"Kuh-rotty" is just for kids!"

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geezer

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"Kuh-rotty is just for kids!" ...Man I hate it when I hear that. But that's how a lot of people react when they find out I'm into martial arts at my age (53). Then again, if you look at how the media portrays the martial arts in the movies, on TV, and in video games, and then watch all the kiddie black belts pouring out of the neighborhood McDojo, I guess you can see where they are coming from. Basically, John Q. Public seems to lump us adult practitioners into two groups: those that never outgrew the kiddie fantasy stage (picture Power Rangers), and those who want to be bad-*** brawlers (think cage fighting).

Even those of us immersed in the martial arts fall into stereotyping each other. I mean what kind of individual (age, build, and attitude) comes to mind if I mention each of the following: TKD, BJJ, Ninjutsu, or Tai Chi???

How about you, what's the stereotype for your art (age, build, and atitude)? And, is there any truth to it?
 
My school has 'Kung Fu' in it's name. How many times am I gonna have to hear stupid Bruce Lee impressions as people walk by my school. sigh.
 
fangjian said:
My school has 'Kung Fu' in it's name. How many times am I gonna have to hear stupid Bruce Lee impressions as people walk by my school. sigh.
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I do CMA too, so I definitely feel your pain! I see from your profile that you also do FMA. I do too. At least with the FMAs people just say, "Escrima, (or Arnis, Kali, etc.)... what the heck is that?" I guess that's a lot better than the bad imitations of Bruce Lee followed by really dumb "grasshopper" jokes.

Anyway, just to break with the stereotypes, I'm proposing the following curriculum. What do you think?

9:00 am: Kali Live-Blade Knife-fighting for toddlers.

11:00 am: UFC Tai Chi forms training.

2:00 pm: Police Swordsmanship

6:00 pm: Cage Fighting for Seniors

Any suggestions, additions, etc. are welcome!
 
geezer said:
Anyway, just to break with the stereotypes, I'm proposing the following curriculum. What do you think?

9:00 am: Kali Live-Blade Knife-fighting for toddlers.

11:00 am: UFC Tai Chi forms training.

2:00 pm: Police Swordsmanship

6:00 pm: Cage Fighting for Seniors

Any suggestions, additions, etc. are welcome!
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That's so great.lolol
 
Actually you know what? I did submit a BJJ guy one time with a Taijiquan technique from the Yang style. Seriously.
 
geezer said:
I do CMA too, so I definitely feel your pain! I see from your profile that you also do FMA. I do too. At least with the FMAs people just say, "Escrima, (or Arnis, Kali, etc.)... what the heck is that?" I guess that's a lot better than the bad imitations of Bruce Lee followed by really dumb "grasshopper" jokes.

Anyway, just to break with the stereotypes, I'm proposing the following curriculum. What do you think?

9:00 am: Kali Live-Blade Knife-fighting for toddlers.

11:00 am: UFC Tai Chi forms training.

2:00 pm: Police Swordsmanship

6:00 pm: Cage Fighting for Seniors

Any suggestions, additions, etc. are welcome!
Click to expand...


I think the best there is UFC Tai Chi forms training... I'm totally in :)


I've experienced some of these types of problems. I agree it can be a downer to have people stereotype and judge you while being ignorant to what you really are doing. That said, you really have two good options here. You can try to school them by informing them about your martial art. Or, you can just forget about it, what they have to say really is not going to affect you unless you allow it to.

I think as long as we as martial artists maintain our character and properly disseminate martial arts history and knowledge, we really shouldn't worry so much about who's saying what.
 
Me I train for me and me only what the general public likes or dis-likes is not my problem and believe me I hear it all the time. I have been teaching Okinwa Karate and TKD for over thirty years and have heard it all. I especially like the Cobra kai from Karate Kid.
 
Oh, you would not belive how many times people have offered or asked to fight me when they find out I do karate. Once I left a class to go to a concert in Manhattan, the guard at the door searched all bags but he went to the extra step of taking out my gi and belt while he just peers into everyone else's open bag. Should'a heard the people on like "Oh, katate man," "See you inside tough guy." Stuff like that.

Why is it that a black belt means every dumb-a## wants to fight you?
 
When I joined a gym so that I could practice and work on conditioning during my lunch break from work, the membership guy said "Just please don't hit the yoga people." I think he was kidding...

The reaction I usually get from women is, "Wow, that's cool!" Men, on the other hand, tend to say things like "Don't hurt me!"

Must be something about me...
 
Well since I'm in a traditional japanese martial art, people tend to think I pretend I'm japanese and consider me a weird person. Ninjutsu is viewed in Japan like a type of sorcery and as a sort of side show attraction in America, so I get all sorts of responses.

Let them think as they wish, I strive to be so strong that nothing can distrub my state of mind.
 
It's not just the lesser side of the general public, but also from quite a good number of martial artists themselves.

Some TMA individuals who studied systems that predated Itosu Ankoh, call the arts that were derived from his teachings, as "Karate for school children." For some reason, they frown upon what Itosu Sensei did, by creating the Pinan / Heian forms in order to make the learning curve not so steep.

Some of these individuals assert that this weakened the arts, and didn't keep things pure, and that their methods produce only strong students, etc.

I can't necessarily disagree that those who asserted the above are wrong, when it comes to their successful students being strong. However, I would like to ask them, how many of the students who didn't succeed, could have made it, had a more stepwise approach been taken?

I see it much like dumping 100 people (who never had a swimming lesson) into a lake, and telling them to swim to the shoreline. Out of those 100 people, 95 will drown, while the 5 who make it to the shoreline are certainly going to be strong folks who were able to make it due to their natural abilities.

However, out of those 95 folks, how many would have been able to make it, had they been given some swimming lessons? Out of those folks, how many would have become strong students in their own right? If anything, I would argue that those 5 supermen from the above situation would have succeeded in any system...

There's an interesting saying from a particular fellow who disagrees with the "only the absolute best are worthy" theory. He says this:

"Yes, your 10 black belts are very impressive practitioners! They're all very strong, and are going to go a long way in the martial arts.

However, my 100 black belts can beat up your 10..."
 
geezer said:
I mean what kind of individual (age, build, and attitude) comes to mind if I mention each of the following: TKD, BJJ, Ninjutsu, or Tai Chi???
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I have seen so many different people of differing ages, sizes, builds, and attitudes come through our door for taekwondo that I cannot even venture a good stereotype.

BJJ I am not familiar with firsthand, thus the only stereotype that of the fans, not the practitioners. The nonpracticing fans all seemed to think that BJJ beats everything no matter who was competing. Needless to say, all those same guys & gals said that Krav Maga beat everything after seeing Human Weapon, then it was MMA beats everything after watching the UFC. Then Batman came out and now Keysi beats everything. When Marvel associates a specific martial art to Wolverine, I'm sure that they'll say that that will beat everything.

Happilly, time on Martialtalk has given me the perspective of actual BJJ practitioners. I guess that because of that, I never had a sterotype of BJJ practitioners other than that they train hard and the grading system has some serious teeth to it.

Ninjutsu: Guys who look like Lee VanCleaf and Sho Kosugi. Otherwise, no sterotype. I crosstrain at a Jinenkan school occassionally and the people there are of varying ages, sizes, builds, and backgrounds. Both genders are well represented. No stereotypes, but I still think VanCleaf and Kosugi were great in that show, 'the master' and I loved Kosugi's ninja flicks, even if (or perhaps because) they were cheesed to the max.

Tai Chi brings to mind people that I personally know who take it. All of them are over twenty five and professionals. Most are of average conditioning and really decent people. The only stereotype is that when they talk about class, I always have a mental image of David Caradine leading the class.

geezer said:
How about you, what's the stereotype for your art (age, build, and atitude)? And, is there any truth to it?
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TKD is one art, and I already covered that.

For Kendo, its a combination of hard core Japanese guys that look like Sho Kosugi, middle aged white guys who love swords, and really cute girls of varying ages. I've yet to see a lady in kendo who was not attractive. No, that is not why I train in Kendo.

Daniel
 
geezer said:
Even those of us immersed in the martial arts fall into stereotyping each other. I mean what kind of individual (age, build, and attitude) comes to mind if I mention each of the following: TKD, BJJ, Ninjutsu, or Tai Chi???

How about you, what's the stereotype for your art (age, build, and atitude)? And, is there any truth to it?
Click to expand...

BJJ-23 yr old meat head w/ some fierce cauliflower ear who will 'simply' take you to the ground.

TKD- 9 yr old who recieved his blackbelt the day he signed up and always spars with his hands down by his waist.

Taiji- 40+ yr old who believes 'chi' and 'dit da jow' cure everything. Damn liberals. I'm gonna go ahead and throw Aikidoka in there too.

Ninjitsu-'Dungeons and Dragons' fanatics with black pajamas who know... a little karate.....a little jujutsu ...and carry a bag o' powder in their pocket to throw in your eyes.

Here's one style I teach.
Wushu/kungfu- we wear pajamas like ninjas, claim chi is the bomb like taiji players, spar like TKD'ers, and are afraid of BJJ guys.

Hahaha. All in good fun boys and girls.
 
My friends think I'm weird for starting MMA. Even the ones that I spent countless summer days jumping off of stairwells and grinding down rails.

"Dude, that's dangerous, man."

When I meet new people, I don't tell them I train. They don't need to know, and I don't want to put out any stereotype. If it comes up in conversation, then so be it.

Besides, I'm a geek at heart. I wear thick glasses, read comic books, and love the Sci Fi Channel. MAs are just one facet of my personality/life.

Ultimately, when people do the stereotype thing, I just laugh. Let them have their fun... Because in the event I have to fight that person I'll definitely know better.
 
No stereotypes for me. I study Baguazhang, nobody knows what the hell I'm talking about. :idunno:
 
blindsage said:
No stereotypes for me. I study Baguazhang, nobody knows what the hell I'm talking about. :idunno:
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You study what again???:boing2:
Better yet, pronounce it with accurate intonation and wait for the mystified looks!
 
When I did Jujutsu it was "can you get out of this,what would you do if I did this?"

Taiji "Its so slow how are you going to fight like that?"

Bagua"You walk in a circle?" "Hey Bill get over here this guy walks in a circle when he fights!" Lots of pointing and laughing.
:Showing Bagua: "That looks stupid"
Xingyi"You use your mind I use my fist"

And of course the WHAT BELT ARE YOU?
Can you beat(any famous action actor) or (Me,That guy,The pizza guy,whoever)
 
I train in ninjutsu and so yeah, we get the black pajama jokes, turning into a log, and such.

I always love pulling a disappearing act on people "Sure, I can totally make myself disappear" and then I walk right on past them. :D
 
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