Karate????

Question

Ok well I was thinking of joining something like Karate with my brother to learn how to defend ourself? Know is Karate perfect for learning how to defend ourself just in case we get attacked in the streets? If not which fighting style is best for learning how to defend ourselfs?

Answer 1

hey i think its cool but you should  look into the styles of karate..................................... -Shotokan- probably the most widely practiced style of karate, which was found by Funakoshi, school focuses on speed and precision of techniques rather than on raw force of a fighter. Bulk of training is kata(forms consisting of movements), drills and sparring.

-Goju ryu- Hardcore school of karate, fighters rely heavily on their physical ability to block and take punches, therefore training consists of brutal endurance exercises, and drills mixed with kata, with full contact sparring introduced later in the menu. Goju ryu karate-ka have always been famous for their endurance, strength and overall toughness.

-Shorin ryu- a mix of the two above, plus a arsenal of evasion techniques is introduced, fighter don’t tend to stand their ground and fight, but evade and counter. Some people say it’s the most balanced and rational style of karatets cool but you should look into a stle of karate

Answer 2

The best for self-defense would probably be Krav Maga...practiced by the Israeli military.  It basically teaches you to do whatever it takes to win a fight.  I'm quoting Wikipedia here:

The guiding principles for those performing Krav Maga techniques are:

        * Do not get hurt

        * Neutralise your attacker as fast as possible

        * Go from defending to attacking as quickly as possible

        * Use the body's natural reflexes

        * Strike at any vulnerable point

        * Use any tool or object available to you [2]

According to a description written for the self-publication media site Associated Content, the basic premises of Krav Maga are:

        * You're not going to care how much damage you're going to cause.

        * Cause as much damage as possible and run.

        * Do not try to prolong a fight. Do what needs to be done and escape.

Again, this must be read in the context of a life-threatening situation. Instructors will constantly stress the need, in less extreme circumstances, to match the response to the danger or risk.

Whatever you do, you'll need to practice it a lot before you can really use it effectivly.  Don't think you can take two classes and be able to defend yourself.

Answer 3

CJ Burton - Shorin Ryu is a mix of Shotokan and Goju Ryu???

(Senior Practitioners - What do we have to do to get people like this banned from answering questions on Yahoo Answers???)

Shorin Ryu is the oldest style of Karate in Okinawa, and Shotokan CAME FROM SHORIN RYU!!!

This blatant ignorance makes me nauseous.

AJ, the key to developing skills in any art is repetition. If you do it over and over, it will become second nature. If you learn from someone who has a real understanding of their art, and practice this way, you will develop the ability to use your art without thinking about it... it's called Instinct.

( Kempo - Shorin Ryu IS Shuri Te. )

Answer 4

Karate is a really good way of learning self defence. If you are looking for take downs, something that could put your "attacker" on the ground, then Judo would also be good.

Goju ryu officially the best style of Karate!!

Answer 5

karate if good for defending yourself if you have to. just remember no to fight back unless you really have to.

Answer 6

karate is good for striking...however if your in a street situation i would say judo it doesnt matter the size when they are flying from their own force lol but anything will teach you self defence...

Answer 7

technically shotokan came from shruri-te, not shorin ryu...lol i know i know...splitting hairs.

nothing is perfect.

if you want to learn to defend yourself relatively quickly...karate or another traditional art isn't your best bet. but if you want something you will always learn from its great. and as katana implied....they do ALOT more than just punching and kicking...and kata (the most misunderstood part of karate...even by alot of its practitioners)

but 1st things 1st....it does me no good to say...study krav maga...if there is no krav maga school near you.

your first order of business is taken care of...you want to learn self defense...not sport...not points...not fitness.

ok now...find out what systems and schools are available near you. then you can choose between them. visit each school more than once. and ask questions.

Answer 8

Quite honestly it all depends on the teacher and the way the school trains. I hate to say it having studied an Okinawin karate style for almost 19 years, but there are a lot of bad schools out there.

However most of the time tarditional Okinawin karate schools do not fall into the McDojo catagory, at least from my experience. When you try to decide on a school, go to www.bullshido.com, as they have an excellent list for finding a good school.

I myself think Judo is an excellent martial art, however if you have a good instructor any Okinawin karate style contains a lot of stand up grappling and submissions, which unfortunatly not too many people know about.

Bottom line is whatever you choose, make sure it is the best school you can find.

Sensei I do not know that we can get them banned. If we could my candidate would be dmaud56. He says Tai Sabaki was invented recently by japanese karate people. This is just one of his statements that shows his ignorence of karate. this statement was made to explain why kung fu has better evasion then karate, because all karate does is block and punch.

Answer 9

Better than nothing. Just choose whatever martial art you like. They're all good. Why do you think I've trained in more than one?

Answer 10

Boxing or Muay Thai if you're looking for hitting people. There's no better defense for protecting your head than putting your fists up. For grappling, you should take either Sambo or Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu because you can fight people that are much bigger than you. There's nothing like seeing someone bigger than you scream in pain while being helpless.

Answer 11

Karate is a very good martial art. Many top martial artists in the UFC know Karate. GSP, for example, or Lyoto Machida.

Just make sure you find a good school. Here are a few tips:

1) If you are not allowed to watch any classes, you may not want to invest your time and money. Without seeing a class you will not be able to get a good feel for the school.

2) Ask questions - don't worry about looking stupid or asking the "wrong" question. They are going to be teaching and training you- you want to get any concerns or considerations you have out before you commit to anything.

3) Do the advanced students move the way you would like to? This will give you some sense of what you can achieve.

4) Do the students get personalized attention? This will be a good judge of how valuable your time will be. If there is a good amount of instructor to student attention there will be more value for you.

5) Does the instructor differentiate between forms and function? Another good indication is to find out if the instructor(s) differentiates between form and function. In other words do they do it "because it looks good" or "because it works." You would preferably want a school that stresses sparring and is competitive. Sparring teaches you to put what you've learned into practise against someone who is willing to hurt you. Without sparring, usually what happenes is that whatever you learn goes flying out of the window in an actual fight because the adrenaline kicks in. Sparring teaches you to override these survival instincts and replaces them with better ones.

6) Classes - Another thing you want to be clear on is when you can go to the school and when classes are. Some schools are open almost all the time and have lots of classes. In some schools you can only come when an official class is being held.

7) Read this article on Karate contracts:

http://ntfa-dallas.home.att.net/mcdojo.h...