Tiger1962

Recently I got FiOs installed on my home T.V. and I decided to subscribe to the channel "Blackbelt TV" - expecting to see some good vintage martial arts movies and perhaps some not too old. Well, it's been about 4 days now and what a disappointment already. They've shown the same martial arts movie every day and several times a day. I went on their website and there isn't even a program guide. What a waste. I'll be cancelling this channel soon. Does anyone else here subscribe to that channel? If not, don't waste your $$$$$$$$$$

My guess is the reasons can vary depending on the age of the student and where he/she is in life at that point. As mentioned, school studies, college, raising a family, work commitments, etc. - all those things certainly interfere with training and let's face it - as important as martial arts is to those who train, the priority in life is or should be: family, paying the bills, earning a living, etc...Then again, some people just want to achieve the black belt level and move on to try their hand at other activities. For me, I'm at the nidan level and although I have not chosen to retire just yet, work and family commitments get in the way of my training and those two come first in my life before anything. Martial arts doesn't pay my bills, my job does.

Thank you for your response Jaedeshi ---- after thinking about this - I agree with you

This person's particular type of job is by no means traditional. He doesn't know until the last minute when he works overtime. Most of the time, the work is seasonal but with business the way it is, you never know. He can go 6 months without training or 2 months and then during a slow period, he could be there every day. I like the idea of payment-per-session or discussing an advance arrangement for the times he is not in class & I will suggest this to him. Thanks!

Thank you all for your comments. I have not had this procedure done myself though and just fishing for info from people who train. Thank you.

Has anyone here ever had surgery on their feet or lower extremity? (ankle, foot, toe, knee) How long did it take before you were able to go back to training again ? Was recooperation painful ?

No one else in my family has trained before. I always wanted to but never thought I was good enough or able to.

I wasn't sure which forum this was appropriate for, so forgive me if I posted it in the wrong category / location. Situation: There are no contracts established in the school payment method. You pay by month or you can pay for the entire year in advance. The student (an adult) has a crazy job with unexpected & unforeseen periods of overtime so, they might show up to train every day for one month and then suddenly are unable to train for (let's say) 3 weeks, one month, etc., or whatever. This student pays tuition every month regardless if he trains every day or doesn't train for a month or months on end. My questions are: 1) Would you as an instructor still expect your students to pay every single month's tuition even if they didn't train consistently? and likewise... 2) Would you as a student continue to pay a monthly tuition if you weren't training consistently? 3) What are your opinions from both sides of the coin ( from the instructor and from / as the student ? )

Thanks a lot !

Thank you !

How do you start your own blog? Does it cost anything to keep a blog running? Suppose you aren't very computer savvy, are there online instructions to show you how?

If I had to guess, I'd say you either might be going through an adjustment period to a new type of physical activity or you could have pulled a muscle in your hip called the " illiotibial band ". Before I trained in martial arts, I used to get my exercise by going to a gym. I was using one of those hip flexor machines and pulled my hip band muscle doing so ( the illiotibial band ). I went to a doctor because my hips were really painful (like you describe) and it hurt to walk and that's what he diagnosed. I stopped using that machine and could not work out until it healed. In the interim, I found my current martial arts school and noticed that when I do a lot of stretching, it helped that injury. Before it becomes a chronic thing, I would see a doctor, get his recommendations. Mine told me to do yoga and spend ample time stretching out before doing any kind of exercise. There are specific exercises you can find online that are geared toward the hip muscles (and muscles in the surrounding area). Good luck !

I saw it and enjoyed it very much. I thought Heath Ledger did a great job of portraying the joker. I remember the other Batman movies where Nicholson was playing that character and I thought he played it well also. Now, I can't say if I liked Heath's performance better than Nicholson's because I enjoyed them both the same. Heath did portray the character more in a more psycho - ish way, and Nicholson, I felt, kept it true more to the comic book version of the character. So yeah, they were both good but in different ways. I do prefer the other actors who played Batman in the past though. I wasn't too impressed with Christian Bale's acting in this one. Good movie all in all and definitely worth seeing !

Thank you very much for your feedback and replies but I was curious if there was a mandatory certification you need in order to teach karate to these kids, not *how* to teach them. Bushidoman answered me - thank you all !

I love coffee & tea and anything coffee flavored ! I think the acid in those drinks are what aggravates reflux rather than the caffeine. There is low acid coffee on the market though - - I bought some a while back and then I just cut back to one cup a day.

Question for instructors: From time to time I hear about martial arts instructors who teach autistic / ADD / special needs / handicap, etc., kids in their school & even have designated classes for these kids. While this is really an admirable and fantastic challenge for them take on, at the same time I've always wondered, don't you need training in this field before doing so (doesn't matter that its martial arts their teaching) or even be licensed in this area? If I had a child with autism, for example, and I enrolled them in martial arts training, I'd want their instructor to have an education and working experience in this area so they know how to handle my child & how to educate the other students who are in the class with them. But what is the general law / rule, etc., on this for martial arts teachers ?

I can sympathize with you because I suffer from this as well. I have not had an endoscopy yet & I really need to. I take Nexium twice a day but sometimes I don't always stay away from the foods I should and when that happens, I feel awful. Something else I use besides Nexium and it seems to help in conjunction with the meds is pure aloe vera juice. Specifically, I use a product called "Aloe Cure". There is a ton of information on GERD REFLUX on the Internet and I read aloe juice helps coat and soothe the throat. If you go to a health food store or a vitamin store, they sell it there. I use organic pure aloe vera juice and I mix it with a non-citrus type of juice because natural aloe juice tastes very bitter. I also buy aloe vera juice (the sweet kind) and you can find that in any Asian grocery store. I mix the pure aloe with the sweet kind and it goes down easy. I drink it either in the morning after breakfast or before I go to bed and it seems to neutralize the stomach acids. Foods to stay away from: coffee, chocolate, pizza, any fried foods, tomato in any form, any citrus-type juices, soda's.....I drink water, herb tea and occasionally I can get away with drinking iced tea. Check online though - there is a wealth of information on this problem and you can find recipes, home remedies, and other things to deal with it. I also put a couple pillows under my mattress to raise the head of my bed a bit because lying down flat only makes this condition worse. Don't eat 4 hours before you go to bed either. Good luck.

I don't advertise the fact that I know martial arts, but let's say I was attacked on the street and I defended myself and hurt my attacker, and it was discovered that I know martial arts. Would I get sued or jailed if the attacker was seriously / mortally hurt ? I too, have never received a straight answer on this from people I know that train.

Several years ago I was competing at a tournament and I received first place in my division. After that I became eligible to compete for Grand Champion with other first place winners of other divisions. I did not win Grand Champion, however, I felt extremely honored and humbled to be competing in a group with other candidates for that title. I was literally speechless & never dreamed I'd be there.

His movies are almost always entertaining. I am looking forward to seeing it also.

I am so glad to hear it's working out for you. Troutkick, those four points you made are good reminders to myself as well !

I would definitely include a paragraph or outline about rank requirements. I've seen parents of young kids get upset when their kids don't test when other children test. They need to know if their child doesn't meet the testing requirements, or is just not ready, then quite simply, they can not test. Also, paying for your testing fee does not automatically mean you will pass your test. They should know that too or that should be put in the manual as well.

Although I understand why others are saying, "don't worry about her, worry about your own business or training," - I completely understand why this would irritate you. I've had similar instances happen where I train. I think the reason why it bothers some more than others and is hard to ignore is that we train very hard to achieve our goals and rank and "pay our dues" as the old saying goes. When someone else, however young or old they are, doesn't have to go through the same procedure, it does diminish the standards of the school and (to me) diminishes the high regard I've had for my school and the style I train in. I didn't read every single response here so maybe something similar has been written. All I'm trying to say is, whether or not your fellow student tests or not, I totally understand why it would bother you. It would bother me too.

Same here too - it depends on the day. Sometimes we practice basics during the entire class, sometimes a portion of the class and sometimes we just work only on new stuff. Its entirely up to our instructor.

The school I attend has no air conditioning so when its really hot and humid outside, unfortunately I can not train. For medical reasons, etc., I simply can not risk getting heat stroke. Spring & Fall is the best times to train, in my opinion.