Washington Shotokan Karate Association

I’ve been so happy and surprised to join the WSA; the quality of the instruction and dedication of teachers is phenomenal. The facilities are great. The students are very nice and very serious--so many of them look like characters in Street Fighter! ^_^ All of the senpai and sensei are such a great inspiration. In contrast to my old school, this school is pretty traditional, which is great! I used to be in karate 10+ years ago, and this was an easy transition back. In addition, I love sharing in marital arts culture and all of the values and tenets of discipline feed my spirit. I hope to continue to get to know everyone there because they already feel like family! Some expanded points: - I have been studying karate since 2001, when I was 12 years old. My friends and I had gotten jumped Halloween night and I made a decision to gain some self-defense skills. I made it to purple belt when I was 17 at my former school, Sochin-Ryu in Belleville, NJ. Unfortunately I had to leave for school and also left 10 years between the next time I would train. Instead of asking for my belt rank back, I started from the bottom and I'm finally a purple belt again. Glad I re-trained, because it had been a while, and my former style was different, and more fight/defense based, mixed in with judo and jujitsu, and less traditional. Some info on the Sensei I've had the most exposure to: - Sensei Mustafa is great for building up your kihon and getting that set up correctly. He tends to run his class in drills which is great for cardio and endurance. - Sensei Poe does a great deal of kamae-stance drills on Friday nights, which is helpful for freestyle kumite later on, which are essential for brown and above belts and testing. - Sensei Maria is your go-to source for katas. It's what she's passionate about, and her discipline of form is incredible. Her classes are also always fresh and interesting. - Sensei Garcia is excellent with salient observations that go beyond the book. He finds fundamental things (like breathing, being able to relax, timing) and forces you to examine these traits in yourself. He reminds me the most of my former instructor on the East Coast. My only feedback for the school so far is to use more bag work; it's essential for getting a good idea of weight and force, and helps improve functional form and calibrate applied strength. It's especially helpful for me with techniques like the spinning back kick and punches, which requires a lot of coordination of mass. In that same vein, I think it's important to practice with the speed mitts for precision; a roundhouse kick is especially improved using this equipment. Overall, it's a great place to get better physically and exercise!

Both my daughters are taking karate lessons here. Such a great environment with really engaging and energetic teachers who are passionate about their craft. Sempai Brett is great with the younger students. Would definitely recommend this Dojo.

Have been coming here for years, fantastic school, would strongly recommend to anyone who would like to learn Karate!

The best looking dojo I have ever seen. The spirit of the students was that of fostering growth and confidence. I was not able to watch the advance class. Next time.

Very impressive. The facilities are spotless, the staff is very professional, and the students show great form. This is the place to go if you are seeking to learn a traditional martial art. Their black belts are true black belts. They have worked hard in perfecting their art to earn their achievement. You won't see groups of elementary school black belts here, but true martial artists. If you take martial arts training seriously and want to learn a traditional craft, this is an excellent place to do it.