Tang Soo Do Karate: A Guide to this Worthwhile Hobby

When I was 7 years old, I wanted to do something active, like all of my friends. I was in second grade at the time, and most of my friends were playing soccer and doing gymnastics. On a trip to my local county fair, my mom and I came across a booth for CS Kim Karate. The person running the booth talked about all the benefits and the costs, all that really mattered to me at that age is I would learn how to kick some butt!

I enrolled at the CS Kim Karate school, which teaches the Tang Soo Do style of karate. I began as a white belt, the lowest rank. My mom took me to night classes between 3-4 times per week. I remember looking forward to my classes at first, but then I started to hate it and dread going. My mom pushed me and kept me going, which today I am thankful for. In a few months, I was testing for my next rank, yellow belt. It was a lot of work getting me to go to my karate classes, I guess I just got lazy and didn't want to go anymore. I was so mad at my mom for making me go there. I would cry and fight my way out of classes, but she got me in the car somehow, and got me to class.

After about a year, my attitude changed so much. I started to learn respect and discipline, I actually wanted to go to my classes now. I enjoyed training with other classmates my age. I worked hard in each class, because I wanted to get up to that next rank. My ultimate goal was reaching black belt rank. It seemed to be an eternity between belts and tests, averaging about 6 months or so between each. From yellow belt, I went to orange belt. Then an orange belt with 1 stripe. The ranks from there go: green belt, green belt with 1 stripe, green belt with 2 stripes, then you get your red belt, with 4 stripes on that, and once you receive your 4th stripe on your red belt, you start training for your black belt - which is the highest belt you can get. Once you reach black belt, there are degrees that you work for, ranging from 1st degree all the way up to the 12th degree. All of these ranks have names in the Korean language. During your training in karate, you will learn a lot of Korean language, which could be useful in the future for you.

Tang Soo Do is designed to teach you self-respect and discipline, as well as many self-defense techniques, which can absolutely be useful in the future. Knowing how to defend yourself in a life or death situation is an extremely valuable trait. With years of training, you can perfect these skills and be a powerful machine. In addition to self-defense, your body will be in top shape. In each class, you will be doing warm up stretches and exercises. You will be learning new kicks, punches and blocks. With each rank you reach, you will also learn how to break wooden boards in different ways. You will eventually be able to break multiple boards with just your hand. In case you're wondering, I haven't had the chance to break a board with my head, but I'm sure they do it.

Throughout my training with CS Kim Karate, I've had the chance to enter many tournaments. As a red belt, I entered an international tournament that was held at the Pitt Fieldhouse in Pittsburgh. In that tournament, I won 2 trophies and 2 medals. 1 2nd place trophy in sparring (controlled fighting), 1 3rd place trophy in form, 1 gold medal in weapons and 1 bronze metal in board breaking. Tournaments can be nerve wracking, I was so nervous before the tournament, that I even cried! It took a lot of time and training to get ready for that particular tournament, but after it was all over, I walked away with 4 awards that I will have forever.

After about 5 years of hard work, and once I reached my red belt with 4 stripes, I started to get ready for my black belt test. There is a lot of prep involved in this, I took a lot of extra classes to prepare myself. The test itself was a few hours long, and also very nerve wracking. I tested with all of my classmates, as well as other trainees from other schools in the area. I didn't find out I passed until a few weeks later, when I returned to the testing site to receive my black belt and certificate. I was so excited, I reached my goal. I "graduated" in the 36th Dan Classing of the International Tang Soo Do Federation. All of that hard work really did pay off, and I had something valuable in return, at only 12 years of age. I'm so proud of being a black belt, and every time I look at my black belt with my name imprinted on it, I'm reminded of how much work it took to get that. When I tell people I'm a black belt in karate, they sort of get this look on their face like "I'm not going to mess with you", but that's not even the point of having a black belt. Yes, I do consider myself well training in martial arts and self-defense, and I know that I could defend myself if the situation ever came up, but I really value is the self-respect and discipline that I learned through martial arts training through CS Kim Karate.

Now my mom will tell you that karate is not the cheapest, since she is the one that paid for it all! There are a lot of costs involved, from tuition costs to registration fees and testing fees. If you want to enter a tournament, there are fees that go with that also. You will also have to pay for your uniform, that you will wear to each class. Once you reach green belt, you will need to pay for the trim that goes around your uniform. Red and black belts also require a trim on the uniform. You will need to visit your local karate school for more information on costs, since each school differs in costs.

If you are interested in starting karate, especially Tang Soo Do, check out www.cskimkarate.com if you live in the Pittsburgh area. There are also some great web sites that can provide you with more information on karate, and all the different styles of karate such as Tae Kwon Do and Jui-Jitsu.

www.all-karate.com
www.allsouthkarate.com
www.internationaltangsoodofederation.com