Preparing For Belt Testing

[Rob Broad]

Other than and not excluding the hours and hours of training what else do you do in preparation for a belt test. Do you have any night before rituals or anything like that?

 

[Martial Tucker]

Other than and not excluding the hours and hours of training what else do you do in preparation for a belt test. Do you have any night before rituals or anything like that?

Sure....get a good night's sleep. If you're not ready by now, there's no helping you. I will say though that I do try to anticipate any surprises my teacher may dream up, and I rehearse in my mind how I might handle it. Actually, this mental exercise is usually how I lull myself to sleep the night before!

 

[Kenpo Mama]

Other than and not excluding the hours and hours of training what else do you do in preparation for a belt test. Do you have any night before rituals or anything like that?

I usually do a restorative yoga practice and then meditate about one hour before my tests, time permitting of course. The least i do is sit quietly and breath for 10 minutes. I find that really focuses my energy and i am ready to give it my all.

Donna :asian:

 

[terryl965]

Well I have always gone to the lake the night before and but my mind into play with the whole intire test every aspect from the kicks to the one steps, from sparring to Poomse and also every single break and I have looked into every possible angle to see how not to make the little mistakes (always made some anyway) but that is what I have been doing for thirty years. GOD BLESS AMERICA

 

[mj-hi-yah]

My favorite thing to do the day before is go to the ocean. If it's warm enough I take a swim. For my last test recently I went in and it was COLD and I felt like a member of The Polar Bear Club. Afterward I felt very relaxed though and I was told that Aikido practitioners in Japan began doing this for the New Year to settle their Ki. I find it very calming to even put my feet in and listen to the waves. On the day of the test I try to think of the calm rhythm of the waves when pacing myself. :asian:

 

[kenpo tiger]

Sure....get a good night's sleep. If you're not ready by now, there's no helping you. I will say though that I do try to anticipate any surprises my teacher may dream up, and I rehearse in my mind how I might handle it. Actually, this mental exercise is usually how I lull myself to sleep the night before!

Love your screen name. Avatar's cool, too. Translation? KT

 

[kenpo tiger]

I make myself (and one or two of my kenpo sisters and brothers) crazy thinking that I don't know my material.

I usually listen to Bargain by The Who to put myself into focus. I also try to take a nap in the afternoon before the test (I find it helps not being at work when I nap.) KT

 

[Martial Tucker]

Love your screen name. Avatar's cool, too. Translation? KT

Thanks, KT. The symbol basically translates to: "The Way", or "The Path", as in
"Tao" or "Do" in the various Asian pronunciations/vocabulary.

If you like my screen name, we must have some common tastes in music!

 

[kenpo tiger]

Thanks, KT. The symbol basically translates to: "The Way", or "The Path", as in
"Tao" or "Do" in the various Asian pronunciations/vocabulary.

If you like my screen name, we must have some common tastes in music!

We most likely do. (See upthread for one example.)

Thank you for the translation. KT:karate:

 

[OC Kid]

Drink heavily and watch Bruce Lee movies :>)

Actually MJs prepareing for a black belt test has abvout everything you could possibly think of if you ask me

 

[Rob Broad]

Back in the early days I would train, train, train the day before the test. Around Green Belt my instructor changed the rules on me. He would surprise me with my test. I would show up for class, and he would have the dummies all ready prepared and I wold be tested. It worked out great. Later at 1st Brown he said when the testing was going to be I trained up until 2 days before they test and then I would do anything I could to put it out of my mind. I would do anything form going to an amusement park ot go to a ball game etc.. just not to thik abou the test. That turned out to work very good for me as well.

I have seen too many peopel fret way to much abou testing for new rank, once the test starts you either know the material or you don't.

 

[Flatlander]

I have seen too many peopel fret way to much abou testing for new rank, once the test starts you either know the material or you don't.

That's the thing. If you've got an honest instructor, they won't test you until they are reasonably sure that you'll pass. I don't think that there are too many fails when it comes to testing for rank. I've got one coming up sometime this month, but I'm not concerned. "Just don't get hit!"

 

[kenpo tiger]

FL - You're lucky. You get to test in a month. I still have little more than a year until mine - but it's the big one, so I'm in no rush.

 

[Storm]

I like to have a couple of wine's to relax and a nice meal.

Then.... I put some loud unrelaxing bang bang bang music on, try to practice any forms and sets to the beat. Practice whatever else I need, then start to panic as I muck it all up. Try and try again still muck it up then go to bed and have a good sleep with it all running thorough my head.

Get up in the morning in full panic mode, dont stop talking cant sit still and thats pretty much the norm.

Relax is not in my vocbulary...

 

[Rob Broad]

I have seen some very bizarre rituals over the years.

I have seen a school where everyon shows up at 6 pm on friday and fasts til they test on the Sunday. All of their time was spent training and meditating. - Quick pass the cool aid!!!

I have heard of schools that make tests last hours upon hours until the student is ready to passout from exhaustion.

I attended a test at school where the test was nothing but sparring full contact withthe instructor. If you could not endure the two minutes beatings per each belt level, you were not tough enough for your next belt and had to wait. - This guy was a bully and a machocist.

I have seen a test where the people were lined up and congratulated on their hard work, and nothing was done that day.

I ave seen many bizarre thngs and I will proably see a lot more as time goes by.