Should I start?

[jasonis]

Hello all,

I've been wanting to start Karate so i decided to message my local club (only one in the area) I sent a message over explaining i'm a bit overweight and completely useless cardio-wise having been in active for about 4 years (my bad) anyway I sent that almost two weeks ago and no reply so i'm wondering if they maybe didn't get it or something else, what should I do? should I just turn up? I'm completely nervous about starting tbh so just turning up feels a bit uncomfortable, should i just bite the bullet? sorry for rambling on haha

Any advice welcome, thank you.

Jason

[OneKickWonder]

Chances are they just didn't get your message. You didn't say how you messaged them. Was it on Facebook? Did their page look active? Was it via email? A nasty webform that probably worked the day they sent one yesterday message to themselves and then never tested it again?

With regard to your weight and fitness, if it's a half decent school, that won't matter. We've had people join us that can't manage a single pushup. You just do what you can, and over time you improve. Everybody started somewhere.

Just go for it. Go and visit the club. Get there 15 minutes before class is due to start to allow time to chat with the instructor. You can always walk away. And if it turns out you don't like that club, there are others, and they're not all the same.

[LLLEARNER]

I find that karate has motivated me to start running again. Even when I ran, I was never a runner. I even signed myself and daughter up for a 5k.

[singularity6]

Participating in Tae Kwon Do has inspired me to take better care of myself. My physical activity levels have increased substantially, and my diet has improved quite a bit, as well.

[MatsuShinshii]

Hello all,

I've been wanting to start Karate so i decided to message my local club (only one in the area) I sent a message over explaining i'm a bit overweight and completely useless cardio-wise having been in active for about 4 years (my bad) anyway I sent that almost two weeks ago and no reply so i'm wondering if they maybe didn't get it or something else, what should I do? should I just turn up? I'm completely nervous about starting tbh so just turning up feels a bit uncomfortable, should i just bite the bullet? sorry for rambling on haha

Any advice welcome, thank you.

Jason

You need to show up and talk to the instructor. Find out when class starts and show up 15 to 20 minutes early. Talk to the CI and address your concerns. Most likely you will be asked to stay and watch a class or even participate and if they don't, ask them if you can.

Messaging, texts, emails and the like are impersonal and show no desire or motivation. Show up and if the teacher is worth their salt they will be open to your questions and concerns and address them accordingly. Just don't expect them to alter the class for your endurance/fitness level. Do what you can and as another said you will progress to that level over time. And don't be self conscience. Every one starts out some where and we all progress at our own rates. The key is to start.

Make sure you ask questions and watch a few classes before committing. I think you'll find out that their is great diversity in the students and this may help to bolster your confidence. Having said that you have to take the first step and walk through the door. After that you're on your way.

Good luck and welcome to KF.

[jasonis]

Thank you for your replies, I am going to go next week 15 minutes early and get in a chat with them, hopefully I can jump straight in and give it a go! but will settle for watching if they wish

[OneKickWonder]

Thank you for your replies, I am going to go next week 15 minutes early and get in a chat with them, hopefully I can jump straight in and give it a go! but will settle for watching if they wish

Excellent. I've never yet met an instructor that would prefer a prospective students to watch rather than join in, so I'm sure you'll get that opportunity. You might be taken aside during certain activities though and shown something else other than what the rest of the class are doing.

For example, if you came to ours, you could expect something like this. You'd join in with the warm up. That would be pushups, crunches, star jumps etc. Stretches too, but you'd be watched more closely because that's the bit where people tend to hurt themselves a bit if they get it too wrong.

Then it would be line drills. This is where the instructor choose a specific technique or combo for us to practice to his count. In ours, for this bit, a senior grade would be assigned to stand next to you to help keep you right. You would not be expected to get it right, and nobody will be watching you except to see how you are doing.

After line drill, it gets a bit more technical in ours, with forms/kata, one step, sparring etc. At that point you'd be taken aside and given one to one tuition in the basics, maybe a chat about the style, the etiquette, the club, your goals etc.

Then for the last part we usually do something fairly easy and generic and you'd be asked to rejoin the lines for that, before bowing out, which I think probably looks weird until you get used to it. Basically we take a moment to relax our minds and meditate briefly, I guess to get our heads out of martial arts mode. Then bow to instructors and flag, and then all wander off. At that point you'd get another casual chat to see what you thought, and to try to gauge if you're coming back

[sensei8]

Either way, go; nothing ventured, nothing gained.

I'm with the crowd that would watch many different classes first, then, decide if the fit is a good one before stepping on the floor. Watching quite closely for red flags and all.

Study long, study wrong!!

Good luck, and please, keep us updated on your journey!!

[JR 137]

Either way, go; nothing ventured, nothing gained.

I'm with the crowd that would watch many different classes first, then, decide if the fit is a good one before stepping on the floor. Watching quite closely for red flags and all.

Study long, study wrong!!

Good luck, and please, keep us updated on your journey!!

Yup. Watch before you join in on it. What if they go through the warmups, basics and some drills, and everything is all fine and good, it then comes the sparring and you’re expected to spar bare knuckle when you didn’t know this was how they do things nor wanted a bare knuckle school?

Chances are very good that that wouldn’t happen; it’s an extreme point to my argument. However, Kyokushin routinely spars this way, and often enough from day one. I highly doubt a Kyokushin teacher would allow a person who just walked in and didn’t know what they were getting into to do this, but I’m sure it’s happened somewhere at some point.

Know what you’re getting into before you get on the floor IMO.

As for the original intent of the thread...

There’s no better time to start than now. Of course you should start. Your age and physical condition don’t matter (barring extreme circumstances). Karate is, or at least should be, a lifelong pursuit. People should go at their own pace and within their abilities. That doesn’t mean don’t push hard through your own preconceived limits though.

Do your research. Forget about styles of MA. Make a list of schools in the area. Eliminate the ones that conflict with your schedule and your budget. Visit the rest. Forget about preconceived notions; it’s nothing like the movies and the like tell you it is. I can describe exactly what goes on at the dojo I train at for hours at length, but that’ll pretty much go out the window once you get on the floor.

The most important thing is finding the right instructor who’s teaching in a way you can best learn from, and the students you’ll be training alongside. Don’t buy into a style because people tell you it’s the best. Buy into a teacher and classmates who are the best fit for you.

[OneKickWonder]

Yup. Watch before you join in on it. What if they go through the warmups, basics and some drills, and everything is all fine and good, it then comes the sparring and you’re expected to spar bare knuckle when you didn’t know this was how they do things nor wanted a bare knuckle school?

.

What? Does that ever happen? I've never heard of or witnessed a beginner being expected to spar before they're ready. Never.

That's not to say it doesn't happen. I've never known it or heard of it.

Is that something that happens in the US?

Quite apart from it being morally wrong to ask a new starter to spare before they're ready, it would also be dangerous not just for the new starter, but for the other students. What if the new kid is both completely mental and extremely tough? Are there really instructors out there that would take that risk before getting to know and trust the new starter?

Then there's the civil liability. The new person is effectively a guest. Are are there any insurance companies out there that are happy to cover clubs that throw visitors to the wolves?