When did you join Tukido? What did you like about it?
For most of my life I’d wanted to learn a martial art but always bottled it when I considered joining a club. However I plucked up the courage and started training in May 2015, and haven’t been able to do without it since! In my first lesson I was awestruck by the skill and dedication displayed by the students and instructors. I remember kicking myself for not having tried it sooner (metaphorically, I wasn’t very flexible then)
What are the benefits of Tukido training?
Personally I’ve found Tukido to have an extremely positive effect on my whole lifestyle. I was a rather lazy and depressed person before I started, finding motivation to get through the next day was always a big struggle for me. Tukido is tough and uncompromising but also kind and encouraging – it pretty much picked me up by the scruff of the neck and gave me a bit of a shove for good measure. It gave me the ability to view every obstacle that life can throw at you as something that can be beaten or broken, and that aiming for big goals isn’t unrealistic – in fact it is an essential component in being happy.
What would you say to anyone looking to join?
If you’re anything like I was and have doubts about joining – maybe you think you’re too old or unfit to start – you’re being silly. Tukido is about self improvement and motivation – it doesn’t matter if there’s a 14 year old there that can do a 540 degree spinning kick, if you are making progress then you are winning. Plus if you keep working at it then eventually you could find yourself doing moves you laughed at when you saw them in the movies because they seemed impossible. Pretty cool I think.
What are your goals for your training in future?
Never giving up. Maybe a black belt would be nice, but that’s not the point of all this!