Yikes!

Yikes is right- I can't believe it's been months since my last post. I think since then I've learned a lot. We've had a new instructor who's been teaching us some juijitsu on thursdays- it's been pretty fun. I'm working on getting my blue belt right now- maybe next month. Also my dojo has finally established an offical day in the week when we can have our kenjutsu classes! I'm really excited about that. I haven't had a kenjutsu lesson in a few weeks and not many in between either. I'm excited about that opening now though. Also- I made it to state in my tournaments, 2nd in sparring and 4th in forms I believe, but wasn't able to go because I injured my knee the week before :( oh well. Not so sure I'll really do tournaments this year, it's kind of tough being the only one from your academy who goes, but oh well. If I do go- I'll just go for fun and not really focus on earning points for state.

Test Today!

Today I had my test for 7th Gup Green. It seems like time has gone by pretty quickly since I first started TKD. The test today went pretty well. I didn't get too tired, or at least not as much as on my orange belt test. I did okay. My one-steps were mostly a disaster but everything wasn't the bad. I really need to work better on the one-steps. Mostly I'm just not comfortable when I do them- so that's one thing to work on!

Belt Signed

I was kind of tired for some reason tonight. I didn't want to put too much into it since I've got my test- but still wanted to show good form. Mr. Jorge signed my belt and now I'm ready to test tomorrow. Can't wait!

Thursday Night

Sparring went well today. I'm really grateful that we've gotten to spar at least once a week! I didn't do too bad- and I did a lot better in the single elimination rounds at the end. I got to try out a few new kicks also. Hopefully I'll remember to use them at my test for some more practice. We'll see how that goes. I didn't get my belt signed tonight, so I'll have to go tomorrow even though I usually use Friday to rest before a test- oh well...

Just a few more days

I'm prett anxious about my belt test coming up. I'm only really nervous about if my stamina will keep up with me this time. My last belt test went ok- but I'm still worried about what happened on my orange belt test. I just didn't have much energy because I wasn't able to eat until 2pm. Since I have to work past lunch again- I'll have to bring something. I just don't want something like that to keep me from doing my best. So anyways- since I was the only one in the advanced class tonight, Mr. Jorge kind of let me decide what I wanted to do. I usually enjoy getting to work on my forms, but I knew I needed to work on the bag to improve my endurance. So we did a little bit of both. He also had me run through a few adcanced kicks. I'm working on a few that I'm gonna try and start using in my sparring- so we'll see how that goes. Can't wait!

Saturday Sword Class

One week until my next belt test. Peon 1 is still not exactly my favorite kata- but is required for my next belt. I got to work on it some today- feeling a little better about it, but would rather do Toi Gye or something like that. Afterwards we got to do some sword sparring. After a few rounds I went to my duel swords like I usually do. I did a little better and my speed has increased some. I need to learn some new attacks with my double swords.

Late class x2

I was late for the first class today and thought I'd wait for the second one, but Ms. Tammy had me join it anyways :) I got to do some forms, blocks and stuff like that. In the second we got to improve on my peon 1. I'm not the biggest fan of this form, but I still need to work hard on it. I like the knife-hand blocks at the end, but that's about it. We also got to work on a few one steps. I've improved a little since the last time. I made up a few of my own to- just as fillers. Hopefully they'll look good in my test- and more importantly- work in real application if I ever need to use them!

A Little of Everything

We got to work on a little of everything today. I think Toi Gye is getting better, but I haven't gotten the chance to really watch myself do it yet, so I'm not sure yet what I want to change or improve on. Well other than that- I'm not going to be able to make it to the Tournament in September, but I should be able to go to the October one. It'll just give me more time to work on Toi Gye and my sparring. I have so much to work on.

One Step Trouble

Well class was okay except when we got to my one steps. I just hate doing them. It's a lot different then sparring. I just hate hitting people or whatever and them just sitting there. I don't feel comfortable doing them, I guess it's not too bad. I don't do that bad when we're working on them- but when it's in front of everyone, then I feel really awkward. It isn't like using my instincts- but it's just- I don't know. I know they're important- but I'd rather be doing sparring :)

Not enough rebound

I'm leaning back too much on my kicks. I think it's amazing how little details in my fighting can minimize my effectiveness. Like- I'll all the sudden start doing something weird for some reason and wonder why I'm doing bad in fighting or something like that. I've been leaning back too much when I throw kicks keeping me from being able to rebound or throw more kicks easily. Other than that- I worry too much when I fight my instructors. I keep thinking too much about what they're going to do. I'm getting really frustrated when I fight people like Mr. Vernon and Mr. Lafon. Both use their hands more than I ever care to, and I'm just not doing well against them. Other than just much more hard work- I need a better solution. I won't let myself continue to be beaten. When I'm fighting I often keep myself from throwing something because I think they'll catch it- and then I second guess myself and slow myself down that way. I'm so frustrated.....

x2 Class Workout

I recognized a slight improvement in my speed tonight on the bag. But sadly my jump turn kicks have been really lousy lately for some reason. I guess it's partly because I've been doing turn hooks in my sparring so much that I need to go back and practice my basic ones. I really need to focus on my basic spin kick speed. I did get some new workout bands- or whatever you call them- to help with increasing my speed.

Now I have about 3 weeks left until my tournament. I really want to work hard and earn some more stripes! I think Toi Gye will actually be good enough by then. Mr. Jorge is starting to like the way it's looking right now, and I'm starting to get a little more confident in how it feels- so we'll see.

Friday Class

Lately I've been working more with my leg weights trying to improve my speed. I think I'm getting a little better. I'm not as tired the next day in class after I've done my weight training the night before. I'm pretty excited about it. I got to work on Toi Gye once again tonight (since it's above my rank, the instructors don't have to let me do it..) and I like how this form actually gives me a pretty good workout compared to the others. So it's fun to do after my training and see how I do on it. I usually get to do it after PT, and before swords, so I get a good workout. Oh well- I just can't wait for my next tournament- I mean this is what I'm focused on- I think I'm currently second in sparring in two divisions, so I need to work hard to get a better seed for state.

One Year!

Today marks my first year completed in Taekwondo! Looking back it doesn't seem like much time has gone by. Hope that I've learned a lot since I started- and most importantly- that I've improved a lot! Today we got to spar some and work on self defense. I think I did a little better. I wish we could spar for hours- but oh well- I think I did okay for the time we had. I have some things that I want to work on- but I just need to keep trying to improve on what I'm doing now. We'll see how my next tournament goes! I can't wait!

Another x2 Sword Class

I think I did better in today's advanced class than I did last week. After all my punches and kicks on the bag, I was only able to do 30 pushups in one setting though :/ I don't think I was as tired as last week once I got to my katas though. Toi Gye is starting to feel a little better. Maybe I'll have it down good enough for my tournament or the one after that. I've been working all year on Peon 4 and it's pretty good- so I want to make sure that Toi Gye is as good.

Tournament Today!

Today went really well- or better than my last one I should say. It was pretty cool. A few other students from my dojo went and so did Mr. Lafon, so that was encouraging not being the only one from my school that went. It was great having Mr. Lafon to coach me a bit too- I think it helped a lot. I placed 2nd in forms and 2nd in sparring. I missed 1st place in forms by 1/10th of a point- oh well- I know how I can improve for next time.

As for my sparring- there were only me and another guy, so 2nd place was a given since I lost. I ended up fighting the same person I lost to last time- but I think that I improved majorly since then. I had several kicks that one judge saw but the other two didn't- I have a really bad time getting myself to allow 2 judges to see my attacks. No matter-I could have won. I needed to block more as well and not give up before the break was called- don't know why I stopped. I'll beat him next time! I can't wait to start training again and seeing how I can improve so I won't lose my next match!

2 more days again!

Well my tournament is in 2 days. I'm not nearly as nervous as I was last one. Trying not to think about it so much :) We had sparring and practiced our katas and how we enter the ring. It went pretty well. I finally did a lot better than I have been doing. I think I'm finally starting to losen up a bit. I've been kind of tense lately. I'm trying to focus more on my groin kicks instead of just blocking a kick or moving away from it. It's a perfect counter to use. We'll see how it goes Saturday!

Tired! x2

I was the only one in the advanced class tonight. It's nice having others to work out with so I have someone to keep me going you know. I was pretty tired compared to last week. My arms were exhausted and my katas didn't have much power because of it. I got to go through my new sword kata a little bit afterwards. It looks like it's gonna be really cool! Hope I can learn the rest soon.

Regular Class

Today was pretty basic. Got to work on my kicks and blocks etc. I'm really trying to focus on improving my kicking speed. I just gotta keep working on my weights.

Advanced Class Back! x2

The advanced class is back! Finally! It's only been about 3-4 weeks I think- but it sure showed in my endurance. I did pretty good in the first class, did mostly the usual stuff, kicks blocks forms etc. Thought we were going to spar but I guess not :( By the time I got to the second class I was a little tired. I did okay I guess but only made it up to 35 pushups after we did all our kicks and punches on the bag. Once we got to the forms my arms were really tired- but I love it because it lets me see how much more I can endure each time. I enjoy this class because it gives me a great oppurtunity to improve all of my turn kicks, and also so I can improve on my advanced forms. Toi Gye is feeling a little better, but it won't be for quite some time until it actually looks decent. Only 11 days until my next tournament. I'm pretty excited- and man I have such a long way to go!

Realizing where I'm failing

Did an all class sparring session tonight save 10 minutes of forms at the end. After class I finally realized what I'm doing wrong. I kept believing that I'm too slow, which I can always improve my speed- but my problem is that I'm thinking too much! and over thinking everything. So my body might be fast- but there's that delay from my head to my body. I've been kind of thining that I've got that problem lately- but now I'm starting to understand how I can fix it.

It's kind of like back when I did quizzing, I knew that you should study a lot and at times I'd study for 5 hours a day, but it does you little good if you can't digest it all- or if you over do it. I don't think I'm working out too much- or going to class too much, but I think that when I spar, I'm thinking too much about what I'm going to do instead of seeing an opportunity and automatically taking it. Gotta keep it simple. Go back to the basics a bit. Choose some of my favorite moves and use them- but instead of thinking of 20 moves- keep to my basics and have maybe have 3 moves in hand. Practice makes perfect and this is no exception- I need to make my training instinct so I don't have to think so much while fighting.

One Steps- oh....

Got to work on my dreaded one steps tonight. I think I'd rather spar or do katas than do one steps, but it's needed. I got to improve on a few of them. I'll really need to look better on my one steps for my test. After those we got to do some sparring. I really didn't do too well. I'm over thinking way too much! I just need to focus and keep practicing my favorite techniques, and execute those at the right time. I'm still way too slow on my turn kicks, and I'm not attacking enough. Tomorrow night we're supposed to have a full class of sparring so I should get some more practice then.

More Work

I think my stamina is finally improving. I'm trying to focus on being faster even when we do our basic kicks in clas. I'm not getting tired quite as easily as I was before. I just need to try and be at my best and still not get tired. I think my test should go better that way too. I should probably be testing next month sometime- can't wait!

Small Class

It was just me and another student tonight so we just did basic stuff pretty much. I'm feeling a little better about my speed in my kicks which is a much needed improvement! I really need to get my speed up for my sparring. Other than that- my foot is starting to feel a little better- but there are some kicks that I still can't do on the bag. I've been wearing my foot gear to get used to them, and so I don't hurt my foot somehow anymore. I have to wear this special slip in my shoe for 2 weeks. The Doctor said that it should be better by then. My tournament is in about 3 weeks, so hopefully I'll feel 100% for that.

Friday Sword Class

With work and all- it's kind of hard to make it to classes on monday and fridays, so I never know if I'll be able to make until I leave since we get out late on those days. So today I barely made it out in time and decided to go. I was glad since we got to do some Kenjutsu tonight. We did some kendo drills first then did 1 on 1 fights and then did team fighting which is pretty fun. Mr Jorge had everyone use the katana ronight. I'm best at the single katana, but I really like using the two wakazachis. I like using both my arms for blocking and attacking at once- that way my movement is continuous and my rebound is faster- only problem that I'm having right now, is that I get hit in the hands too much when I make that first block and don't get my attack off- soon enough to get the point when that happens.

More Tips for Peon 4

Mr. Lafon and Ms. Tammy had me run through my current tournament kata and gave me some pointers. I need to improve on the power points, and slow down some on some others- also need to chamber more on my snap kicks. There are 3 tournaments left right now, so hopefully if I keep doing this form, I'll have it improved a little more by each one. As for my sparring- right now I'm really trying to work on my offense speed in general, my speed in closing the gap, and my turn kick speed. I'm also trying to focus on adding more kicks to my combos if a certain technique doesn't work or reach my opponent. I can't wait until my next tournament!

Sesamoiditis

Kind of late to write about this but I forgot about it when writing my last entries. Two weeks ago in sparring I jammed my toes pretty bad somehow while fighting (I usually don't notice.) Well I already had two sprained toes so I when I hurt my foot again I thought that I had just hurt it a little more again. Well it kept hurting a little longer than a sprain, so I relectuantly went to the chriopractor just to make sure since my tournament was coming up soon. I was thinking about asking to get it x-rayed just in case but I decided not to ask since I kind of felt dumb for going because I hurt my toes a bit in the first place :) Well he looked at it and had it x-rayed anyways. Well I found out that I fractured or broke my sesamoid bone in my foot! Kind of surprising- I didn't think it hurt bad enough to have broken something- he said it's not too serious and I still have been on it and obviously fought on it saturday and have been fine. I just need to heat it and I guess that should take care of it.

Basically my x-ray looks JUST like this... Kind of creepy.

Regular Class

Mr. Jorge was back in class after having knee surgery. He said that we'll probably start the advanced class on Tuesday night again next week. I really enjoy that class because it gives me a chance to improve on my kicks and my forms. It has helped improve my turn kicks a lot which I really need. I got to do more of Toi Gye tonight. I have it down pretty much- but I have a lot to go! I'm pretty anxious now about preparing for my next tournament. Maybe Toi Gye will be good enough for that.

Mr. James' PT

Today we got to do PT with leg weights. It was pretty tough but it's really something I need to improve my speed and leg strength. After a while he had us take the weights off and we did all our kicks and blocks and katas without them. Pretty tiring. I hope we can do more of this so that I can keep improving for my next tournament. The next one is the 11th of August. Hopefully I'll do better and earn some stripes for my sparring this time!

Octogon Tournament 7/14/07

Today's tournament went pretty good. I was a little more nervous than usual, hopefully I'll just get past that. I waited a while for my division to start- so I was kind of tired by the time I started. I placed 2nd in forms and 3rd in sparring. I didn't do as well in sparring as I would have hoped. No stripes for me today. But I think losing will make me work harder this time.

Sparring again

After class I got to spar one of the brown belts again. He is so fast! I hope I can fight him more so I can improve on my speed. I did much better tonight than I did fighting him last time. I actually got in a few decent points. His attacks are usually with his lead leg which always makes me kind of focused too much on that one and not attacks from other spots- so he got me really good with a turn kick. Oh man it hurt so bad- hardest I've ever been kicked in class. But hopefully it'll make me better! Well anyways- not planning on going to class tomorrow- so we'll see how I do saturday.

4 More Days

Didn't get to do sparring today- but did some grappling. I don't particularly enjoy grappling, but it's something you have to learn. I do okay with someone my size, my either way- I enjoy sparring much better :) Right now I've just been working on the bag at home every day. We'll see how saturday goes.

5 More Days

Due to work- I normally can't seem to make it to Monday's class as of late- but I was able to make it to Mr. James' class tonight thankfully. I really need to work on my forms and sparring before my tournament saturday. I'm pretty excited- and have been trying some new ways to improve my turn kicks etc., and speed them up. Mr. James gave me some pointers after class about keeping my turn kicks in tight where I have a habit of swinging them wide. Just need to keep practicing my counter attacks and speed. Hope I do well!

A Sparring Class

Well- Ms. Tammy and Mr. Lafon had us do sparring again to let us practice, and let me prepare for my upcoming tournament. I don't think I did very well most of the time- but I felt pretty lousy. They asked me at the end if I thought I improved or did well or something- well I got some pointers, but I didn't think I did well, so I felt bad because the class was really so I could prepare- and but I said no, not really, since I did really bad. So after class they helped me some more with some moves and stuff and that helped more than the entire class! I feel like I'm getting it a litte more- but I still need to pick it up by my next tournament. My foot and shin are bruised up major time- but I think I'll get better! :)

Getting Ready!

Man I'm so excited! I've got another tournament coming up! I've got nearly 2 weeks to prepare for it. Like always- I'm not nearly confident enough in my sparring. Mr. Jorge had surgery so Ms. Tammy took care of his class for him. I asked Ms. Tammy if we could do sparring to help prepare me for the tournament and she said yes! I'm very grateful- I got to fight everyone, and some people more than once. I think I'm starting to finally get better at my turn kicks. I don't normally use regular turn kicks when fighting but my favorite kick right now is the jump turn kick. I feel more comfortable with it as a counter attack kick, but I really need to improve my timing. A brown belt and Ms. Tammy pointed out something to me that I didn't really think too much about before- and that's that I tend to lean back a lot before and while executing my jump turn kicks. The problem with the is the obvious telegraphing and it means that I lose that many inches in reach which has been my problem. So maybe if I can keep a straight body while throwing them, then I can reach just a bit farther. There have been times that my aim is on target- but my timing and reach has been slightly off allowing my opponent the freedom to dodge my attack.

After the holiday, I'll go back to class and Ms. Tammy said that we'll work on my sparring again on Thursday! I can't wait- I can't wait to see if I can improve on my new kata and polish my old ones! So excited!

Faster

Man I need to get faster! I got to spar an upper belt that I hadn't seen before today. He was much faster than me. I kept getting stuck thinking too much and then he'd strike me with his lead leg. I couldn't seem to keep up. I've been focusing on my speed lately, but I'm not even gettting close. This is one thing I REALLY need to imrpove on before my next tournament. Other than that- the instructors have been talking about a test, so perhaps we'll have one in July! That'll be sweet if I can get my next belt by my birthday!

A little improvement

I think I'm getting better at PT in class. I'm trying to focus on being faster- and I think I'm improving without losing too much stamina. It isn't enough to just go as fast as I can if I get tired quickly, but I need a good balance- this should help me in my sparring some. We did swords again at the end of class! I started out with 2 swords again, but switched to one sword after a while. I do much better with the katana size sword, even though I like using 2 better. I think I did a bit better today, but I need to stop getting hit in the hand- I seem to block but get hit in my fingers and lose the point. Pretty frustrating

Swords Again! x2

Today we got to do swords and sparring. I feel like I have improved slightly in both. I think my sparring went better. I sprained my big toe a little from swords I think- I never notice until after we're done fighting that I hurt myself or something. Anyways- on sparring I focused more on waiting and conserving my energy by blocking and dodging and then attacking when they're on the rebound. I need to be able to be able to counter-attack better with my turn kicks and doing better at my regular kicks. I need to do more combos as well. We'll just keep working on it.

Getting Better

Mmm my leg doesn't hurt until I start stretching it. It's really funny because now my left side has been better than my right and it's normally opposite. I think it's getting stronger, just have to be patient, which I hate. Oh well.

Hurt

I hurt my hamstring and the back of my knee last week and it has still been bothering me lately. It bothered me most of class today. I was worried that it'd hurt bad in sparring- but it kind of went away a little bit after some more stretching. I did end up hurting my ankle and foot really bad somehow though. I never notice it until after really, so I can't recall how it happened- just that I got it in my last round. Oh well. A little ice wont hurt

Swords Again x2

In the first class my right leg started bothering me. It has been giving me some trouble lately. I've been over doing my stretches. I'm getting very close to being able to do my splits, but since my left knee is still giving me problems from way back- my right leg has had to pick up more slack. I'm kind of rushing it a bit- so I'll just have to take it easy.

I got to go through some more of my new kata in the second class. At the end- we got to do swords. I feel like I've improved more but I just have to find more ways to get the points and all. I've been thinking about my sparring and realize that I've got to step it up. I'm really frustrated and feel like I'm just scraping by. I try hard but I'm not really training smart. I need to figure out what it is that I need to do to make a break through.

Advanced Class X2

Got to do PT in the second class again. Mr. Jorge says that we'll probably keep doing that- I'm really glad. At first it's kind of tough, but it's helping my stamina a lot- I feel a big difference. After that we worked on a bunch of forms and advanced kicks (well advanced for me). One of the brown belts there also ran through my new kata with me once. I feel really good about it. I actually need to brush up on my vocabulary- I've been kind of slack in that area recently.

Josh's Class

Mr. Jorge was out of town so Josh took care of his class tonight. It was SOOO good. I love when he helps out or teaches! He always does things different and that's always nice for a change. We did some sparring, kenjutsu sparring, he gave us some grappling tips and a few other things. He just does things differently and always has a neat way of explaining things. very awesome

100th post!

Today is my 100th post. So I know that I've had at least that many lessons not including the times that I've had more than one lesson in one day :) Think I'm at about 121 lessons. Yea! Well today's class was AWESOME. Got to spar at the end. I felt like I did really well. Didn't get too awfully tired, and displayed not nice techniques that I've been trying out. I need to be faster though. Fought one black belt- lost 3-1 :( but every other green belt only scored that much on him too. I need to work harder and be smarter and give good use to my leg attacks. Friday we don't have to wear GI's for several months because of the heat- yea!!

More of my new kata

Class was a little bit of PT today- it's always good to hit the bag a bunch in class. After class I stayed and Mr. Jorge went through my new kata with me several times- I feel much more confident about it now! I can't wait to keep getting better at it! Other than due to conflicts in my work schedule my next tournament will not be in June as I had thought before. The next one will likely be the 14th of July. So I have plenty of time to improve on my katas and learn a new sword form well before then.

New Self Defense

Today in class Mr. Lafon and Ms. Tammy told us that the self defense in the class has been going too soft so they decided to do a class dedicated entirely to one-steps and self defense every other week. It was a really useful lesson. I got to learn several new moves and one-steps. I feel pretty confident with a few. I can't wait to practice them some more. Since class was just defense, we didn't work on forms- so I didn't get to learn more of my new kata.

Tuesday Class x2

Class was good today. I got to learn some more Toi Gye in the second one! We did PT which was much needed in my case. I felt a little better this week than I did last time we had it. I didn't do so hot on the pushups though :) As I'm getting more advanced I'm starting to really focus on my stamina. It never really was something that I thought too much about when I started- but I just can't stand getting tired in the least at doing my kicks, blocks, punches, combos, sparring, or whatever I have to do. It makes me frustrated when I can't give my all at something. I just want to be better!

Day off

Today I had the day off from work so I didn't have to worry about rushing to make it to class on time! Mr. Lafon and Ms. Tammy got us to hit the bags today. My step behind side kicks were pretty weak, but I could see a definate improvement in the power of the turn kicks. Heel kicks seem to be my least powerful kicks. Mr. Jorge wasn't there today so I didn't get to learn anything new on my katas. I'll get to learn more next week.

Toi Gye

At the end of class Mr. Jorge went through Toe Gye with me. It's a really neat form. I don't think I'll be doing it for the tournament in June, but my next one- that way I feel comfortable when I do it and it might look and turn out better that way. I don't think it was that hard but it is pretty long. It has 37 moves. I'm pretty anxious to see how the competition will be in sparring since I'm intermediate now. Mr Jorge will also teach me his sword kata that he did to get his second degree. That will be pretty exciting! It looks pretty cool. So I'll be learning 3 forms just this month!

First Stripe x2!

In the first class we worked on katas and got to learn some practice by working on the Nunchaku. Pretty aggrivating at times. I prefer the sword :) In the second class I earned my first stripe on my green belt! I'm working on Peon 1. Feels good just need to keep practicing it.

Saturday I had the privilege of helping out at a black belt test! There were two students, one going for black and another getting his purple belt. It was about 4 hours long and quite exhausting (for them that is.. hehe) They both did excellent! I got to help out with self defense, board breaking, sparring and sword fighting Congrats guys!

New kick

At the end of class Mr. Lafon showed me a new kick that I can use in sparring. It's kind of different and a little hard but I think I can get it down. I've been working on a few new kicks on my own too- so I'm excited to see when I'll be able to put them into practice. My next tournament is June 16th- I've got plenty of time, but I won't waste my time. I need to work out good since my divisino changed from beginner to intermediate. Hopefully I'll be able to meet the challenge.

Peon 1! x2

In the second class I got to learn Peon 1. It's pretty easy but still fun. It's probably the fastest that I've learned a kata so far. I should be learning two more katas here soon. I'll be learning another sword kata and I get to choose between either the kata for red belt or purple belt as my next tournament kata. I'm pretty excited, but it'll be a lot of work. I can't wait!

Belt Test Today! 5/5/07

Today I tested for my 8th gup green belt! 

The day went well. I felt plagued all week with the worry that my test would end up like 
the last one-me doing okay up until sparring and being too exhausted. The point is, the instructors are supposed to wear you out on your test, or you won't really be earning anything; but it's still frustrating when you don't meet your expectations. I put my best effort into my blocks and 'specially my forms, I felt really good about my self defense but my one-steps were kind of lacking. I kind of stuck to being more defensive in my sparring at first. I didn't 
realize that we weren't going to fight the black belts this time. I think that might have made it easier- but at the same time, I think I still would have done better than I did on my last test. Overall in sparring I feel like I did really good, I got some really good kicks in, and didn't do too awful on my defense. Overall- the day went pretty well. At the end of the test we got to do swords. We did short swords with shields. It was pretty fun.

Belt Signed

Mr. Lafon signed my belt today in class. Now I can test saturday. I wasn't able to make it to class all week before today since I've been pretty sick. Flu or something. I'm feeling better but my arms and legs are still really tired and I feel kind of dizzy. I gave a good effort in class I think, but I was still pretty exhausted. Hopefully I'll feel 100% by saturday afternoon.

Got to make sure my one-steps are in shape. Main thing though- is that I survive sparring! :)

Gray Eagle Tournament Today 4/28/07

Today's tournament went pretty good. I placed 3rd in weapons, 4th in forms and 3rd in sparring. I had a 3-way tie for 3rd place but at the time I didn't know what place it was for- I thought for SURE that I had won, but it turned out I didn't place. The head judge later on encouraged me and said that he liked mine the best but that my total score just didn't come out the best- oh well- that was still pretty encouraging. There were a lot more people in my division today than I've fought or gone against before. I think there about 12 people in the forms, and maybe about 8 to 10 people in sparring. Overall it went pretty good. I won one round in sparring 5-0 and lost the second 0-5. On the second round, I got an excellent kick on my opponent when it was 4-0 and that would have made it 4-2, but the judges didn't see it and so he got a punch on me and scored the winning point. Oh well, I learned a lot and that's what counts I guess.
 

Extra class

Mr. Jorge ran through my sword kata, Peon 4 and Tan Gun with me a few times tonight just to brush up before tomorrow. I feel really good about them. My sword kata looks ok- but still feels a little awkward. I'm sure it will feel more comfortable after I've done it a little while longer. Tomorrow's the big day!

2 More Days!

Well today is my last normal class of the week before my tournament. Mr. Jorge said he'd work with me a little on my forms tomorrow after the regular class. Today's class was a good opportunity to brush up on a few things before Saturday. At the end of class I got to run through my sword kata with Mr. Jorge and two of the other black belts.

Sword practice

Got to practice my sword kata at the end of class today. I left my new sword home so I had to use my bokken one. It's a bit heavier, so it was a little different but I think I still did okay. Just have to get it down.

Tuesday Classes x2

Only a few more days until my tournament this saturday. I'm feeling a little nervous, never know how it will all end up. I got to work on my katas and my sword kata in class today. I'm feeling much better about my sword kata than I was last week. I just hope I do well in sparring. I feel most nervous about that.

4/19

Tonight's class was great! Got to work on a few things like my katas and self defense like usual, but we also got to do sparring! I didn't do too bad, but could have done MUCH better. I'm seeing areas in which I can improve for by next Saturday's tournament. Hope I do well.

Kenjutsu x2

Mr. Jorge taught both classes tonight. In the second class he went through my tournament kata and my sword kata several times with me. I feel pretty good about Peon 4 but I really need to work on my sword kata. I also need to improve on my sparring big time!

One step jump kicks! x2

TEst

Mr. James' Class

Mr. Larry James' class is usually a nice workout. Wasn't as tough as last week- but I enjoy doing the occasional pushups and things like that. Only about 3 weeks until my tournament. I thought I'd be a green belt by then- but my test will actually be the following week. So that means I'll still be in the beginner division. I don't think it's such a bad thing now that I think about it. It might just give me that little extra experience that I need. I have much to improve upon!

X2 classes

Two nights ago I was the only one in class. Kind of weird but I got to work on sparring with Mr. Jorge. I'm feeling ok about it- but I know there are plenty of areas that I can improve on. Last night was pretty routine I guess. I'm feeling better on my 360 hook and cresent kicks. Those are fun. My test has been scheduled for the 5th of May. Plenty of time to work on my stuff.

More One-steps x2

Class last night was good. I took both classes. I tried to take it easy in the first one and see how much energy I could preserve without sandbagging. I was thinking we might be doing sparring since we usually do with that certain group of students. Often I'll kick and punch and do my blocks with so much into them that by the time I get to sparring I'm not as energetic. Even though we didn't spar, I felt good for the next class. Mr. Jorge had us try and do 50 pushups. I could only do 49 before he let us stop. After that MAN my arms were tired. I haven't done pushups in a while. It made my katas feel funny since my arms were so rubbery- made me appreciate any kicks we dad afterwards :) Mr. Jorge also showed me a few one steps. He showed me one I already had learned but forgotten since, so that was a much needed review! He showed me a few new ones too that I really like including a hold and a takedown.

3.26.07

Today Mr. James had us do some interesting workouts. Like lying on our stomach and just using our forearms to crawl to the end of the mat. Did that a few times and a few others like it. Pretty interesting but it wore me out! We kept going back and forth from that to our kicks which made those all the more difficult. I was pretty tired once I got to my forms. Also- he taught me some neat new tricks for self defense, like a new way to get out of a lapel grab! That was really cool.

Last Night X2

Last night I was pretty much tired. I did take two classes but wasn't feeling so hot. I was still a little sore from playing some hockey the night before. Oh well- I still don't know when I'll be testing. I'm not rushing it. I'm still a little worried about being too tired at my test. I hope that isn't the case.

3rd stripe for green!

In Thursday's class I got my 3rd and final stripe for my orange belt going towards green. So now I'm not too far away from testing. I should work on my vocab, one-steps and getting my stamina up for sparring. If it's anything like my last test, it'll be pretty tiring. It was about 2 1/2 hours, not too long compared to others, but the sparring was pretty exhaustive. I hope I'll do better this time than I did on my last one.

x2 classes tuesday

Last night I went to both classes again. In the first class we pretty much just did sparring until the last 10 minutes, then we did our kicks which was kind of hard after being tired. I was trying to figure out if I wanted to go to the second one since it's normally harder, and since I was really tired I didn't know if I could handle it- but I decided to go anyways. I did okay except messing up on my vocabulary and my 360 cresent and hook kicks a little. Got some good practice on my katas. Feel pretty good right now on all of them. I feel also like I've had some recent improvement on my sparring. But since I'll probably be in the intermediate division for my next rounament, I really need to step it up.

Mr. James' class- Monday

Got to work on the finer details on my katas and blocks etc. Also worked on self defense and learned some new ones.

Thursday The 8th

Nothing too exciting in class today. Pretty routine I guess. I felt pretty good on my forms. But that's pretty much it for the day.

One Steps

Got to learn a few new one steps today. I'm feeling a little better on them but still feel a little awkward. Think once I do them a little more I'll feel better about them.

Extra Class

Today I had a meeting after work so I couldn't make it to the first class. I did however make it to the second one. It was really good. worked on some new kicks and improved on others. Mr. Jorge has been doing the class to help one of the brown belts and it's enabled me to improve on some things as well. I'm finally getting all the way around on my 360 cresent and 360 hook kicks. But on the cresent kicks I need to keep my foot upwards so it's not like a hook- but some improvement is better than nothing.

Class today

I wonder when I'll get my next stripe. The instructors keep saying that a belt test has not yet been determined, which I take that to mean sometime late this month at the earliest. I hope I earn my next stripe and get closer to testing. I can't be anxious, but I am excited about getting my green belt.

If anything I really need to work on my stamina. I was terribly awful at getting tired when I sparred during my last test. I think I'll do better this time, but my test won't be any easier. I felt pretty good though in today's class. I put my heart into my blocks, kicks, and forms and still felt pretty energetic for sparring.

Other than that- I'm planning on registering for a tournament on the 28th of April. I think that should give me some time to practice sparring and all being that I'll be competing in a tougher division. It's a shame that my points from my last tournament won't count since I earned them in the beginner division. Oh well- all the more reason to not become complacent.

Well today I had a martial arts tourney in Dallas! Went way better than I thought! I placed 3rd in forms and 1st in sparring. I originally tied for 2nd in forms but didn't do as well on my tie breaker (mmf!). Sparring was better. I fought this one guy smaller and one belt rank below me- but he was still pretty good. He actually led halfway through the match. Overall it was really fun and I'm glad no one got hurt (last time I hurt my leg really bad) and it was a good learning experience.

Sparring!

For class all we did was sparring which was a nice change of pace! I really needed some practice for my tournament Saturday. A big problem that I've been having however is getting majorly tired for some reason. My stamina the last few months has decreased a lot it seems. Don't know if I need to eat better or exercise more, but it didn't seem like I had this problem even when I first started karate. I'll probably go see a doctor after the tournament just to check up on it or to see how I can improve my health better. It's frustrating 'cause I go a round and often during that round I can't kick or do combos very well. Other than that- Mr. Jorge said I can come to class after the normal time and he'll work on some stuff with me for my tournament. I didn't want to attend the regular class on Friday because I think I'd be too tired. So I'll probably go afterwards and just work on my forms. Nothing too hard.

Tuesday Night

Wow- nothing to write about. Just worked on Peon 4 a bunch.

Tired

Maybe I didn't get enough sleep or something- but whatever it was, I was pretty exhausted in class today. I did okay, but didn't feel that great. I need to make sure and get plenty of sleep this week so that I'm rested and have plenty of energy on saturday.

One more week!

One more week until my tournament. After class Mr. Jorge gave me some good tips. Just hope that I can
really apply them Saturday. Like last time- I feel much more confident about my form than I do about 
sparring. I guess maybe that will come with time. Hopfully so.  

2-13-07 x2

Took both classes again today. The first one was pretty easy because there were some new students there- and we basically did simple blocks and kicks. Second class was more involved- 'specially around forms.

I really need to start getting my stamina up more. I've been having trouble with getting tired quickly when I do kicks, forms and sparring. I've been working harder on my forms and kicks- but it still seems that I shouldn't get as tired as I have been lately. Better figure it out soon- only have less than two weeks until my tournament.

Knife Hand Blocks

Yesterday's class was good. Mr. Lafon's class is usually a pretty good workout. One thing I noticed that I really need to improve on is my knife hand blocks. I really need to get them down better. I often forget which leg to fold off of. Other than that- I just need to practice for my sparrng and work on peon 4 a little more.

2nd Green Stripe (x2 classes)

I earned my second stripe towards my green belt in class today. I also took the second class and got to improve on several things, including peon 4. Doing the forms over and over alot was pretty tiring, but much needed practice. I feel more confident about peon 4 each class that I take. Well- still working towards my tournament. I think I'll have peon 4 down good by then. Only a few more weeks.

1st green stripe

Today's class was a pretty good workout. My arms are still pretty tired. Got to work on katas a whole bunch. I feel like I am doing a lot better on some of them. I earned my 1st green stripe- so that was good.  Still have a ways to go before I get my green belt. But I'm feeling a lot better at the stuff for green.

5X lessons

Ok well I missed about a month of taekwondo because my car has been dead, and missed writing about 5 lessons since I got a new car because I've been lazy. Today's was good. I got to work plenty on Peon 4. I'm preparing for a tournament on the 24th of next month, so that'll be my form there. I'm feeling a lot better on it. I have a little less than a month to get it down though. So I guess I have plenty to focus on for the tournament and towards getting my green belt.

Back to Class!

After the holidays I finally went back to class thursday. I'd missed about a week of classes after the dojo started back up since my car has been broken. I'm working on getting a new one. I'm going to try and start going regularly again. I've been a little sluggish working out and training at home lately. AOK posted their schedule for 2007 so my next tournament will be on the 24th of february. If I have regular attendance I should be a green belt by then. I feel like I have missed a lot so I'm not completely positive. I believe that's when the next test will be. Late february Won't rush it- but I'll probably enter as intermediate anyways. It'll get some good practice that way, and I don't think I can transfer points from divisions if I started beginner and went to intermediate. Oh well- we'll just take it one step at a time. Anyways- class wasn't all that bad. I've been a little sore in my arms and the back of my legs, but not too bad. It's been several weeks but I still felt pretty flexible. Plus-side is that I already have my form down for my green belt.

An Orange Belt

Class was pretty good except a few things that I wasn't doing too well on. I got to practice Peon 4 more! I feel a lot better on it dispite not having the chance yet to practice it on my own at the house. I'm feeling pretty confident with it. There is a lot of things that I have to mentally make adjustments on compared to my other 3 forms. Other than that, I'm still waiting for the AOK schedule for 2007 to be posted so I can be prepared for certain tourney dates.

Orange Belt Test

2 o'clock was the time for today's belt test. There were 10 students including myself plus a black belt, getting his 2nd degree, who tested. I did okay until we got to the sparring. I just didn't have any energy at all, even before class started. I didnt' eat until 5 minutes until class- so I was already really shaky in my hands and legs. It wasn't an excuse for me not to give a great effort, but I just didn't do too well. I did well on my katas and self defense I suppose but I was exhausted for sparring and didn't too hot. I fought hard early, but normally I should have the energy to last longer. At the end I just couldn't kick or punch. I probably fought about 10 people or more, but in pretty short rounds. Next time I have a test, I'll have to make sure and eat earlier! I desire to earn everything that I get- but my performance can be summurized as just a bad day.

Orange Belt Test

2 o'clock was the time for today's belt test. There were 10 students including myself plus a black belt, getting his 2nd degree, who tested. I did okay until we got to the sparring. I just didn't have any energy at all, even before class started. I didnt' eat until 5 minutes until class- so I was already really shaky in my hands and legs. It wasn't an excuse for me not to give a great effort, but I just didn't do too well. I did well on my katas and self defense I suppose but I was exhausted for sparring and didn't too hot. I fought hard early, but normally I should have the energy to last longer. At the end I just couldn't kick or punch. I probably fought about 10 people or more, but in pretty short rounds. Next time I have a test, I'll have to make sure and eat earlier! I desire to earn everything that I get- but my performance can be summurized as just a bad day.

Ready to Test

Mr. Lafon signed my belt tonight signifying that I'm ready to test Saturday. He complemented me in front of everyone at the end of class about my improvements and how I did at my last tournament. It made all my hard work worth it. Nevertheless I have many areas that I, as a beginner martial artist, can improve on! In class we practiced our kicks on the bags while someone holds one- I feel like I did good on my kicks besides my step behind kicks. My side kicks seem to lack a lot of strength. I need to work on them some more! So I'll take off tomorrow and work on my blocks, my vocabulary, and most needed- my turn-kicks! I'm confident that I'll do well at the test- I can't wait to spar as well.

More Peon 4

After class Mr. Jorge ran through Peon 4 for me tonight. I'm having a couple of problems with a few parts, but I feel better about them now than I did before. When I first start learning new blocks and katas I seem to have some sort of mental block at first, but once I practice it enough I feel better and do better. My turn-kicks were better. Mr. Earl is always telling me to have a better chamber, better balance, and better aim on them- so there is proof my turn-kick isn't perfect, just in case anyone didn't know :) It's been my most challenging kick for some reason. Even my jump turn-kicks are easier. After class my friend Andrew and I worked on some sparring. I'm still hitting a bit too hard and my aim could use imrpovement! :) I believe I scored a good four fouls. I desperately need some practice in sparring.

Conditioning for Saturday

Basically just worked on things like Kebon 1 and Chon Ji, and things to prepare for saturday today. I can't wait. I'll probably go to class tomorrow and thursday this week. Just gotta keep working on improving for my test.

50th Post!

We didn't do sparring today, but we did a lot of one-steps and self-defense which was fun. I haven't started learning my one-steps yet, but I get to help out with the other student's at times. Other than that- I need to learn the student oath again. Everytime I learn it- I forget it. So I better just keep reviewing it. They asked me to recite it in class and I crashed and burned about half way through. I've got a little more than a week until I test for Orange!

Preparing for the 16th

After class today I talked a while to Mr. Jorge about him doing a sword class. Maybe he'll do it on tuesdays as a third class- that'd be pretty cool. If he does do a sword class, it'll probably be at the beginning of next year. I can't wait. Other than that- class was pretty much routine practice. I'm pretty much ready to test- don't know much to work on really. My turn-kicks could always use improvement- but other than that, not too much. I got to work more on my new kata. I almost have it down. Just need to practice that. I also can't wait to start sparring again. I'll get to sparr on my test, but it's not really practice as much as in class. I need to start preparing for my next tournament which will be sometime in January.

Frozen Fingers,,,,,

Well class was good. Just me and another student today- all due to the fact that it wasn't exactly the most nominal weather. But it was helpful since I got to learn a bunch of new kicks and all. I also got to go through Peon 4, my new form, again today. Mr. Jorge taught us both it. It's not nearly as difficult today as it was the other day. I've still got to figure out some parts on my own- but it's really cool. I can't wait to get it all down, it's really fun too :)

I didn't do too well today though. I guess my frustration from work has been carrying over too much into my martial arts and it's been showing when I learn new things and do turn kicks and my forms. Also, I hurt the back of my leg today doing kicks. I must have hypder-extended it or something. I think I pulled the ligament. I just need to relax, slow down, focus, and not get angry. Easier said than done- but worth noting for later improvement...

Jump Turn-Kicks

I didn't get to learn any more of my new kata in tonight's class- but I still got to improve on my other three that I have. It was a pretty helpful class. I can't wait to do more sparring and things like that. I wish we'd do more- but I guess I just have to be more patient. I've been practicing my jump turn-kicks and jump roundhouse kicks on the bag the last few days. I'm feeling a lot better about them. I'll probably be able to use jump turn-kicks in sparring, or variations of it- I've seen several people use them.

Monday Class

Another full class today. Started learning my new form for competitions! It's really a lot more advanced than the other 3 that I know. There are several more blocks, kicks and moves. It will be really fun once I get it down. Still preparing for the 16th when I test. I cant' wait.

Whoops- forgot to update...

Well after about two weeks of staying off my leg, I went back to karate tuesday. It was a really good lesson. I don't think I did as bad as I excpected to do. My Tan Gun was pretty sad but improved after a few times. Worked on some Jump turn kicks and jump round houses etc. I did fairly, not too great. I started to hit the bag again tonight. The first tournament of the year should be sometime in January- so I have some time to start improving. My Orange belt test is the 16th of December. I feel good about it. Have to work on some things- but I think I'm ready. I can't wait to start practicing sparring again.

Not Quite Limping...

Well I'm not limping much anymore, but I'm still a bit too sore to go back to class for about a week :/ The doctor says I shouldn't do any martial arts for at least a week. It feels better now than it did this morning. Sometimes it's hardly bad at all, and then sometimes it hurts a lot- I'll stay off it for a little while longer and not take any chances with it. I went to class after work today to pay Mr. Jorge for the month, and talk to him about the tournament etc. He told me that the next test is going to be on the 16th of next month. I'm pretty excited. I'm also really excited to get better so that I can start training for next year's tournaments. The next one should be in January. I plan on doing Forms, Sparring and Sword! It'll be fun.

Tournament Today

Today was the Grand Nationals Kido Tournament. In my division, I placed 1st in forms, and 3rd in sparring. It was really fun. My parents and my younger sister went with me to watch. The styles mostly were Hapkido, but there were a few others. The second most was probably Taekwondo.

In sparring, The guy that beat me placed 1st. It was weird- the weight divisions were 175 and under, and 176 and above, but I think since there weren't that many competitors in the Male 18-34 division, they just did Male 18-34- they didn't announce weight. So the guy I fought for 3rd, had to be heavy weight- but still was a beginner. It doesn't really matter now I guess- but man his kicks hurt! We kicked shins and I hurt a bit but was able to finish- but now I'm hobblin' around :) When I fought him we were tied and had sudden death. I started in a right stance, he changed- I changed to left, the round started and I went back for defense since he would punch, push me back and over and just get a point my tapping my head since he had the hieght advantage. Well he came over right punched, I moved back and spin kicked his open stomach! He hit me several times just on the head since he was bigger and everytime I'd go in he'd kick and then puch right and then push me over and tap the top of my head. The first guy I sparred was really good. He axed kicked me in the back of the head and back, and hit me in the face, but the main official later told me that no foul was called because it was accident. So oddly I didn't get a point for either foul! But it was okay I guess. He was a difficult opponent to kick.

In forms I performed Tan Gun. I felt really good. I probably did it too fast. Once I started I seemed to not think of anything at all- I felt like I happened to just get to the end somehow. I beat the guy that I also beat in sparring. He was pretty good. His style was Hapkido, so his form was a lot different. I thought I lost because the head judge gave his about 2 points higher than me- but I averaged more in the end. In all it was really fun and a great learning experience. I hope to enter the AOK events in January.

2 More Days!

Two more days until my tournament. I'm really excited about it- and have no idea how it's going to be. It'll be my first one so I'm kind of in the dark as to how things go. Some of the instructors have helped me the last few weeks with my sparring, Tan Gun and presenting myself in the ring in sparring and while doing my form. Mr. Lafon worked with me and the other students on sparring today. I never really feel too great after sparring him, but I think I'm making some progress. We'll see Saturday!

X2 Lessons

Saturday I helped out at the belt test with self defense and some sparring. I didn't get to stay the whole time again because of work- but it was still pretty fun. Last night Mr. Jorge helped me work on my kata and presenting my self etc., for the tournament this saturday. I'm really excited about it. Still need to work on a few things. Today in Mr. Earl's class I earned my second stripe to my Gold Belt. That's pretty good. Stll need to improve on so many things!

Waiting until the 11th

Been preparing for next saturday. I'm really pumped about it. I've been working on my double spin kicks. Kick high/low, kick low/high. I've been working on turn kicks, jump turn kicks, my turn jump spin kick etc. I've also been working on my hands with my punches, and getting in and out quick. It's tough to practice just on the bag. I need to practice sparring with someone but haven't gotten the chance in class lately. Tonight was pretty routine with focus on those testing tomorrow. I won't be able to make the full class because of work, but I'll try and come and help out still.

I need to start working on my combos and thinking how I'll use defensive techniques. It's really hard to practice on a bag and not with someone as well. Hope I'll do good.

No sparring tonight..

Wow- when you write an entry for every class, anything new tends to be slow. Nothing too new last night. Was hoping that Mr. Lafon would help me with sparring- but surprisingly it was a really big class for thursday night. I'm still working on Tan Gun for next Saturday. I'm pretty excited about it. I hope I have it down in time.

Preparing

Yesterday I found out about a tournament that's being held here in Dallas on the 11th, so I got the information on it and am preparing to go! I didn't think there were anymore this year close to me- but this one is on the perfect time since I am off work already and don't need to worry about requesting off. So a few of my instructors are going to be helping me prepare for this one. I am going to be doing Sparring, and I'll also be doing Tan Gun for my form. I got to work on Tan Gun a little bit tonight. I don't feel great about it since I've only done it about 4 times, but Mr. Jorge and Mr. Wilson said it looks good so far- but I think I can improve. We'll see...

Turn Kick Break Through!

Well dispite being a really crowded class today, Mr. Jorge and Josh were able to figure out what I was doing wrong with my turn kicks. Josh gave me some good pointers on them and I did much better with them in class including my turn kick combos. I practiced them some once I got home and I feel much more confident now. My problem was that I was chambering too late and turning my body and hips too far around before I started to kick, causing me to be off balanced etc. Now I actually can't wait to practice them.

Well other than that- I've just been working on Tan Gun, Chon Ji, sparring a little and just working on the bag at home.

All of Tan Gun

In Mr. Jorge's class we did a lot of vocabulary and katas today. I got all of Tan Gun down tonight! It doesn't seem too bad- just have to get it all memorized mentally and need to feel comfortable with it. I'm really excited about it. I'll probably do this one or the next one for my first tournament if I get to go to one at the beginning of the year. If I do tournaments, I really need to work on increasing my stamina. I'll probably start doing some roller hockey again once I get my gear back from school. That or I can probably buy a bike- since I don't enjoy long distance running! Either way I'm really excited about it all!

Preparing For Tournaments

I asked Mr. Lafon today if he would help me prepare for tournaments in sparring and he said yes! I'm pretty excited. I am planning on doing forms and weapon forms, but I also want to do sparring. I've thought about it a bunch and it seems like it would be really neat- I enjoy sparring in class, so sparring for awards and all sounds cool. So in class we worked a lot on stances, the dynamics in my forms and some sparring. Worked on blocking some too. Whenever I spar an upper blet- 'specially an instructor I seem to not do as well- I mean in the fact that "I" personally don't do as well- I don't seem to go as fast or smart as when I spar the other students. Mr. Lafon said I "tighten up" guess I've got to relax. Think I'm just worried that anything that i've got won't work and such, Luckily I won't be sparring any black belts at tournaments for a while!

Tuesday Class

Did pretty decent in class until I got to turn kicks and turn kick combos. I started out okay on the turn kicks, but the more I did them the worst they got. Once I started doing the roundhouse/turn kick and turnkick/rounhouse combos, I messed up a lot. I just get really frustrated in class with my turn kicks. I want to do them and actually succeed instead of just practicing them. They are definately my most difficult kick for some reason.

Learned a little bit of sword tonight after class. Mr. Jorge ran me through some short sword exercises that were about 8 or so moves- they're kind of tough, but are neat once you get them down. I can't wait to start fully training for some tournaments.

First Gold Stripe

I earned my first gold stripe today- that's pretty exciting- get me closer to learning more things and improving on what I already know. I've been kind of frustrated with my lack of imrpovement in certain areas and am feeling kind of stagnant lately- like with my turn kicks and such. I'm working on them but I know I can improve a lot! Mr. Jorge says my Chong Ji looks better- just need to work on my front stances- go figure- I was thinking that my back stances weren't good, but it was the opposite. I'm going to speak with Mr. Lafon thursday about possibly training me and helping me prepare for sparring for tournaments soon. Mr. Jorge says that if him and Ms. Tammy do- it'll probably be in January sometime. That's likely when I'll start learning sword consequatively as well.

Two Lessons

Well I forgot to write about my two recent lessons. Took Mr. Lafon's class and Mr. Jorge's regular class friday. He's still covering for one of the intructors on Monday's so I've been taking that one as well.

Lately I've just been working on a few things. I'm working on a turn kick- jump spin kick, it's getting better. Figured I could use some better kicks for sparring. I talked to Mr. Jorge about helping me prepare for some tournaments, and he said that they could probably do that, and I'll probably start working on that in Janurary along with learning more sword. I've been practicing that kata as welll- it's coming along pretty nicely. I'm still not quite comfortable with the beginning, but I'll get it down. My Chon Ji feels much better as well- I just need to practice my back stances.

More New Faces

There were about 4 new kids in class today, so everything was pretty basic. Mr. Earl did let me and two of the other belts do our katas and some more advanced kicks and blocks, but everything still was pretty simple. I'm hoping my next class will be a little more in depth. My Chon Ji is feeling a lot better than before- I've got to work on my back stances still a little bit still. I'm feeling better about them. And my turn kicks in class felt much more improved today. Can't wait until next class!

Home Practice

Today's class was much bigger than I expected it being. I was about 15 minutes late again but still joined. It was pretty good. There was some new faces too. Been working a little on my knife hand blocks and my turn kicks. I have been practicing the turn kicks a little on the bag and so that's helped a lot already! I think I'll be more confident sooner or later with them. I also worked a little bit on my new form Tan Gun today. I think I've got some of the moves down pretty much. I just need to practice it over a few hundred times- haha.

New Stuff Today

Today I attempted to learn two new blocks and part of a new kata. I learned two knife hand blocks (which I think I'm finally getting down.) I don't remember the name of the new kata- but it kind of puts some moves from kebon 1 and chon ji in there. I like it so far. I wanted to go tomorrow but I don't think I'll be able to make it. So I've got plenty of time to practice my new stuff until my next class. I tried practicing my sword kata but forgot a couple of steps again! I'm really bad right now at remembering moves.

Improved turn kicks

Well my turn kicks have finally improved slightly. Not enough to use successfully in sparring yet- but enough to get excited over apparently :) Got to learn some moves to get out of a head lock. So that and self defense was fun yesterday. I need to work on my chon ji and my sword kata today.

"Hangin' in there"

Well despite a very busy day at work I decided to go to class tonight. It went much better than the last one- or at least my performance. I still was a little slow in performing my katas but eventually got the folds down. My chong ji needs some major improvement still though. My turn kicks felt slightly better- but nothing is enough to test with everyone else by next month. That's good though- I really need to thoroughly improve my kicks and all. I'm working on it.

A wreck today...

I was a disaster in today's class. I just couldn't seem to concentrate, relax, and focus. I just kept getting frustrated with this kick, that kick etc, and I couldn't seem to think straight. My katas were even worse- I kept mixing up kebon 1 and chon ji and my inside out blocks with my down blocks. I guess it's from being so stressed out from work the last few weeks- it's really shown the past couple of days. I just need to rest and relax and think about what I have to do instead of just getting frustrated. I need to practice more at home as well- I haven't gotten much of a chance this week.

Turn kick trouble...

Maybe it was the combined accumulation of several frustrations that got me today- but whatever the reason was, my turn kicks were so aggrivatingly bad in class. I just feel very comfortable with the left turn on my right foot- but the opposite is just getting me down. Mr. Jorge sold me a standing punching bag so that should help with my practice. At least my back stances and inside out, and outside in blocks seem to have improved a little bit. I know I need to do better on my figuring out my folds in Chon ji- but my turn kicks just make me look like the inexperienced gold belt that I am.
After class Mr. Jorge taught me some more sword techniques and ran me through some short sword katas about 8 moves each. I think I've got the first kata down pretty good as far as the memory part is concerned- now I can focus on the details. I'm pretty excited about the sword!

Late Again...

I was late for class again today because I was held up at work- luckily Mr. Lafon was kind enough to still let me join despite my 20 minute tardiness! He was pretty cool about it, and just had me warm up on my own since they had been well past that part of the class. 20 minutes is really late for anything, but I didn't want to miss his class since he only teaches once a week.
Anyways, only after two days of being shown how- I now have Chon Ji memorized! I need to work on my back stances big time- but at least now I can practice at home. Obviously not having a form memorized makes it difficult for one to practice it at home. I'm pretty excited about it though. My turn kicks also are screaming for improvement!

Gold Belt!

Today I finally earned my 10th Gup Gold belt. Here's a picture after I received my belt...

One More Day...

One more day until I test for Gold! I got the chance today to again improve my kata, my kicks, and my stances today. I also got to spar some. Mr. Jorge gave me some really good pointers for sparring and I learned a lot today. One of the things he told me was that I should use a turn kick probably as a second kick like after a roundhouse etc., and not first because it will then be easier for the opponent to see which he did when I was sparring with him. I guess there are some times when it would be good by itself, but if you're attacking then something first would be good. Of course a turn kick is good as a defensive kick by itself.

After regular class Mr. Jorge gave me a sword lesson which was cool. I'm working on a sword kata he showed us last week and I've almost got it down. Memorizing forms are pretty difficult for me at first. I can't wait until I can do a duel sword kata. That's really my goal, to be able to do two swords better than one. I might start out and enter some tournaments here in Dallas at the beginning of next year with just one sword. I'll probably sign up for sparring eventually as well. It should be fun!

Chon Ji

Yesterday we had an excellent set of classes. Mr. Jorge and Mr. Lafon taught one and helped with the other's lesson. We worked a lot on katas, and I got to learn my new form Chon Ji! It doesn't seem too difficult- I just need to get used to the back stances. It's pretty much Kebon 2 since it's simular. Well other than that- Mr. Jorge and Mr. Lafon both agreed I'm ready to test, and confirmed that I will test in class tuesday! I can't wait.

Ready For My Gold Belt

I took the two classes today. Ms. Tammy's still on vacation so Mr. Jorge taught hers and then I took Mr. Earl's class afterwards. I'm still having trouble on my Turn kicks but they have improved slightly. When I turn on my right foot I feel really comfortable now, but the left side is giving me some trouble. I can't seem to turn around completely enough. Other than that I have been getting improvement the height of my roundhouse and front leg spin kicks! I'm doing a little better and moving my foot so the heel of my back leg points to my target- whereas before I wasn't able to do it together with the kick. Also my kata is improving and Mr. Jorge says that all I really need to fix is my stance when I turn with my left foot- to make it wider. I got to teach one of the new students the first 8 moves of Kebon 1 today- so that's reassuring that Mr. Jorge thought that I was good enough on it to instruct someone else!

Mr. Jorge and Mr. Wilson said that I'm definately ready to test for my gold belt! I may have to wait for another student but they said that I'll likely test tuesday in one week. I'm pretty excited. After that I imagine I'll get to learn the next kata soon. I'm really excited about not being a white belt anymore!

3rd Stripe!

Today I finally earned my final stripe for the white belt! I'm not cleared to test yet, but I plan on going to class tomorrow and so I should probably find out then. Today we worked on improving my kata- Mr. Jorge says that all that needs to be improved is my stance a little bit. I still need to widen it some. I'm pretty excited. Hopefully I won't have to wait too long now to get my Gold Belt- I'm looking forward to learning the next kata and the rest of the kicks or whatever.

Duel Sword Kata!

My straight class attendance ended today at 7. Not too bad- I'll miss tomorrow because my brother, my sister in law, and my older sister are coming over to celebrate his birthday. Not too bad of a sacrifice- it'll be great to see them. So my straight attendance was 7 out of 8 possible classes of the week. I feel like it was really productive though I'm not sure I'll always get the luxury of attending every class- or would want to!

I talked to Mr. Jorge after class and he said that it's possible that I might be able to have an in-class belt test instead of waiting until mid-october! I'm really excited about that, and my weapons class. Since I'll be working until 1pm on Saturdays, Mr. Jorge said that he might be able to stay later on a tuesday or thursday or saturday and teach me sword. I'm planning on learning this so that I can make my own duel sword kata for some of the tournaments here in the Dallas metro! No one really does sword for the weapon forms at tournaments, and if they do- it's only a single sword. So I'm really excited about that!

Sword Kata

Ms. Tammy and Mr. LaFon were not there today so Mr. Jorge took over their classes for them. In the first class we worked on regular stuff like kicks, in which I desperately need to improve my turn kick, and then we worked some on katas. By the time we got to the next class we spent about another 25-30 minutes on katas. I spent a lot of time on Kebon 1! After that- we spent the rest of the time working on sword techniques, and then Mr. Jorge taught us a sword kata. It was really interesting and not too dificult. I'm really excited about taking sword. I'm not too interested in the other weapons, so sword is pretty neat.

6 lessons down- 2 to go.

New Set of Blocks

In Mr. Jorge's class I learned how to do the inside out block and the outside in block. The inside out one is pretty easy, but the other one is sort of hard- 'specially going backwards. I think I'll be able to figure it out better in practice. I did much better just starting out with these than I did with my down and up blocks! Other than that I'm feeling much better about my kata. Hopefully I'll recieve my Gold belt soon!

Ms. Tammy's and Mr. Wilson's Class

Three down, six to go. I took both classes today. In Ms. Tammy's class we focused a lot on knife defense. After several moves and practice on me- my wrists kind of hurt! But it was useful. I learned several new moves to defend against someone with a knife- it was pretty fun too. In Mr. Wilson's class I worked on the finer details on my kicks, stances and my kata especially. I feel much more confident about my Kebon 1. It still has some work- but I feel ready to test soon. Mr. Wilson said perhaps Mr. Jorge will test me in class for my Gold belt- if not I may have to wait until next month. I shouldn't be too anxious- because I can always refine my skills before moving on, by practice.

Mr. Josh's Class

Josh taught class today since Mr. James wasn't able to make it. It went pretty well. We hit some bags, worked on katas a little bit and then worked on swords. This week I'm going to try and go to as many classes as possible. One down- 8 to go!

2nd Stripe Earned!

Today I took Ms. Tammy's class, and then I took Mr. LaFon's class afterwards. In Ms. Tammy's class, we worked on proper falling and rolling techniques, then we did sparring! I really like the sparring but I still have to work on not being too agressive. Right now I'm not agressive enough on self defense, but sparring I am. I've got to get my fundamentals and techniques down etc. Then in Mr. LaFon's class we worked on sparring techniques, grappling, and katas. I earned my 2nd stripe in his class. For now I have to work mainly on being more intense in my Kebon 1, and getting my front stances down better.

Mr. Jorge's Class

Yesterday I took the wednesday class taught by Mr. Jorge. For some reason wednesdays have been the busiest class of the week. We had about 13 students there- it was kind of crowded- but still good. We worked on several kicks, got to improve my turn kicks and roundhouse kicks, and we worked on our katas. I feel like I am getting a lot better, or at least more confident with Kebon 1. After class I talked some with Mr. Jorge about me improving and where I can. He said that I will probably test with the rest of the students next month and october and that he'll space out the rest of my stripes until then. So until then I can work on improving my kicks, self defense, kata, and everything else that I have learned so far. I start my new job at the bank next wednesday, so I should be able to see how I can manage taekwondo around it- fortunately the dojo is about 5 minutes down the road from the bank. Well other than that- today I'm going to take Ms. Tammy's and Mr. Lafon's class. Hopefully we'll do sparring!

First Stripe Earned!

Well today I finally earned my first stripe on my white belt- which doesn't mean I'm not a super beginner anymore, it just means I'm one step closer to earning my gold belt. Class was really good for me today. I often leave feeling like I could do so much better on certain things, but I'm learning to just be patient instead of expecting a new stripe often or some sort of greatness without time and practice. Some things do come naturally to some etc, but everyone has to be patient and practice. I learned to do a back stance with the up block and down block. I also learned how to do a turn kick. They're pretty hard at first, but I like them. I still like the roundhouse kicks the best! We did a turn kick and roundhouse combo- those were really fun. Like what Lisa Wise says in her taekwondo blog, I also am starting to realize how little I really know about martial arts, and am humbled by my own simple knowledge. I guess it's like many things in life. Like a Painting; from a distance off it seems to blend all together, but when you take a closer look at it, you can see all the little strokes and jots that make up the work, and then the more you observe, the more you notice, and the more you notice, you realize how much you didn't know about art at all. Maybe that's a bad example.

Grappling

Today at Ms. Tammy's class we did self defense and grappling. I learned a lot. On a lot of the moves that I've been taught- I've got to work on not being so reluctant. There's always this worry that I'll pull too hard or something and hurt the person I'm practicing with. I'll try and work on that. Grappling did turn out to be more fun than I thought it would be. We started practicing on our knees. I won a couple of rounds! I was once again the example of several moves to use in front of the class. They showed us this achilles heal move, which I have yet to be able to perform, and a couple of other ones. The achilles one hurt a lot! Besides that- I'm still working on attaining my first stripe for the white belt. I've been trying to go to as many classes as possible a week. This week I attended 4 classes. I got a new job today, but I REALLY hope that it doesn't effect taekwondo any.

Two Classes

Yesterday I decided to take two classes in one day. The first was Ms. Tammy's class, and the second was Earl Wilson's. We did basic stuff, pretty much everything besides sparring. Practiced roundhouse kicks and blocks a lot. But mostly the instructors worked on me with my kata trying to improve my punches and my folds. I stayed after class again and Mr. Jorge and Mr. Wilson helped explain how to improve my kata etc. My stance is usually always too narrow and too shallow- so I have to mentally take note of that every time I do a down block or punch etc. But if I keep practicing it should become more natural. Other than that- I'm working on obtaining my gold belt. I've been kind of impatient because I feel like I know all of the stuff a gold belt should know, but I shouldn't be so anxious, there is always room for improvement. Especially in my aiming when I step behind side kick, and my kata in general!

Keep going-

Today after work, I took Larry James' class. He seemed to focus on warming up and self defense a lot. We worked on the finer details on our blocks and kicks etc. I wish that we had worked on katas since I actually know mine :) But it was okay- it's good to work on everything, and not just this or that. I haven't earned my first stripe on my white belt yet, but I'm working on it. Can't let it frustrate me- just gotta keep going. Tomorrow I plan on taking Ms. Tammy's class.

Busy Day!

Wow- today was a busy day. I got up to the dojo at 10am and took the morning class with Mr. Jorge. I think we went until 12. After a couple of the students helping me out a bunch- I FINALLY have Kebon 1 down! I'm pretty excited about that since I totally wasn't getting it. Then after lunch break, I came back and Mr. Jorge taught me some basic techniques for sword. Then at 1, we had the belt tests for the white and green belts. I got to help out with self defense and sparring for some of the students- that was pretty cool. It made me pretty excited about when I test! I think the next belt test will be in october sometime. So until then I have a lot to work on. I've got to perfect my kata, improve my combinations, 'specially while sparring, and work on my stances etc. Also- I'm still working on my goal to be able to do the splits by the time I get my yellow belt.

Mr. LaFon's Class x2!

Today I took Mr. LaFon's class for the second time. It was really good. We did some down blocks and up blocks. And I learned how to turn around and block (whatever you call it.) Then the rest of the class we did sparring and a little bit of Katas. Mr. LaFon was trying to get me to do combinations in sparring- I didn't do too bad, but I have A LOT of room for improvement! He bopped me a couple of times. Mr. Jorge than helped me to get Kebon 1 down a little bit more after class which helped a lot. Other than that- I'm going to try and stop by the dojo on my lunch break from work to pick up my uniform. I'm also going to go Saturday and watch the belt tests and try and get an idea of what I'll have to be doing to earn my gold belt soon.

Ms. Tammy's Class

Well today I took Ms. Tammy's class. It was pretty tough- we did PT mostly. We did a whole bunch of fitness type stuff practicing punches, kicking etc! I was pretty wiped out at the end of the class. It was really good for me though- I needed it. Also- a very good note. I started learning my first Kata. I'm pretty excited even though I don't really remember much of it. I wish I could video tape my lessons so that if I am taught something new, I could just watch the video tape of them showing me and I could practice at home. It would really help me with my learning. Oh well. Gotta just live with it and learn just like everyone else has. My splits have been coming along a little better. My front splits, or whatever you call them, aren't that great, but my side splits are improving! I'm about 2 and a half inches from the ground.

Signing Up

Well today I went back to GKD again, this time I got to sign up. I should get my uniform this coming Friday. Today we worked on some more kick and punch combinations and up blocks. I finally got the down blocks down pretty confidently, but I'm still working on the up blocks. It is kind of hard to think of all you have to do and then do it right away, but with some practice by myself I should have it by my next class.
So far though I think physically the most challenging thing for me, oddly enough, has been the stretches. Most of the leg stretches have been focusing on the splits from side to side, and I haven't really ever been good at those :) But I am getting a LOT better each day that passes. My goal is to be able to do the splits by the time I get my yellow belt, whether side splits or the forward ones. I really need to start setting goals for myself so that I can maintain my training and not quit. One thing that I have been bad about is not finishing things. I need to stick with it and hang in there. I can't quit now that I have started and I purpose not to quit! My ultimate goal is getting a black belt, but I MUST take it one step at a time- or rather- one belt at a time.

Second Day

Well today- despite being sore from yesterday, sunburnt from work, (my dumb ol' fault for not wearing sun block) and going in shorts, I took my second lesson at the Greenville Karate Dojo today. I borrowed some pants from the academy. Anyways- it went really well. I really liked it. This lesson was taught by Roy LaFon and assisted by his son Cody. Yesterday's was taught by Jorge Elizondo. We worked on some kicks, low blocks (I'm finally getting it down) and some other things. I should probably have my uniform by next Saturday when some of the students test. Pretty much everyone has been wearing t-shirts with the TKD pants since it has been very hot lately- so I don't seem too out of place. My pants look like the martial arts kind anyways. But that aside- it doesn't make me look much less of a dork :) I'll try and go again tomorrow after I get off of work. Then I'll pay to start up and for my uniform. I'm really excited!

Starting Out....

Well today I checked out the Taekwondo Dojo in Greenville. It went pretty good. The lesson was about an hour and fifteen minutes long. Dispite being desperately new to martial arts, I don't think I was too aweful. There was a few lower ranked belts there. Everything but a couple of concepts were pretty easy to figure out. I'll try and go back Tomorrow or/and the next day to follow up and pay my startup fee and get my uniform. What's really surprising is how cheap it is to train. The lessons at this dojo are about $50 a month. I was paying almost that per week for violin and theory lessons. It's definately a lot more affordable than most sports as well.