Texas Shotokan Karate Association

People train for many different reasons. The most common being for exercise and the improvement of health, interest in Japanese culture, and of course to learn self-defense. Unfortunately traditional karate instruction outside of Okinawa tends to focus on form over function and like many other martial arts overly emphasizes sports competition. Today many dojos even brag about practicing "sports karate" which in itself is a misnomer because karate was never intended to be a sport. 試合 "shiai" (matches or duels) can be an aid to guide training and test skills and abilities but should never be the end goal. That is why our focus is on 武道 "budo" (a warrior mindset).　道 "-do" (the way) is a challenging path and is not for everyone but one which comes with unimaginable rewards which are never given, but earned through blood, sweat, and tears. This is why we encourage all prospective students to visit and observe other dojos before training with us.