Why do you do martial arts?

Thursday, November 11th, 2010, Grandmaster David Sgro visited Aqabah Karate and conducted an amazing seminar.

He shared with us a piece of his 30 plus years of martial arts experience. Not only did he share techniques, but also wisdom and a deeper understanding of Tang Soo Do.

I was intrigued by his depth of knowledge and his ability to interpret the meaning behind basic forms and movements. We constantly do forms and katas over and over, but we never take time to reflect what each move may mean. After he started to explain, what the movements in basic hyungs meant, we all realized how much we don't know.

That is the beauty of martial arts, the more you think you know, the more you realize how much you don't know. This concept is extremely humbling.

During the seminar Grandmaster Sgro asked us a simple question, "Why do you do Tang Soo Do?".

We all remained silent, baffled at the question. Some of us were looking around, waiting for someone to answer. It felt like a trick question he was asking us. We were wondering if there was a text book answer, something the masters have written down in ancient scripts of martial arts. But there wasn't a right or wrong answer, rather he was looking for a sincere and heartfelt answer.

He looked at me and I was just like every other student saying, "uuuuhhhh uhhhhh!" (lol).
I had an answer in my head, but I was doubting myself. I didn't want to look foolish if I gave a corny or incorrect response.

Why do I do Tang Soo Do?

Had I said what was on my mind, I was have said, "Because I love it."

This answer applies to martial arts in general of course and especially the two arts I currently practice (Tang Soo Do and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu).

This was the answer he was looking for. He continued to speak to us about having interest, passion, and love for the things we involve ourselves in.

It is interest, passion, and love that motivates you forward and pushes you through the grind in order to succeed. You will never meet an athlete that does not love the sport he or she is participating in.

He mentioned that this element is necessary in order to be successful in martial arts, otherwise you are just wasting your time. This was a valuable lesson for us that applies not only on the mat, but in life as well.

We were very happy to have Grandmaster Sgro visit our dojang and learn directly from him.

This was the third time I have attended a class he has taught and each time I begin to see things differently and rekindle that fire for learning this amazing art.

Thank you Grandmaster Sgro for taking time out to visit us and benefit us with your knowledge. We can't wait until you visit us again.

Rodrigo Gracie Seminar

I know a few days have passed since the seminar with Rodrigo Gracie and I have been meaning to write down my experience, but I just have not had the time.

Finally, as I wait for my laundry to finish, I figure why not take few minutes and share my thoughts.

First and foremost, I have to say it was an overwhelming experience to meet Rodrigo Gracie and get to learn directly from him. I have had the pleasure of learning from some top notch guys since I have started BJJ last July 2009, but this was a different type of experience.

For starters, the fact that he is a direct descent of Carlos Gracie is simply amazing. Second, he is a 4th degree Black Belt in BJJ (he is the highest ranking belt I have met so far). Third, he has fought some of the greatest fighters in the world and has won at the highest level of BJJ and Grappling in general. He was the 1998 ADCC champion and he has fought on some of the biggest stages in MMA. So I was definitely excited about this seminar.

I had been telling my wife about it for some time and she was as excited to go as I was. Al-hamdulillah, my parents came to visit that weekend to spend time with the boys and they told us they would babysit while we both went to the seminar. I was so grateful for that cause it gave me and my wife some time to hang out even if it was going to a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu seminar (lol).

We got to the studio at the same time as Rodgrigo did. There was a good crowd in attendance, I'd say like 15 to 20 people roughly. Jeremy (Owner of Capital Jiu-Jitsu and Brown Belt under Royce Gracie) gave everyone a little pep talk before Rodrigo came out. It was cool to finally meet Jeremy.

Finally, Rodrigo came on the mat and jumped into technique. He was all about the business, no time for fun and games.

We got straight into some grip fighting and double-leg take down techniques. The way he detailed everything, picking apart each step was cool. It made learning the move very simple.

We kept on drilling the same move over and over and over. The first 20 to 30 minutes was just focusing on the double-leg. There were a few other brown belts walking around, helping with any questions.

Rodrigo took some time to take a look at my take down and said I was doing a pretty good job. It felt nice to get that type of feedback and got me motivated to keep going.

Next, we moved onto a submissions. He shared with us the "Clock Choke". This was the first time I had seen this move and I must admit, I am a BIG FAN of this move. This choke is really simple, but effective. You feel the choke set up instantly. I couldn't wait to write the steps down in my notebook in order to keep it fresh in my mind and bring it back to the guys at Aqabah.

We moved on to bull-fighting, both from an offensive and defensive stand point. I partnered up with Roberto (Owner of Roda Movements). It was cool to roll with Roberto, his eagerness to learn and attention to detail rubs off. Being an experienced practitioner of Capoeira, he picks things up quickly so it was nice to have a partner that made you work.

We rotated partners and moved onto a butterfly sweep. Throughout the seminar, Rodrigo and his assistants would walk around explaining the techniques and making sure you were drilling it correctly.

Finally, it was time to spar. I had the chance to roll with a few guys, but I really wanted to get a chance to roll with Rodrigo himself. I felt too shy to ask him to roll being a white belt. I saw him sparring the higher belts and figured that white belts had to roll with white belts.

During my last roll, I saw Rodrigo rolling with a white belt and was a bit disappointed with myself for holding back. Time expired and the seminar was over.

Jeremy thanked Rodrigo and everyone gave him a round of applause. After, everyone went around shaking each others hands, so I did my rounds as well. I came up to Jay (Head Instructor of CJJ - Takoma Park) and he was talking to Rodrigo.

I shook Jay's hand and then went up to Rodrigo to shake his hand, but before I got the chance, he looked at me put his hand on my shoulder and said "BLUE BELT!". I was taken a bit by surprise. It felt like I just got knighted.

I shook his hand and he said to me "Congratulations". I looked at Jay and Jeremy and both congratulated me as well. I was a bit shocked, it was a very pleasant surprise to be honest.

I felt they were evaluating me during the seminar. Jeremy had asked me how long I had been practicing, but I didn't think I would get promoted that night.

After that, I went up to my wife who had been filming and taking pictures and said, "Did you hear that?". Obviously with all the noise she didn't so when I told her what just happened and she was just as happy for me as I was. It was as if she just got promoted (lol).

Definitely the seminar was an awesome experience. I have been doing BJJ for over 16 months now and I must say that the process has not been easy. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu was a new animal for me and took a long time to get where I am now and I know it will take even longer to reach my goal of becoming a BJJ Black Belt.

I am looking forward to the challenges that lie ahead, my next step in my first stripe on my Blue Belt. Let the good times begin!

Note: Congratulations to Mo and Patrick for getting promoted to Blue Belt as well!!! OUUUUSSSSSS!!!!