Comments on: GKR Newbies

By: Madz

Madz — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 23:22:03 +0000

After being with GKR for a few years and becoming a sempia i had to due to personal reasons give it up.after a break, i am now able to go back to training. I feel i earned my black and white but as i had a back injury and am now with a new partner who also wants to take up karate, i am going to train as a white belt again, at least untill my partner has grasped the basics and i feel comfortable to go back full time.As with many things, after a while you forget some of what you learned and i feel it would be wrong to assume i could go back to where i left off. I took a test on line tonight and although i got well over 50% of the answers right, i know i have alot to remember.I would however like to say to anyone who stopped training, for whatever reason, it is not too late or you are not too far behind to go back. There are people i trained with who are now teaching and will therefor be teaching me. What a privilage to be taught by someone you sweated and agonised with! You people know who you are, and thanks to Sensei Andrew Jordan for over a year encouraging me to go back! I’m not wearin the white belt tho! Back to no belt will be fine!! LOL. Good luck to all members, New and old, and if you see someone at your Dojo looking a bit haggared and slow, but who knows the moves, that person just might be me. XX

By: victoria Lia

victoria Lia — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 12:49:41 +0000

hi there folks

I was interested to find your comments on your first few lessons and your first time out in front of a class and just wanted to offer some advise.
i have been training qith GKR for 5 years now, and became a shodan-ho in december 2007. that day to me, was as nerve racking as my first lesson. i remember my first lesson, i ended up sitting out and watching with tear- streaked cheeks because i was so dissapointed i couldnt do it. at that age i was niave enough to beleive that after your first lesson, you know the whole works and are ready to take on the world. just one of the many lessons karate has tought me is humility ( thankyou GKR ). in your first few weeks, you will feel more likely than not feel a bit put out that everyone around you knows what they’re doing, but soon enough you will learn that their karate is a whole world away from yours, and that yours is the only thing that you should care about. your first time out infront of a class is ( to say the least) terrifying because you dont want to skrew up infornt of your class mates. i’ll tell you once, dont worry, relax, and think ” what would sensei do?” we all know practice makes perfect, the more times you lead a warm up, the easier it will become. so just relax and enjoy the chance to be a sensei for 5 minutes! good luck to everyone.
victoria.

By: Scott Evans

Scott Evans — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 23:30:09 +0000

Hello

I have just started GKR as a S.D.C, I enjoy all the new skills i get every day from talking to people and letting them also join and benifit from GKR. My sensei Chris Brierly
helps me train hard and always shows me how to improve my self.

By: katie

katie — Sun, 28 Oct 2007 20:34:45 +0000

i am a member of gkr, in chell , stoke-on-trent,
at the minuit i am a newbie that is currently 33 weeks pregnant :o
got to say i like the way i dont get treated any different than anybody else and am
always pushed to do better, i put a lot of effort into my class to try and get the most
out of it, i started my gkr lessons in the hope to get my 5 year old son interested and
well he just doesnt want to do it, but i got hooked,
i havnt got a grading yet but this is not because i dont think i am capable, more along
the lines of i would prefer to wait until i had the baby so i can push myself that extra
mile, i enjoy doing the kata 1st and second. and watching the bunkai moves on the video
i am trying now to learn the saifa which seems complecated but i am determined to master
it, sensei says i dont need to know it to get the grading but i like to push and practice
and it would give me the upper hand for the grading as i beleave it would widen my understanding more of the gkr experience and why we move and act the way we do, i am still practising the 1st and second kata as much as i can and constantly trying to improve it, however at the min with a moving lump infront, sometimes causes a few minor difficulties, im just hopeing that when i have had the baby i am not that used to having a lump in front that it knocks all my balance back off..
one thing i am wondering about the dvds as i only just brought one as i am on bed rest at the min, is are they done in mirror image, if i was looking at the screen would i be turning the same way as the person or the opposite way?…
hopefully be going back to lessons again next week and all i can say is what a joy they are, always something to learn or correct and something more to focus on and strive to improve, aiming high, one day i hope to be one of the best (know it sounds big headed) but i never really had anything to aim for up until now and i really do hope one day i can make it to somewhere decent in the ranks and be good at something for a change, practice makes perfect and even though im a mess now, when i watch a higher belt i sit and think, well they used to be where i am now and watch how good they are, hopefully one day somebody will look at me with the same thought :D

By: paul

paul — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 06:44:53 +0000

hi
just found this site after going to my first training in melbourne last night
and really enjoyed it.I am 59yrs old and was a little doutful thinking i may be
to old,would like to hear from others in my age group or general opinions on age
cheers

By: Dale

Dale — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 01:32:14 +0000

This has been an interesting read, thanks. I am in Perth Western Australia and have been an instructor since mid 2000 and believe me I have seen it all, did a stint full-time with the club and was on the state team for approx 5 years although I don’t want to blow my horn.

Starting from the top of the page I will make a few comments to try and help. I will try and be brief. Mirror image - within a few moths it will be second nature. What helps is Kata practice, when you do a few simple combinations add a simple combination which is the first four counts of Taigyoku Shodan. Do this as just another combination, slow, medium and fast pace with Kiai on each punch. The beginners are learning the Kata and you are doing the Kata in mirror image. The benefit is two-fold. The students learn their Kata and you get used to mirror image. Once you are doing Saifa and Bassai-dai mirror image fluently you are well and truly on your way to a high level of competence on your Kata and you are always pushing yourself above and beyond the requirements. Do it bit by bit and you will get there, of course practice outside the dojo on this. I believe this is important, as in Katas like Saifa where you repeat a combination three times (1st six counts) you are doing the techniques twice as many times on one side than the other, this way you even it up and that left side won’t feel so uncoordinated.

By: gkrkarate.info

gkrkarate.info — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 21:31:21 +0000

Hi,

I’m a 6th kyu student down in Oxfordshire! Now running my own unofficial website: ‘http://www.gkrkarate.info’ for anyone interested in GKR and other karate styles to join. It’s free, only takes 30 seconds to register and once a member you’ll get access to our regularly updated discussion boards!

Loads more stuff to be added in the coming weeks/months and so on, but if you have a look at it now then you can join the discussion boards if ya like :P

Gkrkarate.info ~ Everyone’s invited.

By: louise

louise — Mon, 06 Nov 2006 14:02:24 +0000

I am responding to the letter I have just read regarding joining the sensei training programme, I also had the same reservations as you when I passed the programme I became a sempai in my public class which I still attended and found this a great help it is so differant standing up front doing warm ups and taking students through kata etc. Then the day came when i was offered my own class, I felt so privaliged that my regional manager thought I was good enough to teach, now I have been a sensei for about a year and love it you get the best teaching skills from other senseis who are all human and remember what it was like having these reservations themselves your regional manager will give you all the support you need but you have to be committed to turning up every week even your students cant be bothered to pull themselves out from in front of the fire on the cold days or if just 2 or 3 students turn up you have to be ready to give up your time and stick to it good luck hope you make the right choice for you I know it was right for me.