Tried a Kyokushin Class

[Lupin1]

So on a whim tonight a drove a few towns over to try out a Kyokushin class I've been looking at online for some time. It was ehhh. I mean, probably the main thing I'd want to get out of it is sparring (the adults don't spar at my Isshinryu school) and we didn't do any of that tonight, so that may be the main reason it was just ehhh. We did about an hour of line drills and half an hour of kata (he went through their five "mini kata" with me very quickly and then he taught me the first two kata, which were so similar to the first kata we do in my Isshinryu class that I picked them both up immediately). Honestly it was so similar yet so slightly different that I think it may or may not mess up my Isshinryu. Although after Christmas I'm starting Nijushiho in Isshinryu (with Shotokan form), so I'm about to get messed up anyway...

I might go back on Saturday just to give it one more go, but I think it might be best for me to just go back to Judo, which is at the same time. I was just curious and wanted to try something new. I still kinda wanna spar, though...

[Wastelander]

I would expect working Kyokushin kihon and kata to mess you up--I know it really threw me off when I tried doing it with the group I work out with on occasion. Your best bet is probably to just ask them when they will be sparring, and stop by for that every now and then, while continuing with your regular judo training sessions for the most part.

[Zaine]

I would give it one more go but it might mess with your Isshinryu a little bit. You never know they, you may be able to separate it enough in your mind to do both effectively.

[wagnerk]

I tried out Kyokushin for a little while and found that they tend to practice kata and basic together and then either did a separate class or a different session for their sparing. Don't know if that is general of Kyokushin or that instructor.

One thing, please do not assume that all sparing within Kyokushin is full contact, if that is why you want to spar with them. As they have "semi-contact" which is sparing with pad and "clicker" which would be light-contact, adjusted for Kyokushin fighters.

[sensei8]

I too, concur wholeheartedly with everyone here. When the time is right, try out Kyokushinkai, but only when the time is right. Having said that, speak with the instructor of that school, and express what it is you want to do, and it's possible that you can join their "Open" sparring sessions, if experiencing the many kumite aspects offered by Kyokushinkai. At an "Open" kumite session, any style of the MA can participate at said dojo providing one first speaks with the CI, and it goes along way if you're an invited guest of a current student of said CI.

It is said that he/she who rushes in finds themselves rushing right out.

[Safroot]

In my dojo (Kyokushin) we do only 1 sparring session a month ... I feel like that's not enough but classes without sparring we usually do alot of bag work ...I wish I can do more sparring

[SteyrAUG]

Probably not very fair to expect any dojo to let a "new guy" come try it out and spar with everyone. They have no idea if you have solid technique and good control or not.

I do know when I was involved with a local kyokushin group in the early 80s it was some of the roughest sparring I had been exposed to. But long before we were even allowed to spar we had to do lots of kihon and kata until everyone was satisfied that we were good to go and wouldn't go overboard or get killed during sparring, even if it did at times feel like we might get killed.

[muttley]

I have tried Kyokushin a few times, maybe it was the dojo I went to or the sessions I tried but the focus was predominantly on knock down fighting and training for competitions. There was no kata trained at all, kihon was on the spot hand and foot techniques which was a good workout (and the hip flexors certainly knew they'd worked the next few days!).

Unfortunately, competition karate isn't for me, I am not interested in it at my age (38) and would rather train for self protection reasons, it's a shame because the training is great for conditioning etc.