Welcome to Our Website!


Founded by Sensei Richard Gracie in 1973, Ken Yu Kan Karate School, now headed by Sensei Michael Croft and Darin Sanders, have dedicated themselves to providing martial arts instruction, specifically authentic, traditional Japanese Karate, to the Atascadero, Templeton & Paso Robles area...

Ken Yu Kan Martial Arts is celebrating its 37th anniversary in Atascadero! Find out why so many people just like you have chosen to learn the martial arts and all it has to offer at Ken Yu Kan. We practice Shotokan Karate-Do, the most widely practiced style of Karate in Japan. Shotokan is a proven, balanced martial art that provides a student with unsurpassed self-defense techniques, as well as providing superior physical conditioning. At Ken Yu Kan, you'll learn the self-defense skills you need, sharpen your mental skills, lose weight, and develop lean muscle.

Train with the area’s finest, most experienced martial artists in a friendly, helpful, traditional, NON-COMPETITIVE environment. Whether you are complete beginner to the martial arts, or you've trained previously and wish to further your training, you are welcome & encouraged to visit our beautiful Dojo. Start enjoying the martial arts today, taught with intergrity, the way it was originally intended.

We hope you enjoy our website and will stop by and visit us if you are in the area. This site is designed to give you information about our facility, our style of martial arts, our staff and provide you with information on how to contact us as well.



Ken Yu Kan's state-of-the-art Training Facility


Ken Yu Kan (Translated "The House of Fists & Friendship") offers one of the finest Dojos (training facilities) in the U.S., located right here locally at 3210 El Camino Real. We're located about halfway between Kennedy Club Fitness and the Mission Oaks Annex at Del Rio Rd. (Big Lots, Etc.). Just look for the red "KEN YU KAN Martial Arts" sign on our building, along with the red Shotokan Tiger symbol. Our clean, modern facility is nearly twice the size of our old location and nothing has been spared to create this beautiful, 3,600 square foot Dojo. It promises to be the finest martial arts training center you've experienced. More news is coming, but in the meantime, please note our new address. We look forward to seeing you here!

Ken Yu Kan Offers Variety of New Classes!

In an effort to offer you a wide range of fitness programs, we are excited to announce that we are now offering YOGA & PILATES!

Hatha, Kundalini, and Sport Yoga, as well as Spencer (mat & ball) Pilates are now being taught by a Certified Yoga and Pilates instructor Skydrea Hull. Yoga will improve your flexibility, balance, strength, and sense of well-being. Pilates will strengthen and tone every muscle and muscle group in your body, especially your core. Pilates has been proven to strengthen your immune system, and can have restorative and rehabilitative effects. Both the Yoga and Pilates classes will be tailored to meet the individual needs and abilities of each student. Yoga & Pilates classes are currently held Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings from 9:00-10:00 AM, as well as Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday afternoons 4:00-5:00 PM.

For more info on our Yoga & Pilates Classes, call 466-0261.

What is Karate?

"True karate is this: that in daily life one's mind and body be trained and developed in a spirit of humility, and that in critical times, one be devoted utterly to the cause of justice."
-- Gichin Funakoshi, Founder of Shotokan Karate-Do and creator of the phrase "Karate"

Karate translated either means "Chinese hand" or "Empty hand" depending on which Japanese or Chinese characters you use to write it.

Okinawan Karate styles tend to be hard and external. In defense they tend to be circular, and in offense linear. Okinawan Karate styles tend to place more emphasis on rigorous physical conditioning than the Japanese styles. Japanese styles tend to have longer, more stylistic movements and to be higher commitment. They also tend to be linear in movement, offense, and defense.

Both tend to be high commitment, and tend to emphasize kicks and punches, blocks, strikes, evasions, throws, joint manipulations and a strong offense as a good defense. Karate techniques consist basically of hand and foot techniques. Hand techniques are divided into defensive or offensive moves. Foot techniques are divided into kicking techniques; snap and thrust kicks. Other important elements of Karate include stances, posture, body shifting, hip rotation, and breathing.

Training differs widely but most of the Karate styles emphasize a fairly equal measure of basic technique training (kihon), sparring (kumite), and forms (kata). Forms are stylized patterns of attacks and defenses done in sequence for training purposes.

An art of self-defense as well as a sport, Karate has in recent decades proliferated worldwide. It is one of the most widely practiced of the Asian martial arts, with a large following in the U.S., Japan and Europe. For more information about martial arts, click on "you should know" on the left of this page.

Ken Yu Kan Members Earn More Honors

Brown and Black Belt competitors representing Ken Yu Kan Martial Arts in Atascadero recently competed successfully in the Central California Coast Karate Championships held in Arroyo Grande. The tournament was a USKA sanctioned event, hosted locally by Shinjin Karate, Rebecca Prewitt Head Instructor.

Nigel Croft won first place in Men’s Brown Belt Kumite (Point Fighting). His twin brother Quentin Croft took second place for a one-two Ken Yu Kan sweep of the division. The tournament utilized single-elimination bracketing which ultimately pitted the twin brothers against each other in the finals. “It was difficult to watch my sons compete against each other, but the way they were defeating their opponents one-by-one leading up to the finals, I just knew they’d end up against each other. I just rooted for both of them and hoped neither of them got hurt”, said Sensei Michael Croft, Ken Yu Kan’s Head Instructor and father of the twins. “I was very proud to see them take first and second; that was a tough division and they were the youngest ones in it”.

Nigel Croft also took second place in Men’s Brown Belt Kata (Forms), while Quentin Croft took fourth in that division.

Sensei Olaf Saul earned first place in Men’s Black Belt Kumite (Point Fighting). A large group of spectators gathered late in the day, as Black Belt Kumite is always a crowd favorite. Sensei Saul competed with men from various styles of martial arts, including Karate, Tae Kwon Do, and MMA. “The competition was really tough” said Michael Croft, “But Olaf’s level of focus and intensity, combined with the his incredible skill, allowed him to go undefeated. I was concerned about him because he was recovering from back problems that he had been suffering all week. You would have never known to watch him fight, though”. Sensei Saul was also recognized by the tournament director for his outstanding sportsmanship. Compliments to Shinjin Karate and the USKA for hosting such a good tournament. We have experienced problems at "Open Tournaments" in the past, however we found at this event that the judging was fair, they were strict about techniques and points, and all competitors were held to a high standard of etiquette and sportsmanship.

Below are photos (L-R) of Olaf Saul, Nigel Croft, Quentin Croft, and Michael Croft: