Unfortunately, due to technical reasons (the sprinkler system from the floor above!) I couldn't go to my kickboxing at the excellent http://urbanmartialarts.com so Wednesday and yesterday were pleasant days off.
Today, I went for an introductory class and then stayed on for the beginners class at Master Sahota's Taekwon-do class.
It is in a very large room in a commercial building. The room is dedicated to that class and has semi-permanent mats laid out with a fair number of target and power bags around the outside of the room. Good enough.
I arrived for a 1-on-1 assessment with Master Sahota's son, who tells me he has been doing this for over twenty years. I can believe it - I was impressed both with his teaching abilities and the control he demonstrated over his body whilst performing various moves.
During the assessment he would show me various things and ask me to repeat them - stances, walks, punches and kicks. All fairly low grade things that I would have breezed through a few years ago, but I actually found quite hard to do right. Right from the beginning it was clear that these guys teach a strict martial art. The instruction was an almost constant stream of 'relax your shoulders', 'slow start/fast execution', 'don't forget to twist at the end', 'remember to breath in, hold it and release on execution'... you get the idea. A world apart from other clubs which were basically 'hit this pad 30 times and then swap' :)
And, for me, it was a breath of fresh air. They explained how some of the black belts I had previously trained with popped in once and were informed that they would be graded considerably lower. I can understand it.
Don't get me wrong - it was great fun, quite light hearted and very relaxed. But make no mistake - they are there to teach you a specific branch of a particular martial art (TKD).
After the assessment (during which I managed to rip my track suit bottoms from mid-thigh to mid-thigh - nice!) I was invited to stay on to the next class - the beginners class.
This was more of the same - practicing individual techniques as a class. Again, the instruction was consistent and just the right level of detail. At the end we did non-contact sparing, which I had always turned my nose up, but actually it was pretty hard!
Am I going to go back there - almost definitely! I have had enough of going to places where you primarily pummel a pad or a person and if you have good technique, great. I am fed up of having to ask the instructor 'am I doing this right' or 'should I have my knee like this or more tilted over' just to receive the response 'don't worry about - you are doing fine'.
My heart is divided between this place and http://urbanmartialarts.com. I like this place because it primarily teaches technique, and teaches it well, but I do miss the therapeutic effect of laying into pads or kicking people 8 foot across the room onto their backsides after they hold the bag :) Not that I could do *that* anymore. I suspect, if time and money are permitting I might go to both - this place 2 or 3 times a week and urbanmartialarts.com once a week, just for 'light relief'. Don't get me wrong - I am not in anyway implying that UMA.com is any less technique orientated or less serious, it is however, I think, less formal. Maybe that is unfair as well - they are two sides of the same coin which I think is my currency (how cheesy).
A one sentence summary: 'a proper martial arts school where, if you are serious, could enable you to do some pretty amazing things, but it does require dedication'
Pros:
- cost is pretty good 25/month for 1 lesson or 49(?)/month for 2 or more. All gradings, insurance, association and your first gi are included!!!
- excellent teaching of the art form
- a grade from this place will be transferable, and therefore meaningful
- the main man is a 7th dan and his son (who I met today) has been doing it 20 odd years (no idea about his grade)
- it is a style that I find graceful and elegant
- the higher grades do do sparring
- they are quite renowned for their pattern work - which I like
- I think I could progress here quite quickly
Cons:
- they maybe don't do enough sparring for me (although a weekly dose of UMA.com might satisfy that)
- they make me look like a complete beginner - I almost need to unlearn my previous techniques and start from scratch
- socially it isn't really my scene (mixed kids and adults - nobody my age)
- the beginner class is only 45 minutes long and it will probably take a while before I can join the senior class (if not because of technique then because of fitness, although it will be because of both!)
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