Karate is a martial art that is historically related to the Chinese art of Kenpo and martial arts from the Ryukyu Islands, which is now known as Okinawa, Japan.
A person who is practicing the art of karate is called a karateka and techniques used include kicking, knee strikes, punching, elbow strikes and knife-hands. Worldwide there are between 50 and 100 million practitioners of karate.
If you are interested in becoming a karateka, then the best thing to do is go to take karate classes at a karate school, which are also called dojos.
Karate Schools
Watch a class before you sign up and don’t let karate schools put pressure on you to sign long term agreements on the same day that you walk into the dojo or ask if they have a trial karate classes program. A karate school with a good program should not have too much trouble to convince you to start your karate career with them.
Karate classes for kids
A lot of parents send their kids to karate lessons, since these lessons have a positive influence on their children: it improves the level of concentration, brings the kid’s discipline to a higher, builds confidence, and improves the self-control. Last but not least, it also helps children to defend themselves, which can also help them not to become a target for bullies.
Classes for kids until 12 years old will cost approximately 30 to 50 US dollars per month, while classes for kids older than 12 years and for adults will cost approximately 50 to 100 US dollars per month. The cost may vary, based on membership, age, location and class setting.
Karate gear
Karate uniforms are in general lighter than most other martial arts uniforms, due to the movements of a karateka, such as kicking and throws. The cost for an uniform will vary, based on the brand, whether it is an European (longer sleeves) or Japanese cut (shorter sleeves) and the weight of the uniform. You should be able to find something for $20 to $100.
A good quality karate belt will cost between 4 and 10 US dollars.
