Question

[scottnshelly]

I agree.

 

I have been a Black Belt for about six years, and I'm ready to move off to a place where no one knows me and go into a new school with a new style and start off as a white belt. I'd love to start new with the basics.

 

If you really do have the basics down, then speak with the Instructor about it. Be tactful, not tacky though. tell him of your prior experience and don't ask to be promoted. He will watch and if you do have them down, he should let you know.

 

If the system only promotes based on time and not skill, then i would call that a McDojo and leave.

[italian_guy]

Hi TeaL,

 

I think you did not show a good attitude in the entire discussion so a lot of people turn against you; so I will restart with the original question, telling you my experience.

 

I started kickboxing in march 2003, at the end of april this year I realized that I wanted more then what kickboxing can offer, I wanted some more complete martial art system, so I joined go-ju ryu karate but with more then one year kickboxing experience. I started from white belt learning the basics from scratch, after only 1 and a half months I was admitted to the yellow belt exam and I was promoted with the same mark of another student who studied karate from about 5 months.

 

This just to tell you that you should go back to the basic with great humility, if you have skill and you show that you are willing to learn your instructors will recognize it, I'm sure.

[longarm25]

just find a school you like

[longarm25]

and are confortable with

[TeaL]

Let me see if I can put this in a way that you'll understrand from my own experience.

 

I've been in instructor of the martial arts since September of 1978...long before your parents probably even met, let alone you were born. Duringthat trime, I have had many people come into my dojo that had prior experience in other arts, including TKD, TSD, Kempo, Kungfu, judo, etc. Ranks of these people were from still white belts, to 2nd degree black belts (TKD). Some of these people wanted to start out as other than white belts..but most accepted the fact that what I was going to teach them was different than what they had learned previously.

 

For example, the 2nd degree black belt in TKD. He wanted to start out as a 1st degree...possibly he'd "settle" for a brown belt in my system, because he felt taht his 8 years of TKD was a sufficient base that he didn't need to know the basics of Shorinryu.

 

I said OK...if you can do the basics like we do the basics (blocks, kicks, punches)..I'd go for that. We started out with the blocks. Each and every one of his blocks was wrong (as we do them), from the actual execution of the block, to the final placement of the arm. I showed him the reason we did our blocks the way that we do them...and he couldn't argue with me.

 

Kicks..same thing. He wasn't chambering any of his kicks to the knee first..had absolutly no power behind any of them, and was jsut plain sloppy by my standards.

 

His stances were way to wide for what we do...he couldn't step the way that we do...,and I could go on and on. You get the idea.

 

This 2nd degree TKD black belt accepted that he didn't know even our most basic white belt level techniques, let alone any of our more advanced techniques...so why should I give him anything other than a white belt?

 

Yes, he stayed in the class for about a year, and yes, he advanced faster than your average student during that year...as yo umay also. But what you're failing to unbderstand is that you want to skip the funbdamentals of a system and dive right in ot the "good stuff". It's good to want to do that, but not good to skip the fundamentals of a syste

 

Now, if you already have a good foundation in TSD, yand already knowthe basics of it...the instructor shoudl see that and move you up accordingly. Maybe not in belt colors...but allowing you to progress quicker to the advanced techniques.

 

Thank god.

 

SOMONE listened to me.

 

The dojo i was in didnt notice hard work and it really bugged me... i do feeel i have a good base for TSD, although i guess id just start from the begging, not even bother telling him, cause i dont think it would make a diffrence,

 

i think im just gonna continue studying under my own hand...

[TeaL]

I know i've kinda had a bad attitude, i just felt like i was being attacked, and they wheren't even reading what i was saying.

 

Anyways, looks like ill wait to make a decision, maybe ill take that guys advice, and make my own style muahahaha. I have come up with some "Moves" of myown, that i like... hehe,

 

kidding of corse.

 

but ya never know.

 

look out for my new stylecomming in 2010!

 

Dues Sine!

 

the first latin based matrial art form!

[Shorin Ryuu]

Mu Ryuk:

 

I didn't know you were from Monterey. Maybe we can get together and train every once in a while? I'd love to learn from you and maybe share anything that I've learned as well.

[Drunken Monkey]

I know i've kinda had a bad attitude, i just felt like i was being attacked, and they wheren't even reading what i was saying

 

well, i did read the things you were typing.

 

there were three things you mentioned that i didn't like the sound of.

 

i) you only have one, at best two years experience in karate and yet you feel like you'd do better learning at home, by yourself from books and vids.

 

ii) you want to join a class but don't want, in ANY case, to have to go back to white and go through basic training again.

 

iii) also you mentioned basics "for the 4th time".

 

so does that mean that in the (at most) two years,

 

(does this "two years" include the time you spent copying moves from books at home?)

 

you started and stopped training three times?

 

can i ask why you haven't been able to stick to a dedicated training regime?

[TeaL]

3rd time, sorry i was wrong.

 

And i NEVER said i didnt want to be white belt underf any conditions i jsut said id rather not.