Kickboxing in Montreal? Kyokushin karate, on Nuns’ Island

01The short answer

02What you will find here, if kickboxing brought you

Kickboxing, kick boxing or kick-boxing: the word covers several rule sets, but what people look for in it is fairly constant — striking with fists and feet, against someone who hits back, and leaving out of breath. Kyokushin is a karate built on exactly that.

The fighting is real. Under WKO Shinkyokushinkai knockdown rules, punches to the body, kicks to the thigh, ribs and head and knee strikes are legal; no gloves are specified; a bout is won by ippon — the opponent down for more than three seconds — or by decision. The game this produces, short range, accumulated low kicks, exchanges to the torso, is the one a whole branch of kickboxing grew out of: K-1, founded in 1993 by Kazuyoshi Ishii, whose Seidokaikan school came out of Kyokushin.

Conditioning is part of the class. A grading, in the WKO first-year textbook, includes conditioning — knuckle push-ups, jumping squats — and flexibility, alongside technique and fighting. An ordinary class works on them every week. What is Kyokushin kumite? describes how fighting is introduced and graded in training.

03What karate adds

• A curriculum, from white belt to black. Ten kyu, then the dan grades, each with specific stances, techniques and kata to present. Kyokushin karate belts, in order gives the order and the content.
• Kata. Sequences of techniques performed alone, graded at every level, which keep the whole technical catalogue — not only what works in a ring.
• A dojo, with its etiquette. The bow, the silence, the Dojo Kun, the dojo oath: a framework that holds from the first session. Dojo etiquette says what is expected.
• The whole family, in one place. The Petit Samouraï programme takes children aged 4 to 6, the kids programme runs to age 13, adults train from 14, and Joanie Roussy leads the women’s classes.

04What kickboxing has, and Kyokushin does not

The difference comes down to one rule: under WKO rules, a hand to the face is a foul; under every kickboxing rule set it is legal and central, with gloves. Kickboxing also brings timed rounds, corners, judges, a ring — a sport built for the spectacle. If that is precisely what you want, head movement, hooks and the ring, a kickboxing gym will suit you better, and Kyokushin vs kickboxing helps you choose the rule set before the gym. If it is the contact, the legs and an art that lasts, you are in the right place.

05On Nuns’ Island, in practice

The dojo is at 550 chemin du Golf, suite 010, on Nuns’ Island (Verdun), and also serves LaSalle, Pointe-Saint-Charles and the Sud-Ouest. Our classes run in both languages, which is why this site exists in four. The schedule gives the groups and times, the pricing page the monthly rates, and Full-contact karate in Montreal what to check before choosing any dojo, ours included.

The first class is free, and there is nothing to buy beforehand: comfortable clothes and a bottle of water are enough — what to bring to your first class has the full list.