# Never Too Late!

- Link: https://brianejohns.com/2016/03/28/blog-never-too-late/
- Published: 2016-03-28T18:22:00-04:00
- Author: Brian Johns

> _I am pleased to present a guest post from my good friend, RoseAnne Mussar. She
> hails from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and trains in Modern Arnis at the _[6Tigers Academy](https://6tigers.ca/)_
> in Barrhaven under Renshi Janet Heffernan. She also trains in the American Cane
> System, often traveling to New York for training._

## “󠀁[Aren’t you a little old for that?](https://brianejohns.com/2016/08/01/blog-the-most-important-person/)󠁿” was my sister’s reaction when I mentioned that I was starting karate lessons. And she had a good point. At 47, it was a little late for a Pudgy Middle-Aged Matron© to be starting in….well, let’s back it up a bit, shall we?

I may be middle-aged now, but I’ve always been pudgy (OK, fat). I was never athletic.
Ever. When I was a kid, martial arts was that kung-fu stuff at the Saturday matinee,
and gym class was an endlessly humiliating series of being picked last for the team.
Oh, the memories.

![Artwork commissioned by RoseAnne. The artist is Peter Chiykowski.](https://i0.
wp.com/brianejohns.com//wp-content/uploads/2020/06/PMAM.jpg?resize=800%2C800&ssl
=1)

Artwork by Peter Chiykowski. Check out his online comic series at [http://www.rockpapercynic.com](http://www.rockpapercynic.com/)

But life goes on and you meet a great guy and fall in love and get married and have
two amazingly awesome kids who decide to try karate. So I watched my kids do karate
for five or six years, thinking “_gee that looks like fun_.”

## And then it happened.

Around my 47th birthday, I signed up for a Women’s Self Defense course. As nervous
as all get-out, I stepped onto the mats. I had the time of my life kicking pads,
punching dummies, and applying devastating techniques to some poor guy in a red 
man suit. I had a blast, but more importantly, I realized that I could do this. 
Where do I sign up?

Karate was the obvious choice, but to be truthful, it was a bit of a rough start.
A lot of the karate stuff was hard on my knees (I got my official osteoarthritis
diagnosis a couple of years ago). I also tried Defendo for a while. I managed to
get my Level 2 certification but seriously, what was I thinking?

However, the kids had started doing this funny little thing with sticks which kinda
looked interesting.

So I picked up some sticks. Clouds parted. Scintillating beams of sunlight shone
down. A heavenly choir of golden voices sang “_this is what you want to do!_” Where
do I sign up?

Six years later, I’m still swinging the sticks and loving every minute of it. I 
love the physical and mental challenge of martial arts, especially with weapons.
I love being stronger, healthier, and more confident. I love that I love being physically
active- something I used to hate. I love that my husband Gary signed up too! Plus,
I’ve picked up a couple of other arts: American Cane System, and sport whip cracking(
yes it’s a thing). I may still be a Pudgy Middle-Aged Matron©, but I’m a PMAM who
kicks ass! [It’s never too late to start!](https://brianejohns.com/2025/05/26/did-i-start-too-late/)

## It’s trite but true: 󠀁[the first step is often the hardest](https://brianejohns.com//2018/06/02/blog-taking-the-leap/)󠁿. And occasionally not in quite the right direction. But that’s perfectly OK. It’s never too late to take that step. So pick up those sticks and start swinging – see how amazing you can be!

## Additional Reading

 * [Friday Recommendation #15](https://brianejohns.com/2023/08/11/friday-recommendation-15/)
 * [The Most Important Person?](https://brianejohns.com/2016/08/01/blog-the-most-important-person/)
 * [It Is All The Same!](https://brianejohns.com/2016/07/06/blog-it-is-all-the-same/)
 * [10 Tips To Avoid Killing Your Uke](https://brianejohns.com/2015/03/11/blog-10-tips-to-avoid-killing-your-uke/)
 * [Martial Arts Zoom Classes](https://brianejohns.com/2020/12/01/blog-martial-arts-zoom-classes/)

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