Oduzz Martial Arts Academy

*WHY MOST PEOPLE FAIL IN KARATE:*
---Many Start....Few Finish---

Karate Isn't For Everyone. It's For The Ones Who NEVER QUIT.

This idea taps into one of the most uncomfortable truths in martial arts: success is not determined by how many people start, but by how many are willing to endure what comes after the excitement fades. In Karate, the beginning is filled with motivation, curiosity, and energy—but those emotions don’t last. What separates those who continue from those who quit is the ability to push through boredom, repetition, slow progress, and self-doubt. Most people are not defeated by difficulty, but by inconsistency and unrealistic expectations. The real challenge is not learning techniques—it’s staying committed when progress is invisible. That’s why finishing is rare: it demands discipline long after motivation is gone.

Wait...

You mean Buhari get a grown up son like Yusuf... And we didn't see or hear about him throughout Buhari's 8 years tenure.

Never showed up at the villa.

Never dragged position with our ministers.

Didn't involve in the politicking for the father.

Never involved in campaign shenanigans across the country.

He Never Br@g About His Father

Never meddled in the affairs of the NANS.

Didn't have a personal SAs paid by the government.

Never attended foreign conventions with the father.

Never involved in B!g0try.

Just a humble son, minding his business while his father did his job.

(Approx 1 minute 55 second read)

The fear of an attack can make many of you want to fight back immediately. But in the real world, the best defense often lies not in fighting it out, but in cultivating other tactics.

Many people send me videos to comment on - usually it’s some guy slogging it out, trying to fight his way out of a scenario that could have been avoided.

Physical self-defense training is crucial, and that’s why most of us practice some form of martial art, right? But our training should also focus on skills that help prevent violence altogether.

However, if you have no option but to fight, you need to do what you have to and then get the heck out of there. What you don’t want to do is square up to the other guy toe-to-toe, wanting an exchange like you have in the dojo.

Escape strategies are equally as important as fighting. Practicing ways to remove yourself and others from danger is just as essential as honing your fighting skills.

As an example: whenever you practice bunkai applications, or any kind of realistic drill, once you have performed your neatly created application, instead of standing there waiting for another attack, practice getting out of there. Escape.

Move off, back away, a quick sprint, look for places that will give you cover - of course it may not be realistic in the sense that you have a vehicle to hide behind, but you can create the mindset of “I have to get out of here” not one which says “let’s fight some more.”

The issue arises when people adopt a fighter's mentality in a self-defense situation. I know several instructors who teach fighting and that’s it, yet label it as self-defense.

Your training should equip you with the skills and knowledge to navigate potentially dangerous situations. This means prioritizing your safety and well-being, not emerging victorious from a street fight.

We all learn, and some of us teach, many aspects of fighting, but understanding that it’s a last resort - that it’s not consensual as it is in the dojo - this is what many just don’t understand.

We analyze our kata, the bunkai, come up with applications, practice the two-person drills - what for? The answer is not to fight, but to escape, to get home safely.

It’s easy to look tough throwing punches and kicks. What’s harder is having the discipline to know when not to fight. If your training doesn’t end with you getting out safely, maybe you’re not training self-defense at all - you’re just fighting for the sake of fighting. And that’s not what real self-protection is about.


Written by Adam Carter - Shuri Dojo


*toryu

(Approx 2 minute 40 second read)

A question for the instructors out there: what do most of the students who come into your dojo want?

I stopped and asked all my young and beginner students this question a while back. Without exception, they answered that they wanted some form of self-defense - something to protect themselves.

If that’s true for most dojos - and let’s assume it is - what are you actually giving them?

The traditional karate that many believe combines self-defense with a mix of other things - we all know it’s not real self-defense anymore. It’s wrapped up and advertised that way, but as instructors, we know better. Don’t we?

Yes, karate was originally built around combative principles. It was a method of self-protection. But it changed. When it moved to the Japanese mainland in the early part of the 20th century, it became the behemoth it is today - combining tradition, competition, ritual, aesthetics, and character development.

Many people tell me they train purely for fitness, fun, competition, or meditation, and that’s fine. But when that happens, karate is no longer functioning as it was originally designed.

The problem is when people do that and still claim it’s the same thing it always was - a method of self-protection. That’s where the confusion - and the dilution - comes in.

People can practice karate for whatever reasons they like. That’s never been the issue. What I often address in my articles is when people start redefining what karate is.

It’s a bit like buying a fire extinguisher and using it as a doorstop. That’s your choice - but let’s not pretend you’re using it for its intended purpose. And that’s okay too, as long as you understand what you’re doing.

If you’ve been practicing karate for some time, the truth is, most people do know that what they’re doing isn’t combative.

You can’t practice the same block-and-punch sequences for years and genuinely believe that’s how real violence unfolds - not if you’ve ever reflected on it.

So I don’t think they’re clueless. I think many simply accept it as their karate - and that’s fine.

But let’s be honest about what it is.

The real danger is when people believe that karate and its kata only contain unrealistic exchanges - that’s just misunderstanding.

Personally, I like the idea of calling karate what it is in practice: sport-karate, 3K-karate, children’s karate, karate-jutsu - whatever fits. I call mine ‘karate-jutsu’, for me, ‘Practical Karate’.

Define what you’re doing, and don’t pretend it’s all the same. Because it’s not. But that kind of clarity is rare - too many want to be everything to everyone, yet understand nothing deeply.

Like the guy who messaged me yesterday about the person I mentioned in one of my articles.

The shodan I mentioned in the article had jumped styles, transferred his rank, and then left again to set up his own gym. The guy who messaged me claimed that because this particular shodan had done all that, he somehow knew more than someone who stayed and trained continuously in one system.

Personally, I don’t think so.

Again - nothing in depth, just superficial knowledge repackaged and sold as something spectacular.

That’s not karate as it should be. But I’m not trying to convert anyone. Most people won’t change their minds from reading an article - especially if they’ve already decided they know all there is to know.

And that’s fine.

I write for the ones who feel like something’s missing - for those who train hard, but quietly wonder if there’s more.

Karate’s surface is polished with tradition, sport, and ritual. But underneath that surface lies the core - the real method of survival it was originally built on.

It’s just up to you whether you stay on the surface, or dig deeper to find that core.


Written by Adam Carter


*toryu

You cannot explain something personal mathematically or scientifically. You cannot prove God; you experience God.