overall training for competitive level

[kickmenow]

Thanks for all the replies to my other post (is it okay to change schools) It has given me a lot to think about (we are now looking at other schools, before we make a move). My next question is, what type of training is best for a competitive level (national & international) My son has classes 5 days a week, only 2 of which are devoted to sparring. The other classes are devoted to repetitious techniques, come on, after over 11 years, is it not time to have less technique classes and more sparring? When he comes up against fighters on a national level (not only him, all of the students from his dojang) its as if they are lacking "fighting" training. Also, with this new electronic system, the fighting classes mean that in 2-3 hours, 2 fights are occurring per person, as there is a serious lack of equipment, hence 2 fighters at a time, the rest sit there and watch, is this normal?? Last question, a lot of people I know, who have gone on to win at major events (internationally) have combined tkd with another martial art of their choice, is this a good way to go, it sounds good to me? I can't wait to see some of the advice,as I am at a standstill here, and feeling we need to make a move soon, but want to see if what we are looking for is the right way to go. Thanks in advance

 

[mango.man]

Thanks for all the replies to my other post (is it okay to change schools) It has given me a lot to think about (we are now looking at other schools, before we make a move). My next question is, what type of training is best for a competitive level (national & international) My son has classes 5 days a week, only 2 of which are devoted to sparring. The other classes are devoted to repetitious techniques, come on, after over 11 years, is it not time to have less technique classes and more sparring? When he comes up against fighters on a national level (not only him, all of the students from his dojang) its as if they are lacking "fighting" training. Also, with this new electronic system, the fighting classes mean that in 2-3 hours, 2 fights are occurring per person, as there is a serious lack of equipment, hence 2 fighters at a time, the rest sit there and watch, is this normal?? Last question, a lot of people I know, who have gone on to win at major events (internationally) have combined tkd with another martial art of their choice, is this a good way to go, it sounds good to me? I can't wait to see some of the advice,as I am at a standstill here, and feeling we need to make a move soon, but want to see if what we are looking for is the right way to go. Thanks in advance

Just out of curiosity, where are you located? Perhaps I or someone here can reccommend a competitive school in or near your area because sitting in a corner for 2:45 out of 3 hours twice a week is not going to be much help when it comes to winning in the ring.

 

[kickmenow]

I wish you could recommend someone, but I we are in Canada, not the US. I do agree that sitting around is not much of a training for being in the ring.

 

[DBZ]

My recomondation is to find a teacher that is good with compatition. I train at my home TKD school for normal training but when I wanted to get better (at sparring) I asked my instuctor if it was ok to train with somebody outside of class and they said sure. So I train with another instuctor on tue for 30 min just myself and him on sparring. It helped alot. He knows alot about compatition TKD and Karate so it really helps as far as getting ready for a tournament

 

[mango.man]

I wish you could recommend someone, but I we are in Canada, not the US. I do agree that sitting around is not much of a training for being in the ring.

I know some great schools in Canada. Problem is it is such a large nation and unless you are willing to tell us where you are, it really doesn't make any sense for me to attempt to recommend any one or any place for you.

If you do decide to share your location, also please let us know how far you are willing to travel each day for your training as that will be useful in helping us make any sort of recommendation.

 

[kickmenow]

I am in the province of Quebec (things seem to go a lot better in some of the other provinces in Canada, such as Ontario or British Columbia, they train way more serious than some of our Quebec schools do.) I am on the south shore, which is about a 15 minute ride from Montreal. I am willing to travel for 30 minutes one way give or take, depending on the quality of the school. Do you know of any good schools here in Quebec? By the way quite a lot of our Quebec athletes are going down to the las vegas open once again this year. My son will not be there, as I have to get him into more serious training before we take on that adventure (although he did do the Toronto open and came in first).

 

[mango.man]

Well I am unfortunately not that familiar with the competitive schools in that area. However, others here might be. The advice I would give is to start with the schools here > http://www.taekwondo-quebec.ca/Regions.asp?idR=11 to begin the process of finding a new place.

Best of luck to you and your son.

 

[VinsonTKD]

Another thing I would check in to.. see if the instructor will let you try out a sparring class or two before you join. Sometimes it seems very hard to find out if a school is going to help you or not unless you try out the classes. As others have said, check the competition level of the instructor and make sure he is current on the rules, requirements, etc. Lastly, passion seems to be a very good requirement. Someone who loves to teach and do it right seems to produce great players - even if they haven't competed a lot themselves.

 

[kickmenow]

Thanks a lot for the replies. I guess you summed it up, the passion for the sport seems to have left the master, the only passion I am seeing from him now is passion for the almighty dollar, kind of sad, but hey, I don't have to stick around and feel sorry for him. I have my eyes on another school and yes, I will have my son try out a sparring class to see if the fit is right. I could never figure out at our school why I would see a person (black belt) for 1 or 2 classes and then never see them again. I guess they were trying out and obviously it didn't work out, had I known why, I would have figured this mess out ages ago. Once again thanks!!!