 The Art of One Dojo is funded in part by Patreon. Help keep the channel running and gain access to exclusive content, including behind the scenes looks, training tips, outtakes, throwback videos, ebooks, free video workshops, store discounts, episode early access, and more. Join the Dojo today! We live in very privileged times. It used to be that if you wanted to train in the martial art, you either had to find a teacher in a village that would take you in or be accepted to the temple or even join the military. Or in some countries, the privilege of training in the arts was restricted to the upper echelons of society. Thankfully, it's not like that anymore, and we can be free to choose a school of our liking and learn pretty much any art that we would like. And in even more recent years, a whole new avenue of training has become available, one that transcends age, class, geography, and even cultural availability. I'm referring to online martial arts training programs in which you can learn a martial art in the comfort of your own home. Now, this is me bucking my seatbelt because I can already feel some of you revving up to take me for a ride in the comment section. But before you do, let's see if these programs even measure up. Want to learn karate in the comfort of your own home? Then sign up for Mr. Dan's Online Dose System! Learn how to punch, kick, block, and use weapons. We teach you combinations so you can punch, punch, kick, punch, kick, and kick punch. The possibilities are endless! If you still learned the secrets of the arts and with a low price of only 10 monies, you can earn your way up to Black Belt in the comfort of your own living room. Log on to Dojo today! Now, while some of you might have laughed, I'm sure we have some viewers watching right now that feel pretty insulted by this example. Now, I did this on purpose because this is a very common perception of what online training programs are. Many people write them off as hokey, gimmicky, and a cash grab. The point of this episode is to break that perception and examine exactly what they're really like on a more honest and objective level. So what exactly is an online martial arts training program? Well, in a nutshell, these are services that you can sign up for to learn a martial art online. For example, if you want to learn shodokan, you can find a shodokan online program, sign up for it, get access to lessons plans, train on your own, and then you submit your own personal test footage and then you rank in the system. And there seem to be two main different business models to this, or at least of the variety that I saw. This program can either be a pay-as-you-go type program, which, you know, you're paying in increments for each access to each belt level or a group of belts, or some programs have a flat fee up front that gives you access to the entire curriculum at once. Now once you have the material, you download it, you watch it, you practice it at your own pace and understanding, and when you are ready, you set up a camera, film yourself performing the material for the rank you're testing for. Now usually you need to show it multiple times, both sides facing different angles and directions so that the instructor can get a clear view of your performance. You also need to make sure the video is clear, in focus, and that the audio is clean enough for you to be understood. When you are satisfied with your test, you take that video file, you upload it to their site where it will be reviewed, judged, and you will either get a pass or be sent corrections feedback to try again. Most sites have a testing fee, which in my observation seem to be balanced with whichever payment model they have in place. So the pay-as-you-go programs tend to have slightly higher testing fees since you're paying smaller increments at a time for material, and those that have the flat rate up front for the whole program, they seem to have more of the smaller testing fees. This is not an absolute of course, but it's just a general observation that I saw. Now sometimes the testing fees can be based on what you get back. So some programs will send you an official certificate, a patch, and a belt. Sometimes you just get a certificate, sometimes you don't get anything but a congratulations. So when you're looking at the testing fees, try to kind of factor in what you think you're getting in return for them. Now, if you find a program that in any way resembles our little parody, then don't even bother with them. Any program that promises elite training, 100% success, unbeatable techniques, or any obscure secrets are most likely a scam. There is no such thing as 100% unbeatable techniques, and if you find programs that promote this, then don't waste your time and keep looking. There are plenty of other programs out there that have way more credence. So can a person really learn an art from an online martial arts training program? Before we answer that, let's break down some of the pros and cons. The pros, well, first and foremost, the number one advantage these programs have is freedom. Freedom to choose an art at your leisure, freedom to train at your pace, and freedom to structure your own workouts. You also get to set your own schedule. You're not bound by specific class, times, and lengths. If you get home from work and you want to work out at 8 p.m. for an hour or so, great. Are you an early bird and you want to train at sunrise? No problem. Are you an eye doll and you prefer to train at 3 in the morning? Have at it. You are your own schedule, trained when and however long you want to. I also have to say that being able to progress at your own pace is a big advantage too. People absorb material at different rates than others. Your previous experience can also play a huge factor. If you're just starting out in the martial arts, then naturally it's going to take you longer to get through the material. If you have a lot of experience, then you're going to get through it faster, possibly even bypassing some levels. You also have the luxury of exploring a topic you choose to. Now, in a classroom setting, you might be shown a basic, work on it for a bit, and then move on to another drill. Within that home program, if you want to stop and spend the extra time to break something down or experiment, you have the total luxury to do so. You could also watch the videos whenever you want. And I don't mean in a workout session, but you can watch and mentally review curriculum at any time. You're stuck on the train on the way to and from work. You want to watch something on your lunch break? Are you washing dishes? There's nothing wrong with putting the video on, play it from your phone, and at least listen and get the gist of something. That way, you're familiar with it, and you can go back later during your next workout and practice it and solidify it. Now, there's also usually no dress code, so if you can work out in whatever clothing you feel comfortable in. Some people prefer to work out in a gi anyway, but you are the master of your own dojo. Rock those pajamas if you want to. You get the test on your own. Set up a quiet spot in the back of the living room, in the basement, on the patio, wherever you have enough room. Set up the camera and record yourself going through the material. You don't have to rush. There's no one in front of you pressuring you. There's no panel judging you. And if you feel like you could have done something better, you have the luxury to delete it and simply start over again. You're also not restricted by geography. I can't tell you how many people have told me that they wanted to train in the specific art, but there weren't any schools for that in their area. Distance plays a huge factor, but it's not an issue with the online programs. As long as there's a program for it, you can train from anywhere in the world. Plus as an added bonus, there's no commute time to class. And finally, it's cheaper than the dojo. Generally speaking, if it's a pay-as-you-go or purchase a whole curriculum type program, you're going to save quite a bit of money in the long run. Now this can be especially helpful for people on a fixed income, but still want to train and they can't afford multi-tuition. So honestly, as you can see, the online programs do offer some rather attractive benefits. However, like with most things, there is a trade-off. You're learning from video material. This is not the same as learning from a live person. In a real dojo setting, an instructor can demonstrate something and you can choose a good vantage point and ask for elaboration if you have a question. On video, you're restricted to what they present you, whatever angle they're showing you. If something's not clear in the video, you can't just like switch angles to view something better or ask a question. Also, not everyone can learn from a video. You've got, especially if you don't have any prior experience. With a TV screen, you've got mirrored images to deal with and coordination challenges. And a lot of people will kind of try to find their orientation and try to match their body with what's on screen. It can be confusing sometimes if you're not used to that. Also, it's not just an instructor you're not interacting with. You're missing out on working with live classmates. The best way to learn how a technique works is to actually do it on a live person, even if it's just a slow training speed. You won't get real-time feedback or the experience of working with different people. In a classroom, if you step into the wrong stance or execute a technique incorrectly, usually an instructor or senior student can correct you immediately. With the online programs, that mistake won't go corrected until maybe your testing video, which by then might have become a habit. The obvious drawback to is you lose any resistance training. You will not get any conditioning that you would have gotten in a live class and you're missing out on sparring, which is a major drawback if your goal is to learn self-defense or fighting. Shadow boxing is great, but it is not a replacement for life sparring. You also lose out on the culture of the classroom. Learning dojo etiquette, training methods, discipline and respect, and the experience of a learning environment. Sometimes that could be more fulfilling than the freedom to work out in your boxers. Another thing you have to be vigilant about is to make sure you're learning what you think you're learning. It is very easy to confuse a lineage or style of one system with another. Just recently I was talking to someone who thought they were learning the main system of one style because the instructor learned it from the founder and upon close inspection we realized it was actually a completely different offshoot. It was misleading because the grandmaster's name was used so it was implied that it was the official lineage when it was in fact not and it was an offshoot. So that is something you need to be cautious about because it's pretty fair to say that a significant amount of online martial arts programs are spinoff arts. Also, the burden of training is on you. Yay, you got your freedom to train where you want and how you want, but the responsibility to do it is now on you. You have to be disciplined enough to set up a schedule and stick to it. You are in charge of your lesson plans, reviews and testing. It is really easy to get into it as a fad and it let it taper off slowly as you get busy or bored. So even though you can train at your leisure, you still have to show up for class if you want any benefit out of it and it's cheaper than a dojo. You might have saved a lot of money, but remember, you often get what you pay for. So there is a clear balance here. There are both advantages and drawbacks to these programs. The real question comes down to what exactly do you want to get out of it? Also, in the interest of being fair, it would be very irresponsible of me to stand up here and tell all of you what is good or bad about these programs if I had not done one myself. So in the interest of exploration, I signed up for one and I've been working on it for roughly about four to five weeks by the time this episode comes out. I'm not gonna specify the program because honestly it's irrelevant, but it is an offshoot in the hybrid of Waterloo and Shodokan Karate. Shodokan is a system I've been interested in for a little bit, so I figured this would at least lay some good groundwork. So I will give my initial impression now and as I go through the program, I will report back periodically and also as a wrap up to see if my perceptions change at all. This is not a platform for me to bash any system nor promote one, but rather take an objective look at the experience of training at home. And as a side note in regards to Shodokan, I am using an at home training program and or at least material and books to lay the initial groundwork and read through the basics. My plan is to do this for a while and then go to a local Shodokan dojo to validate and progress the training. Now that being said, I recently picked up this book on Shodokan called the Shodokan Karate Bible. I've been reading through it and it gives a lot of great info on learning the system. It's almost a comprehensive curriculum itself. So it's a great place to start if you wanna kinda check it out and I highly recommend it. And if you're interested in it, I've got it down in the description below. So please check out that link. So at this point in time, I am enjoying it. The system is a lot simpler than Kempo, which is really extensive in terms of basics or key home. I was able to get through the first belt pretty quickly almost because all the first belt or basics I had previously learned. And I was able to experience at least one test before filming this video. I made the very poor choice to test outside, which is in the middle of the Florida summer. So for those of you who know what that's like, you are right to judge me. I am not a smart man. The heat was grueling and I had to take frequent water breaks, but it did feel good to push through and sweat hard for a test again. I passed and I was sent a certificate for Yellabout and I was told that we would go at the pace that I could keep up with. So my initial thoughts are, it's really nice to have this freedom. I work in video production for a living and my schedule is radically different every week. So while I do train at a dojo in Jiu-Jitsu and Judo, I can't always make as many classes as I would like. And the ability to come home at 10 p.m. and practice for an hour really is a luxury. I also have years of experience working and reviewing off a video, so that part doesn't bother me at all. But that being said, even though a lot of the basics are the same, there are still a few others that are new. A couple of new stances and different ways execute blocks being the primary example. So I am taking my time to observe the differences, compare them with what I can find online for Shodokan and other traditional Japanese arts and see how they fit in. A lot of systems have the same basics, but they might have slight alterations, so you have to be cautious about that. Additionally, there was one misunderstanding already that I feel is really worth noting. And this goes back to the con of not getting that live correction. In one of the stances, there was a very small detail of foot alignment and I wasn't entirely clear on the explanation given in the video and the instructor was demonstrating on an angle that for me personally, didn't quite show what I was confused on, so I had it incorrect. Thankfully, this is a program that allows you to send in questions, so I did, and he wrote back and clarified it for me, and I was in fact performing it slightly incorrectly. Having a mistake like that in a foundational part of a system such as a stance can have a major detrimental effect on the rest of your training. I cannot stress enough how important it is that while I do see the benefits, there are still some serious pitfalls you have to watch out for. So can an online martial arts training program replace real-life dojo? The short answer is no, it cannot, at least not completely. In order to fully learn a system in its entirety and effectively, you have to have hands-on experience of live training. But not everybody can train in dojo. I've talked to a couple of viewers who are disabled and they can't go to the dojo, but they use this either as a way to work out and exercise at home or as a form of rehab to get stronger. So to answer their question, are these programs sufficient? You have to know your goals. They are good for working out whether for weight loss, rehab, or other health reasons. They could be a great introduction to the martial arts if you have no experience or they could be a great supplement if you do. These are good for learning a lot of basics and understanding how a system works, where it comes from, and the further your own education. That's where the strength of these programs come in. But if you're interested in self-defense, competition, or just a general ability to fight and you do not have any previous experience and you are not gonna find that with an online program, you need live experience. It's like learning how to drive a car. You can read all the technical manuals and rules of the road all you want, perhaps to the point of being an expert, but you will never be able to drive until you physically get behind the wheel and put in some stick time. Theory is one thing, but developing the feel of the road and how different vehicles react and handle is another thing altogether. If you're interested in academics, basics, and the workout, then an at-home program is perfectly legitimate. But if you wanna learn how to fight, then you have to have hands-on experience with a live person. There's no easy way around that. So in closing, if you are interested in trying an online program, then I suggest looking at several before deciding. Trust me, the options are plentiful. Verify that it is the art you wanna learn and not an offshoot. Look for programs that allow you to ask questions and reach out for feedback. If possible, try to find a program that doesn't charge you multiple times for the same test. Many of them will charge you once, but let you take the test as many times as you need to the past it. I also recommend programs that will also give you written manuals to supplement the video because these can be very valuable in self-correction. And most importantly, be very clear in your goals and try to manage realistic expectations. So thank you so much for watching. I've actually talked to several viewers about the programs that they're working on at home. And if any of you out there are currently engaged in your own online program, please tell me all about it. I would love to hear to details what you like about it and what you think it lacks in. And I'll be sure to check back in with more updates as I go through this because I think this is definitely a topic worth coming back to you. So thank you all again for watching. Please be sure to click on the bell icon and subscribe to get those notifications. And please share this video with your friend and always give the thumbs up. Thanks guys, love ya.