(Approx 2 minute 15 second read)

I used to love sport karate. In my late teens and twenties I just wanted to spar, fight in the dojo, and compete in tournaments.
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In those early days, there was a stark contrast to the safety measures and equipment we see today. Those of us who have been practicing for 50 years or more remember a time when there was no such thing as protective gear. Gloves, helmets, and pads were unheard of. When we punched, it wasn’t against pads; it was against each other.
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In competitions, we didn’t have the luxury of protective equipment either. Instead of pulling our punches entirely, we aimed for full contact to the body and toned it down slightly for the head, hoping to avoid excessive bloodshed.
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The dojo sparring was just as bad, sometimes a lot worse. There were no timed rounds, no breaks, no water. You fought until you dropped.
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In our regular training sessions, we didn’t have fancy equipment. We used our karate belts as makeshift jump ropes and folded our karate-gi jackets to use as target pads. We practiced punching against walls to refine our technique, to control the impact of our strikes. And there were no padded floors; we trained on hard concrete.
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I didn’t like kata much, probably because I didn’t understand its proper purpose, a lot of it didn’t make sense back then. It wasn’t put in any kind of context for me until much later. Being naturally inquisitive I knew there had to be more.
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There was, and is.
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Unfortunately today, I have witnessed many black-belts, who think they know it all. They learn and practice; ‘what you see, is what you get’ karate. Nothing in any depth, just punching, blocking, kicking, and maybe a workout. They don’t want to go deeper, they have enough.
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Some open their own dojo and continue to teach everything they have been taught, everything their instructor knew.
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But of course, it’s not everything.
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As time goes on, you are now past middle age, you’re not as athletic as you once were. You cannot perform the high kicks or move quickly with fluidity, you’re slower and cumbersome, perhaps overweight.
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The bruises and injuries have added up over time and you now move like a sack of potatoes.
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There has to be more right?
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If only they had thought to look deeper and tried to understand. Asked questions to find out what was missing.
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The truth is, when I see overconfidence in some of these black-belts, I would like to nudge them to question, to delve deeper into the seemingly mundane parts of karate that they dismiss so easily.
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Karate isn’t just about the physical prowess of youth. It’s a lifelong pursuit of understanding, to look for more.
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My advice to those young black belts? Ask questions of your instructor, and of yourself. Explore beyond the surface, because you can feel something is missing – right?
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The true journey of karate begins when you realize there’s always more to learn. And if you get an opportunity to learn, even if it’s outside your style, take that opportunity, be humble and admit….. you really don’t know it all.