I wanted to get some outside advice from people with martial arts experience. TL;DR: About to reach green belt in TKD after returning from a serious injury and long layoff. Fear of reinjury led to weight gain and rust. Bigger than most partners (270 lbs), so I hold back and hesitate. I also try to slip head kicks instead of blocking and get clipped. Looking for advice on timing, defense, instincts, and confidence I started TKD and then got seriously injured about 4 months in. After I was cleared for normal activity, I made the mistake of jumping right back into the gym at the same pace as before because I wanted to feel normal again and trusted my body too much. That didn’t go well. It was my first major injury, and being forced to slow down for months was rough because I’m naturally restless. After that, I also developed a fear of reinjuring myself and gradually stopped doing most physical activity for a while, which contributed a lot to the weight gain.…