after joint replacements following injuries or decades of training in arts like judo or aikido.

Drop us a message if you'd like to try it!

5th Dan instructors Lionel & Mayumi Hutton from Jodo Auckland demon...

07/22/2026

Sensei and Tim spent the weekend in Indianapolis training with two of our jodo instructors, Nate England Sensei and David Gravens Sensei, as well as several of our fellow jodoka from Indiana and Ohio. We had a great time, and thank you to Chris Howey for hosting!

Jodo is a lesser known art, especially in the United States, but there's been an explosion of interest and the groups around the Midwest are growing quickly. Jodo is a beautiful art dating back over 400 years, and a lot of its concepts translate well to our karate and kobudo training. Tim and I find the deeper we get into it, the more interesting it gets!