Things to Avoid at Black Belt Testing

The dojo has two students preparing for dan rank testing in July.  During the weeks leading up to black belt testing, I am always asked questions about my testing experiences.  I have shared advice on this blog about Preparing for Black Belt Testing.  Today, I am going to recommend some things to avoid. :)

1.  Ocular Migraine:  A few hours before formal testing, I got an ocular migraine.  I was seeing flashes of lights and stars.  I went home to rest for an hour.  I honestly did not think I would even be able to drive back to the testing site. Luckily, the migraine subsided and I was able to test.  To this day, it was my first and only ocular migraine. 

2.  Bunkai partner MIA.  It was my turn to demonstrate open hand bunkai.  My partner and I practiced for weeks.  I looked around the room for my bunkai partner and she was no where to be found.  She was in the bathroom!  I did not want to make the testing board wait so I asked another person to work with me from the crowd. I will always be grateful to my replacement bunkai partner.  :)

3.  Scheduling surgery.   After my daughter was born I was diagnosed with gall stones.  Surgery was recommended but there was no hurry.  A few weeks later I was told that I would be testing in a few months.  I scheduled surgery two days after testing.  :)

4. Short preparation time.  Keep training and practicing.  You never know when you will get testing notice.  I have had anywhere from a year to 5 weeks notice.

5.  For female readers only...Does black belt testing always coincide at the worst time?  Seriously...

The above list is from my personal testing experience.  The good news....despite all the unplanned things that happened...I made it through each of my tests. 

I am sure you have more suggestions. Please add to the list!

Best of luck to all those preparing for testing!  To the students in our dojo preparing for Nidan and Sandan...keep up the good work!

What Should I Be Working On?

When I started learning karate I was given a booklet which outlined all the belt rank testing requirements. Each level was outlined in detail and included vocabulary, basics, kicks, waza, kata, kobudo, sparring and self-defense. I liked having a tangible list. I would often refer to the outline to see what I should be working on and what was next. Some of my classmates would highlight their list after they learned a technique, kata or weapon.

In some ways, things were easier as a kyu rank. You knew exactly what was expected and when the material was required. After black belt, students discover there is more time and less pressure. It will be years…not months…between testing.

When new black belt students in our dojo ask…“What should I be working on?”… I suggest the following:

Continue learning the required material.
Refine your basics and movement.
If you have the opportunity to attend seminars…Go!
If you find a martial arts book that interests you…Read it!
Explore bunkai.
Assist in class.
Practice.
Enjoy.

Recently, the black belt group in the dojo has worked on kata, kobudo, self-defense, knife throwing, tegumi drills, individual kata and two-person weapon forms. On the schedule...a night to video our open hand and weapon kata and a street clothes self-defense class.


If you get a chance, stop by and wish Bob, author of Middle Aged Martial Artist, a speedy recovery.  He was the first blog I found when I was researching ACL reconstruction.  Bob tore his left ACL in 2007 during the final minutes of his black belt test.  He posted last week that he injured his knee.  The MRI confirmed he tore his right ACL.

Uncomfortable

A little less than a year ago, I wrote the post Get Uncomfortable. During an excellent training seminar, Kyoshi Hayes, author of “My Journey With The Grandmaster”, told us to embrace discomfort.

Today…I am feeling uncomfortable. It has everything to do with a project we are working on in the dojo tonight. It involves a deck of index cards with the 51 open hand and weapon kata written on the back, a similar deck with the names of the black belts and a timer.

I am trying to embrace my discomfort. I’ll keep you posted.

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Things I Only Understood After Black Belt

The Wednesday night class in our dojo has been mostly black belts. Two of the students (a father and son) are new black belts. They tested for their shodan in Okinawa Kenpo Karate and Kobudu during the summer of 2010. The father told me a story about how he expressed to his wife (a 1st kyu student) how different it was to be a shodan than a 1st kyu.

It reminded me of Sue C's excellent post called The Black Belt Paradox where she makes the following observation:

When I look at who it is that tells me it’s not about the black belt or that we don’t need coloured belts, I realise that they are all (no dis-respect is meant here) – black belts! It seems to me one needs to acquire the wisdom and experience of a black belt to realise that getting the black belt is not important and only really represents the beginning. I can ‘know’ this but it remains precisely that – knowledge, not wisdom. I have to go through the process myself of converting this knowledge into wisdom through practice, learning and experience and to help me do this I need my belts, all of them! I call this the Black Belt Paradox – you need to acquire a black belt in order to truly understand that ‘it’s not about the black belt’.

Sue is right. There are things I only understood after I earned a black belt. Here are a few:

1. Black belt is the beginning. The kyu rank students in our dojo hear this statement a lot. We tell the students how much more there is to learn and study.

2. Black belt kata are those kata that come later in the syllabus. I remember learning a "black belt kata" when I was a new brown belt. I learned the pattern to Passai at a seminar. I thought it was cool that I knew the pattern to a "black belt kata". I didn't realize at the time I didn't really "know" it. I could move through a sequence of movements. Turns out it wasn't so cool because I should have been focused on my current material. We do not try to let students get too far ahead with their material. As a kyu rank it is tempting to want to learn "new" and "more". There is simply too much material that needs to be learned before shodan.

3. The use of the word "Know". After I tested for black belt, I realized how little I actually knew. This feeling hit me the moment I tied my black belt around my waist. We test for shodan at the Federation training camp. The guest instructors are dojo heads, karate federation leaders, war heroes and authors. They are people who have been training 30-40 years. And there I was with a shiny black belt and three years of training. I have been a black belt for almost 15 years (in July 2011) and I still feel the same way. The amount of information to "know" is incredibly overwhelming. There is a lifetime of learning.

4. Black belts are students too. I never gave this much thought as a kyu rank. As a black belt student, I am still learning, exploring and discovering.

5. A black belt brings responsibility. I remember thinking a kyu rank student might ask me a question and expect the correct answer. What if I did not know the answer? I found out it is ok not to know the answer and it is an excellent opportunity to search/learn the answer. The new shodan I wrote about early in the post let me know how he makes sure he is in correct stance during class. He noticed the new white belts watching him and wants to be a good example.

6. Your karate changes as you age. It becomes more about technique, function and conservation of motion.

7. You need to make the kata your own.

8. Basics are awesome!

I am sure there are more. The above list represents a few of the things I only understood after I was a black belt.

And it is still a work in progress....

Black Belt Superpowers

You train, pass the test and are awarded a black belt. Your instructor hands you a new, shiny black belt. The sky opens up and you are bestowed black belt superpowers. You are invincible and fear no man.

This is NOT what happens when you receive your black belt. In fact, it is the complete opposite.

You train, pass the test and are awarded a black belt. Your instructor hands you a new, shiny black belt. The black belt is in your hands and almost immediately a thought stream enters your mind - I am not ready. I need more time. I should give it back.

Then you remember that black belt is the beginning. If you look up 1st Dan in the Dictionary of Martial Arts by Louis Frederic the word is described as Student. You wear your belt with the understanding that we all have more work to do learning and discovering.

It is about the training.

Don't Forget - You Were A White Belt Once

Do you remember what it was like to be a white belt? Do you recall how you felt the first time you stepped on the dojo floor? Were you nervous, intimidated, anxious, excited or happy?

I walked on the dojo floor with a slight advantage. My husband was a brown belt at the time. I was used to going to tournaments and watching demonstrations. I was familiar with some of the kata simply from watching Tom practice. The week before I signed up for classes, I asked Tom to review the pattern of the first kata. I did not want to feel completely lost. It didn't matter too much...I still felt lost.

It has been a while since I was a white belt in karate. As an instructor, I think it is important to remember how it felt at the beginning. New students come in the dojo and the black belts seem to make everything look so easy. The first kata, waza and ten step blocking drill felt like Mt. Everest as a white belt. As a black belts, we could probably demonstrate them in our sleep.

Remember what it is like:

To have your hands going all directions
To focus on your feet only to forget what your hands are doing and then...
To focus on your hands and forget your feet
To feel awkward and stiff
To be uncomfortable in your uniform
To have a timid kiai
To have to figure out how to tie your belt
To try to practice at home only to realize you skipped a few moves
To spar for the first time
To test for 9th kyu

As a beginner student of Tai Chi, I am regularly reminded of how challenging the early stages of learning can be. Every once in a while think back and remember how it felt...

Black Belt Students - Keep Moving Forward

A group meets in the dojo to train every Monday night. We practice the Dan rank requirements, explore application, discuss concepts, review videos or pose questions. There is no curriculum or class instructor.

This past Monday, we decided to challenge ourselves one step further. Each Monday we are going to come up with an assignment for the week. Assignments could include bunkai, reading an article, creating a drill, researching a concept, learning about history and culture, preparing a lesson...or whatever else crosses our minds!

Simply put...we are a group of black belt students keeping our training moving forward.