ramymensa

Now you'll think I'm an ...ss but please use English so we can understand what you are "saying: I happen to understand something because my language has some similarities with yours, but I guess not all the people have this advantage. It's a forum for English speakers, so please help us keep track of your ideas by writing them in the language we're supposed to know. Or at least put a translation, though it takes space and it's tiresome.

Wait till you know some more and they'll be quite similar and you'll start mixing them ...

I like switching off the lights with my feet. I make sure there's nobody to see me. I'm well known for being a freak, so I wouldn't like to add up some more "spice"

I'd say at a beginners' level the percentage is high for unconditioned people. As they progress, so they gain more strenght. In a higher position, the demands are tough and they HAVE to work more and they consequently become more fit. I've seen this with myself. I grew nice from a couch potato to an athletic (not just skinny as before) person and I gain more and more as the day pass. As you gain levels you just have to cope with the new status and become more and more good. It's a pride thing when it's not enforced by sensei. With a normal training schedule and a picky instructor, we all become fit. Those who can't handle it just quit.

Memorizing stuff is not always the hardest thing. Our mind can handle the information. The problem is down ... all the part from the neck down Our body isn't used to it. He can't learn this quick and it always makes mistakes. It takes some time to make it remember the moves and even more time to do it naturally. Fortunatelly, with some effort we can master our techniques

Flashy techniques are usually those harder to master and apply and could be considerred as a height in technical skill. They are "acrobatic" enough to be hard to do for the "normal" people, so it's a reason enough for me to try them. If they are hard and only few can do them, then I'll try In "hot" situation I'd rely on "usual" stuff, but once masterred a flashy technique could be good as well ... with speed and power, not telegraphed. So from a personal view I don't have anything against them. I'm always keen on learning new stuff and if it's difficult I'm happy

Same interest here Not that book, but about the subject. and network security Guess we're really boring ...

Tis' a woman. You're welcome. I hope I could help here. I'd say give it a time and I guess the "invisible" fiber would become more visible. If not ... you're still looking hot stuff with all the training

Size and weight shouldn't be an impediment for anybody. There are of course some qualities that could help you more, but it comes to the skill and the way you use what you've got. For striking tall people should have an edge, although I've seen fantastic fighters that are not tall and still they know how to use this in order to win. Grappling arts are said to be best for short stoky persons because they have the gravity centre closer to the ground and are more balanced. Still a tall skinny person could give them a lot of trouble with proper technique. So don't limit yourself from the start. I'd advice you to look for different dojos in the area. Visit all of them. Talk to the instructor and see a class. Eventually you'll get fond of one. Then start. Things I'd look for: - area. Id the dojo close or far. - money ... how much? what do they offer for that? is there a contract? is it OK? - instructor ... is he ready to talk to you, answer questions or is he just a screaming monkey? You need a person that is calm, understanding, smart, a good teacher, a good martial artist and so on. They are not that hard to find. - are you allowed to see a class? Then you'd want to look for: the sensei's presence in the dojo (is he teaching the class or the high ranks). You pay for HIS instruction not others; are the students beating each other and making fun of the beginners? Or are they supportive and nice? Are they injured a lot? Are they sparring safely or go to hard? and many other things .... Maybe others would fill in the blanks ..

It's the thigh From what I've read you feel no pain. There is no injury ... then it's just the way your thigh muscles grow. I don't really know if you should worry or not. Before I started Karate, my legs were not as muscular as now ... still I never payed attention to the muscles that are or not visible ... If a certain muscle isn't "pumped" it doesn't mean it's not there. I've had no visible triceps before starting doing pushups. Still they were there and are showing now. Maybe other friends here could help us more. There are many knowledgeable people here and they'll be happy to help.

I'm an animal lover and don't think it's cool to harm or even kill one just for the sake of it. If they are to sacrificed for food, then do it quickly. Anything else is cruelty and the punishment should be more severe than now.

Yeah, but still he stole a BB in order to enter his karate student in the contest. This is not quite OK. If I remember it well the kid was a self taught martial artist who got beaten several times. And after some weeks he's a BB. Oh my god. This Hollywood really messes up the real stuff. And honestly the kid shouldn't have won the contest. He fought poorly, but that's another story. As for BB being only a belt to keep your pants ... I've got strings to do that. My belt is my rank and has in it all the hours I've worked all my sweat, blood and pain. All the things I've learnt. All my love for my style. My friendship with the people I train with and the respect I give and receive. It shows me where I stant and where's the next checkpoint in my race. BB is not the end of the journey. It's a stage, but it should be well deserved and respected because of all the work and passion. I'm a bit poetic, but receiving it is a great honour and sets you better on your track.

Batman, you're becoming annoying. Remember this is a place for all MA and styles, all races, nationalities and so on. Trolling would only get you kicked off KF. And bashing a style is forbidden here, not to mention is a sign of narrowmindness and ignorance. Grow up a bit and afterwards, we'll discuss.

I think you should judge your situation and your motifs. I'm also a student and got involved in all sorts of "intellectual" work and I wouldn't take the risk. My work is too important to risk this. I still do MA, but not knockdown. You could go for it. It is your choice and as some of our friends said here competing in KB doesn't necessary mean you're gonna toast your brain. Think about all the aspects and you'll be able to come up with the best solution for YOURSELF.

STOP. I wouldn't advice doing anything against them. The police did nothing against them and if you go against them you'd become the aggressor and they would be coward and sly enough to turn you in. And from a victim as you almost were, you'd become the villain. Let them go. You've already showed them who you are. You could swallow your pride and leave the scene after the gun was pulled. You were SMART and judged the situation well. Is not worth giving your life for some stupid pride. And before who? 4 guys coward enough to attack in a pack and even pull a gun when feeling "outnumberred"? Let it go. Go to the studio, punch a bag and imagine is all of them in one and cool off. Better destroy a bag and buy another than destroy your (social) life. It's hard to live with it, but it's not a shame. You didn't lose that encounter. It's a pity to give yourself trouble just because of some testosterone. We are here to listen to you and try to help you. We respect you for it and wait for good news. And in this matter no news is good news

Get it off your mind ... it's hard I know ... Just think at it in a positive manner. You were there to test, it means you weren't quite an alien from it and that YOU'VE DONE IT. The test won't be as hard as this time. Test again when feeling alright and LEARN from it. Your sensei has made you a service .. he told you where you need to work. Focus on these sides and you'll improve dramatically. At this level expectations are very high. So you didn't quite meet them. But you know what's to be done and would work and solve the problem. The taste of failure is sour, but you are not alone in this journey. Don't forget about the ones that love you. You shouldn't fail them, the rest is just an ... accesory Now it's time to put it all behind and think about some rest and fun. Afterwards go back to the dojo. Head high. You are to be respected and you'll be amazed to see that although you didn't take the rank now nobody thinks less of you. It's hard at this level and your value should be well known.

http://www.dojo.ro In English too (well some pages. I've got to work on that ..) It's a complex beginner's guide

Beka, sorry to hear about it. You should see a doctor and ease a bit for a while. No use making more effort with a busted ankle. I've done it all the time (had a displaced shoulder from an accident and many injuries in the dojo and outside. My back is all busted and so on). It's not smart to avoid the doctor amd work while injured. Still we tend to overlook the problems just because the training is funny and addictive and we've got used to the pain. I hope you'll get over it. Rest and be patient. The dojo would still be there

The guy was a total .ss. But this happens and you just have to put up with it or take measures and talk to the instructor about the problem. He's not entitled to judge you or at least not in a loud voice. It's always best to speak to the man in command. If he tolerates it, then it's time to move on. If not, some changes would occur. Unfortunatelly this kind of behaviour is not rare and it could come from total beginners too. They think if they're taller, heavier or older they are perfection impersonated

I have a similar problem with male students in our club. Kids are OK and female students recognise my value from the start and are more obedient. I comes the time in some situations to correct and help male coleagues who are almost disgussed with the idea a woman could teach them something. So I get some looks Still they make mistakes and I have to help them (when asked by sensei) and I just try to be calm and not look them down. After some minutes they become more attentive and realise they really have something to learn from me. They are beginners and think they could wipe the floor with me just because they are stronger. It takes some time to realise it would be hard to do so and that they've got to work with me. Fortunatelly all the time things go right after this first encounter. They ask for my help anytime and receive it immediatelly. They start respecting me not only for my rank but also for my knowledge and the way I pass it on to them. Almost everytime the lesson is over we'd stay for another 20 minutes to work at something and they come and join me. After this long rant I'll get back to the kids. It's common to give high ranks the duty of taking care of the kids. In our dojo it happens when the older students are put into a training class harder than usually and the kids (who are also low ranks in our class) couldn't cope with the program. This is when a higher rank is sent in their part of the hall to work katas and applications so the rest of the gang could "break" their necks in the combinations and matches. Any teaching experience is for the better and I think we shouldn't waste any oportunity. I myself don't have problems with this exept that I demand total obedience from the kids and usually get it. I hate indiscipline and they know it and work hard. When I see them distracted I call them by name and remind them the exercise we're doing and praise them for the effort as soon as I see them doing what I demanded. They are OK and try to work as hard as possible just to see me pleased

Sorry to hear abut it Karateka.That was indeed racism and not in your behalf. Anyway .. racism only in the Japanese guy situation, since we Romanians are the same race as you. What did you do next?

It's nice, but kinda colourful. The back layer was better in one colour. And the fonts could mislead. It's important to be abla to read them without further "options". I would use fewer colours and maybe a graphic to suggest the activity which takes place in the club. Of course it's just an opinion and I hope you won't be offended

Double post again. Sorry

Your situation is NORMAL and so are you. Karate is indeed spooky sometimes and different from everything you've done before. The feeling of "what am I doing here?" is also normal and it would take some time to get rid of it. My advice. Never be too harsh on yourself and give yourself some time (even months and years) to become accustomed with the weird stuff and language. I had the same problem (so did all our friends here in KF). I didn't understand a thing and was upset because I was uncoordinated and totally from another planet. I almost quit. Then I came to the "right" conclusion that I can do what so many people do. I'm smart and I'll teach my body to follow all the stuff. I went home, typed google.com and looked for shotokan. EVERYTHING. I've printed stuff about it. History, dictionaries, techniques, diagrams, you name it. I took my dictionary to the bathroom (I'm kinda inspired there ) and learnt the weird words on my throne. came to my room and read about degrees and shoulder widths and left legs and so on. The next karate session I was the smartest there I even discussed with sensei about some stuff and he was appaled I knew all this. And since he's amazed I went home, got the stuff I knew and rehearsed like for a show. I've got pictures for my katas and did them all over again. I went to the class and asked a higher rank to help me, see if I'm doing well. They are nice people and it's good to know to use everything you can to succeed. It's also good to repeat home katas only when you know the way to do. Never learn something wrong because it would be hard to "unlearn" and relearn the stuff right. After some time I've got into another problem. I was a walking enciclopedia, but I still moved like a puppet. I had to give my body time to keep up with my knowledge. It's a long way, but it's fun. So don't despair. Set some goals ant try to reach them, work hard and always ask around. You are not alone in this journey. From time to time you'll see you can do stuff you couldn't perform before and these bits of success would be your food and water for the long journey. Good luck and may you become what you dream to be ... and keep us posted

Never heard of it as a condition, though it may be viewed as an option. It's commonly known that tall people have this advantage in distance and kicking. Still you can take them by entering in their "distance". A short fighter would have to know how to leave the other without his advantage. I used to do some judo. It's said tall and skinny people don't fare too well against stocky short people (ideal for this kind of MA, after the common belief). I'm tall (one of the tallest in the group) and nobody could put me down, even if they were way shorter and 15 kilos heavier. Move well and use their advantage to make your game and you'll be fine. What's the use in a tall but unflexible fighter (knew some). A shorter and flexible one could beat them with their own weapons