whats the point in learning katas in karate..my black belt mate has just got...

[IlovetravelIdo]

...knocked out..its load of crap.? few weeks back, i went along with my friend to his gym..he is black belt 2nd in freestyle kickboxing/karate.

I didnt like it becuase they didnt really spar and didnt only taught stupid stances and ways how to hit properly and you have to learn the katas to progress...(but stances are all sh1t when it comes to a real street fight)


me and my friend were waiting for the bus when a guy came over mouthing off.
i thought we wud be pretty safe with a 2nd dan with me.....NOT SO
he got battered and i had my lip and tooth out..
My friends SO CALLED training obviously didnt come in handy did it....

WHAT IS THE BEST MARTIAL ARTS TO LEARN SO YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO IN A PROPER FIGHT...NOT THIS STANCE AND KATA GRADING CRAP

 

[kokoro]

well then your friend wast a real second degree black belt and had no understanding of kata as well as didnt practiced then correctly, if he did he could have handed himself, he obviously came from a mc dojo.

kata is a fight, and should be taught and practiced as such, when you practices kata you need to practice and understand bunkai.
kata without proper bunkai is useless.

kata teaches you every thing in your style it is your manual of your style inside kata are standing and ground fighting, choke, locks traps, breaks, strikes, etc.

if you cant get a style to work the style is not flawed, the flaw lies with in you and your training. other people have use that style in life and death situations for hundreds of years and they survived.
there are 2 types of black belts real black belts and paper black belts
obviously your friend was a paper black belt and had poor training habits.

 

[JakeLo]

I love how the minute something goes wrong, you finger the blame immediately on the entire art itself and call it stupid. Perhaps your friend's instructor was lousy but that's just an individual case. Kata is also meant as a method of learning and self-evaluation. A way of imparting core principles while at the same time involves a study of yourself and your character. It forms the baseline for your performance. Furthermore there is a wealth of important and hidden information within kata that is pertinent to real application - one poster has called it bunkai. If you have a brash attitude and little patience, it shows. You will miss the point and you will in turn crank out a lousy performance when it comes to the real thing.

 

[BrianF]

the worst fighters can land one lucky shot, and the bet can have a bad day
Personally i see Karate as effective only against Karate, it is hard to transfer karate to any other situation. More an exercise then a fighting style but is my opinion

in a real fight, Muay Thai, Judo, BJJ, Kickboxing, all really good options

 

[BlueFox]

Just because he couldn't get a style to work for him doesn't mean the rest of us who do Karate can't either. I've defended myself from some punks more than once before, and it was thanks to the muscle memory I received from my training.Maybe his school wasn't that good and he just shouldn't have a black belt. You can't judge dozens of different Karate styles based on one lousy practitioner.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Never listen to Tony Valente

 

[nwohioguy]

Two things come to mind. Your friend is a black belt from an unauthentic school. Anyone who says they have a black belt in "freestyle" anything may have learned Kata but I seriously doubt they learned the value and knowledge in the Kata.

Second thing your friend sounds like the product of a mcdojo (fake school) because he had no real application training to take on the situation.

Now this being said there is no such thing as the ultimate system and anyone, yes anyone, regardless of their training can be beaten at anytime...including the morons that claim Kata is useless.

Finally it is not about the system but rather about the quality of the instruction being given to you. Even if the instructor is highly qualifed and very good at their art a student may still get nothing out of it because they do not try. I have had good students who went on to become bodygaurds and police officers who have told me story after story about how what I taught them (including the Kata) saved their lives...and I have other students who, no matter how much I tried, couldn't fight their way out of a paper bag.

It is the student and their ability to apply their knowledge that matters. After all a Sensei will not be standing right there next to you when you have to use your skills. If you train like s h i t you will be s h i t period.

Oh yeah and @ Brian...the only people that say that are the ones that have never truly learned Karate. A good and authentic Karate system has plenty of grappling, throws, takedowns and ground defense it. It is the sport Karate schools that failed on that account.