Thursday, 17 December 2009

Learn Karate at Home?

Is it possible to learn karate at home? If you are thinking about starting karate, getting some online information, is a good idea. With some online tutorials, you will be able to understand what to expect if you attend a karate club.
But if you have some video instruction, I only recommend using them at the same time you attend classes conducted by a qualified karate instructor and the moves you practice, will be basics (kihon) or forms (kata).
Karate is an incredible art form that has developed over thousands of years of evolution giving us the karate we have today. There are thousands of karate for beginners classes starting every day, where people, young and old start to learn karate for the first time.
Karate classes usually start with a warm up, followed by a full body stretch. This alone is great for health and well being, keeping the body soft and supple is a fantastic thing, especially in your later years.
Next will come basic karate moves (kihon), blocking, punching, kicking, etc. These are practiced on the spot, or stepping forward, back and even at different angles in the many varied karate stances (dachi). These are the techniques you will be able to practice at home and get an idea of what karatedo (the way of karate) is all about.
So karate class training has the warm up and stretch, basics (kihon), next comes sparring (kumite). Now the word sparring is used loosely in karate because it usually means anytime you partner up to practice karate techniques. For example, you may partner up to practice a wrist grab and escape, this will be called kumite or sparring in the dojo (training hall). So try not to think that every time the word sparring (kumite) is used, you are going to partner up with a crazed black belt who is going to try and kill you!
After the warm up, basics and sparring, kata (forms) is usually practiced. Kata is a sequence of karate moves including, punches, kicks, strikes, jumps, spins, etc, that are strung together in a particular order, to create a pattern of techniques, similar to the gymnastics floor display.
To explain kata fully will need an article all on it's own, but to me kata is the most important element of karatedo. They say, kumite is the spirit of karate, but kata is the soul! And I agree.
So if you are practicing karate moves at home, trying to get a feel for karate, I wish you luck and urge you to attend a karate for beginners class as soon as possible. Good luck with your journey in the wonderful world that is karatedo! Ossu
Linden has been training and teaching karate for over 30 years and loves to share his knowledge and experiences in the martial arts. Supplement your dojo training with these free videos, karate lessons for beginners.

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