aefibird

I'll be going, I've been to it for the past 3 years. I'm annoyed that they've moved it from Birmingham to London, but I shall still be there! I enjoyed it every time I've been and have taken part in plenty of the seminars and workshops, including a Capoaira one, which is something I never thought I'd get the chance to do. It would be great if folk from here could meet up at SENI, would be good to put "faces to names".

I was almost 25 when I got my Shodan in Karate and 27 when I got my Nidan. This summer I'm hoping to take my Chodan in WTF TKD as well.

I have a Tokaido heavyweight, which I keep for tournaments. It is very stiff and very heavy, but that is due to the fact that it doesn't get worn much. IMO, it wasn't worth the extra money I spent on buying it and I've a feeling that if I wore it everyday for the dojo that it would soon wear out. A friend of mine swears by Shureido but the best heavyweight gi I've found has been the Karate-Kid own brand. https://www.karate-kid.co.uk They're a UK company but will ship all over the world. Their Accent Heavyweight gi is the best uniform I've had, miles better than Blitz, Century, Dae Do and Tokaido, as well as the "no-name" student unifoms I had as a coloured belt. As well as the KK, Kwon uniforms are good, although their sizing can be a little on the small side compared with other brands.

I've had a couple of types for karate and found them both to be cumbersome and uncomfortable. The first sort was like a plastic shield that fitted over the breast area, over your bra and the second was like an athletic/sports bra but with removable inserts. The first sort is very uncomfortable and I found it dug into me everytime I tried to do anything remotely athletic. The second sort is better, but didn't provide protection for all the breast area. Plus, the inserts were very heavy and I felt like I was wearing lead weights. Also, there's the problem of wearing them - if you know it's gonna be a whole lesson of sparring then you wear it from the start. However, if you've just done 3/4 of a lesson on kata then the instructor decides to throw in a little light sparring to finish off with it is very awkward to have to rush out to put the breast protector on. As I also train in TKD as well as karate I own a hogu (TKD chest protector) and I just ask to wear that it Karate class if I know we are doing a lot of sparring, especially if I'm up against someone with not a lot of control. I don't bother with the other female chest protectors now, I just wear one if I have to for competition. Kez, you might be better off asking your instructor if you could wear a TKD type trunk protector, as it covers all the breast area and absorbs most of the impact. I know it's not strictly a Karate piece of kit, but more and more karate-only competitions are allowing competitors to wear them and it will only be a matter of time before they're compulsory for many points competitions.

At my WTF school you need to know Basics pattern (one of my instructors own design, used for white belts), all 8 Taeguek patterns and Koryo for 1st Dan. For 2nd Dan it's Taegueks 5-8, Koryo and Taebaek and for 3rd Dan it's Taegueks 7 & 8, Koryo, Taebaek and Keumgang. I'm not sure for grades after 3rd Dan - I'm still working on stuff for my forthcoming TKD 1st Dan test!

On the morning of a tournament I usually have porridge for breakfast, made with skimmed milk and with chopped banana, sultanas and pumpkin seeds thrown in, sprinkled with cinnamon. Mmmm... I don't tend to eat anything special the night before, it's usually just a pasta or rice dish. I don't drink any alcohol, though and make sure I do drink plenty of water the day before and the day of the tourney. Afterwards its usually McDonalds with the rest of the team, and maybe a beer or two when we get back to town.

Well done Carolyn! Good luck for your next tourney. The best person to ask about the rules used at that competition would be your Sensei or someone who was an official. They will be able to explain clearly how to score points and why some of your techniques seemed to 'score' but that you didn't get points for them.

If you're looking for more ground work then I'd say to go for it. Even if you only train there for 6 months or a year it wil give you a familiarity with it and should help improve your MA training. Good luck!

I agree! I entered my first tournament as an orange belt (first colour after white in my system) and enjoyed it, but didn't compete again until I was a purple belt, which meant I was put in a category with the brown and black belts. I did OK, but if I'd been to a lot more tournaments as an orange and yellow belt and got experience as a lower grade, then carried that experience on through the rest of the coloured belts then I would've known what to expect and probably done better than I did. So, I'm gonna be a parrot and echo what everyone else has said - GO FOR IT! Oh, and GOOD LUCK!

I thought it was the other way around? I know that I've read before that if you lose body fat but put on muscle you can still end up weighing the same as when you had body fat but no muscle, because of the density of muscle compared to fat.

There's Judo training at the George H Carnell Sports Centre either 2 or 3 times a week, weekdays and weekends. I don't train there myself, but I've seen the club advertised when I've been to MA events at the sports centre. The last time I was there (for a competition) the Judo club were training in another sports hall. It was an adults-only class and there looked to be about 15 people there. The centre is in Davyhulme, Manchester, J9 of the M60. It's literally just off the M60 - turn off the motorway and you can see it as you're on the sliproad.

Iwas either 20 or 21 when I started, although I grew up in a MA household, as my dad and brother did Judo (I was never allowed to train 'cos I was a girl :( ).

I hardly ever go to the cinema these days. The last film I saw there was Saw 3, which was about October. I think the one before that was Ice Age 2, which just shows how often I go!!

Outlook Express, Gmail and AIM mail for me.

I have flat feet and found when I initially started training that certain techniques and stances were painful. Now, because I've been training for such a long time, I'm fine with every technique and think that martial arts training has actually helped my feet to become stronger and put less strain on my joints. Make sure you stretch a little every day or every other day and really warm up your feet and ankles before you train.

I have a DS and love it so I shall probably save up for a Wii. For the amount that the PS3 costs, I'd prefer to get a Wii and be able to spend the difference on games anyway. The extra money just isn't justified IMO, especially when the XBox 360 has basically the same features and is cheaper.

Belated happy birthday Matt, hope you had a great day!

I got 57%: "You're somewhat addicted to the internet - but who isn't? You can keep it under check, and you're by no means a hermit."

You're all wrong. Life is about HOCKEY! j/k, life is for living and enjoying, whatever circumstances you find yourself in - married, with kids, single mum, no children, whatever. The key is to remeber that this life is the only one you get and it isn't a rehersal - so whatever you wanna do in your life then GO for it!

I have loads of faves, but here's a few that I especially like: Scent of a Woman, Clerks, The Shawshank Redemption, Slapshot, Calendar Girls, Halloween, Shrek & Shrek 2, Blow Dry, Blues Brothers, Grease, Withnail & I, Castaway, The Truman Show, Saw, Saw 2 & Saw 3, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Secrets & Lies, Kinky Boots, Dogma.

Good luck and get well soon!

My faves tend to be Korean, Karate, General and General Chat.

In the UK: Sheffield Steelers ice hockey club In the US: Phoenix Coyotes (first NHL game I ever saw live featured them) or Rochester Americans (a friend of mine lives in Rochester and is a big fan, plus my hockey club in the UK has 2 players that are ex-Americans players)

You Are Hockey http://images.blogthings.com/whatwintersportareyouquiz/hockey.jpg Tough, athletic, and not afraid of a fight. You don't mind putting your body on the line! A good choice for me, because I love hockey and I'm hoping to start playing soon!

Thanks for the recommendation! I've been looking lately for some really good books on TKD (not just Hae Sul, but all aspects of TKD) and that one sounds great. Amazon here I come...