Wikipedia - Protein for Women

Foods like yogurt (left) and egg
whites (right) are protein rich foods.

Protein in a women's diet is very important. Protein builds and repair tissues, and it is an important building block of muscles and bones.[1]  A 2005 study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that increasing  dietary protein from 15% to 30% results in significant weight loss.[2]

Food with Protein
The best use for protein is to repair and maintain
body tissues. If people eat more protein than they need for tissue maintenance and repair, their bodies use it for energy.[3] Table 1 displays a list of high protein food, servings and the amount of fat.[4]

Protein Intake
The amount of protein intake depends on your weight, age, and activity levels. A survey conducted by Luna found that 50% of women ages 18–50 don't know if they get enough protein. [5]  On average 1 gram of protein is needed for every pound you weigh. For example, if you weigh 130 lbs you would need 47-106 grams of protein a day. [6]  Those who are active and have continuous physical training need to increase their protein needs. [7] The chart below shows an ideal daily protein intake dependent on your genders and lifestyle. [8] 

Breast Cancer
Though there has been controversial research results on the subject of protein's relation to breast cancer, the Shanghai Women’s Health Study found that women with the highest soy protein intakes throughout adolescence and early adulthood had nearly a 60 percent lower risk of pre-menopausal breast cancer than women with the lowest intakes. [9]

Issues
Consuming to much protein can actually be harmful to your body. Dr Gail Butterfield, director of Nutrition Studies at the Palo Alto Veterans' Administration Medical Center indicates that a diet in which protein makes up more than 30% of your caloric intake causes a buildup of toxic ketones. An over-build up of ketones can send your kidneys into overdrive in order to flush these ketones from your body. As your kidneys rid your body of these toxic ketones, you can lose a significant amount of water, which puts you at risk of dehydration, particularly if you exercise heavily. [11]

In addition to heart disease, studies suggest that eating high amounts of protein can contribute to high cholesterol levels, gout and may put a strain on the kidneys, especially those who suffer from kidney disease. [10] 



See also

• High-protein diet
• Nutrition
• Protein

References

1, 5. Betsch, Mara. March 1 2010. How Much Protein Do Women Really Need? http://www.health.com/health/article/0,,20410520,00.html

2. Weigle, David; Breen, Patricia; Mattheys, Colleen. The American Journal of Clincial Nutrition. 2005.  A high-protein diet induces sustained reductions in appetite, ad libitum caloric intake, and body weight despite compensatory changes in diurnal plasma leptin and ghrelin concentrations. 82:41–48.

3, 4. Hermann, Janice R. Protein and the Body. http://pods.dasnr.okstate.edu/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-2473/T-3163web.pdf

6. Calculators for Protein Requirements. http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/library/blproteincalculators.htm

7. Russell, Robert M.D. and Sceppa, Carmen, M.D. How Much Protein Do You Need? http://www.thedoctorwillseeyounow.com/content/nutrition/art2059.html

8. How Much Protein Per Day To Build Muscle, Lose Fat & Be Health? http://www.acaloriecounter.com/diet/how-much-protein-per-day/

9. Harvard School of Public Health. Protein: Moving Closer to Center Stage. http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/protein-full-story/

10. Nelson, Miriam. Will Eating More Protein Help Your Body Gain Muscle Faster? http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=50900

11. Thrasybule, Linda. August 31, 2013. 3 Things You Need To Know About Protein. ttp://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/08/31/3-things-need-to-know-about-eating-protein/

How to Get More Energry

I work full-time, I am working on my Masters, I practice and teach Taekwondo, and I also run a side business. I usually have about 6 hours of sleep every night and when I can I take 30 minute power naps. The power naps give me an extra boost when I need to stay up late working on fulfilling orders.

For quite some time I felt sluggish. Naps helped, but I still didn't have the extra boost I was looking for. I asked my brother, an athletic trainer, for some advice and I made some small adjustments and the differences have been remarkable.

Here are just five things you can start doing today to get more energy:

1. Stop eating over-processed, high-sodium and high-preservative foods.  At one point in my life I could not live without drinking Coca-Cola. I stopped drinking it for a few reasons. I wanted to fill my daily intake with natural and whole foods. Soda is filled of sugar and though sugar can give you a temporary boost in energy it is not long-lasting and not a healthy way to get energy. Additionally, pre-packaged foods are filled of sodium and preservatives, which may cause an increase  in your blood pressure and when your blood pressure is high your heart has to work harder. This may give you a feeling of tiredness.

"The average American eats about 3,400 milligrams sodium a day, but the recommended amount for a healthy person is 2,300 milligrams a day."

I don't recommend eliminating sodium from your diet because we do need sodium. Include some potassium when you do eat salty foods, like bananas.

2. Protein, Protein, and more Protein.  My brother recommended that I start tracking calories on apps like MyFitnessPal or LiveStrong's My Plate. I downloaded My Plate on my smartphone. What I like about this app is that you can search for food you eat and add it to your breakfast, lunch, dinner or snack category. Its database is filled of common foods and even restaurant menu items, so it makes it very easy to track what you are eating. It also shows your daily nutrients breakdown.

I saw a huge disparity when I started tracking how much carbs, fats and proteins. I noticed I ate a lot more fats and carbs and not enough protein. I did quite a bit of research and protein is huge contributor in weight loss, muscle repair and energy. I knew I needed to add more protein to my diet.

My brother recommended lean protein, like grounded turkey and egg whites.

I did some research and I found Premier Protein bars. They have a whopping 30 grams of protein, and only 200 calories. It comes in three different flavors, and they are the tastiest and fulfilling bars I have ever had. These make great meal replacements or snacks. If I don't have time for breakfast, I eat one of these.

I have also added the Premier Protein shakes, they have only 160 calories and 30 grams of Protein, Fage yogurt which is also low in calories and filled of protein. I mix some fresh blueberries and a few almonds in the yogurt. I am not a huge fan of yogurt, but this tastes great and if you want you can add a teaspoon of honey for taste.

3. Eat more. I know that doesn't sound logical, but if you eat small healthy snacks and meals in between breakfast, lunch and dinner you are fueling your body. Your body needs food as it breaks it down for energy. Make sure you have some great snack options with you. I love almonds, pistachios, bananas and peanut butter.

4. Start exercising. I am not saying to start an intense workout regime, but I am recommending that you add some type of exercise into your daily life. When I was overweight, I was living a bad daily cycle. I would wake up, get ready, not eat breakfast, go to work, sit for 8-9 hours straight in front of my computer, eat a heavy lunch, go home, watch tv, eat a big dinner, dessert, and bed. I had no desire to do anything else, but sit. I noticed a huge difference in my attitude and motivation once I forced myself to get out of that cycle and start walking just for 20-30 minutes a day

5. Sleep. This is a no-brainer, but we need sleep in order to re-energize our bodies. How many hours of sleep do you need? Some people need 8 hours and some might need 6 hours. Over-sleeping doesn't help either, I have read countless studies on people who try to make up their sleep on the weekends, but that just makes them more tired. Be consistent and try to get the hours you need every day.



Sources:

3 Ways to Stop Oversleeping: http://www.wikihow.com/Stop-Oversleeping

The Negative Effects of Oversleeping: http://www.symptomfind.com/health/effects-of-oversleeping/

Why Is Too Much Salt  Bad for You? http://www.livescience.com/36256-salt-bad-health.html

How Much Protein Per Day To Build Muscle, Lose Fat & Be Healthy?  http://www.acaloriecounter.com/diet/how-much-protein-per-day/

Women's Taekwondo Uniform

This past summer Juanjo Padrós proposed a re-design to the traditional dobok worn in Taekwondo. Padrós proposed that the design would only be for women and that men would continue wearing the same traditional uniform.


"The new design was presented to the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF)Expansion Committee in Puebla, Spain. during the World Taekwondo Championship."

The differences between the re-design and the traditional uniform are stark. As you can see from the image on the left the new re-design is tighter compared to a traditional uniform Taekwondo martial artists wear, on the right.

Currently, both men and women, children, white belts through black belts wear the same uniform.

A few of the main reasons Padrós created the new female uniform are:

1. Renew the female Taekwondo image and make a better difference between the male and female categories.
   Padrós indicateed that "amateur spectators find it difficult to differentiate a female or male combat."
   
   
   
2. Ease and release the body movements in Taekwondo.
   Padrós also indicated that "all scientific evidence suggests that new fabrics are vital to fit the body and allow a better freedom of movement, creating more definition and clean movements."
   
   
   
3. Improve Taekwondo image in the TV and press.
   "The most important reason is to take a better advantage of our female competitors because they are a treasure.  It is important to show that practicing Taekwondo gives good health, helps to stay fit and gives a beautiful body shape.  This last issue must be exploited and must be used to promote Taekwondo in this specific moment, after the success in the Olympics and a great World Championship, to attract television and mass media interest."

If the new re-design of the uniform should "ease and release the body movements" for women, it should also be provided for men.

Padrós comments on the re-design improving Taekwondo image in the media is sexist. A tighter uniform on a woman's body does not improve the image of the sport, unless the image that is being strived for is to make women wearing the uniforms more attractive to men.

Women do not practice Martial Arts to attract men, they also do not want their uniforms to attract men. When I enter the dojo, my mind is on training. Feeling comfortable mentally and physically are two important factors. I believe if women were mandated to wear the new designed uniforms that they would be very uncomfortable mentally and physically. There a quiet a few women I know that are overweight who join Taekwondo to build their confidence and to lose weight. They would never feel comfortable wearing a skin tight shirt and leggings. Even the women in tip top shape wouldn't feel comfortable wearing it.

By making men and women wear different uniforms you are excluding women in the sport and unnecessarily bringing attention to the differences between men and women. There is no need to bring attention to the differences because in the dojo we are all a team and we are all equal.

Why should women have to wear something different?

Share your thoughts below.

Sources

Female Taekwondo uniform could be redesigned. http://en.mastaekwondo.com/2013/08/female-taekwondo-uniform-could-be-redesigned/

Devil's Advocate Argument: Men are stronger than women

I received the following response to my article "Does our society create sexism?" from an anonymous man and I thought it was important to share just another example of inequality.

"I read your article asking if society creates sexism and I disagree. Biologically and historically, men and women are very different. Historically, men had to be the hunters and women the gatherers. Men had to be strong and fast to hunt for food, while women stayed back to nurse children and gather food, like berries. That is just one example. Biologically, it's a known fact that men are stronger than women. 

I am not alone in thinking that women are weaker then men. Last summer, writer Matt Juul wrote an article called "Want WMMA to Be Taken Seriously? Stop Objectifying the Fighters", calling attention on how men objectify women and their looks and how that effects the seriousness of Women MMA. 

Here are just a few of comments from other men:

"I will happily watch a good womens fight, but they r shit by comparison, most are curtainly not equal in qulity to their male counter parts... this is the case with most sports... let Rousey fight barao, same weight, rousey's probably bigger... if where talking equality make everyone of the same weight go together... why seperate genders if they r truly equal?" (User: gsp gnp) 

"Woman shouldn't be allowed to fight in the first place, it is just wrong." (User: David B.)

"I have no interest in seeing women beat the snot out of each other. I can watch women's BJJ or Judo, but that's about as far as it goes. WNBA, etc. are just less-talented versions of the men's sports. This is even more true with WMMA right now. That might change as more female athletes train for it from childhood, but for now, the average female doesn't have close to the talent (let alone power, strength, athleticism) as the average male pro. When I watched Rousey v. Tate, I found myself hoping neither of them got hurt. That's no way to enjoy MMA. I might be a minority in that opinion, but I'm not a huge minority." (User: Chris Bridges) 

The men above make great points. Women fighting and women sports are not as aggressive or interesting as men sports.  Women cannot physically be stronger than men. Women continue to ask for men to treat them equally, but I guarantee that I can fight any woman and beat her with one hand behind my back, because men are biologically faster and stronger than women. Women need to understand that they will never be as equal as men when it comes to their physical aspects. I am not saying women are not smart,I believe intellectually we are equal, but in a fighting situation, men will constantly over power women. I didn't have to be raised to believe that, I know it."

How-to Defend Yourself - Part I

The Federal Bureau of Investigations U.S Uniform Crime Report indicated that in 2012 a violent crime occurred every 26 seconds. One murder occurred every 35.4 minutes, forcible rape every 6.2 minutes, one robbery every 1.5 minutes, and an aggravated assault every 41.5 seconds.

In 2012, Alaska had the highest forcible rape rate per 100,000 inhabitants, which was 79. That is extremely high, compared to California, which has the largest population. The Golden State's forcible rape rate per 100,000 inhabitants was 20.6 in 2012.

The risk of an assault on women may not be very likely, but many women are very aware of that possibility and it's scary.  The media emphasizes on stranger attacks,  but in reality more women than men know their offenders, so it's unlikely you will be cornered in a street and be a victim of a violent crime.

One question I am asked often is how can I defend myself from a perpetrator. First, I highly recommend taking self-defense classes because not only will you learn valuable skills to protect yourself, but you will also build confidence. You need to believe in yourself and believe that you can protect yourself.

I would love to show you the many techniques I have learned, but I am going to start with some easy basics that I think everyone should know when on the streets. Your first priority should be to get away as quickly and as safely as possible.

Today's lesson is a list of a few basics:

1. Be alert of your surroundings. I don't know how many times I have seen men and women walking around parking lots, streets, and in isolated areas looking down at the smart phones or listening to music through their headphones. When offenders see your phone and know your distracted, you make it easy for them to run and grab your phone.

2. Instinct. Women have an amazing instinct. Follow your gut if you feel something is not right. I have heard stories from women who felt something was not right about the way someone was looking at them, but thought they were being paranoid. Don't doubt yourself. Always be alert and ready.

3. Be loud. If someone attacks you, yell as loud as you can, keep screaming and yelling, this can scare the offender away and/or bring attention to you.

4. Keep both hands up and prepared if possible. If you are using a smart phone device continuously look up and keep both hands on the smart phone. If someone approaches you are ready in a defensive position. You are ready to block or attack.

5. Take out their eyes. As quickly as possibly aim for the offenders eyes. Instinctly and reflexively most people will cover their eyes if someone is trying to poke or gouge them. Don't be afraid and don't be grossed out doing so. This is your life and you need to defend it.

6. Palm fist. Your palm is very strong and can be used a weapon. Close your fist and quickly and strongly push up to use your palm to strike your opponent in the nose.

7. Clap. When an offenders uses both hands to grab your arms, neck or collar the first instinct for someone is to jerk away, but that only makes the offender's grasp stronger.

While his hands are holding you tight, very quickly and strongly clap both your hands together like your praying and push up. The sound of the clap will startle him, and that force will break the hold. 

8. If step three doesn't release the front hold, kick the offender in the groin. I actually recommend doing this as soon as possible, you can combine steps 3 and 4. I know it sounds cliche, but when given the opportunity kicking a man in the groin is the quickest way to injure him. Women have amazing lower body strength, use it to your benefit by kicking the offenders chins and groin area.

Stay tuned for future guides on how to defend yourself.



Sources
Crime in the U.S 2012 - Offenses - http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2012/crime-in-the-u.s.-2012/offenses-known-to-law-enforcement/national-data


Crime in the U.S 2012 - State Totals: http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2012/crime-in-the-u.s.-2012/offenses-known-to-law-enforcement/state-totals

Does our society create sexism?

Like most girls growing up I loved to play with Barbies and dolls. I wore dresses and loved playing with my mom's makeup and clothes. One of my earliest memories was telling my parents that I should wear a dress to bed, because I was a girl and not a boy. I strongly believed that girls did not wear pants. Where did I learn that from?

In college, I learned about men and women's expected roles in Sociology class. For example, women are expected to have children, act feminine, and be nurturing. While, men are expected to be strong and not show emotions.

We can see these role expectations as soon as children begin playing with toys. As you walk through the aisles of a toy shop girl's toys are in feminine colors, like pink and purple. And their aisles are filled with dolls and baking toys. While, toys for boys are in masculine colors, such as greens and blues. Their toys involve athletic activities, tools, and military figurines.

What message do these toys tell our children? As society continues to condition and reinforce these roles, women and men are put against the wall to act like expected or go against the norm. 

Most recently, surprisingly I found myself doing this to a child. I was playing with my nephew and a few of his co-ed friends. We were coloring and playing with stickers. We bought princess stickers for the girls and car stickers for the boys. When my nephew picked up the princess stickers he liked the sparkle and started putting the stickers on his shirt.
 I picked them up from him to give to his little female friend, and said "Oh, these are for her and the car stickers are for you." A second later, I realized what I doing and thinking. I gave him back the princess stickers and told him you can play with whatever you want.

I was upset with myself for thinking that he shouldn't be playing with "girly" stickers.  He should, and there shouldn't be anything wrong with that.

It reminded me when I was a little girl. I went against the "norm". I was considered a tomboy because I didn't wear dresses and played in the dirt with the boys at recess. One night my relatives came over for dinner and my Uncle took one look at my knee and asked what happened. I told him how I climbed some rocks and fell. He said I was a tom boy and my knees looked like they belonged to a boy. Even then I knew he was wrong. I was a girl and I wanted to play with the boys. I wanted to be treated fairly and equally, yet I constantly felt pressure to fit into a mold of what women should be.

I saw the mold every day on TV. Women were stay at home mother's who baked. And, if you ever saw a woman who didn't fit that mold she was automatically considered mean, cold and unfeminine. 

Recently, I was on a forum called "Why do men think women are weak", and here are a few of the responses from both men and women:

"I try to treat women with respect and tenderness, I open doors for them and pull chairs. I don't do this because I look upon then as weak. I do this because I was raised and taught to treat women better than men. I have gotten nasty remarks from younger women for holding a door for them, but I chalk that up to them having different values than I do...." (from male responder)

The above male response indicates that holding doors and treating women with respect and tenderness is due to his values, how he was raised and taught to treat women. He was taught to treat women better than men. Why wasn't he taught to treat them both equally?

"I'd accept the concept that men are "stronger than women- or females are made to be a bit weaker than guys! But to bluntly say that women are weak' is just both sexist & insulting!" (from female responder)

The above comment is from a women and she contradicts herself by saying that she would accept the concept that females are made to be a bit weaker then guys. Yet, she says to "bluntly" say that women are weak is sexist. If women continue to say sexist remarks too, then the cycle of sexism continues.

"If women dont want to be treated that way, they have to change themselves, they are commonly naive, and crave the acceptance of a man. This can happen for boys to, yeah, the bitchy little boys that get pushed around all the time.  Don't blame others for the way they treat you, Blame yourself for letting them treat you that way." (from male responder)

The above male responded by blaming women for their treatment and indicating that women should change themselves. Additionally, he comments on how "bitchy little boys get pushed around" too. His comments perfectly describe how our society views women: women are weak and men are strong. 


What are your thoughts?



Sources

Are there differences between male and female bullies? http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/male-female-bullies.htm

Why do men think women are weak? http://www.sodahead.com/living/why-do-men-think-women-are-weak/question-1796057/

Juul, Matt. August 10, 2012. Want WMMA to Be Taken Seriously? Stop Objectifying the Fighters. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1288021-want-wmma-to-be-taken-seriously-stop-objectifying-the-fighters

Devil's Advocate - Martial Arts is too violent for children

There are many different styles of martial arts originating from many different countries. I practice Taekwondo, a Korean Martial Art. Taekwondo was originally created for combat training.  At the 2000 Summer Olympics, Taekwondo was added as a sport event.

There are other styles that are not considered a sport, like Krav Maga. Krav Maga is used by Israeli security forces and special police. "It emphasizes devastating attacks to the opponent’s vital areas, such as the groin and eyes, and the use of any available objects as weapons." It's the perfect style for quick defense and street fighting.

When you think of Martial Arts, you might think of men fighting in cages. That style is mixed Martial Arts (MMA) which is a combat fighting sport, generally taking place in a cage, and combines many different forms of Martial Arts. The practioner mixes different styles of Martial Arts, so he may use the lethal kicks of Taekwondo and the arm grappling techniques of Judo.

In the cage, men fight until one is either knocked out or taps out, because he cannot withstand the pain he is subjected to. Viewers have mixed reactions to what is occurring in the cage, some enjoy it and some find it completely violent.  Men are covered in bruises and blood and some come out with serious injuries. 

Many people think that Martial Arts will make children and people more aggressive, gives children the wrong message that fighting is okay, and gives them the skills to fight and injure others.

Children mimic what they see, as they are very impressionable, and if they see violence they will act out on it. If a child asks to practice Martial Arts, parents need to ask their child why.

We live in a society where violence surrounds us. The Federal Bureau of Investigations U.S Uniform Crime Report indicates that in 2011 a violent crime occurred every 26.2 seconds. One murder occurred every 36 minutes and a forcible rape ever 6.3 minutes.

And according to the Bureau of Justice statistics; 46% of males and 26% of females reported they had been in physical fights.

With violence in the news and on TV; do we want people and children entering a sport where they are being taught how to use their hands and legs as weapons?

"The essential damage to people in the community being influenced to believe that violence against women is acceptable and actually used by people who they are coming to admire," said Deborah Tucker, executive director of the National Center on Domestic and Sexual Violence. 

"The influence particularly on young men is something we are concerned about. We do not want to see any messages to young boys and young men that encourage sexual assault or violence against a dating or marital partner."

Senator Liz Kreuger of New York said she has proposed a two-year moratorium on mixed martial arts that would allow studies to investigate the long term health and psychological effects on the fighters. 

I teach Taekwondo to children ages 5-9. There is a split; half entered because their parents thought it would build their self-esteem, confidence and would be a good sport. The other half entered because the child wanted to, for various reasons. Some children think its "cool" or do it because they saw a movie like "Karate Kid". 

It's important for parents to find an Instructor and a school that teaches the virtues of Martial Arts. At my school we train students and emphasize what our school stands for: Courtesy, Respect, Self-Control, and Determination. Without teaching them the fundamentals of self-control and respect, students could use the techniques taught to them to inflict harm on to others.

New Resume

Nikita Leon – Official Website
www.nikitaleon.com/
Official website for Nikita Leon. Martial Arts Practioner.

Nikita Leon – Roundhouse Kicks for Women - YouTube
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August 15, 2016 – 3 min – Uploaded by nikitaleonfans
Nikita Leon, Women’s Taekdwondo blogger shows
roundhouse kick techniques for women…

More videos for Nikita Leon >>

Nikita Leon – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/nikita_leon
Nikita M. Leon (born January ) is an American martial artist and instructor. She has a second degree black belt in Korean Taekwondo and a first degree Black belt in Shotokan Karate.

Nikita Leon | YouTube
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Nikita Leon is a female martial arts practioner and blogger giving advice to other women in the martial arts world.

Nikita Leon | Facebook
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Nikita Leon, New England. 53554 likes. 1356 talking about this.

Nikita Leon - Twitter
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The latest from Nikita Leon (@msnikitaleon). Martial Artist. 2^nd Dan in Korean Taekwondo.

How Nikita Leon became a leading voice for women in Taekwondo
www.taekwondodairy.com/how-nikita-leon-became-a-leading-voice...
Sept 8, 2015 – Nikita is a 2^nd Dan in Korean Taekwondo and blogs about it on her Women in Taekwondo blog.

Getting hit...by a man

I am one of a few women in my Taekwondo class of men.

Training in Taekwondo revolves around learning how to deliver punches and kicks. Additionally, we train in self-defense techniques and sparring. While advance practitioners gear up and do full contact sparring at my school, there is weekly no-contact sparring for everyone.

I have found most women in the class do not prefer sparring, but men love the chance to go toe to toe against their comrades.

Master Lee does not discriminate. He doesn't pair same belts with same belts. White belts (beginners) can be paired with higher belts, and that includes black belts. He also doesn't pair women with women and men with men. Women will be paired with men, and though this can be intimidating, I find it to be the best way to learn. In a real life situation where a women will need to defend herself, the perpetrator will most likely be a man.

Most of the men in my class are very respectful and kind. They will do their best to show me new techniques to defend myself.  However, there is one man in the class who is aggressive and not as kind as the others. He is equally this way with the men and women in the class. Charming.

When I first started out, I was paired with him for non-contact sparring. He's a black belt and obviously has more experience than I had as a white belt. Most black belts in the class will use situations like these to teach the lower belts techniques. Unfortunately, I wasn't so lucky with my partner.

I never sparred before in my life and was clueless as to what I needed to do.

When the whistle blew he just stood there waiting, as a beginner I wasn't sure what he was doing, so I went after him. Big mistake, because he began punching my arm repeatedly, kicking me, and circling me like a shark.

I felt helpless on how to defend myself, let alone strike back. His hits were calculating and hard. Remember, this was supposed to be non-contact sparring, but he got away with knocking me around as no one was looking. I never gave up and I gave it my all, even though my all amounted to nothing compared to his skills.

I left that night exhausted and beaten up, and that was just my mind. My body was sore and bruised. I will admit, I almost cried a little when I got in the car, but I swallowed the lump in my throat.

It got to me. I felt defeated and embarrassed, so I told myself I couldn't go back to the dojo after that incident. I was afraid to ever be paired up with him again.

This wasn't the first time I was hit by the opposite sex and it probably wouldn't be my last.

When I was in grade school I would be the justice fighter in the playground. If I saw someone mistreated I would go against the bully, usually a male, and he would be kicked in the groin, by yours truly.

One particular day, this older bully kicked me back and then punched me in the stomach. I had never been punched in the stomach before. All at once, my air escaped me, my stomach felt completely empty, and I had this unbelievable pain at the pit of my stomach. I almost threw up.

I automatically hunched over in pain, but that didn't stop me. I lunged at him and grabbed his hair. Ah, third grade, what great memories.

Before the fight fully escalated, my teacher pulled me off of him and sent me against the wall to think about my actions.

Fast forward to the night after sparring and deciding never to go back to the dojo.  I remembered what I told myself when I was against the wall at recess. I am sure the teacher wanted me to reflect back at the situation and apologize. But, I had something else on mind. First, I decide that no man will ever hit me and make me feel less than I was. Second, that I can be just as strong and aggressive as the opposite sex. And lastly, I reminded myself that I will always get back up, even with the hardest of kicks and punches. Nothing could get me down.

I went to class the next day inspired and motivated to get quicker and stronger. Nine months later, I am actually enjoying sparring.  I still don't have the all the advanced techniques as some of my higher belt classmates, but when I learn something new I introduce it to my list of techniques while I spar. For example, before I could only slide back quickly and throw some punches and a few basic kicks. Now, I am lighter on my toes, I dodge, block, slide back, punch, and use multiple kicks at a time.

As for the charming sparring partner, he's still at my school. And yes, we have been partners again. I have two choices, either allow him to defeat me, or allow him to teach me. We can learn something from every one. I have learned to be quicker and I have learned the art of strategy and I have to give him a bit, wee-bit, of credit for that.

Resume

Looking in

I sat in the parking lot looking in through the large front windows. "I don't think I can do this," I told my boyfriend who was sitting in the driver's seat. "What if I can't learn?" "What if I humiliate myself in front of all these people?"

He looked at me and said "What if you never try?" "How will you ever know if you don't give it a chance. This is your dream. If you believe you will, you will."

I entered the dojo on my first day wearing my new white dobok, which is the uniform Taekwondo practitioners wear. I was nervous and anxious to begin. As I looked down nervously, I pressed my freshly painted toes into the floors mats. For just a moment I wanted to disappear.

We were the only ones in the room without a belt to tie around our waist. I felt naked, and I truly was in the sense that I came with no previous knowledge of Taekwondo.

One by one each member came up to me and introduced themselves. The Instructor, who we refer to as Master Lee, came out of his office in the back and sweetly, but firmly, shook my hand to greet me.

I chose this particular dojo because of him. I researched different Martial Arts, so I could decide which style I wanted to learn. Next, I had to find a school. I researched and found local schools and their websites. I investigated their Facebook pages and searched and watched videos of their skills on YouTube. When I found Master Lee I knew right away he was the person to learn Taekwondo from. He was a World Champion from South Korea and has won numerous gold medals for form and sparring. In addition to that, he's humble, charismatic, and funny, but he's also strong, athletic, and disciplined.

We began the class with stretching. Next, we did some cardio, some jumping jacks and running. And finally, I began learning some basics, like how to properly punch and stand in a kicking position.

One of the first types of kicks I had to learn was the front kick, the most basic kick. Master Lee showed me his front kick, so I could learn how to do it. "Knee up and snap!" His kicks are fast, strong, and lethal. My kick was the complete opposite; slow and weak.

But, like any great teacher he built my confidence, and so did my fellow classmates. They kept encouraging me, "Great kick!" and "Your talented." I didn't care if they were telling the truth or not, but I felt good and confident. I kicked over and over again until my legs were sore.

I went home and kicked again and again until I felt it was right. I didn't want to disappoint  Master Lee, my classmates, and especially myself.

This was my dream, and I finally took the first kick in achieving it.

That was about a year ago. Today I am working on my 6th belt in the Taekwondo curriculum and training for my first competition. I also assist Master Lee in teaching children at the school. When I look back and picture myself looking into the dojo for the first time, I smile. I've come a long way.