Now, I’m beginning to think that I know way too many forms. In class, Master Landry asked the Red belts to stand up if they knew Form 12. None of the Red belts stood up. Then I looked at my husband, “Form 12, don’t we know Form 12?” After he thought about it for a couple beats, he nodded and started to get up. At that point, it hit all of the Red belts that we all knew Form 12, and it’s not like we just learned it either. I attribute it to Form overload or Karate tmi (too much information).
As a 2 Gup Red belt, I’m now “suppose” to know 12 Hyungs (forms), 5 self-defense 1 steps all 3 parts, 4 Bo staff forms, 2 tonfa forms (can’t remember the last time I practice these), 2 sword forms, 7 types of kicks, and various breaks. If it sounds like a lot, that’s because it is! At a total of 25 forms and some other self defense-y things, it’s TMI! Not to mention each form has at least 20 steps or more in them and slight nuances between each form that makes it too similar to another. It happens to me all the time where I start practicing one form, and end in a different form.
When I first started out, the instructors gave us hints to help us remember the moves that would make the founders of Tang Soo Do shudder. Hints like the “Superman” in Form 8, Form 4 has us looking like “Teacups”, and my favorite, in Form 9, the little song of “Ahn Ye Seo, Ahn Ye Seo, Bahk Ye Seo, Bahk Ye Seo, Bahk Ye Seo, Ahn Ye Seo”. Of course, I had to look up what Ahn Ye Seo and Bahk Ye Seo were before it made any sense. But never have chicken wings in Forms 4 and 5 or Master Landry will be upset. However, I’ve noticed that starting with Form 10, we don’t get any hints anymore. Now is when I need them the most!
I’ve heard somewhere that the average person can only realistically remember about 5-9 things in their short term or active memory. Of course, if something gets into long term memory, then you’ll remember it indefinitely as long as you recall the memory often. That’s where muscle memory comes in.
All of the instructors say when we’re learning a new form that eventually it will get into your muscle memory. When I first heard this, I thought, uh muscles can’t think, don’t you need your brain for that? What they forgot to tell me is that muscle memory is when you’ve practiced the form over and over and over again until you can do it in your sleep or at least dream about the Form while sleeping and that’s when it has been burned into your long term memory.
So, here’s where I’m at. I can’t seem to get to class and I’m not disciplined enough to practice Forms at all hours of the night. Either work, kids, or vacations seem to get in the way. Where does that leave my muscle memory? Apparently it’s back at Form 5. It shoved Form 6, 7, and 8 out the door to learn Form 9, 10, and 11, and of course, we learned Form 12, but I guess it hasn’t registered in my brain that my muscles should know that one.
It hit home that it was getting bad when my oh-so-clever daughter discussed the subject of missing classes with me while we were driving home, saying that students in our class can only get better if they go to karate classes. She, of course, doesn’t practice at home, so all of her practice is in class. We were talking about when the Red belts were asked to teach to a lower belt while a black belt looked on. The person that my daughter taught hadn’t been to class in a while.
“You can't expect to miss 1 or 2 weeks’ worth of classes, or you’ll have to start at the beginning again on some things,” my daughter prophecies.
“Sounds about right,” I reply begrudgingly.
“Who did you have as your train the trainer on Saturday, Mom?”
I turned my head and just glared at her.
“Ooooh, that's right ... you weren't there.”
So, if I can’t get to class, then I’m just going to practice at home to pick up the slack when I have the time. Problem is, if you listen to conventional wisdom, it would take 10,000 hours to master a skill. At this rate, if I practice Kee Cho Hyung IL Bu (Form 1) for an hour each day, for every day in a year, then I’ll master Kee Cho Hyung IL Bu in about 27 years. I’d better get started! I’m not getting any younger, you know. As it is, I’ll be retired by the time I get it mastered. It’s a good thing that it goes into muscle memory since I’ll have lost my other memory by then. Hmm, better hope I don’t get Parkinson’s.
- Wendy Austin
