Club’s outreach connects with college staff

Staff at EKC’s Canterbury College campus have an open invitation to join Sochin Karate Club.

The Canterbury club train at Kendall Hall in Nunnery Fields, which is just a few minutes walk from the EKC campus.

Some styles of karate, such as mixed martial arts, suit those aspiring to be ‘cage fighters’ – Sochin Karate Club is the other extreme offering a ‘Zen’ approach based on improved mental resilience, education of bio-mechanics, all alongside self defence. It boosts confidence and fitness – delivered in a welcoming safe space. Almost 50 per cent of the club’s members are women, including two of the black belt instructors.

The club trains on Monday and Thursday evenings from 7pm to 8.30pm at Kendall Hall, next to St Mary Bredin Church, Nunnery Fields, Canterbury. There is no club joining fee and sessions cost £5 which helps cover the cost of hall hire.

Staff at EKC can join their first session for free and simply need to come down to the hall before 7pm on any club night. Members train in bare feet and you should wear loose comfortable clothing such as tracksuit bottoms and a loose T-shirt so you have full movement of arms and legs. Remove jewellery and watches to ensure they don’t get snagged.

Your first session with the club will involve meeting club members and then join in a warm-up involving a variety of calisthenic exercises and stretches. The evening then moves into  

Kihon – learning or improving karate basics, Kata – a set pattern of moves, and then Kumite – gentle practice sparring with a fellow club member.  The session ends with a short meditation practice called Mokuso to cultivate mental focus and inner calm. 

The Zen element in Karate emphasizes mindfulness, present moment awareness, and a calm, focused mind, crucial for both physical and mental discipline and self-discovery. 

To find out more or to book your place visit the club website here: 79.170.40.38/sochinkarateclub.co.uk/wp/

The club’s Eventbrite page to book a free introductory session can be found here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/learn-karate-discovery-session-tickets-1231100497729?aff=ebdsoporgprofile

If a date on Eventbrite is not soon enough simply pop down to the hall before 7pm on a Monday or Thursday of your choosing.