I started with my bestfriend when I was 18 years old. We were looking for great exercise and found the most rewarding yet challenging experience of our lives. Both of us fought very hard and kept an open peaceful mind. We have yet to go back for other styles...currently the two of us are doing tribal bellydancing.

It was offered as a class at the college I went to. I had the time and money to do it (between so many credits it was all the same price - so in a way it was free).

What kept me going was the friendlyness and support I found there. Our school stressed that you leave gender at the door and treat all as equals. However we weren't uptight - we had humor. We could laugh if a technique required a face plant into my DD breasts! But even past the human there was always RESPECT.

One of the main reasons I keep going now that I have my black belt is actually to serve as a role model. I think it's important for everyone to see that it's not all about strength and having testicals! ;-) I have to focus on technique and my natural plus to get me through (I'm only 5 foot tall and hardly ANYONE can throw me... but I can throw just about anyone!).

I hope that helps! :)

Hello,

I just started a new tribe called Women in the Martial Arts:

This is a tribe for women who:
1. are in the martial arts
2. have been in martial arts
3. would like to be in martial arts
4. curious about martial arts

I have choosen the category of this tribe as "cultures & community" rather than "recreation & sports" because I would like this to be a place where women can share their experiences specific to being a women in the martial arts. I also want it to be a place where we can network and build friendships. All types of martial arts and artists are welcome.

This is a moderated tribe and it's members will only be women. I want to point out that I do think a man's point of view is appreciated and can be of value, however there are almost 10 other tribes where both genders can debate and share opinions about martial arts. This tribe is for women to speak for themselves.

Public URL WomenInTheMartialArts.tribe.net

I'm new to this section and don't have any pics of me in my uniform or anything but I've been doing Karate for almost five years. I had to take a few breaks giving birth to 2 kids and the death of my granmother but have been working to get my black belt. I got involved because I grew up fasinated by watching some kung fu movies were women were doing all kinds of moves that were just so COOL. I thought -girls can do that? Wow-so I started when I had enough money and haven't stopped. I go because I love the idea of being able to defend myself, to be able to move in such an awesome way, the katas we learn make me feel good while doing them-its hard to explain. I think anyone who does martial arts for awhile knows it makes them(as my teacher said)comfortable in your own skin. The best part of martial arts is that no matter what form or style you choose -the main part is that you have a great instructors and a welcoming dojo. All forms and styles have a little of this form and some from this -not one is better-is what you do with it and if it makes you better spirit/person.Erika

Okay, someone revived an old thread, but I'll bite anyway. I took a self defense class in college as one of my HPER courses, and I really enjoyed it. So after I graduated and had been working long enough to afford to take classes, I joined the Tang Soo Do class at the recreation center on campus. What's kept me there? I really enjoy doing it. I like my teacher, I like my fellow students, I feel good coming out of class, and it feels good to know I could defend myself if I had to.

I started at 25, for self-defense. I love it.

So many things! I was born with a warrior-mentality, (probably a past-life thing), so to honor that, I found that getting involved with martial arts helped me find that warrior in me, and help me understand the fighting spirit.

BUT...... the main reason why you should be ENCOURAGING WOMEN to dive into this martial art world, is simple because of this: In an assault situation, most likely, women are often the ones victimized or singled out. I hate to say it, but it is an ugly reality that women NEED to know, and they should be sick of. They need to become aware and they need to become strong. This “protection of one’s self” is not to be taken lightly. I think this is the strongest side of the martial arts. Instructors should pay close attention to female students especially, and know that martial arts isn’t just fun for them, but serious as well. It could save your life. I was an instructor myself, and that was the most important point I would try to get across. I wanted to see students get fired up when they realized that people in this world could try to hurt them. It is very disrupting to know that someone can violate you. Women have an inner instinct, and should get to know it well. I would love to see more women get involved, and fill up those classes! As people, we CAN change this world, and become smarter. You train so hard and become great, enlightening yourself along the way - hoping to never use what you have against another. I love it :)

Montium, I got involved on the sidelines because my son was interested in martial arts. I stayed on the sidelines (watching) for several years. For me, I did not join because I was never athletic and also was very intimidated by being in the middle of the floor and having everyone watch me.
What finally pushed me over into martial arts was a health crisis combined with the death of my mother at 57. However, this is what got me involved in martial but it is not what kept me in martial arts.
What kept me in martial arts was the additional confidence it gave me and I found it to be an incredible stress reliever that it emotionally helped balance me out. I became an assistant instructor and especially enjoyed working with other woman and the new people. It was very rewarding to see the level of confidence and skill improve so quickly in new students.
While I am now pursuing my Bachelors and don't have time working full time and going to school full time, I do intend to return to martial arts as soon as possible.
One final thought, the way the Master got me and several other ladies involved was to conduct a yoga/stretching class. This was a lot less intimidating than someone throwing a punch at us or us having to punch someone else. Being punched at or punching did not come naturally to me and was a difficult aspect to overcome. The Master slowly introduced kicking and punching a shield and moved us up from there.
Now I see martial arts like a ballet. It's balanced, smooth and can be very graceful. There is a wonderful mind/spirit/body connectivity that I have never experienced before. There is a heightened awareness of your entire body and of the people around you.
I also wish more women were involved in martial arts because the apparent benefits are there but there are so many more that are hard to describe as I've tried to do above. Pil Sung!

I started in martial arts at 12 (taekwondo first, then later shotokan karate, judo, chidokwan karate, and okinawan kobudo (weapons)). Honestly, I started because my younger brother was starting, and I couldn't let him be better at anything than I was.

He found that it wasn't his thing (bad competition among the guys at that school) and quit after about a year. I've now studied for 13 years (3 black belts, instructor for 2 years in a college club, etc.). Why? I think to a certain extent it's because it's a very individual sport. Some people enjoy team sports, some prefer individual sports. I like individual sports more, where I can compete against myself. But you also have the fun of training with a group, competing with each other (in a good way), and learning from each other.

I'm very small, 5', 98 lbs, and shy, and martial arts training really increased my confidence. One part is because you know you can handle yourself, and while nothing is guaranteed, I really have a lot more going for me in a self-defense situation than a random attacker would ever guess. But another part is because I've accomplished something difficult - I've earned three black belts, I've competed (successfully!) against guys in the dojo, and just in general persevered through difficult training times. So confidence would be one thing that kept me going back - once you've achieved so much, it feels good to walk into a dojo and feel like you belong.

SUPER important - the attitude of the instructor AND the students. If the instructor seems superior or like he/she doesn't care about his students, it's all over. The students have to care about each other, constructive criticism is ok but making fun of people or trying to establish a pecking order is unacceptable. The instructor has a big role in helping shape the attitude of the school as a whole. An instructor that is concerned, generous with his time and expertise, enough of a disciplinarian to maintain order and respect, and actually knows his/her stuff and can teach it - they're like gold. And the whole school will follow. Women will not feel out of place because the students will care about them just as other students.

Unhealthy competition among students is bad. My brother quit partly because the competition among the male students his age and slightly older was too intense - it had gone past friendly, at least in his mind. As a girl, I was largely exempt from that, and was able to experience the more supportive aspects of the school. I would expect a good school to be that supportive for everyone, male and female. As an instructor, I encouraged my students to help teach each other as much as possible, even past the point at which it would have been acceptable to instruct each other in a traditional school. I taught at a college campus (I was a student too!), so everyone was of about the same age, and it worked really well. I wouldn't necessarily advocate that method in a school with people of all different ages and stations in life, but the general effect was very positive - rather than seeing each other as competitors, they could see each other as fellow practioners, fellow students.

Let me know if you want more info! I like to talk about it, but I'm not that active on Tribe yet.