2 Martial Art Styles, 4 times a week = crazy idea?

Discussion in 'General Martial Arts Discussion' started by Dkel, Feb 17, 2022.

  1. Dkel

    Dkel New Member

    Hello!

    So long story short, at 15/16 I achieved 1st Dan in Shotokan Karate, I stopped shortly after... I turned 30 and moved to a new area of the UK (London to Medway) and it turns out there's lots of local Martial Art classes, I've done very little fitness over the last 10 years, so I've decided to change that.

    I attended a Kickboxing Class (with grading system), it was much more intense than what I remembered from my childhood Karate days but I loved it! so I've decided to sign up, they offer 4 classes a week (Mon, Tues, Weds & Thurs).

    One Martial Art style which seems to difficult to find in my area & in London, is Shotokan Karate, however I found a small local class, which made me happy and they offer classes twice a week, Im attending a trial class too.

    So Im looking for some advice, is it a wild idea to try and take on 2 Martial Art classes and train 4 times a week? (some weeks it may be 2 or 3) but I'd live to give each enough attention, also what can I do to help my body recover, good sleep and diet ofcourse, but is there anything else?

    Thanks! and hope this post does not seem too silly!
     
    Nachi likes this.
  2. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    Hi Dkel, welcome!

    it's cool you're returning to martial arts after a while.
    I haven't had a break as such, but I am in my early thirties, too, and can speak from experience. I am now also training four times a week in two arts - Goju ryu Karate and Taiji. Plus weekend seminars here and there. Taiji is known as a more relaxed art, but honestly, I am doing my best and it is at the very least the same work-out as karate if not breater at times. Monday to Thursday I have 10-11 hours of classes, also trying to divide them well between the two arts. I have a day in each art that I am there purely to train and one that I am teaching or assisting with classes, but that means training, too.
    It is sometimes quite touch to train when sore frmo the previous days, but if keeping this routine regularly, the body can get used to it.

    I am not keeping any type of diet nor do I sleep 8 hours a day and I guess it's fine. Obviously, keeping a good diet and sleeping a lot would be beneficial in any case. As for the sleep, I believe your body will tell you. But generally, if you're 30, you're young enough and should be able to adapt to the regime.
    One thing I'd pay attention if I was starting would be to look for schools that are closeby. I spend nearly as much time commuting as actual training, which then makes it so that Monday to Thursday, I have no time for anything other than work, commuting and training. But of course, it's not like there's always a choice to pick the location of the school and you've already picked, so that is a needless advice now, I guess.

    If you haven't been very active in the past several years, it might be better to ease into the training routine slowly over a few weeks instead of going for 4 classes a weeks right away. If you are too tired coming to class and not used to it, injury might happen.
    Pay attention to warming up before class (and stretching). It is a good idea to stretch after class, too - to improve flexibility and prevent soreness. Other then that just listen to your body and have fun :)
     
  3. Dkel

    Dkel New Member

    Hey Nachi!

    Thanks for replying :) that's good to know about your experience with sleep, as in all honesty I rarely get 8 hours! yes luckily enough both classes are 20-30 min walks, or short taxi rides, so I'm hoping that will be ok.

    I think I will take your advice and start with 2 classes (one of each) for the first month and increase gradually.

    Thanks again :)
     
    Nachi likes this.
  4. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    No problem. Enjoy the training :)
     
  5. Flying Crane

    Flying Crane Well-Known Member

    Training four days a week is definitely not overdoing it, although it could depend on the intensity of the sessions and your specific conditioning level. I have gone for periods when I would train 6-7 days a week, some of those days as many as three sessions in a single day. But that is something that cannot be sustained indefinitely. But my point is, humans can train hard and benefit from it.

    training in more than one martial system at a time can be problematic, but it depends. If you are a total beginner in martial arts, and/or you are a beginner in both systems, you could very well have a hard time with this and undermine the training so that you have little, or slow, progression in both. That can be frustrating and can lead to burnout and lead to an end to your training. You want to find something that you are interested in and will keep at it for the long term.

    If you are solid in one system already, you are more likely to successfully train a second system. But again, it depends. Some people do it quite well. Some people are never able to be good at more than one. Some people convince themselves that they are good at it, but they are not.

    As a shodan in shotokan, I would say that likely you could begin a second system. However, if you have not been training in many years and have lost most of your skills and knowledge, you might actually be starting over again and you ought to consider focusing on one system exclusively, until you build that solid competency again. If you spread your self too thin, chasing after too many things all at once, you are unlikely to gain any of them.

    another issue is dependent on specifically what systems you choose to train. Some systems may create conflicting habits within their methodology that undermine the methodology of the other system. Sometimes the more similar two systems are, the more problematic it is because there are subtle differences they bleed together and are a bigger problem than if the two systems are entirely different, like if you train a primarily striking system (perhaps shotokan) and a primarily grappling system (judo, for example). That may be less problematic than if you train in two karate systems.

    In summary, there is no simple answer to your question. Given what you described in your opening post, I would suggest that you take some time to focus exclusively on your shotokan again, if you have found a school that you are happy with and if that is what you want to do. Give it a year or three or four so you solidify your skills again. Then look for what might make sense as a second method to add to your studies. If you have the time and energy to train four days a week, spend that time and energy on one system, so that you progress. If class is only offered twice a week, spend time on those other two days training by yourself so you take ownership of your training, internalize the material, and make faster progress. Learning to train by yourself, away from class and without your teacher monitoring what you are doing, is an extremely important skill. As long as you attend classes also, you will get the corrections that you need. Then You work to develop and polish those skills on your own time. Your teacher will notice, if you are spending time outside class working on your skills. That goes a long way in earning the respect of the teacher. That can open doors later, for things that the teacher may not be willing to teach to everyone, but will teach to someone who is clearly enthusiastic and makes it worth his time.
     
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  6. Dan Bian

    Dan Bian Neither Dan, nor Brian

    Welcome to MAP, and to Medway!
    There are a fair few martial arts classes around the area. Where are you doing Kickboxing?
     
  7. Dan Bian

    Dan Bian Neither Dan, nor Brian

    There is a Shotokan club at the end of my road in Strood. I've visited there once and the training seemed solid.
     
  8. Dkel

    Dkel New Member

    I think your referring to the one I went too yesterday maybe!? and yes! training was solid, really enjoyed it, kingswood/Thames Kaizen Karate?

    Im doing Kickboxing at TKO Elite in Chatham.

    It's great, there seems to be so much choice locally, never had that in SE london, so local.
     
  9. Dan Bian

    Dan Bian Neither Dan, nor Brian

    That's the one! Glad you enjoyed it!

    And TKO elite; I know Colin Payne there well, he was my first Karate teacher back in the early 90's - you won't go wrong with him!

    There is a lot of choice, yes. We also have an MMA gym; Combat Sports Academy, in Strood. I've gone to open mat training sessions there a few times in the past with friends who were enrolled there.
    If you're interested in trying, I teach free Tai Chi classes in a local park on Sunday mornings, covering both health and martial aspects of the art.
    Also happy to meet up for a coffee some time if you're new to the area :)
     
  10. Dkel

    Dkel New Member

    Yeah I liked Colin! liked the vibe at TKO, they train hard!

    Oh yes! I actually was going to try Muay Thai at Combat, but as I found the Karate place in Strood, I thought i'd give it a miss, does look good though!

    Ah cheers! I was wondering, you may know, if they do any MMA events? to go watch in the Medway\Kent area?

    Thanks!
     
  11. Dan Bian

    Dan Bian Neither Dan, nor Brian

    Pre-covid, I believe MMA and Kickboxing events were sometimes held at the Casino Rooms in Rochester Highstreet. Not sure if they've had chance to start them up again yet though.
     
  12. Smitfire

    Smitfire Cactus Schlong

    The best time I had training martial arts was when I was doing Monday = Thai boxing, Tuesday = Submission grappling followed by Rapid Arnis, Saturday = BJJ and Sunday = Knockdown karate.
    Would I have been better at any one of them if I was more concentrated? If dropped something in favour of more of something else? Probably. Almost definitely.
    BUT...I really enjoyed the variety, the challenge, the different skillsets, etc. It kept me engaged and fulfilled.
    So I'm all for training in different arts if that's what you want to do. Go for it.
    Seeing as most of us train for fun/life enhancement, without facing life and death danger every day, that for me is probably my paramount concern.
    Obviously with the caveats of recovery, what are your goals/motivations, etc.
     
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  13. Tom bayley

    Tom bayley Valued Member

    Some, by no means all, but some, kickboxing clubs over emphasise the aerobic training in the lessons. Of coarse it depends on the length of the lessons but a one hour lesson does not require more than 10 minutes combined warm up and cool down and 5 mins stretching. the majority of your time should be done in drills and partner work that is directly concerned with the art. If this is intense pad, footwork, bag or partner work. That's great. so long as it is relevant to your art. Cardio is important in compertion. but it is not as important as technique. you can do cardio on your own time. you cannot learn from your instructors or training partners on you own time.
     
    Dkel likes this.
  14. axelb

    axelb Master of Office Chair Fu

    Welcome to MAP. Good on you for getting back to it. Some things will come back quickly enough. 4 times a week is pretty standard for a lot, you need to listen to your body more at 30+ but you can still push it a lot.
     
  15. aaradia

    aaradia Choy Li Fut and Yang Tai Chi Chuan Student Moderator Supporter

    After the whole crazy last couple of years, with a lot of pandemic, political chaos, and civil unrest STILL going on, just go have fun and follow your bliss!

    Too much going on to do anything else.

    I could go on about this or that, but none of it matters.............truly.

    You can always hunker down on one and quit the other if it isn't working out.
     
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  16. Smitfire

    Smitfire Cactus Schlong

    More people involved in martial arts need to see, hear and understand this advice.
    Hell half the world could do with following this advice, and if they don't want to follow themselves, sit back, shut up and allow others to follow it in their way.
     
  17. Xue Sheng

    Xue Sheng All weight is underside

    Actually,it is more my dream.... way back, about 30 years ago I was going to my Shifu's guan 5 to 7 times a week, it was awesome. I was training Taijiquan, and whatever other classes I could get into, not all were at the same time, but Taijiquan was constant, others during that time were Shaolin Long Fist, Baguazhang and Xingyiquan. Also was a member of a sparing group he allowed on Saturday afternoons. I really miss that, but then I doubt I'd survive it these days
     
  18. Dkel

    Dkel New Member

    wow Hey guys! for some reason, I did not get any notifications about these recent replies!

    Thanks so much for engaging and replying to me, some really interesting points!

    It's going well so far, really enjoying it, I cant wait for the next class.
     
  19. Dkel

    Dkel New Member

    Thanks Tom, really interesting point, as I am finding this a little at my classes, but I thought it was maybe because it's a beginner class, I like the place and atmosphere/people but it is quite cadio heavy rather, I guess time will tell!
     
  20. icefield

    icefield Valued Member

    It depends on why you train but if you compete in any combat sport you know cardiovascular fitness is equally as important as technique

    And to be honest if you are training for health and fitness I'd go with the intense class over a slower one any day of the week.

    cardiovascular fitness is one of the main predictors of someone living a longer healthy life
     
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