UsagiYojimbo

Way to go! I just got my 1st belt in my style. Feels great, doesn't it?

Thanks!

It was funny, because they spring it on you, so you never know when it will be. It just so happened that I had invited a friend to come to class with me tonight. Then, when we usually take our break, the senseis had us all line up on either side of the dojo. Then they called the other white belt besides me up front and center. My friend was like, "What are they doing?" and got shushed by my sensei, so I just shrugged my shoulders and tried to whisper, "Test". Then she was like, "I've got to go now, I have to be somewhere at 9," while this other person is getting tested. So she asked and left before I went up. It was much quicker than I expected. They just had us do the 1st kata and the drill we had learned, then lined us up and announced we had both passed! In fact, they said we did exceptionally well. So, I'm a happy orange belt now. Well, not technically, I don't have my belt yet. But soon!

Sorry to give the wrong impression; I wasn't stating that the school was poor because it had no organizational affiliation. The poster was asking about schools in our area, and I was simply stating that this school didn't have an affiliation. I felt the school was poor based on the weak techniques of the more advanced students and what I felt to be sub-par instruction. Hope that clarifies.

Yeah, I think everyone's done that. Most senseis are a bit psychic about this, I think. They'll put out a technique, and they can tell when people are thinking "Yeah, right, that'll work ". That's when you get the demo.

One of the schools I checked out here claimed to be goju. But the sensei was teaching mostly kids and I wasn't terribly impressed with technique. Also, the school had no organizational affiliation. As far as I know, that's the only goju place in town.

Our dojo is having issues with this right now. Our dojo is a rented room in a gym that we only have access to 3 times a week. We have plenty of equipment (mats, focus pads, a dummy to beat up on), but low enrollment. However, I searched all over the city and this is the class that offers what I consider to be the best karate instruction around. We're actually trying to attract some new members now; our senseis have recruited us to hang up flyers and hand out business cards. I just hope people aren't turned off by the atmosphere of our dojo (which I happen to love).

Ooh, I just saw that movie! It was great, and the quote was wonderfully applicable. Thanks!

Yes, I now totally understand and accept it (I was able to talk to my sensei about it). I've discovered that the driving forces behind my reaction were my crippling fear of failure and of disappointing others. But, as others have said here, these are important things to develop.

Thanks all.

Yes, I'm sure you're right and I'm taking it far too personally. I'm just a bit flummoxed, because I felt I did what was asked and apparently that wasn't good enough. I'll just have to try harder next time.

Matsubayashi Shorin Ryu.

So, I had my first karate class again tonight, after being away on vacation for two weeks. Before I left, my sensei had given me a kata to work on over my vacation. And I did work on it. There was a specific area I'd been having trouble with (stances), and I did a lot of work on that, as well as working with my strikes, as I'd been directed. And I thought I had made good progress on my own. So I came back to class tonight, and the class performed the kata together as a group. At the end, our sensei said, "The white belts owe me push-ups. You told me you were going to practice over break." (The only white belts in there tonight were me and a fellow, who had also been on vacation.) So, of course, I did the push-ups without argument, but I couldn't help but feel slighted. I had worked hard on that kata, and I feel like my work went totally unrecognized. And if the punishment was really directed at the other person (no, I'm not saying it couldn't have been directed at me), I don't think it's fair to make me do pushups as well. I just sent her an email asking her why she felt I hadn't made sufficient progress; we'll see what she says. Anyway, there's no real point to this, I suppose, just venting. Has anyone else here dealt with something like this?

Hooray! Good job!

According to the American Council on Exercise's body fat chart, men should maintain a minimum of 6% bodyfat. Up to 17% is considered "fitness", and up to 25% is considered "acceptable". For women, the numbers are 14% bodyfat minimum, 24% for fitness, and 31% for acceptable.[/url]

Well, I just started about two months ago, and this is the first time I've taken Shorin, so I can't compare it. Also haven't gotten into real sparring yet. I love the school, though. Wish I could be more helpful. Edit: About sparring: I do know from seeing the higher ranks spar and how our senseis feel about sparring, that it's very controlled.

Carl, i think what you're describing is a makiwara head. A full makiwara also has a flexible base pole attached to it.[/url]

I don't currently use one, but I would like to. The primary reason is because I haven't had the time or knowledge to construct one. I've seen directions for making them online; I'm not terribly handy, but perhaps now that I'm on break from school I could give it a go. Anyone else make their own? How hard was it?

Way to go!

CapitalKarate, do you go to an ASKA dojo? My dojo used to be ASKA, but just this year switched to SKKAA (political reasons, apparently).

I go to the dojo twice a week. They also offer a black belt class on Friday; my sensei told us anyone can show up, it's basically individual workout time, but my current schedule doesn't permit it. Outside of class, I practice for about 45 minutes 2-3 times a week. I work on basics, some bag work, some kata.

I would make the decision not based solely on the style, but on the way class is taught as well. When I recently got back into martial arts, I was determined to only take goju, since it was the style I had trained in previously. However, when I checked out the 2 locations offering it in my area (one was taught by a head sensei, the other by her black belt students), I decided I wasn't impressed with the style of instruction. I looked around a bit more and ended up going with the dojo that's right near my house, which is Shorin Ryu, and I'm thrilled. So, in summary, look at how the individual school teaches the art.

I did yoga stretches before I started karate. My sensei incorporates some into our warmups, and I also do my own at home. I love accenting my karate with it. I find that meditation also helps.

Wow, I just got my white gi and hadn't even considered this question yet. Yikes! I imagine I'll just wear some tan boxer shorts over my underwear and under my gi pants. I hope that prevents any problems.

I recently started doing karate again, after my husband and I got married (we've been married just over a year). He's happy for me, because he knows I'm doing what I love. I don't think he'll ever join me, though; he's more of a master of "couch fu".