Hi Supergroup

Supergroup, you are going to have a post just for you. Thank you for the huge reply.

My karate is a full contact style. I talked with my Sempai how much power I can hit them. They said I should focus on technique first and power later.

Actually, I’ve been training for 6 ½ months. The first two was at college for about 45 min. two times a week. Then, I’ve been at the dojo for 4 ½ months. Sorry, I was a little off with my calculations. I had to look in my journal to see when I exactly joined.

Actually, now I’m 6th kyu because I became a green belt on the last day of Gasshuku. You are right though. I have just about jumped from 9th to 6th kyu in four months. So, I did a kyu level almost a month. I didn’t realize how fast I’m moving through the ranks. Man, I’m flying. However, Gassuhuku added four months to my training because of the intensity and the longevity of it. So if you count Gassuhuku, I’ve been training for 10 ½ months theoretically.

You say it takes at least a year for the average person to get to the level of training where I’m at. I believe you because I heard that a 50 year old stayed as a white belt for a year. However, I thought that it was because of her age. When you say that I might be asking too much of myself, that doesn’t surprise me because I have done that in the past with school work. It was so bad that a teacher was very concerned with me not having fun because I was too concentrated with my homework.

You are right that my training has become a harsh and rocky path. You have asked me what my personal reasons for training and studying karate are. I have realized that question has come up in karatekorner many a time. I’ve asked myself what motivates me to train in karate. I’ve realized that it’s just the pure love of karate. I love karate so much is that I think and even obsess about it every day. In addition, some parts of karate is fun and entertaining. For example, I learned some Bunkai Oyo for a kata that I didn’t even know. It was fun because I got to work with some high black belts. I made the tap out with different techniques, such as an arm bar, and attacked them when they were down on the ground. That was fun.

Anyway, you ask what my goals for training in karate are. I don’t really have any goals. I know I want to continue with my training and eventually become a black belt. My most important reason is that I go to the dojo is to learn and train in karate. Making friends, working on mental control, developing healthy exercise regime, and learning self-defense are all consequences of going to the dojo.