Changing martial arts?

[mathreros]

I am in the sweet, not really, position of having to change either style within karate or change which martial arts I am practicing, the reason for this is that I will be starting University and in the city where I will be attending university they do not have any Kyokushinkai dojos, thus I seem to be forced to either change to Shotokan, Kendo or Aikido (As those are the martial arts I currently know of that exists in that city)...

Thus I am calling upon this forum to help me decide what I should do... I have some pros and cons for Kendo and Aikido, whilst not much understanding for Shotokan...

The pros for Kendo for me would be the extra exercise and more demanding physical training (I am in really bad shape...), whilst cons for Kendo would be no real world applications... And that takes me to Aikido, which from my perspective, seems to have the opposite pros and cons...

If by chance it matters, I achieved 5th kyu in kyokushainkai before Christmas, then haven't trained since because of exams...

Edit: Forgot to add that if anyone knows about any Kyokushin dojos in Glasgow, or reachable for a student in Glasgow, please let me know

Edited September 6, 2014 by mathreros

[sensei8]

First of all...welcome to KF; glad that you're here!!

You're going to hate my answer, but...

The pros and cons...are going to vary from practitioner to another.

I'm not a Shotokan karateka, therefore, you can find many that are here at KF, and I don't doubt that they'll be here shortly to help you.

I've shared the floor with a many Shotokan karateka's and I find them affable and effective in the execution of their MA. I tend to address those who train in Shotokan as quick and direct in their manner as well as in their MA. Personally, I enjoy sharing the floor with them!

No matter what style of the MA that you look into, you'll see, hear, read, a wide myriad of opinions, and that's to be expected because MAists are compassionate about their style and the styles of others.

The way to find out is to visit the local dojo's of those styles that interest you to see things for yourself. Visit more than once, and visit different classes, and of course, ask for a trial lesson to get a tiny taste of what they have to offer.

Deeply consider what it is that you're looking for and see if they meet your expectations!!

Good luck, and please, let us know what you decide! Thanks!

[guird]

I am in the sweet, not really, position of having to change either style within karate or change which martial arts I am practicing, the reason for this is that I will be starting University and in the city where I will be attending university they do not have any Kyokushinkai dojos, thus I seem to be forced to either change to Shotokan, Kendo or Aikido (As those are the martial arts I currently know of that exists in that city)...

Thus I am calling upon this forum to help me decide what I should do... I have some pros and cons for Kendo and Aikido, whilst not much understanding for Shotokan...

The pros for Kendo for me would be the extra exercise and more demanding physical training (I am in really bad shape...), whilst cons for Kendo would be no real world applications... And that takes me to Aikido, which from my perspective, seems to have the opposite pros and cons...

If by chance it matters, I achieved 5th kyu in kyokushainkai before Christmas, then haven't trained since because of exams...

Edit: Forgot to add that if anyone knows about any Kyokushin dojos in Glasgow, or reachable for a student in Glasgow, please let me know

If you like kyokushin and would like to continue something similar, why not check out some other full-contact striking? There's probably at least one karate dojo that trains full-contact even if it isn't kyokushin.

I've heard that kendo is actually pretty applicable if you can get your hands on a stick, but then you won't often have one.

I'm not a fan of aikido, It seems very difficult to apply in a real situation. I trained it for a while and I gained little from it compared to my other training.

You could look for judo, I think judo is pretty much everywhere.

I searched for full-contact karate glasgow, and found this:

http://kyokushin-fernandodojo.co.uk/kyokushin-karate/

Good luck!

[mathreros]

Thanks, I did not know about that club in Glasgow, though when I looked through their syllabus I just got entirely confused... Some of their techniques for grades I know, some have confusing names, some I would have said were for higher or lower grades.... Very, very confusing...

I can see your point about Kendo, and it is perhaps the martial art besides Karate I have looked most towards, though have been put of by the thought that it might not be very applicable..

Anyways I have at least decided to take one or two lessons at the different styles in Glasgow to see what I like the most... Might help to do that indeed

[Nidan Melbourne]

If you can't find a Kyokushin Dojo near your university choose one that you will find the most enjoyable.

If you want real world applications aikido or shotokan will do the job quite well.

If it is just for fitness then go for Kendo.

[bushido_man96]

I think that if you are looking to do something similar to Kyokushin, then Shotokan would be right up your alley. The contact levels won't be the same, but much of the technique and forms should be similar. But, be sure to check out all your options before making a decision.

[AmericanKenpoKarate]

if you like kyokoahin you would like shotokan its fun and exciting

[mal103]

You can get everything from Shotokan IF it is being practiced properly!

Fitness, real world applications, ground fighting, hard contact, fast paced, it's all in Shotokan if it includes the full system, a lot of this will depend on the instructor.

From what I've seen of kyukushin then it seems a lot of kicks and punches whilst in close, a lot of what Shotokan teaches is to get in, strike and then get out, or have part of the opponent in your grasp that you take the initiative. Most strikes are designed to end the confrontation quickly.

I have cross trained with a few other styles and can find a lot of their stuff within a full Karate system, it's very annoying when people make statements that Shotokan isn't this or that, or doesn't include xyz...

You just have to find the right instructor.

[IcemanSK]

I see the position you're in as quite exciting. You have an opportunity to spread your wings and learn something new. And how new is totally up to you. You can stay in very familiar territory (a stand-up striking Art in Shotokan) or very different in Aikido &/or Kendo. There is no bad choice. Just asking yourself how much you want to change from your comfort zone.

All my best to you.

[cheesefrysamurai]

Welcome to the forum!

I agree with much of what has been said. I know many goju ryu dojos also do kyokushin style kumite. My teacher often talks about the 3ks - Kihon, kata and kumite. But in all fairness he is a kyokushin practitioner as well.

You can try to rule one of them out by looking at the instructors, see if there's one that sticks out, having trained with a reputable master and all. Or quite possibly one my be extremely well regarded and another a fake.

Attend a class start with shotokan, if it doesn't call you, move on to kendo or aikido.

There is true value in anything you practice correctly.