Sensei Dave Stewart

3rd Dan
Current Level 2 First Aid Certificate
Working with Children Check

In my first year of high school, a friend invited me along to a karate class. I went along never imagining that this would be life-defining move – but it was. The year was 1992 and I trained with Zen Do Kai for the next three years. I achieved the rank of brown belt and loved all aspects of karate. Then the lure of football arose alongside peer pressure from my friends to play. My parents gave me the choice: karate or footy? For a time, footy won.

Fast-forward a few years and another friend led me back to karate. Once again that passion for karate grew inside me. At one stage, I was training six days a week. During this time, I also trained in the mixed martial art style of Fudoshin. Here, I developed some new skills and life-long friendships. Then, in 1999, I met a girl who shared the same interest and passion for karate as me. Her name was Leanne and we have continued to further our karate and life journey together.

Over the years, I trained in Cranbourne, Somerville and Frankston. In that time, Leanne and I got married and started a family. So eventually karate needed to take a back seat for the time being. I returned to karate as time allowed but after the birth of our second child, I took another short break. Colic, reflux – need I say more? But before I knew it, our eldest was old enough to own his first Gi. Naturally, I couldn’t let him train alone so I was back in my Gi too.

My next step in my karate journey was the long-awaited goal of Black Belt. I knuckled down. My training and my fitness levels were pumped – but a challenge awaited me. Four weeks before my Black Belt grading, I suffered a severe knee injury. My Black Belt milestone was one I’d been working towards since I first put on a Gi at 12 years old. I was devastated but determined that an injury wasn’t going to keep me from my goal. I scheduled my knee reconstruction for the end of the year. Against my surgeon’s advice, I successfully graded for my 1st Dan Black Belt with a heavily strapped knee just four days before my surgery date.

Karate is at the heart of many of my life’s milestones. One of the most defining is opening Kenshin Karate Langwarrin in 2012. Leanne and I had long dreamed of opening our own dojo and sharing our skills and passion with our students. We grew Kenshin Karate from the ground up. We began training in the school hall of St Jude’s Primary School in Langwarrin. Numbers were small but they soon grew. Then, in 2013 we set up and moved to a dedicated state-of-the-art karate dojo, the first of its kind in Langwarrin. Kenshin Karate has grown into a force to be reckoned with. We train everyone from beginner to black belt, kindergarten children to adults. Our students are strongly represented in tournaments. Several have competed both in Australia and internationally. Every day though, we take pride in supporting our students to grow their strength, fitness and confidence while achieving their individual karate goals.

Some advice for those starting their karate journey: be patient. Don’t expect to know everything all at once. It will come with time and persistence. Train hard and you will see the results, probably some that you never imagined were possible.

 OSU!