COVID-19 & OUR DOJO

Throughout the unprecedented and testing times that were thrown upon us all recently, as a club we felt we had a duty to keep our members engaged and active and have been on hand to help out where we can.  One of the ways we did this was to offer online karate classes for our members via Facebook rooms, totally free, so we could all get together and keep training in the thing that we all love - Karate. 

 

We basically had two choices, one was curl up and hide away from everything that was going on around us, or the other was that we could adapt to the situation that was put before us, improvise, and overcome the hurdles. The martial artist mindset is to never give up and always push forwards, so we chose the latter option and trained in our living rooms, kitchens, dining rooms, gardens... you name it!  If there was a small space where we could fit, we trained there, sometimes even outside in the rain!

 

We ran online sessions for a total of nine weeks which were open to all and attended by both seniors and children twice a week, covering all of our basic and fundamental techniques, and everyone seemed to really enjoy them and really gave it their all.  It really helped boost our training and keep ourselves sharp, our mental wellbeing, and was a real morale boost for everyone.  

 

Being able to keep engaged with each other, keep ourselves active, and keep our routine going was key for a lot of people who would otherwise have been struggling with the change of routine and continuity. 

 

We quickly adapted to the restricted training but were just happy to be able to engage and socialise with each other by doing something we love. 

 

With the restrictions being constantly reviewed and changed by the government and restrictions lifted, we got the news that we could return to our training in the centre where we are based.  We reopened our doors on 27th July to a great turnout of eager and willing students, who have given nothing less than 100%. 

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​Now we are back in our dojo, we have strict hygiene measures in place.  These include hand sanitisers which are used upon entry and throughout the session, temperature checks on entry, and no barefoot training. We are also very lucky to have such a spacious hall available to us ensuring that social distancing is easily maintained.  We are also not doing any contact training such as sparring for the time being to help further control the spread. Instructors have completed courses on COVID prevention and we are a COVID safe martial arts school. 

 

We have quickly adapted to our new way of training and everyone is pushing forward with their pursuit of excellence. If you are an existing member who may have a few worries about things, or if you would like to come along and train as a new member we hope that we have helped you feel a little more reassured with the measures we have in place for your safety.  

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Going forwards, our goal remains the same, and that is to keep training, keep doing what we love, and overcome any challenges or stumbling blocks that are put in our way. 

 

Adapt and overcome is the mindset we should all have in anything we do and we demonstrate that throughout our time training in the dojo. 

We are required to limit numbers at any one time for further safety and classes do need to be booked beforehand for any classes you are attending, whether you are an existing or new member. To do this please visit our book class page to reserve a space. 

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If you have any questions at all, please feel free to get in touch with us and we’d be happy to answer them.