Jon_B

I'm Jon. I'm 19, and I live in Florida. I am currently a college student.

I was first fascinated with Martial Arts as a child. I took my first Shorin Ryu classes at age 12 while I lived in Japan. When I moved to Okinawa, I studied another traditional style of Karate for a couple months.

After I stopped taking classes for a couple of months, my friends introduced me to Tae Kwon Do (Chung Do Kwan style). I made it to green belt without too much trouble, but my Sam Ba Nim was sent somewhere else, and I took another hiatus.

After living in Okinawa, I moved to Guam. I met another teacher that taught Chung Do Kwan, and I progressed all the way to third degree red. Unfortunately enough for me, the week I would have been able to test for my black belt never happened because both my teacher's family and my family were both moving back to the U.S. Now she lives in Maryland.

I've lived here for a couple of years, and I just joined another school on my 19th birthday. This school teaches Moo Duk Kwon style, so I had to start over. I got my yellow belt in less than a month, and I test for my orange belt tomorrow. I still have some skill I guess....

I've sparred against a capoeirista, a couple people that practice Karate and Tae Kwon Do, a person that practiced Drunken Kung Fu (Who taught me a couple techniques), and two people that did Tai Chi Chuan. I sparred against my brother (A former Kentucky state champion in Tae Kwon Do that has practiced Wing Chun, Jeet Kune Do, Muay Thai, and a little Jiu Jutsu.. as well as Olympic Tae Kwon Do) once too. Obviously I didn't win that one.

I'm also learning a little capoeira. I'm using it as a supplement because my acrobatics have a lot to be desired. I know it's a really small part of the overall benefits of the art, but the floreios (spelling ???) is what attracts me.

My goal is to be proficient in at least three Martial Arts.

Tae Kwon Do works well as a base in my eyes.

I think Capoeira is effective against other arts that emphasize striking. Grappling.... I don't know.

It's going to be awhile before I become proficient in Tae Kwon Do and Capoeira, but when I do I plan on starting Jeet Kune Do.

After Jeet Kune Do: I'm really unsure. I don't know if I should learn grappling, Kung Fu, Muay Thai, or what.

but enough of my rambling...

I'm here to make some new friends, learn about fitness regiments, learn about different styles, and some street self defense information. This looks like a great board. Thanks for having me!