Firstly, can you tell us a bit about Canton Martial Arts, a brief background, and the styles you teach?
Canton Martial Arts began in 2002. Kigen Richard Canton was teaching and training classes throughout Kent with another karate club at the time but decided to leave and move in a different direction.
He started his martial arts career in Australia, doing Tae Kwon Do, Zen Do Kai karate, and Muay Thai before becoming a full-time student and instructor in 1995. In 1997, he moved to the UK to teach full-time and began Canton Martial Arts in 2002 in Kent and then expanded to East Sussex.
Canton Martial Arts is culmination of many Martial Arts including Traditional Karate, Japanese Jiu Jitsu, Muay Thai, Judo, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and more. It is a complete Martial Arts system that still hold on to the traditional aspect of Japanese/Okinawan Karate. It is truly freestyle and can be used in a practical way.
Core to our ethos is teaching character and core life skills. We are teaching more than just being able to fight. We are teaching confidence, self-assurance, self-belief, resilience and focus.
If anyone reading this is thinking about getting involved but unsure, what advice would you give them? Would you say classes are family-friendly?
We’d say “Give it a go”. Our curriculum is adapted and taught in a way that is age-specific delivering the stated values as well as fitness and fun in a positive and supportive environment.
We often have students, of all ages, who are unsure if it is for them; they can be nervous and apprehensive and after the first lesson, they want to come back for more.
It is completely appropriate for the whole family. We take students from age 4 to 104! We offer family classes once a week in all of our Dojos, where parents can train alongside their children. It is an important part of the offer that we make to families and our communities.
On the back of that, what would you say to someone who thinks they’re ‘too late’ to start learning martial arts?
It is never too late to start learning martial arts. The beauty of martial arts is that it allows you to adapt to be the best that you can be.
Can someone in their 50’s kick as high as a 20 year old? Probably not. But, can they kick higher than the average 55 year old? Yes! Are they fitter, stronger, more focused than their peers? Absolutely!
Jokyu Sarah, who is our lead instructor at the Tunbridge Wells Dojo, didn’t start karate until she was 48 years old, and was just 3 days shy of her 54th birthday when she achieved her Black Belt. She had to work hard to achieve this but has now transitioned into taking that passion and belief in the core values and passing it onto children, teens and adults who want to benefit from everything martial arts has to offer.
What are your thoughts on the idea that martial arts aren’t as ‘popular’ as they used to be?
We don’t think that is true. What is on offer for extra-curricular activities for children, teens and adults is broader than it has ever been, therefore there is a broader choice of activities to pursue. Other sports offer the fitness element, but don’t always offer strong life-long skills and benefits that can be used every single day.
For example, being able to develop your mental health and resilience in a structured way is a benefit of martial arts. The ability to keep coming back knowing that a move or a sequence of moves, known as Kata, can be refined, can be improved with more work and more dedication is a key tenet of martial arts.
Martial Arts offers a great constructive way to be able to deal with frustration and even anger. It can be channelled in a way that is safe and controlled. There is no better way to manage stress than to kick and punch it out on the mat.
In our opinion, Martial Arts should be offered in the school curriculum and should be a mandatory requirement.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
The first lesson is always free for our students. There is nothing better than seeing the smiling, confident faces of our students when they gain their next belt at our community grading. All of our gradings are groups of students from three Dojo’s who celebrate and graduate together in a massive celebration of success in front of their families.
For children, Canton Martial Arts offers them structure, patience and listening skills. For teens it offers discipline, self-control and confidence. For adults it offers vitality, strength, flexibility and stress relief. For everybody it offers a community where fitness, fun and friends are central to everything that we do.
Find out more about Canton Martial Arts here and on facebook. Alternatively contact Sarah Pearce (Lead Instructor at Canton Martial Arts – Tunbridge Wells) at [email protected] or on 07483 143864.
