Whisky147

And how was BJJ for you? I always ask. I loved it! so much so that i have now signed up properly

So far so good for me... Martial Arts related resolution: *Get back into Kickboxing - DONE! *Try out Jiu Jitsu - DONE! Non Martial Arts related: *Read more, at least 1 book a month - First one done! *Improve my cooking skills! erm...getting there slowly haha

Yes! and always remember to restomp the groin!!!

Myself all i have is my white sash certificate i got recently which is in a drawer at home, all my old kickboxing belts i have no idea where they have gone, got a feeling the parents may have binned them when i left home! The reason for asking was, at one of my classes one of the guys mentioned his friend used to tie his old belts to a bo and i was curious if others had a 'thing' they did with old belts

Have quite long hair myself that i wear into a ponytail when training or up in a bun, no real issues whilst training in MA class, self defence wise i generally wear my hair up day to day anyway plus with the majority of street fights i have witnessed (involving women anyway) they generally start with the two girls clamping onto each others hair and not letting go, (blokes fights i've seen have generally been windmill arms all over the place). So if someone was to grab my hair i would feel confident enough to know that i would be able to counter it thanks to self defence techniques taught in class. I do wonder though how i would cope in bjj where you are rolling around on the ground and there is more chance of your partner rolling on to your hair unintentionally and effectively pinning your head to the mat! lol

Is it wrong that my first concern was 'you're still going to see Metallica though right?' (i'm a diehard metal fan and applaud your commitment to travelling that kind of distance!)

Hey again folks! Apologies to Patrick if this is the wrong thread for this! With all the years of training, progression and belts under your...erm belts? I was curious if any of you display your old belts/sashes? At home or if you own your own school do you have them on display there? Maybe you have old weapons you used to train with that have now become part of your interior décor? Or does all the old stuff get retired to the back of the cupboard?!

Ipods are good, I have one myself for the gym. The Ipod Nanos, which are the smaller version, are really good for working out as they can fit in your pocket/arm band etc and weigh next to nothing. I've had my first ipod since 2006, it's been dropped so many times, taken to cold countries/hot countries and its still working fine!

Ah I've also been looking into ballet/gymnastic stretches and exercises too to help develop my flexibility and all the rest, have to hand it to ballet dancers they really are physically impressive folks! As for challenging myself, i haven't really challenged myself much recently, i've been practising my bo staff spinning techniques! haha i'm at the stage now where i'm not constantly hitting myself in the shin! Progress is progress

How are the challenges so far? Alan Armstrong - How is that canon kick coming along mate?

What I've been doing recently (and it's not the most exciting challenge I have to admit! haha) is doing a 'wall sit' (I think is what the exercise is called), where you lean against a wall in a squat/seated position and hold for a certain time, try to increase the time you hold the position for. I've been doing this to try and build up the muscles in my legs to help improve my stances, I come from a kickboxing background so am not used to the deep kung fu stances I've been learning. So my goal...iron out the basics!

Thanks folks, been a good year so far plus i've just got home from training so i'm on that post Martial Arts class buzz! haha Hope you're all having a positive start to the week

Well I am a few weeks behind due to a brand new gorgeous little godson to fuss over but I had my first grading at my kung fu school a few weeks back and got promoted to white sash Our instructor had pre warned myself and the other beginner that we would be grading sometime the start of April however it ended up being 'right let's do it now!' during class! So typically all the techniques, moves, forms etc that we had just practised easily enough 5 minutes ago went right out the window just because the word 'test' was involved. haha bloody typical! Happy to report that myself and fellow student passed fine and are now looking forward to the next stage of the journey I've done gradings before where it was made out to be more of an event (tested infront of the other students/special day set aside for it) but I think the more relaxed/informal approach made it easier as I didn't have time to get nervous for it we just went and did it and then it was over with, job done! What do you guys prefer? The informal style of gradings or the full ceremony/event gradings?

Yeah i get that feeling too sometimes, but the fact that you still train and want to keep going even after feeling a little disheartened shows you have a good attitude about training! Keep going and stay positive buddy

Wow thank you! A lot of top advice to keep me occupied for a while One of my aims is to improve health and flexibility for not only doing Martial Arts but to ensure i am giving my body the best chance at remaining fit and healthy right into my senior years (a long way off but i feel that if i get into good habits now whilst i can, i will be able to continue for years to come ensuring i will be able to remain active, mobile and able to lead an independent life as a sweet little old kung fu lady! haha) So your advice on stretching is spot on! I find myself at certain times of the day trying to stretch off a little, usually legs are the worst, so hamstring, groin (you know the 'split' type of stretches). I'll have to check the Bill Wallace and other tutorials out, sound good! Thanks for the info!