dvcochran
Grandmaster
I feel a little jealous of people/areas where there are a lot of MA school choices. I have to drive and hour to have more than the two style choices on our hometown.
I hope you find a great place soon.
Journey to a new style...
- Thread starter _Simon_
- Start date
I hope you find a great place soon.
OP
OP
_Simon_
Senior Master
Thanks heaps
. Yeah I'm a bit spoiled for choice here, which may not be a good thing haha. There's a bunch of karate dojos, taekwondo, tang soo do, BJJ, wing chun, boxing, kickboxing, MMA, daito ryu, aikido, and probably more.. Even have John Will in the city (5-10min drive), a world-renowned instructor of BJJ/shoot fighting.Pros and cons to having so much choice available I guess haha..
Theres a good ted talk on the paradox of choice. Watched it initially like 7 years ago (or more)...gonna go see if i can find itThanks heaps
Pros and cons to having so much choice available I guess haha..
Thanks heaps
Pros and cons to having so much choice available I guess haha..
its from 2005 so i probably watched it closer to 10 years ago. Somehow remembered the title, so i found it super quick. Here you go
The paradox of choice
Might be good to keep it in mind as you continue your search
OP
OP
_Simon_
Senior Master
Ah thanks heaps mate, that looks fascinating, I'll have a watch soon hopefully!
Yeah that makes sense too, the more choice the more paralysing and overwhelming it can be.
JR 137
Grandmaster
There’s a phrase for that - paralysis by over analysis. Not saying you fall under that or not though.
I don't recall if I've seen that one, but one interesting note about choice is that we tend to be less satisfied with our final decision if we have more choices.
You just summed up the entire talk in about one sentence
Glad to be of service.You just summed up the entire talk in about one sentence
OP
OP
_Simon_
Senior Master
Ah yep I know that one, and absolutely I do haha XD.
Isn't that funny! I know it happens most time I'm ordering food if I'm out for dinner at a place with many many items on the menu, there's a hint of 'ahhhhh I should have ordered ______ ......."
I have a theory that this is part of why we tend to go back to someplace more once we have a favorite dish or two - little or no choice to make.
JR 137
Grandmaster
I bartended at an Italian restaurant for several years while in college and afterwards. Great food. The menu is several pages long. It took me no less that 10 minutes to decide what I was going to eat every shift. Seriously. And truth be told, I’d say I had the same thing at least 75% of the time. And I never got sick of it. I still go there semi-regularly. I still have to ponder what I’m having for about 10 minutes. Then I usually revert to my default - linguini with white clam sauce. Second choice is scungili fra diavlo. My wife finds it quite amusing. “How long did you work here for?” “They still have the exact same menu, right?” 7 years, and yes, same menu. I’d find it comical if it was the other way around.
I'm the opposite with places where I have a favorite. I'll pick up the menu out of habit, then look at it like it's in some alien script, and wonder why I ever picked it up.
I really like the margherita pizza Brixx makes. Far more than is reasonable. Since the first time I had it, I don't think I've ever eaten anything else at a Brixx. Well, one time I did order a "tomato-basil flatbread" once, which the the waiter charmingly delivered as "your definitely-not-a-margherita-pizza flatbread".
JR 137
Grandmaster
I’ve got your thing at a few places too. You find something you like and you stick to it. I find myself asking why I don’t try something else to change it up every now and then. I usually don’t. Then I tell myself maybe I’m missing out on something better. Then once in a blue moon I’ll order something else. And guess what? It’s not as good. And I’m kicking myself in the a$$ for not going with the usual.
Yeah... I’ve got issues.
OP
OP
_Simon_
Senior Master
Just did a 30 minute session of kata... by candlelight! Felt amazing... revisited some old katas from my first style: Bassai Dai, Seiunchin, Empi; and alternated those with some Kyokushin katas: Gekisai Dai, Gekisai Sho, the four Taikyoku Sokugi katas (kicking katas, just to get the legs goin!), and Tensho.
Hopefully soon I'll visit another dojo... pelvic physio appointment tomorrow as that stuff has gotten quite bad... but has been ages since the last appointment which is good. SI joint is getting there veeeery slowly but surely...
Feel quite good after the session, even after the vigorous Sokugi kata, so positive sign I hope!
Hopefully soon I'll visit another dojo... pelvic physio appointment tomorrow as that stuff has gotten quite bad... but has been ages since the last appointment which is good. SI joint is getting there veeeery slowly but surely...
Feel quite good after the session, even after the vigorous Sokugi kata, so positive sign I hope!
OP
OP
_Simon_
Senior Master
Been too long! Am sick of waiting around for the 'perfect time', till I'm perfectly well etc, so I gotz to it! Am just itching to get back to training, and haven't been able to explore much this year.
Messaged a dojo the other day, and said I was more than welcome to watch, so did that last night! I've expanded my search a little so that it's not only local. This dojo is about a 40 minute drive away.
It's a pure Shotokan style, which is super exciting, everything locally is Kyokushin or a derivative of, so it was exciting to see a non-hybrid karate style (of course, all or most styles are mixes of things but you know what I mean [emoji14] ).
Dojo was great, it's a fulltime one and set up well, mats, mirrors, 4 hanging bags and a BOB. Senior class only had 6 people training (which was the busier night), but no issue there! Instructor was nice enough, 4th Dan, and founder of the particular style which has a fair few locations, and said his approach was pretty casual in terms of discipline. He still pushes them hard, but not in a stupid way. And I was really impressed with his movement, technique and agility for a semi-older dude!
Students were really friendly and welcoming to me, looked like they were enjoying themselves, had some laughs and banter, looked like a really nice, supportive environment.
There was no seiza and mokuso (closed eyes) at the start of class which surprised me! Not a dealbreaker haha, but I've never been to a dojo without that tradition. Just had the standard bow in, 'sensei ni rei' etc etc.
They trained for about an hour and a half, and the variety was really cool, covered heaps of different stuff. I think they're quite sports karate oriented, but I quite enjoyed seeing all the training they did. Kihon, kata, bagwork and conditioning, partner work drills, self defense stuff, some quality stretching. Very big on technique, and I was really impressed with one of the younger blackbelts, really sharp technique, great control and movement. Some of them had sloppier technique, but I'm trying not to judge on surface level like that, as I know that there can often be alot under the surface I don't know about (injuries, illnesses, physical disabilities etc). Also the club has a fair few kid black belts, which of course is always a point of contention for many, it's not necessarily for me as it really depends on the club and the club's standards, and what the blackbelt means within the club.
Not an instant 'love connection' but that's not necessarily the idea anyway. Am trying not to frame it in my perception of what needs to happen or how I need to feel specifically for it to be the place for me. Hence why trialling it out is important, unless I have a very clear 'no' that comes up within me.
Thinking of training with them for a week or two or so to get a feel for it. It's just a little more expensive than I'd like... so that may be issue if I go ahead but we'll see.
I really like the idea of being a part of a bigger group, as I enjoy special group training sessions, camps, seminars etc etc. And meeting all those training in the same style. Also like the idea of smaller clubs too for other reasons hehe.
I also had one idea which I've been toying with which excites me a bit... but I'll hold off and still try some styles before that [emoji14]
Messaged a dojo the other day, and said I was more than welcome to watch, so did that last night! I've expanded my search a little so that it's not only local. This dojo is about a 40 minute drive away.
It's a pure Shotokan style, which is super exciting, everything locally is Kyokushin or a derivative of, so it was exciting to see a non-hybrid karate style (of course, all or most styles are mixes of things but you know what I mean [emoji14] ).
Dojo was great, it's a fulltime one and set up well, mats, mirrors, 4 hanging bags and a BOB. Senior class only had 6 people training (which was the busier night), but no issue there! Instructor was nice enough, 4th Dan, and founder of the particular style which has a fair few locations, and said his approach was pretty casual in terms of discipline. He still pushes them hard, but not in a stupid way. And I was really impressed with his movement, technique and agility for a semi-older dude!
Students were really friendly and welcoming to me, looked like they were enjoying themselves, had some laughs and banter, looked like a really nice, supportive environment.
There was no seiza and mokuso (closed eyes) at the start of class which surprised me! Not a dealbreaker haha, but I've never been to a dojo without that tradition. Just had the standard bow in, 'sensei ni rei' etc etc.
They trained for about an hour and a half, and the variety was really cool, covered heaps of different stuff. I think they're quite sports karate oriented, but I quite enjoyed seeing all the training they did. Kihon, kata, bagwork and conditioning, partner work drills, self defense stuff, some quality stretching. Very big on technique, and I was really impressed with one of the younger blackbelts, really sharp technique, great control and movement. Some of them had sloppier technique, but I'm trying not to judge on surface level like that, as I know that there can often be alot under the surface I don't know about (injuries, illnesses, physical disabilities etc). Also the club has a fair few kid black belts, which of course is always a point of contention for many, it's not necessarily for me as it really depends on the club and the club's standards, and what the blackbelt means within the club.
Not an instant 'love connection' but that's not necessarily the idea anyway. Am trying not to frame it in my perception of what needs to happen or how I need to feel specifically for it to be the place for me. Hence why trialling it out is important, unless I have a very clear 'no' that comes up within me.
Thinking of training with them for a week or two or so to get a feel for it. It's just a little more expensive than I'd like... so that may be issue if I go ahead but we'll see.
I really like the idea of being a part of a bigger group, as I enjoy special group training sessions, camps, seminars etc etc. And meeting all those training in the same style. Also like the idea of smaller clubs too for other reasons hehe.
I also had one idea which I've been toying with which excites me a bit... but I'll hold off and still try some styles before that [emoji14]
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Glad to hear you got out there and found someplace promising. Want to hear more - and that “idea”...
Yokozuna514
2nd Black Belt
Glad to hear you are getting back on the horse, so to speak. Good luck at the new place and keep us posted.
OP
OP
_Simon_
Senior Master
Thanks so much guys, I just emailed before asking if I can possibly trial them out for one or two weeks and happy to pay whatever for that time, and get this... the instructor emails back and says I'm most welcome to train for the rest of this year for free (which is about three weeks of classes).
I was absolutely blown away to be honest... that's such a kind and generous gesture, never had that before.. so I'll be training twice a week with them starting Monday
. Really looking forward to it!Oh and Gerry my "idea" hehe, was basically to train with the first style that I tried out (the aiki karate one), as it seemed to touch on closer to what I may be after... and would love to explore it more, but as they only train once a week, I toyed with training once a week with one of my old Kyokushin instructors (who left our branch) whom I got a great deal out of the sessions with him.
I believe you mentioned to me awhile back training with him @Yokozuna514 which I remembered and pondered!
I wouldn't plan to do gradings in Kyokushin, but I think that would be such a nice balance for me... the aiki karate one day which is maybe less intense and has those deeper connective elements, and my old instructor who while still pushed us from time to time, didn't do it every single session and really allowed us to slow down and he saw the value in not just training crazy hard all the time for the sake of it. Also respect the hell out of him, his incredible knowledge and his passion for karate.
We shall see!
Sounds like a great start at that school. Have fun, and don't beat up all the 12-year-olds.
