To answer the op If you train karate 3 hours a week and it takes 5 years to get black belt then it will take 5 years to get to a similar level in Thai if trained 3 hours a week Why so bothered about belt colour? Iv had blackbelts come to my Thai gym and throw up at the warm up while guys training 6 month are laughing at them
I don't know. I was under the impression, that unless you got to McDOjos, when people give you a black bet, you most likely earned it as your skills progressed to a certain level of mastery. Most people think a black belt means something. Maybe it doesn't. Now I'm sure those little kiddie clubs like to give away belts so their customers can feel a sense of achievement and so they can attract more business, but I just thought if you go to a good school they will only give you a black belt if you really earned it, if you know what I mean. Maybe I'm wrong, I've never done martial arts before. Probably Will be doing BJJ soon.
Ok man, I'll bite. What is your definition of "chi"? What is your definition of "zen"? How exactly are they related or "in motion next to each other"? From my limited understanding of the Chen communities and my limited definition of "chi", there is no motion between the two.
It should be pointed out that in most cases 5 years of karate like that vs 5 years of muay thai are probably going to do very different things to people That was the original idea behind them, that a BB shows you've got a grasp of the training to a more acceptable level than someone who doesn't have a BB (mentally as much as physically in many cases) and that "your education really begins" then. The reality of it is that most clubs, even clubs where the instructors say they care about standards, usually give them away just for a rough idea of the physical performance of the technique rather than because they are "good". The judgement calls most people put into determining what the "black belt level" for their club is also changes horribly between clubs. Then of course there's the consideration of bills to pay. As far as I'm concerned, it only matters as long as you feel that the colour of the fabric around your waste does anything to represent your level of training, understanding, ability to perform and willingness to be honest about your training. It has very much become one of those things that everyone does for not much more reason than "everyone else does it". A good club should make you wait and earn it IMO, but the idea of earning a belt is something that changes radically and is really perspective. There's a guy near me who after 6 years of training has got his BB who performs at a lower standard to guys who had been training under a year I've gotten to know. He only trains once a week for 1.5 hours a time and has absolutely diabolical technique, movement, cannot perform the forms properly at all, has even less understanding of what the movements represent, can't apply nearly any of his techniques in sparring - but if you ask him about his gradings, he'll tell you that because he got battered a little and stuck it out this long, he earned them. Never done BJJ, looks like a lot of fun.
You start a thread on Muay Thai and Karate, but you're starting BJJ soon...let us know when you're done wasting our time.
I changed my mind after I found out some things. I was originally going to do ,uay thai for weight loss but that's out the window.
To answer the OP: probably the same as to how long you can reach black belt in Judo or BJJ. when the art's ranking is competition based, victory usually seals the deal. you might earn it by rank in time/service, but itll take a looooong time...
Whatever style you choose Look at the clubs FIGHTERS Have they got good fighters? If so then crack on
It is good advice from Daggers,Its not easy to get a lad from novice to A class it takes time,patience and the correct knowledge
Been a while since ive been around but in the whole time ive been here, this is probably the first troll thread ive seen in the Thai boxing section!
i really don't think you can draw a parallell of "the equivilant of a black belt in muay thai". they are just radically different disciplins. that, and a black belt doesn't mean the same thing for every person.
well, its official. I visited a class for kempo karate from Okinawa japan. I liked it. I will be training in about a week or two. Is affordable on my 35,000 a year salary, only 50 dollars a month. No contract. And the moves are real cool. Ive taken yalls advice and will start training. The moves looked real cool. And they do have sparring and its not tournament sparring.
the teacher told me to punch him in the stomach as hard as I can and it didn't budge or bother him a bit. wow.
Not really unique to the art, has to do with the individuals conditioning, you will find people capable of this in meany different sports. On a side note, congratulations on finding an art that interest you, train hard and have fun. Maybe start a training log and keep us posted on your progress.
in my opinion, i would say that oldschool 'traditional' karate, or okinawa-te from way back in the day before karate had colored belt ranks, was in many ways similar and almost indistinguishable from traditional muay thai apart from the native language and dresscode, i think much of the training, at least in body conditioning, was the same in both arts, with many similar punches and kicks, and just like back then i would say that today what matters most is the individual, since neither style is really better than the other
Dress code wasn't that different - most people who practiced to-di basically just wore shorts, just like most people who practice muay thai in a lot of vids you see. The addition of the gi was also a much later addition, though it is fabulously comfortable. As far as I can tell, the main thing is more about the philosophy, certain techniques and a lack of hemp rope tied round the fists. That's about it.
