It depends on the class. Honestly. I attended one where the sparring was only light contact to the body, and no gear was used. I attended another where they didn't spar at all. Some schools might go full-on with boxing gloves and shin pads, though this is unlikely; others might wear the dipped-foam equipment used in semi-contact bouts where you can strike at the body and head, and may allow foot sweeps. There's really no way to know without asking the teacher.

I would agree that without a realistic sparring format, it would be hard to develop usable skills.

As for you kicks question, "acrobatic type kicks" aren't generally emphasized in Goju-Ryu karate. Some other systems might place a greater emphasis on those types of kicks, but they're less common in karate than in TKD.

I trained in Okinawan Goju Ryu for 18 years.

Do not take the "no sparring = skills not tested" myth as truth.

It is TOTAL BULLDUNG.

Screw whoever says the opposite. I'm tired of all the parrots repeating something that is BS.

If this school teaches the correct principles of the Classical Martial Arts, you develop Life Protection skills whether you "spar" or not.

This has been proven many times over in the Dojo I trained in. We did kumite everyday, but some students did not participate. They were just as effective as those who did. They are my Dojo Brothers and Sisters and they can defend themselves as well as those they love - with accuracy and confidence.

Whoever doesn't believe, it doesn't change my brothers/sisters experiences or the facts.

Many were Law Enforcement Professionals - whose lives count on their skills.

When we sparred, we did so as if we were in the street. We used protective gear and went full contact, however, that type of gear does not allow for use of Tuidijutsu, so many times we did not wear anything other than fist guards that allowed for free use of Grab-Hand Skills. For this reason, some did not participate in kumite, and it was not held against them, because they were still capable of protecting their life and inflicting great pain against an attacker.

When you train in dissecting kata and applying the techniques, using the sub-arts of Classical Chinese and Okinawan Martial Arts, you learn REAL APPLICABLE SKILLS.

When you practice these things everyday, you develop instinctive combat skills.

If this was not so, why does the US Military train this way? I served so I know how we trained. We did not train against "resisting opponents", yet our training was good enough to prepare us for REAL WAR!

How do the naysayers explain that?

first off you are wrong there is sparing in goju ryu and there is contact in some school its semi to full contact and many goju ryu schools do participate in tournaments. where every you got your information from it is wrong

it depends upon the instructor not the style

All martial arts have sparing, its the instructors that decide how much sparing you do and what type NOT the style

you need to have sparing in order to learn the moves, if the instructor doesn't spar then find another school

there may not be sparing at a beginner level but *** you advance they may have sparing

I can't really answer most of it but I can answer this,

No~You can't be a well rounded fighter without sparring. without sparring you can't really remember the moves.

It helps the muscle memory so in like real life situations it comes instantly.

I'm considering joining a 'Dojo' near where I live that teaches Okinawan Goju-ryu Karate. The sensei is a 6th Dan.

I've been doing some research and it seems like there is no sparing in Goju-ryu, and if there is you can't make contact with you partner, or sometimes '1 point, then reset' type sparing.

Is this true?

Since Goju-ryu apparently doesn't compete in tournaments, there is no competition training either, so how do you test your skills without sparing? It seems like a waste

Can you became a well rounded martial artist without sparing?

Also, just out of curiosity, does Karate have acrobatic type kicks like in TaeKwonDo?