Karate A little bit of a backgroud to it..

[Webber 0]

Karate through and through

Karate can be summed up as 'a martial art of Ryūkyūan origin. It developed from a synthesis of indigenous Ryukyuan fighting methods and southern Chinese martial arts. Karate originally meant Tang hand, i.e. Chinese hand, which was later changed to a homonym meaning 'empty hand' in Japanese. It is known primarily as a striking art, featuring punching, kicking, knee/elbow strikes and open handed techniques. However, grappling, joint manipulations, locks, restrains, throws and vital point striking appear in many styles of Karate.' (Wikipedia).

As a teacher and as a martial artist, Karate plays a major roll in my overall fight style. I've been practicing Shotokan Karate myself for over 7 years now, and the style of combat that it encourages is without a doubt my personal favourite. Karate is an all round combat system, comprising of kicks, strikes, elbows, knees and open hand (knife hand) blocks and techniques, however it does encorporate many other styles of fighting. It's a complete art in my opinion. With some other martial arts out there I would not feel comfortable using their techniques without backing in some other areas. For example, except for Combat Judo, all over styles of Judo do not involve strikes, blocks and kicks. It is simply grappling and throws. For me, this would not be enough. Karate promotes solid, strong, quick unstoppable movements of immense force. In my opinion, Karate is by all means one of the most lethal arts that can be executed.

So, perhaps your wondering if you'd be suited to it? Well, it's unlike Kung Fu or Aikido because it does not rely upon fluent movement. Instead it acts upon solid, strong movements. So, does this mean you have to be strong? Well no, not necessarily. It's the techniques used behind the kicks and the strikes that makes it so strong and solid. The stance is incredibly strong, and will help you pile in force. It's also a good art to learn if you wish to develope it further. With some arts your fairly limited, Karate however is not. It can be adapted, minipulated and advanced all over, and is a great basis to learn before moving onto more unconvential arts such as Ninjitsu.

Karate consists of three basic sections. First of all, you have your basics. These are usually practiced everytime you train, and will involve striking, kicking, blocking and over techniques. Don't be falled by the name though, some of the combinations and attack are far from basic. The name simply refers to the fact that it is the basics of training. The second part is your kata. This is a set sequence of moves that is changed, adapted and increased in difficulty as you go up in ranks. It will comprise of more complex combinations and techniques as the kata's advance. These kata's are heritage, as they have been passed down for thousands of years. Then finally you have your kumite. This is set sparring for junior grades, and free sparring for the advanced grades. This can be as simple as a 5 step attack, block and then counter, right up to a full freestyle sparring session. There are also other parts that can make up a lesson, such as contact work on bags and mitts, fitness work with pressups and sit ups or special techniques such as throws and grapples.

The belt rank in Shotokan Karate (KUGB) is as follows:


9th Kyu (Orange Belt - First grade)
8th Kyu (Red Belt)
7th Kyu (Yellow Belt)
6th Kyu (Green Belt)
5th Kyu (Purple Belt)
4th Kyu (Purple and White Striped Belt)
3rd Kyu (Brown Belt)
2nd Kyu (Brown With Single White Stripe)
1st Kyu (Brown With Double White Stripes)
1st Dan & Over (These are black belt grades)

The belt system will rank between different styles and different governing bodies, but the principle is similiar.

I find that Karate is incredibly useful for covering massive distances in attacks. I can safely say that Karate will give you the ability to travel as far as 10 feet to a target and land a solid attack due to it's incredibly effective lunge mechanics..

Karate will develope your mind and your spirit into an unbreakable force, and with that you will develope one of my all time fighting styles, Karate. It's totally trustable, and is very adaptable to any situation and any individual. Make sure if your going to try a couple of arts before settling that this is one of them. You will be impressed!

Add to this if you wish or if you have any comments...

[wesXking 0]

I had an aikido guy talk some crap to me before a kickboxing match I had with him... then we got in the ring and I beat the crap out of him. And then I tapped out a shotokan guy in my first MMA fight.

[adilenekate 0]

Hi thanks a lot for the post here in....I have been taking karate for 6 months and got up with the basics and being practiced regularly..All that you have described is really fantastic and helped me a lot to know more in depth of various techniques.You are right I have observed a lot of change in myself both physically and mentally with this great art....hope I get more information about martial arts.great day.


self defense moves

Edited April 19, 2010 by adilenekate (see edit history)