aefibird

Tell her how you feel. If you think you're losing her then it'd be a good time to tell her your feelings for her, especially as you've become close friends. Good luck!

Sorry to hear about the interviews Monkey. Hopefully you'll get a decent job soon! On the Lisbon/Reykjavic problem I'd suggest going to Reykjavic. I've been there and it is an amazing place in an amazing country. Be prepared to pay lots of money for everything, though. When I went, it was mega expensive.

Kubrick was very wierd. Even if the Neil Armstrong moon landing was a fake, then I'd still love to go there. First person to perform martial arts in space!

Yeah, but who's gonna be brave enough to own up to it?? AND provide the photographic evidence!

I'll ditto what evryone else has said - I'd like longer drills. We do drills and basic technique work almost every lesson, but sometimes it isn't for as long as I'd like. Still, martial arts can often have a lot of stuff in them, especially the more traditional styles. It can be very difficult to try and cram in everything an instructor wants to include into one lesson. When I'm teaching classes the time seems to fly by so quickly!

:lol: Good one Shotochem!

I wear a wrap-over gi for karate. When I trained in Aikido I wore a Judo gi. For my Kobudo training I either wear a Karate gi, or gi trousers and a t-shirt. For the street/freestyle self defence classes my karate instructor does we either wear street clothes or gi trousers and a t-shirt. I've recently started Wing Chun and I wear gi trousers and a t-shirt with the club logo on it for that.

Luckykboxer, good luck with your bout in UFC/Pride/K1. (Which is it most likely to be?) I'm sure everyone here on KF will be rootin' for you!

lol, that's why you come to Karate Forums!

Great advice for any martial artist.

Lots and lots and lots of good quality advertising when you open your school. Take out ads in the local paper, on the local radio. Put up posters in shops and schools (if they'll let you) and have someone stand in the middle of a busy shopping area handing out leaflets. Have 'opening week' offers and discounts to encourage students to join. As youremean said, free trial lessons are also a good thing. Also, when you start your school, if you can have a 'handbook' to give out to all new students then that's a good thing. Something simple with class times and contact phone numbers on it, as well as general info about TKD and the club. Basic terminology and grade structure would also be a good thing to include in it. Good luck with your school.

I'd say you did need a vacation.... either that or a week away from training to clear your head. Some time away from martial arts training can really do a person good. You'll come back refreshed and less likely to walk into punches...

Chirath, do you have a leisure centre with a running track near you? If so, give them a call. As you're under 16 the charges probably wouldn't be very much (if anything). Zooming round the track a few times will be just as good as running round the block, and will probably keep you away from the 'gangsters'. Also, if you've got a back yard or back garden then jog on the spot in that. Plus, you could do those froggy jumps and other excercises without waking your dad up.

Sorry to hear about your surgery. I hope it works out well for you and that you're soon able to get back to training!

Congratulations to you Ramymensa! You've really earned the Member of the Month - your posts are always thoughtful and insightful and I always enjoy reading them. Keep it up girl!

Hi Ashley! Welcome to Karate Forums.

Hi Ash, welcome to Karate Forums.

I started reading Mick Foley's autobiography, but I couldn't finish it. Too much of the 'why I'm better than everyone else' in it, like you said. This latest book of his is a novel, though. The blurb on the back sounds good. Anyway, if I don't like it it doesn't matter too much - I got it free on a "3 for the price of 2" promotion!

Ooh, yeah, GymKata - terrible terrible movie. A true waste of everyone's time.

It often depends upon the instructor and their affiliated association. Some instructors incorporate 'internal' aspects into their training and some don't. Is it specifically karate that you and your mum are interested in? If you'd consider any martial art (or, at least, any striking-based martial art) then check out other MA schools in your area. There may be martial arts clubs that emphasise self-defence training and not internal/mental training. The best thing to do would be to go to the various martial arts schools in your area and have a couple of trial lessons with them all. Then you'll be able to make a comparison and decide which is the right place for you. Good luck with your search!

Well, if you feel like you're getting good value then that's a major thing. It's all relative.

Ever had one of those training sessions where the blood is flying thiack and fast? Well, we had one last night at my karate club. It seemed like every person there got some form of injury. We were doing a freestyle fighting session for the adults - any technique allowed, except groin and eye strikes. Padding optional - it was up to the fighter as to what they wanted to wear. The first two guys up, one slipped on the mats going for a takedown and broke his collar bone. During the takedown he (somehow) managed to bust his partners nose with his elbow. First lot of blood about! The second match was just as bloody - one split lip and one broken nose. The other matches all seemed to have some form of injury in them, as well as the usual bumps and bruises. Even the kids didn't escape. They did point sparring and one kid managed to break his big toe on another kids elbow, whilst another injury happened when a girl accidentally kicked a lad in the groin. He was so mad with her that he poked her in the eye! We had to take him aside and have a little chat with him about what not to do in the dojo... It was a funny sight to see after training had finished - everyone clutching a different bit of themselves in agony. I didn't manage to escape unscathed either, and I was only refereeing! My injury wasn't karate related, though; I trapped my hand in the changing room door. We seem to have had a relatively long period without many serious injuries at my dojo, then suddenly we get enough in one night to keep the hospital staff occupied for hours. Funny how things sometimes turn out.

lol, don't worry about it Erin - I'm sure everyone on this site has screwed up in some way or another at their martial arts club. Still, it's pretty embarassing to do something like that and having someone tell you that 'everyone makes mistakes' still doesn't make you feel any better!

Well.... I didn't mean that it was your actual idea, rather than it was an idea of how to regulate the MA industry... I like that. I have issues with lawyers, epsecially over their astronomical prices. Although, if anyone on here is a lawyer then you never read that...it wasn't my comment