Karate style recommendation

[Samuel J Myung]

Hello Everyone. I understand each style is a different path to the top of the mountain. For the karate practitioners out there, I am sure you have a sense of each style that may benefit or fit a particular person. I have done Taekwondo. I am 5'6 and very slim. I find Karate very beautiful and interesting. I also want to be conditioned and train for my well-being. What style do you guys recommend? Since WTF taekwondo is well known for its high kicks, I like to balance myself. Can you guys help me out and narrow a style for me? Thank you!

Your fellow Martial artist.

 

[dvcochran]

Welcome to the forum Samuel.
It honestly comes down to what styles are available in your area. Be realistic and balance training with your current lifestyle (school, work, family, etc....) and any known future plans.
Do the normal internet research and decide which ones interest you. Audit each location, instructor(s) and a few students. Any school worth it salt will let you do at least a few trial classes. This is Key. Take you time and try them all out before making a hard decision. No reason to be in a hurry.
I do strongly feel training a martial art should be linear at least in the beginning. Don't overwhelm yourself trying to learn 3-4 styles at the same time. Cross training is great for a person with a good base of knowledge but will sorely screw up the training for someone new to it. Will quickly take the fun right out of it.
Best of luck and let us know how it goes.

 

[Buka]

What he said ^^^^^

 

[punisher73]

Honestly, it depends on your goals.

If you want something very similar, then go with Shotokan or Shorin-ryu (many different sub-branches of that).

If you want to train hard with hard contact, go with something like Kyokushin.

If you want something completely different and learn a whole new approach, go with something like Uechi-Ryu.

 

[_Simon_]

Welcome to the forum Samuel .

Good answers already, and honestly I would say it's not so much about the style but the club you train at. Rather than thinking what style suits me, I would think what style am I drawn to?

Shotokan tends to be very dynamic, explosive, higher kicks, longer range sparring, a focus on movement, footwork and body mechanics etc. Goju ryu tends to have alot of circular technique, deflections, tai sabaki, kata, bunkai focus, balance of hard and soft, close quarters sparring. Kyokushin tends to be very intense training, lots of fitness, conditioning, hard sparring, and a real focus on perseverance, endurance and never giving up attitude. The many others I couldn't speak on as I'm not 100% educated on them.

Also notice I wrote "tends to", as it can vary wildly from club to club. I would highly recommend checking out whatever clubs are near you, asking if you can sit in and watch a class on the side, and then if you like what you see, do a trial class or a few. It's exactly what I'm doing at the moment . See which school you really like the vibe and energy of.

And let us know how you go!

 

[mrt2]

Hello Everyone. I understand each style is a different path to the top of the mountain. For the karate practitioners out there, I am sure you have a sense of each style that may benefit or fit a particular person. I have done Taekwondo. I am 5'6 and very slim. I find Karate very beautiful and interesting. I also want to be conditioned and train for my well-being. What style do you guys recommend? Since WTF taekwondo is well known for its high kicks, I like to balance myself. Can you guys help me out and narrow a style for me? Thank you!

Your fellow Martial artist.

Just curious. When you say you have done Tae Kwon Do, what do you mean? How long did you train?

 

[Graywalker]

You might look at a Shudokan style, it is a Toyama line, a long term student of Itosu. He basically taught Karate and didn't believe in styles, although his curriculum consisted of the main katas of several early systems.

 

[Flying Crane]

Hello Everyone. I understand each style is a different path to the top of the mountain. For the karate practitioners out there, I am sure you have a sense of each style that may benefit or fit a particular person. I have done Taekwondo. I am 5'6 and very slim. I find Karate very beautiful and interesting. I also want to be conditioned and train for my well-being. What style do you guys recommend? Since WTF taekwondo is well known for its high kicks, I like to balance myself. Can you guys help me out and narrow a style for me? Thank you!

Your fellow Martial artist.

Hi Samuel, any suggestions that you might receive here are useless if the system being recommended is not available in your area. Do some research to see what is available, with the understanding that Covid may have forced schools to close temporarily or permanently, and what you see now may not reflect the reality of six months or a year from now.

To the extent that schools are operating in a Covid-safe manner (outdoors, etc), pay them a visit and watch some classes. Some schools offer a class or three for free, to give them a try. Not every school is a good match for every person.

So find out what is available to you, and then you can begin to decide which is the best school for you. Without knowing what is available, any suggestions you might get here in the forums are pure speculation and may be utterly irrelevant.

If you can give us a list of what is available, then folks here might be able to comment on their experiences with similar schools.

 

[Yokozuna514]

All good comments already and agree that it is better to sit in on all the available schools around you if you can. The study of karate can be quite different depending on the approach of your instructor so it is important to find a school that appeals to the area that interests YOU. If you are interested in sparring and fitness, look for schools that focus a good amount of time on those areas. If you prefer katas or learning bunkai, find a school that will explore those things. The more you enjoy what you are doing to more you will be naturally curious to get a deeper understanding of what you are learning. Good luck and give them all a try before deciding on where to hang your hat.

 

[BigMotor]

Can you find some schools that will let you sit in and observe, and study some of the style? A few sit downs should tell you if it’s to your liking. There is no hard and fast rule on what is best for a man. That is going to be pretty subjective.

In the end, you have to make that call, now me myself, I am considering BJJ. I have a little Tae Kwon Do experience , and it’s a good fighting method. But it’s the man that makes the difference, go at it as if it might save your life someday. That clarifies a lot of things in the mind.

 

[Koryuhoka]

Hello Everyone. I understand each style is a different path to the top of the mountain. For the karate practitioners out there, I am sure you have a sense of each style that may benefit or fit a particular person. I have done Taekwondo. I am 5'6 and very slim. I find Karate very beautiful and interesting. I also want to be conditioned and train for my well-being. What style do you guys recommend? Since WTF taekwondo is well known for its high kicks, I like to balance myself. Can you guys help me out and narrow a style for me? Thank you!

Your fellow Martial artist.

What it really boils down to is what is available in your area. You can want a particular style or art all you want. But if you are in Alaska and the style is available in Florida, you are SOL. Go to google maps and type in "martial arts" or "karate" or Kung fu", along with your zipcode. That should give you an idea of what you have at your disposal. Then, you can go on their websites and look at what they do and who they are. After that you can come here and ask in the forums regarding opinions and such.