I started karate in 1999 at Buckden under the instruction of Sensei Shepherd.
The aspects I enjoy most about karate are the mental and physical challenges.
When I started karate I did so to improve my fitness as my football club, at the time, did not focus on physical development. I continued to play football regularly until I was having difficulty progressing in either sport due to the fact I could not dedicate enough time to karate or football. At 2nd Kyu I had a very difficult decision to make and I decided that I would stop one sport and so left my football club to concentrate on karate and I have never regretted the decision.