Karate

In Kung-Fu, it's sashes as oppose to belts.

It can take 6 months to a year, depending how well you learn the patterns for a gold sash.

Traditionally, the Kung-Fu system does not have a ranking system. The current ranking system in most martial arts is more or less a commercial invention for the sports variant.

There is only one known on the east coast; Soke Tony Morrison.

88m/h

Yes, strength is an asset, but technique allows those with less strength to overpower those that are stronger. You just have to believe and stay true to your heart

Black belt is the highest. Though traditional Okinawa karate uses a red and white belt to indicate 7th and 8th degree black belt and solid red for 9th and 10th. Many American schools use the red belt as a kyu level below black belt.

Karate was the original "cop's" martial art; according to Okinawan tradition, it was invented for the purpose of maintaining peace, and order. Mostly, it was to enforce the weapons ban decree by one of Okinawa's ancient kings, and to protect the royal family, during the first Samurai invasion it was used to fight Samurai.

Most schools, or types, of Karate use the Kyu/Dan levels that started with Judo. The colors of the belts indicate what level the student is at. Most schools use the following colors - White, Yellow, Red, Green, Blue, Brown, Black. Once you reach Black, you then move to the Dan system. It then becomes Black Belt Dan 1st, Black Belt Dan 2nd, Black Belt Dan 3rd, up to Black Belt Dan 10th. So, to answer your question, technically the highest level belt would be Black Belt Dan 10th. In reality, each level that you attain is the highest because you have surpassed your previous best.

its spelled shotkan

the belts in order are as follows:

white

yellow

orange

green

2nd degree green

blue

purple

2nd degree purple

red

2nd degree red

brown

2nd degree brown

black

it takes about 3 or 4 years to receive a black belt maybe even 5 sometimes

You would find the listings in many of the karate histories.

The book Okinawan Karate: Teachers, Styles and Secret Techniques by Mark Bishop provides hundreds of senior practitioners and their lineage.

There is a difference between the percentage of possible techniques taught, and the percentage used in street self defense application, or in sport competition.

The strategy of Karate is to use the hands, elbows, and knees as highly damaging techniques to block, counter-stike, and quickly render an attacker incapacitated. The kicks of Karate are effective, but remain basic and number about one-third, while the hands number about two-thirds. In application, the hands might typically be used 75% to 90% of the time (your usage might vary!).

Although Taekwondo has a reputation for kicking due to its tactical preference for using the legs as the primary weapon, there is actually a balance of other strikes (hand, elbow), pressure points, joint locks, some throws, and a variety of holds and controls that can be used in close-quarter combat and ground-fighting. The content of Taekwondo's total curriculum is closer to 50/50 of hand strikes and kicking techniques, with the controls, throws, and ground-fighting taking an important, but secondary supportive roll (note: not all modern Taekwondo schools represent authentic Korean Taekwondo accurately).

It can be deceiving to the onlooker since a large portion of many Taekwondo classes are often focused on the kicking in order to hone that skill to perfection, and demonstrations often show off the advanced kicking skills as a unique aspect, yet there still exists a balance in quantity of techniques taught in Taekwondo's curriculum. However, even though Taekwondo itself has a balance of techniques, the choice of what is used might often reflect a higher percentage of kicks in performance. For instance, most Taekwondo tournaments are geared toward showcasing and encouraging the kicking skills, so this is mostly what is seen in Taekwondo competitions.

In self defense, each situation is different, and a Taekwondo fighter could use the majority of defensive blocks, and hand strikes until the rare opportunity to use a kick presents itself. At that time, the kick becomes the predominant tool, and will probably be used to not only damage the opponent, but as a finishing technique - - especially when a smaller or weaker person is defending against a larger or stronger opponent.

In training, the percentage of kicks practiced might far out-number the many other possible techniques, but it would be a mistake to ignore the others in practice or self defense application. In real-life self defense, the kicks might actually be the smallest number of techniques used - - but they will likely be the most devastating and effective.

While all four styles incorporate moves that utilize the entire body, they each have specific functions and restrictions and have origins in different countries. * Tae Kwon Do is a Korean martial arts that places emphiasis on the legs. While it does incorporate punches, it focuses mainly on kicking your opponent. It has incorporated many aspects of Karate and uses almost identical forms. * Karate is an Okinawan style which places emphiasis on strikes. It is often viewed as a very basic style, which it is, but if used correctly it can produce some of the most powerful attacks that can be performed with a fist. It's based on a combination of Chinese styles and Okinawan fighting arts. * Kung Fu is not a style. It is often misunderstood to be a style because it is so loosely used as a general term for Chinese martial arts. What it means is similar to saying "achievement through great effort". A style that most are looking for when they think "Kung Fu" is "wushu". Wushu utilizes strikes, kicks, locks, throws, and the use of weaponry. * Ninjitsu is not necessarily a martial art either. Many believe it to be because of what they read or see on TV. The name itself also sounds like a really cool style of fighting. But truth have it, the way of the "ninja" isn't to stand and fight (though they can and will if needed). Rather, they incorporate matial arts and unconventional warfare tactics in espionage. The term comes from Japan and is was applied to people who performed these acts of espionage because they were considered below the social classes or non-human.

{| |- | Because each individual is different, what is perfect for one person, doesn't work well for another. In general, low fat and high protein is important. Proper hydration is also important. And the diet will vary based on whether you are working out on a specific day. |}

It is called a Choku tsuki. (T is silent, of course.)

No, they are not the same. Taekwondo is a martial art. Other martial arts are karate, jujitsu, kendo, kung fu, boxing, fencing, shooting, archery, etc., anything associated with preparing individuals for combat.

Karate gives your body hard and regular exercise. It trains you mentally and physically. The regular training helps to tone your body and increases your strength. All this teaches you self-defense.

Grand Master's Rhee Ki Ha, Hae Man Park, Edward Sell (founder of U.S. Chung Do Kwan), Charles Serriff, Hwang Kwang Sung, Jhoon Rhee,

Nam Tae Hi, Kong Young Il, Park Jhoong Soo, Bin Sing Huan, Kim Bok Man, Hwang Chae Pok, Lee Beom Jhoo - to name just a few, there are many, many others.

Absolutely! Many experts have used it many times, and continue to do so. Even many color belt students have successfully defended themselves in dangerous situations before even becoming experts. The thing to remember is that part of your Taekwondo training is about learning the basics in segments, then putting it together as a whole. The higher rank you become, the more time should be spend on reality training with pads and heavy contact (with the safety of your partners in mind), and re-creating real-life scenarios.

Too many advance Taekwondo students do not make this complete transition. They have good technical knowledge, but fail to convert it into street application under stress, and pressure of fighting someone who does not fight like them. Street fighters fight dirty, and do not follow any rules, therefore in order to win the fight in the street and survive, a Taekwondoist must be ready to apply the correct techniques in an aggressive and adaptable way that does not fit the mold of forms, one-steps, or free sparring under restrictive rules.

You do learn to defend yourself, but remember that one of the goals of TaeKwon Do is to defend yourself to the point that you can live for another day.

The best thing is not to get yourself in a bad situation that would require physical force. If you can't avoid it, use what you have been taught, and if that doesn't work, use whatever comes to mind to end the situation.

That will take some finding. There are places and schools that don't charge for lessons. Check with churches and youth centers, they sometimes have no cost programs. If you have financial issues, some schools have scholarships.

You can learn karate anyplace. But the key is a qualified instructor. It is virtually impossible to learn a martial art without hands on instruction. You can certainly learn various techniques, but putting it all together into a martial art requires study with a senior practitioner.

There is more than one person who created the original karate. It evolved over centuries.

Now there have been more different styles of karate made by different people. Here are some of the key teachers:

-Sakukawa Kanga

-Matsumura Sokon

-Itosu Anko

-Arakaki Seisho

-Higaonna Kanryo

-Gichin Funakoshi

-Motobu Choki

Karate was originally called To De (Chinese hand) and was developed by several masters in the course of time. No specific person invented it but it was invented for self defense.

Karate uses the entire body. The core muscles are key to balance and focus. Strength in the arms in legs help with balance and power.

Of course it isn't too late! Some of the best martial artists I know did not start their journey until they were in the 30's and 40's. The teenage years are an execellent time to begin, they usually have very good focus and undertstanding of what they are looking for. Jet Li stated in his website, that if its for a hobby, or just self defense, then there is no real age limit provided the person is in good physical condition. If all they are in for is a hobby, a sport, whatever, then no, its not too late. There other issues regarding schools though; namely the fact that not all schools are good with dividing age groups. I've seen places where supposedly adult time slots have 10 year old in them. Some places are so poorly run, they just bunch everyone there together, and the adults spend most of their time babysitting rather than learning martial arts. If you are concerned that they are "too old" it means the school is packed with little kids I take it? If that's the case, then they will probably need to train in the adult time slot if there isn't one for teens.

{| |- | The art is only as good as the practitioner. Okinawa Karate is where karate originated. It combined local fighting skills with Chinese Kung Fu to create what we study today. It changed when it moved to Japan and Korea. |}

You do not play karate. Karate is a martial art. Today you can find karate studios or dojo in just about every city and country.

That will depend on the style and school that you go to. In general the colors are white, yellow, green, brown and black, but there are various grades in between and many have added additional ranks.