Shotokan Karate Club, an Internationally known organization, was established in

Dubai, UAE in 2011. Our organization is member of Japan Karate Association (JKA
UAE). Approved by UAE Ministry of Youth and Sports, UAE Taekwondo & Karate
Federation. Shotokan karate, the art of empty hand fighting, is a traditional style of
Japanese karate founded by Master Gichin funakoshi in the early 20th century.
Shotokan karate is scientifically proven to provide aerobic, anaerobic, callisthenic and
isometric exercise via systematic training.

Martial arts cover a broad range of activities that involve fighting techniques, physical
exercises, and methods of mental discipline, among other skills. Martial arts originated
in the ancient cultures of Asia, and are used today around the world for self-
defense, exercise, health, spiritual growth, law enforcement, and athletic competition.
 Martial arts teach self-defense, and can improve
confidence and self-esteem. When used as exercise,
martial arts can improve balance, strength,
stamina, flexibility, and posture. They also
enhance weight loss and improve muscle tone. On
the mental level, martial arts can
teach stress management, improve concentration,
and increase willpower

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The Top 6 Health Benefits Of Martial Arts

• 1) It helps you lead a healthy lifestyle.

• 2) It gives you supreme self-confidence.
• 3) Experience weight loss as you get in the best shape of your life.
• 4) It improves focus and stillness.
• 5) It teaches great morals and values.
• 6) It improves your athleticism.

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 Top 10 Martial Arts
1. Judo
Judo is a competition based sport that originated out of Japan. The primary objective
is to throw or takedown your opponent for points. Although it was created for sport
and exercise, it has proven to be an effective martial art in close combat through the
use of leverage. “Maximum efficiency, minimum effort” is the cornerstone of the
martial art. With proper technique and balance, a person can beat a much larger
opponent. The major weakness in the art of judo is the lack of any striking techniques
in competition or practice.

2. Kickboxing
Kickboxing can be for fitness, self-defense or sport. There are different origins of the
sport, but we are most familiar with the American version of kickboxing. Kickboxing
combines punches, knees, headbutts, and kicks to disarm an opponent or attacker. A
swift front kick to the face is more than enough to disarm any person. The key to
kickboxing is speed and agility, the person must strike before the attacker can react
and respond.

Advanced kickboxers are known to do “combat qi,” which involves physical

conditioning of the body through repeated damage, until there are no pain signals that
are sent to the brain to distract the fighter. Some highly trained kickboxers will roll a
baseball bat across the surface of the shin for hours a day to break down and rebuild
the tibia there. After repeated damage, the tibia grows back stronger and thicker each
time, until the fighter can kick hard objects without feeling pain in the shins. The
major weakness of the sport of kickboxing is that there is very little attention paid to
self defense throughout training.

3. Karate
Karate originated in Japan and is practiced primarily for sport. It involves the typical
kicking, punching, elbows and also incorporates open hand techniques. The main
focus is on attack deflection, controlling and disabling attacks that come from directly
in front of you. Instead of focusing on hits to the face and head, punches are directed
towards the solar plexus, just below the sternum, a weak point on the body. This will
effectively knock the air out of the opponent and disable him.
4. Aikido
Aikido is a martial art that originates from Japan and is designed primarily for self
defense. The creator of aikido wanted to make an art that a person could use to defend
themselves, without causing injury to their attackers. Aikido loosely translates to “the
way of harmonious spirit.”

The majority of aikido is not striking, it is based on the principle that an attacker
exposes themselves each time they go on the attack. The person is supposed to
recognize the vulnerability and respond with an attack to ensure that he is not exposed
himself. The defender is instructed to go with the movement of the attacker and use his
momentum against him, instead of fighting against it.

You may recognize Steven Seagal as a movie star that practices Aikido, believe it or
not, he is an authentic 7th degree black belt! His trademark move was the forearm
return. An attacker comes at him with a straight punch and he steps to the side,
grabbing the wrist, and using the momentum with a twist to disable the attacker’s
wrist. The attacker will likely be put off balance and may break his wrist in the
process.

Aikido also includes joint locks, a grappling technique that extends the joints to their
maximal degree of motion. These do not take much speed, but rather proper technique
to disable an attacker.

5. Taekwondo
Taekwondo, a Korean martial art, combines both self-defense and attack, as a way of
sport and exercise. The martial art focuses on high kicks and quick hand movements.
Taekwondo is based upon the belief that the leg is the strongest and furthest reaching
limb that a person has, thus having the greatest potential to be used as a powerful
weapon while keeping an attacker at a distance.

The sport is very good to enhance agility, power, balance, flexibility and endurance.
You may have seen these martial artists on tv breaking wood planks, cement blocks or
bricks with their bare hands and legs. These athletes combine their mental focus and
acuity with the strength and technique they develop through training.

6. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is an all around ruthless sport based out of Brazil. Martial artists
are taught vicious and aggressive moves such as eye gouging, choke holds, biting,
grappling, hard striking, and joint locks. Once an attacker is brought to the ground,
the first step is to grab a limb and manipulate it at the joint until it breaks. After the
attacker is immobilized, the martial artist can unleash an arsenal of fists and elbows
to the face.

The key to the art is understanding and recognizing your own and your attacker’s
center of gravity. Once you learn to lower your own center of gravity underneath that
of your attacker, you can manipulate his body and throw him off of you. There is also
an understanding of balance where if your attacker reaches out with one part of his
body, the other part must balance. It is the standing leg that the martial artists learns
to disable and break. Each defense becomes a counter attack.

7. Traditional Boxing
Muhammad Ali would float like a butterfly, sting like a bee each and everytime he
entered the ring. Western boxers are known for their agility, both with their punches
and without. These athletes can throw punches harder, faster, and more on point than
any other martial artist. Just to learn proper punching technique takes several years!

There is no kicking allowed, so you best be sharp with your hands and quick with your
feet to keep your balance. Boxers are usually very lean, tough, and solid. They are not
as thick or heavy as body builders, because they rely heavily on their agility in the
ring. Boxers are ingrained with the idea of protecting their head and learn from the
very beginning to keep their gloves up.

Boxing is very natural to a lot of individuals and it can be a lot of fun. This martial art
is readily available at most martial arts gyms and many traditional gyms as well. It
provides an excellent outlet for sport, discipline, conditioning, and fighting.

8. Wrestling
Wrestling is one of the oldest forms of combat, probably originating from Europe. I’m
not referring to the WWE, which many of you may think is true wrestling. On the
contrary, traditional wrestling is performed on a mat with no ropes. Wrestling is one
of the few martial arts that is also practiced in schools everywhere, from middle
school all the way up to college.

9. Krav Maga
Krav Maga is Israel’s national martial art. It has been designed for the purpose of
street survival and it is taught to the entire defense force of the country. This martial
art involves aspects of Jiu Jitsu grappling and ground fighting, Karate kicks and
knees, and traditional boxing punches. This is not a simple sport, in Krav Maga, the
defense is aimed at killing the aggressor. The defense is also the attack. It is a counter
attack of sorts where you protect yourself from attack, while simultaneously
incapacitating the attacker. They also focus on attacking weak areas of the body,
namely the eyes, groin, and throat.

10. Muay Thai

Muay Thai originated in Thailand and is also known as the Art of Eight Limbs. This
martial art uses punches, kicks, knees and elbows in forming an attack. The sport can
be very violent and brutal, but due to many safeguards today, it has become a more
universal sport for fun and entertainment. Muay Thai is also one of the staples of
MMA style fighting because it not only incorporates western boxing punches, but also
brings in kicks, knees and elbows.

How to Choose the Right Martial Art for Your Child

There are many types of martial arts practiced, but the most widely available - and
most suited to children - include:
1 Karate.
2 Judo.
3 Taekwon-Do.
4 Aikido.
5 Kung Fu.
6 Jiu Jitsu.
7 Tang Soo Do.

Martial arts can be a positive, healthy activity for your kids—if they're involved in a
discipline that matches their interests and personality. But with a dizzying array of
martial arts options, it can be tough to pick the right one.

Each discipline requires slightly different skills and techniques in order to be

successful. Depending on the child, he or she will likely prefer one over the others.
Finding the right match begins by understanding each discipline and philosophy.

Karate
karate is the most used martial arts in the world. There are no weapons involved,
and the focus is on a full-body workout. Most traditional karate classes teach
students to incorporate martial arts as a way of life, with the emphasis being on the
self instead of the opponent.
What Are the Benefits of Martial Arts for Kids?

Martial arts are an ancient method of training your mind, body and spirit to act as one.
Martial arts practitioners strive for harmony, but also learn effective and often
devastating self-defense techniques. Children who get involved in martial arts reap
many benefits in several areas of life.

Fitness

Fitness is a crucial element to all martial arts classes, especially where children are
involved. Warmups with jumping jacks, pushups and stretches are common, and the
movements of the martial art itself often challenge your muscles and cardiovascular
system. Martial artists are known for being toned, flexible and physically fit, and your child
will be no different.

Self Defense

The ability to defend yourself against an assailant is an empowering feeling. Most martial
arts use self defense as a cornerstone of the entire program. The precise methods will
vary from discipline to discipline, but you can be certain that with regular practice, your
child will learn to defend himself in a variety of different ways. Many martial arts schools
also teach street-smart techniques to kids to help avoid problems altogether.
Self Discipline

Martial arts help instill mental focus in your child, giving her the ability to concentrate on a
task and see it through to its conclusion. The discipline that is taught in the dojo in regard
to uniforms, customs and techniques often translates into other areas of life, including
school and household chores.

Respect

Martial arts are all about respect. Punching, kicking, throwing and locking are all
secondary to the respect that is shown form the moment you walk into a dojo. Children
learn to bow to the masters who came before them, and to their current instructors. They
also learn to treat other students as they wish to be treated. Quality martial arts
instructors press upon the respect issue regularly and instruct students to practice
respect for self, parents, teachers and peers at every opportunity.

Self Confidence

A child who is involved in martial arts is generally a child who is confident in herself.
Working through a martial art and the belt ranking system gives a child measurable goals
to follow that are realistic to attain. The sense of accomplishment a child feels by
mastering a new technique or graduating to a new belt follows him everywhere he goes.
 Values

Respect and Dignity

Shotokan Karate Club is an inclusive organization that values diversity, recognizes the
human dignity of all individuals, and treats them with fairness and respect at all times.
We consider each individual worthy regardless of race, color, gender, sexual
orientation, religion, national origin, marital status, disability or age.

Integrity
We are committed to maintaining the highest ethical standards, honoring our
commitments and fostering an environment of mutual respect and trust.

Innovation
We strive to maintain the foundation of our founding masters while being able to adapt
and improve our technical instruction and organization.

Excellence
We work continually to attain the highest level of performance for each individual, dojo
and our organization as a whole.

Collaboration
We value working in collaboration with all martial artists and are committed to shared
learning.

Shotokan Karate Club, an Internationally known organization, was established in Dubai, UAE
in 2011.
Our organization is member of Japan Karate Association, Tokyo, Japan.Approved by UAE
Ministry of Youth and Sports, UAE Karate Federation. We aim to deliver our promise and
provide the best karate training in Dubai.

SHOTOKAN KARATE CLUB (HQ)

AHLI HOUSE-C, 2ND FLOOR,203
AMMAN STREET, AL NAHDA-2
AL QUSAIS, DUBAI, UAE
Phone: 04 2383699
Mobile: 052 9564449
Email: info@shotokankarateme.com

SHOTOKAN KARATE CLUB (BRANCH)

HADI PLAZA BUILDING,2ND FLOOR,207
NEXT TO IBIS HOTEL, AL RIGGA, DEIRA
DUBAI, UAE
Phone: 04 2566652
Mobile: 055 5549452
Email: info@shotokankarateme.com