WireFrame

dude, that is a fantastic story!

Welcome to the forum, mma_magic. Hope you enjoy it here.

Everyone has something. I've seen a post lately that touched on the fear of pain within the dojo, and I wanted to explore this idea more. Many people fear pain, of course they do, it's obviously a natural reaction. But martial artists experience more small doses of pain than most people, they learn how it feels to be hit. To a degree anyway. I'm 1st Kyu, if it makes any difference, and while I've felt pain, and obviously dislike it, often it's pain I know I'm going to get. (ie I'm part of a small demo or explanation to the class - especially in street-application stuff) I stand there and I take it. If I'm hit during kumite, it's unpleasant of course, but I don't think I FEAR it as such, I tend to congratulate my partner's skill and try to recognise what to work on in my own. What I DO fear, is permanent damage. I have, lets just say not the strongest joints in the world. There's nothing I can do about it except use my muscles to control certain movements so I don't thow my limbs in such a way as to put extra pressure on my joints. So I'm wary of something causing permanent damage to a joint, especially my knees and hips. Listen to me haha, I'm only 26! So, Fear in the Dojo - Discuss

Haha, spoken like a true addict.

Hmmm pretty much. It's got more going for it in terms of capabilities yeah but if you already own a bunch of stuff then it's unlikely you'll actually NEED one. Good for people with very basic needs. Or going on holiday.

Exactly. My school has much more of a focus on practical application and close-range shotokan. It's part of the KUGB, not the JKA.

Videogames - PS3 mostly, last game was Assassin's Creed II Art - I'm an out-of-work illustrator and I doodle a lot. Beer - Enthusiast TV - Going a little Doctor Who nuts at the moment. iPlayer is a godsend.

Hmm, sounds like either but especially the latter form would be a nice antidote to basic Shotokan's often hard and straight style.

Funny I was thinking of doing Tai-chi, anything particular you would say is beneficial about it?

I like learning and mastering something and improving and I became more and more aware of my own limitations and capabilities. That doesn't happen very often on a treadmill.

If I'm the same grade as someone else, they've lined up and I'm approaching the line, I go for the side of them that has the bigger gap to step into, and I expect them to do the same. If there's room to stand there, thats where I stand.

I think your final points are all true, but also I've found there's more group bonds formed in karate than, say aerobics groups. People train together, compare, compete, LEARN from each other and often socialise together. All these things I think are unique to martial arts groups. You gain a lot of insight into your own and other people's characters through martial arts and I think that strengthens the whole experience. It's not just about you anymore.

It happens extremely rarely.

Guilty! Worst thing about wood floor (that I actually like regardless) is slipping like that. Especially if you stop for a while and your static feet create condensation or sweat to be exactly where you don't want it to be when you try to move off again quickly.

Hi Lastbelt, welcome to the forum. What style martial arts do you train in? Or if you do not, what style are you interested in? Being afraid to fight is a perfectly natural reaction to what happened. You got KO'd and that'd not pleasant at all. If you want to tackle your fear I suggest finding a good Martial Arts teacher and explain how you feel and how you'd like to progress. A good teacher should understand and help you develop mentally as well as physically, and guide you through to finding confidence again.

You may be taking the saying a bit literally. The sentiment is about mastering something and being dedicated to it, and not just doing a whole bunch of things just a little bit. If someone has the dedication to practice a kick 1000 times (to be fair most higher dan grades probably have over their entire lifetime) then it's easy to assume their dedication is such that they would've applied that to every other facet of their training.

Wow. I feel for both of you, there seems to be so much more pressure associated with belts and grades where you both train than where I do. I'll happily train with people wearing earlier belts, because no matter how far I get there's still things to learn that even less experienced people may have picked up that I missed, or vice versa. I went back to training after about 12 years, and was really happy when I surpassed my old grade as a kid but otherwise never gave it another thought. You shouldn't get so bogged-down with hierarchy. You're just a group of people that train together.

It reminds me of Shotokan's Age-Empi block. Useful and adaptable. A pretty natural reaction too.

Uh, you can listen to music while doing other things on an iPod touch so you'll be able to do it on an iPad. "Apps" aren't quite the same as just playing music.

Congratulations and celebrations!

I think its pretty much aimed at people who don't need a full-on laptop or desktop, they email and surf more than anything else.

I won't be getting one since all it's main features are covered by my iPod Touch and iMac, but it does look like an excellent device and I might recommend it as a replacement to my mother when her 3G iBook eventually dies, though it's still going strong for the foreseeable future. Although a lot of hardcore apple fans and tech geeks I know don't seem to like it. I guess they just aren't the target market. This is aimed at the people who buy a laptop simply to email and websurf. If that was all I ever did (it's not) I would be after one of these now.

Hmm... I think in the Kyu gradings it's £16 altogether, including an upped training price since it's Frank Brennan. I believe my Dan grading is going to cost around £50...

Obi's come in cm sizes, so you can pretty much pick one as long or short as you like.

Excellent, well done!