aefibird

Good luck! I hope that you enjoy it. Don't forget to let us all know how it goes...

King Buddah, as you're in the Nottingham area, there's a Karate class at Redhill sports centre 3 times a week. It's run by the Chief Instructor of my karate organisation, who is an excellent martial artist and instructor. There are also other FSK clubs in the Nottingham area, with a big club at the Tennis Centre. If you want any more details, then send me a Private Message or check out FSK

I'd prefer vinyl over foam, but as AngelaG said, if you can afford it then go for leather. It'll last you MUCH longer than either vinyl or foam.

Gah, don't talk to me about Blitz belts. I love all their MA products, except for their coloured belts. Every belt I had from them was either cheaply made or they dye came out or both. When I had my brown belt with 2 white stripes, one of the stripes partially came unstitched (so I was a brown belt with 1 and 1/2 white stripes ) A good UK make of coloured belts is Kamae, based in Chester. Their belts are cheaply priced, but are well-made and never shrink or run. I've got a silk Shureido belt now; one of the best investments I ever made.

Yeah, guinea pigs are great. I named one of mine after my old boss, 'cos he too was fat and hairy and sat around doing not much all day...

I agree. One of the worst viewing experiences of my life.

Horseriding Playing pool (I'm in a local team, but there always seems to be more drinking involved than pool playing... ) Reading (anything and everything, I'm a reading freak) Watching my local soccer team do badly each season (but I still love 'em!) COME ON Sheffield Wednesday!! Astronomy Playing and listening to music Cricket, which is a truly English sport. No other country in the world could create a game which takes all day to play and involves stopping for tea-breaks. Wasting time online in forums instead of actually doing any work...

lol, it feels like it at times! The fish and the doves will be a leaving 'present' from a friend of mine who is moving to Singapore for 6 months and needs to find a kindly home for her animals. I'm just pleased that she doesn't own a tiger...

Well, why not try a few lessons with both, see which you prefer?

Try National Aikido Federation UK. That was the organisation I was a member of before having to give up Aikido training. Aikido is an excellent style IMO, it just takes a lot of dedicated practice and training to be even a little bit good. The average length of time to blackbelt 1st Dan is about 6-7 years, so a student has to be in it for the love of the art and not just to get a Dan grade. Anyway, if you can't decide between Aikido and JuJitsu, then go along and have a look at clubs in your area and try out a few lessons with each. You'll probably get a 'feel' just from visiting of which art you'd prefer to train in. BTW, where abouts in the Midlands are you?

hey, it can't be that old - I remember it! Or maybe I'm just getting old... hmmm... Playschool was a great program - the triangle window was my fave...

Fine, thank you! Enjoying it as ever. lol, don't worry about it! You're as bad as I am when it comes to posting things...

Welcome to Karate Forums, red star! Why not try phoning up the local schools in your area and asking them if they teach XMA/tricks? Even if they don't, someone may be able to point you in the right direction.

What's your hobbies / leisure pastimes? Apart from Martial Arts, of course...

Do you own a pet? If so, which sort? If you have more than one, then please choose 'other' in the poll. I have a cockatiel, a budgerigar, 2 guinea pigs and a horse. I'm also aquiring a pair of doves soon, and a tank full of fish too.

Yeah, try Lacuna Coil, I'm sure you'll like them. Well, I do, anyway... I'm really into Nightwish at the moment.

Hi! Welcome to Karate Forums. Good to have you on board.

Hi dinesh! Welcome to Karate Forums.

Great site Grrr! Thanks for the link.

Congratulations!

McDojo - like McDonalds. Serves up whatever you want in a cheap and quick fashion. "McDojo" is the term used by a lot of Martial Artists to describe 'sell-out' martial arts clubs - the ones that "guarantee" a black belt or charge exorbitant fees and only seem interested in making money, rather than actually teaching any worthwhile martial art.

Didn't know that "Playschool" was a Martial Art... (for those that don't know "playschool" in the UK is a play group for children under school age, usually aged about 3 or 4).

Congratulations on passing your yellow belt grading! Keep up the hard work!!

I've just been reading the latest edition of Kung Fu magazine (well, the latest edition that is available in the UK anyway...) - those Choy Li Fut articles are good.

A friend at my karate club sent me this on email... Do you wake up Saturday mornings stiff and sore? Is another night like Friday nights training the only thing that will make you feel better? Do you workout alone? Do you find that once you've thrown a jab, you can't stop until you've followed it with a reverse punch? If so, you may be (gasp!!) HOOKED ON KARATE. How do you know? Here are a few clues. You know you're hooked when the first word out of your parrot's mouth is KIAI!, and you teach your cat how to free spar. You know you're hooked when you have more bruises than a roller derby queen, and you still go back for more. You know you're hooked when you shut the refrigerator door with a side thrust kick. You know you're hooked when you shop for clothes based on whether you can kick in them. You know you're hooked when the only clothes you'll wear are gis. You know you're hooked when you actually crave a beach workout. You know you're hooked when the books on your night stand are by authors like Gichin Funakoshi, Hirokazu Kanazawa and Musashi Miyamoto. You know you're hooked when the Twelve Days of Christmas becomes: one boxing bag, two boxing gloves, three shin pads (includes an extra pad for the one you'll inevitably lose), four Tokaido gi's, five rolls of adhesive tape....twelve cases of Tiger Balm. You know you're hooked when you look for a place to live based on the amount of practice space it provides. You know you're hooked when you refuse to wear shoes.