# What got you into martial arts?



## Kenpoguy123 (Feb 10, 2016)

So I was wondering what are different people's reasons to start training.

Mine are first club ishinryu karate I started because my dad kept nagging me about it saying it'd be good to learn self defence and I saw a beginners class and decoded to try it.

kenpo I started because I was getting bored in ishinryu I didn't think it was a very practical martial art and the whole lesson was just basics going up and down the hall punching and kicking for an hour so I wanted to do something more self defence orientated.

Kickboxing more recently I started just for a work out and get some fitness work in and see how they do things


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## Paul_D (Feb 10, 2016)

Initially, as a kid I caught the tail end of the Bruce Lee craze in the 70s.

After that, a desire to learn self defence, and the mistaken belief that learning martial arts meant I was learning self defence.

Now?  Many reasons, but mostly it’s fun, I’ve made some good friends which continue to lead to numerous enjoyable social events, its fun, getting my **** of the sofa has improved my fitness, and did I mention it’s fun


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## Buka (Feb 10, 2016)

When I was twelve I saw Ed Parker on the Lucy Show. The episode title was _Lucy and Viv learn Judo._

Been hooked ever since.


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## JowGaWolf (Feb 10, 2016)

weapons.  swords, spears, daggers and anything else with a blade


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## Andrew Green (Feb 10, 2016)

The Karate Kid & Ninja Turtles (originals obviously )


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## Flatfish (Feb 10, 2016)

Dunno, Judo sounded cool as a kid and some friends were doing it so I joined for a couple of years. As an old fart I started TKD with my son to get him to do something besides flop around in the living room. Been at it for two years now.


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## elder999 (Feb 10, 2016)

Moving out of the NYC in 1968, my father taught us the judo, boxing and karate he learned and taught in the Navy (though he'd boxed for years before joining the Navy-back then, lots of colleges had boxing clubs, and he'd been disqualified from participating because of his experience, so he coached....) later, on my 11th birthday, I started to get the more formal training I'd been asking for for years.....Bruce Lee helped (as in "The Green Hornet," called "the Kato Show" by me! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





) and the Kung Fu TV series  came out the next year, and made me stick with really hard training with the adults (*scary* men! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




) though I missed two seasons for boarding school......

bottom line, though, I wanted to study martial arts because I wanted to be James Bond.....


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## Bill Mattocks (Feb 10, 2016)

Kenpoguy123 said:


> So I was wondering what are different people's reasons to start training.
> 
> Mine are first club ishinryu karate I started because my dad kept nagging me about it saying it'd be good to learn self defence and I saw a beginners class and decoded to try it.
> 
> ...



I started Isshin Ryu and I'm still doing it.  For what it's worth, it is self-defense oriented and not just basics up and down the hall.  I suspect you didn't stick with it long enough, but that's just a guess.

As to the reason I started, that's pretty simple also.

When I was in the Marines, I was an MP and I was stationed on Okinawa, Japan (1980s).  I worked with a Japanese Security Guard who was pretty highly placed in the Isshin Ryu organization, Master Angi Uezu.  I did not train at that time; I was kind of more interested in drinking beer back then.  But I never forgot about Isshin Ryu; it is basically the unofficial Marine Corps martial art (I have plenty of Jarhead friends who study other arts, but Isshin Ryu is or was at that time very popular with Marines).

So some time ago, as a late 40-something fat guy, I decided to finally 'get around' to starting martial arts training.  There was a dojo less than a mile from me, and the instructor was a second-generation student of the founder.  I visited, started taking classes, and just never stopped.

I'm a second-degree black belt now.  Still a student, but I help out teaching the kids' classes and adult beginners as I am able, under supervision by my sensei.  I'll be 55 this year.

Sorry you got bored with Isshin Ryu.  Your characterization of it is entirely incorrect, however.


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## Andrew Green (Feb 10, 2016)

Bill Mattocks said:


> Sorry you got bored with Isshin Ryu.  Your characterization of it is entirely incorrect, however.



Probably more a characterization of his school, not the style as a whole which is going to vary considerably in how it's trained depending on who is teaching it.


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## Bill Mattocks (Feb 10, 2016)

Andrew Green said:


> Probably more a characterization of his school, not the style as a whole which is going to vary considerably in how it's trained depending on who is teaching it.



I agree, but I read this in the OP's statement: _"I didn't think it was a very practical martial art..."_  It is a very practical martial art, and I want to correct any misconception that it isn't.


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## Danny T (Feb 10, 2016)

Andrew Green said:


> Probably more a characterization of his school, not the style as a whole which is going to vary considerably in how it's trained depending on who is teaching it.


Yep
And is true for most all of the martial arts.
They all can be excellent or can be terrible. I've seen terrible wc, terrible muay thai, terrible bjj, terrible shotokan, ...etc. 
Doesn't mean those arts are terrible only those particular individuals at those schools/gyms. Then I've seen some terrible schools/gyms but that doesn't mean the art/s taught there are terrible. It all comes down to the training and how the individual trains and practices. Doesn't matter what it is called, what matters is 'how' you practice it.


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## elder999 (Feb 10, 2016)

Danny T said:


> Yep
> And is true for most all of the martial arts.
> They all can be excellent or can be terrible. I've seen terrible wc, terrible muay thai, terrible bjj, terrible shotokan, ...etc.
> Doesn't mean those arts are terrible only those particular individuals at those schools/gyms. Then I've seen some terrible schools/gyms but that doesn't mean the art/s taught there are terrible. It all comes down to the training and how the individual trains and practices. Doesn't matter what it is called, what matters is 'how' you practice it.



Looking back, I think some people would find my early training-as in the first 8 years or so- "boring." It's also about the individual attitude...I'm almost of the opinion that most Americans should take up knife-throwing before starting martial arts, so they have some experience with practicing the same thing over, and over, and *over* again, and getting it wrong many times before they get any gratification.........or piano.....or guitar.....


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## donald1 (Feb 10, 2016)

One day my mom told me about a karate school nearby and asked if I wanted to go. And I said "yeah, sure okay" and thats pretty much it... (I wish there was more detail but nope)

Probably my one of my biggest reasons for joining martial arts was the fact that I liked bruce lee and jackie chan movies. Turns out you dont get to swing swords in karate or wear sweet ninja samari costumes either...

But I stuck with it and found actual karate is interesting too.


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## Danny T (Feb 10, 2016)

elder999 said:


> Looking back, I think some people would find my early training-as in the first 8 years or so- "boring." It's also about the individual attitude...I'm almost of the opinion that most Americans should take up knife-throwing before starting martial arts, so they have some experience with practicing the same thing over, and over, and *over* again, and getting it wrong many times before they get any gratification.........or piano.....or guitar.....


Practicing can be boring. When done as a boring exercise. There are ways to make practice fun, exciting, and different. Everything we do is movement and doing something specific within movement. Practice doesn't have to be doing the exact same thing in the same manner over and over. Techniques are particular movements done at specific times in a specific combination. Practice doesn't have to be, it can be changed up and the same movement performed with different timing and different scenarios and applications. For instance, a hook punch can be practiced over and over as a hook punch or can also be used with a different range, footwork, and turning movement and it now becomes a head lock or when the same movement is as a body punch it can now be a hip throw. Practice doesn't have to be boring when one knows how to use movement as different applications.


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## elder999 (Feb 10, 2016)

Danny T said:


> Practicing can be boring. When done as a boring exercise. There are ways to make practice fun, exciting, and different. Everything we do is movement and doing something specific within movement. Practice doesn't have to be doing the exact same thing in the same manner over and over. Techniques are particular movements done at specific times in a specific combination. Practice doesn't have to be, it can be changed up and the same movement performed with different timing and different scenarios and applications. For instance, a hook punch can be practiced over and over as a hook punch or can also be used with a different range, footwork, and turning movement and it now becomes a head lock or when the same movement is as a body punch it can now be a hip throw. Practice doesn't have to be boring when one knows how to use movement as different applications.



You likely need to read what I said over again:

_[*I* think *some people* would find *my* early training-as in the first 8 years or so-"boring"_


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## hoshin1600 (Feb 10, 2016)

I remember walking into my house after getting into a fight with the local bully "again"...my mom said "that's it,, enough" and went through the phone book and signed me up for karate class, I was really into it since I was a big fan of the kung-fu tv show.
I stopped after some time and the rocky movies got me interested in boxing.then I saw PKA kickboxing and I was hooked. Went back to training and never really stopped since then.


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## GiYu - Todd (Feb 10, 2016)

In college, I got dragged to an aikido class by a friend who was taking it.  It was fun, and helped condition me, and had some good people in it.  I continued for 3 1/2 years, until moving away. 
Each place I moved, I looked around without luck for a new place to train.  Some of that was due to too many other interests and insufficient time.  I was also not happy with the quality of some of the places I visited. 
Eventually decided at 39, after moving again, that if I really wanted to train, it was time for me to get off my butt.  I found a great kobudo school and have stuck with it for over 6 years.  I don't heal as well as I did 25 years and 45lbs ago, but still love doing it.


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## mber (Feb 10, 2016)

elder999 said:


> Moving out of the NYC in 1968, my father taught us the judo, boxing and karate he learned and taught in the Navy



I'm really curious, did the martial arts that he used and taught you differ much from how they're taught today? Are they still fundamentally the same styles?


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## Kenpoguy123 (Feb 10, 2016)

Bill Mattocks said:


> I started Isshin Ryu and I'm still doing it.  For what it's worth, it is self-defense oriented and not just basics up and down the hall.  I suspect you didn't stick with it long enough, but that's just a guess.



did it for 2 and a half years and got to second green belt so yeah I did stick with it long enough. Anyway I may be wrong but I think we're talking about 2 different styles the one I'm talking about was founded by ticks Donovan


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## Flying Crane (Feb 10, 2016)

Danny T said:


> Practicing can be boring. When done as a boring exercise. There are ways to make practice fun, exciting, and different. Everything we do is movement and doing something specific within movement. Practice doesn't have to be doing the exact same thing in the same manner over and over. Techniques are particular movements done at specific times in a specific combination. Practice doesn't have to be, it can be changed up and the same movement performed with different timing and different scenarios and applications. For instance, a hook punch can be practiced over and over as a hook punch or can also be used with a different range, footwork, and turning movement and it now becomes a head lock or when the same movement is as a body punch it can now be a hip throw. Practice doesn't have to be boring when one knows how to use movement as different applications.


This is true.  And yet, it's kind of sad that at least some people can't seem to stick with something purely for its own value.  They won't do it unless they are at least being entertained, preferably paid.


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## Monkey Turned Wolf (Feb 10, 2016)

I was four, and my big brother practiced\. Naturally, being the clingy little bugger that I was, I made my parents sign me up as well. However many years later, he no longer practices and I still do.


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## Flying Crane (Feb 10, 2016)

elder999 said:


> Looking back, I think some people would find my early training-as in the first 8 years or so- "boring." It's also about the individual attitude...I'm almost of the opinion that most Americans should take up knife-throwing before starting martial arts, so they have some experience with practicing the same thing over, and over, and *over* again, and getting it wrong many times before they get any gratification.........or piano.....or guitar.....


My early years were largely made up of quick advancement, on to the next thing, keep it interesting.  In hindsight and with the wisdom of years I began to realizable how shaky my foundation was.  In recent years I have embraced the repetition and the boring, the stuff that should have been in my early training.  It is really fulfilling and it's where you can see the progress.


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## Bill Mattocks (Feb 10, 2016)

Kenpoguy123 said:


> did it for 2 and a half years and got to second green belt so yeah I did stick with it long enough. Anyway I may be wrong but I think we're talking about 2 different styles the one I'm talking about was founded by ticks Donovan



Ah, I see.  Yes, that would be a completely different style.  I have no idea about whether or not that style is either effective or boring, so please carry on.

For what it may be worth, despite "Ticky Donovan's" convictions, Isshin Ryu existed quite a long time before he seems to have spontaneously invented a completely different style of martial arts with the same name spelled with one less 's' in it.  Isshin Ryu means "One Heart Way," not "everybody with one heart."  But he's entitled to believe whatever he wants.

I apologize for my response defending Isshin Ryu, as I see now you meant a different style entirely, one I was ignorant of until now.  I would only add as an aside that 2 and a half years is hardly enough to learn any martial art, but again, since I know nothing of your former style, carry on.  Perhaps it is useless and boring, I don't know.


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## Langenschwert (Feb 10, 2016)

Swords. Who doesn't like swords? I had the opportunity to learn how to use one, so I took it. Haven't looked back, though I've looked sideways and added various other things to my training. 

Swords. Say it with me now, _swords_.


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## MMAexamined (Feb 10, 2016)

I started after Cro Cop popularized massively MMA in Croatia... I started training because my neighbour had gym across the street. Muay Thai was the discipline I choose because I have been playing basketball for my whole life and thought I could use footwork in that discipline well.


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## elder999 (Feb 10, 2016)

mber said:


> I'm really curious, did the martial arts that he used and taught you differ much from how they're taught today? Are they still fundamentally the same styles?



A little background: we moved from NYC to Peekskill, what qualified as "upstate" at the time (though it never really was, and is even less so now) in 1968....I'd led a pretty sheltered life: private school, 20th floor apartment.

No one had ever called me "n!gger." Dad wanted me to be prepared to defend myself: I was one of three black kids at my school that first year, one of two the next-and the other one was my brother...and I wasn't at all like what anyone expected a black child to be like, back in 1968......what he taught us was largely "stuff," to make sure we could handle ourselves against bigger kids, or more than one.....or just one....I had to fight plenty between 1968 and 1970-some people in our (somewhat exclusive and upper middle class) neighborhood had tried to buy our house out from under my parents, to keep us out of the neighborhood. Some moved away.....I can remember fighting a kid named Robby Brass at the bus-stop, which was on the corner of his yard, right after school, and his dad yelling for him to "beat the crap out of that little ******!" even as I bloodied his mouth and his nose at will........fighting.it..turns out, I liked.

The Brasses moved that year.....

As for the "stuff," the judo served me well when I began formal training,and still does-though judo _competition_ has changed considerably since then.The  boxing was and is fundamentally the same.....I never really did figure out what kind of karate it was that my dad picked up in Hawaii, though I narrowed it down some.....


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## crazydiamond (Feb 10, 2016)

A bit complicated but I started very late in life as a means to explore something outside of my normal self,  be uncomfortable, explore new frontiers.

I joke that after so many years as a St. Bernard, I wanted to see what being a German Shepard was like. Old dog - new tricks.


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## Buka (Feb 10, 2016)

I've found training to be a lot of things. Can't say boring was ever one of them. That so confuses me.


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## kuniggety (Feb 10, 2016)

Bill Mattocks said:


> But I never forgot about Isshin Ryu; it is basically the unofficial Marine Corps martial art (I have plenty of Jarhead friends who study other arts, but Isshin Ryu is or was at that time very popular with Marines).



I think it still is pretty popular with the Marines. Some guys also just really get into MCMAP which requires belts in other styles to advance in it. Submission grappling (nogi BJJ/etc)  is getting pretty popular amongst the Marines too.

I don't remember how old I was now but I studied Shuri-Ryu karate for 2 1/2 years as a kid and made my way up to yonkyu. I remember enjoying it and not sure really what happened but I stopped going, lol. I remember being into TMNT and the Karate Kid movies and all that. It was exciting. Why Shuri-Ryu? There wasn't a whole lot available where I lived at the time. I think it was that or TKD and it's just what my grandma signed me up for.

When I was 19 I did O-mei kung fu and sanshou for a couple of months but then joined the Air Force and so that was that. I didn't do anything in the way of martial arts for some years. I was later stationed in Okinawa and studied aikido briefly but I was working a night shift at the time and it didn't really work out. There was other options but I didn't push it. I should've revisited Okinawan karate since that's what I did as a kid but didn't. I kick myself for it now.

Almost 4 1/2 years ago is when I seriously got back into martial arts for the first time since I was a kid. I studied Bak Sil Lum and a little Seven Star Praying Mantis in private lessons a couple of times a week (1 1/2 - 2 1/2 hr lessons) for a year and got to be an intermediate student. The head instructor made many comments about how fast I picked it up but I think that just had to do with how much time I was spending in one on one instruction. I then moved and did some individual practice of the kung fu forms but had no one to continue learning under in Japan. About 6 months in I decided to give BJJ a try. 3 years later that's still my main focus. I'm fortunate that it's so popular that I could move and find another great instructor to keep learning under. About 2 years ago now, when I spent 6 months in Thailand, I did some private instruction in Chen style taiji while doing some BJJ too.

I didn't mean to turn this into a life story but I think martial arts are a reflection of your life. At different points in my life my focus has been different things. These last few years, as I get a little bit older, I have been focusing on my health and fitness. BJJ perfectly aligns with that.


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## Blindside (Feb 11, 2016)

I was 12 and my best friend signed up for the Isshin-Ryu class at the local community center.  I didn't do it for self-defense, I did it because it was fun.  I remember getting my butt kicked at my first tournament and I remember testing under Sensei Armstrong which was supposed to be a big deal.

Bill, I am afraid that I cannot remember much in the way of practical self-defense instruction. I was in the adult class for several years (through blue belt).  Lots of kata, lots of fundamentals, lots of line drills, some sparring.  I still have seisan and seiunchin hardwired in despite it being 32 years later.


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## Dirty Dog (Feb 11, 2016)

I was 7, and had a horrible violent temper. My mother thought MA training would help. It did.


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## Jenna (Feb 11, 2016)

Dirty Dog said:


> I was 7, and had a horrible violent temper. My mother thought MA training would help. It did.


Fantastic that your MA brought gains in your life outside of your training.. would you be able to say please what was the way that your MA helped in respect of a violent temper? Thank you


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## Dirty Dog (Feb 11, 2016)

Jenna said:


> Fantastic that your MA brought gains in your life outside of your training.. would you be able to say please what was the way that your MA helped in respect of a violent temper? Thank you



Lots of ways. Developing self control. Turning aggression into something useful. Beating a bag instead of a brother.


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## Buka (Feb 11, 2016)

Blindside said:


> I was 12 and my best friend signed up for the Isshin-Ryu class at the local community center.  I didn't do it for self-defense, I did it because it was fun.  I remember getting my butt kicked at my first tournament and I remember testing under Sensei Armstrong which was supposed to be a big deal.
> 
> Bill, I am afraid that I cannot remember much in the way of practical self-defense instruction. I was in the adult class for several years (through blue belt).  Lots of kata, lots of fundamentals, lots of line drills, some sparring.  I still have seisan and seiunchin hardwired in despite it being 32 years later.



Blindside, is that Steve Armstrong you mentioned? If so - he was always nice to me when I was a young man, helped me with some things.
If not - never mind.


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## Tony Dismukes (Feb 11, 2016)

Since the answers seem to be covering more than just "how did you first get in the door of your first school"...

As a teenager I always had a general fascination with martial arts, at least enough to read all the books I had available on the subject and form opinions based on absolutely no real experience.

At 17 I was skinny, out-of-shape, uncoordinated, unaggressive, socially inept, and generally unaware of my surroundings. That made me an obvious target for bullies and after being jumped by a gang of kids at the bus stop I signed up for classes at a local TKD school.

I was paying for classes with money I had saved from my allowance and ran out of money after a few months. Next I went to some inexpensive Bando classes at a community center for a few months, but it was a significant drive and I didn't have a car and my Mom got tired of driving me there.

After that I had a couple of years where I wasn't taking regular classes but I would read books and magazines and constantly nag anyone I knew who had any martial arts training or interest in martial arts to show me stuff or spar with me or train with me on stuff I had already learned. I was still thinking exclusively in terms of martial arts as applying to (a romanticized version of) self-defense. I didn't see how the philosophy had any logical connection to the physical training.

Around this time "ninjutsu" (i.e. Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu as it was later referred to) was just getting started in the U.S. and Steve Hayes was touring the country doing seminars. I hooked up with a small club that would bring Steve (or one of his black belts) in for a seminar every 2-3 months and we would train in-between those working on what we had learned from the seminars and from Steve's books. Also periodically a couple of us would drive the 8 hours from Baltimore to Dayton to take a few classes at Steve's old school that was now being run by a couple of his black belts now that he was making more money doing seminars. At this point I was caught up in the "ninja" mystique that Hayes and Hatsumi were selling. I also was starting to understand how physical martial arts training could tie into philosophy and personal growth in a meaningful way.

After I graduated from college I moved to Dayton to continue my ninjutsu training. (I also joined the SCA and spent some years competing in their form of heavy weapons combat.) I made that a primary focus of my identity and life for a few years, but eventually gradually drifted away. The original school had split up over stupid political crap and I was starting to get an inkling of the limits of what I was learning whenever I tested my skill in a non-cooperative context. I still felt the life lessons I had learned were important, but I felt something was missing.

The UFC came out and I was fascinated to watch Royce Gracie and realize I had no understanding of what he was doing. I thought I had a pretty good survey overview of how different martial arts worked, but I was clueless as to what BJJ was about. I got some of Renzo Gracie's instructional video tapes and found a friend to drill the techniques with me. For a couple of years I was without a school again, but I got a small club going with friends from different training backgrounds to share techniques and spar and study videos. At this point it was all about training for the sake of learning new things.

Eventually I found out about a guy who was teaching Muay Thai in town and figured I should sign up because I didn't know whether I had whatever it took to handle full-contact training. He shared a location with a school that taught a Danzan Ryu spinoff (Yudansha Fighting Systems), so I signed up there also. In fairly short order I discovered the difference between cooperative training (as in the Bujinkan) or sparring with low-level opponents (my club and my friends) vs being punched and kicked hard, thrown, or choked by someone who knew what they were doing when you were trying not to let them do that. This began a process of mental and physical toughening that went on for some years.

I still was interested in BJJ, but there weren't yet any fully qualified instructors in my area. I supplemented my YDS training by studying BJJ videos, travelling to BJJ seminars, and travelling to visit BJJ clubs that had a blue belt as a leader. I was fascinated by the technical depth of the art. Eventually my YDS instructors moved out of town. I kept up with my Muay Thai and started taking Judo at our community college. Eventually BJJ had spread enough that I was able to find an instructor and I've been focused primarily (but not exclusively) on that ever since. For me, it's an art that offers endless vistas of mental, emotional, and physical growth, room for individual creativity, and a constant reality check.

(I'm leaving out various dalliances along the way with boxing, kali, and a variety of other arts. This is getting pretty long as it is.)

As of 2 weeks ago, I've started driving to Louisville to learn Wing Tsun from @yak sao. It seems like an art that might fill in some of the gaps in my skillset. It's the first time I've trained an art that uses solo forms (other than those few months of TKD 34 years ago). It's kind of fun to be able to run through the form throughout the day whenever I'm waiting for the microwave to heat up a snack or whenever I get up from my desk to stretch my legs.


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## Buka (Feb 11, 2016)

Oh, man, I am so loving this thread.


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## Kenpoguy123 (Feb 11, 2016)

Bill Mattocks said:


> Ah, I see.  Yes, that would be a completely different style.  I have no idea about whether or not that style is either effective or boring, so please carry on.
> 
> For what it may be worth, despite "Ticky Donovan's" convictions, Isshin Ryu existed quite a long time before he seems to have spontaneously invented a completely different style of martial arts with the same name spelled with one less 's' in it.  Isshin Ryu means "One Heart Way," not "everybody with one heart."  But he's entitled to believe whatever he wants.
> 
> I apologize for my response defending Isshin Ryu, as I see now you meant a different style entirely, one I was ignorant of until now.  I would only add as an aside that 2 and a half years is hardly enough to learn any martial art, but again, since I know nothing of your former style, carry on.  Perhaps it is useless and boring, I don't know.




I'm not saying the style is bad but the teaching was. The way it was taught made it pretty useless. In those times I must've sparred once and 99 percent of the time was going up and down the hall doing basics for an hour. I'm not writing it off completely because it did teach me basics of punches kicks and blocks which helped me transition to kenpo and I'm sure if it was taught more effectively it would be better. I did not mean to disrespect any style but that's how the style came off to me by the end


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## Bill Mattocks (Feb 11, 2016)

Kenpoguy123 said:


> I'm not saying the style is bad but the teaching was. The way it was taught made it pretty useless. In those times I must've sparred once and 99 percent of the time was going up and down the hall doing basics for an hour. I'm not writing it off completely because it did teach me basics of punches kicks and blocks which helped me transition to kenpo and I'm sure if it was taught more effectively it would be better. I did not mean to disrespect any style but that's how the style came off to me by the end



Again, I can't speak for 'Ishinryu' but with regard to many traditional Okinawan styles, you may not grasp why it is important to practice basics for hours on end, but there is a purpose to it.  If it didn't work for you, then you seem to have found an alternative you like.  All good.


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## Tez3 (Feb 11, 2016)

Kenpoguy123 said:


> did it for 2 and a half years and got to second green belt so yeah I did stick with it long enough. Anyway I may be wrong but I think we're talking about 2 different styles the one I'm talking about was founded by ticks Donovan



Ticky Donovan got a lot of us into karate way back when. I was Wado though, didn't follow to new style. He's an absolute monster of a karateka though whatever style. He was awarded an OBE by the Queen for services to karate and martial arts. He says btw that Ishinryu means 'all of one heart' but not my style so am not arguing. He is however one of the most influential and inspirational martial artists going. A giant of UK martial arts, not a fly by night who just made his own style up.
About Ticky Donovan OBE – Ishinryru.org

This is the explanation of the name Ishinryu. 'Empty head' would have be good though. Taken from an interview with Ticky.

". Ticky remembers that he wanted a name that meant “open mind’ but when translated it came out as “empty head” and the idea was quickly scrapped. Meeting a Japanese Judoka while on holiday, he came up with the name 'Ishinryu' meaning “all of one heart”. Donovan asked if there was an Ishinryu style in Japan, and he said no, and Ishinryu was born.

At first, Donovan simply used 'Ishinryu' as a club name. However inspired by the suggestion of Shigeru Kimura (a famous Shūkōkai instructor), Ishinryu was incorporated as a style integrating what Donovan had learnt from previous karate instructors - Ishinryu became a unique style developed from Kyokushinkai, Wado-ryu and Shotokan."


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## twendkata71 (Feb 11, 2016)

I was a small kid and was getting picked on a lot. I started watching martial arts movies on Friday nights and was excited. saw a few demonstrations and I was hooked. plus my parents were elvis fans and he was doing karate. my father taught me some judo and boxing, but I wanted more. so he finally found a local karate class and took me. from that point on I couldn't get enough. It's been 35 years now and I still have a great thirst for knowledge.


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## twendkata71 (Feb 11, 2016)

Tez3 said:


> Ticky Donovan got a lot of us into karate way back when. I was Wado though, didn't follow to new style. He's an absolute monster of a karateka though whatever style. He was awarded an OBE by the Queen for services to karate and martial arts. He says btw that Ishinryu means 'all of one heart' but not my style so am not arguing. He is however one of the most influential and inspirational martial artists going. A giant of UK martial arts, not a fly by night who just made his own style up.
> About Ticky Donovan OBE – Ishinryru.org
> 
> This is the explanation of the name Ishinryu. 'Empty head' would have be good though. Taken from an interview with Ticky.
> ...


My instructor/coach was the USA team head coach. actually got to meet Master Donovan at one of our camps. awesome karate guy.


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## SahBumNimRush (Feb 11, 2016)

It was 1985, (I was 5 years old) The Karate Kid had recently been released.  I was infatuated with that movie, and fortunately for me, there was a new tkd school that was teaching out of my elementary school as part of the local board of education's cultural enrichment program.  The rest, as they say, is history!


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## Ironbear24 (Feb 11, 2016)

The power rangers got me into Kenpo when I was 6, I got bored of it due to the very slow pace of learning and ironically I rejoined the same class which changed my life around the age of 16, I kick myself all the time for quitting because I would be so much better than I am now if I had stayed. 

I was a stupid kid though and didn't understand what martial arts was about. What got me back into martial arts was weight loss and in general it was the only thing I had any interest in at all, I was not good at sports, I didn't really have any hobbies outside of video games. So I needed something that would give me a reason to take pride in myself. Before that I had literally nothing to be proud of, as I was a dorky kid who wasn't even good at school, my GPA was always like 1.6 or something terrible like that.

So I figured, well i'm dumb as rocks, not good looking and not even atheletic, I have nothing at all. So I went back to Kenpo and was bad at it, real bad, but I enjoyed it even though I was so terrible at it. Within a few months I began to become very good at it and advanced quickly through the techniques, not belts, but my technique and sparring ability became very sharp. 

I was often praised for how well I was doing and how quickly I was learning, but I would often get way ahead of myself because I hungered so much for recognition and accomplishment. I lost around 60 pounds of fat and became very fit, I was around 150 pounds, not a lot of muscle, but at least I had far less body fat now and everyones jaw would drop when they saw me, they did not recognize me at all. 

Fast forward some years, I had to move, plus my Sifu grew ill and could no longer teach anymore. I still train often, 3 days a week, and took up weight lifting at 25, Just turned 27 and I went from 160 to 205 and have lots of muscle mass, but it is never enough and I am constantly going for more and more. Same goes for martial arts as well, I am never good enough and can always be better.


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## Tez3 (Feb 11, 2016)

I love that we are all giving our ages away here.


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## JR 137 (Feb 11, 2016)

Kung Fu Theater and the WWF were Sunday traditions at my house (after dad dropped us off at church with my grandmother).  My father and his brothers were TKD black belts growing up in Beirut, Lebanon.  Their TKD wasn't what TKD was here; it was basically padded Kyokushin with a bit more emphasis on head level kicks.

I wanted to start MA at a young age, but with 3 of us and not much time and money, we didn't have the opportunity.

My brothers and I started wrestling around 4th or 5th grade.  My father also bought us boxing gloves and he'd box with us.

My late high school/early college girlfriend's mother run a daycare out of her house.  She got a bunch of kids and their parents to sign up, so she and my girlfriend trained for free, and I trained for $25 a month.  I was the only one who stuck around longer than 4 months.

We split up, but I kept training at $25 per month.  My father constantly questioned my judgement for training full-contact (Kyokushin offshoot), but didn't criticize.  6 years in I was gearing up for my 2nd dan test.

I was offered a graduate assistantship 5 hours away, and planned on returning 2 years later.  I met my beautiful wife, started a career, then met the other 2 loves of my life (my daughters).

2 years turned into about 15 years.  I changed careers so I could be home to raise my daughters and be a husband, and a side effect was being able to get back into karate.  My old Sensei had moved his dojo about an hour away, and his schedule conflicted with my work and family obligations.

I found a Seido Juku dojo that's about 10 minutes from home, is dirt cheap, and has an excellent chief instructor and students.  It just felt like home.  It'll be a year on March 5th.

15 years flew by.  There wasn't a single day in that 15 years that I didn't think about karate.  Now that I'm back, it feels almost like I never left.  I'm 20 lbs heavier, a hell of a lot less flexible, and a 5th kyu, but other than that I'm far better today than I was back then.  Stronger, faster, wiser and sharper.  I'm chasing improvement, not rank nor competition.


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## Blindside (Feb 11, 2016)

Buka said:


> Blindside, is that Steve Armstrong you mentioned? If so - he was always nice to me when I was a young man, helped me with some things.
> If not - never mind.



Yes, it was Steve Armstrong.  I tested for my orange and blue belts at his school in Tacoma.


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## Bill Mattocks (Feb 12, 2016)

Blindside said:


> I was 12 and my best friend signed up for the Isshin-Ryu class at the local community center.  I didn't do it for self-defense, I did it because it was fun.  I remember getting my butt kicked at my first tournament and I remember testing under Sensei Armstrong which was supposed to be a big deal.
> 
> Bill, I am afraid that I cannot remember much in the way of practical self-defense instruction. I was in the adult class for several years (through blue belt).  Lots of kata, lots of fundamentals, lots of line drills, some sparring.  I still have seisan and seiunchin hardwired in despite it being 32 years later.



I was at my 'advanced adults only' class last night.  Despite being nearly 55, I was one of the youngest guys there, and at Ni Dan, tied for lowest-ranking with one other karateka.  We did warmups, bag work, basics, kata, and some bo work.  We don't always do that, but last night we did.  So yeah, we still do kata and lots of fundamentals, even as advanced adult students.

You say you don't remember much in the way of practical self-defense instruction, but you were getting it.  You just didn't know it.  As you said, you were there through blue belt.  It takes a while longer than that, I suspect, for the realization that kata *is* practical self-defense instruction.  It's all in there.

I have the greatest respect for Master Armstrong.  He is not our lineage (we derive from Masters Mitchum and Harrill) but there is a photo with Master Armstrong in it on our dojo wall.


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## RTKDCMB (Feb 12, 2016)

I grew up watching Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Steven Segal and Sho Kosugi and developed an interest in martial arts but did not really do much about it. I used to get picked on in school (not severely or anything) and got into the occasional fight (won most of them if you can call it winning). Was introduced to Judo by some friends and had one or two lessons and decided it was not for me. Made it all the way through High school and got into a fight about 3 months before finishing in year 11 and decided I was tired of getting picked on and to get off of my butt and do something about it. I looked at several martial arts and made inquiries and went to the closest Rhee Taekwondo class, liked what I saw and joined up. The rest is history.


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## RTKDCMB (Feb 12, 2016)

Tez3 said:


> I love that we are all giving our ages away here.


44 going on 20, or 100, I haven't decided.


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## elder999 (Feb 12, 2016)

RTKDCMB said:


> 44 going on 20, or 100, I haven't decided.


Sort of depends on the day, doesn't it?


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## donald1 (Feb 12, 2016)

Dirty Dog said:


> Lots of ways. Developing self control. Turning aggression into something useful. Beating a bag instead of a brother.



Bags dont make noises, friends and family do. how am I to know if the strikes are effective if I dont hear "ow!" Or see any flinches. And besides arent your friends(especially family!)  supposed to be supportive... im sure they would understand it if you needed a training dummy.


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## Phobius (Feb 13, 2016)

donald1 said:


> Bags dont make noises, friends and family do. how am I to know if the strikes are effective if I dont hear "ow!" Or see any flinches. And besides arent your friends(especially family!)  supposed to be supportive... im sure they would understand it if you needed a training dummy.



Or do solo training.


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## JR 137 (Feb 13, 2016)

donald1 said:


> Bags dont make noises, friends and family do. how am I to know if the strikes are effective if I dont hear "ow!" Or see any flinches. And besides arent your friends(especially family!)  supposed to be supportive... im sure they would understand it if you needed a training dummy.



Reminds of a situation/conversation I had yesterday...

I don't have space for a heavy bag in my house (yet), and I can't spend an hour straight hitting the bag at the dojo, so I hit a Wavemaster XXL at my local YMCA.  It's on the elevated track in the gym.

A guy running gets my attention and in good spirits says "I just wanted to see your face, because if I see you at a bar, I want to make sure I don't mess with you."  After I chuckled, I responded with "the bag doesn't move and counter."

I really like Phobius's advice on solo training.  According to a different wacked-out thread, I'd easily break my hand, so I should learn to joint lock, throw, and choke myself though.


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## Flatfish (Feb 13, 2016)

Oooooooh yes. Hitting the bag at the Y. The looks I get are priceless. Especially when I kick…..I guess most people only expect you to punch the bag and get flustered when you use your feet. 



And then there's the possibility that I get these looks due to my uncanny ability to move like a pregnant yak.


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## donald1 (Feb 13, 2016)

Phobius said:


> Or do solo training.


Nothing beats 1st hand experience


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## donald1 (Feb 13, 2016)

JR 137 said:


> the bag doesn't move and counter."


actually sometimes it can...


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## JR 137 (Feb 13, 2016)

donald1 said:


> actually sometimes it can...



I've watched that video a million times before you posted it.  It never gets old.


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## tubby (Feb 18, 2016)

30 odd years ago my older sister was doing wing chun, thought it sounded interesting so went along. Changed over to choy lay fut a couple of years later. I think it was whne I got into the more traditional style and weapons that a love of the martial arts movies of the 80's developed.
More recently I was getting fat, job as a consultant had me chasing hours to the detriment of my fitness and waistline, and my then 5 year old son took up TKD to help his shyness. He asked me to join him and for 2 years he reminded me he was still the senior student. He then got distracted by aussie rules football, I kept training.


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## Balrog (Feb 20, 2016)

I was bullied horribly as a child.  I didn't have martial arts available to me then.  I started when I was 17, trained for two years, then "sat on the bench: for 20 years.  I got back into it and have stayed with it ever since.


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## twendkata71 (Mar 1, 2016)

SahBumNimRush said:


> It was 1985, (I was 5 years old) The Karate Kid had recently been released.  I was infatuated with that movie, and fortunately for me, there was a new tkd school that was teaching out of my elementary school as part of the local board of education's cultural enrichment program.  The rest, as they say, is history!


I was already taking karate lessons when the karate kid came out. I went to see it four times in the same week.


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## BTittel (Mar 4, 2016)

To beat up my bullies, but the more I learned, the more I and "practiced", the more i changed.  I may have practiced Tai Chi wrong, but even if i did, i changed to the Jedi side, and gained inner peace, so continued to study every thing I could, every chance I got, and practice as best I can.
(I practiced Tai Chi as a way to "shadow box" not having a partner)


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## ks - learning to fly (Mar 5, 2016)

I got jumped in Detroit in 2003 and took the beating of a lifetime.. In 2009, I made the decision to start TKD because I was tired of being scared. This June 2016 will mark 7 years and I'm never going to stop.


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## Skullpunch (Mar 5, 2016)

Dragonball Z (I'm being completely serious)


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## Xue Sheng (Mar 5, 2016)

What got me into martial arts...watched a friend of mine in a Jujutsu demo in a mall and I was hooked.... waaaaay back when Enter the Dragon was a new movie


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## ozm8ey (Mar 6, 2016)

I had been suffering from anxiety, panic attacks, deralization and psychosis. I started karate and after about 4 months my deralization went away, I no longer get panic  attacks and psychosis is gone. It pretty much saved my life. that with the medication though


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## Spinedoc (Mar 9, 2016)

I was 12, and going through a rough time. I had lost my father at age 6, and at 12, lost my hair. Nowadays, thankfully, the bald look is in....but in the early to mid eighties? Not so much, got made fun of a LOT in school, got into more than a couple of fights, and after coming home with a bloody nose and a black eye, my mom said "That's it!", and enrolled me in the local TKD club. Studied it for about a year or so...Then did some wrestling in junior high, and started boxing a bit in high school and right after.

One of my best friends was a boxer. His dad went to school in Michigan on a boxing scholarship, and both of his sons boxed. The one son was even golden gloves champ in his weight class in the state of Ohio. Anyway, his father built a boxing ring and gym with bags in the basement. We would both box and kickbox, and they taught me a lot. To the point, where even to this day, I feel comfortable with punching and trading punches.

Anyway, I went into the military and was in the Navy, but as a corpsman, assigned to the Marines. Second Recon, where I learned military combatives.. Also, my father was a black belt in Okinawan Karate (don't know what style) before he died when I was six. So, while I was in the military I studied Uechi Ryu Okinawan Karate for a couple of years. I also studied Hapkido for a limited time (about a year or so).....

Then to be honest, I kind of forgot about the martial arts, well, not really forgot, but was so busy with school, work, then getting married, having a child, etc. that I simply didn't have time or resources to pursue any arts for awhile.

Several years ago, my daughter enrolled in the local TKD class, and it got me thinking. I noticed that there was a local Aikido school nearby, and I had always been fascinated with it. So, decided to go take a class and see if I survived. Fast forward....and I'm also studying BJJ as well.

It's a journey....never a destination. And, I've enjoyed learning along the entire way.

Mike


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## Runs With Fire (Mar 12, 2016)

I wanted to learn hand to hand combat.  My dream was to be a merc. I figured it would come in handy.


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## Tez3 (Mar 12, 2016)

Runs With Fire said:


> I wanted to learn hand to hand combat.  My dream was to be a merc. I figured it would come in handy.



Why a Merc what's wrong with BMW or Jaguar, all very fine cars.


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## Runs With Fire (Mar 12, 2016)

Tez3 said:


> Why a Merc what's wrong with BMW or Jaguar, all very fine cars.


I'd  prefer a 64 vette.

Eventually I was offered a long term contract in Afghanistan. Oddly enough, and against everything I thought I wanted, I found a reason to stay.


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## Tez3 (Mar 13, 2016)

Runs With Fire said:


> I'd  prefer a 64 vette.
> 
> Eventually I was offered a long term contract in Afghanistan. Oddly enough, and against everything I thought I wanted, I found a reason to stay.



That's not a 'merc' job though it's security. I know loads of people who went (and are still going), martial arts doesn't help you, you need to have been in the military.


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## Runs With Fire (Mar 13, 2016)

Military background wasn't required, either you needed military or you had to know the right guy. Me, I knew a guy.  A true merc position required a good amount of experience.  I found a starter position,  and martial arts certainly couldn't  have hurt.  Anyway, now I am a sunday school teacher. Quite the change of direction.


Tez3 said:


> That's not a 'merc' job though it's security. I know loads of people who went (and are still going), martial arts doesn't help you, you need to have been in the military.


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## Tez3 (Mar 13, 2016)

Runs With Fire said:


> Military background wasn't required, either you needed military or you had to know the right guy. Me, I knew a guy.  A true merc position required a good amount of experience.  I found a starter position,  and martial arts certainly couldn't  have hurt.  Anyway, now I am a sunday school teacher. Quite the change of direction.



I would loved to have seen the job advert for a 'beginner mercenary', I can't imagine quite frankly how you can be a mercenary without military experience since the job is being military. Sounds like 'doctors position available but you don't have to have any medical experience'


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## Runs With Fire (Mar 13, 2016)

Tez3 said:


> I would loved to have seen the job advert for a 'beginner mercenary', I can't imagine quite frankly how you can be a mercenary without military experience since the job is being military. Sounds like 'doctors position available but you don't have to have any medical experience'


The guy I knew didn't start with military either. Though he did go to what he called "mercenary school"  basically private boot camp.


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## Tez3 (Mar 13, 2016)

Runs With Fire said:


> The guy I knew didn't start with military either. Though he did go to what he called "mercenary school"  basically private boot camp.



Running a private boot camp sounds a very good way to make money out of the naïve as long as you don't feel upset when they get themselves killed on their first job. Personally I would not work with anyone who came out of such training nor would I work for anyone who employed these people.
There's a lot of talk about McDojo's on here and other martial arts sites, it sounds as if these places are the military equivalent only more dangerous.


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## Runs With Fire (Mar 13, 2016)

Tez3 said:


> Running a private boot camp sounds a very good way to make money out of the naïve as long as you don't feel upset when they get themselves killed on their first job. Personally I would not work with anyone who came out of such training nor would I work for anyone who employed these people.
> There's a lot of talk about McDojo's on here and other martial arts sites, it sounds as if these places are the military equivalent only more dangerous.


True,  But since when was free government training considered necessarily better than private services?  Not to bash military, but we know how bureaucratic government tends to run things.


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## Tez3 (Mar 13, 2016)

Runs With Fire said:


> True,  But since when was free government training considered necessarily better than private services?  Not to bash military, but we know how bureaucratic government tends to run things.



Wow. Really? that is certainly 'bashing' the military. You honestly think that private military training is better than 'government' training? Ok I'll let the Americans sort you out as far as their troops are concerned ( I imagine that they could have a lot to say) but we don't have 'private' military training here because we have some of the best training in the world for our military, we have the Para's, the Royal Marine Commandos, the SBS, the SAS, the RAF Regiment as well as some of the finest regiments in the world. The Royal Navy has been known for it's excellence four hundreds of years.  Do you honestly think that any private company can rival what the military can offer? No, they can't. I think you have a palpable lack of knowledge of the world's military, no one simply becomes a mercenary soldier without proper military training and experience in warfare, and that cannot  be got from anywhere other than a proper military force.


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## Runs With Fire (Mar 13, 2016)

Tez3 said:


> Wow. Really? that is certainly 'bashing' the military. You honestly think that private military training is better than 'government' training? Ok I'll let the Americans sort you out as far as their troops are concerned ( I imagine that they could have a lot to say) but we don't have 'private' military training here because we have some of the best training in the world for our military, we have the Para's, the Royal Marine Commandos, the SBS, the SAS, the RAF Regiment as well as some of the finest regiments in the world. The Royal Navy has been known for it's excellence four hundreds of years.  Do you honestly think that any private company can rival what the military can offer? No, they can't. I think you have a palpable lack of knowledge of the world's military, no one simply becomes a mercenary soldier without proper military training and experience in warfare, and that cannot  be got from anywhere other than a proper military force.


I simply see privatization as a viable option, and I do like to consider my options.


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## Tez3 (Mar 13, 2016)

Runs With Fire said:


> I simply see privatization as a viable option, and I do like to consider my options.



Oh dear.


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## GiYu - Todd (Mar 15, 2016)

Tez3 said:


> I would loved to have seen the job advert for a 'beginner mercenary', I can't imagine quite frankly how you can be a mercenary without military experience since the job is being military.


They can always use someone to be on point.  No need risking an experienced guy.


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## Runs With Fire (Mar 16, 2016)

GiYu - Todd said:


> They can always use someone to be on point.  No need risking an experienced guy.


I was crazy enough for it.


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## Tez3 (Mar 16, 2016)

Runs With Fire said:


> I was crazy enough for it.



You would have been a liability though.


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## ballen0351 (Mar 16, 2016)

Runs With Fire said:


> I simply see privatization as a viable option, and I do like to consider my options.


Thats what folks say when they didn't have the stones to sign up for the actual military.  They run around playing airsoft in the woods and believe "its pretty much the same thing"


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## Runs With Fire (Mar 18, 2016)

ballen0351 said:


> Thats what folks say when they didn't have the stones to sign up for the actual military.  They run around playing airsoft in the woods and believe "its pretty much the same thing"


That's  just ridiculous.


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## Tez3 (Mar 19, 2016)

Runs With Fire said:


> That's  just ridiculous.



No, it's not in the least. To be military you have to join the military, you cannot go on a couple of weeks course and think you are a soldier just as you cannot teach yourself martial arts, you can only parody, badly, a martial artist. You are either the real thing or you are a fake. There is no civilian course that can teach you soldiering it's just playing at it. it's not just the physical learning it's the state of mind, if you don't have it you don't join up and you will never be military.


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## Runs With Fire (Mar 19, 2016)

Tez3 said:


> No, it's not in the least. To be military you have to join the military, you cannot go on a couple of weeks course and think you are a soldier just as you cannot teach yourself martial arts, you can only parody, badly, a martial artist. You are either the real thing or you are a fake. There is no civilian course that can teach you soldiering it's just playing at it. it's not just the physical learning it's the state of mind, if you don't have it you don't join up and you will never be military.


Military is military, private or public.  I am not either nor do I claim such.


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## Tez3 (Mar 19, 2016)

Runs With Fire said:


> Military is military, private or public.  I am not either nor do I claim such.



I am a veteran so I find it laughable that anyone thinks a civvy boot camp is military training.


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## Runs With Fire (Mar 19, 2016)

Tez3 said:


> I am a veteran so I find it laughable that anyone thinks a civvy boot camp is military training.


Fair enough


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## Commander Grade (Jul 19, 2019)

the way that i got into martial arts it thanks to 2 things.
the first reason was a friend of mine recommended me to try his style, which is Kyokushinkai Karate.
The second reason is the movie Karate Kid and the show TMNT from 2003. 
i started training in fall of 2010 and took a break in the fall of 2012. i reached the rank of 7th Kyu. 
well, thats my story


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## Buka (Jul 19, 2019)

Commander Grade said:


> the way that i got into martial arts it thanks to 2 things.
> the first reason was a friend of mine recommended me to try his style, which is Kyokushinkai Karate.
> The second reason is the movie Karate Kid and the show TMNT from 2003.
> i started training in fall of 2010 and took a break in the fall of 2012. i reached the rank of 7th Kyu.
> well, thats my story



Welcome to Martial Talk, Commander Grade.


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## Bruce7 (Jul 19, 2019)

hoshin1600 said:


> I remember walking into my house after getting into a fight with the local bully "again"...my mom said "that's it,, enough" and went through the phone book and signed me up for karate class, I was really into it since I was a big fan of the kung-fu tv show.
> I stopped after some time and the rocky movies got me interested in boxing.then I saw PKA kickboxing and I was hooked. Went back to training and never really stopped since then.



I was new in town. I was a sophomore, I asked a girl out. Come to find out her boyfriend like to fight. He enjoyed beating people up and since he had some boxing training had never lost a fight. Needless to say he hurt me pretty bad. My mother decided she did not care how much it cost or what we had to do. So every Saturday I drive 60 miles one way to one of Jack Hwang Schools for private lessons.
After I saw what Jack Hwang and my teacher could do. I would stay there all day after the lesson and practice. Every spare minute that I was not playing football or running track I practiced. I wanted to do what they could do. The Cool thing was the more experience students
would help me, they could tell I was serious about learning. Saturday was a practice day for the other students. I had seen the green hornet and Kung fu, but the thing that impressed me the most was my instructor and Jack Hwang.


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## Bruce7 (Jul 19, 2019)

Spinedoc said:


> I was 12, and going through a rough time. I had lost my father at age 6, and at 12, lost my hair. Nowadays, thankfully, the bald look is in....but in the early to mid eighties? Not so much, got made fun of a LOT in school, got into more than a couple of fights, and after coming home with a bloody nose and a black eye, my mom said "That's it!", and enrolled me in the local TKD club. Studied it for about a year or so...Then did some wrestling in junior high, and started boxing a bit in high school and right after.
> 
> One of my best friends was a boxer. His dad went to school in Michigan on a boxing scholarship, and both of his sons boxed. The one son was even golden gloves champ in his weight class in the state of Ohio. Anyway, his father built a boxing ring and gym with bags in the basement. We would both box and kickbox, and they taught me a lot. To the point, where even to this day, I feel comfortable with punching and trading punches.
> 
> ...



Wonderful life story. For me the most impressive part was " I went into the military and was in the Navy, but as a *corpsman*, assigned to the Marines.* Second Recon*, where I learned military combatives". I have great respect for Corpsman assigned to marines.


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## Bruce7 (Jul 19, 2019)

Buka said:


> Welcome to Martial Talk, Commander Grade.


Thank you for bring back this post. I enjoyed it very much. There were so many good post.


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## Kung Fu Wang (Jul 20, 2019)

The reason that I got into martial arts because I want to do at least one thing better than everybody else on this planet.

When I was 5, I used to hold a small rock among 3 of my fingers. I told myself that one day I wanted to squeeze that rock into powder. Later on I found something much more fun to do than that.


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## isshinryuronin (Jul 20, 2019)

Bill Mattocks said:


> I was at my 'advanced adults only' class last night.  Despite being nearly 55, I was one of the youngest guys there, and at Ni Dan, tied for lowest-ranking with one other karateka.  We did warmups, bag work, basics, kata, and some bo work.  We don't always do that, but last night we did.  So yeah, we still do kata and lots of fundamentals, even as advanced adult students.
> 
> You say you don't remember much in the way of practical self-defense instruction, but you were getting it.  You just didn't know it.  As you said, you were there through blue belt.  It takes a while longer than that, I suspect, for the realization that kata *is* practical self-defense instruction.  It's all in there.
> 
> I have the greatest respect for Master Armstrong.  He is not our lineage (we derive from Masters Mitchum and Harrill) but there is a photo with Master Armstrong in it on our dojo wall.



Yes, real self-defense is all in the kata, but many did/do not know it (great way of putting it, Bill), including most all the 1st/2nd generation Isshinryu black belts.  As Marines, their stay in Okinawa was short and they did not have the time to be taught the true bunkai/oyo.  Plus, they were outsiders.  Some, like Sherman Harrill, made a great effort to discover the "real" Okinawan karate in the Isshinryu katas. This is now an increasing trend.

This in no way demeans those original black belts - they could not teach what they did not know.  So, they taught the basics up and down the dojo floor, sparring, and kata with basic bunkai.  This is how I learned.  But I learned it well.  I was never bored with it, since mastering even the basics was a decades long challenge.  But now, having discovered the true nature of the katas, I can appreciate the purpose and value in them even more.  And, to hearken back to another recent topic:  Those basic moves have become more advanced.


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## Orion Nebula (Jul 21, 2019)

Commander Grade said:


> The second reason is the movie Karate Kid and the show TMNT from 2003.



My earliest interest in MA came from watching the original Ninja Turtles in the late 80's, plus the live action films. Michelangelo was always my favorite. A few years later, I found out that you could actually take karate classes and I repeatedly asked to go. Unfortunately, my family couldn't afford it. 

My interest renewed in the late 90's when I watched Xena. I thought she was pretty bad-a**, and while I was a bit more interested in sword and staff fighting at the time, I still had the urge to learn empty hand fighting skills. 

I finally started training in 2001 when I was 16. My parents had the money at last and used karate classes to bribe me into getting my driver's license. I had no interest in driving at the time since almost everything in my life of interest was in walking distance and I didn't particularly want to spend the money I had been saving for several years on a car (I intended to use it to pay for a 3-week exchange trip to Russia my junior or senior year when I was eligible to apply). The bribery worked of course, and I trained for two years until I went to college. Made it to 4th kyu.

Six months ago, I started training again in a different style. Mainly my goal was to get in shape and lose weight doing something I used to love. However, I quickly found myself remembering why karate was so great, and my attitude is more like "I need to lose weight and get in better shape so I can do karate better." Oddly enough, I have never felt like I needed karate for self-defense. My life has been happily safe, although I have foolishly put myself into a few situations that could have ended badly. But they didn't. I do karate because it's fun and because it's pretty amazing to do all of this stuff with my body.


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## JR 137 (Jul 21, 2019)

isshinryuronin said:


> Yes, real self-defense is all in the kata, but many did/do not know it (great way of putting it, Bill), including most all the 1st/2nd generation Isshinryu black belts.  As Marines, their stay in Okinawa was short and they did not have the time to be taught the true bunkai/oyo.  Plus, they were outsiders.  Some, like Sherman Harrill, made a great effort to discover the "real" Okinawan karate in the Isshinryu katas. This is now an increasing trend.
> 
> This in no way demeans those original black belts - they could not teach what they did not know.  So, they taught the basics up and down the dojo floor, sparring, and kata with basic bunkai.  This is how I learned.  But I learned it well.  I was never bored with it, since mastering even the basics was a decades long challenge.  But now, having discovered the true nature of the katas, I can appreciate the purpose and value in them even more.  And, to hearken back to another recent topic:  Those basic moves have become more advanced.


I don’t think those guys from that generation really needed to learn bunkai  Those guys were tough as coffin nails.


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## Flying Crane (Jul 22, 2019)

JR 137 said:


> I don’t think those guys from that generation really needed to learn bunkai  Those guys were tough as coffin nails.


Yeah those are tough.  I usually just take a sawzall and cut around them.


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## Bruce7 (Jul 22, 2019)

There are so many great post in this original post, I don't want to lose it.
Is there some way to combine  What got you into martial arts? and What made you want to train in Martial Arts?
It is confusing.


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## Kung Fu Wang (Jul 23, 2019)

When I was 5, I was the youngest boy in my 1st year grade school. There was a huge Mongolian girl who loved to mounted on top of me and used my head a her punching bag. Everyday I went home with bruise all over my body. My father asked me why didn't I fight back. I told my father that she was just too big for me (she was about twice of my size). One year later one day during the ground game, I bit her on her arm. She cried and left me along after that (I had proved that biting worked in the ground game).

Since that day, I refused to let any girl to mount on top of me. I started to train MA.

That girl later on became national women swimming champion in Taiwan. Her name was 乌容敏 (Wu Rong Min). Hope one day I can have a re-match with her.


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## Martial D (Jul 23, 2019)

Kung Fu Wang said:


> )
> 
> Since that day, I refused to let any girl to mount on top of me.



You really don't know what you're missing.


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## JR 137 (Jul 24, 2019)

Martial D said:


> You really don't know what you're missing.


I was thinking the same thing.


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## KenpoMaster805 (Aug 9, 2019)

I luv martial arts and its runs in my family


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## donald1 (Aug 9, 2019)

KenpoMaster805 said:


> I luv martial arts and its runs in my family


How far? Parents? Grandparents maybe?


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## KenpoMaster805 (Aug 9, 2019)

donald1 said:


> How far? Parents? Grandparents maybe?



Just me my nephew my niece my cousin


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## Deleted member 34973 (Aug 10, 2019)

Really, it was a Saturday and they had just started showing the Kung Fu Saturday.

5 fingers of death was the first martial art movie I had ever seen. I was probably 9-10 at that time. I didn't actually start my training until about 14, in a system called Doshinkan.

Fell in love with it.

Although, I did receive some stick fighting from my dad growing up, it wasn't until years later, I figured out it was Escrima.


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## Buka (Aug 10, 2019)

Guthrie said:


> Really, it was a Saturday and they had just started showing the Kung Fu Saturday.
> 
> 5 fingers of death was the first martial art movie I had ever seen. I was probably 9-10 at that time. I didn't actually start my training until about 14, in a system called Doshinkan.
> 
> ...



Wow, there's a blast from the past. Five Fingers of Death. That was the first of the Kung Fu movies shown in American theatres, that was the one that started it all. We went to a theatre in Boston's Chinatown and saw it. I wrote a college paper on it the next day, got a B on it, too.

And the movie was so incredibly awful. Of course keeping with the movie numbers theme, we smoked five joints before going into the theatre - kind of made it seem like Gone With the Wind. Hey, it was 1973, I'm just glad we didn't go to see Around the World in Eighty days.


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