feeling down...need to vent...

[turbo wrx]

I wasn't sure where to post this...

I started Karate earlier this year, and unfortunately I don't feel satisfied so far. I don't feel we're learning practical self-defense. We mainly just practice katas, which I know is important, but I want more. Even the higher belts don't spar or do anything spectacular. If the green or blue belts got into a fight, I don't feel like they're expert fighters, but who knows. I don't believe the higher belts will learn advanced techniques, such as foot sweeps or pressure points.

I feel like the sensei favors the kids and gives them attention. He doesn't help me really improve, and I don't have much communication with him. I don't feel like we're learning how to actually fight! I feel like a stinky student, even though I practice at home, read about martial arts, and even started learning the next kata on my own.

Something I didn't post about previously on this forum is that I took a year of Tae Kwon Do when I was a lot younger. Unfortunately I lost interest after a year, and then remained out of the martial arts for many years, and then joined Karate this year.

Well, I look back at the Tae Kwon Do class and feel good about it. Even as white belts we were allowed to spar. We were only allowed to block, but this helped our reflexes and actual defense skills in case someone tried to hit us. After white belt, we could engage in free sparring. We also got to break boards (the rebreakable types), and at least once practiced jumping kicks on a heavy bag. I miss that.

Basically, I want to learn fighting skills at a faster pace. I want to learn stand-up fighting, clinch skills (knees, elbows, takedowns), how to escape from holds, basic grappling, ground fighting, and pressure points. I know I can't get this all from one art. I guess I'll look around for other martial arts schools, but this Karate class I'm in fit in nicely with my schedule, it's close to home, and is very affordable. I don't know. After the last class, I just felt pretty crappy.

[KarateEd]

Sorry to hear about your experiences so far. Don't give up on the school just yet. First, talk with your instructor about your concerns. If the situation doesn't improve and you decide to switch schools, at least you'll have a better idea of what to look for and which questions to ask the instructors at other schools.

Ed

[pineapple]

Different schools focus on different things. Some school concentrate on developing character and discipline. These will generally be the large classes of kids. Some schools concentrate on tournaments and spend majority of the time teaching tournament techniques. They do a lot of sparring but within rules of what they can or cannot do. Some schools concentrate on street self defense. These schools concentrate on the "dirty" techniques such as groin shots, eye gouges, joint breaking.

Different people train in martial arts for different reasons.

Find a school that meets your needs.

[bushido_man96]

You could go look for another TKD school to get back into, if you like. Or, if you want to learn fighting techniques, you could look for an MMA gym or a Thai/Boxing gym.

As far as learning new, advanced techniques goes, keep this in mind: Keep It Simple. Just because a technique is "advanced" doesn't mean it is better. The basics are there for a reason. Don't get caught up in "cool" at the expense of practicality.

I hope you can find what you are looking for. Best wishes, and keep looking.

[turbo wrx]

I go most karate classes without talking to the instructor. When I was in TKD a long time ago, my instructor would give me tips. It seemed he cared about my development, and the skills I learned could've actually helped in a fight.

In the last karate class, I went up to the instructor to tell him something, and waited to get his attention. Then some lady walked up with her little kid and asked about belt stripes, so the instructor walked away with them and left me standing there like an idiot.

I feel kind of depressed lately because I'm not yet sure what to do about my martial arts goals, and life is busy. I'm busy with my job, and the commute is long. I'm married now, and don't want to neglect my wife. I have religious obligations. I want to further my skills and advance my career. And I have my fitness and martial arts goals. I wish I would have focused more on the latter 2 things since 5 years ago when I had more time.

I've been researching local schools lately on the internet. I visited one school and e-mailed them. It's a different art than karate, but they also have katas. I don't know if it would necessarily benefit me to switch from karate to this other art.

One art that does seem interesting is Hapkido because it appears well-rounded, and therefore it could be effective in self-defense. I want to learn more about it. There is a school about 20 minutes from here, but it's kind of expensive. I'll see.

[bushido_man96]

Switching schools may be better for you than you think. Don't think of it as starting over. Just learning something different on the same subject.

[kkennedy219]

I don't have a lot to add here, except that I totally feel your pain. I have been interested in martial arts all my life, but only recently (I'm 33) have had the opportunity to pursue it. The first class I took was at the local rec center and it had a lot of similarities to the class you describe...the age ranged from 6 to adult and while there was some sparring, I always seemed to get partnered up with a little girl in the 4th grade who was scared to death of me, and the instructor paid no mind. The testing for rank advancement was done every 6 weeks and you were only tested on kata, no kihon , no kumite, nothing but kata. So I know people who are still in the class who are about to test for their black belts after only two years of training, which seems silly to me because they haven't really learned much.

I'm married with kids and I know how you feel about the time constraints. We all just have to do what we can, and try to feel good about our efforts. Maybe you would find more satisfaction with a school that's a little more intense. The dojo I train at now is VERY intense, which I love because when you pass a test, you really feel you've accomplished something.

Good luck in your quest. Keep us posted on your progress!

[P.A.L]

change the school it's not a big deal if you are not happy, i think Kyokushin karate or Hapkido would intrest you more, but remember what you asked for, more intense means more chance for injury and some of us can't offered that with our jobs. we had a surgon he broke his hand and was off from work for 2-3 months, I had to work with a broken fibula because i have a business to run and it took a year to heal.

[Throwdown0850]

read your quote. trust yourself on this one. its a mc dojo. leave so you wont waste your money.

[JohnASE]

... I don't feel we're learning practical self-defense... Even the higher belts don't spar or do anything spectacular... I don't believe the higher belts will learn advanced techniques, such as foot sweeps or pressure points...

I want to learn stand-up fighting, clinch skills (knees, elbows, takedowns), how to escape from holds, basic grappling, ground fighting, and pressure points. I know I can't get this all from one art. I guess I'll look around for other martial arts schools...

You seem to have a pretty clear idea of what you want, and your dojo doesn't have it. Your sensei might teach some of these things to advanced students, but he obviously doesn't stress them. And it sounds like you need to spar.

It sounds like you want MMA (mixed martial arts). There are a bunch of MMA schools around here, but I don't know what it's like in your area. If you can't find MMA, many stand-up fighting schools have integrated some grappling into their programs.

When looking for a new school, don't worry too much about the style. Different schools of the same style will stress different things. For example, unlike your current dojo, there are lot of Shotokan dojos that have a fair amount of sparring. I can even think of one that has an MMA program.

Make some calls and ask some questions. Maybe a school in your area will have exactly what you're looking for.