Well - I wouldn't want to get into a "my style is tougher than yours type thing", and I haven't seen any other BB gradings. But I do know it is a mark of respect in ours.
Pfft - I can sell you a black belt after an hour of training. Congratulations, you now have a black belt. BUT - you are not a black belt, just because you've got a belt of the colour black, if you get my drift... There is a saying: It's not the final destination that is interesting, but the road getting there. That's the story of doing martial arts. Of course, you've got this goal in the future somewhere, in this case the Black Belt, but that shouldn't stop you from enjoying your yellow belt, or your green belt, or your first competition, or the ninetieth time you do a pattern. Enjoy the martial arts, not the rush for the Black Belt. It's actually a disappointment getting it, because you realize that you don't know it all, and that you still need to practice...
I have been training in sandokia karate for about 2 years or more and have achieved 3 kyu (blue belt) so in about a year and a half (if I trian hard) i could achieve 1 dan. but I know someone who got too 1 dan in six years. he was quite small when he started though and he says he didn't seriously start training when he was about 4 kyu. so it all depends on how hard you train.
Tittan, that's a good point! Enjoy the other coloured belts too! Other belts that are cool: Green: Usually around the half-way mark in karate, so you get to feel "I'm half way there"! I was really chuffed when I got my green belt. Red: Becuase the ninja turtles used to wear red in the comic books you kinda get that "I'm a ninja turtle" vibe when you get a red belt. Also, becuase it's used as a high rank in some arts (e.g. some judo masters get a red and white belt) you can kinda pretend to yourself that you're a MA master! Brown: If you squint a bit, or the lighting's a bit off in photos, you can look like you've got a black belt! Also, everyone knows that brown belt is "quite good" in martial arts, so people are always a bit impressed if you've got a brown belt (not as impressed as a black belt, but you still get a bit of the "oooh" factor). So, yeah, it's worth enjoying the other belts as you go along!
Actually the biggest nerd is me I think... Donatello has the purple bandana and fights with a Bo Staff Leonardo has the blue bandana and fights with the Katanas Michelangelo is the orange one and uses Nunchakus while Raphael is the red one, he uses the Sai :woo:
I've got you ALL beat, not only was I a huge fan as a kid, but now at 26 I have all four figures standing on top of my DVD player in the living room AND named the sai form I did at our club tournament Raphael as a testiment to the Ninja Turtles making me interested in the Martial Arts all those years ago
Karateka andy-2 yrs? when i trained kyokushinkai full-time bb was possible in 3 yrs but only theoretically, following a written syllabus which details technical requirements for each belt & the time interval between gradings, it is entirely possible to predict attaining bb, but!!!!!!!!! you then assume passing every grading, etc etc . average time was 5 yrs in kyokushin in my opinion regards, yann
On topic It's not he number of years. It's more like the hours put in and it's the hard hours put in that count. If you train 3 times a week for an hour it might be 5 years. If you train 3 times a week for 1,5 - 2 hours it might be 3 years. If you train 5-6 times a week for 3 hard hours it might be a year. But getting to be a black belt was wicked fun. All the mistakes. Getting better knowing the stances learning body mechanics. Is getting there. The worst and the hardest trainings I have had where after that dan grading. Knowing where to place your hip is good. Knowing how to place your hip is better. Knowing how and why to place your hip like that for more power in diffrent ways is realy what comes after black belt. Knowing many hip action techinques and knowing when to use each is advanced level. Thats only for the hip. So try it out you might love it. Best regards Kerling
The time to get a black belt should not be mattered in minutes, but on the blood sweat and tears that a student pours into his or her style. Just work as hard as you can, and you'll get it in no time.
Hi Kerling, While there is some truth that someone who trains more intensely will get to the same level faster, I don't think it's quite as linear as you portray. I think after a certain intensity level, you reach a kind of plateau where training harder/longer just doesn't yield as much reward in terms of improvement of technique. Instead, you start to suffer greatly from fatigue, are plagued by various aches and pains, and are much more prone to injury. Many techniques and concepts simply take time to filter in and for your body and mind to "get" them. A skilled black belt can show you the proper technique for a reverse punch in a few minutes. Throwing 100000 reverse punches over the next month is unlikely, in my opinion, to get you anywhere close to his level (though you will likely get stronger arms and shoulders in the process). Throwing the same number of reverse punches over 4-5 years will get you a lot closer. This is why most martial arts have the strong emphasis on basics, and why the black belt who's been teaching for 25 years still keeps practicing his reverse punch. I'm not saying don't train intensely... it would be totally hypocritical of me to say so (have been training ~ 8 h a week or so for the past two years, a bit less intensely before that). But realise that some time is needed as well as the concentration and intensity to truly reach the next level. I would be hugely skeptical of the skill level of a one year black belt, even if he did nothing BUT martial arts. Besides, it's a good thing to have balance in your life (family, work, school, etc.); few of us are professional warriors anymore.
