Is karate a good option for me? What makes a school good?

After over four decades of training , I'll say this. First there are a few good answers here already. Read what Shihan J , and karate wrote.

I'll ad this. Avoid any martial arts schools tat is selling black belt contracts. The truth is that not everyone is black belt material. Any school that is selling black belt contracts is likely to have many black belts. That in itself is a very bad sign that the school is what we call a belt mill. Belt mills use contracts to lock students into training. It keeps them coming and paying. The have belt promotions often. Most if not all the students that test get promoted. Consider this in the 1960's less than 3% of the students in the U.S.A. that were in the martial arts ever reached black belt. Now the standards at many martial arts schools are so low that everyone gets a black belt just for paying and sticking around. What they are taught is of little use for self-defense. The style itself is of little importance. All styles when taught correctly are good for self-defense. Better to be concerned with the instructor and his knowledge. If the instructor is knowledgeable and the focus of the training is to learn skills, then you are in the right place. Good schools do not need to get you to sign a contract to keep you the training will do that. Belt mills always require a contract. they have many black belts and low quality training.

Best of Luck!

Karate was one of the best things I ever did. I am always in good shape- and karate can be a cardio workout- I am just 17 and the workouts are more designed for people in their 30's but I come out totaly exhausted. I also have lifelong friends and have great mentors. Fees deped on the place they can range anywhere from lke $40 a month to $108 for 6 weeks. Also depends on the place but for us fees stay the same. Uniforms are required a great brand of uniforms is Juka- the juka diamond gi is specialy designed for women. They are about $40-60. As for good school its more important you find the right school for you and a good instructor:

1.Determine your martial arts goals. Are you interested in tournament forms or self-defense? Do you want to become a black belt or to attend classes simply for the exercise?

2. stop by several training halls to watch classes. Many schools have an observation area, so you can watch during class. Ask permission first.

3. Ask for permission to talk with students and instructors. Find out how students' experiences have been with the school and whether the instructors' styles will support your goals.

4.Assess the quality of teaching. What is your impression of the head instructor? Do instructors expect and show respect and courtesy? What is their experience?

5.Determine the school's emphasis. Does it advocate control or heavy contact? Does it stress tournament competition? How formal or informal are the classes?

6.Ask friends and work associates whether they've heard anything about a martial arts school you're interested in joining.

signs of a mcdojo (bad school):

1. The school or instructor promotes the idea that his school and/or style is the ultimate best in the world, or that cross training in another form of martial arts is 100% unnecessary.

2.f the school or instructor forbids entering tournaments, or if tournaments are restricted to specific styles or associations.

3. If board breaking has a heavy emphasis, or is taught to be an indicating to how well you would fight, or is used as a supplement to full contact fighting.

4. If the school has too many belts, or made up belts (such as camouflage belts)

5. If the school insists on long contracts and or uses collection agencies for late or missed payments.

6.If there are expensive clubs that you must join in order to learn or participate in various clinics or seminars, such as the "black belt club", or "masters club"

7. If the school uses a pitch book to get you to join or to convince you to sign your kids up

8. If the equipment (gear/uniforms/weapons) costs too much and/or is only ordered through the organization

9. If testing and monthly fees are excessive, for any reason

10. If the instructor is a master, yet under 40.

11.If the instructor's credentials seem sketchy or are non-existent.

12.If the instructor proclaims to be a master of many arts, and is also extremely young.

13.If the school advertises that the grandmaster of the style regularly teaches there

14. If the school has many students, such as over 100, or if there are many black belts

15. If once reaching black belt students are encouraged to go start their own school or consider teaching

16. The instructor rarely works out with the students and has his assistants do most or all of the teaching

17. If they teach weapons like the sai and nunchaku as a form of self-defense

Well I've been in Tae Kwon Do for close to 8 years, I'm only 17 though, but I have been taking it for my health (I have hypothyroid so I have to workout) and just because I love it so much. If you go to adult classes, which I'm guessing you would, they are usually pretty hardcore, and a great workout. In martial arts, flexibility also comes in, so there are slow and relaxing exercises too.

Good schools usually have to do with the manager/teacher and perhaps the social environment. You can expect to meet many different types of people there, and eventually the classes will fall into a routine. I feel really awkward right now too because we have break from the TKD school and I feel so martial art-less.

How much you pay, well that really depends on how the owner plans it all. Usually you have an entrance fee, then, in the school I go to, there is a trimonthly fee. (around $120 for the three months) Also for every belt test there is a fee, and this eventually does increase as you become a significantly higher belt. Tournaments, which are usually required, also cost money.

Uniforms... Well that depends on the school and usually they will sell them to you. When I started uniforms cost around 30-40 dollars, but I went to an semi-expensive school.

Oh and you can usually have a one or two day trail along with the adult classes, just to get the feeling. These are usually free.

yes karate is a good system for anyone, i have been studying it for over 30 yrs, and enjoy it.

avoid contracts,

if the have a lot of children black belts its not a good school find another.

or if the have way more then 10 belts before black belt

these are a few indicators of mcdojos

the fee's should stay the same regardless of rank.

most places will offer free trial classes.

the price will vary from 80 to 120 per month. $120 is on the high end you should be able to get something for less

best of luck

I do kung fu which is different from karate.. but I still know how to pick out a good school! Go to the school and plan a time to go during class just to watch and see. You don't want to go to a school before seeing who/how the classes are like. Then ask the teacher for 1 free lesson and if it's good, pay the fee and join in

Yarmiah -

A good school is hard to find.

A good teacher is one that has knowledge of the inner teachings of his art. He understands the intricacies of the movements of his kata and can teach you how to find applications within each movement.

Don't go to a school because it is around the corner from your house. It is a huge mistake as martial arts is a very personal endeavor.

It also is something you are paying hard earned money for, and you want to learn correctly.

These are examples of great schools -

http://www.shinjinbukan.com/

http://www.kushu.com/

http://www.kyudokan-usa.org/

This site has very good info -

http://www.koryu-uchinadi.com/

yes it is i have been in karate for 2 years you get a great workout i am at the sixth rank theirs ten color belts until black. it depends what their fees are. the fees shoudnt increase over time but testing for your next belt might thats how it is for me. at my school they dont requare them but i do

around $60 you can order them from your instructor.

Karate is a WONDERFUL option. Martial arts have helped me so much in my life, there aren't words to express it.

When I was 7, my mother passed away. I was angry ALL THE TIME. I just absolutely hated myself and the people around me. I bit my arms, punched myself in the face, and got into fights with people way more than anyone else at my school.

Apparently, I had Tourettes syndrome, which makes it incredibly difficult to control your temper. When I got angry, I would lock myself in my room for days and beat the walls. there were holes in the walls all over my room.

additionally, I tried to irritate everyone around me. And I succeeded. Unfortunately, the side effect was that everyone hated me, and so I was the #1 target of bullies throughout all of the 3 schools I moved between. at one point, I was mobbed by 60 people all trying to beat me up. Which is when I decided to take martial arts, for a very different reason than I now love it so much. I wanted to get revenge on the bullies who belittled and beat me.

I started taking Tae Kwon Do at a school downtown. I LOVED it. The instructor was one of the most amazing men I've ever met. He helped me learn to control my temper, self-confidence, self-discipline, perseverance, and most importantly, to respect myself and others.

within a few months, people didn't attack me at all, not because I could fight them all, but because martial arts had imbued me with a sense of confidence that wards off even the most ardent bully, and because I learned to respect them and so not to egg them on.

I still credit the Martial Arts with crafting me today, much better equipped for society than I ever could have been before then.

Now, the most important thing for doing martial arts is not the style, but the instructor. I sense you already knew this from the question. Luckily, I already made a list of some things to look for in an instructor.

but I've come to realize something extra; when reading this, keep in mind that the instructor's instructing ability completely supercedes any of these. If the instructor is really charismatic, explains things to you clearly, and establishes an immediate rapport (they make a positive impression on you the first time you meet them) then that is more important than whether there is a testing fee.

but here goes my list;

1.Look for someone who is a good teacher. when he/she is teaching, see if he/she yells at the class often. if he/she does then you probably will not want to learn from them. however, they shouldn't let people just walk over them.

2. depending on what you want out of the school, ask whether he runs a mostly sporting school or a more traditional one, or whether he runs a school geared toward self-defense.

3. ask how many belts they have. if they have more than ten belts, ask if they have a testing fee. if yes, be wary. also, if they have things like "camo belt" and "ninja belt." yes, I have seen a school like this.

4. look at the rank of the teacher although this isn't necessary so much. Joe Lewis was only a second degree until four other grandmasters cornered him and forced him to take a tenth degree. and he was a world champion!

5. check out the facility. see if there is proper safety equipment such as a mat and also see if sparring gear is used.

6. be careful of those who use trophies as selling points.

7. be wary of those who try to sell you their service at all costs. the best teachers will make you want to train with them just by their presence and charisma, not by haggling for hours.

8. remember, the true leader is not who has the most students, but who makes the most leaders. just because he has hundreds of students doesn’t make them good.

9. more expensive doesn't mean higher quality. in many cases it actually means LESS quality.

10. see if they allow you to take a trial period (usual is one or two weeks) before signing a contract. This way you can see what the classes are like and find out if martial arts are for you.

11. talk to the students. Make sure that they’re respectful, and ask what they think about the school. If it’s a good school, someone may come up and greet you as soon as you come in. this is a good sign.

These are some from other people I found and thought were good, so here.

12. What is the school’s reputation in your community? How long has it been in existence? Does it hold membership in a professional organization, such as the Korean Martial Arts Association?

13. what kind of training do the instructors have? Just because the instructor has a black belt does not mean he or she is a good instructor. They must be positive role models for the students.

14.do the students in class seem happy and motivated

15. When the instructor meets your child, does the instructor establish an immediate rapport? (does your child like the instructor from the beginning?)

16. How long has the head instructor worked at the school?

17. Does the school do background checks on its employees/ assistant instructors?

18. Is the facility clean?

19. Is there a viewing area for parents?

oh yes, and fees; in my experience, usually it costs between $50 and $150 per month, although I have found unscrupulous schools where they have programs that cost as much as $997 per month. watch out for those. And watch out for schools that make you sign a contract way too early.

Beginner uniforms (gi) usually cost up to $50. the high end Black Belt uniforms can cost from $50 to $200, but you don't need to worry about that yet. and eventually you will probably need sparring gear, which will vary depending on what kind of gear your school uses. judging by the fact that it's karate, it may be about $75 for a full set ($25 for footgear, $25 for gloves, $25 for headgear).

if you're in financial need, many instructors (good ones, anyway) will be willing to work with you to figure something out that you can both afford.

EDIT: to the person directly below me:

I agree with you, except for one point; the upgrade system.

And even there, I agree with you to an extent. yes, those can be used in bad ways such as the example I gave above about the school that charged $997 a month for "master club" classes. however, I think that upgrade systems can be used for good. For instance, my old instructor did it where the only thing you needed to do to join the Black Belt Club was be above green belt and buy the red gi top that you could use. And for that, they got extra classes, their Black Belt went up on the wall, they got a red gi top, and learned things (such as weapons, and specialized public speaking) that other students rarely learn. The people who joined the black belt club were the most dedicated students, and this group helped them practice their martial arts to their hearts content.

Then, there was the leadership team. Only seven students chosen by the instructor were allowed to join. There was a one time fee for the classes and the gi, which was pretty reasonable (and actually my instructor forgot about the tuition and never would've collected it if I hadn't remembered myself) that bought eleven weeks of classes on leadership skills, teaching techniques, how to interact with people, etc. etc.

when I first joined the leadership team about 1 1/2 years ago, I finally knew that THAT was what I wanted to do. I wanted to be a martial arts teacher and help others the way my instructor helped me.

depends on wat type

1 the money getting school

2 the teaching school

2's better, btw

but karate's a light thing, even itf tkd's better, try wushu

dont.take.it

ive been taking it for 5 years and it suckss, im a red belt so i cant quit, its really expensive, probably averaging to $25 a lesson? but dont. i hate it. please. dont.

go do swimming, its great for weight loss.