u/rust2stardust

The ACE (Adverse Childhood Experiences) questionnaire is a popular tool used to assess levels of childhood trauma. It is often given by therapists and psychiatrists to measure exposure to abuse and help the patient understand how childhood trauma has impacted their well-being through the years. You can find it online and try it for yourself. It's just 10 simple questions.

Feel free to ask me anything about my experiences and treatment, or just random questions! :)

I am a red belt with 2.5 years experience in TKD and 3 years in karate. Recently, I was partnered up with a third dan who has 16 years of experience. I'd like to continue working with her because I like the challenge, but I'm thinking of ways to up my game to keep things interesting for her.

For those of you with experience sparring those of higher rank, what mindset do you go in with? Do you have any tips or tricks for the occasion? Maybe a victory story to share?

My feet are currently hurting, blistered, and cut up from sparring on the gym floor last night. We unfortunately rent a spot that doesn't have mats.

The problem last night was we had to wear our foot protectors. The bands that wrap around them dig into my feet and the bottom of my feet are exposed. Can anyone recommend regulation foot protection with more coverage for the bottom of the feet?

During regular practice, I wear old school Kung Fu shoes, but they are a bit slippery. Any recommendations for lightweight, affordable women's martial arts shoes with good traction?

Thank you! :)

Are you guys also competing in flag sparring?

At first, it seemed so simple and even juvenile to me, but there are some people from my school who get really into it. I thought having long limbs was the biggest advantage, but one of our best flag sparrers is a short lady with a larger build in her 40's. She's a red belt and consistently beats younger black belts in better shape.

Have you figured out any techniques? I usually keep some distance and try to wear out my partner, but I need to get aggressive enough to grab that back flag.

Hi guys! I've practiced karate and now Taekwondo and it will be time to test for black belt soon. I heard our black belt tests last 3 hours and that we will have to spar against multiple opponents at the same time. Is this pretty typical for TKD tests? Thank you!

I have been at TKD for 3 years and did Karate as a teen for 3 years as well. I've had some breaks here and there but nothing too big, but I just noticed yesterday that I haven't point sparred once all this time in practice... In karate, we sparred weekly.

We were at a competition with continuous sparring the other day and asked our master to incorporate this to improve stamina and technique. He sort of went off on us about how we are going to get hurt. He only sees full contact, Olympic style sparring as beneficial, but my old school did light contact and no one ever got seriously hurt.

How do we broach the subject with him again? He's been at this for 25 years and knows his stuff, but his students are ready to improve their fighting. Maybe he has some trauma from seeing injuries in his past (ex military). Can I convince him that light contact is still beneficial for training?