As you probably know, most karate dojos follow a formalized curriculum, and a test is done before a person is promoted from one belt to the next.  In this article, I will explain what is required for a person to be awarded a brown belt, and how good they are compared to new people in …

I created a survey to write this post, asking the simple question ‘What’s the hardest martial art to learn?’ with 6 of the most popular martial arts as choices. Overall, Brazilian jiu jitsu is the hardest, followed by wrestling, judo, kickboxing, karate, and finally boxing. A survey of over 425 people found that Brazilian jiu …

Any martial arts can technically be used in mixed martial arts (MMA), provided you don’t violate the rules of MMA. Kickboxing is a well-known and effective martial art that is utilized by virtually all UFC fighters to some degree. Today, I will explain everything there is to know about kickboxing for MMA.  In general, any …

Once a student gets a black belt they are qualified to teach BJJ, and a black belt is seen as the pinnacle of skill in many martial arts. But how long does it takes to get a black belt in BJJ? On average, it takes 8 to 14 years to get a black belt in …

Anyone that has trained in Taekwondo will know that if you get to the red belt standard you are a skilled and determined expert (or at least very close to an expert). But since training to get to this standard, I’ve become really interested in what the red belt actually means. In Taekwondo, the red …

I’ve been training at Taekwondo for about two years now, and I’ve got really interested in the belt system. All the belts have different meanings, but what’s the meaning of the blue belt? In Taekwondo, the blue belt represents the sky and the heavens, towards which the tree grows as the student’s progress continues. A …

I’ve played and coached hockey over the last twenty years, and in that time I’ve found the very best hockey shooting drills to be: One on one big arc back checking Cross ice 3 pass and shoot drill Power turn give and go Shot hockey warm up drill Leafs warm up drill 2 on 0 …

Having played ice hockey for several years, I can confidently say that you need to wear a cup! Players of all levels in ice hockey wear a cup. This includes both amateurs and professionals, players of all ages, and also players of different genders. There is always the risk of being struck in the genital …

Are you an ice hockey fanatic looking to spruce up your skills off-ice? Well, I’ve got good news for you! Hockey enthusiasts can easily adapt many of the drills to a non-ice environment (Source), and you don’t need ice to practice your goalie moves at home. With these top 9 ice hockey goalie drills, you …

People often ask me what position in ice hockey is the most important one. Ice hockey is played by six players: these positions include three forwards, which are comprised of a center player and two wing players, a goalkeeper, and two defensive players. But which is the ‘best’? I believe the center player’s position is …