Training tonight wasn't spectacular. As similar as Tang Soo Do and Soo Bahk Do are, it's been a hard adjustment still. The classes are the total opposite of what I'm used to. Very informal with little stress on focus and discipline between instructor and student. Very fast paced and while there is some attention to detail, it's not nearly the same level of scrutiny that I'm used to, either when I was training or when I was teaching.
I'm not trying to say that SBD is superior to TSD by any means, but at times, for me, it leaves much to be desired. I have, however, noticed that I enjoy classes taught by the other Dan member there, rather than the Gup (colored belt) members, but it's a bit much to expect a graduate student in mechanical engineering at a top notch engineering school to teach every class there is.
It's a completely different environment than my studio back home as well. This club is just a bunch of college students looking to try something new, they aren't paying over a thousand dollars a year to train; they're paying less than twenty for an entire semester. So, there's no monetary motivation to go to class and get the most out of it. And I can't count the number of times that I've seen uniforms and belts just thrown on the floor, like they are just pieces of trash. I'd be killed for doing such a thing, as it shows no pride or respect for your training that you've put into your art. They are able to show up whenever they please (if testing isn't their number one priority, because they do have a minimum attendance requirement) and put as much (or as little) effort into it as they want. I guess this is just something that I have to adjust to, but not fall into. I cannot let myself jeopardize my technique and everything I have learned just so I can keep up with the others, which I felt myself doing at some points tonight. I guess there's also the issue that I tend to be a little uptight about my training, so I could stand to relax a little, but martial arts is all about tradition, technique, philosophy, respect and discipline, which I refuse to not uphold to the fullest.
Not only can I be intense though, but my instructors back home are all intense as well, to say the least. I guess that may be where I picked it up from. Just maybe. Haha. Anything less than your best, especially once you reach Dan, is unacceptable. You are expected to pour your heart out into the do jang (studio) every time you train, no questions and no exceptions. Not only is training physical though, a certain mental awareness is required as well, and if that's not there, then there no hope of remembering the material or making any progress.
So, I guess in the end, it's just a matter of the level of dedication and the time I have invested in martial arts compared to those who are just orange (or yellow belts, as it is in TSD) because you can see the difference in the training of those who are green and red belts. None of them understand what it means to be a Dan, and they can't be expected to understand yet. Being a Dan is so much more than being exceptionally proficient in your style. It's a way of life. It's a mindset. You've first got to understand this before you can fully embrace it and your commitment to your martial art as a high ranking individual.
Overall, I hope that training will improve by the end of the week and some serious progress will be made on my part. Seeing as how when I tried to do Chil Sung O Ro tonight, which is one of five forms I need to know for Sa Dan, I couldn't get through even 10% of it. It's really disappointing, but this just means that I've got to step it up and do my research and do it after classes no matter how tired I am. I do however need to start monitoring my hips again. It's been so long since I've had to think about not straining them too badly that before I know it I'm going to be out of commission yet again. I've already noticed the digression they've made to back when I was training six days a week and here I am only training three on average. It's going to be hard to get back into that mindset, but it's what I've got to do for my own physical well being.
Until then though, it's time to rest and recover before the cycle starts over again on Thursday.
Good night and Soo Bahk!
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