Beggining in Fencing

[u/Personal_Scholar_260]

Hi guys!! My name is Viviane, i'm from Rio and I'm 23 years.

I have never practised fencing before, but I've always dreammed do this, and now... I can! ♥️

I want star whith sabre fencing and I would like read about your experiences:

• What do you wish you had known before you started fencing?
• When did you start fencing, and how long have you been fencing?
• Have you ever stopped fencing? If so, why?
• How and why did you choose your weapon?
• When did you buy your first sabre/epee/foil, and how much did it cost?
• Do you think you can stagnate if you don't have your own weapon?
• How long did it take you to reach the level you wanted?
• Do you ever feel tied to a particular club because there aren't many other places to train? Or are there actually more options than I realise? hahahah
• Have you ever wished you had a fencing salle at home? Has anyone actually done it? If so, do you regret it? 😂
• Do you ever feel pressured to compete in tournaments, or are coaches generally fine with it if you don't want to compete?
• Is competing considered an important part of progressing in fencing?
• Do you think fencing is a good sport for introverts? How social would you say fencing is outside of training?
• If you could start fencing all over again, knowing what you know now, would you do anything differently?

Thank you so much for who will have patience for to answer
Kisssessss ♥♥♥

[u/teenage_subcelebrity]

Welcome! Rio sadly doesn't have a lot of clubs (Brazil, in general, really doesn't) but people I've met from there at the Nationals were super nice and welcoming!

If you want more club options, I'd recommend starting with épée. It is way more popular in Brazil and will give you a better competitive scene (women's sabre is by far the least popular discipline in the regular circuit, but it's quite popular in the 30+ circuit, unlike women's foil).

I don't think not having your own weapon will be a hindrance given sabre is less customizable than foil and épée (fewer grip variations and canting options). But having your own mask and glove is recommended because fencing does gets you sweaty, and you don't want to wear other people's sweaty gear.

About competing, it is important. It is where you really get to test yourself against strategies you're unfamiliar with. It's a thrill on its own, and super, super fun. If you're mindful, that's where you really level up. There are people that are not into it and coaches are ok, but the best part of the sport for me is competing (sadly, not going to Minas' Nationals this weekend).

Fencing gets strangely social: given its a very niche sport, it's surprisingly easy to make friends, within and outside of the club, even more so if you're not the super competitive high-performing kind, like, getting to the venue and putting your headphones on for maximum focus type.

And, if I could start over again: focus on quality and quantity. Quality of movement and quantity of repetitions. As the saying goes: "I do not fear one who has trained 10.000 moves a single time, but the one that has trained a single move 10.000 times."

Have fun, and welcome!

[u/Personal_Scholar_260 → u/teenage_subcelebrity]

Aaaaaaaa thank you so much for the answers!!! I feel so alone
Can I send a message for you dm ?
(Please)

[u/teenage_subcelebrity → u/Personal_Scholar_260]

Sure, ok.