How to choose a dojo

[seienchin]

I have noticed a few times when beginners are seeking advice about a dojo, they are told to go along and "see what the intruction is like". Now, when I was a beginner, I wouldn't have had a clue! I wonder if any of you would like to contribute some top tips for telling if a dojo is good, and what (if any) are the red-card offences.
I have posted elswhere that for me a red-card, walk-away from the dojo (as quickly as consistent with dignity) offence is an instructor who teaches so-called "lethal" techniques -ie, claiming that they are teaching you how to kill somebody, in open class. This is, in my opinion, unlikely to be true (have they ever done it???), and if it is, just handing this out in a public class seems irresponsibile. To me, it is a complete "wanker-meter" redzone offence.
Any other offers?

[ksan]

1) Ask if they are in a national organisation, check this out on the web.
2) Make a few calls to their head office or a dojo of the same organisation. Even inside my own organisation if someone calls me and asks for a reference about dojo so&so, i will not give it if that dojo isnt good enough in my opinion. If it is good enough i will give the reference, and you will know they are good enough.

[Bloke]

Sometimes you can just get a vibe from an instructor. I remember an interview I read some years ago about when someone walked into Hanshi (then Sensei) Steve Arneils dojo that he impressed by not trying to impress.

Talk to some of the students and see why they train there.

[Billy no mates]

Your right it can be hard to work out if someone really knows what they are on about when you your self know nothing about it yourself,as well as Bloke and Ksan's sage advice i would say the level of discipline is an important indicator if the class seem like a free for all you may not be safe from your fellow students,if the instructor stripes up their students with a shinai for no apparent reason you may not be safe from the sensei i think ultimately you just get a feel for if the set up and weather or not it seems fair or foul to you .

[Shokei Marcsui]

When I went to the Houston Dojo under Fields Sensei, I watched his class and how he handled his students. The ettiquette, strictness, and technique of both the sensei and students struke out most to me.

Newer students will ask for credentials. "Who was your sensei? How long have you been training? Have you trained under Mas Oyama?" etc etc... but I asked none of the questions on the day that I joined up.

It was evident to me that regardless of who Fields Sensei's sensei was he exhibited excellent technique, control over the class, and superior knowledge about kyokushin.

That's what got me to choose a dojo. To find out why people stay, look at japman's thread.


http://www.kyokushin4life.com/forums/kyokushin-karate/2932-why-did-you-stay-kyokushin-once-you-had-trained-more-than-1-year.htm

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[schuyler]

See if you can get the instructor to tell you how much they charge and all the fee's that go along with it. If they balk at giving you this information its probably a good idea to look elsewhere.

Than again, when it comes to Kyokushin dojo's, at least in the cities I've been to, there's usually only one.

[Shokei Marcsui]

Contracts are a bad thing. Stay away from them as well

http://www.kyokushin4life.com/forums...your-dojo.html

Gives you a rough estimate of what people are paying around the world.

[kakatootoshi]

I will pay attention to the students, especially the high ranking ones. See how they do kihon, ido, kata and kumite (just focus on the aspects you like). The quality of the students directly reflect the quality of teaching of the Sensei, and after all you need good training partners to be strong. It is no use if you have a world champion teaching but all his or her students are crappy (this may not be the case for people who need one-to-one tuition for special reasons).

OSU!

[hungheykwun]

Often I see people who come from non-martial arts background signing up with bogus instructors after being impressed by MA demonstrations. Hence I’ve decided to come up with a checklist for your reference before you make a long term commitment. The class that you sign your kid up for is important and might shape his future.

Things to take into consideration:

1. Which MA

Do you want your kid to learn the conventional Taekwondo, karate or would you like him to study an art that is new or so exotic, you can’t even pronounce its name? Google up the martial art name, if you can’t even find it online, it probably doesn’t even exist.

2. the dojo

Most local organizations don’t have proper dojos. That is acceptable. Visit the training area (dojo). Is it clean and safe? What about the neighborhood? if you’re learning a grappling or throwing art, the dojo should have mats.

3. sensei

This is probably the most important factor as he will be the one imparting his knowledge to your kid. Check his credentials. You have the right to view them. Which organization is he affiliated to? Is his club a registered academy with the local sports council? This is important as the organization regulates the standards of training & grading system.

Although you are not qualified to judge his skills, watch him as he teaches. Do his kicks, punches and blocks look solid to you? Does he show an example by himself or does he get others to do it when he demonstrates a technique? Believe it or not, some ‘claimed’ instructors do not even lift a muscle while teaching. This is wrong.

4. students

A testament of success of an instructor. Are they highly discipline or do they fool around with the sensei like a peer? How are their skills? Do they talk a lot during class? (They should not) how long has the school been established? If it’s more than 5 years, how many black belts are there? There should be at least 3 otherwise it means drop out rates are high.

5. equipment

Senseis should not teach bare hand all the time. They should be some target practice otherwise the martial art is not practical as you’re hitting air all the time.

6. fees

Anything higher or that requires you to pay in advance, is a scam.

7. grading

Grading are tests for your kids to advance a belt level. for junior belts, it is OK that they are tested by the sensei but if you see black belts tested by the same sensei, then its wrong. They should be evaluated by someone from the association of higher rank.

8. competitions

Are there any inter-school competitions where the students can socialize and exchange skills or is the school the only one in the country or world? Your kid should at least participate in competitions once or twice.

[Chuck Reina]

Something to maybe look for, which unfortunately didn't know, when first looking into a Karate school, is the type of sparring they did. All Karate schools are not the same and if you look at a none Kyokushin school you should be sure that the kumite makes sense to you.

The first martial arts school I went to was a non-Kyokushin school. At the school Kumite in the form of point fighting. The problem with the point fighting we did was that none of the techniques we learned in class were applicable to the sparring.

Another problem I had with the school was the intensity of the sparring. All strikes had to be light, almost no contact. It was almost like playing tag or slap boxing.

After trying to reconcile the kumite with the kihon for some time, I decided to leave the school.

I am not trying to put that type of school down. Everyone needs to find to what level they are willing to train. I just wanted to mention it, because It was something that would have been good to think of when I first started my training.

[hasbeen]

my advise would be to stick to recognised affiliated styles,sit through a session and watch,check for mutual respect between instructor+pupils and more importantly watch the sparring,especially between higher+lower grades and see how the higher grades treat the lower grades,if the lower grades are getting hurt,walk away.

[Paedde]

Originally Posted by hasbeen

my advise would be to stick to recognised affiliated styles,sit through a session and watch,check for mutual respect between instructor+pupils and more importantly watch the sparring,especially between higher+lower grades and see how the higher grades treat the lower grades,if the lower grades are getting hurt,walk away.

But some lower grades like to get hurt

So watch if they get punched with the same way they punch

[Martin H]

A few things not already mentioned that would send up warning flags for me.
None , however, is a sure sign of a McDojo. (except for the "belt guarantee" sign)

1. strange uniforms.
A "clean" (as in as few patches and as little text as possible) white karate uniform (DoGi or karateGi) is no guarantee of a good school, but most of the McDojo schools delight in using uniforms ith as many colors as possible, and so many patches that you can hardly see the uniform.
There are exceptions where good schools/styles diverts from the all white "clean" DoGi too (for example, Im not happy with the red Gi jacket that shidokan sometimes use), but it is rare.
Some of the REAL McDojos out there even specify that you have wear different uniforms for different belt. Forcing you not only to get a new belt when you grade, but a whole new uniform.

2.Belt guarantees.
Do they guarantee that you get a black belt within a specified time? If so, run (dont walk) and dont look back.

3. Exlusive training.
Ask if they allow crosstraining in other styles (maybe mention judo or some other dissimilar art).
If they do not, worry. They dont have to approve, but they should allow it.

4. Look at a few practice sessions (preferably for advanced students).
Is it not allowed? Leave! The days when practice methods and techniques was a closely guarded secret are long gone.

5. Look at a few practice sessions (preferably for advanced students).
Do they not break a sweat? While there are exceptions, a normal class should leave everyone drenched in sweat.

6. Look at a few practice sessions (preferably for advanced students).
Do the students look fit? There are always a few less fit guys in a class, but how about the group as a whole?

7. Ask/look if they use pads and bags.
If they dont belive in them -go away.

Edit. Added:
8. what are the "extra options" you can get for a extra fee.
A real dojo should have a basic fee and a grading cost -not much more. If there are sub-classes (for example a specialized class for fighting or kata) that you can attend if you pay extra, you are in a Mcdojo.

[Spirit]

Also If I may add,

It does come down to you as a person, what has shaped you or how you, have been brought up by your parents, personal beliefs as well subconscious mind and the bond between you and the instructor.

Though most hear are hard nose trainers, sometimes a softer lighter dojo is best for you, and you may not wish rigid training....

Take a look at yourself first, what draws you to other sports, are you a player or a player who watches more than plays???

Do you like to be controlled and disciplined or are you better off free and loose...
Do you like to drain yourself and are overly passionate about thing you do or are you just a bit competitive or not really , just looking to socialize????
Many questions to ask yourself, before you ask the which dojo/style is right for you question.

I think first question is what type of person am I??? Who am I, what is it I'm looking for???
Do I like to work hard, and don't mind putting in years to gain the (best) training. Or am I a person who in 3 months or 3 years give thing up???
Do I have a garage full of sporting equipment, and a list of unfinished tasks. Do I bounce from job to job...

Once you know yourself then possible you know what type of karate, then you can search for what is available in ones area.
You can always move from dojo to dojo to find the right one that Fits You....

[hasbeen]

Originally Posted by Paedde

But some lower grades like to get hurt

So watch if they get punched with the same way they punch

i agree to a certain extent, i always used to "mix" it when i was lower grade but i was thinking about ill run dojos with bullying

[shinobijesus]

im not religious so dont get the wrong impression from this term, but ive been blessed by ending up with really good instructors. i started martial arts with Judo and my sensei from that time shaped the entire foundation of how i relate to martial arts. i was very lucky he was the perfect mix of strict and laid back for me to learn from.

after i moved away i decided to train again however i didnt focus on "i want to learn this style now" but rather "i need a teacher who is at least as good to me as my Judo sensei". with that in mind i had picked out a couple schools based off of geography and ended up training with a very skilled young kung fu sifu in one state and am currently training with a phenomenal Kyokushin sensei where i live now.

to a beginner i would stress that you dont get caught up in "styles". focus on how you interact with the instructor. if your relationship with the instructor isnt good, you wont learn good.

oh and dont sign contracts.

[ori51]

Listen,
when i started out looking for a dojo there is a few things you need to know first.
you need to know exactly what you wanna learn,
i did a little research becaues i wanted to do MMA and i found alot of good places, but to narrow it down i tried a class and saw which ones better, i found that the ones that are legit are more hands on, they toss you around a bit. but thats just for me cause i like a ruff but i suggest that a good place to dojo to train at is one that you struggle with, if its a hard work out, or ruff, cause thats whats gonna get u to be a better fighter

[Dent]

Osu!

Many excellent suggestions. My own favorite place to train is the one where the members are serious during training, but smiling during breaks. That tells me they know why they are there, and are still balanced enough to have a good time when not training.

Osu!

[jcc]

Interesting thread. I´ve been looking for a place as I can only get to a ´real´ (kyokushin ) dojo about once a week and I need more! I train at home, but you never seem to be able to push yourself the same as with other people around.

I´ve been trying to work a list of things to prioritize when checking out a dojo:

1) General attitude of sensei;
2) Attitude of students/discipline of dojo;
3) Level of fitness/toughness of training;
4) Technical proficiency/level of dojo;
5) Level of kumite;
6) Equipment, bags, pads, etc.

This isn´t in strict order, but more or less the way a class will evolve, or the way I observe the class. Any comments? What have I left out?