Last night's martial arts class

I now have 75 hours of shaolin kung fu class time logged. Although I can now look back at my first few classes with nostalgia - the ones that had me crawling home for painkillers - but am still not entirely happy with my progress.

Part of it is that I don't practice enough at home, but there simply isn't enough room to do 16-point forms indoors, and it's too effing cold outdoors to retreat to the back yard.

However, I do know:

the five basic stances
three basic blocks
three basic punches
four kicks, including the dreaded roundhouse kick
two "holds", which is getting someone to let go of your arm
the first two 16-point forms, which are drills that combine a series of kicks, blocks and punches
First "combination", which is a technique of advancing and disarming an opponent, as long as the opponent is standing still and with no intention of coming after me

Over the past couple of months, the head instructor has determined that I will be taking the next promotional exam, no matter what. After we finish our first 15 minutes of basics and warm-ups, he always pairs me up with an instructor with the comment "this student is going to be taking the promotional exam, so make sure she knows everything". Or words to that effect.

I think the head instructor is simply trying to shore up my shaky self-confidence in this area. And since he's the only black belt on the floor (except when the sifu drops into class), I think he can judge my own skill levels better than I can.

So it's a safe bet I'll be taking the next exam, as long as I can scrape up the exam fee.

Comments

[SEH]

What a good read! Go for it - seriously impressed. Thanks for your comment - sharing the 'disappointment' - phut!

[Melina]

I'm still amazed that, after all this time, I found something that passes as exercise that I haven't quit.

Perhaps because it's so much more than merely exercise.