Bill Stewart performing a side kick in a Kyokushin karate gi and black belt, with Texas-themed artwork, Kyokushin kanji, and the Texas Kyokushin Karate Stewart Dojo emblem.

Kyokushin Karate Blog

Bill Stewart performing a side kick in a Kyokushin karate gi and black belt, with Texas-themed artwork, Kyokushin kanji, and the Texas Kyokushin Karate Stewart Dojo emblem.

Kyokushin Karate Blog

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  • Kyokushin karateka in deep zenkutsu dachi performing kihon next to fighters in fighting stance demonstrating kumite

    If Kihon Is So Important, Why Don’t We Fight That Way?

    One of the most common questions from students of traditional karate is why the way we train often looks so different from the way we fight. Even beginners notice the…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Man standing outside a bar at night with a duffel bag, watching a tense group interaction in a parking lot near his car.

    Use of Force, Self-Defense, and Why Pressure Matters

    When I teach self-defense, I don’t separate the technique from the decision to use it. Knowing how to do something is only part of the equation. You also need to…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Kyokushin karate practitioners sparring inside a training circle, with boxing, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and swordsmanship scenes illustrating positional movement.

    What Every Fighting Art Figured Out

    When I finished writing Position Before Technique, I thought I had followed the idea as far as I needed to. What began as a section on footwork had led me…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Karate practitioner in a white gi with Kyokushin kanji kneeling in seiza in a dojo beside the title “The Purpose of Kata?

    What is the Purpose of Kata?

    The idea to write this piece started with a question I saw on Facebook in the Kyokushin Budo Dojo group. The OP trained in a dojo that no longer practiced…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Kyokushin karate practitioner kneeling in seiza as repeated training movements appear behind him, with a portrait of Mas Oyama on the dojo wall.

    The Real Meaning of Osu: Renma and the Spirit of Karate

    I’ve written previously about Osu. In that article I looked at the roots of the word, where it came from, and how it is used. Here, I’d like to explore…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Illustration of a black-belt karateka moving to the outside and rear of a brown-belt opponent during sparring, demonstrating tai sabaki and positional advantage on a blue mat.

    Position Before Technique

    Over the past few weeks I’ve been organizing material for a new student handbook project. I expected one section to be fairly straightforward—a discussion of footwork. I wanted to expand…

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    Bill Stewart

  • A Kyokushin karate practitioner meditating in seiza inside a traditional dojo, with autumn light, a red maple leaf, and Kyokushin kanji in the background.

    Zen, Mushin, and Awareness in Kyokushin

    Over my years in Kyokushin, I’ve had many conversations about Zen and its place in martial arts. Some people see Zen primarily as a religion, or assume that practicing meditation…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Boxer in red gloves faces a Kyokushin karate fighter in a white gi throwing a low kick in a gritty dojo.

    Why a Boxer Will Always Win Against a Kyokushin Fighter

    A boxer will always win against a Kyokushin Fighter. What? You didn’t know this? We hear it on the internet all the time, so it must be true, right? This…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Illustrated blog graphic titled “Is Your Karate Really Your Own?” showing a senior karate instructor in a white gi helping a young student adjust his belt in a traditional wooden dojo, with a heavy bag, makiwara, calligraphy scroll, and a framed portrait in the background.

    Is Your Karate Really Your Own?

    One of the things I’ve come to appreciate after more than four decades in Kyokushin is how much of our karate belongs to the people who taught us. Every experienced…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Instructor adjusting a young student’s gi in a Kyokushin dojo, both wearing Stewart Dojo patches.

    Giri: What We Carry on Our Gi

    The Japanese word giri is often translated as duty or obligation, although neither word completely expresses what it means within a relationship. In the dojo, I think of giri as…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Older Kyokushin karateka reflecting as an instructor guides a young student with ADHD during training in a traditional dojo.

    Could Martial Arts Have Helped Me Manage ADHD?

    I wasn’t diagnosed with ADHD until I was in my 60s. I had gone back to college and was struggling more than I expected. After watching a documentary about ADHD,…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Karate students practice drills with synchronized punches while vocalizing “osu” as an instructor observes in a traditional dojo.

    Osu During Drills: Breathing, Rhythm, and IFK Pedagogy

    In IFK classes, students vocalize “osu” with each technique as it’s performed during certain drills, particularly when practicing the syllabus in its various forms. To someone unfamiliar with the method,…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Vintage-style illustration of Mas Oyama performing a karate stance, with the quote "I have not permitted myself to be ignorant of any martial art that exists..." beside him and the Kyokushinkai calligraphy (極真会) in the background.

    Mas Oyama : Have We Forgotten his example?

      “I have not permitted myself to be ignorant of any martial art that exists. Why? Such ignorance is a disgrace to someone who follows the path of the martial…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Bill Stewart in fighting stance in his home dojo, with the words "Discipline Isn't a Feeling"

    Discipline Isn’t a Feeling

    Discipline isn’t a feeling. It’s consistency – what keeps you moving forward when motivation doesn’t show up. It’s action, repeated over and over, that moves you toward your goal, whether motivation…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Before the Blog: A Beach Training Story from 1997

    While going through some old magazines recently, I came across the July 1998 issue of Kyokushinkai Magazine. It included two articles, including this one about beach training I had written…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Illustration of Sosai Mas Oyama overlooking a lone karate practitioner walking a stone path toward the sunrise, symbolizing the beginning of the Kyokushin journey and relationship between Shoshin and Shodan.

    Shoshin and Shodan: Why the Journey Is Just Beginning

    Tucson, Arizona. June 6th, 2026. Three days of seminar under Shihan Mike Monaco had just ended in a formal grading examination, and four candidates had spent the morning being tested…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Senior karate instructor watches a black belt teach a student in a Kyokushin dojo.

    We Are Reflections of Our Teacher

    Recently I found myself watching one of my students work with a beginner. What struck me wasn’t the techniques he was teaching. It was the way he was teaching them.…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Young Kyokushin karate competitor waits beside a tournament ring in a gymnasium before competition begins.

    The Value of Experience

    Competition as Part of Training One thing I have noticed over the last few years attending Kyokushin tournaments is how small many fighting divisions have become, particularly in knockdown competition.…

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    Bill Stewart

  • Shihan Bobby Lowe and Bill Stewart posing together at the 1995 Kyokushin Summer Camp in Honolulu, Hawaii.

    What Shihan Bobby Lowe Told Me

    In today’s Kyokushin world, it sometimes seems that every year brings another organization, another split, or another debate about who is right and who is wrong. It can be easy…

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    Bill Stewart