How fast is too fast?

[kachi]

In general, our system goes up through from white to blue to green to brown belt in 6 months each so that's only 1 and a half years to get your brown belt, then it's 1 year on brown to get your shodan-ho, 6 months to get black then anywhere from 3 - 9 years (or more) to progress through the Dan ranks. We are not a completely traditional style in the sense that we incorperate some elements from other styles but our basis is Goju Ryu. I was just wondering if people think that's too fast and what the waitng time is for other styles?

 

[bignick]

So...if I followed you right, 3 years to get your black belt? Seems reasonable enough. Slower than some, faster than others, the average is usually quoted from 3-5 years.

 

[exile]

So...if I followed you right, 3 years to get your black belt? Seems reasonable enough. Slower than some, faster than others, the average is usually quoted from 3-5 years.

I'm with bignick on this---three years sounds to me like the faster end of what is still a `normal' time frame. One question---the expected times to belt you mention presuppose how many hours a week of training? That could make a difference.

 

[kachi]

Yeah um, that's another thing i'm worried about... The majority of students only train about 1 and a half to 2 hours a week (with the option of about 7 hours). I only train about 3 - 3 and a half hours a week.

 

[Carol]

It really depends on the school, the instructor, and the student.

Some students have more talent than others, some practice more than others, some take private lessons where others don't.

If sensei is promoting based more on attendance than performance then that may be an issue.

 

[Xue Sheng]

I agree with bignick, but I have a question.

Does everyone in your system get a black belt in 3 years?

 

[searcher]

There is nothing wrong with moving up to BB in 3 years. I have had students do it in 3 and they are pretty good. Alot of it depends on their dedication to training. I know that you said they train only 2 hours per week, but not all training for the MAs are in the MAs. Other things like, lifting weights, running,etc. all play a role in each individual's training. They may be doing things that you never see.

 

[exile]

There is nothing wrong with moving up to BB in 3 years. I have had students do it in 3 and they are pretty good. Alot of it depends on their dedication to training. I know that you said they train only 2 hours per week, but not all training for the MAs are in the MAs. Other things like, lifting weights, running,etc. all play a role in each individual's training. They may be doing things that you never see.

This is true---I do maybe six hours a week or more of training just in TKD techniques, in addition to weight training and interval cardios on a regular basis. It depends (or it should depend) on how much `homework' the student does.

But as Carol points out, a lot depends on what it is that the instructor is looking for. A student who does a lot of homework will still only be able to show up in as many classes as there are, which is the same number as there are for a student who does the bare-bones minimum. If the BB is awarded the assumption that everyone who shows up enough times has `paid their dues' (as vs. a requirement that people perform to a certain standard), that is a very dicey way to proceed. Then again, that's going to be a problem whether they get the BB in three years or in five...

 

[donna]

Our style is similar, It is possible to obtain your black belt in 3 years, but saying that does not mean that everyone does. Some are more dedicated and the ones that do progress that quickly are usually the ones that attend at LEAST 3 times a week and do lots of extracurricular practice. And some people are more physically able than others as well. Each is graded according to their own personal progress not according to x amount of years in that style.

 

[Hand Sword]

kachi, that time frame sounds reasonable. either way, it's a longer stint to Black belt than most of the commercial schools. They would consider that time frame an eternity.

 

[Southwell]

Yes, it all depends on how much you practise, I see guys who go to class week after week and you can tell they don't practise at home. Then there's some who have a hard time picking the material up. Its all up to you this is your journey. If your instructor doesn't give out rank like candy then when he or she says its time to test then feel comfortable that they think your ready, wheither its 2 or 10 yrs but if you have 7 to 10 yr olds running around your dojo with full blacks on well...

 

[Cirdan]

Do I think 3 yrs is a short time to reach BB? Yes. Too short? Not if your instructor has high standards and this is a minimum rather than a timed belt dispenser.
But of course there is no universal standard to what a black belt means anyway.

 

[The Kidd]

I think it boils down to 2 camps, those who are traditionalists and think that out of respect for the system and people who have gone before them there must be a standard wait time to have proper appreciation for the art and the others who think that if you have the knowledge it does not matter about time.

I wonder though that if someone is coming to class 4 or 5 times a week, working out so many hours a week, and obviously working on the art at home (your seeing the improvement in class) does that not show a dedication and a passion for the art as well. We have heard in so many threads on MT that it is not the belt you wear but the person who wears it. So does that translate to it does not matter how much time you spend but the knowledge and proficency you show?

 

[Drac]

So...if I followed you right, 3 years to get your black belt? Seems reasonable enough. Slower than some, faster than others, the average is usually quoted from 3-5 years.

I'm with bignick on this---three years sounds to me like the faster end of what is still a `normal' time frame.

I agree with both of these..

 

[searcher]

One thing we should remember is that BB is truly a mark of having down the basics. Yeah, you may be better than joe-blow street guy, but you are truly a novice. No matter what anyone thinks.

 

[Grenadier]

Getting a black belt in 3 years isn't unreasonable at all. That's well within the "average" time for most traditional schools, who will usually say 2.5-5 years as the "norm." This is assuming that someone trains 2-3 times a week.

The way I see it, if a student is mentally and physically ready, and has shown consistently good performance, dedication, and effort, then I see no reason why I shouldn't let him test earlier than the others. There's nothing to be gained by holding him back, if the requirements are already fulfilled.

Some people can do it in two years or less, although these are the folks who train 8+ times a week, and are already self-motivated. As before, if they show that they are ready, I'd let them test.

 

[twendkata71]

I would have to say that 3 years is not too fast. We usually have a student take 3 1/2 years sometimes 4. I have seen it in 2 1/2 years if they student learns quickly or has previous experience in another style.
On a side note Joe Lewis got is shodan on Okinawa from Shimabuku Eizo Hanshi in 6 months of hard training. And I would be shocked by that but he turned out to be a very good martial artist.

 

[kingkong89]

some schools do it your way and have time periods,that is why there are so young of black belts out there. my school system you are tesed when you are ''ready''. so you could be a yellow belt for 4 years or a brown for 6 years.

Sensei Coleman
'89

 

[bydand]

Kingkongs school sounds a lot like the one I go to. It is very difficult to make rank and it takes a lot longer than any other school around. But, when you get it, you know you have earned it with no doubt. Average white to 1st Black if training 1 or 2 days a week the whole time is 6-10 years. 1st black to 2nd is 2 or 3 years. It may sound like a long time (and it is) but, whenever we go to a seminar someplace else, it feels great being better than a lot of the higher belts there. Plus 99% of us in the school are not there for the belt colors to change quickly, but for the training. And we like it.

I think the average is 3-5 years for a BB in most schools though.

 

[The Kidd]

What irritates the crude out of me is these schools who say you can join their "Black Belt Club" for several thousands of dollars and we will ensure your child makes Black Belt.

We have gotten several of these kids from other schools who walk in with a black belt from such and such school and they are on the same level as our Orange Belts.