Frequently Asked Questions :
What are the aims and objectives of the Shotokan Karate JKA Academy
Our Mission is : To contribute towards world peace by providing instruction of martial arts & cultivating the true martial arts spirit by inspiring Men, Women, & Children to build up their physical & mental health, fitness, and well-being, at the same time learning the ultimate self-defence techniques and skills through the practise and spirit of karate, martial arts training, for personal, competition, or self protection or for improving their character, positive attitudes,respect,bravery, & courtesies in life towards the goal of positive human development,and leadership qualities, towards living in harmony in society & thereby ultimately creating world peace.
Is Shotokan JKA karate effective in Self-Defence ?
Yes. Shotokan Karate JKA is the ultimate in modern unarmed self-defence. It incorporates the whole body to perform punching,kicking, striking, and blocking techniques designed to disable or finish a situation with one move if the need arises in a self - protection/defence situation ; Ichi-geki & shobu ippon ("One blow finish the aggressor" techniques. It has defence techniques against all forms & kinds of attack. Strength and size are not important in Karate, although strength is one of the required qualities, It is equally augmented by relying on technique, speed, timing and body co-ordination. Karate teaches you how to avoid possible confrontations through non-conflict resolution skills - it is far better to de-fuse or to avoid a dangerous situation than to confront it. But if it cannot be avoided then karate teaches the techniques to finish the critical situation with one finishing KO blow as a last resort to diffuse the situation as quickly as possible !!.
What is the JKA ?
JKA (Japan Karate Association) : This is the world's largest and best shotokan karate organisation, based in Japan, it founded, researched, and refined the original shotokan karate system,through continuous experiments in training and competitions. Originally founded and set up by the late Masters Gichin Funakoshi, his son Yoshitaka, and Masatoshi Nakayama. Shotokan Karate is the most popular of Karate martial arts practised by Men, Women, & Children throughout the world. According to various studies, there are between 50 million to 100 million karate practitioners in the world, every country in the world has a JKA Shotokan karate club. It is much more than merely physical fighting. It is an art of strong mental & physical self-development through self-discipline and hard work, as well as an exciting & safe sport with rules. There is something in it for everyone. Developed from the legacy,philosophy, and strategies of the Japanese Swords Masters ( Bushi/Samurai ). Through repetitive, continuous, hard training and practice of its fundamental basic techniques over a period of time, JKA Shotokan karate develops not only a strong body,but also a sharp mind, a good noble heart, and good positive character. It gives its dedicated practitioner essential tools to overcome mental, physical obstacles in their life, (both tangible and intangible through its training). All we ask is that our dedicated students give themsleves commitment for certain amount of years in order to learn to become enthusiastic, patient, committed, & loyal students, and train regular....until the first Black Belt at least, (3-5 years ) then the rest will be history !.
Can Anyone Practise Karate at the Shotokan JKA Academy ?
Yes... from the age of 5 years plus, but you must first qualify to join us by attending a free trial lesson by prior appointment arrangement.. The only real requirement is a disciplined commitment/dedcation for at least 3 months to work hard and train patiently, especailly in the early days of joining us. As long as that commitment is there, karate is for everyone ―regardless of gender, or ethnic background. The Shotokan JKA Academy has a strong structured progression syllabus/curriculum approved by the world's top karate masters, with character building, self-discipline & self-control automatically built into it. So you will be nurtured and motivated in a good, safe way, keeping healthy & fit whilst learning the ultimate martial arts & self-defence skills in a step-by-step format within our self-discipline & character building guidelines. This is just great, as it turns out great Black Belts and at the same time positive, successful, responsible leaders in the community through our self-discipline structure . Being a Family Martial Arts Centre, all our classes are mixed, Males & Females train together, because in reality a female will more than likely be attacked by a Male. However if there are enough females in the class, any sparring drill or partner work & exercises may be practised female to female and Male to Male. We have various classes to suit all age groups , we have the Tiny Tigers, and Li'l Samurai's Class especially for very young children from the ages of 5 plus to 8 years of age, who may wish to learn in a fun and enjoyable way. Then we have the Juniors class for ages 8 years to 14 years, and finally we also have Teens /Adults class for ages 14 years plus to 85 years plus. Each of the classes may offer different kind of training & benefits in terms of health building, fitness, conditioning, self defense etc.
Do I need to be in excellent physical shape to start karate?
No !!... Since karate will gradually & slowly improve your health & fitness as you progress, your starting point is less important than the effort you put into it along the way. At the Shotokan JKA Academy, our traditional main focus is on mastering the basic techniques and on their correct form making it easy for beginners to train together with experienced individuals yet still progress at their own personal best level of fitness and expertise. If you are less fit,or have a health/and/or other issue, your progress at the start will simply be more moderate; as your fitness & flexibility improves, so your progress will also improve. However if you have any serious health conditions, please check with your doctor first before starting our classes and do let us know as it my affect your training.
What are some of the benefits that I can expect from the classes ?
Shotokan Karate JKA Academy classes have been structured so that everyone will have tremendous benefits for your whole body, mind and spirit over a course of time (3-5 Years minimum ). Physically, our karate classes are devised so that they are not only a method of learning self-defence but also are good for the heart & circulation, to toughen & strengthen bones, build & tone muscles, create resilience, develop hand-eye coordination, and build up a strong immune system to make the body less susceptible to illness & injury through hard resistance training. Mentally, our karate training helps you to develop patience, a never-giving-up attitude, alert mind, and many other positive qualities needed to become a success in your life. It is vitally important to find an instructor who really understands the importance of these martial arts qualities & concepts and has experienced & realised these in himself, through his own training, as then he can understandably develop these qualities in his student/s more effectively. Just punching and kicking withourt a pupose at the end of it is futile. Sham Aktar sensei 6th Dan has been training over many decades under the guidance of the world's best karate experts and through his many years of experience has devised the back-bone structure of our Black Belt karate course/ programme, so that it is one of the most comprehensive courses in the whole world...guaranteed !!. Starting with a strong solid physical foundation in Shotokan JKA Karate, gradually as the students progress up the grades he ensures their Karate martial arts training is more balanced, applicable, realistic, and practically effective towards Black-Belt Excellence.
How does karate compare with other fitness programs & sports ..?
Karate is one of the best & most balanced martial arts as well as a challenging sport, It is a complete way of keeping in good physical condition as research has shown again and again. But more important then this is to develop a strong spirit through training. This will ensure progress in other areas of one's life too. Remember, all martial arts have their weak and strong attributes , Karate incorporates the use of the entire body in which legs, hips, spine, shoulders and arms are all co-ordinated to develop balance, flexibility, poise, speed, strength and stamina, whilst keeping the torso straight to develop good health at the same time. No other form of training uses as many parts of the body to such an extent. Karate is not seasonal and so one's condition can be maintained throughout the year. Other forms of training, where exercise for the sake of exercise is done, become a chore after the first enthusiasm passes and are invariably dropped. However, Karate becomes more, & more interesting, challenging, and rewarding as you progress, without any limit. Even after decades of training, students will still be learning, improving, and refining their techniques - this is very rare in many other sports, where at the age past 30 to 40 years for example, you are done physically for life...whereas you can still keep maintaining your health way past 70's and 80's through karate practise like most of our masters are continuing to do up until the present day !!..
What is Required to Join the Shotokan JKA Karate Academy?
Commitment,dedication and the ability to concentrate & work hard in the lessons are the key requirements to join us. You need to set yourself an initial minimum goal of 3-12 months as a beginner,on our introductory course of Black-Belt, to see some initial positive results and outcomes of your training. Remember !!... For Juniors and Adult members a minimum of 3 and upto 5 years, and for the really younger Tiny Tigers,5 or more years on average of continuous training 2 to 3 times is required to progress towards your first Black Belt, and thereby see some of the above benefits of self-development . You should remember though, that is just the start of real exciting & true karate training to come !!.
With Over 46 years of martial arts practise & experience, Aktar sensei 6th Dan has been so passionate about martial arts himself to this day. His vision is to see all students regardless of their age progressing as a big happy family towards the goal of Black Belt excellence together, and thereby improving their health, as well as their physical & mental well-being. We expect all our students who join us to apply the self-discipline structure of the Student Creed, Dojo Kun & Dojo Rules in their daily life, i.e at home, at School, work etc, where ever possible. It is also vitally important to believe in yourself and most importantly in your instructor (Sensei) and his assistants (Sampais) and their teachings, as they are your role models and have all followed the same learning structure at the Shotokan JKA Academy with passion & dedication to get to where they are now and are in a better position to help you succeed towards that goal too. The ultimate aim of the Shotokan JKA Academy as set out by Sham Aktar 6th Dan is to help build up true leaders in the world, who know their strengths & weaknesses and can then build a stronger, smarter, and wiser community,and thus the whole world towards a positive human potential/ goal. It requires the correct & special training of both your mind and body,and through this way we will aim to produce our future generations of leaders who are strong, yet courteous, modest, with noble hearts and strong bodies, who are responsible people in their community. This process of character & self-development takes time, it does not happen overnight, the physical techniques ,skills, and your SELF ego, need to be trained, forged,& mastered first through this process of self-discipline in the dojo under an understanding & guiding Sensei. If you do not willingly undergo this process of SELF-DEVELOPMENT, you will not understand and appreciate self-discipline nor the purpose behind True Traditional Karate Training.
That We hope that every aspiring student/member who joins us will follow these guidelines for the mutual benefit of themselves and others, so that we will continue to grow together positively as a family of Karateka in our communities, pursuing a like-minded martial art, hobby, sport, & past time, and all our efforts & contributions to this positive end will be appreciated by the society as a whole in the future generations to come....
But the best reason to join us is for karate itself. Karate is not an easy martial art to learn. But it is an art form. And like any other art the more you put into it, the more you will gain. Karate enriches you physically, mentally, and spiritually — developing your body, your mind, and your character. Why?... Because the Shotokan JKA karate is one of the strongest Karate and has a great tradition & history behind it too.. We see it first as a martial art way of life & Self-Defence , not only as a sport.
So that's always our emphasis: The whole. The goal is to help you develop every aspect of who you are .
That is why we encourage and welcome dedicated & commited Men, Women, and Children of all ages and abilities & levels to come and try our classes..who knows you may end up becoming a great Black Belt one day regardless of you age or other limitations !!.and a great person too through it !!
If you want to dedicate yourself to shotokan karate...Call FREE now to book your first free trial lesson in your area.
Call 0800 999 1959 or Msg us on : 07956 5533417 .
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