I apologise in advance for what is essentially an angry rant with a question tacked on at the end. I just wanted to vent.
I've been doing Muay Thai in a really good gym for a year and a half now. The class is good, the instructor knows both technique and how to teach people well, everyone spars from the beginning, the people are friendly and we have some skilled fighters at amateur to semi-pro level.
Then I found this school with a good name to it, and they offered more than one type of martial art in the membership which presented an opportunity to cross-train. Before you become a member, you get a free class, then you pay every month via standing order. I went for the free class, starting with MT since it's the one I know a little about.
After some warm up with the focus mitts and some clinchwork, the class was split into people who've been there for more than a few months and the rest. As it was my first time there I was obviously placed with the newbs, even though the instructor knew of my previous experience.
While the others sparred, we were left to train some low kicks, tapping them into each other with no force. Our instructor showed us the kick a few times then let us have a go at it. I was paired with a guy who said he'd never done this before. I said it's cool, I know a little bit about it and we'll be fine. He of course kicked too stiff, with no movement of the hips, no pivot on the standin leg, and connecting with the instep. I corrected him by showing him the proper technique, and our instructor saw what I was doing.
"Hey, don't you walk in here and assume you can teach my students".
Now, I the man probably didn't trust the fact that I told him I had some idea of what I was doing. Still, he didn't have to be a dick about it. And I'm pretty sure if the first thing your student does when you teach him how to do a low roundhouse is kick with his instep, you have failed at life.
This little argument got to me later on when we were practicing kicks with one thai pad and one focus mitt. My partner, who didn't even know what a thai pad was until I told him, held the pads nearly vertical as if for an uppercut, and I was too hesitant to correct him now in case I got my ear chewed off again. I ended up twatting my foot against my partner's elbow on the arm that held the focus mitt. Bah.
The unfortunate thing is, if I stick it out, I think I might learn something. This gym has more big, tough looking guys than my old one. I don't know how many of them are fighters, but guaranteed some of them are. The aliveness is there, just not for beginners. Also, few times we did get some instruction the guy was informative.
I'm not going back though.
Does anyone currently tough it out with a martial arts instructor they really, really don't like? Has anyone left an otherwise good school simply because they can't stand their teacher? At what point does it stop being strictness and start being douchebaggery?
I've been doing Muay Thai in a really good gym for a year and a half now. The class is good, the instructor knows both technique and how to teach people well, everyone spars from the beginning, the people are friendly and we have some skilled fighters at amateur to semi-pro level.
Then I found this school with a good name to it, and they offered more than one type of martial art in the membership which presented an opportunity to cross-train. Before you become a member, you get a free class, then you pay every month via standing order. I went for the free class, starting with MT since it's the one I know a little about.
After some warm up with the focus mitts and some clinchwork, the class was split into people who've been there for more than a few months and the rest. As it was my first time there I was obviously placed with the newbs, even though the instructor knew of my previous experience.
While the others sparred, we were left to train some low kicks, tapping them into each other with no force. Our instructor showed us the kick a few times then let us have a go at it. I was paired with a guy who said he'd never done this before. I said it's cool, I know a little bit about it and we'll be fine. He of course kicked too stiff, with no movement of the hips, no pivot on the standin leg, and connecting with the instep. I corrected him by showing him the proper technique, and our instructor saw what I was doing.
"Hey, don't you walk in here and assume you can teach my students".
Now, I the man probably didn't trust the fact that I told him I had some idea of what I was doing. Still, he didn't have to be a dick about it. And I'm pretty sure if the first thing your student does when you teach him how to do a low roundhouse is kick with his instep, you have failed at life.
This little argument got to me later on when we were practicing kicks with one thai pad and one focus mitt. My partner, who didn't even know what a thai pad was until I told him, held the pads nearly vertical as if for an uppercut, and I was too hesitant to correct him now in case I got my ear chewed off again. I ended up twatting my foot against my partner's elbow on the arm that held the focus mitt. Bah.
The unfortunate thing is, if I stick it out, I think I might learn something. This gym has more big, tough looking guys than my old one. I don't know how many of them are fighters, but guaranteed some of them are. The aliveness is there, just not for beginners. Also, few times we did get some instruction the guy was informative.
I'm not going back though.
Does anyone currently tough it out with a martial arts instructor they really, really don't like? Has anyone left an otherwise good school simply because they can't stand their teacher? At what point does it stop being strictness and start being douchebaggery?
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