Rateh

Interesting article. Though I wonder if the younger generation might be someone changed from that. I'm 24 and I feel like I grew up in a different world than that stated in the article. Maybe it's just me though.

I'd say yes. I never thought of it as "seeking out" the mind or spirit side. I just tested for 3rd Kup at a school I've been training at for a bit. Since I'm a first degree in another style I did not have to test till I tested for 1st. I decided to test because I thought it would be a good experience for me, I thought that the nurves and the pressure of testing would be benificial. I don't recieve my restults till tuesday, but I think it went well, and I think it was good for me to be back on the other side of the fence so to speak at a testing. I actually had to write an essay (one of many) for the test, about how to develop the mental/spiritual side of your martial arts. I said essentially that you find something you are weak at, and actively seek out experiences to develop that weakness into a strenght. Such as if you lack patience, help in the kids classes. I'm not sure if this is exactly what you mean, but to me thats what I think of it as.

I've called it soda everywhere I've lived. (Cali, Utah, Virginia, Arizona, Nevada). I probably learned it from my mother, as she was the one who stayed home and raised us, and she spent her first half of her life in california. I'm not sure if my dad originally called it soda or pop, he grew up on bases cuz his dad was in the military. Where I work its officially called "pop". I work at a live in care center for disabled adults, and as a treat sometimes they get a pop for good behavior. All of them understand the term or the sign for pop, so this is what I and all of the other staff use, regardless of what we would call it in other settings.

Theres a rule at our school that if you are under 10, or going for a yellow belt, you can ask for a demonstration. Demonstrations are not done for forms, but for basic combinations and sparring combinations. As far as technique, I am a little more lenient if they are say 8 and under.

Well tuesday I ended up teaching during most of the class. After class I worked my self defense, one & two steps, and stickwork with a purple belt girl who was still there (I asked her to help me out and of course she didn't say no). Then I worked on my basics, frequently asking a couple of black belt teenage girls who were still hanging around in their street clothes finite details of technique. Then I had a red belt read off some of the basics for me as I did them. Then all four of them went outside and sat on the curb...I think they were tired of me bugging them . Then I went through my requirements notebook and marked what I wanted to work on for my privates. As part of the class warmup we did the class instructors favorite warm-up. Putting your arms to the side and flicking your fingers and doing small circles till you thought you couldn't hold them up anymore. THEN we go down into like a fighting stance squat, and do rising kicks, returning to the squat after each kick. Ten each side, with your arms still out the whole time. Its killer for me right now but I want to work up to where I can do it without feeling like I'm going to fall over.

I used to have a running chart on excel of student rank promotions. On the left I had the students names, on the top was months/years. When a student advanced I marked the appropriate box (like Y for Yellow Belt, or BII for 2nd Blue Belt). I found it to be very helpful as we did not have set promotion times (tests were held every month for whoever was ready). I've found that time goes by much faster for instructors than students sometimes. As an instructor it may feel like someone just got their yellow belt a month or two ago, but when I checked the chart I would see that it had been longer ago than I thought.

I've been on heartburn meds for a year now. I don't see a problem with taking them regularly, if I don't I get heartburn at least once a day. I had that same test done but they sedated me automatically, apparently they sedate everyone for it, didn't feel a thing. My only suggestion is to keep on your meds, and maybe try and avoid some of the classic heartburn causing foods (though if you're like me pretty much everything causes heartburn) Also it is suggested that you don't eat within 1-2 hours of sleeping or exersizing.

Honestly in 11 years I have never felt like I was truely learning more than any other time. I learn different things, and I catch on more quickly to new things because of experience, but I've never felt that I was learning any deeper or more real than when I started, I just know more.

It's been in the 90's here in my part of utah, and the ac at the school I teach at on tuesdays has been broken since at least last tuesday. Supposed to be fixed by next one (don't remember what day, just remember that it was before next tuesday ) We have cealing fans and I propped the door open with my bag during the second class, but it was still real sweaty. Not that I haven't trained in that before (used to teach a class for 3-4 year olds on saturday mornings in vegas when it was in the 100's outside, and no one would ever remember to keep the air on friday night, kinda harsh on some lil kids imho, had to make em wear socks a few times cuz the mats were too hot.) School I train at on wednesdays has the ac just fine and the cealing fans too. We also get to wear t-shirts in the summer, so long as it has a school symbol on it.

Sometimes we do basics as part of the warm-up, or maybe usually, sometimes or usually . Sometimes its horse stances with blocks and punches, sometimes its fighting stances with basic kicks, and sometimes its fighting stances with jabs and hooks etc. Otherwise basics are practiced during the class if thats one of the things that either the class instructor or the instructor for the particular group wants to work on.

Lol, it's not something that's taught, it just seems for me at least to be what happens. Basically when flexing your foot to make the "blade" my big toe automatically sticks up, I simply cannot make the blade without it. It's kinda like when you try and stick your ring finger up and it can't go straight up without your pinky and middle finger joining it. (it can go up almost straight with just the pinky or the middle, but it needs both to go up fully)

Some use stripes, and some don't. Sometimes the stripes are peices of tape on the end of your belt, sometimes they are a stripe of fabric through the belt (like a belt colored yellow white yellow). Also stripes mean different things. In some schools stripes are their own ranks, and students test for them at testings. At other schools stripes signify knowledge of a specific rank, such as one stripe for basics, one stripe for forms, one stripe for sparring, etc. These stripes are usually earned in class, and once the student has all of them for his/her rank then they test at a testing for their next kup/kyu/whatever.

Also remember that its not always the style, its often the instructor. If you think a styles awsome but the instruction sucks, what good is that? Make sure if you take any trial lessons or programs that you are being instructed by someone who will be teaching you, not someone who helps out in classes from time to time.

Oddly enough I tend to use the blade on my right foot and my heel on my left. Because originally I came from a style that used the heel. I changed styles and was able to get my right foot to do the blade, but before I got my left I changed again, and my new style didn't care which I used so now I do half and half and it isn't changing anytime soon. Personally I do think the heel would be more effective, if only because it is a harder target. Also does anyone else get that "big toe sticking up" thing when they kick with the blade?

I agree with narrowing your topic. I have to write a history of the martial arts paper for the second time now. This time I'm going to narrow it to the development of my particular art, starting back as far as I can go and working forward to where we are now. Last time I used a more general approach and picked and chose different specifics, just generally touching on eras and regions.

We have a fairly large familyroom/kitchen area (its an open floor plan). However most forms will not fit fully into the area without some backing up and adjusting. If I really want to I can move the furnature though, just so long as I move it back or my mom will get mad. (I'm not a kid, I'm just living with my parents for a short bit) Plus the couch is pretty heavy.

I don't know if it's helpful or not. But my instructor had me stand on the edge of a stair (the bottom stair!) with my toes and balls of my feet on the step, and the rest of my feet hanging off. Then I would raise up on my tippy toes, and go back down till my heels were just below the stair. (He had me do it with a backpack and ankle weights too, but I don't know if thats going a bit over board)

My black belt test, results, and ceramony Having one of my students finally pass to orange belt after a lot of hard work Falling on my butt when learning a spinning back kick (I use this as an example to students who are having trouble with a particular technique) Competing in forms and doing better than I had ever done before (still got last place, was up against people twice my rank and twice my experience) When one of my 4 year old students could finally do 30 sit-ups (started when he was 3 and couldn't do any for quite a while) When my sister got her first belt Trying to dive roll over 6 or 7 kick shields and instead crashing through them like superman

Congrats. A hard test always makes for a good memory, knowing it was difficult and that you succeeded is a great boost.

I have bipolar disorder and ocpd. My whole family seems to have something or other. My bipolar disorder includes high levels of anxiety and depression, and low levels of mania. I was having a real rough time of it this last summer, but I'm doing very well at the moment on my medications. I actually first had symptoms when I started college, came into it with a 3.8 gpa, ended up dropping out with like a 1.5 during the second semester to get myself stabalized. I had a scholarship that I lost because of it, and now I can't afford to go to school like I want to. Even if I got a scholarship or government money or something, that would only pay for classes, not living expences. I couldn't work and go to school full time, it would throw me way out of whack and I'd end up like I was this last summer. And theres no way I could get by without a job, especially one that has medical insurance, because without insurance my medicine is $900 a month. So basically I'm kinda at a dead end, I found a place I can go to in the fall that isn't too expencive and I can get a certification for medical transcription in a year long program, then I can make some more money. I wish I could go to school and get a degree though, I love taking classes and learning new things. But everyone has their own problems, not like I'm worse off then the next guy, I just have different ones than most people. My instructor knows about it. Because well I started training at the school I'm at now during this last summer. The school was the only place where I really felt at peace. But one day I just broke down crying in the middle of class, so of course I told my instructor, black belts just aren't supposed to do that, cry in the middle of forms because they weren't meeting up to their own expectations. She told me that she thinks most everyone who excells in martial arts has some sort of issue, that were all a little crazy or we wouldn't be doing it.

It's taekwondo with japanese weapon forms, and throws and ground fighting which is taught in a different class, though all higher ranked color belts are required to know how to fall and roll properly.

March 27th, my sisters birthday is march 17th, she was born right before I turned six, and my parents told me she was my birthday present for the year. Oddly enough my fiance's birthday is march 23rd, hes 4 days less than 2 years younger than me.

Personally IMHO I think the whole non-airconditioned work out isn't something we should be wanting for our students. To me that's the same as making your kids us an outhouse when a toilet is available, because people used to do that and toilets are too cushy. Air conditioning just makes sence, how will it benifit the students to not use something so basic as an ac? This is one of the old school things that IMHO should be dropped. I'm not trying to cause trouble here or anything, but this is just my opinion.

I don't think we should stick to old training methods because they are "tradition". Just because they are traditional doesn't mean that they are any good. And just because a training method is new doesn't mean it is any good. I think as an instructor you should be actively aware of many training methods (meaning continuous learning) and choose the ones that best work for what you are trying to accomplish. A mix of old and new is best I think, but I don't think you should do any method just because its old.

We used to stand in a circle and throw those weighted balls at eachothers stomachs. The weight of the ball was dependant on the age/size of the student.