Recently, and quite by accident, I discovered what appeared to be a legitimate karate dojo just five minutes drive from my new office location. After conferring with a friend who had studied in the style himself, and learning that the association was well regarded, I decided to have a look.
The dojo facility is incredible, perhaps the nicest dojo I’ve seen. My tour left me impressed and so I made plans to return and try a workout or two or more. I’ve been rehabilitating a pulled groin injury and the lower back compensation injury for months now - my primary question was, “am I healthy enough to do this once again?”
After some scheduling delays, and some time screwing up my courage, I went for the first workout this past Tuesday at noon. It was very good. A surprising amount of what I had known intimately before came back from the recesses of my mind. The time passed quickly, and by the end of the workout I was pleasantly surprised to find I wasn’t in pain. I know that my motivations for starting karate again are far different from what they were when I originally started in 1990. Whether my new motivation is drive enough for me to continue the path back towards black belt rank remains to be seen.
You can read more about my adventures in karate at zanshin.wordpress.com.