I quit this April after training regularly with the instructor Shihan Shockness beginning in November of 2024. I was here before the 2020 pandemic and am commenting on my second round here. There are many classes where the instructor does very little actual teaching and just jokes around with a personal friend he has in the dojo. There are many days where the dojo is more like a playground with the little kids laughing, fooling around, and hardly learning anything. At every class, the instructor spent 30-45 minutes on talking about how to get more people into the school and irrelevant personal things, or pressuring people to buy him food or give him cash for personal expenses. He was verbally abusing and cursing at me to give him money for his personal expenses such as food, medical bills, etc. after I already paid the $250 a month dojo fee, was abusing me because I did not meet all his expectations for personal favors such as helping him move and set up furniture at his apartment, and throwing insults me with baseless allegations and projections of what he is doing. When he told me to give him $100 after class for his personal expenses, and I said I would pray about it, he called me back to his dojo floor and began cursing and abusing me: "Your heart is void, It is not about the money, you dumb piece of ****. I am showing you how to be a good person. You are rude. You are disrespectful. Change your attitude. You bitched to me once that you spent $30 on food. Neriah and Helen spent hundreds. They never once came up to me with the same disrespect." A good example of him projecting what he is doing onto me is when he asked me for $65, and when I asked him what he was going to do with it, he said: "It is none of your business. You need to respect people's social boundaries." He violates people's social boundaries and falsely accuses those people of "violating" his boundaries. When I gave an example of a time when I was always available for him, by buying him medicine and masks when he was sick, he said: "No you did not. I called you to buy me medicine and set up my chair. After you brought me the food and medicine, and did the bedsheets, and I needed you to set up the chair you left and I am standing there. You went and did whatever. It took me three hours to put that chair together." Shihan Shockness continued, "I said I will never ask you for help again. That shows your bad attitude." On December 21, 2024, Shockness asked me, "Can I have $20?" I said I could not and needed to take care of myself. He persisted in asking and insulting me. "Can I have $20? You need to stop being cheap." As he persisted, I would just respond to him in the same way and he would disrespect in the same way. After a pause, Shockness continued. "I have big problems. God. You are disgusting. You know that? You bitch about spending $20. I have people who actually care about me. They spend hundreds of dollars on me for a new TV. Unlike you, I actually do have students that care about me." I said his type of humor does not get old on me. "You need to stop being so cheap and selfish. People are going to hate you and resent you. Seriously? You think this is a joke? You just want to take." Shihan Shockness's inappropriate behaviors include abusive speech, cursing, raising voice aggressively, abusing people for for selfish gain (money and personal expenses), repeatedly making unwanted requests for money and personal expenses even after answering some requests, lying, falsely accusing, distorting events to project "selfishness" onto me when he is clearly the one who is self-centered, refusing to make things right with people who were victimized, and stealing (refusing to give back $250 for cancelled classes). Shihan Shockness's inappropriate and blatantly abusive behaviors are completely contradictory to the core values of Shotokan Karate, which include respect, discipline, and integrity. I encourage him to take this opportunity for reflection and growth. Care for Shihan, but do not invest in his self-indulgence. He takes no responsibility for his immoral and abusive actions, and refuses to reconcile despite me reaching out to his friend and him. Instead, he pressures his dojo members to disassociate with me through unfriending me online. I wrote this review as a last resort. read more

Shockness Shotokan - A group photo from June 2019. As you can see, I am no slanderer and have invested emotionally a lot here. - Karate Near Me - San Francisco, California

The sensei is Wayne Shockness, a practitioner under Shotokan Karatedo for more than 35 years, and he's currently one of the few 6th degree blackbelt instructor, under the SKIF association, in the west coast. The program offers 7 classes a week, on Mon, Wed, Fri, and Sats. I've been a long term student of this Dojo for 10 years. All I can say is that Sensei Shockness had helped me to grow and become a strong individual through the philosophy of Budo. This is a traditional Japanese Shotokan style karate dojo. The classes are designed to really push you to the limit. The trainings are tough, but you get a great sense of reward afterwards. If you want to have a strong focus, build your mental, physical, and spiritual strength, this is the place to be. Quitting will come up to your mind many times during the training, but not to quit is what pushes you forward. The Dojo welcomes people in all ages! The dojo is new at this location and it's truly for everyone: students in all age group are welcome with the youngest student just 6 years old. Everyone, of course, has to sign a waiver form for liability matters, but that's standard protocol. read more

Shockness Shotokan - Dojo group picture - Karate Near Me - San Francisco, California

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I came here for the first time the other day for a free karate class I learned about from funcheapsf.com My experience was great. The sensei/teacher is Wayne Shockness, a 6th degree blackbelt who has been practicing karate for over 40 years. He is certified in Japan and this particular dojo is also apparently certified in Japan. He was very welcoming, patient, lively & informative. Unfortunately I do not have the money or time currently to commit to studying karate but if I did, I would come here. I also appreciate how willing Shockness seemed to be to work with different budgets to make karate accessible to all. His assistant? who is also a teacher, Jun, a 1st degree blackbelt was also very friendly and impressive. I highly recommend this place and the Crunch One facilities where this dojo is located are very nice. read more

I strongly recommend this dojo as a great place to learn karate and get in good shape. I've been training with Sensei Shockness for more than two years, starting as a complete beginner to karate and progressing to blue belt (intermediate) so far. I really enjoy the practice because it is a challenging workout and I enjoy hanging out with the other people in the dojo. I also really like the sparring that happens by the end of almost every class. This is a small dojo and a community - most people know each other by name. It is Karate-"do" dojo which means that it teaches not only the physical parts of karate but also the ideas of karate. As such, it enforces certain rules of behavior and mutual respect, and certain level of discipline. It is a great workout and it has developed my core and leg strength, and made me quite a bit more flexible. Practice is usually 2 hours long and includes work on stances, blocks and strikes, practice of forms (kata), strenth drills, and free sparring (kumite) with protective gear. As a software engineer I find it really helpful way to unwind from stress of work by focusing on the excerices. It works better for me than lifting weights in the gym. Sensei Shockness is 6th degree black belt and has won numerous tournaments of Karate. He has 40+ years of experience and really knows karate deeply and thoroughly and has won a lot of tournaments. He is really good at teaching sparring and I've enjoyed learning sparring from him. There are other great things anout the dojo - tournaments, special classes, guest instructors, holiday parties. read more

Shockness Shotokan is a superior dojo. Nowhere else will you learn Shotokan the way it's suppose to be taught. Sensei Shockness not only trains you in the art of karate but in the principals of karate. He also teaches real life application, and as a female I find this to be a valuable tool. Sensei Shockness has a strong focus on both kumite and kata making this a well rounded dojo. After training in karate I found improvements in my professional life as well. My skills as a chiropractor improved greatly. Becoming a member of Shockness Shotokan was on of the best things I have ever done for myself. I will definitely be bringing my son to train here when he is of age. read more

Shockness Shotokan is a superior dojo. Nowhere else will you learn Shotokan the way it's suppose to be taught. Sensei Shockness not only trains you in the art of karate but in the principals of karate. He also teaches real life application, and as a female I find this to be a valuable tool. Sensei Shockness has a strong focus on both kumite and kata making this a well rounded dojo. After training in karate I found improvements in my professional life as well. My skills as a chiropractor improved greatly. Becoming a member of Shockness Shotokan was on of the best things I have ever done for myself. I will definitely be bringing my son to train here when he is of age. read more

My 12 year old has been training in Shotokan for just under three months now. She's done very well. Wayne encourages everyone equally, and everyone trains hard! I'm going to update as things progress, but for now, I see a remarkable change in my 12 year old. She's enthusiastic about classes, and trains well with everyone from black or brown belt to white belts! read more

Shockness Shotokan is a very good dojo. My two boys just joined the dojo at the start of this year. However, both my 11 year old and 8 year old have numerous years of experience (6 and 4) in karate. We have trained at some of the best dojos in all the US and have a good perspective on QUALITY karate training. Wayne has welcomed us in and made us feel part of his karate family. I highly recommend Wayne as he has great standards and focus on traditional karate. He works well with all of his students which span over all age groups and belt ranks. We travel quite a distance to participate in his dojo but it is worth the travel as he is helping my boys on their martial arts journey. We are proud to wear his dojo patch and you will be as well. read more

I've been training here for a few months now, and I definitely enjoy it. When looking for places to train, I was trying to find a school with a decent focus on sparring. There's definitely plenty of value in basics and kata, but I've found sparring to be what I enjoy most, and wanted to avoid any place that sidelined it. Shockness Shotokan turned out to be exactly what I was looking for. Obviously, don't expect 2 straight hours of sparring, but there's 20-30 minutes of it in every class. Furthermore, both the sensei and the high rank students are damn good at it. Furthermore, this dojo has an excellent sense of community. They take their karate seriously, but also manage to be friendly and welcoming. I would recommend this place to anyone. read more

I've been training with Wayne Shockness and his students for a month. During that time I spent my most productive martial arts training ever. Wayne Shockness, the teach, is both a very good karate teacher and a good friend. He is very professional and training with him is a pleasure. I would recommend this karate dojo to anyone interested in serious Shotokan training. read more

This is a fantastic dojo! Some highlights: 1. Sensi Shockness is both an incredible skilled Karate practitioner (6th degree black belt) and an inspiring teacher. He's both easy-going and funny as well as serious about his karate. He truly wants his students to excel as martial artists and people. 2. The camaraderie in the dojo is exceptional. I started here as a complete beginner (and a very out of shape one at that!) and was welcomed wholeheartedly by the other students. Everyone has been very patient and supportive, and have pushed me to get better much quicker than I would otherwise. 3. This school emphasizes all aspects of karate training, including basic skills, forms, and sparring. 4. The workouts are REALLY challenging and fun! Each class is 2 hours and is a thorough workout. 5. Students from this dojo regularly compete in (and win) national and international tournaments, so if you're interested in martial arts competitions this is a great place to train. 6. The school has a variety of different class times that can accommodate both school and work schedules. 7. There are many senior-ranked students of all ages to learn from. 8. The location (in the Embarcardero Center) is great. The dojo is located inside of a gym and has nice locker rooms, showers, and is easy to get to from public transportation (and has a parking garage). read more

Both my 10 year old son and my 7 year daughter has been with the dojo for about 5 years. I am very happy with the dojo. It is a great place to Learn real karate i/o other place just give you belt color and pays lots money and not to learn the real thing. It is place for people want to learn the real art of karate. read more