Overweight martial artists!

Wai Jia: The Kung Fu Forum Kung Fu Training and Health
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I just can’t believe this crap man. I was working with a friend at the gym on my Thai and after my friend was gone this guy came over and started talking to me a bit. I found out that he was a black belt at one of the local tkd schools.(worked out there 4 years or so, the gym 1 year) He was like really overweight, BIG TIME! Now that kinda erked me a bit, but not the end of the story. Next thing I know this guy is giving me pointers on kicking. I explained to him what I was doing which was various styles of thai kicks and thats how their done. He kept spewing out crap at me. I KNOW HOW TO KICK!!!

This guy would not let up. Kept saying I should go to the school and learn the “real” way. I told him that I was quite happy with how my training(and kicks) were progressing. And that I did not feel that I needed to go to another school .

Now this guy was probably 80lbs. or more overweight. At least I can kick higher than the thigh, and this guy wants to “school” me on how its done? Now here’s the real serious questions:

  1. Where does the guy get off telling me I’m not doing it right, when A. the kick is nothing like anything in TKD and B. he has no thai training?

  2. If had been doing martial arts 4 years(1 year of that also working out at the gym) why is he still fat? Or why has he not lost more considerable weight?

  3. How do these overweight people get black belts in thse schools?

Just to state a fact(not boasting), not one person who is of instructor rank or of considerable status in my school is overweight. You can not do thai and be fat, it melts off.

  1. Are your schools the same as mine? Are there physical requirements set(spoken or unspoken as in seen in other senior students) by your instructor that you must meet?

Please tell me there’s hope out there…there’s gotta be some.

2

i completely understand where you’re coming from.

from his point of view… maybe he doesn’t have much luck with the ladies, maybe isn’t completely happy with his life, he doesn’t really have much self esteem. except in TKD, where despite his physical shortcomings, he’s got a black belt, and he gets respect. so when he tries to show off his knowledge, he can respect himself more.

ok, i just completely judged a guy ive never met.
next time, challenge him to a friendly spar, lol. nah, sounds like you handled it well, and presented your case well. shame he didnt take in your case… some people are just narrow-minded (myself included)

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  1. How do these overweight people get black belts in thse schools?

we’ll im assuming this is in america, so i’m sure they would get some sort of discrimination lawsuit if they did not get their belts at the same time as the other more physically fit classmates

**** am i glad my school doesnt have belts, that way the ****ty people dont get egos as easily

other than that, some people are just arrogant :slight_smile:

peace
travis

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cuz we all know being fat isnt EVER your fault in america :rolleyes:

along with everything else

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Originally posted by TjD
[B]cuz we all know being fat isnt EVER your fault in america :rolleyes:

along with everything else [/B]

:smiley:

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I thought that all you Americans were fat? (Hey just a joke).

He probably has a self estime problem as posted above but also I think that TKD guys think that thai kicks suck in general…I have no opinion as I’m not a kicker.

And as to where fat guys get their black belts…well they get them from fat guy shops - same place they buy their moomoo’s.

As a side note I have a friend who works in a gym…some russian guy thought that his sword and hand form was funny so he was invited to come train with us (he told my friend he did full contact kick boxing). He got beat up by 3 guys in a row …couldnt fight full contact at all and now no longer finds my friends hand form funny.

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In my school, the black test is over 5 hours long (you have to do everything you know). I can’t imagine someone 80lbs overweight passing that.

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Being overweight isn’t necessarily a factor. It depends on the style you train in. in tkd, yeah, it does seem hard to be an overweight BB - if it’s olympic style. alot of schools really aren’t that intensive physically, from what I’ve seen - the calesthenics are the most physically demanding (from an aerobic stand point) and that only lasts 15 - 20 mins. the rest will be forms and sparring, drills, etc. but it’s not extremely demanding. If you don’t change your eating habits, you won’t necessarily lose weight.

Also, bear in mind that being in shape is not a requirement of many styles. Styles such as silat utilize low kicks, good body mechanics and alot of hand strikes and knife fighting. you don’t have to be in perfect shape for it. Now if you want to be in tournies, especially tkd or full contact fighting, whether it’s MT or american, you have to be in shape.

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you can also move quite well if you’re overweight, if you train properly - sammo hung is a perfect example.

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Wang Shu Jin, represent

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I don’t think carrying a couple of extra stone in weight is really a disadvantage in a fight, maybe in a competition where a fight lasts several rounds or several minutes, but in a street situation where it is likely to be over quickly I wouldn’t think it made a lot of difference, there are times when a bit of bulk might even help. In case you are wondering no I am not a fat b@stard :slight_smile:

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Okay

1st Popsider- yeah a few extra pounds ain’t that bad, but when are clearly in the major overweight range its kinda bad. Don’t get me wrong, one guy I train with is short and stocky built. But he has a gut, which he kind of keeps at bay. But he’s been losing some too, now if he would just eat right, it’d be gone sooner. So a little weight isn’t bad, but alot…?

Lisa: What is your school? 5 hours long of testing?! You better have good cardio I’m guessing.

Liokault: Sounds like the guy got a lesson in humility. Granted some kickboxers(most professional) have kind of a ****y attitude. As I said I am a thaiboxer and yes I have run into big mouths. My personal thoughts on other styles/schools are what I keep to myself. I don’t try to debunk every other style in the local area. I talk to their students, we have a conversation, exchange ideas etc. Might plug the school once but definitely not gonna push it. I am a represenitive of my school, I act accordingly, as I’m sure you/all of us do.

Ged: You might be onto something with lack of self esteem issue. It seems kind of common. I know a few students at my school who lived the hellish high school life I did. Picked on alot, no luck with the ladies etc. I never dated one girl from my high school. All mine(gf’s) went to a different school than I did. Its their reason to train, to release some pent up anger and to get a big chest etc. Not my reason for training though. I wanna fight and be good at it. It flows through my viens man, and to reach my goal I feel it necessary to do extra work.

Sevenstar: Ah 7* were thai bros. Why do you have to bring Sammo Hung into the picture?joking
Good example, I must admit. Like I told popsider, there’s a guy I do thai with that is kinda big but he’s working on it, and he’s good. Been doing it like 3 years now and losing weight slowly but surely. And yes, he can move good. I crosstrain in a bit of silat, I do know what you mean. And as for the 15-20 minutes of PT, I was in a school like that once, just didn’t feel like my bag. They made us do pointless stuff like 5 kicks from standing on one leg, you couldn’t put your foot down until you had done all 5. Sure there’s the balance issue but where’s the practicality? So sense he can do pretty little moves he can coach me in thai?

I guess my point is ya’ll, that we are training in a physical activity in which tries to perfect your body in so many catagories. Be it fitness, reflexes, balance etc. I just don’t see why you wouldn’t go all the way with it. And I enjoy conversations with other martial students no matter the school they attend. Its just I can’t stand being told I’m doing something wrong, by someone who has never practiced such a different style then ones self is learning. There are few similarities in thai/tkd, so what made hm think he could possibily offer insight to which he does not even understand or have 1st hand knowledge/experience in/of?

Later all

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Kungfu Boy:

7* Mantis. 5 hours sounds like a long time, but my last test was just over 2 hours, and I’m a long way from black. Also, any test below black is done one on one with my Sifu, while the black test is done a few people at a time because it’s so long. I guess that could make it longer. Half an hour of that test is holding a horse stance.

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Hey Lisa

Just curious about one thing: How long have you been doing 7*? I know you said your a long way from black belt, but I don’t really know the ranking system in most cma.

Personally, we don’t test or really rank in my school. Everybody is either is a student or instructor. The only real testing is to determine where a person is weakest and the training after is focuses on said weak area.

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Lisa’s watching TV right now, so I’ll answer (we’re in the same school:) )

She’s been doing 7* a little over two years… I’m a little over 2.5.

I’m not sure on the ranking of other schools (Even those in 7* lineage, as we’re not from the “main” lineage). Instead of the Chiu Chi Man lineage (Which is what most 7* folks are a part of), we’re a part of the Kwok Cho Chiu lineage (Under Master Kwing Fai Kung and Sifu Mike Purnell).

In our branch, we only have 3 sashes… yellow, green, black. But there are two levels in yellow and green and 7 levels in black.

Lisa got her green a little bit ago, and I a couple months before her.

Tests, like Lisa said, are basically private lessons with Sifu… which are great. You do everything you know… right from the most basic punch to your most advanced form, then you have the stance holding (On my last I had a total of 21 minutes of stances - Ding stane (AKA Cat or toe stance), Bow and Arrow stance, and of course Horse stance) and pushups (which increase in requirement the higher you go… we do three different types… fingertip, knuckle and palm). What’s nice about the test is that you get a lot of time to work one on one with Sifu and can really identify any weak areas you might have.

Our school really doesn’t focus too much on rank… it’s mainly just to give yourself some measurement of accomplishment, I would guess.

Anyway… I’d be curious to hear how other 7* lineages do their tests:)

Hau Tien

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Lisa/Hau Tien - do you study under Sifu Ng in edmonton?

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No… I believe he’s tai mantis, no?

I believe one of my Sifu’s students trains with Sifu Ng now…

My Sifu is Sifu Mike Purnell (As I said in my last post) in Red Deer, Alberta.

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Hau Tien

Thanks for the info on your school. Yeah, two hours alone with the teacher would be great. Sounds like the testing kind of puts you guys through the ringer a bit. Seems to me that to pass the test, your Sifu wants you to rise to the occassion. I really respect that man.

Do you and Lisa train(weights/cardio/etc.) outside your school?

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We’ve begun training cardio… running as often as we can get the energy/time. Both running flat ground and running stairs.

I used to do weight training back when I bounced in nightclubs… so I don’t have any interest in getting bigger… just want to be more lean now:) Got a little bit of love handles I wanna get rid of:)

Of course, we also practice our forms outside of the school, too:) That can be a cardio workout to say the least:)