Thanks for the tips and encouragement guys. It really makes me feel better. I will do all of the things that ya'll listed.
Let me tell you a little about our test. It last five days.
On Sunday afternoon we meet at a park and have to run 2.7 miles. Along the way we stop and do push ups, sit ups, frog leaps, duck walks, mountain climbers, pull ups, and any other cruel and unusual things that the head instructor can think of. We have 45 minutes to finish.
On Monday night we meet at class. We have to run 1 mile, do 100 push ups, 100 sit ups, and jump rope for 5 minutes. If we do not finish all of this in 25 minutes or less, then we fail. (We have to do this the next three nights as well.) Then we take a 300 question written test.
Tuesday night we do the 1/100/100/5 and then do each of our techniques 25 times on each side.
Wednesday is kata night. After we do the 1/100/100/5, we do all of our forms over and over again. We will probably spend 3 hours doing katas. Some of the black belts have told me that this was their hardest night.
Fight night is on Thursday. We do our 1/100/100/5 first. Then we do self-defense. They line people up in front and in back to attack you. For 5 minutes straight, one attacks, you do the defense and throw them to the mat. As soon as they hit the mat, another attacks. After the 5 minutes, we get a 2 minute break, and then do it again. After that we spar 20 one and a half minute matches against black belts and a few brown belts. After each 5 matches we get a one and a half minute break. If we survive, they take the last stripe off of our brown belt (we go down on stripes as you rank up) and that signifies that you passed the test and are waiting for the Black Belt Ceremony.
We have a brown belt training regimen and diet that we follow. At each level of brown, they add more to it. At the last level we are required to run 1 mile, do 100 push-ups, 100 sit ups, and jump rope 5 minutes (sound familiar) six times a week. I am running 3 miles three days a week and one mile the other days. I am also lifting weights 3 days a week. No too much weight, just lots of reps.
The diet is no processed sugar, no alcohol, no fried food, no caffene, and red meat only once a week. We are also on water only to drink since 30 days before the test. (This is the hardest part of the diet to me.)
Yorec,
Your right, people have failed, but only one or two over 15 years.
And I will look at it as you and Boris said. Not thinking of it as a test, but a chance to show what I have learned.
Skorzeny,
You so right, but I guess I'll just have to try the breathing, as this is a family organization.
Thanks again to all of you, and I'll let you know how it goes.