June1

I don't get it! I never do these things. Wonder why... Oh, well. I guess I probably will in a few more years. In the meantime, I wonder if any of my fellow karatekas (BTW, how does one pronounce that??) at my dojo or even my sensei have experienced this kind of stuff...

Hello, all! This Sunday will be my very first grading. I'm going for yellow belt! Now, I know that I'll probably be fine, but I'm still kind of freaked out. There are always so many people there!! Those parents, with their cameras, really freak me out. Anyway, I was wondering if anyone would care to post their first grading experience, and if you have any tips for me, that would be awesome (I'm always insanely nervous before anything and don't want to end up barfing beforehand, though I probably will). Thank you!!

Owwwwwwwwwwwww! Next time you have to spar with her, why don't you wear a cup? Or better yet, practice some low blocks.

Oh, dear! Well, nothing like that has happened to me... but it sure would be interesting (I'm usually the only girl in my class)!

Great posts, guys! Thanks a lot! Maybe another MA is on the horizon... judo, perhaps?

I just cannot function without water. I have to bring a bottle every class. I tend to tire easily and if we're doing many drills, I constantly have to run to the bottle to get a sip, then run back to rejoin the class. It's kind of annoying, but hey, I don't want my throat to dry and for me to gag (which happened once).

Don't wear.... Nothing! Aaaaahhhh!

LOL!! I can relate! I normally walk around town with a scowl, a kind of "don't mess with me" look--even more so at night. My friend does the same thing, but she looks furious when she does it. I'm weird. So is she.

Don't say anything like this... "Yo, Sensei! Think fast!" *take swing at Sensei's head*

Does anyone know if or when karate is shown on the Canadian channel, TSN? I don't have ESPN, but would love to watch karate on the boob tube! Thanks!

Oh, man! I always do things like this. Example: I'm in the elevator with some guy. He looks at me, I look at him. The next thing I do is clench my fists and prepare.... JUST in case he decides to try anything. Even in school! Walking past "tough" guys, I always imagine shuto striking them and kiaing as loud as I can. Don't know why...

Yeah, that's exactly what I was thinking.... Maybe Tai Chi or another style of Karate.

This is kind of a funny/dumb story, but it shows you how effective the horse stance really is. I was in the subway today on my way to my dojo. It was insanely packed (people were squished against the doors) because today is the Santa Claus Parade in my city. I happened to be in the middle of the chaos, with no bars to hang onto. Whenever the subway came to a stop, people were tossed from side to side, slamming into those next to them. Terrified that that would be me, I remembered reading about how stable and strong the horse stance is. So what did I do? That's right! I got into a horse stance (but not too low, didn't want to look too silly). It worked perfectly. I was able to absorb the shock of sudden stops and I wasn't thrown off-balance once. Just wanted to share!

Hello! Just wondering.... I've noticed that many members on this forum take more than one form of martial arts. This may be a dumb question, seeing as I'm only taking one (Shotokan Karate), but wouldn't taking several forms at the same time confuse you?

Awww. That's so great. You know, I honestly never imagined liking Karate so much. Whenever I'd see or hear about it, I would just think that I'd never be able to do that, or that it must be boring. WRONG! The main reason I'm in this MA thing--besides the self-defense aspect of it--is because it keeps you focused and physically improves you. I'm well on my way to getting abs now.... ABS! How have you all changed since starting MA?

LOL! That's a great idea! About the shoes, though.... in my dojo, we aren't allowed to wear shoes or socks. I guess my only options are the powder deodorant or wiping my feet on my gi. Ah, well! Thank you all so much for your suggestions!

That sounds great! This is so weird; last class (yesterday), I majorly slipped while practicing shuto blocks. My left foot went so far out, a bit more and I would have done a split. Ouch! My feet have always had a sweating prob, but I never thought it would go that far. Yesterday was the first time anything like this happened. How freaky that I would find this subject here and now! I'm thinking that I could use some talcum powder next time, but what if it makes a paste? Could you imagine my footprints all over the mats? LOL! Oh, man.... not good. Any ideas of what I could do?

Ti, Kilo just means that the student must clean the sensei's house, cook for him/her, do chores, etc. Someone has a dirty mind!

Hey, here's an idea! For those of you who can, why don't you actually record a kiai in .wav or .mp3 or something and post the URL here? That would be really interesting to actually hear it after reading the description.

Hey, there! Just wondering where all the white belts are at! Out of curiosity, how long have you been studying karate and why did you first get into it? I've been studying for about 6 weeks and I never thought I would love it so much. My mom asked me if I wanted to take karate for self-defence. It came completely out of left field. I thought about it for 5 seconds, then agreed. It also didn't hurt that she knew the owner of the dojo. She's a waitress and I think he goes to the restaurant she works at. Anyway, ever since then, I've fallen in love with karate-do! Anyhoo, write back with your stories! I'd love to hear 'em!

I'm new! *wave*

My kiai sounds like "Kiai," but without the "i." Kind of like, "KYA!" I think it would be interesting to experiment with different kiais, but am a little worried it would be weird to have a different kiai like, every class.