Would you still consider a green belt a beginner?

[Grasshopper22]

I am a Ju-Jitsu practitioner and the belt order goes thusly:

White,
Yellow,
Orange,
Green,
Blue,
Purple,
Brown,
Black,
2nd Dan etc.


I have recently achieved my green belt, would you still consider me a beginner or not?

Obviously I'm not saying I'm a master or anything, just wondered am I past the beginner level?


Thank you!

 

[harlan]

Depends on your point of view. Based solely on rank and time-in/years (maybe 3 and under?), I'd consider green still a beginner. Green with 30 years of intense training in another style...well...a different kind of 'beginner'.

 

[Jenna]

I am a Ju-Jitsu practitioner and the belt order goes thusly:

White,
Yellow,
Orange,
Green,
Blue,
Purple,
Brown,
Black,
2nd Dan etc.


I have recently achieved my green belt, would you still consider me a beginner or not?

Obviously I'm not saying I'm a master or anything, just wondered am I past the beginner level?


Thank you!

Congratulations on receiving your belt. You are doing well to get to this point. I guess you do not feel like a beginner any more. You have learned a lot and it is sticking. Beginner is a subjective term. I think in its absolute sense, it would be an idea to ask those that you train alongside the direct question are you a beginner still. I think they will be able to provide you with perhaps a more concrete appraisal of your status. I wish you well on having got to here and on your continuing journey.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

From my perspective, green is more than a mere beginner, but less than proficient. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, it's the 'end of the beginning, but by no means the beginning of the end'.

I have also heard green belts referred to as the 'Death Belt' in that they begin to realize that they have some ability; but they may think they have more ability than they actually do and get themselves into trouble then can't get themselves out of. However, I have also heard that said of brown belts, of which I am one.

Let me put it this way; in the realm of what we both have yet to learn, we're just scratching the surface. In the realm of martial arts training in general; we have a good grasp of some of the fundamentals.

Just my 2 cents; I'm sure every art is different, and each training center has its own standards.

 

[ballen0351]

. We break our adult classes up into Beginner, intermediate, and advanced classes. In my Dojo Green is the fist belt you could attend the intermediate classes so You would now be allowed to do beginner and intermediate classes. Advanced is for Brown belt and above unless your invited by to attend at a lower rank.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

. We break our adult classes up into Beginner, intermediate, and advanced classes. In my Dojo Green is the fist belt you could attend the intermediate classes so You would now be allowed to do beginner and intermediate classes. Advanced is for Brown belt and above unless your invited by to attend at a lower rank.

We train everybody at the same time in mine; but we're small. I do believe that your description applies to most open tournaments I've been to, though. The underbelts tend to be divided by beginner/intermediate/advanced, then age groups, and for sparring, by gender as well.

 

[ballen0351]

We train everybody at the same time in mine; but we're small.

Thats normally how the classes end up. On paper they are broken down by level but they are one right after the other so usually everyone shows up at the 1st beginners class and we all just stay thru all the classes and the newer people kinda leave as things get to advanced or they stay and give it a try if they want. There are a few Advanced only classes but they are normally at times by themselves with no overlap on other classes.

 

[Nomad]

Green belts usually know enough to be dangerous, and start looking around going "Yep, I could kick his a$$" Usually that feeling wears off somewhere down the road, as they realize just how much they haven't​ learned yet...

 

[Haakon]

In my opinion, yes green belt is still a beginner. You're maybe 20% of the way to 1st dan, and many people feel you don't even really start to learn an art until then. By green belt you're probably starting to feel comfortable with the environment, you're getting a rhythm to your training, you've been through two or three promotion tests but really at that level your view is still so narrow you can't even see how relatively little you've picked up so far.

Everyone was a beginner at some point, for some of us we've been beginners many times, stick with it, the really cool stuff is still to come!

 

[seasoned]

Half way points are, (green belt) very cool. Each rung of the ladder you climb, gives you a better view on where you've been, and where you're going. You have some knowledge that you can pass down, and you can begin to help those on a lower rung. Beginner, no, because at this point you have a commitment, with time invested. Good luck and enjoy the journey, you are building memories that will last a lifetime.

 

[Aiki Lee]

Since I consider BB the begining and the kyu ranks all to be one big entrance exam, then yes I'd say Green was a beginner.

But, at green belt I would say to myself that one certainly has the potential to go the distance.

 

[Buka]

If I was used to rolling with your white belts, a green belt would be like the Green Lantern.
If I was used to rolling with your brown belts, a green belt would be a beginner with a little salt.

 

[WC_lun]

To me you would be high beginner or low intermediate, depending more on how long you have been training. It is all relative though.

I just wouldn't worry about your status. Worry about the training. If you a learning and improving, that is the best, regardless of your rank.

 

[Randy Strausbaugh]

Yes, I would. But of course, that's just my opinion, and as such, not worth any more than anyone else's.
For myself, I've been doing ma since 1974, and still consider myself to be a beginner. I arrive at that conclusion by looking at what I've learned as compared to what there is to be learned, and beginner seems to be just about right. A persistant beginner, but a beginner just the same.
By the way, many schools don't consider someone to be a serious student until they reach shodan, which means "beginning level" I believe.
JMHO

 

[ShudoMom]

In the style that I train, Shudokan, a Green belt is just below Brown. Our belts are: white, yellow, orange, purple, blue, green, brown, black. I'm a green belt, and I would consider myself intermediate in some areas, and still a beginner in other areas. Don't worry so much about where you are, simply enjoy the journey! If you focus on just the destination, you'll miss out on all the sights along the way.

 

[kitkatninja]

Since I consider BB the begining and the kyu ranks all to be one big entrance exam, then yes I'd say Green was a beginner.

But, at green belt I would say to myself that one certainly has the potential to go the distance.

I agree with HK

 

[Gentle Fist]

Anything under Black is a beginner as far as I am concerned... Looks like many before me having also stated the same thing

 

[Rich Parsons]

I am a Ju-Jitsu practitioner and the belt order goes thusly:

White,
Yellow,
Orange,
Green,
Blue,
Purple,
Brown,
Black,
2nd Dan etc.


I have recently achieved my green belt, would you still consider me a beginner or not?

Obviously I'm not saying I'm a master or anything, just wondered am I past the beginner level?


Thank you!

My Opinion Yes.

For Competition though, see rules and regulation of those hosting if it is a beginner or not, as you may not be a Novice, but you may still be a Beginner.

You are a beginner as you are now beginning to learn new techniques and new ideas for your next rank. A beginner has an open mind to learn, and does not presume that they have "learned" the previous rank requirements. You might find over time that you re-learn a technique or concept or idea and it makes even MORE sense at that point.

Being a beginner is not a bad thing. I know with experience and rank, you can say things like that, and just starting out you want to see progress. And you have. You got your new belt. You have made progress. Now keep the mindset of a beginner and watch & listen to your instructors. Learn what they have to offer. See if something they have said before has a different perspective to you. Sometimes it does not. Yet that does not mean one cannot be open to the idea of it and other ideas as well.

Keep asking questions, and continue to learn from them.

Good Luck!

 

[Kenpo17]

If you are a green belt, you are well on your way to mastering the basics of the art. Once you recieve your black belt, you are considered a master of the basics. This means even after recieving your black belt, there is still a lot to learn and master, but you have mastered basics strikes, grappling skills, and ground control.

 

[shima]

White,
Yellow,
Orange,
Green,
Blue,
Purple,
Brown,
Black,
2nd Dan etc.

In the tournament world...
White, Yellow, Orange = Beginner
Green, Blue, Purple = Intermediate
Brown, Red = Advanced