Matakiant-san, I practice Ashihara Karate, although Influxes of Tang Soo Do and Wado and Jujitsu have filtered through. Ashihara is a Full Contact Style, created by Ashihara Kancho, who was an Uchi Deshi and Senior Instructor of Oyama Sosai. There are many Youtube videos of the Kata and the level of Kumite we use



When I stated that it should begin at 3rd Brown this was a general statement to ALL Karate Styles like Shukokai (Shito Ryu), Wado Ryu & ShotoKan etc, notwithstanding the Knock-Down styles (Kyokushin/Ashihara/Enshin) which are "Full Contact" from Day 1. The average transition from 3rd Brown to Black, well the Minimum is 12 months from grading but it is on invitation, to me this would involve a different Thread on the subject, but briefly I feel that it should be a minimum of 2 years and that the transition is a mental not physical one as the train of thought for a Mudansha compared to a Yudansha is completely different. You never need to tell a Yudansha you need to do this or that etc whereas a Mudansha needs direction/instruction all the time.


Matakiant-san in my style Full contact sparring begins when the student is ready to progress whether they are Brown or White, Ashihara is "Full Contact" from the beginning as is Kyokushin, but we have a rule in the Dojo that the Lower Grade controls the pace, so if the lower grade "taps" them the higher grade Taps, but on gradings the higher grade does put the lower grade under pressure (levels dependant of what grade they're going for) to allow the to honour the grade they're going for.

Agreed. Too many martial artists out there tend to frown upon other arts. Thinking that sparring cannot lead to defense progress

I believe that sparring as a way to flow and react between opponents is very important. One must be ready to shift the body to gain an advantage for the counter. This give and take helps hone our reactions.
Recently my sensei attended a seminar where the Chinese arts were the order of the day. The next couple of classes after sensei returned were full of techniques that came from that seminar.This was great to focus on areas that we sometimes forget to emphasize.
In Goju ryu it's easy to concentrate on the "Go" and forget the "Ju." We try to counter with a strong,locked down strike but forget that not all reactions are to be force on force. With this in mind we did some sparring drills where evasive footwork and "slipping to the side" of the incoming attack were the order of the day. It was great to get back to our roots so to speak.GOju is hard and soft. I found that when I neglected the soft aspects that my sparring becomes much too rigid. It just doesn't flow.

keep training, Mark

That is true the Go/Hard aspect of the Goju-Ryu seems easier to apply and understand, but really the Ju/Soft is more natural and flowing. Sometimes its diffucult to set the opponent up to flow with but just the open blocks are less forceful and still do the job. The idea of usihg less force to get job done becomes more important the older we get. Less movement and angles while just out/inside of him doing damage to his center line to drop him makes alot of sense instead of al that hard trading punches. The Ju/soft method as you know can be quite powerful, which seems to be a paradox.

Bunkia and Kiso Kumite does open the eye to the real purpose of Karate it was to stop, maim and kill back in the day, not score points.

Thanks Neko456. It really is an eye opener to concentrate on the soft/Ju portion of the style. I'm humbled greatly by the softer side of Goju ryu. As a old dog (51) who isn't very graceful in his movements, "Ju" is difficult for me.
I've come to the point in my life where I don't have the strength and endurance of my youth. I want to be competant in my chosen style, but need to be smarter in how I train. The days of slugging it out are over.....almost.
Starting back up in the martial arts after along layoff (12 years) has presented me with many challenges.The biggest being getting my head around being middle aged. Getting old stinks. I guess I just got to keep at it.

keep training, mark

In order to work soft techniques you have to want to be soft. Instead of hard blocking or resisting someone pushing you take a step back then turn and now you can push them. Its like the open door theroy 1st you are solid then you open to let them past then you close behind them. Its all just a mindset you must resist standing and resisting/slugging it out unless you have a angle. You have to adjust from high kicks & throws to low kicks, trips and sweeps. And strikes that grabs and twist. Working body movement instead of any block at all. Keep training but more mind then body.