Going For Black Belt

[Raewyn]

Hi all

Im just interested to know what your criteria is when your are grading (going for your black belt). Or in most cases here what you have done to receive your black belt. Ours is quite daunting. Could you please tell me what you have to do to obtain your black belt ie whether you have to do 100 pressups etc. I am interested to know in all styles of MA.

 

[OC Kid]

1) Demo all the techniques. meaning stances , punches, strikes ect

2) 16 required Kata (minium)

3) Self Defense as many ans the instructor can come up with , One on One and Multiple opponents and weapons with multiple opponents and as many as any visiting instructors ( grading board) can come up with.

4) Bull in the circle and water fall as many times as the instructor thinks is necessary (usually one to 3 times) with all the students both visiting and classmates.

5) Question and answer every B/B there gets to ask a question on whatever subj he wants to not just limited to history of the style but everything incd the most rediculous hypothethical questions you could imagine (believe me)

6) Fighting one on one and multiple opponents.

The test usually is done alone ( In my case I had a friend who I came through the ranks test with me which is highly unusual) the test will on average run about 3 hours but I seen them go longer by maybe a half hour or so.

 

[D_Brady]

It was a IKKA test in Revere MA with 12 Blk Belts on the board 8th on down.

Basics till you wanted to die
all forms long and short up to 4 or 5 depending on the rank.
kicking set 1 and 2
blocking set 1 and 2
stance set 1and 2
striking set 1 and 2
finger set 1 ans 2
Staff set
Personal form or set
Technique line 24 tech per rank with extentions
Technique line anything goes
Sparing
Questions
Chinese food with Mrs C.(kept my guard up during dinner in case test wasn't really over ).

 

[AaronLucia]

In Ninjutsu it's up to the individual instructor to award black belt...

The instructor has to feel the student is at the level..

 

[ThatWasAKick]

MMA
You first have to go to Sensei and tell him you are ready to train for the test, which is 3 to 6 months of grueling drills. Must train a minimum of two days a week, but 4 is better.
Once committed you can't quit or you're out - no second chances.
Once you begin the test you can't quit or you're out - no second chances.

The test is 30 hours, no sleep, no food

Everything you've ever learned
"Basics till you wanted to die" - that cracked me up - so true
One-on-one fighting & a lot of multiple opponent fighting (with grappling)
Fight inside and outside
Journal Writing
Weapons defense / offense
Memory review (when an attacker is coming at you with a knife what do you look for?)
I have no clue what else, but it scares me because it's coming up like a freight train and I'm on the tracks.

As I understand it, he wants you to fight "through" the pain and exhaustion to see if you're a "quitter" or a "survivor." I'm beginning to think our test is a little unusual.

 

[bignick]

taekwondo starts with the written test in the morning, followed by the physical part...not technique...just running, situps, pushups and different drills until you almost throw up...

then a short break for "lunch"

and then the actual technique part of the test


judo is a lot of technique demonstration and at least one kata...about a 250 question written test...mostly vocabulary...

30 throws
22 throw combinations
22 defenses from throws
12 counter throws
77 grappling techniques(pins, chokes, joint locks, entries, escapes)
18 miscellaneous (falling, bowing, sitting, randori, stances, turning, striking, resuscitation)

 

[TChase]

It was a IKKA test in Revere MA with 12 Blk Belts on the board 8th on down.

Basics till you wanted to die
all forms long and short up to 4 or 5 depending on the rank.
kicking set 1 and 2
blocking set 1 and 2
stance set 1and 2
striking set 1 and 2
finger set 1 ans 2
Staff set
Personal form or set
Technique line 24 tech per rank with extentions
Technique line anything goes
Sparing
Questions
Chinese food with Mrs C.(kept my guard up during dinner in case test wasn't really over ).

And don't forget bloody feet from the sticky mat floor.

 

[D_Brady]

And don't forget bloody feet from the sticky mat floor.

And the air conditioning freezing the gi to your body, hot flashes and cold chills.

Oh and a side note thanks for being my training partner and helping me prepare for that test.

your a good martial artist and a goods friend, best of luck in everything you do. :asian:

 

[TChase]

And the air conditioning freezing the gi to your body, hot flashes and cold chills.

Oh and a side note thanks for being my training partner and helping me prepare for that test.

your a good martial artist and a goods friend, best of luck in everything you do. :asian:

Anytime, and same to you. Thanks for the kind words.

 

[ThatWasAKick]

30 throws
22 throw combinations
22 defenses from throws
12 counter throws
77 grappling techniques(pins, chokes, joint locks, entries, escapes)
18 miscellaneous (falling, bowing, sitting, randori, stances, turning, striking, resuscitation)

I'm impressed. That sounds like a tough curriculum. You'ld need a good memory!

Us, MMA, Women's material (men's differs slightly):
4 throws
8 weapons defense
57 self-defense techniques
66 grappling techniques
80-ish ? strikes, kicks, takedowns, sweeps
some misc (pressure points, stances, sparring combos, falls, etc.)

 

[bignick]

yeah...it's a lot...but it's not as bad as it seems...you build up from the very beginning and never stop practicing them..so it's harder for it to slip from your memory...we don't train, yellow belts do these throws, green belts do these and so on

after doing it for two years and looking through list of throws...i can do about 30...just some a lot better than others

 

[Raewyn]

Reading all the replies so far, it sounds really really daunting. Ive got four years to go before I can go for my black belt!!! God........I hope I can do it!!!

 

[MichiganTKD]

Within our Tae Kwon Do organization:

For starters, you don't ask to test, or even tell your Instructor you think you are ready. Testing is entirely at their discretion, based on your attendance record, technique, and manners.

1. Red belt to 1st Dan-Palgue Chil and Pal; 1st Dan to 2nd Dan-Koryo and Kumgang; 2nd to 3rd Dan-Kumgang and Taebaek. Anything above 3rd Dan is unpredictable

2. Free fight three rounds. First round is someone who is testing with you, assuming you and them are similar in size. After that, you fight black belts. You MUST show you can contact at least one time.

3. Breaking. Breaking is your choice, although your Instructor will work with you on a good break. Your breaking should showcase your strong points (i.e. good jumping, power, speed, accuracy etc.). If you don't break you don't pass. Furthermore, if you break but show poor form, you don't pass.

4. 1st Dan testers must also submit a three page typed report on their thoughts about Tae Kwon Do.

 

[TigerWoman]

I think I have posted all my school's board breaking requirements in TKD section under Breaking thread somewhere...

for Black Recommended: Master tells you when you can test, again you DON'T ask...

200 rising kicks per leg

Taeguek Patterns: 3 of your choice plus high red, done twice, at least. Most of the time, our master makes you do your favorite a couple more times. (9-10 forms)

15 jump spin heels, each leg, to a head level, must hit target
15 360° jump back, must be in the air upon impact

3 each leg of the following kicks: front, round, side, spin side, spin heel
in slow motion to a count of 7 (sec: 1-one thousand) holding at the kick extension for 2 sec. These must be high preferably at head level.

Demos of 35 kicks in the air.

Self-Defense - High Red --3 techniques both sides., be able to explain what is happening

Sparring - 3 rounds 5 min. each. lst -l black belt, 2nd -2 bb, 3rd- 3 bb

Breaking This has changed recently but what I did was:
(1) jump spin heel in the air/1 bd. held 2 fingers
(2) 360° jump back-2 bds.
(3) knife with one hand while holding the board with the other (speed break)
(4) palm strike 3 boards
Possibly will ask you to do more...if you are big or talented.

3 page paper, 12 pt, spaced, regarding what TKD has done for you. Can be made only verbal without aid of the paper.

6 months later discretion of the master, the 1st dan test for BB can be held.
It is similar to the above test, 10 forms, maybe the favorite again in addition. Also the breaking is different. Flying side-3bds., football or sweep 1 bd on edge on the floor, palm/concrete or knife/3 bds. No self-defense technique at 1st dan. But all the above has to be improved. Grades 1-10 on everything. TW

 

[Mark L]

...
The test is 30 hours, no sleep, no food

...

As I understand it, he wants you to fight "through" the pain and exhaustion to see if you're a "quitter" or a "survivor." I'm beginning to think our test is a little unusual.

30 Hours? That's sick, you're instructor must be truly disturbed!

The instructor tells us when we'll go, we get about a years notice to prepare.

Mine was 9 hours, half inside, half outside. The atmosphere was quite tense. The first two hours was calisthenics, 10 3 minute rounds on the heavy bag, jumping jacks, squat thrusts, jump rope, pull-ups, etc. i trained hard so it was kind of ready. The worst of that was 200 roundhouse kicks to the heavy bag without putting the foot down (I failed that one miserably). After that we reviewed everything in the curriculum (around 300 techniques and 16 forms), the BBs were coming in hard, probably 90%, often 100%. Half of the techniques and all of the forms (except weapons) had to be done outdoors, in the woods. Got jumped at random throughout the day, probably 25 times. Actually had to play King-of-the-Hill, I hated that. During transitions from one activity to the next we had to fit in 1000 push-ups and 500 v-ups (a crunch while raising the legs to 45 degrees). 10 rounds of sparring. Screw something up, run a mile (I did 9). Finish it of with a cement slab break. I drank a gallon of gatorade and about 1.5 gallons of water during the test, I still lost 7 lbs.

As you can see, my instructor is also disturbed, although to a lesser extent. Despite the description, the test was conducted in a serious, dignified manner, with regard for our safety and well-being. We both passed. There was lots of cramping near the end due to dehydration, and my partner was down for about 45 minutes after fainting. She came back though, one incredibly tough young lady.

The point is to go further than you thought you ever could, and still be able to kick a$$ when you get there. It was the most difficult and the most satisfying thing I've ever done.

I'm describing the test because you asked, not to impress anyone. What matters to me is that I did what the other BBs in my school had to do. There's only a hand full of us, and they are truly the only ones who can appreciate what that belt represents.