Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #111433 in Books
• Published on: 1984-12
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 242 pages

Customer Reviews

In depth coverage of all the basics with great illustrations
This is a must for all Karate beginners and as a reference book for the more experienced. The book covers the history of Karate, warming up, stretching, stances, striking, kicking, blocking, in fact everything except for Kata, which is covered by the same author in Karate Katas of Wado Ryu, another must buy.

The book us supported by clear photographs and detailed explanations including the science behind many moves. This is one you will keep going back to.

An excellent guide to Wado Ryu Karate.
This book scores highly over other introductions to karate in three main areas: Firstly, it discusses the often neglected, but extremely important areas of warming up and stretching exercise. Not only will this prevent injury but it will also help the karateka's physical development. Secondly, it discusses, in some detail, the fundamentals of karate technique, which are often overlooked in books of this type. These first two points are linked by the physiological way in which the author discusses karate. Thirdly, it will be of use to the practising karateka for many years to come. Many karate books are purchased, read and discarded after a couple of readings; this book will be of continual use throughout one's lifetime. New karateka will find this an invaluable introduction to karate in general and Wado Ryu in particular. Experienced karateka will find much in this that will be of considerable use as they seek to perfect their art. Ohgami is an experienced and intelligent author and whilst the quality of print is less than perfect for some of the pictures, their usefulness is unaffected. All in all, an excellent guide to karate and essential reading for practitioners of Wado Ryu Karate in particular.

Not bad at all...
I am currently 4th Kyu (Purple) in Wado Ryu Karate, I purchased this book in the hope that it would help me hone my karate skills. After reading through (only once as of yet!) I can see a lot of crucial information on how best to perform your techniques that I missed (or wasn't given) in class. So far this has proved a very helpful book for me. I would like to point out though that I think it would be nigh on impossible to teach karate to yourself from this book. This book proves itself best when accompanied with solid training time from an experianced instructor.