What type of karate are you taking? Yeah, it's good starting out with padded nunchaku (notice spelling

). I used to take Hung Gar Kung fu, the only weapons I'm familiar with are the steel whip and broad sword. Now I take Brazilian Ju-Jutsu (I can never spell that one right

), Mauy Thai, and Judo. So I would just call it MMA (Mixed Martial Arts). Anyway, good luck with your training Migidarra
EDIT: Silly me, I see you had a Question. How long does it take to learn your first "routines"? It all depends on you, your sensei, and the amount you train. So I would suggest you go at least 3 times a week and practice everyday at home. Do you have some type of apparatus to work on? (punching bag, Wavemaster etc) I hope that helped. If it didn't let me know.