Kenpo in the West Nottingham

In the West, Kenpo is mostly known as a mixed style based partially on Karate (and sometimes called 'Kenpo Karate'). In Japan, Kenpo can refer to a large number of different (and mostly unrelated) systems of martial arts, mostly stemming from families in the feudal period - the term Kenpo being used as an abbreviation, since the names are long.

Western Kenpo styles (known by their use of the black uniform), can trace their lineage partly to the controversial James M. Mitose, a Hawaiian born Japanese who taught several students in the late 1930s and early 1940s. This version of Kenpo falls into the category of mixed martial arts that have a basis in Karate, and incorporate Shaolin Quan and/or Kickboxing. Today, most practitioners of Kenpo in America have been trained in one version or another of the Ed Parker system, which traces its origins back through William Chow as well as James M. Mitose.

It is said by its practitioners that Kenpo follows much of the same path as Chinese martial arts, but in order to reduce the amount of time to train a person, methods from Karate were used as the basis to allow a person to learn the basics and techniques. As it often takes 10 to 20 years of continuous effort to master one form of kung fu, Kenpo practitioners often can be black belted in around 3 to 5 years, depending on the instructor.

Normal Karate usually focuses on linear attacks and blocks, or straight moves, with power being more important than learning separate techniques. Kenpo emphasises more circular moves, such as the hook, or the uppercut as main attack methods. Western Kenpo has more grappling and throws than Karate. Both Karate and Western Kenpo use kata, but Kenpo kata tend to have more techniques to them, with an emphasis on multiple hits. These multiple strikes are sequenced to demonstrate cause and effect. An opponent hit by a strike will react in a predictable way, which means that the next strike can be reasonably predetermined. This leads to long and involved sequences of strikes in the kenpo katas. Due to the length of the techniques, and their brutality, kenpo is sometimes referred to as the art of over-kill.