Let me tell you a dirty little secret about black belts. They have no particular meaning at all.
Black Belt Club
Every school of martial arts chooses its own set of arbitrary requirements for black belt ranking. There is no standard, and there never was. Even within a single dojo, testing is usually based upon subjective criteria, and students are promoted at the pleasure and whim of the sensei.
Despite this lack of an agreed-upon definition for shodan, martial arts enthusiasts love debating how much time and effort—mostly time—should be required to attain it:
- One year? Too short! It proves you attended a McDojo, the martial equivalent of a diploma mill.
- Ten years? Too long! Obviously a scam to maximize tuition payments and testing fees.
- Three to six years? Just right. That proves your dojo is legit, and your skills are genuine. You must be a True Black Belt™.
The community consensus seems to be that a black belt should take about 5 years to earn. Is this an error of false specificity, similar to insisting that an inch should weigh about 4 ounces? Or is it sour grapes from insecure dan-ranked martial artists, who fear their own time and effort were wasted?
How Long Should it Take?
The Just Barely Good Enough principle is widely used in engineering disciplines. According to this guideline, the best component/document/tool is the one that meets its specifications and requirements, and nothing more. Any additional “improvements” to the component/document/tool would result in an added cost with no associated benefit.
For example, imagine you are shopping for a stopwatch, to time your stance training. The store has two different models: their basic stopwatch is accurate to one second, and costs $4.99. The deluxe model utilizes a cesium isotope for nanosecond resolution, functions underwater and includes an attractive silver carrying case. The second model is $89.95. Unless you have money to waste, the cheap watch is a better deal. The additional cost of such luxurious accuracy is $85, but the additional value is zero.
We can apply this same principle to the black belt product: the most valuable black belt is the one that meets your needs at the lowest cost. All other things being equal, a 1-year black belt is superior to a 10-year belt. But instead of obsessing about time spans, I suggest you ask yourself this question: what do you need your black belt to do for you?
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57 responses so far ↓
1 JamesWJohnson // Apr 27, 2007
I know what you’re trying to say, and I generally agree with you, but your language has some implications with which I disagree.
I would disagree that 10 years for a black belt is a sign that your school is scamming you. In certain styles (a notable example being Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu), it commonly takes 10 years or longer.
You do, however, ask “what do you need your black belt to do for you,” at the end of the article, which addresses this issue. I remember in Tae Kwon Do that earning a black belt meant that one had a solid base in the style on which to build mastery, equivalent to a Bachelor’s degree in academia. In this case I would agree that 10 years is far too long. In short, it all depends on what a black belt is supposed to mean, and you weren’t clear about that.
2 JamesWJohnson // Apr 27, 2007
Wait, one more thing. In the part about the sport watch, you say that one shouldn’t attend a school in which they have to put more work into achieving their black belt than they think they should.
Belt rankings were invented by Judo founder Jigoro Kano so that he could easily discern who had the technical proficiency to learn or perform a certain technique. This is what belts are: an indication of proficiency used to segment students in class or competition.
The point of martial arts is to become an effective fighter. If people are picking a school based not on how well they will learn to fight but instead on how long it will take to be awarded a belt of a given color, the martial arts are not for them.
3 Chris // Apr 27, 2007
I present the “ten years is too long” and other time span arguments as all too common, not as my own beliefs.
On the watch analogy, I fear you have misunderstood my point. Spending more money on a stopwatch does not make it more valuable; neither will spending extra time to earn a black belt–especially if you regard it as a symbol of proficiency.
4 Andy Fletcher // May 15, 2007
James is spot on here. Black Belt means different things to different people. In the far East, it’s NOT an indication of mastery of a specific martial art, which is the common translation in the Western world. To the Japanese, Koreans & Chinese the black belt merely symbolizes the students completion of “basic” training and their readiness to “begin” proper training.
5 Chris // May 16, 2007
Surely you do not mean to suggest there is a unified pan-Asian perspective on black belts?
6 Andy Fletcher // May 17, 2007
Er, yes.
On a side note, I’ve been training for almost 10 years and no Dan grade for me yet. I’m certainly not being scammed by my instructor though - you don’t pay anything to retake a failed grading at my club, and we only have the one tag between belts. Basically I’m not in a hurry, and not great at learning patterns!
I’d support the idea that clubs/instructors insisting on two (or more!) tags between belts are certainly milking their students for money.
7 Chris // May 17, 2007
Andy, Asia is a big place. There are dozens of styles of martial arts, and they don’t even agree on the best way to throw a punch, much less the significance of belts, patches and other pieces of flair.
8 Andy Fletcher // May 20, 2007
Fair enough - we agree to disagree then! TBH I thought my comment supported the post, rather than arguing against. Preconceptions about what a black belt means are generally wrong.
Regards
Andy
9 Chris // May 21, 2007
Please don’t take it personally. Hong Junsheng was one of the many masters who utterly rejected the modern phenomenon of colored belts and fancy silk training uniforms.
10 Asp // May 23, 2007
I have just passed my black belt and in my style (goju ryu) there is a common standard.
11 Kurt // Jun 29, 2007
As we all agree there are many styles of Martial Arts out there, some are simply sport orientated, others are a mix of self defence & sport…then there are a few that are pure self defence.
The art I train in is pure self defence (Hapkido), we do not have patterns as we do not see it as street effective. We train to survive, not to compete so out syllabus is very streamlined, simple and effective.
The average time to achieve black belt for a student who trains consistently 3 days per/week is 4-5 years. Alot take longer, but most do not train consistently.
We say you get out what you put in.
12 glen middleton // Aug 12, 2007
i am a 2nd dan black belt in karate ju-jitsu
13 sensei Khufu // Sep 8, 2007
LOL Only in America! A shame that the western world has diluted the martial arts in so many ways since mass commercialization of the arts beginning in the 1980s. The dan rankings, or colored belts, work for some and for others the sash ranking works. And, yet, for others no belt ranking works. Whether a belt is worn or not, proficiency has to be measured in some way.
14 sensei Khufu // Sep 8, 2007
Since I began training in the 1970s in New York, the thing I always found interesting is the abuse of Black Belt ranks in Tae Kwon Do……
15 Al Cole // Sep 28, 2007
It should take however long your teacher (assuming they are qualified) decides for you.
1 year? Fine, in Japan and Korea, promotions came that fast, and faster.
Who are we to judge another’s student? Those who do are nothing more than arrogant, and there is no shortage of that quality among martial arts teachers.
Al Cole
Cleveland, Ohio
16 Al Cole // Sep 28, 2007
One part was missing from my post.
10 years is fine too. DAN has no set limit of time.
Al Cole
Cleveland, Ohio
17 Sieow Yeong Huah // Sep 30, 2007
Chris, that story of Hong Junsheng has nothing to do with rejecting the idea of colored belts. It’s about not pretending to be something that you are not, and the courage to stand firm for something one believes in.
Perhaps he did reject the idea of colored belts, but we cannot infer this from that particular story simply because he does not use colored belts. He might, for instance, advocate that any teacher should use whatever method is deemed best for the school, which might include use of colored belts.
18 Chris // Sep 30, 2007
Let me quote two sections from the article:
Now, Hong Junsheng does not decide who can and who cannot wear a black belt today. But it seems clear he did not wear one himself (it is part of a uniform), nor did he have much respect for the practice.
P.S. I looked for pictures of his student Chen Zhonghua wearing a black belt, and found only this one:
19 Sieow Yeong Huah // Oct 1, 2007
Hong Junsheng practiced and taught only Chen-style Taichi. Did it meant he “utterly rejected” the other styles of Taichi? Did it meant he “utterly rejected” all the other martial arts he did not teach?
PS: do you know what certificate Hon Junsheng and Chen Zhonghua were holding in that photo?
20 Chris // Oct 2, 2007
It is the lineage holder certificate.
21 Nico // Oct 3, 2007
leí el artículo, pero no coincido con tu opiñon aserca de cuánto te debes tardar para ser cinturón negro.. en mi caso, yo practico Taekwondo desde hace 10 años, y según mi experiencia, creo que lo que dices de que un cinturon negro de 10 años es inferior a uno de 1 año.. eso no es cierto.. yo soy cinturon negro hace 4 años, y soy mucho más superior a los que solo llevan un año con ese grado.. cuanto más práctica mejor sos.. por lo tanto no importa que cinturon tengas.. lo que importa es cuanto tiempo le haz dedicado a las habilidades que sabes. Eso te hara un buen practicante de artes marciales.
22 Al Cole // Oct 3, 2007
I have seen people who hold the black belt, who have trained for 20 years, who were terrible and idiots.
I have also seen students who hold a black belt after 12 months of training, who have excellent skill and a great attitude.
what matters is the combination of a good teacher and a good student.
23 Bolverk // Oct 26, 2007
I have found an error in one reply by Jame W Johnson. Dr. Jigoro Kano did not invent ranks, he used a black belt to denote an advance student. That is the only thing he did, he did have various degrees of Black Belt though. However, beginner and intermediate students did not have a rank.
24 Al Cole // Oct 26, 2007
Bolverk,
Where can I find this information about Kano and ranks?
Thank you
25 MartialLaw // Oct 29, 2007
A black belt is totally insignificant.
What matters is strength,knowledge,technique and endurance.
A martial art teacher should be an experienced martial artist who knows how to defend himself and how to teach others that.
A black belt can be bought with simple cash in a martial arts supply store.
Martial arts skill and strength can only be achieved with years of devotion and hard training.
Black belts means nothing,it just looks cool,nothing else.
26 Al Cole // Oct 29, 2007
When one has terrible technique and bogus knowledge, but believes they have the real thing, then the Dan (real black belt) seems insignificant. If your knowledge and technique had any validity, then a true Dan would hold great meaning to you.
Al Cole
27 okiba // Nov 3, 2007
Well…i need a black belt to teach unarmed combat in the army
28 Ciaran // Dec 11, 2007
I study sin moo hapkido. I have recently achieved my blackbelt after 4 years of training. I originally thought that I was not ready to be a blackbelt, as I believed that one should be able to defend themselves from attackers using any technique they had learned thus far in order to qualify for a blackbelt. But then the Grandmaster of the style came thousands of miles from Korea to teach us and said that he was promoting me to first dan, even though I was two grades down from it and I didn’t even know the full blackbelt syllabus. I know that this man is an incredible martial artist, so who was I to argue? But I still wonder whether or not I deserved it. Your disscusion has given me alot to think about…
29 Ryan W // Dec 16, 2007
The whole point of a black belt from my perspective is primarily to demonstrate a proficiency in all skills learned from previous belts, and to show a basic mastery of the art being taught. Although there are many many schools out there whose goal is simply to make as much money as possible, there are still some schools that hold true to the old principles. To me, the time that is required to attain a rank of Shodan is all based on how much there is to learn, and more importantly, based on how quick or slow a student learns. There is no reason not to award a student with a black belt if they know all of the material, simply because it’s “too early”. If they know the material for the art, and have the skills that have been outlined, and have put in the necessary dedication and effort, why keep the student from what they deserve? However, for the same token, I feel as though it is inappropriate to award a student a black belt simply because of their time invested, even if they don’t possess the necessary skills to proceed. A problem that I see is that there are many schools that choose to award a black belt simply because the student has “payed” for it with their monthly tuition, rather than earned it with their blood, sweat, and effort. So, there is no way to classify what is necessary for a black belt between all arts and styles, because all styles require a different level of dedication. However, this does not make the black belt less legitimate, it simply means that the art is perhaps more simple, and less difficult to master.
30 Al Cole // Dec 16, 2007
“I feel as though it is inappropriate to award a student a black belt simply because of their time invested, even if they don’t possess the necessary skills to proceed.”
No two students are the same. Someone may have struggled hard and put in tons of work to get where another student got, physical wise, in a few months. Black Belt is not based on narrow interpretations such as technical skill, athleticism, etc.
In the old days, like today, you had a wide variety of differences, many people earning black belt degrees in less than a year, and moving even fast at higher dan ranks. Research the Dan promotions of some famous Karateka and Judoka.
The Dan’s were issued not so much about skill, but about courtesy, loyalty, respect, responsibility and mainly about Leadership”
31 Ryan W // Dec 18, 2007
I apologize that my quoted sentence might have been taken out of context. When I said skills, I didn’t specifically mean natural athletic ability, or even prowess over all of the technical material presented. Skills include skills of leadership, honor, integrity, and most importantly skills of character and personal growth.
My comment was meant to more or less illustrate that there are some people out there that feel as though they can simply “buy a black belt” by going to class, putting in half effort, but still paying their tuition so that i the end, they will get their rank. However, we wouldn’t have this kind of a mind-set if money-hungry systems didn’t exist. If they didn’t exist, there would be no place for the student who doesn’t care about respect and effort, and only cares about having a black belt to show their “superiority” to bully etc.
The point that I try to make is that there are many black belts out there that have been earned through all the aforementioned qualities, rest assured. However, there are also some that have been produced by systems and schools that I would view more as a corporate company whose main goal is to land a large profit, rather than educate the student about what is really important.
I understand completely that it is very narrow-minded to assume that a Dan ran king is given solely on athleticism and physical skills alone. In all reality, even though a knowledge of the kata, techniques, combinations, etc. is required, a demonstration of growth into a better person is what truly makes one deserving of black belt.
So, considering the above, and back to my original point, it is ludicrous to think that there could be a common standard even within a system (aside from basic technical credentials). Because no student is exactly the same as the next, the personal requirements for growth will be different with every individual. So the bottom line is - considering the fact that there is no way to define a standard within a system of martial arts, it would be beyond impossible to define a standard for the US, or the world.
32 Mario // Jan 12, 2008
I just got my black belt. I waited for 10 years and I finally began to feel that my school was milking me. So I challenged my master to an all-out throwdown. Before anyone knew what had happened, I was wearing the black belt and his pants had fallen off. Needless to say, he is not a black belt anymore, he hightailed it out of there in complete and well-deserved shame.
33 Kyle // Jan 15, 2008
I’m… I’m a little confused. I studied kobudo for a year at my college and we didn’t do belt tests or any of those things so I don’t know much about them.
Doesn’t a student progress through learning the skills of the art? I always thought that the focus was supposed to be on studying the art and becoming proficient than on what holds up one’s pants. I was led to this site after I looked up ‘black belt’ on Wikipedia after my siblings’ Kovar class last night. I was curious where all the focus on black belt excellence came from and why I wasn’t clued in on this… experience. My sensei taught forms and such, we didn’t ask when we could test. We had four green belts that we were sad to see leave us at the end of the year because their dedication to practice was a model for us all. I realize Kovar’s class was for kids last night but it seems from the comments above that even adult classes are like that. What gives? Am I just not living in reality here or is my perception of the martial arts totally wrong?
34 Al Cole // Jan 16, 2008
Just because a person is your teacher, does not automatically qualify them as an expert at anything. Including providing you with the correct definition of what a DAN (Black Belt) means.
I don’t like to follow up make-believe definitions of any sort, that is why it is good to find out how the martial arts leaders in Asia define their styles.
Al
35 Ciaran // Jan 19, 2008
“there are some people out there that feel as though they can simply “buy a black belt” by going to class, putting in half effort, but still paying their tuition so that i the end, they will get their rank.”
I agree with you here, and unfortunately, even though my instructor is an extremely accomplished martial artist, he does tend to let people coast their way to blackbelt without any work. Yet he has also trained some of the best, including European and World champions. My problem is that I cannot see whether or not I am one of those who deserves their belt or did I simply recieve it because I had paid my tuition and spent the nessasary time there.
36 someone // Jan 31, 2008
i like martial arts. i’ve been doing it for 8 years and have 2 different black belts. i am just wondering, how do u know what school is bad or not
37 Chris // Feb 1, 2008
I haven’t gotten around to writing on that topic specifically. Here are some indirect responses to your question:
How To Choose a Bad Martial Arts Instructor
You’ll Always Have The Sensei You Deserve
38 Kungfuguy // Feb 7, 2008
I don’t believe in ranks and belts a white belt could be able to deafeat a black belt in a fight and yet it takes him 10 years to get a black belt. Belts are pointless they are just part of a uniform they do measure a martial artisit power and abilty
39 Al Cole // Feb 7, 2008
Belts were never about who could defeat who, or a measure of power. The belt is about the student teacher relationship. If you want to think of martial arts in those terms, there are street fighters who could pound you into the ground, and they have zero martial arts training, that would make your Kung Fu worthless in your terms.
40 Kungfuguy // Feb 7, 2008
I was just saying that belts are inaccurate at measuring skill and i could deafeat a street fighter since that is what i train to do thats what martial arts self defense and your saying is you get a good realtionship you get a black belt that means some one with no experience could get a black belt if they were best friends with there teacher its about skill and power the better you get the higher belt you get.
41 Kungfuguy // Feb 7, 2008
crap i got to many typos i my messages curse my key board
42 Al Cole // Feb 7, 2008
Kind of. You, nor I can beat every street fighter. That does not make us any less a black belt. Black Belt means that we have in some way, contributed to the benefit or our practice. Maybe we are the parent who gets a College Gym for free to hold the State Championship, or we are the Mayor of the City that helps bring in some special team or person to train with that cities martial arts members. Maybe we are the dedicated, un-co-ordinated student who works very hard every day and struggles, and never complains, and follows our teachers, never to achieve what the gifted Jock student can achieve, but is satisfied with the challenge. These are the people who deserve the Black Belt (DAN). However, there are those who are judge mental, who are not aware of the struggle, or the sacrifice, or the extension of kindness and free giving that come along with the earning of RESPECT FROM THE MASTER. When the Master-Instructor respects you, they will award you with a DAN. That DAN is a membership into a special fraternal/Sorel society.
Do not belittle the Dan by speaking in terms of fighting, etc. The Dan is much greater than that.
Al Cole
43 Kungfuguy // Feb 7, 2008
al cole i have no idea what you mean all i get from is that once you are loyal to your sensei and dojo you get a black belt i thought you got a black belt when you showed that the skill and ability to earn one but you have your opnion and i have mine
44 Al Cole // Feb 7, 2008
Search Al Cole Taekwondo, or Master Al Cole to get an idea of me. I am not a novice. I am no know it all either. I am who I am. I have been to Asia and I know what a Black Belt means there, I do not care what a black belt means to people in America. my brother Americans are ignorant when it comes to culture. That has been our American History, and why should Taekwondo not suffer the same ignorance.
Al Cole
45 Kungfuguy // Feb 7, 2008
I’m Australian but i like to call it amercia number 2 since we copy amercia so much any way that is what you have been taught and think i know what i know and personally i think belts are nothing but uniform people should have to wear a belt to show what they have done.
46 Kyle // Mar 27, 2008
Bleh, none of it matters really. Whoever is still alive at the end, they are the master of that moment.
47 Kungfuguy // Mar 27, 2008
kyle i like the way u think
48 Hitokiri // Mar 28, 2008
I’ve practiced for 14 years in many styles, (maily due to moveing ). My main focus has been in Wing Chun and Drunken Boxing. I have had my ass handedto me by noobs and defieted “champions”.
I have been asked to teach at a collage in WA and i have been considering how to organize my rank structure. But i do not agree with belts per-se. I hold three black belts according to the association i am apart of and i don’t fee two of the are deserved. I think ones dedication, effort, understanding or martial arts as a whole and skill all are factors. If i were to come and spar at one of your schools my attire is color cordanated. I will put on the sash that fits the clothes, i will take off any thing that distracts from my porpus.
I like many standards I’ve seen (Go-Ju, ShotoKan, BJJ) but i will have my students carry themselves as martial artists, not egos. If a rank is required for an event they wish to atend i will award a “piece of paper” that only reflect what they have satified with my association.
I feel this will raise up more Martial Artist and less arobic profitiant belt hunters.
49 Martin Brass // Mar 28, 2008
I am a 14 year old white belt judo player. I weigh 82 kilos. I am 5 feet and 8 inches tall. I beat a black belt 18 years old 6 feet tall and weighing 63 kilos. What good is this guy’s black belt? I trashed him in my first fight.
50 Ciaran // Apr 22, 2008
No offence, but Judo is pretty simple, and if tou weighed that much more than him and your center of gravity was that much lower than his, you were bound to win.
51 gdog066 // Apr 23, 2008
Well, the definition of ‘Shodan’ literally means “First step”, not “expert” as some people refer to it outside the martial arts.
For you to understand what that really means on a down to earth level, you basicly have learned all of the basics of the martial art that you are studying.
If you look at some of the more ‘advanced’ techniques that the color ranking systems use the newer moves are just your basics with a slight ‘twist’ to it.
Although the color belt system is flawed, much like a lot of the other systems, I only see it as a way to seperate techniques into sections. I have a fellow student in my class that is going to “academy” and through some weird twist went from beign “Senpai” to “Sensei” in only a few weeks.
His rank went from blue/green to somewhere in between black belt and brown belt. Not quite good enough to be a Shodan but better than the rest of the class.
Any one else see a problem with this method? Given I would like to become an instructor myself, I would not do so until I reached at least a green belt; where I would hopefully have most of my flaws worked out, or greatly improved.
So in short there is going to be flaws in every martial arts ranking system, regardless of fighting style or country of origin. You just have to find the one that works out with you; not ridiculously hard, not insanely easy, but challenging enough to make you want to push yourself harder to improve yourself and your technique.
It really comes down to the person’s dedication to the martial arts and the attitude that goes along with learning it.
52 Kungfuguy // Apr 25, 2008
there is a story where if you get a white belt after years of traning it will get dirty with blood and sweat and stuff it will turn a mouldy green then a grey colour then brown then black and it will be infested with germs unless u spray it with germ killer i think this is the best way to get a black belt if u want one
53 Martin Brass // May 6, 2008
I fought the same skinny black belt again and this time I got a submission out of him ( see entry 51 )
54 Martin Brass // May 7, 2008
I beat that skinny black belt again - and this time I got a submission from him. Yeaaaahhh!!!!
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