Learning Karate

Heckler83 · White Belt

This is an interesting question.
Even though I go to a Hap Ki Do school, I have a certian fondness for Shotokan. Probably becaue of my build. I think it's a fine system and can be very effective in a fight or competition situation. The kata's aren't meant to be pretty, their meant to be a system of movements a student can practice anywhere, once memorized. The point of the Kata is that within that kata are the strikes and movements you need to know for your style. You get knowledge on how to fight FROM the kata's individual parts.
Hapkido has weapon kata, and that teaches a parson how to use the sword, or nunchaku, or cane. Think of the kata as a mnemonic.
_________________
It is up to those men who are strong,
to protect those who are weak,
from the tyranny of evil men

Blue belt, Hap Ki Do
Dropped Shotokan and TKD
Picked up Muay Thai and Jujitsu

G95champ · Black Belt

Well I see it like this Karate SD uses a lot of open hand and PP strike. Meaning if you really spar with them you hurt someone. I did full contact sparring in HS and college and my karate did ok for me. Yeah I lost but anytime you fight you loose. I also won a few. However I know at any time if I hit the guy I was working out with, with a palm instead of a boxing glove I would have killed him. So take it for what its worth. Anything you do and do right will work.

I too did cross train in college but to say it made me a better fighter I don't know. It made me a more rounded martial artists but as far as fighting there are only so many things you can do with you arms and legs.

With that said karate will give you a solid base. However if fighting is what you are after then don't go into a karate dojo because we teach how not to fight by learing to fight.
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(General George S. Patton Jr.) "It's the unconquerable soul of man, and not the nature of the weapon he uses, that ensures victory."

Mark Groenewold · Yellow Belt

On cross-training:

Over the years I have done a fair bit of gym-training to complement karate and it helps a lot. I find that the karate training has become more of honing skills, remembering moves, technique, distancing, and some more finesse. the running, weights, and aerobic work gives me a stronger body to bring to the dojo.

So I suppose you have to figure out which accents the other. Does the cross-training help your karate or does the karate help you in the gym/basketball court.... etc.?

Mark Groenewold
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See how karate is done in Japan.
http://www.karatethejapaneseway.com
mark@karatethejapaneseway.com

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