‘Sacred Spaces – The place where one practises the way’ by Anna Glover – Chang’s Hapkido Academy UK, 2nd dan As the Head of Safety in a theatre, one of my favourite aspects of my job is to attend a
Black belt testing is a time for reflection
At a grading a couple of weeks ago, three students tested for their black belts – two for their 1st degree and the third for her 2nd degree. At CHA black belt testing is a fairly lengthy process. All three
Giving time to listening
During skills practice, traditional martial arts etiquette dictates that a junior belt not correct a more senior belt. Is this because they know more? Sometimes they do … actually, a lot of the time their additional years of practice will
Making progress
Sometimes there are sessions when nothing seems to be working right. Kicks feel heavy. Throws don’t work. Patterns are corrected, and then corrected again. The novice expects to feel a certain amount of incompetence, but for the senior belt this
Out with the old, in with the new
July, 2013 Last weekend I was presented with my 5th degree black belt. Many of my students have asked how it feels – I’m not sure I totally know yet, but here are some initial thoughts… As with every new
Training beyond black belt (part two)
[part 1] Before Christmas I surveyed some of Chang’s Hapkido Academy (CHA) black belts to discover what keeps them coming back after achieving their black belt. I’ve received over a dozen responses now from black belts across four of our
Training beyond black belt (part one)
To achieve a black belt in Hapkido requires many years of practice. Practicing anything long term requires energy, passion and commitment. But like anything else, our ability to perform a technique effectively will eventually decay – that’s why continued practice,
Taking time to appreciate a black belt.
Last month, after years of training and months of testing, one of my students received her black belt. As is the custom, the belt was presented to her at the end of a recent rank test. She was called to