SloMo

Welcome! You might want to post your question in the general martial arts section. I'm sure you'll get a ton of good advise!

Welcome, lots of good info to be found here!

Welcome!

I envy anybody who can find the time to train in two arts at the same time! Another thing to be careful of is where the two arts moght not compliment each other. It could be as simple as the way a stance is done. A lot of MA is based on body learning. Your body "knows" how to fall into a particular stance without you having to think about it. But is the two styles do a stance that are similar to each other you could wind up doing it incorrectly for one style. Not to say it cannot be done. If you have the time to devote to it then I that's great!

I like that obstacle course idea. It sounds like a lot of fun. One of the games we play is our version of Simon. We number the basic footwork 1 - 4. One being moving forward, 2 backward, 3 switching and four, leaping in the air. Then I call out the numbers adding one each time. It really helps the kids focus because they don't want to get out and they wind up practicing some important basics that are otherwise kinda boring. We had one group get up to 24 moves before they messed up!

Competing is a good way to build confidence in students but I do not feel it should be required of anybody. The greatest value is that they get to spar people of different styles in open tournaments which is a great learning experience. However, arranging a sparring class with another school would accomplish the same thing. I'm not sure what the value is of making competition a requirement unless that is the main focus of your school.

Wow, I'm impressed! Welcome!

Welcome fellow Aquarian! Good luck on your test! Mo

I say try each one and find a school you are comfortable in and enjoy. I totally disagree with anybody who says this style is only good for this or that. Or states that a style is not practical in a "real" fight. I think that any style can be effective if the person studying it is serious. Some may make you more effective in the short term and some may take longer. I never studied Akido myself but I visited a school and was very impressed with what I saw. All I kept thinking was, "If I let one of them get a hand on me I'd be in trouble!" Every style has strengths and weaknesses and I would be wary of any style that claims not to have any. A good instructor acknowledges the weaknesses and learns how to compensate for them. So, go out there and try a bunch of them out, whatever you enjoy the most will be the right one. Mo

I understand some of the objections that people have with boxing but I don't know if I would want to meet up with a serious boxer in a street fight for a few reasons. 1) They hit hard! 2) Generally speaking, hand techniques are faster than foot. And boxers have very fast hands. 3) They are trained to take blows 4) Most "street" situations are going to be close contact which puts most people in hand range. 5) They have huge amounts of stamina 6) Sparring is a major part of the training Now, I know that every style have some or all of the same benefits... and I would be worried about some of those too! ( kick boxing for example ). I think of every martial art style on a scale between the martial aspect and the art aspect. A style that is way on the art side would be Tai Chi, a style on the martial side would be boxing, kick boxing, etc. Most others float somewhere in between. Now, to actually answer your question! I think boxing would be great. I do not know much about how CP affects your body but you would get great training and great upper body strength with boxing. As to the whole "learning to punch incorrectly" thing. I bet that if you went to a gym they could train you in bare knuckle punching. Another style you might want to consider is Wing Chun. It also focuses on hands and upper body and is an great style for deflecting rather than trying to meet force with force. It's also a style that is build around close in fighting with minimal kicking. I don't know much about the other softer styles so I'm sure someone here and talk much better about them than I could. I agree that you should not limit your style but you do need to consider how much can you participate in with the rest of the class. With boxing and Wing Chun I do not see much that you would not be able to particiapte in. Good luck! Mo

Well, the old Master/Apprentice relationship isn't very common. In fact, I don't know of anybody who learned in that kind of environment. I'm not sure what the difference woudl be between working with a person one on one and joining a class. You still need to show up. Maybe a one on one would push you more ( like having a personal trainer in the gym ) but you can't get motivation from someone else. They can carry you for a while but eventually your own motivation is what is going to keep you going. Some instructors offer private lessons but these can be very expensive to do. I woudl say that you shoudl join a class. Maybe one of the ones that you have a friend at. A friend can help you get to class, call to see why you weren't there etc. To this day there are times when I don't want to go to class. But sometimes I hate going to class, but I'm ALWAYS glad that I went. Playing junior therapist here. I found that a lot of unmotivated students are that way because they have a hard time looking at their next goal. They look at the finish line and it overwhelms them. I tell them to focus on the next goal. ( whether it be a form, next belt, whatever ) and not worry about what the next five goals are. Having short term goals keeps them motivated and they wind up progressing faster than the average student usually. I don't know if that is you or not but it might be something to try. Good luck! Mo

Personally I think it's too distracting. But that's a presonal opinion. One of the instructors likes to play music during warm ups and during cardio classes. I think it's just a matter of preference.

I would say discuss it with your current instructor. See what they have to say about you instructing. I don't know where you are at in your training but it might it might be too early to begin teaching at this point. The best instructors are the best students. Pay attention to how the good instructors teach. Look at how they manage the class as a whole, at how they teach on a one to one level and how they handle people who are having difficulties. Also READ! There are a bunch of very good books on teaching martial arts and teaching in general. It sounds like you are already on the right road to get what you want so keep up the enthusiasm!

We charge a very small tuition so we do charge for testing. We do not charge for re-testing. Generally it's to cover the additional expenses and it's really the only part that is profit to the school which we use for new equipment. I guess it depends on how much is charged for a test to determine if it is fair.

Welcome!

I can't add any more to what Mr. Mike said. He talks sense! You need to get out there and try some out.

I can understand your point of view but I do not agree that promoting these students, even if they are the bill payers, is the right thing in the long run. I can't image that these schools tell people, well that person is a good ( whatever ) belt but that person pays on time so we keep promoting him. Schools that offer McBelts get themselves into a bad cycle. Eventually all they attract are people who are more interested in a McBelt school because serious students will get frustrated and they are left with nothing but the people who are in it for the image. We have students of different levels of skill. We have some kids that, god bless them, couldn't chew gum and walk at the same time. We do not promote them until they are able to do the requirements we set for that belt level. We have a few kids who have been yellow belts for a long time. But let me tell you. When they do finally test, they are more proud of themselves than any other student there. And it takes time but every student gets better over time and effort. So, while I agree that it is a business and all the rules of running a business apply. I think you can retain your art's integrity and still make a profit. Think of it as owning a car repair shop. You can do shoddy work cheaply and get a lot of customer ( but little repeat business ) or do quality work at a fair price ( or even a premium, depending on the work ). Both routes have a potential to be successful in a business sense. One takes mroe work than the other.

Those look pretty aweful.... I can't wait to add them to the warm up! ( My class is going to love me )

Welcome! You'll find a lot of "lifers" here! Mo

Congrats on coming back! Welcome!

Hey, take it slow at first. You'll build back up pretty fast as long as you don't injure yourself. Mo P.S. Welcome!

I'm just going to repeat what was already said here. Go twice a week but listen to your body. You can't do anything if you pull a muscle or injure yourself! Stretch a lot! Welcome!

Welcome! I also had started up after a looooooong break. It comes back much quicker than you think it will!

Welcome!

Soon to be 38 here. My knees are not what they used to be! Welcome! Mo