elila

How long should it take before I can get back to MA? A week? It was Tuesday that I hurt it but it still hurts so bad! What's 'the converse'?

I'm starting to get back into the advanced class routine at my school, and on the first class back I've already pulled a muscle! The rest of my body is sore but my left arm is swelled up and the muscle hurts so bad. We were practicing kicks and I was holding a target for someone, I was starting to switch which hand I held it with rather than using both and my left arm is probably much weaker, because there was a lot of pain. I remeber when I first started MA to get rid of the pain I would just excersize more to get rid of the pain. I don't think I can use my arms too well, and the rest of me hurts too! I've been taking ibuprofen which helps some, but how can I get rid of the pain? Should I suck it up and do push-ups, or would that make it worse somehow? Is there any type of massage that can help? Should I apply ice or heat- Or will that not do any good now since it's been a few days?

Welcome and good luck on your test!

Elikapeka. I'm not sure how to say it, not sure if I even like it . But it sounds way cooler than my real name.

I take Hapmudo, you may have never heard of it but I'll put what ours is: No-belt - Purity, no knowledge, such as a newborn baby White Belt - basically same as no-belt, but the student/infant senses with expectancy the first signs of walking. Gold/Yellow Belt- The color of early spring, symbolizes a child ready to run Green Belt- The color of summer during the time of growth, symbolizes a child's (like the student's) expanding world. Purple Belt- A time of awekening, similar to late childhood. Blue Belt- The color of the sky, compared with one in the early teenage years, the student realizes their own potential. Red Belt- Brown Belt Junior Black Belt Black Belt Ok, I got tired of typing out the philosophy and I think people have lost interest by now. No-Gold is beginner, starting at white you need three stripes (kicks, Forms, and Self-defense) Green-Purple- this is intermediate, same stripe system, (this is where most people start slowing down "Blue Belt Blues" I guess) Blue on is Advanced, But I think you're still an underbelt till you reach brown/black.I believe you have to get more stripes in weapons, falls, sparring and such. I haven't memorized the higher belts philosophy yet because I'm a purple belt. I think just white, brown, and black would be nice and simple. I wouldn't mind saying to people," I'm just a white belt." I don't care, I'd know I've progressed.

"before Iam fed to the wolves " Don't think of it that way! Come prepared, well- rested, and hydrated and you'll be fine. Good Luck!

At my school, we did no-touch sparring until yellow belt, when we did light-touch without equipment and with gear on pretty much as hard as you'd like as long as you don't injure/ kill yourself or partner. "what does taekwondo do for you? does it lose weight, make you get six pack, those stuff? lose fat? " You only get out of it what you put in to it. Hope you end up liking TKD !

I used to love it about four or five years ago when it was less common- I thought, "Woah! I'm into something that most people have never heard of!". Now, I know what you mean. It just seems like everyone's into it. It's really just a fad and will fade like the other's that came before it. I think it's going out pretty soon, the B&N my aunt worked at was giving a bunch of manga away, I think Suncoast will be eliminating a lot of it's anime space soon. There used to be two or three shelves devoted to it in movie stores in my area at it's height, now, just one. But when I was first into it, I remember how rare it seemed to find it! But when some new type of animation comes, the media takes notice- think of Shrek and Finding Nemo, those computer 3-D movies are popping up everywhere.

You could be leaning to far forward/backward/sideways, the leg your standing on may be a little wobbly. The only way to fix this is through practice. When I first started, I could only do a very low sidekick, and not hold it for very long. Through practice, I was able to kick higher and hold it. People could come by and correct the way I was standing or say, "Oh, then try it this way." But really, you just have to practice and see what works for you. As for kicking combinations, I still have a little trouble. But if you practice each kick one at a time and then all together over and over again, eventually you'll have it down. I and someone else both mentioned that you need to start out with combinations that make more sense. As in, when you rechamber with the least amount of movement so that you don't fall over, and are able to move on to the next kick. Not sure if that makes any sense through text- it's a little hard to explain.

Please everyone, don't worry about me. My original post sounded like a rant, so I edited it. I'd like to know if other schools did these types of events really- just to see if my school was odd or something. The reason I say I can't get out of it is because I've gotten out of so many things already by giving excuses. My mother wants me to go, and that's final. And afterwards people I hardly ever talk to will just say, "Why didn't you come?" I suppose they're fun for normal people. Volleyball,soccer, swimming, eating, socializing. But, I'm glad to hear that you all enjoy your outings, I suppose it is a good thing. When I see beginners after some picnic or party, they seem to be happy that they've made some close friend to spar with and are more relaxed in class, so I suppose there's a purpose for it at my school as well.

Does your friend do MA, practice as much as you do, been at it as long as you have? Are you more comfortable with him than other people? Have his moves become predictable? Are you larger/smaller/smarter/quicker (basically insert something that would give you an advantage here) than he is? How would any of us know? There's so many reasons why. Maybe you're just losing some of your insecurities as your progressing in the MA.

I can't keep getting out of these things, I have to go to it. I think I'll edit it a little to get people's opinions rather than advice. Thanks though.

Does your school hold activities outside of the school? I don't mean tournaments, but banquets, holiday parties, spring/summer picnics, etc. ? Mine does, but I've never gone to any. Sometimes it's too far away, my parents are working, I have to babysit, study, or whatever. Now a summer picnic is coming up and there's no excuse for me not to go. But I'd really rather not go, for the following reasons: 1.I come to this place to learn MA, not go to picnics. 2. I have other, more personal reasons. I was curious if other schools held these activities, and how other people feel about them. Does anyone else feel awkward at these types of events? Do you believe they take up class time, and are unnessasary? Or, do you believe they're important, perhaps team-building experiences? *NOTE* Sorry if this is in the wrong place, I wasn't sure where it belongs.

I'm confused. Did he call the wrong number? Was that his kid? She says she does have an Uncle Frank, so was the mom/wife in bed with her own brother? Why is the kid so calm after seeing two people die? OK, it's just a joke, I'm putting too much thought into it. = P

Does he ever get home? Did he forget where he lives? 107 is impressive! Definitely something to add to your resume. I gave up after about 5 or 10 minutes. = P I got irritated, because my mouse kept appearing off the screen.

The weapons class turned out great. Got to practice nunchakus, and I used the staff for the first time. So it was worth it. Pretty cool, never tried that staff before so now I want one. Took the supplies back too. I'm an artist and a martial artist as well, so I know what you're talking about swooshfinn. I've been drawing and painting for about 3 or 4 years and thought I was going to learn something new. These supplies were things I didn't need and can't see myself ever using. The plus? I found a new art store. They have a lot of supplies that I can't find in stores that call themselves art stores but really only have glitter glue, scrapbook sets, and cloth. Rather than using child labor these pitiful craft stores do something worse- that's right, grandma labor. Also, this art place has art classes which I might sign up for. Don't wanna find myself in another bad situation though.

I would practice balancing with one kick for awhile like the others said. When you come to the point where you switch from one kick to another, I would practice it a little differently at first, something that comes a little more naturally. I'll break down what you said into steps as an example. It might seem a little odd hearing kicks broken into tiny steps, but I believe it's a good way to practice. Sometimes people concentrate so much on getting it done fast or strong, and it just looks sloppy when they try to combine three or four kicks. round--side--round After doing a round kick, you have to snap your calf back, pull your knee way back to your chest, kick out for side kick, snap calf back, and then roundkck, then do a crescent moon kick which I 've never heard of (is it similar to a "moon" or "axe" kick?) but I imagine is hard to do after you've done three other kicks. Practice like this at first and work up to harder stuff: side--hook--round--round 1. Side Kick- knee straight up and then to chest, kick out. 2. Hook kick- simply snap back calf since the first part (side kick) has been completed. 3. Round Kick- Snap calf forward- easy because it's already in the right position. 4. Repeat three.Then lower leg. 5. Practice other leg, and try more difficult combinations. That sounds risky! Hope what I've said makes sense.

Saw it last night with my aunt. She kept freaking out when he punched anyone, it was funny because whenever we saw previews days before she kept saying,"Now that is my kinda movie! It looks so exciting and ... violent!" When the credits started rolling at the end she kept saying ,"It was so terrible. Why was he punching people? Why did that man kill people? It was so...violent!" I liked it. But I'm not sure if everyone would. It was very sweet and sentimental at one moment and violent and vicious the next. Don't think it'd go down as the "greatest MA movie of all time" and I'm not sure if it's something I'm going to remember forever. There was a lot of laughter from the audience at certain moments some of it kinda dark humor. Did anyone else see it? What did you think?

Thanks for all your replies! Now that the classes are getting much harder and it takes more willpower and endurance to keep up with the classes, a certain "weeding out" process has begun. Atleast 3 or 4 girls and about 5 boys have left because of this. Seriously, if they weren't so busy joking around... Usually though, people leave after the first or second trial class, because they realize it isn't as easy as it looks. I go to Yong Sung Lee's Hapmudo Studios. I guess you could say it's a Korean style, but really it borrows things from Kung Fu, Aikido, Judo, Tai Chi,Hapkido, Tae Kwon Do, and it uses a lot of weapons. Well not a lot when you're a beginner.I believe some of the locations (there's about 5) teach Kendo, but our location is too small, and doesn't have enough room for the equipment.

I'm bad at this! About 50 is my best ...so far...

I love slipknot, korn, lots of heavy metal. So does my aquaintance, "Jory". But the difference is, I listen to the lyrics and know that they're just lyrics. Jory listened to them because he felt like he could identify with what they were saying, and talks about how he'd like to shoot everybody at school- except me. He has a crush on me , but he kind of creeps me out to be honest. Try to be nice though, don't wanna get him more depressed. I ask him if he's serious but he says no, he doesn't really want to kill anyone- maybe punch one or two though. My cousin is a very religious teen, regularly goes to church, trying to convert me to Christianity, etc. and he listens to it because he just likes it. He's not a bad person at all and it really doesn't have an affect on his well-being. What I'm trying to say is, you can't assume that everyone who listens to music will act according to what they hear. Just because I listen to them scream about being raped or beating people or whatever doesn't mean I'm going to apply that to my life. But all those angry teens? They probably use it to release anger and feel like they're not alone- not to fuel up for the next school shooting.

I didn't mean to make it sound like your supposed to solve her problems, so sorry if I did. What I meant was for you to just stand by her while a proffessional helps her solve her problems. I know depressed people are hard to deal with and I wish you all the best.

Thanks for your replies Grenadier and aefibird. I've decided to take the Weapons class- the art class is just stupid. As for finishing what I've started, I think I need to finish learning the nunchaku form. Glad to see that others agree.

Hey all. Wanted some opinions on a situation. This Saturday (May 14) I have an art class I signed up for. There's four classes during the month of May which cost $50.00 and about $20-30 in supplies. I signed up in April, and was excited because I thought I was going to meet other artsy teens. I wasted a few hours at two different stores looking for all the materials which were on a list given out to all students (and said,"Buy materials and bring them to first class") Both stores didn't have any of the items and said I should go toa n art store. (Which is odd because I went to Micheals which is an arts& crafts store, and I went to some other place that is an "arts supplies store") Anyway, I finally spent about $25 getting the supplies at some small art place and went to the first class. The turnout wasn't so good only one other student and the teacher was some college guy who didn't know what he was doing. He just walked up to a painting or vase in the museum and basically said "Uhh...what do you think of this one?" It turns out they had all the supplies that would be needed there, so I didn't have to spend money and search for those supplies. This surprises me because the museum usually has a great turnout for it's student classes and programs and wouldn't mess up so badly. The class is terrible and I'm not learning anything we basically doodle,and I'm really irritated at myself for wasting my money and time. There's also a weapons class at my MA school this Saturday. I haven't been able to get feedback or practice my nunchakus in months. They've been so busy on Saturdays helping out brown-black belts on those days or having tournaments or it's near a holiday, or a banquet, or I'm busy, etcetera, etcetera. My question (Sorry for the long rant) is, should I go to the Weapons class, or the Art Class? I feel kind of sorry for the young guy who's probably just trying to make some money and teach art, and one of the mental lessons we have to say at the end of each MA class is, "Always finish what you started!". I don't want to be a quitter I also was trying to save up money but I feel bad taking back the materials to a small store that probably doesn't get many customers. OK I'm being a wuss, I know, but can you all give me your opinions?

If you've already made your choice, don't come on here asking for help. It sounds like you're looking for someone to agree with you so that your choice is justified. A broken mind, a dead body, both are terrible conclusions.Will you honestly not care if she ends up dead? I'm not saying it'll be your fault if she does commit suicide, but wouldn't it be better if you helped her? Your situations aren't all that different- from an abusive relationship, you were hurting emotionally, which could have eventually ended up in suicide. She's depressed (which is, by the way, an actual illness) and could end up dead. There've been other girls at my MA school who've told me about a girl who is suicidal. Rather than remaining friends, they decide to turn on her, and don't seem to care. She's fine now, but I was really worried about her for a while there.