Did you have an option?

[Virtuoso Punk]

I find that I have a lot of trouble with the leather stretching out then the shoes don't fit quiet right. Or my feet move sideways over the outer edge of the sole of the shoe.

 

Yeah, a lot of the slipper-style MA shoes have the sole narrower than the width of your foot, so it's easy to wobble on either side of it. You really notice it if you balance on one leg.

 

Anyway, I think researching martial arts is a good idea, too. To use focus102's term, there really are a lot of McDojo's around, and they stay in business because enough people don't know any better that they can make enough money to stay in business.

 

I wonder if you could have some sort of body that reviewed martial arts schools in general and evaluated them for quality of training (you prolly can't incorporate stylistic judgments because that would get too complicated). I was thinking maybe this could be a way to at least help distinguish "certified" schools from McDojo's, kinda like how restaurants can display their Health Board approvals and awards from renown food critics, etc. Just a thought...

[IAMA_chick]

i had an option, but not a big one. there was tae kwon do, which i am in. and then there was a karate place. i am very glad i am at the place i am at though.

[niel0092]

There were/are alot of clubs in the area when I began. Being at the University though I limmited my initial choices to what was availible through the schools clubs and rec department. It made more sense at the time due to issues of cost and location. I saw demos of the 5 styles availible (across 8 clubs) and tried out 2 of them. I choose the one that fit best at the time.

 

Over time, my tastes and requirements for what I want to learn have changed. My current school does a good job but I am thirsty for just a bit more. I'll probably switch styles sometime in the future or just try something else for a while.

[karate_woman]

Not initially, but there are lots of choices now, and have been lots since I've lived in the city I'm now in (about 10 years).

[Red J]

In college I earned a brown belt in a karate system that was more hard than soft, but had self defense in it along with throws and takedowns. When I moved to the University, I took a very hard Shotokan style, but I really wanted to take Kung Fu because my original system had some of its elements in it. I ended up dropping the Shotokan and doing some freestyle with an Isshun Ryu guy. Well, fifteen years later I wanted to start training again. I looked at a Japenese hard style, a Korean school, and then the Shaolin Kempo school down the street. Well, the Shaolin part just fascinated me because I really wanted to learn the softer aspects. The bonus for me was that the school also does a lot of self defense and grappling, which I really enjoy. I think I made an informed choice and I have no regrets.

[Red J]

Oh yeah, as for the shoes, I picked an Asics wrestling shoe. They fit like gloves and hold up well.

[MSPav]

When I started I had no idea that there was a difference between styles. As far as I knew there was Karate (where you get fit and hit people) and Judo (where you don't). I started in a style called Goshin-Ryu which, looking back, was very Tae Kwon Do-ish.

[ahgao]

I pick up TKD when young and that was school sport. When I was introduce to wushu, I was drug. Wushu had been my motivation in life beside my family and friends...

 

Given a choice to reselect, I wish to turn back the clock and start wushu training from 5 yrs old.

 

For shoes, I prefer flat rubber sole canvas, that what I recommend to all my trainee. Feiyue is a popular brand in Singapore mainly due to our local National Wushu Team member also wearing them.

 

I wouldn't recommend adidas or otomix due to the price and the unstablity of the narrow sole. Another althernative will be those worn by volley ball players.

[wckf_azn]

my sistaz boyfriend introduced me to wing chun... he taught me afew moves wen he used to come over. he lived on the east side of melbourne, so i couldnt train at his place.

 

lucky enough i found a wing chun place 10mins away from my house in the west. only $5 a lesson 2hrz. my mum wouldnt let me but i snuck out newayz. and she still doesnt noe. (itz been a year and a half)

 

later on my fwen introduced me to vovinam (martial arts of vietnam). since i am vietnamese, my mum let me join.

 

so now im studying both!! omg i love MA