Starting shotokan

Eye of the Tiger · Purple Belt

After much thought I think I've picked the wrong style for me.

I prefer the harder style of shotokan than to the softer style of wado ryu, it just suits me and my strong body type. I am going to carry on with my kickboxing as its fun to fight full contact and their plenty of competitions though I dont think my parents are really going to understand how important to choose the right style.

Its going to be a bit annoying finishing my karate, I've only done about 3 lessons but have already bought a year menbership.

But I think its worth it. No point in doing a style your not suited to. You should do the martial art that your body is suited to. That is how you fined the right martial art for you, and in wado ryu where you use another persons strengh against them and really using defensive techniques, I would prefer to use my strengh in my techniques.

Any suggestions. Theres a local shotokan club which also teaches kobodo.

Ti-Kwon-Leap · Blue Belt

Regardless of which style you ultimately choose, learning to react in harmony with an opponent is (in my opinion) one of the most important things you can learn.
You may not always face an opponent that can be dismantled by brute force attacks.
learning how to use an opponents weight against him will come in real handy later, trust me.
I do not know the specific differences between Shotokan and wado ryu. so any further advice from me would be pointless.
Good luck.

_________________
Ti-Kwon-Leap
"Annoying the ignorant since 1961"

Eye of the Tiger · Purple Belt

Shotokan is usually referred to without the suffix -ryu attached. The other three styles usually have the suffix at the end of their names.The four styles are somewhat different from one another. Interestingly, there is actually no art by the name of "Shotokan." The Shoto-Kan was the name of the first karate dojo in Japan. The people who practice Shotokan in Japan usually refer to their art as simply "karate", completely oblivious to the fact that others refer to it as Shotokan. It is in the US and other Western nations that the name Shotokan has become widely used.

Wado-Ryu is an off-shoot of Shotokan and was created in the early 1930's by one of Shotokan's first students in Japan. Being the son of the leader of a Jujutsu faction, Ohtsuka Hinori left Shotokan to found his own style combining his father's style of jujutsu with the karate he learned from Funakoshi between 1922 and 1929. Wado incorporates less kata, kumite, and basic technique and more jujutsu holds and locks.

Wado Ryu is good that it inclueds shotokan and Jujutsu so can use an attackers strengh against them. I thought I might be better suited to shotokan because of my good strengh and my ideas mach that of shotokan, that practicing more basic technique is more important than learning more moves. The fact that shotokan uses more kata, kumite, and basic technique makes it that more appeling to me. I am proboly average height, not hugely built, but quite large muscles developed through plyometrics, and I have quite a medium frame.

Kensai · Black Belt

I understand what you are talking about. I like to call it the martial art "great wandering". Ananlysising each martial art in your minds eye, and looking for preferences. I did shotokan for nearly 1 year. It is a great martial art, but I feel that it had been to commercialised, and rigid, unfortunately losing the flow that Gichin Funakoshi had oringally intended. The kata are a great form of exercise and concentration, that do allow flowing movement, but all these great moves are lost in the Kumite. I like Wado, I did it for about a month or so. Its not a soft martial art in the traditional sence, but it has learnt from the other softer arts that smashing your way through an oppent will work for about 98% of the population, but not the 2% of skilled martial artists of other disaplines and martial arts. Shotokan is a great sport, but lacks some budo principles. Thats not to say that I would not be a little intemidated going up against a good Shotokan karateka.

I then did Ninjutsu for about 6 months, but it lacked the early development of Ki that I wanted. This did come at dan grade. But I did not want to wait that long. I feel that the great martial artists have a good grounding in Ki, Chi or Qi at an early stage. But Ninjutsu is a TRUELY great martial art!

Then I started Aikido. Which has the great techniques and even better philosophy. With a massive emphasis on Ki exercises. Which has helped me just as much outside to dojo as in the dojo. In terms of general health and well being. The ability to remain calm and understanding.

If you are looking for a hard martial art, then perhaps look at Wing Chun. Which in my opionion is the top of the striking arts. Although I dont study it myself several of my friends do. Training with and against them is always challenging and great fun. Striking arts in general are done better by the Chinese arts than the Japanese ones. In the same respect that grappling is done better by the Japanese than the Chinese. Then thats only my opinion.

If you can find yourself a good Kung fu club. All the styles are great. But then any martial art is good. If you have a good shotokan Sensei then you will learn a lot.

Good luck in finding what you want

Train Well

Eye of the Tiger · Purple Belt

Definately not kung fu. It does not match my body type so I do not feel as comfortable as I do in karate, but thanks anyway, and there is no better striking art than another.

I'm kinda in the middle here, more advice would be useful. it would be better I gues if I stayed at my karate club, but I really dont mind at all to join a Shotokan club.

Thanks so far

Kensai · Black Belt

I dont mean to be little you. But you are only 15. Martial arts like wine gets better with age. Martial arts is all about preference, one is not better than another that is true. But you can always "prefer" one over the other.

You might also be interested to know that ALL karate is basic on kung Fu. And to rule it out because of your body type is foolish and only really displays your lack on knowlegde of Kung Fu.

Also you have only been to 3 lessons karate lessons. Thats not really a lot. Try and stick at it for a little longer atleast a few months before it starts baring fruit.

So before knocking Kung Fu and saying that it is not for you then I suggest you go an try it. There are so many styles. If you are large and powerful which is what I think you are making yourself out to be then have a look at Tiger style and also Wing Chun. Kung Fu cant merily be catagorised because of ones body type. As there are Kung Fu styles to suit all.

Also more fluidity is developed in Gung Fu than in Karate. You said that you dont feel as comfortable.................have you been to a Kwoon and had a lesson in Kung Fu?

You said that you also want more advise.

What are you looking for in a martial art

Hard/Soft?

Budo/Sport?

Striking/Grabbelling?

Japanese/Chinese/Korean?

Weapons/no weapons?

If you are looking for a style like Shotokan, might I suggest Kempo or Kenpo. Which are superior to karate to the point that you do more applications and locks etc, which are'nt done in Shotokan Karate.

Also "not minding" is not really WANTING to do shotokan. Like all martial arts and anything in life you have to REALLY want to do it. Perhaps that karate styles in general are not for you. You said that you like Kick Boxing. Why not try and get very good at that before you jump into another martial art. Or perhaps look for a Mauy Tai kick boxing club. If you like that sort of full contact stuff, then perhaps go for Tae kwon Do. Which is sort of in the middle between Kick Boxing and Karate.

Train Well

Eye of the Tiger · Purple Belt

Kensai, certain body types are more suitwed to a particular martial art.

For example a tall, leane, and flexible person will be more suited to Taekwondo as the person can execute high kicks all day long.
A strong or quite stocky person would be suited to shotokan as they can showcase their powerful hand techniques from low powerful stances. So you see body type does have to do with picking a martial art, you dont suddenly decide which martial art your gonna do.

I know what is involved in a martial art like kung fu and my body isn't really suited to jumping high in the air and doing summersalts. Besides there isnt any kung fu, and Muay Thai was the first martial art I wanted to do but there wasn't a club.

I have seen the effectivness of Wado Ryu and I think I'l stick with that rather than shotokan. I like both of them, and their fighting styles, but I know wado gives you the best of shotokan and jujutsu so I can have the opputunity to fight people bigger and stronger than me and turn thri strengh against them.

Wado Ryu rocks!

Kensai · Black Belt

"you dont suddenly decide which martial art your gonna do." you have right? hmm....... lol!

Good.

But like I said Kung Fu is VERY varied. Tiger style has virtually no kicks at all and is all open palm strikes. Wing Chun has no kicks above the waist. I am sure you are thinking of the well know styles of Shaolin and white crane. Which are more aerobatical.

Wado is a fine martial art and sticking to one through thick and thin will develope your character. However perhaps to say that you get the best of both Shotokan and Jujutsu is a little knave. Shotokan is a single martial art the same way that jujutsu (which I personally think is amazing). You wont get the best of both worlds, you will get watered down, but still very effective techniques.

Train hard and stick to it

:-)-: · Blue Belt

Go with your instinct. If a style feels right, take it.

Don't bother to analyze or dissect a style down to its roots. Just take the style that feels good to you, and go all the way.

_________________
d-:-O->img src="images/smiles/icon_smile.gif" alt="">->img src="images/smiles/icon_frown.gif" alt="">-:-O-:-p

rabid hamster · Purple Belt

Eye of the Tiger, if I were you(which im not), I would stick with karate for about another month... But it's your choice. when i started TKD, i liked it, but then a month later i decided i hated it, but I continued and now i love it once again. if you bought a year membership, you might as well stick to it a while and save your money. after a year if you still hate it take whatever you want. And not all kung fu are "jumping high in the air doing summersaults" Northern shaolin, wushu, and some may be like that, but arts like wing chun uses more hand techniques, and low kicks. i think the southern ones use more hands

hmm, well, whatever you choose, goodluck.

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