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Martial Arts And The Belt System


Lots of people in the western world are familiar with martial arts but don't know much about them other than the colored belts. Most people know that the colors on the belts symbolize some kind of rank but that's the extent of it. Most people would not have an idea what color is the highest rank and which color is the lowest. Of course, individuals who take martial arts are quite familiar with the colors and how they rank. When others look at the color of your belt, they are going to know how much you understand about that specific martial art form.

The colors of a belt are known to represent the rank of a person in a martial art and it has been this way for centuries. It was initiated by a man named Jigoro Kano, who developed Kodokan Judo, and in order to rank his students within his style of martial arts, he soon began using white and black belts. He did this to separate his students, only letting the participation of the activities that matched the color of the belt. This system allowed students who were not really ready to learn skills necessary to their level. This system worked sufficiently that it became normal in the field of martial arts, even to the introduction of more colors. Because of this anyone who is a student of a martial art will right away know the skill level of another. Other types, including Karate, Taekwondo, and others began using this system, as well.

Even though all martial arts incorporate some kind of belt system, how the rankings are identified will be different from one school to the next. You'll find that depending on the area, the requirements may not be as demanding as other places. This can cause misunderstandings, when schools are teaching the same type of martial arts, but to get a specific ranking, one school would use different requirements than another school. You may find that somebody who has a black belt in one school may not be a black belt in another. Nearly all schools try to stick to the same criteria, but there are always some who want to integrate their own style to be unique.

Although almost all martial arts use a belt system, some don't including Shootfighting. Even though there are still others that don't use any ranking system since their focus is self defense. Pitfighting is a kind of self defense that is focused on protecting yourself so it also does not make use of a ranking system.

Using a belt system in martial arts helps it to focus the appropriate techniques to the appropriate skill levels. It's a good way for teachers to see how well their school is progressing and it gives students a goal to achieve. Having a black belt can take several years of hard work but that's what every student of martial art would like to achieve. With a belt system, you can work your way up without bypassing any critical steps. You won't ever move up unless you've mastered a rank. qbtt