BellaOnline Forums Health and Fitness Martial Arts Why did you start Martial Arts?

Hey all,
In my first new article in awhile, I spoke about why I started martial arts. I'm curious to hear from others what their reasons are. If you'd like to share, please post away here!

Welcome back Caroline. It's nice to see you here again.
I've been impressed over the years by certain people I've met and these people were all Martial Artists. I've been very curious for a long time so I've done some different courses/workshops. When a self-defense course was being offered at a dojo in the next town , I took the big step of going by myself and taking his class. There were 5 of us who said we would continue, but we didn't really care about the rank and 2 of us are still there 3 years later and we both have our blue belts. I have learned so much in that period of time. I even have sparred (in my day, girls didn't fight) with the younger and faster women. I'll never win but I have a grand time trying.
Glad you are back
Britty's mom

Britty's mom,

Thanks for sharing. Workshops and courses are a great way to get introduced to different styles of Martial Arts without making a huge investment before you decide upon the one.

Congrats on sticking to it and getting your blue belt. I know what you mean about not caring about rank. I had a debate with one of my head instructors about it long ago. There's actually an article about it in the archives.

I'm going to be cliche here but I think you've already won by recognizing that it's about having a good time and taking the time to learn; not just about winning or losing.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to chat some more later!

I began martial arts primarily to keep my two young sons focused and feeling like a family. I was divorced with a 10 and 12 year old. There father had nothing to do with them so I enrolled us all in karate. We even participated in Statewide competiton and won medals in sparring, kata, and kumate. Lots of fun and good experience for me and my sons. It also helped them with their confidence.

Nancy,

Thanks for sharing! It's a great idea to start as a family and helps keep the momentum going. Do you three still practice?

Pretty much from the start. There are always things you can perfect outside your dojo. Depending what you're studying form, stance, movements, falls, katas and all basic moves can be practiced on your own. I like to practice a few things I've learned in class on the next day, so that it stays fresh in my mind. You're going to need a partner to test the effectiveness of a technique, but practicing the form outside the dojo will help you get that mind/body connexion faster.

Good advise Dubois. Making the time to do the review outside of the formal class time really does reflect on how well you do in the dojo.

lol...I originally was the mom sitting in the back of the room watching my sons. The sensei would always say..."come on and join us you can do this" I had alot of doubt at first, but the boys wanted me to join and deep down I always wanted to join, so I did that was 7 years ago. I feel martial arts is a great thing because it is a personal achievement. I had told her (our sensei) that I never wanted to test...haha..that didnt last long the feeling of achieving something has been great