Shin Gi Ta Martial Arts Academy, Basingstoke

First timer’s recommendation –  just find a local club and give it a go. If you’re not very good at learning combinations and routines, it’s probably not for you.

After an unsuccessful venture into the martial arts world in week 5 with taekwondo, I thought it was time to give the genre another try. I am slightly more flexible than I was back in January, but it turns out no better at remembering all the moves and combinations. The discipline needed and the adherence to a set routine just doesn’t suit me at all. I did receive a warm welcome from the organisers at the academy, but as with taekwondo, the other people in the class regarded me slightly suspicsiously.

I took part in a free taster class, which consisted of a warm up, some drills, a bit of sparring and then about 20 minutes going through the kata about ten times, and I think I managed to get it wrong in ten different ways. It turns out I am still not suited to martial arts, and my third and final try with combat sports, will be the noble art.