three60roundhouse

At our school, when a new student comes to our dojang and has previously studied, he gets evaluated by the head instructors and if he has ANY knowledge, they will wither let him keep that rank or give him a lower one. That way training isn't lost, but the new student has to have many more lessons in the beginning to learn what we do differently and to learn our patters. They all catch up, eventually.

That's bad, I think, becasue the sensei should think about exceptions - like a forty year old man who commited one crime when he was eighteen, adn then lived his life the right way. Just MHO.

That sucks. Why not/ He never makes exceptions?

Not really - read Dracula, actually, and didn't think very highly of it. I am more interested in true crime

The first step is the hardest. For me, planning what I am going to do sometimes takes much longer than what I am actually doing...it can take you 30 minutes to read directions to put together a birdhouse and only 15 minutes to actually do it.

That's pretty cool. Maybe a martial arts class should be started somewhere for people who are convicted of minor crimes. Hmm...that was a good thought.

What made you choose martial arts over other activities? Was it that you had seen Bruce Lee flicks, or that you saw kids coming home from a dojo, or that your parents wanted to show you more discipline? Did you want a fun way to stay in shape? Many people today are getting into the martial arts for the wrong reasons! (they want a black belt NOW, they want to "kick some ass", their parents want a new type of day care). What does your decision make you think of now? Do you think you were young and stupid back then (i was one of those "I need a black belt types".)

Sorry, YODA. This post belongs on a gymnastics forum somewhere. No offense to people who want to dedicate their lives to stunting their growth and having stress breaks and osteoperosis, but those people really should be more health-concious.

What do you guys think of different tests for people with different abilities, potentials, and needs? I hear that some schools change the tests according to who is taking them, while at my school the tests are exactly the same, except for sometimes the breaks.

Wait...you are a yellow belt who enjoys being a purple belt?

Well, if you really think about it, doing a pattern is like "meditation in motion", at least for me. When I practice, it brings me to a place only the MA can get me to...I find that creating my own patterns does this for me as well.

I am a typical teenage procrastinator and I find myself waiting for certain situations to take action - actually becoming a more aggressive person in general as far as things I need to have accomplished was one of my new years resolutions .

I know a lot of side control variations, and I like them because they are kind of hard to get out of if you know the position well and there are tons of things you can work from there.

If you have ever watched Kira Gracie, that's sort of "my style" - I like to play my guard and go for sweeps instead of being really agressive.

Gumby is getting all poetic on us now, isn't he? . I've never actually seen a wushu demonstarion, but I heard there is going to be one in a while somewhere around my area, so I'll want to check it out.

KickChick, I didn't say I thought it was horrible, I said the rep was horrible becasue of many of the ignorant people who have beat McDojo students and have come to the conclusion that TKD sucks. I like to keep my distance, but I want to also train some boxing in the future to develop better punches, and now I'm also working on BJJ for the close takedowns and grappling.

Spinninggumby, we know you want to win Survivor, but.... This is our chance to see how competitive this site realy is

Tae kwon do people have a horrible reputation for always backing away becasue of the fact that kicks need so much more room.

I think a lot more practice goes into developing the spinning/flying kick in tae kwon do, but I have seen many karate pratitioners do 360s, flying/jumping kicks, etc. Tae kwon do is known for its flashy, high-flying kicks.

Jack, that link was very helpful...I am thinking of starting to compete.

Sure, brag away, just don't get haughty in the sparring ring! Good job! I have a tournament coming up April 31st!

Side kicks to the knees...they are almost no-brainers! It's hard to stop them and they are extremely quick.

I think that would be a good thing to pass on to my friends at the dojang. I always thougt the belt was just a pretty piece of cotton holding the pants up! .

I used to watch the Ninja Turtles! Those things were awesome.

That's just the way our media works. They'll do anything for paper sales or Neilson ratings!