Has anyone left karate after their youth, and returned as an adult (stiffer, fatter, and likely more tired, perhaps with the accumulated injuries of a life so far lived, which haven't healed like they might have when you were young)?

I'm thinking of getting back to it. My old dojo no longer exists. Well, technically, I think one student is trying to keep the dream alive, but my shihan has since retired, and I think for a fresh start I'd like to try something different.

There is a dojo for a similar kind of karate not far from me, and just a little farther than that is a school for Wing Chun, which would be totally different, but could be exciting for that reason. In a perfect world I'd like to try them both, but who knows how much time I'll be able to put in as I enter my 40s, you know?

I do know though, that I never felt better at the state of my fitness (the fact it was while I was young is not lost on me, I should add), and I was never better stretched-out, toned, reflexive, you know...my cardio was in decent shape, I could take a punch, and so forth. I also miss the sincerity of it, and the discipline. I stopped karate a long time before Facebook and the iPhone and badge notifications and brainrot and AI slop and algorithmic attention-plundering came along, and I am really enamored by the idea of kneeling in a room with a bunch of people, none of whom have their phone on them, and seriously shutting our eyes and breathing, reflecting, feeling something meaningful and, if you will, spiritual together. Nothing like that seems to exist in modern American society, except perhaps for those who are religious.

Just curious whether anyone else has given it a try, or is thinking of it themselves. I may drag my brother back with me. That could be epochal, since he and I did karate together the first time around, and now he's got a kid we could bring with us. I think he would get all the same benefits I think I would get, from the improved fitness, to the moment of slowness and concentration in a world full of distraction and business.

I know this is a small community, but I hope some folks are still looking for new posts to engage with. I figure Lemmy is what you make it, and I'm gonna try to contribute here.

We are heading out tomorrow early morning for a tournament 2 hours from our home for my son to compete. I was just wondering what the farthest someone has traveled for a tournament. I have traveled 5 hours for a weekend seminar for myself.

Jean Pierre Lavorato is a 79-year-old Shotokan karate-do expert with more than 60 years of practice. He started in 1962 with sensei Henry Plée, the pioneer of karate in Europe, and later followed sensei Taïji Kase when he settled in France. In his youth, he became European team champion, France champion and the coach of a multitude of later France champions. Since then, he has been continuously teaching. Despite his advanced age, he keeps giving multiple traineeships a week all around France as well as the rest of the world with a seemingly inexhaustible kime. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5KYCEadDDo

Dominique Valera is a 76-year-old Full Contact karate pioneer. He began Shotokan karate in 1960, he became multiple times karate champion of France individual, European champion individual and by team, and World champion by team. From 1975, he kick-started full-contact karate in Europe, following his friend Bill Wallace and Joe Lewis. He became 4 times European full-contact champion and 2 times World vice-champion. Since then, he became the leading expert of full-contact karate in France and spends his year circulating in France to represent full-contact with incredible energy and joy.
https://youtu.be/HhoJIn2-FC4?t=592

The two masters and friends hugging each other after receiving their 10th dan.

Koyama Shojiro, in "Shotokan Masters: in their own words":

"The most important quality of a successful karate-ka is commitment to everyday training and an appreciation of the mundane. Train hard, finish, bow, and say 'thank you' for the opportunity to sweat. The most important quality for a practitioner of lifetime karate is the ability to find such satisfaction in ordinary training. The successful practitioner of lifetime karate is successful because he has had a satisfying life, not because he is a tournament champion or 10th degree black belt."

Sensei (Teriyuki) Okazaki, interviewed by Jose M. Fraguas, in "Shotokan Legends":

Q: So what happened to [your two roomates you were training with]?

A: Well, we were going to test for black belt under Master [Gichin] Funakoshi, so I was very serious about it. My roommates decided they wanted to quit. But I had made a promise and was pushing them to their limits in the training sessions in the early morning and in the afternoon. I insisted that they train for the test. Well, they passed the test but I flunked! Master Funakoshi said I was not good enough. My attitude was bad, very bad. I flunked many times because of it. I was a young guy thinking in the wrong direction. Master Funakoshi picked up on this right away. It was not my techniques which made me fail the test, since it was equal to the other students who passed, but my attitude. Finally I got really depressed so I went to ask Master Funakoshi why I failed the test. Of course, everybody was shocked that I actually went to speak to him. That never happens in Japanese traditional culture.

Q: What did Master Funakoshi say?

A: He said that he really understood my problem and that he was going to tell me the essence of karate-do -- but that I should be very prudent with its use. Then he sat down, and I did the same with great ceremony. I was so excited, and Master Funakoshi seemed to be really concentrating. I was nervous, and after a while he leaned over and said, "You know, Okazaki, the true essence of karate-do is to keep training -- keep training everyday."

Q: Was that what you expected?

A: I don't think so, but I haven't stopped training since. After that, my attitude changed and finally I got my black belt.

There is a subreddit with the same name but reddit has become unattractive for 3rd party app users and as we don't want to be dependent on the company, this community was created as an alternative.