Looking for Karate...

[USMCKoontz]

Myself and my kids want to begin taking Karate. We are unsure the best way to find a dojo or instructor, or what styles of Karate are even close to us. I would prefer something that could be used in Self Defense, but would also like to possibly myself or kids get into Karate Tourneys later on if we progress in skill enough.

What are the differant types of comps? I have heard of Full Contact, Point Spar, Knockdown, etc... and what are the bigger styles or more popular and what are the differances.? What style(s) would be good for beginners and children?

thanks

[devil dog]

First off welcome. I see by your signature your a Marine so Semper Fi.

It really depends on what you have available to you where you live. All martial arts will be benificial to both you and your kids.

The best thing to do is talk to people to find out which schools are good and which schools are McDojo's. Talk to the instructors and to the students and ask straight forward questions. Find out if they are affiliated with any organizations and then do a little research. Find out if their art suits your needs and maybe take a few classes to try it out and see if you like it.

The best thing to do is find a good school and just dive right in. You'll soon know whether it's right for you.

And just a little food for thought; just because they have a ton of first place trophies adorning their walls and go to a lot of tournaments does not mean they have a strong foundation in reality based self defense. What works well in tournaments does not necessarily work well on the streets.

Good luck in your journey!

[Archimoto]

Great post DD!

I also recommend taking free introductory or sample classes if they are offered by the schools in your area. It's a great way to get a good feel for the school, meet the students, and after class you'll be in position to ask more questions. FYI, most good schools will offer, if not allow when asked, a free sample class. Good luck and thank you for your service !!! Please do report back would be great to hear how it goes.

[USMCKoontz]

The closest class style to me is

ZEN - SHOTO - KAI - KARATE - RYU (style the instructor gave me)

Mikehesskarate.com is his website... Although I havent found anything on the style he gave me.

going to do some more searching and see what else I find.

[Harkon72]

Shotokai is a good traditional style of Karate; but that said, like all martial arts it depends on the teacher and the way it is taught. Go and see, they should give you at least one session for free to see what it's like. Good Luck. At the end of the day it depends what you want, your budget and how far you want to go. For some it is a hobby, for others it is a way of life. Don't become a school's income generator or let anyone fool you into committing into a contract. Usually, if it feels genuine, it usually is.

[USMCKoontz]

Shotokai is a good traditional style of Karate; but that said, like all martial arts it depends on the teacher and the way it is taught. Go and see, they should give you at least one session for free to see what it's like. Good Luck. At the end of the day it depends what you want, your budget and how far you want to go. For some it is a hobby, for others it is a way of life. Don't become a school's income generator or let anyone fool you into committing into a contract. Usually, if it feels genuine, it usually is.

Yeah going to go check it out. The way the instructor talked to my wife it is a Traditional School, with a focus in Self Defense. He said that it could be used in Full Contact or Knockdown Karate Tournaments, and even Point Sparring.

He sent the Style list (above the long one I posted) in my email, but also told my wife it is a Kempo (or Kenpo dont remember right spelling) Karate.

[sensei8]

Please visit the school MORE THAN ONCE!! Watch how the interaction between students and instructor/CI/assistants, as well as the students themselves. And not just the adults, but the kid classes as well; varying ranks as well.

For me, that's a snapshot that can't be found during an interview that one does when ones joining a school of the MA.

After that, as DD said, "dive in" and let the training begin...train hard!!

[USMCKoontz]

Please visit the school MORE THAN ONCE!! Watch how the interaction between students and instructor/CI/assistants, as well as the students themselves. And not just the adults, but the kid classes as well; varying ranks as well.

For me, that's a snapshot that can't be found during an interview that one does when ones joining a school of the MA.

After that, as DD said, "dive in" and let the training begin...train hard!!

Yeah going to go more than once... I have just been searching basically for Martial Arts close to me. Trying to learn as much about the styles before I go

[Nidan Melbourne]

Have a look around at different school. Definitely go to each more than once so you can see if they are legit in the way they teach.

Every School will have a focus of Self-Defense but some schools will focus on other aspects.

Styles like Kyokushin (Full Contact) can be great for self defense as you get used to getting hit. But since it is a very hard style of karate you may or may not last a long time in the art due to many years of injuries but also it can strengthen your body even more.

Shotokan is good as well, another strong one.

In relation to competitions it depends on which style you do. Because if you do Kyokushin you will do knockdown and some point sparring. But you won't really compete in other types of sparring at tournaments.

All WKF (World Karate Federation) Tournaments you do point sparring.

At NAS (National All-Style) Tournaments you can do continuous sparring and point sparring.

I train in Goju-Ryu Karate (Go = Hard, Ju = Soft) and focus on Self-Defense (primary) then also on fitness and tournaments.

- I live in Australia, so I compete in tournaments sanctioned by my State Karate Association.

- I compete in Kata (Forms) and in Kumite (Sparring)

I recommend to my students to wait to compete until they train up for some time and complete a number of gradings. But I don't stop them from doing it.

[guird]

Please visit the school MORE THAN ONCE!! Watch how the interaction between students and instructor/CI/assistants, as well as the students themselves. And not just the adults, but the kid classes as well; varying ranks as well.

For me, that's a snapshot that can't be found during an interview that one does when ones joining a school of the MA.

After that, as DD said, "dive in" and let the training begin...train hard!!

Yeah going to go more than once... I have just been searching basically for Martial Arts close to me. Trying to learn as much about the styles before I go

In the event you don't like that place, and so you have something to compare it to, what else is within the distance you're willing to travel to train?