Martial Art World: A Student’s Perspective

We recently asked Dr Matthew Witt about his training at Martial Art World. He has made some amazing progress with us in such a short period of time and we thought we would share some of his journey with you. Take a look at some the questions we asked him and his answers below:

Why did you join Martial Art World?

I have always enjoyed trying to keep fit and had always wanted to study a martial art but never got around to joining a school or club. As my 50th birthday was rapidly approaching (which has now passed) I decided it was now or never! I went to Martial Art World for an introductory meeting and it was obvious that the facilities and teaching were of an extremely high standard. After a couple of trial sessions, I joined the positive start program aiming to get fitter, more flexible, lose some weight with the ultimate goal of becoming a black belt.

What goals have you achieved?

Since joining in October 2017, I have gained 6 belts to date. The training is pretty intensive and in the first 6 months my weight came down from 12 ½ to 11 stone without too much change in eating habits! Also, my flexibility and fitness have massively increased with me being able to touch my toes again, something I haven’t been able to do for several years!

What’s your favourite part about training at Martial Art World?

It is very difficult to single out just one thing as a favourite part of training. The school is extremely friendly and encouraging right from all the instructors to all fellow students. The purpose-built facilities are also excellent. If I had to choose, then my favourite parts would be 1, sparring in Korean Martial Arts for its intensity, fitness training and having to think quickly on your feet and 2, Tae Kwon Do patterns and line work for their technicalities and movement.

If someone were thinking of starting martial arts, what advice would you give?

Definitely, the more you put in, the more you will get out. For this question I can share 3 things that have really helped me so far. These are:

1. Try and make some time available for yourself outside of the academy to practice regularly. This will let you go at your pace and really help you to progress all the techniques you learn in class.
2. Get a notebook and write everything down that you learn in class. There is no way I can remember everything and having it written down helps me remember what I’m supposed to be working on! Also, you can look back on what you learnt in previous modules to refresh the memory.
3. Develop yourself a stretching and flexibility routine and try and do it every day. This will really help you in class.

Perhaps finally, when you start sparring, remember to breath!