ladyj

Don't Quit. If you do you will be selling yourself short. As a female who is not tall and as a mother of a daughter who trains and is not tall, you need to use techniques that are appropriate for your body structure and pick targets that are appropriate for your body structure. ( you wouldn't want to try to kick a 6ft tall person in the head, can it be done yes but it will be more difficult than if you kick them in the chest) You also need to learn how to close the gap between yourself and your opponent while you are moving in your sparring stance. Know that once you get inside;close enough to strike you must stay there and continue to strike until break is called. Not everyone is comfortable sparring, but you can learn to be comfortable, it takes a good sparring partner who intrest in not only in their improvement but also in yours, they also need to have good control so you can become more comfortable with the idea of sparring and not having to worry about an injury.

Two martial arts should be fine, however be careful with your body. When you stretch muscles you tear tiny muscle fibers and if you don't give them time to heal then you may develop a serious injury later. Before you start do your homework and find out from a professional ( I suggest a Physical Therapist) what they think about overtraining.

greenbeltgirl go with the calcium supplement, if you can't take the pills try the chews, GNC makes a caramel flavored one that tastes like caramel candy also Wal-mart carrys a chocolate flavored calcium chew, but I can't think of the name. Also consider lifting light weights this will help to make the bones harder. Good luck.

Games are a great learning tool if used properly. My children get a game about every 3-4 months. I am talking about Sensei Says for instance or a race game. We have a board at the end of the dojo that has cards hanging on it on each card is a progressive technique when they pick a card they have to perform the technique back down the floor and tag the next student if the techniques are done incorrectly they have to go back to the board and start over or they also have an option to pass the technique to another student ( this is for the beginners who may draw an advanced technique). Once again the students who want to train will do basics in repetition and never complain usually those who complain don't stay around. Once again balance is the key.

You definately need to consider body type as well as your preferences. For instance you may not want to be in close contact with another student so grappling may not be right for you. Just one example. However go watch different styles and notice the body types in the class, then look at each style and decide what body types appeared to be effective and appeals to you. Good luck, don't give up we need all the martial artists we can get.

Was this an adult or child? Also you may want to consider explaining the importance of repetition to them again. With my students in between counts I explain why they are doing certain things in a technique, then after they complete a set of repetitions I question them about the explaination and see if they can answer and if not I re-explain. Just a suggestion.

I think it will always be the same, when you are what you are there will be challengers, however I have found that if you make them look silly this works much better than injury. For instance, if they are going all out your experienced enough you can see their stuff coming and you simply step out of the way and let them fall on their face etc. or side step and execute a technique that was so obvious no one could miss it.

training in street clothes is essential. It makes alot of people realize that in a real situation they would not survive due to restrictions. Females do not realize what a hazard alot of their clothing is, and that a smart attacker looks at this.

We never set a test date if I don't feel like the student can pass. However we have failed students before. For instance we had 4 students testing for BB and they all just knew they would pass just because... They arrived 10min late and they we not dressed properly so we sent them home and told them we would be back in touch to set up another test date. We called each student in separately and discussed what happened and that attitude was just as importance as performance and if they thought we were going to promote them just because they had the time in they were wrong, that a test shows how they will preform under pressure (testing in front of a panel). For our underbelts we will not set a test date if there is doubt about attitude. We will call them in and discuss the attitude issues then we will observe to see if they are trying before a test date is set.

visualize many different fight scenarios in your mind and each time visualize yourself winning. Also practice carefully in the ring.... you do not want to go into your first match with an injury.

I was taught to look at the opponents face. If you look at someones face you can see the whole body, but you can read alot of fighters by their eyes. The best advice I have is to try looking at different areas and pay attention to what else you can see. For instance your peripheral vision may not allow you to see all of someone by looking at their face.... It takes practice like anything else you have learned. Don't get to caught up, wherever you are looking is not your focal point the sparring match should be where your focus is.

Also take a look at your nightly routine. See if any of the things you do would increase your energy, and when you go to bed are you reliving the events of the day or thinking about what you have to do in the morning or the next day. Try exercising earlier in the evening, and before bed find a good book and read a while, and you can try a simple mindfullness meditation to help you go to sleep. Good luck.

"Don’t worry about what others think. The second you do, you hand over control of your emotions to someone else to play with. Who is in control of your life? You or another human being?" Remember that alot of people do not realize that they are in control of their emotions, which can lead to eating disorders. They feel their weight it is the only thing they can control and alot of times it innocently turns into a disorder. These people do not need to be treated as if they are less or if their problem is not real or only in their mind, they need to be nurtured and given constructive criticism in small doses. They have to be taught that they are in control of their life.

A yoga class would be good for the flexibility aspect, as for weight loss it takes cardio. Running, aerobic kickboxing class etc at least four times per week, and when you have lost what you want to lose then cut back to three times per week. If you have any physical therapist around instead of yoga you can ask them to help create you a stretching routine, that way you know what you are getting if done correctly is not going to injure you.

To say you are ready for this level means you have trained hard, put the time in, and learned the techniques that you need to progress to the next level. My advice to you is to remember that being a black belt does not mean being perfect it means you are striving for perfection. Most people wouldn't even try...have faith in yourself because your instructor does. Good luck.

I was 16 and now i'm 31 and never intend to stop.

You need to find a quiet place and assume comfortable position to sit or lie in. (If you are sleepy you will meditate yourself to sleep) Close your eyes and see the number 20 in your minds eye, inhale and exhale, and see the number change to 19, inhale and exhale and see the number change to 18 and continue all the way to 1. Your mind will wander just bring it back to the number and continue. This will actually bring your mind to a still place.

You might check with some of the local junior high or high schools, national guard armorys and a local dance school. If you have people who are wanting to train with you have them put the word out that you are looking for space, sometimes the best offers come because you know a friend of a friend. Good luck and don't give up.

Thanks, I'll check these out.

If that student is arrogant and thinks that you do not know enough, is he really a student worth having? If you as an instructor do not feel that he is ready due to his arrogance, you always have the option to withhold and if he/she quits then that is a choice they made. You also have the option of discussing the arrogance problem with your student and explaining that this is the reason you do not feel they are ready. To some extent you are responsible for the actions of your students. For Example: If you take students to a tournament and they show unsportsmanlike behavior, you and I both know that it reflects on the student and the instructor as well.

We teach and use all of our techniques(including knees,elbows, and fingertip strikes) in simulated self defense situations. As instructors we should be able to share some of the techniques that we like to teach. We all have slightly different ways of teaching techniques, sometimes you may teach it in a way that might help someone learn it more easily. Thanks for the input.

I feel like it would be appropriate to withhold info, techniques etc but I would look at it on a student to student basis. Some students are not mature (mentally and/or physically) enough to handle some of the info.

As an instructor I am always looking for simple self defense techniques for children and adults. Any new variations or suggestions would be appreciated.

My discipline is American Karate, however my basics are rooted in shotokan, and I have Tae Kwon Do training as well.

Pineapple... we are all youngster's at heart (thank goodness wisdom comes with age). I agree, when I started it was all about learning to fight. After I trained a while I began to see that it wasn't about fighting at all. Luckily my sensei was a well seasoned BB and was teaching the mental aspect as well as the physical. I love to teach, but if I want to have students to teach I must take note of my prospective clients and be a smart business woman as well as a MA instructor. A wise man once told me in order to lead sometimes we must follow.