Ok - not sure why I am going to open my self up to this but I hate to see something I feel is wrong with out saying something so here goes.
You can totally SELF TRAIN.
It's not the best method usually but it is not impossible. I have known MANY and there are plenty of examples today of people SELF TRAINING and getting much better than others who took the traditional route.
I feel the real issue is to make sure what you are doing in your self training is safe. Get some guidance from someone or at least use methods of training that are generically agreed upon until you reach a level where you can go into whatever you want.
Train what you love and believe in. If that means training on your own then so be it - don't train something you don't like or agree with just because you can get a teacher doing it. Life and the school of hard knocks can be your teacher if you listen.
Trust me young man - you ARE NOT going to find many people who will agree with me or any here for that matter I'm guessing. I have trained over 30 years, had many schools and trained fighters and I am telling you that you CAN self train.
Be smart and use common sense. Body conditioning IMO does NOTHING to help in any way measurable. It is really a waste of time and only ends up hurting your body. Train to be fit, fast and flexible and you will outdo the 99%.
Good luck on your journey and if you have any questions feel free to hit me up. Oh and about your dreams, you really should seek professional counseling as they could be for many different reasons and dreams are usually very reflective of things that should not go ignored usually.
#sigh - now I guess the onslaught will begin because I chose to honest.
These topics have been talked about numerous times. Frankly, it gets a bit old. Why? Because 99% of the time, nothing productive comes out of the discussion. Why? Because both sides will never agree. Anyways....I know you and I have also talked about this numerous times. My stance will be the same. If you have a total newb to the arts, chances are the best they will do, will mimic what they see. They will have no way of knowing whether or not they will be doing anything wrong or right. If that is how someone wants to train, then it is what it is. As long as they're willing to accept that they will be subpar.
Of course, there will be 'stand outs' who've had success with self training, however, we can call them the 1%'ers..lol. Then again, even if someone did self traing, such as you say, I'd like to think that if they ended up being that successful, that chances are, they had some live, real training, with a live teacher.
Another way to look at this: I have a few different BJJ tapes. I use them as a reference. I also have people to go to, so I can learn grappling. Have there been times when I've seen something, taken that question to class, and worked on it. So, thats an example of someone who already has a background/knowledge in something. Its easier to figure out. I could get Larry Tatums dvds and stand a very good chance of learning. Why? Well for starters, I'm already a BB in Kenpo. Of course, I also have people to go to, should I have a question.
I'm sorry Sir, but in my opinion, when it comes to certain things, hands on experience is needed...period.
You are certain entitled to you opinion, as are others. If you feel you can learn w/o a live teacher, fine. I however, feel that while some learning may take place, there will be more mistakes/questions, than not.
