David Colaizzi
Senior Instructor
8th Dan, Karate-do
Hanshi
7th Dan, Okinawan Shorin-ryu
You Do Not Have to Be Ready Before You Begin
Many adults postpone martial arts because they believe they should first become stronger, lose weight, improve their flexibility, or get back into shape. That reverses the process. Training is where you begin developing movement, balance, coordination, and greater confidence in how your body works.
CoVA Karate provides structured Okinawan Shorin-ryu karate training in Virginia Beach for complete beginners, returning martial artists, working professionals, veterans, and serious teens 17+ who are prepared for a mature learning environment.
You do not need previous experience or advanced fitness to begin. You need a willingness to learn, accept correction, and practice consistently.
Beginner Training at a Realistic Pace
New students are not expected to move like experienced martial artists on their first day. Instruction begins with posture, balance, weight transfer, coordination, foundational techniques, and an understanding of how the body moves.
The objective is not to rush through material or earn rank quickly. It is to build a dependable foundation through clear instruction, correction, repetition, and progressive practice.
You Do Not Need Previous Experience
Complete beginners are welcome. Terminology, movement, class structure, and expectations are introduced step by step.
You Do Not Need Advanced Fitness or Flexibility
You do not need exceptional strength, endurance, coordination, or flexibility before your first class. Training begins from your current starting point and develops progressively.
You Are Not Expected to Keep Up With Everyone Else
Students enter the dojo with different bodies, backgrounds, responsibilities, and levels of experience. Progress is measured by how your own movement, understanding, and capability develop over time.
Returning to Martial Arts After Years Away
Returning martial artists often remember more than their bodies can immediately reproduce. Timing may feel slower, balance may feel different, and movements that were once automatic may require attention again.
You are not beginning from nothing, but you are also not expected to perform exactly as you did years ago. Previous experience becomes useful again as you rebuild timing, posture, coordination, and body awareness.
CoVA instructors will help you understand how your earlier training relates to the Okinawan Shorin-ryu system taught here without assuming that every school uses the same terminology, rank standards, or methods.
What Adult Beginners Actually Study
Training is organized as one connected method rather than a collection of unrelated activities. Beginners gradually learn how fundamental movement supports technique, how solo practice supports partner work, and how principles carry across the curriculum.
Movement, Posture, and Structure
Students practice stepping, turning, shifting, posture, weight transfer, balance, and coordinated whole-body movement. These fundamentals provide the structure behind later technical work.
Timing, Distance, and Coordination
Repetition helps the hands, feet, hips, posture, breathing, and attention work together with less unnecessary tension. Controlled partner exercises introduce timing, distance, positioning, awareness, and appropriate contact.
Kata and Kobudo
Kata provides a framework for studying movement, transitions, structure, and application. Kobudo—traditional Okinawan weapons practice—supports the same study of alignment, coordination, distance, and intent.
Practical Application and Self-Defense Awareness
Students examine how trained movement can be applied with a partner. Practical skill develops progressively through attention, correction, repetition, and controlled practice; it is not presented as a guarantee of any particular outcome.
What to Expect in Your First Classes
Your first classes introduce you to the dojo, the instructors, foundational movement, and the general structure of training. You may work on posture, stepping, balance, basic striking mechanics, simple kata movements, coordination exercises, or controlled partner concepts.
The exact material depends on your experience, physical starting point, and the class being taught. You are encouraged to ask questions, and you are not expected to memorize everything immediately.
Training takes place in the regular adult class, allowing you to experience the actual teaching environment rather than a separate sales presentation or simplified demonstration.
A Mature Environment for Adult Students
CoVA Karate is designed for adults and serious teens 17+ who want focused instruction and steady development. Students include professionals, veterans, military personnel and families, business owners, complete beginners, and people returning after long breaks.
The atmosphere is respectful and low-ego. Serious training does not require unnecessary intimidation. It requires clear instruction, honest effort, correction, repetition, and consistency.
Students do not have to pursue tournament championships or competitive fighting. Practical martial skill remains part of the training, but competition is not the program’s organizing purpose.
A Practice You Can Continue Developing
Karate provides physical activity, but it is also a continuing study. Attention, problem solving, timing, coordination, correction, and repetition give students meaningful material to revisit as their understanding develops.
CoVA’s Train for 70 philosophy encourages students to train today with long-term capability in mind: useful movement, adaptability, coordination, and skill that can continue developing over decades. It is a training philosophy, not a medical promise.
Learn More About Training at CoVA Karate
For a broader overview of the adult program, visit Adult Martial Arts in Virginia Beach.
To understand the art and the process of beginning, read What Is Karate and How Do You Start?
For a closer look at regular training, visit Karate Classes in Virginia Beach.
Learn more about the school, instructors, and history on the About CoVA Karate page.
Frequently Asked Questions About Starting Martial Arts as an Adult
Am I Too Old to Begin Martial Arts?
Adults begin martial arts at many different ages. Training is introduced progressively so students can develop movement, balance, coordination, and confidence at a realistic pace.
Do I Need to Get in Shape Before Starting?
No. You do not need to prepare for martial arts by first going to the gym. Training begins from your current starting point and progressively develops movement, coordination, and physical capacity.
Do I Need Previous Karate or Martial Arts Experience?
No previous experience is required. Complete beginners are welcome. Instruction begins with foundational movement, posture, balance, coordination, and essential karate skills.
Can I Return After Being Away From Martial Arts for Years?
Yes. Returning martial artists can rebuild timing, mobility, coordination, and confidence while reconnecting with their previous experience.
What if I Am Not Flexible or Coordinated?
Exceptional flexibility and coordination are not requirements for beginning. Both can develop gradually through movement, repetition, correction, and consistent practice.
Will I Be Expected to Keep Up With Experienced Students?
No. Students enter the dojo with different bodies, backgrounds, and levels of experience. Progress is based on how each student’s movement, understanding, and capability develop over time.
Do Adult Beginners Have to Spar?
Beginners are not immediately placed into uncontrolled sparring. Partner training is introduced progressively and focuses on movement, awareness, timing, distance, structure, and control.
What Type of Martial Arts Does CoVA Karate Teach?
CoVA Karate teaches traditional Okinawan Shorin-ryu karate. Training includes foundational movement, kata, kobudo, posture, balance, timing, controlled partner work, self-defense awareness, and practical application.
Can Serious Teens Train With the Adults?
Yes. Serious teens 17+ who are prepared for a focused and mature dojo environment may train alongside adults.
How Do New Students Begin?
New students can choose a 1-Day Free Evaluation or a 2-Week Audit for $50 with up to four regular classes. Both options take place in the regular adult training environment.
Meet the CoVA Karate Instructors
CoVA Karate’s instructors bring together decades of martial arts training, teaching, and continued study. Karate-do credentials and Okinawan Shorin-ryu ranks are separate recognitions and are identified according to the system through which each was awarded.
Sean Schroeder
Owner and Director
7th Dan, Karate-do
6th Dan, Okinawan Shorin-ryu
Vinh Dinh
Instructor
5th Dan, Karate-do
Renshi
3rd Dan, Okinawan Shorin-ryu
Learn more about their backgrounds, training history, and teaching approach on the About CoVA Karate page.
National Karate Jujutsu Federation
CoVA Karate’s instructors are members of the National Karate Jujutsu Federation, commonly known as the NKJF. Karate-do credentials and Okinawan Shorin-ryu ranks are identified separately.
Begin Martial Arts Training in Virginia Beach
CoVA Karate
3157 Shipps Corner Road, Suite 106
Virginia Beach, VA 23453
Tuesday & Thursday
7:00–8:30 PM
Arrival by 6:45 PM
CoVA Karate serves adults and serious teens 17+ from Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Norfolk, and surrounding Hampton Roads communities.