Karate Black Belt First Degree

March 11, 2023

Video of Board Breaking with Knuckles - https://youtu.be/0KdyvoMFObg

My buddy Daniel came to cheer for me

Here is the essay I submitted before my belt test. Each student testing for next level of black belt has to write an essay. 

The Next Step

By: Aadvik Mitra

I earned my black belt in karate on March 12 2022. I was so excited to finally be a black belt. Little did I know, my journey was only starting. Being a first degree black belt means a lot to me. It means getting to train with even more advanced partners, it means learning new and advanced forms and techniques, and it means having reached the next step on my journey to be a blue top.

I have been doing karate for almost 7 years now and I have learnt a lot. I have learnt the most in this past year though. Training with the first degrees and black belts has helped me learn so much. For example, I am able to sharpen my sparing forms and techniques when my partner is more advanced than I am. A partner like that forces me to work harder and better. I didn't have many partners like that when I was a brown belt. Another reason for why I like training with higher belts is because it is more fun. When your partner isn’t aggressive, then it isn’t like karate. When you have an aggressive partner, it is like actually fighting but you know that you won’t get hurt. I have really enjoyed training with the black belts and I can’t wait to train with the fist degrees. 

One thing I have enjoyed the most about being a black belt is Rohai. When I saw the black belts doing Rohai on the belt test day I said, “The black belts get to do all the cool stuff.” While that wasn’t exactly true because the brown belt forms were fun too, I was very excited to learn the black belt forms. Over the past year, I have practiced Rohai the most. I have now refined my form a lot. Every time I went through it, I got a little bit better. I feel like I have worked very hard on Rohai. Now though, I am excited for the next techniques. While I was amazed at the black belt forms, I enjoyed the first and second degree ones even more. While I don’t know what forms and one-steps I am going to learn next, I am super excited to learn them. 

Finally, being a first degree means the next step in my journey. Ever since I joined karate, I have wanted to be a blue top. Being a blue top means teaching students what I have learnt and helping them have as much fun in karate as I do. As a first degree, I am one step closer to my goal. To be a blue top, my kicks will need to be good, my forms will need to be good, and I will have to know my stuff. Training with the first degrees will help me with all of this. I am one step closer to my goal.

Over the course of 7 years, I have learnt a lot. This last year has taught me the most though. My sparring is better because of the partners I get to train with, my forms are better and I have learnt a new form too. Also, I am one step closer to being a blue top. I have to thank my instructors Mr. Justin, Mr. David, and all the blue tops that have helped me come this far on my journey. Thank you for getting me to the next step in my karate journey.