Getting more interest in Karate.

[Darkranger85]

I'm working with my Sensei to get more students into the Dojo.

One of my thoughts was that many people don't take Karate seriously for a number of reasons. First off, many dojos don't teach real effective karate. So it produces a generation of "black belts" that can't fight worth anything.

So one of my thoughts was that we could hold a free event in which this topic is discussed and ends with a sparring demonstration in which a trained student or instructor has a match against with no training.

Thoughts?

[JR 137]

Most people I know think karate is a kids' thing. Why? Partly because all they see is kids running around with gis and belts either at McDonald's or the like or getting out of a minivan, or see karate at strip malls (and inside some malls too). Combine that with the protective gear and non-contact point fighting, and you get the perfect storm.

Demonstrations can be good. But I wouldn't invite people out the audience or non-martial artists to spar against an instructor. It's just asking for problems.

If you're going to do a demonstration, stay true to what you do in the dojo. Don't go full-contact/knockdown style sparring if that's not what goes on in the dojo. Do a little bit of everything you'd normally do in class. Let them take it or leave it. Kihon, kata, some drills, and some kumite. Breaking draws a crowd, but I'm not sold on it getting people to actually join. Too many are skeptical about it; they think it could be rigged somehow.

Stay true to what you do, and just as importantly, do it in a place full of your target audience. If you're targeting adults, stay away from childrens' fairs.

[Darkranger85]

I wasn't thinking of doing a random thing from the audience.

My thought was to set it up before hand with someone that one of the instructors know that's willing to show an untrained person sparring with someone that knows karate.

Sparring gear would be used and I'm sure Kyoshi would use the same rules she uses during class. No face shots, and no hard contact.

And for target audience, my thought was to circulate flyers around town and have them come right to the dojo.

[JR 137]

Sorry, I didn't think you'd pull people from the audience at random. It was more thinking out loud than anything else. Circulating flyers is a good idea. Also having students bring people in. Perhaps if you or other students can circulate them at work.

Your kyoshi being a woman can be a huge advantage in bringing women into the dojo if she does a special women's self defense demo/seminar as well.

[Darkranger85]

She does offer self defense seminars and such as part of her services for women and businesses.

[Gazhudson18]

I think that karate has gone from a martial art into a sport, especially in the public eye. It was meant to be a deadly form of self defence but has since been turned into a point scoring sport. For obvious reasons you can't go full contact in sparring but I find it difficult to pull a punch as well. I may be a bit old school in my thinking I think that to bring more people into the great art that we all enjoy, going back to basics and teaching people that karate is not a sport but a way of life is the way to go. Good luck with your dojo darkranger85.

[bushido_man96]

I wasn't thinking of doing a random thing from the audience.

My thought was to set it up before hand with someone that one of the instructors know that's willing to show an untrained person sparring with someone that knows karate.

Sparring gear would be used and I'm sure Kyoshi would use the same rules she uses during class. No face shots, and no hard contact.

And for target audience, my thought was to circulate flyers around town and have them come right to the dojo.

If you are just going to do a sparring atmosphere, it might not strike the cord you are looking for. Something more realistically based in self-defense might be a better attention grabber, but it needs to be based in effective self-defense, and not stylistic one-steps just to gain some oohs and aahs from the observers.

[RW]

Just how commercial can the "Do" part of karate Do be?

To be honest if I wanted to get into a fight I'd take Muay thai or boxing before karate (not blasting karate, I did shotokan for several years and got a brown belt, and I do Kempo Karate now).

I mean, how is a horse stance going to help me in a fight? Do you think a karate style block (think an ude uke) would really be applicable to a fight? Would you ever use a nukite "on the street"? etc etc.

What drew me to this type of martial art was the "Do" aspect, or at least its well rounded nature. I get a hell of a workout, I exercise my body from head to toe, I relieve stress, practice self control, etc, and yes, self defense also follows, but it's a longer path in the traditional arts.

Now if someone could get into karate practitioner's mind and make selling points out of that holistic "do" experience, maybe that one dojo would be very successful

[sensei8]

Let those who think Karate is useless think what they want. Nothing will change their preconceived notions about karate and/or the MA.

Even resistive demos will have people that their minds have already decided for whatever reason(s). The landscape of the MA has indeed changed, but I refuse to join those who think that the MA/Karate is useless because if it is, then what is this that lives in my heart...what is this that lives in my soul!!

There are certainly the good and the bad of anything, and this includes the MA in general. We've all seen the videos and have witnessed for ourselves the both, and we've cringed at the bad, yet celebrated with the good.

You want more students? Then teach!! Teach as though nothing else matters outside of your style!! Not worrying what the Jones and the Smiths do!! Your Kyoshi isn't a Kyoshi for her rank, but for what she's demonstrated to her governing body in the area of increasing the betterment of the student body as well as for the style. After all, a Shogo title CAN'T BE EARNED THROUGH A TESTING CYCLE...no...they're bestowed upon worthy MAists...a Shogo title are for TEACHING ABILITIES...so just have her TEACH as though her life depended on it, while having fun at it as well.

Give your idea a try. Nothing's gained by not trying!!

Edited December 16, 2015 by sensei8

[wildbourgman]

I mean, how is a horse stance going to help me in a fight? Do you think a karate style block (think an ude uke) would really be applicable to a fight? Would you ever use a nukite "on the street"?[/code]

RW, I think you might be either over or under thinking some things. In my opinion horse stance in the modern age is mainly for strength and conditioning. I also think some stances are transitory as in that you might spend a fraction of a second in that stance while performing a technique. Although I have used that stance as a defensive posture while sparring and I can also see that stance being used in that same way just a shorter higher stance on the street.

Blocking in the way you seem to envision it is simply basic. I too asked that same question as a Shotokan beginner but now I'm just starting to see that actual applications.

I don't know if you will ever see nukite on the street but I can tell you that it's effective when applied correctly to the correct part of your body. It hurts like heck.

All of this stuff wasn't made up without reason and from the stories I've read and heard Okinawan and early Japanese practitioners fought in the streets a lot more than the Dojo Kun would have you believe. Some of this takes tons of practice to feel competent in and maybe that's the real question.

Are these techniques realistic with the amount of time modern people have to practice them?

Can we garner more interest in Karate when the apparent real pay off of our training doesn't come for years with many students?

I think the pay off comes much sooner but not for those that want instant mastery.