Lupin1

We turn A Christmas Story on at random points throughout the day. We never watch it beginning to end, but we always seem to catch all of it in pieces-parts over the course of the 24 hours. When I was little it mine and my sisters' tradition to watch Santa and the Three Bears on Christmas Eve. Recently we've rekindled that by finding it on You Tube. I also have to watch The Santa Clause and Miracle on 34th street (the newer one with Mara Wilson) every Christmas.

I was a little bit in shock, but I was really happy. I almost cried because of the overwhelming emotions (and I did later in the car...). I fumbled a little bit taking the belt out of the plastic and putting it on for the pictures and I kept laughing at everything. Other than that I just kept saying "thank you" over and over again. I didn't really know what else to say. I've never seen a black belt promotion (I'm the first one in about a decade) and I wasn't quite sure what I was supposed to say. I probably seemed really awkward. Yesterday I brought my belt with me to work and stuck it in a desk drawer so I could open the drawer every so often and gaze adoringly at it. I didn't go quite as far as my head instructor who loves telling how the night he got his black belt he slept with it under his pillow. Today I got thank you cards and gift cards for the instructors, but I was so excited to wear black pants for the first time that I forgot them at home... I guess they'll get them after break (though I did offer to take our head instructor out for lunch one day over break as a thank you, so I'll give him his then).

Added a few pics with my instructors. Thanks for the congrats, everyone. Heading off to my first class as a black belt in about half an hour. Beyond excited!

I've been a 1st kyu for about a year and eight months now. I've been working hard the past few months to learn the list of 32 kata, drills, and history recitations my instructor gave me for my black belt test. I got really excited last Thursday when he told me that when we got back from our two week holiday break, they would be setting a date for my test. I started really cracking down on clearing up everything I had questions on. I sent my instructor at least a dozen e-mails over the weekend asking questions. I completed my "black belt test study guide" with my research on the history of all the kata and the write ups of the techniques and the history of Isshinryu and Okinawan Karate and my thoughts on the meanings of Shimabuku's Code of Karate. I even made flash cards and started memorizing it all. I drilled my basics, kata, and partner drills. Today I went into class and they told me I was going to go through everything with the black belt instructors to see what I still needed work on. My instructor even video taped me (I thought so I could see what I needed to fix for my test). I was making mental notes of every mistake I made so I could prepare to fix it. It was pretty exhausting and intense, but I knew it'd help me in the long run. Then the end of class came. My instructor pulled out a brand new black belt and handed it to me. Just like that, I'm a Shodan. how happy I am-- http://imgur.com/XyoUN9w me with my head instructor Victor Smith, 8th Dan- http://imgur.com/uA47PgN me with our two sixth Dan instructors, Young Lee and Mike Cassidy-- http://imgur.com/Dz78MiN It's been a long journey-- http://imgur.com/n2LTMMq Edit-- Added a few pics

It depends. As Wado said, many places never explicitly teach bunkai-- it's something you come to understand over time. My school does specifically teach bunkai, but doesn't start that until Shodan. Up until Shodan, we just learn the kata. We might get a taste of the bunkai here and there as a means of understanding what a specific move is supposed to look like, but we don't really look into it and get all the alternatives and all that until we enter black belt training.

Exactly what JR said. I'm not a head instructor (or even a full instructor yet), but I do have an education degree. Define what you want kids to know by the time they get to X point and plan how you're going to get them there. Don't try to do too much. Our head instructor, who only runs the adult program right now, tends to just do whatever cool new technique or application he found on the internet in class. This isn't terrible considering almost the entire class (besides me) are black belts with over 20 years at the school. But for someone trying to get the basics, that kind of jumping around and not going back to practice things before moving on to the next thing just doesn't work well (which is why I started going to the kids classes in addition to the adult class). Try my article from two years ago-- Filing a Flight Plan http://www.karateforums.com/filing-a-flight-plan-vt46033.html

Welcome!

I don't agree that karate is for kids, but I still usually word it "I help teach karate at the Boys and Girls Club" because the combination of me doing karate and it being at a kids' center usually gives them pause. Karate is no more for kids than any activity. Yes, kids are usually the ones with the time to do basketball or swimming or dance or music lessons-- but adults doing those things is in no way weird and should actually be encouraged and praised. Adults need to learn new things, get out there, and have solid, positive hobbies just as much as kids do.

That's pretty intense. I can honestly say we've never done that. But I've had moments like that in other sports and exercise classes, so if your class is more focused on exercise and fitness, I can see it. Look up the word "shugyo". Some interesting stuff out there on it. It can be very helpful when done every so often (not every class).

We don't have a Facebook page (in fact, we don't advertise at all), but when I was looking for schools to tryout/compliment my current style, Facebook was a big part of what I looked at. Websites are good as an overview, but most aren't detailed enough or updated enough to let let you get the "feel" of a place before you decide to visit. Basically, use a website to give basic information-- class times, programs available, instructor bios, location directions and some pictures, and pricing if you're comfortable (I'm more likely to try a place that puts pricing out upfront rather than making the perspective student call). Your website should be updated every few months and should give perspectives all the information they need to make a decision about visiting your school as well as give them just a taste of what life at your school is like (some pictures, maybe a sample syllabus or a rank chart, etc). Facebook is more of a running record. While the website is mostly for perspective students and just a little for your current students who need to recheck info or dates, Facebook should be thought of as mostly for your current students with a few things thrown in here and there for perspectives. Facebook is where you post pictures of day to day training and events, post promotion congratulations or competition videos, provide updates on special events coming up or closings for holidays or weather, etc. Every once and awhile post fun articles or history pages (but don't let that become too much of what you post) and every once and awhile post specials for new students or post about special information sessions for interested students-- that way people who are lurking and reading your page get an invite to come and participate. But the majority should be geared towards building an online community for your current students. Perspective students will pick up on the atmosphere and "flavor" of that community by observing this and it will make them feel like they're already part of your school before they ever walk through the door.

A belt means you know the syllabus (the stuff taught) by the school you're at. When you move to another school that teaches different things, especially a different style, they have every right to ask you to wear a lower belt until you learn their syllabus, which will have different kata and different techniques to learn. That's not "stripping you of your black belt", but rather acknowledging that, at the moment, you don't know the material required for black belt at their school. You are still and will always be a black belt in your previous style, just not in this one yet. Kinda like if you get a degree in History, but then decide you want to go back and get a degree in Writing. Your degree in history won't be stripped from you, but you'll need to start again in the beginning writing classes to get that degree. At your new school you will learn new and different things. Think of this less as being demoted and more as starting something new. You'll move up more quickly of course (just like you did when you moved from Wado Ryu to Shotokan), but, just like your first move, your new school will teach different things and you'll have to learn the new different things before being granted a Shodan at your new school. Short version-- belts are only good at the school you got them from. When you move to a new school, you start over unless the sensei agrees to let you wear your old belt. Even if the sensei does let you wear your old belt, you should still consider yourself a beginner in your new style, empty your cup, and learn the new stuff with a fresh mind.

We have our "black belt test guide" which outlines exactly what needs to be learned by the Shodan test. Usually it's given to someone once they reach 3rd kyu so they can start preparing. I've found it very useful. My instructor also has a few charts of what needs to be learned by each level, but they're flexible. The only thing that's not as flexible is the Shodan test, though even that can be adjusted for individual circumstances. If I ever start my own program, I'll have a very well planned curriculum (sometimes I write out sample scope and sequence charts just for fun, even though it's a ways off). I've got a teaching degree and, personally, I know I teach more efficiently when it's planned out.

To be honest, I wouldn't want to keep my rank starting at a new school. When I was serving with AmeriCorps I tried a TKD dojo for about a month. At first I wore a white belt, but then they insisted I wear my (at the time) green belt from Isshinryu. I didn't like it. People started expecting me to know things in TKD that I didn't know, I felt like people were always judging me to see if I "deserved" a green belt, it messed up the pecking order of the class a bit, and I didn't get that feeling of "working my way up" that helps structure those beginning steps into a new martial art. Really the only benefit I saw to it was in partner work where it told people they could go just a little bit harder with me and served as a reminder to me that I wasn't a normal beginner (when I was wearing a white belt I found myself going too hard with the yellow belts because they were higher than me. It was harder to keep in mind they had only been doing martial arts for a few months while I had several years experience).

Congrats to all! It was an amazing year all around!

I don't think it's lack of respect so much as it just doesn't make any sense to me. Rank at any given school is just a measure of how far along you are in that school's curriculum. Switching the curriculum completely while allowing people to keep rank makes no sense. It's kinda like being a fourth year medical student and then deciding to switch to dentistry. Yes, some of your knowledge will carry over, but you can't just go in expecting to be considered a fourth year dentistry student with all that entails... You go back to year one until you learn your new trade.

I lost about a hundred pounds a few years ago by cutting sugar and carbs (primal/paleo, maybe even verging on keto). Everyone's bodies are different, of course, and we're not doctors (at least I'm not. We might have a doctor or two in the house somewhere), but if you have any trouble with sugars-- insulin resistance, diabetes, PCOS for the ladies-- anything like that, cutting carbs down under 50-100g per day (towards the 50 end if you're not an intense exerciser, towards the 100 end or even a little higher depending on how much and how intensely your exercise) might be a good option for you. And I know some people consider low carb a "crash diet" because that's how many people approach it, but if you approach it as a long term change, it won't be a crash diet. I've been at it for four years now. I allow myself to have treats on holidays and special occasions and every once and awhile just because, so it's not like I've sworn off carbs and sugar for all eternity, which would be unsustainable. You just have to treat them as a once and awhile thing and not an every day staple and it becomes a long term, sustainable change in your eating habits.

We don't belong to a governing body as we are an independent school, but the US Isshinryu world is still small enough that most people can trace their lineage back to the original Marines after a generation or two. My instructor was recently promoted to 8th Dan by a group of those original Marines (his original instructor, Tom Lewis, being one of them). The highest he's personally promoted anyone was 6th Dan for our two instructors who both started in 81. The way we do it is in order to promote anyone to anything you need to be at least 3rd Dan and have gone through instructor training. Instructors (we have three of them at the moment) can promote up to 1st Kyu. Shodan testing is done in front of as many black belts as can make it to the grading (usually at least three or four) but the official promotion comes from our head instructor. Everything over Shodan comes directly from our head instructor. Not quite sure what's going to happen when he retires. Most likely those 6th Dan instructors will take over and change things up a bit.

I agree with the "two ranks below your own" rule. For example, a third dan should be able to promote to first dan, a fourth to second, fifth to third, etc. For the higher ranks (above about sixth dan) I'd think you'd need a group of seniors to promote. I even think that if you get a whole group, you can promote above the ranks represented in the group (for example, a group of 8th and 9th dans can vote to promote someone to 10th dan).

I could go both ways. My dojo doesn't do formal tests except for Shodan. Every other rank is "when the instructors feel you're ready, you move up". I like that in a small program. The instructors know you well enough to know you know the material and you're ready to move on. They see you do it every class, so testing is unnecessary. But, despite testing being unnecessary, I can see the benefits to it and, some day far down the road if I open my own program, I would do belt testing. There's something to be said for knowing the requirements, working to perfect them, and demonstrating them under pressure. It gives you more of a hard and fast goal to work towards and lets you take your training in smaller chunks. Preparing for my Shodan test (the first official test I've ever had at this school), I'm working on my karate much more systematically than I ever had before. It's forcing me to really step back and look at what I know, what I don't know, and what I just kinda know. I can make lists of what needs more work to get up to standards and I can't just keep putting off the stuff I don't really like and working on the stuff I do when I know there's a test date looming in front of me. I also think there's much more of an "I deserve this" feeling when you're tested. I underwent a formal testing procedure to get my yellow belt in Judo and watching the testing instructor score each move and tally up points and seeing the sheet with my final marks and how they add up to passing really left no doubt in my mind that I "deserved" to be a yellow belt, whereas almost every promotion I've gotten in karate I've wondered if I really deserved the new belt and if I was ready for it. I trust my instructor, of course, but the logical, calculating part of my brain felt a nice jolt of accomplishment upon seeing an actual score card in front of me.

I think expecting someone to teach to a syllabus and have lesson plans is reasonable (assuming you provide adequate training how to effectively do both-- they're not as common sense as someone who's been doing them for years would think). I think the third condition is a little odd. Part of being any sort of youth or even adult coach is being a positive influence on people's lives. That sometimes means providing counsel on other things. I think if you trust someone to be an instructor, you should trust them to help people out in a responsible way. Rather than a blanket statement, they should be given training what is appropriate and inappropriate counsel to give.

We focus mostly on kata as well. The kids' class usually goes warm ups, basic techniques and kicking, and kata with sparring for intermediate and advanced kids on Tuesday nights with more partner drills on Thursdays. The adult class is pretty much half kata, half partner techniques/bunkai. We go back and forth between kata and practicing techniques with partners. Warm ups and basic kihon are usually practiced outside of class or before class on your own time. If it's been 5 months and that's all you've been doing, it's unlikely it's going to change. Ask your instructor about it. Ask if the program you're in does sparring or if you can do some more partner drills. Tell him what you're looking for and what your goals are. You've been there long enough to have a good feel for what you want but you're still new enough that you're still exploring and if you realize you want something different, there's not too much lost by moving on. Hopefully your instructor will be up front and honest about the goals and focus of his program. The dojo you're in may not be the best one for you and for your goals. You may want to look at some other local dojos or even into some other arts such as BJJ, Muay Thai or boxing. Different places have different focuses. The key is to find a place whose focuses match your goals.

As others have said, I agree that cross training is a good thing, but it's best to wait until at least brown belt (although Shodan is even better). As I read somewhere (can't remember where)-- the man who chases two rabbits at the same time catches neither.

We mix kata. Isshinryu only has 8 empty hand kata and even the very first one is fairly difficult and advanced (in fact, in other systems that study it, it's not learned until the Dan ranks). Because of that we added three more basic kata to be learned at white belt and the Isshinryu kata aren't started until yellow belt. We also do a slightly modified Saifa from Goju between the first and second Isshinryu kata as it's much shorter than Seiunchin but the horse stances prepare the student for that kata. We also study a few more kata from other styles along the way just to add some well-roundedness. So pre-black belt, in addition to the eight empty hand Isshinryu kata, the student will have studied Fukyugata Sho from Matsubayashi-Ryu, Kozai from the Okinawan school system, a modified Ananku from Shorin-Ryu, Saifa from Goju-Ryu, Supple Dragon from Pai Lum Kung Fu (thrown in there as the first brown belt kata to throw a new brown belt off his guard and force him to start moving and thinking differently), Nijushiho from Shotokan, and the Horseman Footsoldier's bo staff form and the Hidden Stick short stick form from Bando.

Welcome aboard!

I'm not huge into baseball anymore. I grew up a Yankees fan 30 minutes north of Boston, so when I was younger I had to follow baseball to be able to back myself up when I got trash talked... every single day... When I became an adult and moved around a little and wasn't around my Yankees fan father all the time, I mostly stopped following with sport with nothing really left but an unwavering dislike for the Red Sox. This year, however, I did follow the Cubs on Facebook just to keep up with how my cousin was doing. He had a great Rookie season and broke the Cubs club record for Rookie home runs belting out 26 so far this year. He also was in the Home Run Derby and was on the National League All Star Team as a reserve. The Cubs themselves look to be playing for the Wild Card slot for the playoffs. I don't expect them to make it too far into the playoffs this year, but with an outstanding group coming together this year, I can see them making a strong showing in two or three years (and now I'm starting to sound like a Cubs fan...).