# Educate me on style differences



## chrissyp (May 22, 2018)

So i'm a Shotokan stylist, and I'm having trouble finding a new shotokan school in my area to continue my training.

 The only thing that's close is Shori ryu (Did I spell that right?). I was wonder how similar different is it from Shotokan?

And can someone also explain the differences between Goju and Shotokan? Ty!


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## hoshin1600 (May 23, 2018)

I would start with google and you tube.


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## Mitlov (Jun 12, 2018)

The differences in the between Shorin-Ryu, Goju-Ryu, and Shotokan are, in the grand scheme of things, going to be relatively small.  There's going to be a different set of kata for each, and some different details on stance-work, etc, and some slightly different emphases in terms of strategy and principles and mechanics.  But in the grand scheme of things, the differences we're talking about are like comparing Spanish and Portuguese.  Yes they're different languages, but compared to Arabic or Chinese, they're still extremely similar.  It's going to feel much more familiar going from Shotokan to Shorin-Ryu or Goju-Ryu than, say, going from Shotokan to Olympic Taekwondo, or from Shotokan to BJJ.

Both Shorin-Ryu and Goju-Ryu are Okinawan Karate, and so a key difference between them and Shotokan is the Kendo influence in Shotokan (the heavy emphasis on longer-distance strikes and one-shot-one-kill) is not as present in the Okinawan styles.  They tend to emphasize a bit more closer range, a bit more circular techniques.  But like I said, we're talking about a shift in emphasis more than a completely different set of mechanics and philosophy.


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## Never_A_Reflection (Jun 13, 2018)

Shotokan evolved from Shorin-Ryu, essentially, so you will find a lot of similarities. The differences generally tend to be that the stances are shorter/higher in Shorin-Ryu, and things are done in a more relaxed fashion.


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## MI_martialist (Jun 14, 2018)

Preferences.


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## MI_martialist (Jun 17, 2018)

MI_martialist said:


> Preferences.



PGSmith...is there a reason you dislike my post?


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## Buka (Jun 17, 2018)

Historical backgrounds aside, it might depend on perspective. And it also might have to do with whether you're training either, or fighting against either.

When a practitioner of either Art is trying to hit you - they're trying to hit you. And vice versa. 

And a lot has to do with different dojos that teach the same style. Dojos are like snowflakes and restaurants.


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## MI_martialist (Jun 17, 2018)

Buka said:


> Historical backgrounds aside, it might depend on perspective. And it also might have to do with whether you're training either, or fighting against either.
> 
> When a practitioner of either Art is trying to hit you - they're trying to hit you. And vice versa.
> 
> And a lot has to do with different dojos that teach the same style. Dojos are like snowflakes and restaurants.



Preferences...


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## pdg (Jun 17, 2018)

Buka said:


> Dojos are like snowflakes and restaurants.



They blow about, melt and overcharge?


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## pgsmith (Jun 18, 2018)

MI_martialist said:


> PGSmith...is there a reason you dislike my post?


Yes actually. I thought it was superfluous and unhelpful, and seemed to me to be aimed at intimating your superior knowledge level rather than attempting to help the OP with their question. I figured disliking it was sufficient, but since you asked ...


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## MI_martialist (Jun 19, 2018)

pgsmith said:


> Yes actually. I thought it was superfluous and unhelpful, and seemed to me to be aimed at intimating your superior knowledge level rather than attempting to help the OP with their question. I figured disliking it was sufficient, but since you asked ...



At the core, am I not correct?  They do this, we do that...why?  because someone, somewhere preferred one way over another.  The question is why is one way preferred over another?  That is the interesting question!


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## Mitlov (Jun 19, 2018)

MI_martialist said:


> At the core, am I not correct?  They do this, we do that...why?  because someone, somewhere preferred one way over another.  The question is why is one way preferred over another?  That is the interesting question!



Because this is a discussion board and "preferences" is a mere tautology that doesn't give the OP any useful information and also doesn't lead to interesting and informative discussion.

The difference between ANY two martial arts is "preferences."  The statement isn't technically wrong, just useless.


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## Buka (Jun 19, 2018)

I find little difference between any styles of punching and kicking.


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## pdg (Jun 19, 2018)

Buka said:


> I find little difference between any styles of punching and kicking.



The punches and kicks can have different names...


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## Buka (Jun 19, 2018)

pdg said:


> The punches and kicks can have different names...



Tis, true, yes. And I've been thinking of calling my front kick Gilbert.


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## pgsmith (Jun 19, 2018)

Buka said:


> Tis, true, yes. And I've been thinking of calling my front kick Gilbert.



  I can hear it now ... "I'm going to Gilbert you if you're not careful!"


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## Yokozuna514 (Oct 22, 2018)

Goju Ryu is as close to Kyokushin as Okinawa karate gets so some dojo’s do not hold back when sparring.  Some will use a Kyokushin continuous free sparring format but i can’t give you a percentage as there are also Goju schools that focus on the ‘ju’ or soft aspect while some will focus on the ‘Go’ aspect which means hard aspect of the art.

Shorin Ryu and Shotokan schools are typically non contact point fighting style schools.  

As some have already said, katas are very similar with differences being minor in the overall scheme of things.  

All that being said i would try a few free classes and decide what suits you best.


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## PhotonGuy (Nov 5, 2018)

chrissyp said:


> And can someone also explain the differences between Goju and Shotokan? Ty!


Goju Ryu uses a different fighting stance then Shotokan. Also, Goju Ryu uses the Sanchin stance which to the best of my knowledge Shotokan does not use. Goju Ryu also mixes elements of both hard and soft whereas I believe Shotokan only focuses on hard style techniques.


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## DaveB (Nov 5, 2018)

PhotonGuy said:


> Goju Ryu uses a different fighting stance then Shotokan. Also, Goju Ryu uses the Sanchin stance which to the best of my knowledge Shotokan does not use. Goju Ryu also mixes elements of both hard and soft whereas I believe Shotokan only focuses on hard style techniques.



Shotokan does employ sanchin dachi but it's usually limited to a few kata.


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## mrt2 (Nov 5, 2018)

chrissyp said:


> So i'm a Shotokan stylist, and I'm having trouble finding a new shotokan school in my area to continue my training.
> 
> The only thing that's close is Shori ryu (Did I spell that right?). I was wonder how similar different is it from Shotokan?
> 
> And can someone also explain the differences between Goju and Shotokan? Ty!


Another thing to consider if you have a background in Shotokan is Korean Tang Soo Do, which, despite the protestations of some, seems to be based on Shotokan, and practices similar, and in many cases the same forms.


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## PhotonGuy (Nov 6, 2018)

mrt2 said:


> Another thing to consider if you have a background in Shotokan is Korean Tang Soo Do, which, despite the protestations of some, seems to be based on Shotokan, and practices similar, and in many cases the same forms.


To the best of my knowledge Tang Soo Do is based on Tae Kwon Do which it evolved from. A Tae Kwon Do instructor started calling his particular version of the art Tang Soo Do and the name stuck and is used for the art of his lineage to this day.


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## Flying Crane (Nov 6, 2018)

PhotonGuy said:


> To the best of my knowledge Tang Soo Do is based on Tae Kwon Do which it evolved from. A Tae Kwon Do instructor started calling his particular version of the art Tang Soo Do and the name stuck and is used for the art of his lineage to this day.


I believe it is the opposite of that.  Tang Soo Do was being practiced by name, before Tae Kwon Do was created.  What was known as Tang Soo Do was at least part of what became Tae Kwon Do.


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## mrt2 (Nov 6, 2018)

PhotonGuy said:


> To the best of my knowledge Tang Soo Do is based on Tae Kwon Do which it evolved from. A Tae Kwon Do instructor started calling his particular version of the art Tang Soo Do and the name stuck and is used for the art of his lineage to this day.


It is the opposite.  I practiced Tang Soo Do for 3 years.  It pre dates TKD and is in some ways closer to Karate than is TKD, or at least it was 30 years ago.  The colored belt forms, known as the Pinan forms, or Pyonh Ahn forms, and Bassai, or Passai are identical to Shotokan forms.


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## Bruce7 (Dec 9, 2018)

mrt2 said:


> It is the opposite.  I practiced Tang Soo Do for 3 years.  It pre dates TKD and is in some ways closer to Karate than is TKD, or at least it was 30 years ago.  The colored belt forms, known as the Pinan forms, or Pyonh Ahn forms, and Bassai, or Passai are identical to Shotokan forms.



I am looking for a school. I have never taken karate. The Shotokan videos look like the Taekwondo I learn years ago. The Taekwondo videos and schools I have visited do not look like what I was taught. This is very confusing.
Maybe I should try Shotokan karate, what do you think?


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## pdg (Dec 9, 2018)

Bruce7 said:


> I am looking for a school. I have never taken karate. The Shotokan videos look like the Taekwondo I learn years ago. The Taekwondo videos and schools I have visited do not look like what I was taught. This is very confusing.
> Maybe I should try Shotokan karate, what do you think?



What style of tkd did you do before?


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## Flying Crane (Dec 9, 2018)

Bruce7 said:


> I am looking for a school. I have never taken karate. The Shotokan videos look like the Taekwondo I learn years ago. The Taekwondo videos and schools I have visited do not look like what I was taught. This is very confusing.
> Maybe I should try Shotokan karate, what do you think?


My understanding is that the folks who established the original Tang So Do and then TKD were mostly shotokan students under Funakoshi.  So early TKD would have been essentially Shotokan karate.  I believe some lineages of TKD have kept to this method.

Later TKD changed a lot under the Kukkiwon and established a specific method for Olympic rules.  My understanding is that this changed the method a lot from the early Shotokan-derived method.

So, if you find a TKD school that still adheres to the early method, you may find something similar to the TKD that you did decades ago.  Otherwise, training Shotokan karate might be very close to what you had done.

If you find a Kukkiwon school with an Olympic rules focus, that will be different.


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## mrt2 (Dec 9, 2018)

Bruce7 said:


> I am looking for a school. I have never taken karate. The Shotokan videos look like the Taekwondo I learn years ago. The Taekwondo videos and schools I have visited do not look like what I was taught. This is very confusing.
> Maybe I should try Shotokan karate, what do you think?


Sure.  Why not?  When I looked at schools earlier this year, I was looking for a Tang Soo Do School.  Unfortunately, there are only two in my state, and none near me, so I looked at TKD schools, and found one near me.  It isn't identical to what I did before, but that is fine.


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## pdg (Dec 9, 2018)

Flying Crane said:


> My understanding is that the folks who established the original Tang So Do and then TKD were mostly shotokan students under Funakoshi.  So early TKD would have been essentially Shotokan karate.  I believe some lineages of TKD have kept to this method.
> 
> Later TKD changed a lot under the Kukkiwon and established a specific method for Olympic rules.  My understanding is that this changed the method a lot from the early Shotokan-derived method.
> 
> ...



Contrary to seemingly popular belief, there is more tkd than just kkw.


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## Bruce7 (Dec 9, 2018)

pdg said:


> What style of tkd did you do before?


I studied at one of Jack Hwang's schools in the early 1970's, best I remember it was Moo Duk Kwan.


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## Bruce7 (Dec 9, 2018)

Flying Crane said:


> My understanding is that the folks who established the original Tang So Do and then TKD were mostly shotokan students under Funakoshi.  So early TKD would have been essentially Shotokan karate.  I believe some lineages of TKD have kept to this method.
> 
> Later TKD changed a lot under the Kukkiwon and established a specific method for Olympic rules.  My understanding is that this changed the method a lot from the early Shotokan-derived method.
> 
> ...


Thank you explains a lot.


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## Koryuhoka (Aug 17, 2021)

chrissyp said:


> So i'm a Shotokan stylist, and I'm having trouble finding a new shotokan school in my area to continue my training.
> 
> The only thing that's close is Shori ryu (Did I spell that right?). I was wonder how similar different is it from Shotokan?
> 
> And can someone also explain the differences between Goju and Shotokan? Ty!


Shotokan comes from Shorin Ryu. It is a modified form of Shorin Ryu. Funakoshi Gichin also added kata as shotokan was introduced to the education system. Shorin Ryu uses relaxed transitions from posture to posture to generate power. Shotokan emphasizes more on physical strength, using muscle power. If you want to see this demonstrated, go to youtube and search a shotokan  practitioner doing Tekki, and then search for Kishaba juku or Kyudokan Shorin Ryu person doing Naihanchi - same kata as Tekki. This will help you understand the differences I noted.


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## Koryuhoka (Aug 17, 2021)

mrt2 said:


> Another thing to consider if you have a background in Shotokan is Korean Tang Soo Do, which, despite the protestations of some, seems to be based on Shotokan, and practices similar, and in many cases the same forms.


Correct. General Choi trained in Shotokan.


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## Koryuhoka (Aug 20, 2021)

chrissyp said:


> So i'm a Shotokan stylist, and I'm having trouble finding a new shotokan school in my area to continue my training.
> 
> The only thing that's close is *Shori ryu* (Did I spell that right?). I was wonder how similar different is it from Shotokan?
> 
> And can someone also explain the differences between Goju and Shotokan? Ty!


Do you mean Shorin Ryu or Shuri Ryu? Did you forget the "n" or is there no "n" on the style near you? There is a difference in the two names. 

Shorin Ryu is a modern for arts that came from the cities of Shuri and Tomari, in Okinawa. Shorin is the same word as Shaolin, in the Okinawan dialect.

Shuri Ryu is a modern American eclectic art created by Robert Trias. He used parts of different arts to create his art.


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## isshinryuronin (Aug 21, 2021)

Koryuhoka said:


> Shuri Ryu is a modern American eclectic art created by Robert Trias. He used parts of different arts to create his art.





Koryuhoka said:


> Do you mean Shorin Ryu or Shuri Ryu? Did you forget the "n" or is there no "n" on the style near you? There is a difference in the two names.
> 
> Shorin Ryu is a modern for arts that came from the cities of Shuri and Tomari, in Okinawa. Shorin is the same word as Shaolin, in the Okinawan dialect.
> 
> Shuri Ryu is a modern American eclectic art created by Robert Trias. He used parts of different arts to create his art.


Trias did confuse things by using "Shuri" in the name of his style.  I suspect it was a case of him using some Japaneses linguistic gymnastics to hint at his partly Okinawan (shorin-ryu) origins, while distancing him from it to give his style its own identity.

Shorin-ryu karate evolved from the more generic Shuri-te style (named after the town of the same name.)  It appears the kanji to write "Shuri," the town, and "shuri," Trias' karate style, are the same from what I saw on the net.  However, the kanji for Shuri (the town) means, loosely, "head village," whereas the shuri-ryu karate stylists give it the meaning, "beyond tradition."

A kanji can have different meanings and pronunciations, or maybe they just made it up?  Since shuri-ryu is a combination of styles and traditions, their meaning of the kanji certainly makes sense, but seems too coincidental a fit, so I tend to think it a stretch to believe it's a correct reading of the kanji.


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## Koryuhoka (Aug 21, 2021)

isshinryuronin said:


> Trias did confuse things by using "Shuri" in the name of his style.  I suspect it was a case of him using some Japaneses linguistic gymnastics to hint at his partly Okinawan (shorin-ryu) origins, while distancing him from it to give his style its own identity.
> 
> Shorin-ryu karate evolved from the more generic Shuri-te style (named after the town of the same name.)  It appears the kanji to write "Shuri," the town, and "shuri," Trias' karate style, are the same from what I saw on the net.  However, the kanji for Shuri (the town) means, loosely, "head village," whereas the shuri-ryu karate stylists give it the meaning, "beyond tradition."
> 
> A kanji can have different meanings and pronunciations, or maybe they just made it up?  Since shuri-ryu is a combination of styles and traditions, their meaning of the kanji certainly makes sense, but seems too coincidental a fit, so I tend to think it a stretch to believe it's a correct reading of the kanji.


I actually have not looked at the kanji, which I normally would do. Is it the same? 

I just checked it out and it is the same kanji. But the meaning they purport is like you said.


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## Buka (Aug 21, 2021)

The differences between Goju and Shotokan, at least as I remember them.....

Goju punches a hole in your body, then gives a little "come hither" wave to your friends behind you.

Shotokan punches a hole in your body, then gives the finger to your friends behind you.


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## Killai (Sep 3, 2021)

Hi. Indeed, different styles need to be learned from scratch. Real karate training is possible only with the interaction of a master and a student within the framework of an individual karate training program, created taking into account the physical condition of a beginner fighter, his age, training goals and level of training. My situation is as follows, I am from a small town and there are no karate masters, I had to try learning online here, I did not want to try other martial arts because my spirit belongs to karate.


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## Hanzou (Sep 5, 2021)

I would second the recommendation for Tang Soo Do. I also took TSD briefly when I went to college and wasn't able to attend my Shotokan dojo, and (outside of terminology) it was pretty much the same exact system, even down to the katas.


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## ThatOneCanadian (Sep 28, 2021)

_(If any of this is incorrect, don't be afraid to let me know.)_

There are three main schools of Karate: those derived from the acrobatic/long-ranged Northern Kung Fu (Shorin-ryu), those derived from the less-mobile/close-ranged Southern Kung Fu (Shorei-ryu), and those derived from the very springy/ballistic Western Kung Fu (Korean styles).

Shorin-ryu styles include Shotokan, Wado-ryu, and Kyudokan. Their training results in a quick, mobile fighter. Their kata - Kushanku and Gankaku being excellent examples - reflect this, featuring speedy, sometimes acrobatic techniques.

Shorei-ryu styles include Goju-ryu and Uechi-ryu. Their training is intended to harden the individual into a close-ranged fighter. This is apparent in kata such as Sanchin and Seisan, with the movements showing a clear emphasis on close-range, hand-based combat.

Western Kung Fu - particularly Tan Tui - influences Tang Soo Do, Soo Bahk Do, and Tae Kwon Do to be styles that ditch speed in favor of sheer power. The Chilsung/Yukro set of kata exemplify this, although this preference for power is evident in nearly every Korean style; TSD/SBD hyung, as well as ITF and WTF forms, show a clear emphasis on slow, powerful movements. The fact that these styles focus on kicking - which by itself is a slower, more powerful alternative to punching - further reinforces this. These styles also seem to require more flexibility, with ridiculously deep stances and high kicks being part of the training.

If anyone reading this is trying to decide on a style to learn, this is my advice:
-If you are a small, fast person with a high endurance, find a Shorin-ryu school.
-If you are a bigger, stronger person, find a Shorei-ryu school.
-If you are a flexible person, find a Korean school.
-If you are an older person or if you want to practice a more "gentle" martial art purely for health reasons with a very low injury risk, I would specifically recommend Soo Bahk Do, as it isn't as brutal/intensive as the other arts yet features a good blend of hand and foot techniques to keep yourself fit/flexible while also becoming a decent fighter. And it's forms look absolutely beautiful, but that's just my opinion.


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## Steve (Sep 28, 2021)

pgsmith said:


> I can hear it now ... "I'm going to Gilbert you if you're not careful!"


Well, Gilbert can be a powerful technique when clackledockling, but only at a high level.  Requires good timing.


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