What to Take to a Karate Class

There are a few things you need to know if you (or your kids) are about to take a karate class for the first time.

The most important thing is a positive attitude and a willingness to learn. Karate, like most martial arts, emphasises respect, for the sensei (teacher), fellow students and the dojo (training hall). This involves a fair amount of bowing, which initial might feel awkward, but will become second nature in time.

For your first class most clubs are happy for you to wear a t-shirt and track pants, the only restriction is that you shouldn't wear anything with loops/pockets/hard bits as these can be dangerous in martial arts. If you decide to come back, the instructor should be able to let you know where to get your first gi (karate suit). You can probably also wear a gi from another martial art, like Judo.

Use our karate class packing checklist to see everything that you might want to bring. Our karate class kit list has checkboxes for using online, or you can download and print a copy.

Packing for Karate class - Download the list