hmmn? karate really that good?

[mexa]

so apparently for what ive seen, karate is one of the best ways to exercise right? why? well 2 of my friends, who supposedly went to karate for a good while, are really strong and have abs. Buuut, is it hard? gruesome or something? painful? um...is it actually SUCH good exercise you get abs? Well ive wanted to exercise for a really long while now, since i dont ever do anything but play videogames and go to school, and even though of that im not "fat" or something, my family keeps saying im slim, which i am, and ive got no belly fat =D which is something i should exploit if i exercise right? i only weight 60 kg, im 1.75m tall and im 14 years old. So my point here is...well maybe a couple, should i try and find a karate school or however its said for exercising? Is karate any hard/exhausting/hard to learn?

i might be forgeting some questions but ill edit as soon as i remember haha.
sorry if its too long or it doesnt make any sense at all but i do my best xD
thanks to all in advance!

[Mzor203]

It's not exactly the actual punching kicking part of it that's hard apparently, but my brother says that the exercises they do beforehand to warm up are crazy. And they have fitness tests as part of the belt testing, so you do get fit. It sounds pretty intense. So, it is a good way to get some exercise.

[Oblivion]

I love karate. I've done it for almost a year now, and it's really fun. Not excruciatingly hard, or painful. It's been pretty easy to learn as well. I would assume you've heard it's great for exercise because you're rarely sitting around (as in waiting for a turn, etc.) and you're kind of... Using your body the way it's meant to be used.
But like any sport or exercise, the amount you put in is the amount you get out.

Most of all, you should be having fun. Sure, exercise is healthy, but how great is it if you aren't having fun?

[AllThatIsLeft]

Martial arts wise, karate isn't the best option.
BUT...
Karate does give you great workouts :)
intense, non-stop, and defently body friendly (after the pain is gone :D)

[Jean Poutine]

It depends on the school.

Some karate schools do fuck-all warmups and kata over and over and over, which is not extenuating at all.

I'm doing Judo, now for a couple months, and the first time I went I nearly threw up from the warm-up alone. I was very sedentary like you and my body got a shock seeing me do exercice. So the first few lessons will be grueling.

Our warm-up consists of stretches, various muscle exercices (sit-ups, push-ups, shrimps, etc) and about a hundred or so uchikomi (meaning throw repetitions).

Even if you're not fat, it doesn't mean you're any more healthy than someone who is. I know a few slightly overweight people who are in great shape, much greater than me. I also know thin people (girls especially) who would faint halfway through the warm-up I do three times a week. I'm an average build myself, used to be a little overweight.

Sedentarity is the big killer, not necessarily fat.

Bottom line, try a course where you want to go first. If you faint or throw up, that's a good enough workout. Your body will adjust.

If you're going to learn to fight, try to find a Kyokushin school. Most other schools of other types of karate play tag with sparring gear, which will lend you nowhere. Kyokushin is full-contact and with little gear. Judo is another good one if you want to fight, but that's not Karate.

The martial art itself doesn't really matter if you're going for a workout. Hell, try cardioboxing?