2 years of hard training to get yellow belt, my grandson gets belt in 6 weeks?

[Bruce7]

To quote Nike, "just do it". Great attitude. Keep us in the loop.

Last night was my first class. The instructors at Tiger Rock in Kingwood are really nice people. They gave me pants, a nice t shirt and free lessons when I told them about my grandchildren and I was thinking about taking lessons, how cool was that. The instructors taught good technique. I had been worried because a lot of the students skills did not match the belt. I am just going to have to get over the belt thing. Good thing I did not go to a hard core school like when I was teenager or I would probably be in a hospital now. After the punching and kicking exercises, my heart was racing and I was breathing real hard. Thank goodness we did stretching after the excises so I could catch my breath again. Then we practice on heavy bags. The students were friendly, it was a very enjoyable experience.

 

[dvcochran]

Last night was my first class. The instructors at Tiger Rock in Kingwood are really nice people. They gave me pants, a nice t shirt and free lessons when I told them about my grandchildren and I was thinking about taking lessons, how cool was that. The instructors taught good technique. I had been worried because a lot of the students skills did not match the belt. I am just going to have to get over the belt thing. Good thing I did not go to a hard core school like when I was teenager or I would probably be in a hospital now. After the punching and kicking exercises, my heart was racing and I was breathing real hard. Thank goodness we did stretching after the excises so I could catch my breath again. Then we practice on heavy bags. The students were friendly, it was a very enjoyable experience.

Sounds like a great experience. I look forward to hearing about others in the future.

 

[Bruce7]

I have had 4 lessons. I am very pleased with the head instructors. I enjoy hitting the bags, but I get more out of class when we do techniques in the air or on a person. I thought Tuesday night was going to be easy since his wife was teaching the class, wrong my stomach is still hurting from all the stomach exercises. My biggest problem is flexibility, I can not kick any higher than the chest. I know I have to be patience, trying to go higher to soon will cause an injury.

 

[Bruce7]

After a week of lessons my stomach muscles finally quit hurting.
My favorite class was Friday morning, there was only four of us.
Two 17 year old black belts that I saw in every class , that had good technique, very good power, and speed.
One 30 something green belt who must have mist a lot of belt test, he was not bad.
We did combination most of the class. Black belts did the combinations perfectly, me not so much, I got mixed up a lot.
I liked the combination, even though I did not do them well. It gave me something to work on at home.
I enjoyed the last technique best. We would evade kicks and down block, then punch lightly to back of head, kidney, and sweep back of knee. I switch legs, fainted, did anything I could to trip up the black belts, the kids were good. I also think that even though I was testing them,
I think they were taking it easy on me. They were really good kids. The kind every teacher wants.

 

[JowGaWolf]

Most people who got into martial arts in the 70's and 80's are probably in the mindset that martial arts is for fighting. In other words, they trained so they can actually use what they are learning. This is not the case today. Most schools hand out belts for being able to do a form and knowing what a technique is named and can "demo" an application of that technique vs. actually use the technique.

There is a lot of stuff that I see people pass test with that I could have never gotten away with in Karate. I was required to perform at a certain level before I could even qualify to take a test. There was never a set time for when I would have to take a test. If it takes 2 years to get there then so be it. If I don't want it to take 2 years then I better train harder.
A fighter's / warrior's spirit was equally as important as the technique itself.

But these day so much as changed. Most kids get their kids into marital arts for better discipline and not to actually learn how to use a martial arts.

 

[dvcochran]

After a week of lessons my stomach muscles finally quit hurting.
My favorite class was Friday morning, there was only four of us.
Two 17 year old black belts that I saw in every class , that had good technique, very good power, and speed.
One 30 something green belt who must have mist a lot of belt test, he was not bad.
We did combination most of the class. Black belts did the combinations perfectly, me not so much, I got mixed up a lot.
I liked the combination, even though I did not do them well. It gave me something to work on at home.
I enjoyed the last technique best. We would evade kicks and down block, then punch lightly to back of head, kidney, and sweep back of knee. I switch legs, fainted, did anything I could to trip up the black belts, the kids were good. I also think that even though I was testing them,
I think they were taking it easy on me. They were really good kids. The kind every teacher wants.

Sounds like you are in a great environment with some great people. Enjoy it and get all you can out of it. Something that is not easy to find these days.

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

But these day so much as changed. Most kids get their kids into marital arts for better discipline and not to actually learn how to use a martial arts.

Kids are getting kids into martial arts for discipline? That's some early age parenting

 

[skribs]

Most people who got into martial arts in the 70's and 80's are probably in the mindset that martial arts is for fighting. In other words, they trained so they can actually use what they are learning. This is not the case today. Most schools hand out belts for being able to do a form and knowing what a technique is named and can "demo" an application of that technique vs. actually use the technique.

There is a lot of stuff that I see people pass test with that I could have never gotten away with in Karate. I was required to perform at a certain level before I could even qualify to take a test. There was never a set time for when I would have to take a test. If it takes 2 years to get there then so be it. If I don't want it to take 2 years then I better train harder.
A fighter's / warrior's spirit was equally as important as the technique itself.

But these day so much as changed. Most kids get their kids into marital arts for better discipline and not to actually learn how to use a martial arts.

I won't be able to find it, but there was a video I was watching in my search for the reason we do poomsae in Taekwondo. One of the videos I found talked about how the Japanese kata went from having a lethal martial application to having defensive applications when the arts were expanded from military and self defense applications to be taught in schools as a way of training discipline.

 

[JowGaWolf]

Kids are getting kids into martial arts for discipline? That's some early age parenting

I've talked to parents who wanted some advice about martial arts, so being me, I started with the self-defense aspect. She quickly cut me off and stated that she really didn't care if her son learned how to used it. She just wanted him to have better discipline.

Martial arts is always being advertised as being honorable. So many parents think that's what it takes for their kids to learn manners and how to be respectful. In my opinion I think that's the wrong approach. While lessons like that can be learned in martial arts. You normally don't see that type of honor until you get to the people who actually have the power and capability to just smash people in the face with a kick or punch. When you see how gentle many of those type people can be then you can see the lesson. Everything before that is just normal for raising a child "say yes sir, or yes, respect elders, etc." Things a child can learn outside of a martial arts school, all it takes is just spending time with a child, and not martial arts.

But such is the world today and a school has to make money to stay open.

 

[JowGaWolf]

I won't be able to find it, but there was a video I was watching in my search for the reason we do poomsae in Taekwondo. One of the videos I found talked about how the Japanese kata went from having a lethal martial application to having defensive applications when the arts were expanded from military and self defense applications to be taught in schools as a way of training discipline.

It doesn't surprise me. Did they say that it worked?

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

I've talked to parents who wanted some advice about martial arts, so being me, I started with the self-defense aspect. She quickly cut me off and stated that she really didn't care if her son learned how to used it. She just wanted him to have better discipline.

Martial arts is always being advertised as being honorable. So many parents think that's what it takes for their kids to learn manners and how to be respectful. In my opinion I think that's the wrong approach. While lessons like that can be learned in martial arts. You normally don't see that type of honor until you get to the people who actually have the power and capability to just smash people in the face with a kick or punch. When you see how gentle many of those type people can be then you can see the lesson. Everything before that is just normal for raising a child "say yes sir, or yes, respect elders, etc." Things a child can learn outside of a martial arts school, all it takes is just spending time with a child, and not martial arts.

But such is the world today and a school has to make money to stay open.

I was just making a small gibe at you saying " Most kids get their kids into marital arts" not " Most parents get their kids into marital arts". Threw me for a second when I read it.

 

[JowGaWolf]

I was just making a small gibe at you saying " Most kids get their kids into marital arts" not " Most parents get their kids into marital arts". Threw me for a second when I read it.

lol... totally missed that until now. Brain reading stuff that's not there. Getting old. lol. Yeah KIDS get their KIDS into martial arts. That too. lol. Unfortunately I don't think I have enough years on me to claim Old Man status and a pass on that error.

 

[drop bear]

I've talked to parents who wanted some advice about martial arts, so being me, I started with the self-defense aspect. She quickly cut me off and stated that she really didn't care if her son learned how to used it. She just wanted him to have better discipline.

Martial arts is always being advertised as being honorable. So many parents think that's what it takes for their kids to learn manners and how to be respectful. In my opinion I think that's the wrong approach. While lessons like that can be learned in martial arts. You normally don't see that type of honor until you get to the people who actually have the power and capability to just smash people in the face with a kick or punch. When you see how gentle many of those type people can be then you can see the lesson. Everything before that is just normal for raising a child "say yes sir, or yes, respect elders, etc." Things a child can learn outside of a martial arts school, all it takes is just spending time with a child, and not martial arts.

But such is the world today and a school has to make money to stay open.

The composure you learn that lets you win fights. Is the composure that keeps you out of fights.

 

[JR 137]

I've talked to parents who wanted some advice about martial arts, so being me, I started with the self-defense aspect. She quickly cut me off and stated that she really didn't care if her son learned how to used it. She just wanted him to have better discipline.

Martial arts is always being advertised as being honorable. So many parents think that's what it takes for their kids to learn manners and how to be respectful. In my opinion I think that's the wrong approach. While lessons like that can be learned in martial arts. You normally don't see that type of honor until you get to the people who actually have the power and capability to just smash people in the face with a kick or punch. When you see how gentle many of those type people can be then you can see the lesson. Everything before that is just normal for raising a child "say yes sir, or yes, respect elders, etc." Things a child can learn outside of a martial arts school, all it takes is just spending time with a child, and not martial arts.

But such is the world today and a school has to make money to stay open.

The problem is parents either don’t know how to discipline their kids or don’t have the will to be consistent with it and cave.

They think disciplining is just hitting, and they’re against hitting their kids, so they’ve got nothing. I’ve never hit my kids, but I sure as hell discipline them whenever appropriate. How? By taking away things they like. By not letting them do things they like. Not doing your homework? No video games. Being disrespectful in school? No sports. Stuff like that. Such an easy concept, yet today’s parents aren’t doing it or following through and being consistent.

Great example...
I had an 8th grader (academic school teacher) who wasn’t doing any homework, and was doing nothing more than taking up space in my class. Same for every other class. We had a conference with the mother (single parent), where she broke down crying and said she doesn’t know what to do anymore. One of my colleagues suggested taking away his Xbox. The parent’s reaction was like we just told her to not feed her kid. There were zero consequences for the kid’s behavior. If there are zero consequences, why is a kid going to listen? If the posted speed limit is 65 and you know for a fact that there’s no police enforcing anything at all, are you really going to obey that law?

Parenting is easy in principle. It’s quite hard in practice. Why are parents sending their kids to MA class for self-discipline? Because they can’t do it themselves, for the most part. It’s sickening. It’s that same mentality of when a kid is disruptive or disrespectful in my class, it’s my fault because I’m not doing my job right. I’m not making it fun enough. I’m not using proper classroom management techniques. I’m failing to motivate the student. It’s all bull$hit. I’m not going to accomplish much in 40 minutes. A MA teacher isn’t going to accomplish much more in 60 minutes. It all comes from the home. Plain and simple, yet no one wants to be accountable for their kids’ actions.

Rant over. For now anyway.

 

[JowGaWolf]

The problem is parents either don’t know how to discipline their kids or don’t have the will to be consistent with it and cave.

They think disciplining is just hitting, and they’re against hitting their kids, so they’ve got nothing. I’ve never hit my kids, but I sure as hell discipline them whenever appropriate. How? By taking away things they like. By not letting them do things they like. Not doing your homework? No video games. Being disrespectful in school? No sports. Stuff like that. Such an easy concept, yet today’s parents aren’t doing it or following through and being consistent.

Great example...
I had an 8th grader (academic school teacher) who wasn’t doing any homework, and was doing nothing more than taking up space in my class. Same for every other class. We had a conference with the mother (single parent), where she broke down crying and said she doesn’t know what to do anymore. One of my colleagues suggested taking away his Xbox. The parent’s reaction was like we just told her to not feed her kid. There were zero consequences for the kid’s behavior. If there are zero consequences, why is a kid going to listen? If the posted speed limit is 65 and you know for a fact that there’s no police enforcing anything at all, are you really going to obey that law?

Parenting is easy in principle. It’s quite hard in practice. Why are parents sending their kids to MA class for self-discipline? Because they can’t do it themselves, for the most part. It’s sickening. It’s that same mentality of when a kid is disruptive or disrespectful in my class, it’s my fault because I’m not doing my job right. I’m not making it fun enough. I’m not using proper classroom management techniques. I’m failing to motivate the student. It’s all bull$hit. I’m not going to accomplish much in 40 minutes. A MA teacher isn’t going to accomplish much more in 60 minutes. It all comes from the home. Plain and simple, yet no one wants to be accountable for their kids’ actions.

Rant over. For now anyway.

I learned discipline as a by product of sports. Training hard takes a lot of discipline, listening to the coach, and not talking back to those who are trying to help you. But I never played sports for discipline. You'll hear similar stories about other sports, like football and basketball, but no one signs their child up for those sports for the sole purpose of teaching the child discipline. But for some reason Martial Arts is the exception.

I think what many parents or looking for are "Etiquette Schools" lol

 

[dvcochran]

The problem is parents either don’t know how to discipline their kids or don’t have the will to be consistent with it and cave.

They think disciplining is just hitting, and they’re against hitting their kids, so they’ve got nothing. I’ve never hit my kids, but I sure as hell discipline them whenever appropriate. How? By taking away things they like. By not letting them do things they like. Not doing your homework? No video games. Being disrespectful in school? No sports. Stuff like that. Such an easy concept, yet today’s parents aren’t doing it or following through and being consistent.

Great example...
I had an 8th grader (academic school teacher) who wasn’t doing any homework, and was doing nothing more than taking up space in my class. Same for every other class. We had a conference with the mother (single parent), where she broke down crying and said she doesn’t know what to do anymore. One of my colleagues suggested taking away his Xbox. The parent’s reaction was like we just told her to not feed her kid. There were zero consequences for the kid’s behavior. If there are zero consequences, why is a kid going to listen? If the posted speed limit is 65 and you know for a fact that there’s no police enforcing anything at all, are you really going to obey that law?

Parenting is easy in principle. It’s quite hard in practice. Why are parents sending their kids to MA class for self-discipline? Because they can’t do it themselves, for the most part. It’s sickening. It’s that same mentality of when a kid is disruptive or disrespectful in my class, it’s my fault because I’m not doing my job right. I’m not making it fun enough. I’m not using proper classroom management techniques. I’m failing to motivate the student. It’s all bull$hit. I’m not going to accomplish much in 40 minutes. A MA teacher isn’t going to accomplish much more in 60 minutes. It all comes from the home. Plain and simple, yet no one wants to be accountable for their kids’ actions.

Rant over. For now anyway.

Very, very well said.

 

[JR 137]

I learned discipline as a by product of sports. Training hard takes a lot of discipline, listening to the coach, and not talking back to those who are trying to help you. But I never played sports for discipline. You'll hear similar stories about other sports, like football and basketball, but no one signs their child up for those sports for the sole purpose of teaching the child discipline. But for some reason Martial Arts is the exception.

I think what many parents or looking for are "Etiquette Schools" lol

I think sports are part discipline, part mental toughness. Wrestling taught me that mental toughness and never give up attitude far better than anything else out there. Not just on the mat, but off the mat too - making weight and missing weight because you weren’t disciplined enough is a powerful teacher. Wrestling taught me accountability like nothing else did - I was the one out there who won and lost. I couldn’t blame a wide receiver for dropping the game-winning TD pass. It was ME and only ME. I won and I lost. No one’s fault but mine. A soccer player can play in and win a championship game without ever touching the ball, and be happier than a pig in $hit about it. I’ve seen it. Not in wrestling

But the kid has to love the game for those lessons to become meaningful. And the parents have to make the kid honor their commitment too.

Sports teach discipline pretty easily without explicitly trying - don’t do what you’re supposed to do, and you don’t play. That’s assuming of course that the coach is doing things the right way and has control over the team.

Sports claim life lessons being taught. And they’re right, provided the kid is paying attention. MA teacher’s started claiming discipline. Sure, if the kid wants to learn it. MA can teach the same life lessons sports do, it’s just a matter of marketing. Then again, kids don’t get “benched” in MA. Exception being MA competitions if they’re doing that.

Parents are supposed to enforce that sports discipline too - do what you’re supposed to do, and you’ll play. Don’t and you won’t. My parents yanked my brother from playing for a week once. Once. The three of us learned real quick.

 

[Bruce7]

The problem is parents either don’t know how to discipline their kids or don’t have the will to be consistent with it and cave.

They think disciplining is just hitting, and they’re against hitting their kids, so they’ve got nothing. I’ve never hit my kids, but I sure as hell discipline them whenever appropriate. How? By taking away things they like. By not letting them do things they like. Not doing your homework? No video games. Being disrespectful in school? No sports. Stuff like that. Such an easy concept, yet today’s parents aren’t doing it or following through and being consistent.

Great example...
I had an 8th grader (academic school teacher) who wasn’t doing any homework, and was doing nothing more than taking up space in my class. Same for every other class. We had a conference with the mother (single parent), where she broke down crying and said she doesn’t know what to do anymore. One of my colleagues suggested taking away his Xbox. The parent’s reaction was like we just told her to not feed her kid. There were zero consequences for the kid’s behavior. If there are zero consequences, why is a kid going to listen? If the posted speed limit is 65 and you know for a fact that there’s no police enforcing anything at all, are you really going to obey that law?

Parenting is easy in principle. It’s quite hard in practice. Why are parents sending their kids to MA class for self-discipline? Because they can’t do it themselves, for the most part. It’s sickening. It’s that same mentality of when a kid is disruptive or disrespectful in my class, it’s my fault because I’m not doing my job right. I’m not making it fun enough. I’m not using proper classroom management techniques. I’m failing to motivate the student. It’s all bull$hit. I’m not going to accomplish much in 40 minutes. A MA teacher isn’t going to accomplish much more in 60 minutes. It all comes from the home. Plain and simple, yet no one wants to be accountable for their kids’ actions.

Rant over. For now anyway.

I will not Rant, as a former teacher I could write pages up on pages on this subject all I am going to say is I agree 100%.

 

[skribs]

The composure you learn that lets you win fights. Is the composure that keeps you out of fights.

This is one sentence that explains this concept better than any paragraph or essay on the subject I've read.

 

[Bruce7]

Last night I was listening to students talk about an up coming tournament.
You have got to be kidding me!
Snap punches and back fist to the head no points.
You get more than 1 points for fancy kicks to the head.

No wonder no one practices snap punches and back fist, something I practiced for hours and hours.
No wonder people practice fancy kicks, I would never use in a real fight.

To the teachers credit I have heard them say fancy kicks are not good for a real fight.
Teachers teach hand combinations, but when students spar hand technique are not used or if used not well.
Students are more interest in tournaments than winning fights.

I hope as young people take over, the importance of hand techniques will not be lost.