G95champ

You get better when you train at home not in class. All class does is fix your mistakes and show you new things but its up to you to do it yourself if you want to get better.

We do 3 months and 30 - 2 hr classes. But thats not set in stone if you better and a few classes short fine if your not so good then it could take longer.

Im pretty sure as well there is no law that forces you to register your hand and feet. I think the JKA did it for people in the 70's and 80's. but I think this was more so a way to expand the martial arts base. Today there are so many people teaching and MMA is so bag there is no way you could ever register them. Like I have alwasy said I can teach you to be a fighter in a few weeks but it will take me a life time to teach you karate so who needs registered the blakc belt or the rookie?

2 things to keep in mind. 1. Do what you do well. If its kicking, punching, countering etc. Fight your fight if you can. 2. Do what they do bad. If they are slow be fast, if they like one leg over the other circle away from it. Make them change to beat your best with their second best.. If they can beat you with their 2nd best stuff you need to train more.

Yeah I walk away.

Thing is what works for me prob. won't work for you and so on. We each got to find our best combo or set of combo's. However i agree with the above posters that you need to find your best move (whatever it is) and you build your attacks off it. EX you did lead leg front over and over then came with the round. Can you throw a hook or crecent kick with that front leg while making it still look like a front snap? Remember to keep the hands in the attacka backfist and jab are great weapons that ofen beginners forget about they become kick happy. Use the Jab and Backfist with that front snap and then bring in the lunge punch and round kick or revers punch round kick. Just play with it and what works well today will not tomarrow because your buddy is not dumb and he will change as you do if he is any good.

We do 3 months and 30 classes. (2 hr classes) Usually works out about right. If a person has 3 months but has been missing they can not test. In some cases a person does not come to class but is able to train at home and make progress in that casue 4-5 and maybe like 20 classes. Bottom line you know when your ready. Well I should say you teacher knows.

Too me just over 3. The fastest I have seen it done is 2.5 but it takes most about 3-4 years assuming they start as adults. It will take kids longer because we don't issue anyoen a blakc belt until they are 15. BTW our school only has 9 Kyu ranks you start as a 10 Kyu so that is something to look at as far as how long. Some schools go 6 some 8 some 10 some 12 some I have seen as many as 16.

Things are good Pat. Coaching Football, Girls Basketball and still teaching karate. Hate I got away from KF for so long. Now that I got some high speed internet maybe I can catch back up. But it looks like you have done fine without me. LOL

Hey KK75 long time no see. Hey Pat hope things are well.

Sun Tzu - The Art of War Don't get any better if your talking history of combat.

Hello everyone. I don't know if any of you were here last time I was here but if you are hello. If your a new guy well Im a older member. I just stopped by to see what was going on. Hope to make soem time this summer to catch back up with KF and whats been going on.

Happy late birthday to KF and you Pat. See ya arround.

Buy G. Funakoshi's book Karate do Koyhan the ten no kata is in it

I would show him and see what he thinks. Sometimes the belts don't match up from school to school even if the style is the same. I would have thought you would have filled out past training history before you started the class. O well. Since its Shotokan I would show him and see if he thought I was at that leval.

They don't have to be world known but at the same time you need to show who you studied under IMO. I can't just say I have a black belt but I have to say this person taught me and that person taught him. Gives you a leg to stand on IMO.

As he said in the next karate kid Grass is Green and Sun is Warm

It really depends on your association I have seen several differant for each of the major groups. More so than that it is up the sensei at any given school he may change or add or combine color belts as he or she see's fit. The realy question in Kyu grades most shotokan schools I have been arround do 8 kyu grades before black. I have saw 10 and 12.

Kata

Sounds like fun good luck and keep us updated.

I could see myself using a spear hand espically in close combat. (where I could find the soft target)

Sounds like you need to practice it more. I break with a palm a lot in fact its about all I use. Note when throwing the palm to the body of an attacker the hand is to the side not up and down. If I had to pick a hand strike to hit an attacker with it would be a palm no questions.

Prices change based on your location. Classes in LA are going to run more than those in Montanna. McDojo simply is in it for the money. They prob. have a lot of tests and things to make extra cash with. They prob. want you to sign a big long term contract. You also deal with teachers who are not good teachers. They may have a lot of belts and stuff to show how good they are. Physically they may be good. However they prob. have no ties to any famous teacher or org. you can trace. You may also see a lot of asst. instructors teaching that are not qualified. Now with all that said you may have some of those in your dojo and you may NOT be in a McDojo. Running a dojo cost money and there is not a great deal of money to be made in Martial Arts so yes it is about the money sad to say. Also to get people in you may have to offer extra classes that the main teacher don't have time to teach and may allow a high ranked student to teach it. Its really a gray area but when I see 6 year old black belts I call them McDojo's.

Im 27 now. I started training in 1993 so I guess I was 15 then. I made my black belt in 96 I was 18 I guess at the time. When I was about 21 I could do more than I can now because of a torn hamstring that has limited my flexability but I am a MUCH better martial artist today than I was then. As far as that goes I can look at where I am right now and where I was this time last year and tell a huge differance in my progression. This entire line of thought goes hand in hand with my thoughts on kid black belts. (I don't like it) There is just so much to understand mentally that IMO required you to be one older but two you have to have exp. The human body is prob. in its prime between 18 and 32. But like the guys said about the UFC's most of those guys who do really well are mid 30's.

I would hope I would be able to block and apply some sort of controlling lock like a wrist lock or arm bar. That would be my plan with most any attacker. However, if she is trying to really hurt me (knife, bat, stick, Blind Rage, etc) and I know I will get some response for this but I would match force for force.