As of June 1st our we will have been locked down for approximately 75 days and counting – based on the Province of BC declaring a state of emergency on March 18, 2020. Barely three months has felt like years! Covid 19 shut fitness activities & business doors, locking us out of our favorite workout spots while locking us in our homes. Everyone felt it, particularly our kids. Local Karate Schools, especially the kids programs, were one of the first to feel the knock-out punch. Some schools & clubs will feel it more than others. Most jujitsu, wrestling and kickboxing classes are based on contact and being close in each other’s bubble, thus they will likely remain closed. Others, like Canada’s Best Karate Schools, are allowed to open. They can, because they use a traditional NON-CONTACT style as the basis to teach their martial arts. Non-contact Karate goes back hundreds of years and is the basis that trains both the mind and body – hands and feet!
We have all been told to wash our hands multiple times a day – now local karate students at CBK are washing their feet too. Before they can enter the Dojo they must sanitize their feet then take their designated social distanced position in the class room. Classes are smaller but just as effective.
Chief instructor at Canada’s Best Karate, Leigh Mueller, is in charge of the largest Karate group on Vancouver Island. About 700 families attend classes at five locations in Victoria & Duncan.
Mueller says “Yes, it’s been tough for the past few months. We’ve been doing six on line ZOOM classes a day for our student and we’ve had hundreds take part every day – but it’s not the same. It’s been hard on so many, especially the kids, they need live interaction, coaching and yes correction. It’s the non-contact traditions that create the self-discipline karate in known for. There is nothing else quite like it.”
June 1st, hands & feet washed, classes begin. CBK Karate Schools re-open. Fighting fit with clean cut traditions has never been more important.
For any questions please contact – Shihan Leigh Meuller 250-893-3832 [email protected]
