By Ashley Mussbacher (Contributor) – Email
Print Edition: July 17, 2013
Whenever we think of the word karate we immediately associate it with kicks and punches, crazy backflips and ninja stars. Hollywood has managed to build a sense of mystique around it. But let’s strip off all the glamour and take a closer look at the martial art.
When we strive to get fit, we sometimes forget that a very important part of staying healthy is not how much you can bench press, or how high you can kick. It’s a pursuit of balance – physically, mentally and emotionally. Like three legs of a barstool – if just one is shorter than the rest, the whole thing topples.
First, the workout. Karate training develops endurance, stamina, strength and cardio, while learning self-defence. Two birds, one punch. Like any sport, a typical karate session starts with a warm-up drill of push-ups, crunches and a bit of running laps of the dojo.
Next comes the most important part of the entire workout: stretching. True, pretty much everything in karate is ballistic stretching, but it’s best to have everything primed before you try kicking at head height.
Then, the training begins. Depending on the martial arts, there will be a rotation of activities from sparring to kata (a combination of techniques performed in a specific order). All activities are geared towards developing physical strength and endurance, and helping you discover how your body and mind react under pressure. It’s as intense as it sounds, but worth every drop of sweat.
But karate is more than just getting your heart rate up, staying active, building muscle. It’s a lifestyle. Gima-Ha Shotokan-ryu Karate is a traditional Japanese style rooting back to the original Shotokan School of Karate, and every student is encouraged to live by a set of principles called the Dojo Kun: seek perfection of character; be faithful; endeavour; respect others; and refrain from violent behaviour.
Paul Sexton, fifth-degree black belt and instructor at the Abbotsford Dojo, says that karate is more than developing speed and flexibility. It helps you strive to build self-respect and free your mind of self-doubt.
The Dojo Kun applies not only to karate training, but to everyday situations as well. Endeavour to achieve your best in school, in work, in relationships. Seek perfection in character by trying your hardest, and applying yourself in everything you do. Respecting others is straightforward enough. And it’s important to refrain from violent behaviour by diffusing heated situations; as Sensei Paul explains, “Your martial arts skills should be used only as a last resort.”
Balance. It seems simple enough – that the key to healthy living is to maintain our sense of self. Physical exercise and eating right may take care of our bodies, but we can’t forget about our mental and emotional well-being. Karate encourages the balance, and on top of everything else, the workouts are fun and practical.
