numskul
11-04-2008, 12:01
Hi, everyone. Since I am new to the site I thought I should follow the suggestion to drop in here and introduce myself.
In July, I decided to pursue my interest in martial arts. I did so after making the decision that I needed to lose some weight and realizing that I could kill two birds with one stone (drop a few pounds and satisfy my "yen" to study a martial art). I found a dojang a short ten minute walk from my house and was extremely lucky to discover they taught Hapkido. The facility is amazing and my instructor cares about our development mentally as well as physically. So- I have a great art, a great instructor and a great dojang with no excuse for missing classes! I have lost 15 pounds (5 pounds more than my goal), lowered my blood pressure and reduced my resting heartbeat by 10bps. Who could ask for more?
I won't enter the debate about what is and is not "real" Hapkido. But, I am glad I found the school I did. Hapkido is taught on its own and not an adjunct to the Tae Kwon Do curriculum. We are not pressured to test, but rather to learn. We are expected to learn proper form and technique and not allowed to take short cuts. Our instructor is disciplined and maintains high expectations for this class, which is all adult students. With few exceptions, we all attend every class every week. Some even make two classes on the days they are offered. I am lucky to be a part of a team that is committed to the art. It makes learning easier and much more rewarding when others, especially higher belts, are invested in your progress and share in your education and success. The combat aspect is always present and there is no doubt we are learning a powerful art. Each technique is taught from the perspective that we will apply the minuimum force necessary but will be capable of extracting the maximum effect from the technique if required. This includes breaking bones and "crushing skulls" if absolutley necessary. However, repect is always emphasized as are the more subtle aspects of the art such as relaxation and thinking about how we can use the opponents power against them. We are encouraged to spar weekly to hone our skills and make our studies applicable to "street situations". As my instructor says, "this is not playtime"!
I am 37, married and have a 4 year old daughter. I hope she takes an interest in martial arts and hope to expose her to them as she gets a bit older and begins to show an interest. My wife could care less, which is good and bad. Bad becuase the skills are very useful for women, but good in that it gives me an opportunity to really focus on the class and art. We are encouraged to learn outside of the dojang and that is why I am here; to learn. I look forward to getting to know you all and will be most interested in learning from your extensive and varied experiences. I will likely hang out a lot in the Hapkido Forum, but hope to expand my areas of exploration as I gain more and more experience. At some point in the fairly distant future I can see adding Brazilian JJ to my studies. But, for now, my plate is full with Hapkido and I plan to devote myself to that art.
Any advice you can offer is welcome and if I can be helpful, please let me know. Until we get a chance to chat, I bid you well and look forward to meeting each of you more formally when that opportunity is presented.
Kindest regards,
numskul
(pete)- Yellow Belt in Bong Soo Han Hapkido
In July, I decided to pursue my interest in martial arts. I did so after making the decision that I needed to lose some weight and realizing that I could kill two birds with one stone (drop a few pounds and satisfy my "yen" to study a martial art). I found a dojang a short ten minute walk from my house and was extremely lucky to discover they taught Hapkido. The facility is amazing and my instructor cares about our development mentally as well as physically. So- I have a great art, a great instructor and a great dojang with no excuse for missing classes! I have lost 15 pounds (5 pounds more than my goal), lowered my blood pressure and reduced my resting heartbeat by 10bps. Who could ask for more?
I won't enter the debate about what is and is not "real" Hapkido. But, I am glad I found the school I did. Hapkido is taught on its own and not an adjunct to the Tae Kwon Do curriculum. We are not pressured to test, but rather to learn. We are expected to learn proper form and technique and not allowed to take short cuts. Our instructor is disciplined and maintains high expectations for this class, which is all adult students. With few exceptions, we all attend every class every week. Some even make two classes on the days they are offered. I am lucky to be a part of a team that is committed to the art. It makes learning easier and much more rewarding when others, especially higher belts, are invested in your progress and share in your education and success. The combat aspect is always present and there is no doubt we are learning a powerful art. Each technique is taught from the perspective that we will apply the minuimum force necessary but will be capable of extracting the maximum effect from the technique if required. This includes breaking bones and "crushing skulls" if absolutley necessary. However, repect is always emphasized as are the more subtle aspects of the art such as relaxation and thinking about how we can use the opponents power against them. We are encouraged to spar weekly to hone our skills and make our studies applicable to "street situations". As my instructor says, "this is not playtime"!
I am 37, married and have a 4 year old daughter. I hope she takes an interest in martial arts and hope to expose her to them as she gets a bit older and begins to show an interest. My wife could care less, which is good and bad. Bad becuase the skills are very useful for women, but good in that it gives me an opportunity to really focus on the class and art. We are encouraged to learn outside of the dojang and that is why I am here; to learn. I look forward to getting to know you all and will be most interested in learning from your extensive and varied experiences. I will likely hang out a lot in the Hapkido Forum, but hope to expand my areas of exploration as I gain more and more experience. At some point in the fairly distant future I can see adding Brazilian JJ to my studies. But, for now, my plate is full with Hapkido and I plan to devote myself to that art.
Any advice you can offer is welcome and if I can be helpful, please let me know. Until we get a chance to chat, I bid you well and look forward to meeting each of you more formally when that opportunity is presented.
Kindest regards,
numskul
(pete)- Yellow Belt in Bong Soo Han Hapkido