What are some important things to look for while dojo shopping?

Question

what are the turn ons and turn aways when looking at a martial arts school? any intelligent input is welcome.

Answer 1

It's more important to find the right club or school and teachers than it is to choose a particular style. Here are some guidelines for evaluating a school:

The school should let you and in fact should encourage you to observe a class, even take a free class or two.

The instructors should be unfailingly polite, respectful, and cheerful to the students.

Classes should look organised, with instruction appearing to follow a lesson plan.

Students should behave respectfully and attentively at all times, and should continue their respectful behaviour when class is finished.

There should never be any roughhousing or dangerous play, or displays of temper on any-one's part.

If there are women in the class, they should be treated the same as the men, not given constant concessions to their supposed fragility, yet not brutalised or otherwise singled out. (If there are no women (or men), it might be a good idea to ask why.)

Young students or children should be given the same respect as adults, and should in turn learn about managing their own discipline and being respectful to others, helping to equip them for the long years ahead. It should still be fun for them, after all they are still children. The school should therefore have instructors that understand the need to mix exercise and training with educational play.

The key to recognising a good school is to watch how they treat students without natural athletic ability. Do instructors focus only on the stars, leaving the strugglers to muddle along as best they can? Do they point out struggling students for ridicule? Do they appear irritated at questions or requests for help? All of these are trouble signs.

In the end, the best guide is your gut feeling and bearing in mind that you are not stuck for life with your decision. If it turns out that the school just doesn't suit you, don't give up on martial arts entirely. Be patient and persistent, and you will find the right place to train.

Answer 2

First, figure out what you want from your training.  Do you want to be the next big guy in MMA, enter competitions and win trophies, learn self-defense, practice philosophies, or get a good workout?  Visit some schools and observe their classes.  Talk to the master or head instructor at the school.  Talk to some students as they are leaving to see what they like or don't like.  Ask about taking some introductory classes for a week or a month.  Not every school or style is for everyone.

Next, look at their schedule to see if it fits your life.  No matter how great the school is, if you can't make classes, you can't learn.

Ask about the finances.  Every school does this a little differently so be sure to ask not just about tuition, but also extras like uniforms, sparring gear, weapons, testing fees, patches, tournament fees, registration fees, etc.  

Now, things to avoid

- Anyone who claims his teaching lineage comes from Grand Master so-and-so an original Shaolin Temple monk from 2000 years ago.  This is a bunch of unprovable BS.

- Long term contracts.  Some places are just looking to get a lot of your money up front and if you quit or get hurt, you'll have an impossible time getting any back.  

- Any marketing that suggests you'll get a black belt in 2-3 years or brags about how many black belts there are.  These are signs that they just give away belts to people to keep them happy and keep the money rolling in.

- Anyone who claims he is an instructor for any armed forces or was 5 time national champion.  These are most often gross exaggerations.

Good luck in your search.

Answer 3

A couple of things that are important parts to look at in the process of choosing a school:

(a)The environment where you'll learn and train

(b)The people that will be your partners

(c)The instructor

(d)The logistics of the school

(a) The environment where you will learn and train

Don't get impressed by the size of the place - just be sure that you feel "ok" in there.

Also don't necessarily be impressed by huge number of trophies. They may indicate a very successful competitive school (if that is an aspect you are interested in) or they could be all show. Check carefully.

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.

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.

If you feel bullied or threatened in any manner, look somewhere else.

(b) The people that will be your partners

Go, watch some classes (without participating), then ask to participate- see if the behavior of the students changes by the fact that there is a new person in their class.

What follows is a quick and dirty check list, to which you can add your own points, based on what you consider important. Remember: these questions and suggestions are just guidelines, not hard and fast rules. There will always be exceptions. But if you look in these domains you will have a solid ground to choose from.

How good are the students?

This is more of a measure of the quality of the students as students than their skill at martial arts. See if you can picture yourself with these people. Are they attentive, respectful, interested in being there? Those are all good signs...

Is there a mix of upper and lower ranks?

This is not always obvious in the styles without belt rankings, etc. It is generally a good sign if advanced, intermediate and beginning students are practicing together. Check the approach the higher ranked students take to you- their help will probably be very important in your advancement in the Art you choose.

Some schools have classes separated by rank though. Ask.

Is there a mix in the type of people in the class?

Although this doesn't necessarily mean anything if it is not present, it is a good sign if there is a mixture of males and females, older and younger people in the class. It is a pointer to the efficiency of the Art if it can teach a wide variety of people together.

Do they move the way you would like to?

This will give you some sense of what you can achieve. Look to the senior students and see if they move the way you want to move.

Do they help one another?

In a small class this may not apply, but in larger classes it is a good sign if the senior students support and assist the junior students. This kind of personal attention will aid you greatly in your training.

Do the senior students seem fit and relaxed?

This will give you a sense of the atmosphere of the school. If the senior students are uptight, nervous, unfit, out of shape, or unhappy, it may be a sign to move on. However, do not be put off by a single occurrence, i.e. because on THAT day the senior student was in a poor mood. It should at least prompt you to look carefully though...

How common are injuries?

As most martial arts involve vigorous physical activity and contact, injuries will occasionally occur. However, if injuries are common and/or serious, there is likely a problem in how training is supervised, and you will probably want to look elsewhere. It will be difficult to tell what the frequency/severity of injuries in the class is in one or two visits. Ask the instructor.

(c) The Instructor

You'll need some basic trust in the individual, as a beginning.

The instructor is the person who is going to be guiding your development as a martial artist. You need to feel comfortable with him or her, and feel secure in receiving instruction from them. If you have some unease or personality conflict with the instructor(s) you might want to look elsewhere.

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.

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." This may not apply if you are looking for a martial art as a performance art or as an exercise (though then you want to look at the efficacy of their exercises...)

Does the instructor(s) differentiate between tournament and self-defense?

As above, your reaction to this question's answer will depend on what your goals are. However, there is general agreement that tournament training and self-defense training, while highly related, are different. If the instructor does not differentiate the two - that may be a danger sign!

Violence in the class

If you see an instructor hitting students, or a senior student hitting students, be very clear that it was appropriate before you consider that school. Though be aware - if you are unfamiliar with the art, medium or full contact sparring may seem overly violent to you. Violence as discipline is to be avoided.

Are adjustments made for students of differing body types and limitations?

Another good sign is if the instructor adjusts the training of his or her student's physical realities: telling a slow person to work contact, a fast person to work ranges, a heavy person to work leverage, a light person to work speed, or, conversely, concentrating on their weak areas to compensate.

(d) The logistics of the School

Money

This is an important element to be clear about. You don't want to commit to a school if you can't afford it. It is impossible to address what a reasonable price would be here, because the benefits offered, the local economy, the quality of instruction, and the amount of instructor time are all variables in the equation. The best way to determine if a school is being reasonable is to compare what they offer for their prices.

Find out if there are extra charges for going up in rank, find out if there are organizational dues, tournament fees, mat fees, etc.

But do not be upset when a Martial Arts instructor charges money- they need to eat and have a place to stay. In our culture money is the way that happens. We do not feed and house wise old men, and unfortunately the costs of a school, equipment, and insurance are frighteningly high.

Location

If you are intending to spend a lot of time at the school you want it to be accessible, and convenient enough for you to get their after work, on weekends, etc.

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. An open school is usually better for obvious reasons- convenience, practice time, access to mats, etc.

Commitments and Promises

This is an important thing to know about any school you will be joining. Be very clear on what they will expect of you and what you expect of them. Some teachers want to teach only people who are willing to commit to them and their style, some are willing to introduce you to their style and let you dabble, some will teach you as long as you show up. None of these are intrinsically better or worse, but you want to know where they are coming from so you and they are not surprised.

Find out if you are required to attend classes, find out about being late, find out what the policy is on school rules of behavior and etiquette. Find out how you are supposed to interact with the teacher and other students. There are many styles for all these things so make sure you find out. The easiest way is to ask these questions.

There may be other questions you want to look at and specific questions you have about an instructor, school, organization, or style you are looking at. Know the questions you want answered and you will find the perfect school for you!

Answer 4

I could go and write out a list myself, but I don't feel that I could do a good a job as those who wrote this article right here.

http://www.bullshido.com/articles/findin...

This covers everything I would have thouht to mention and more. It's a very good read and it is an invaluable guide if you don't already know what you're doing.

Answer 5

look for a style that suits your needs.if you prefer a hard style, a soft style, or a mixture look for a compatible martial art. after that look for a dojo.

when you get to the dojo look for signs of authenticity. look around for gimmicks and signs of a "mcdojo" avoid these like the plague. places that are belt factories are also not good to go to. if they have what seems like a huge amount of coloured belts it probably isnt too legit. another thing to look at is pricing. how much is it to be tested to move up a grade? does it get radically higher the further you move up? again a sign of a moneymaking dojo.

in short. look for certain giveaways. you will notice certain things to avoid.

hope that helps a bit

Answer 6

what martial art u want is critical in picking ur dojo, dont join a muay thai/kickboxing gym if u want to learn soft arts, so know what u want to learn,

look for a place that offers alot of the classes u want to take, do they offer the class u want every day 6 days a week or only 3 or 4 times a week, what hours are they open if the dojo is open 8-10 am and 6-9pm, i dont recommended it,look for a palce that is open a large portion off the day, that tells u they have students coming in all the time, look at the dojo, if its clean, well kept, and has awards and other plaques up its a sign the dojo  has pride in what its doing,  see what credentials the instructors have, are they former fighters, or just bums of the street,

look at pricing, see all the available offers,: example 2 classes a week for, month to month, at my dojo is $115, now unlimited classes are $135, so $20 bucks and i can go to every class that is available

also look if the dojo offers "open gym", where u can use the heavy bags and other equipment

do they have a weight room, or pool, or other programs offers, u want to get the most possible training for ur money so look around , and if a school looks good, and has all this nice stuff but just dosent feel right dont stay go to another one

Answer 7

1.) Location - it needs to be close enough that you would go 2-4 times a week

2.) Longevity - how long has it been in business, if it's been around a long time, it is probably good.

3.) Instructors - if this is for children, you should go on different days and see the different instructors and make sure you like them.  We have one guy that is really strict on Monday and Wednesday and the other guy is not is strict on Tuesday and Thursday.  Different parnets like different ones.  Some think the strict guy is too strict, others think the other guy is too soft.

4.) Community Service/Credentials:  You should see things on the wall like certificates of appreciation, certifications, photographs.  The school should be involved in the community and give back to the community.

5.) Competition:  They should not be a "closed" school as far as competition.  In other words, if they host tournaments, they should host them for their own organization AND invite other organizations.  But if they are part of an association and only compete within their association, that is a bad sign.

Good luck!

James