I'll start off by saying that I have a child that has been going here for most of his life and he loves it and continues to be dedicated and spends a lot of time here. This has been a great experience for him, even though it has been very expensive for us to pay for. However this review is not based on his experience but based on mine as an adult student attending the adult classes. This may not be relevant for the earlier classes that are geared towards younger students. Specifically, this is a review of the Tuesday and Thursday night adult classes.
I have been going here for over a year and a half. I have enjoyed all of the staff members and it shows that they care about their job as well as their students. However, there are some problems with the curriculum. First, the curriculum seems to be changing constantly. When I first started, there was a set of kata (forms) that was being taught but then that started to change to wrist-grab escapes, then to XMA (eXtreme Martial Arts focuses more on style and showmanship rather than effectiveness and strength). Also, once you learn one form, you'll never go over it again and it's quite easy to forget it. Same with kihon (basic techniques), there isn't much focus on going over the basics like doing various drills to develop proper stances, punches, kicks, etc.
I also find that CMA has a bit of an identity problem. The sign on the front of the building says "KARATE" in big red letters. They call it a dojo and the students wear the karate gis, however there isn't much focus on traditional karate. There were times when they touched upon some techniques from the Chito-Ryu style but that hasn't been the case lately. The curriculum also includes some boxing techniques. When I first started, I would hear a few Japanese terms being used (and sometimes being misused) such as the names of stances, but I don't think I've heard a Japanese term being used for quite some time now.
Currently, the classes are a bit overcrowded with one sensei overseeing a group of 30+ students, and the class is only 40 minutes long so it's difficult for one sense to give much attention to an individual student in a short period of time.
Also, they will aggressively push you into signing up for a 3 year contract. In addition, they will try to encourage you to upgrade to their "Master's Club" or "Black Belt Club". You will be excluded from joining in some activities in the class if you don't join these clubs. For example, if you want to spar, you'll need to be in one of these clubs otherwise you're limited to shadow-boxing. Master's Club adds some lessons on XMA techniques with weapons, such as twirling and tossing a bo, spinning kamas, etc. You will not learn how to use these weapons for self-defense.
If you're serious about learning traditional karate, I would consider finding a nearby Shotokan Karate dojo that constantly keeps up with the three K's; kihon (basics), kata (forms), and kumite (sparring). The various martial arts schools in the area will allow you to give them a try before signing up and I would encourage you to try out a few of them to see what works best for you.
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Posted 3 years ago
