These areas include the face, neck, solar plexus, spinal column, groin, and kidneys. In ordinary karate competitions or exhibitions, only the area of the body above the waist is allowed as a target, and all blows are to be pulled. The most common blows used are chops or knife hands, knuckle punches, hammerblows, finger jabs, and front, side, back, round, jump, and stamping kicks. In actual fighting, any of these blows can be fatal. The karate trainee toughens hands and feet by driving them into containers of sand, rice, or gravel and by striking sandbags and special punching boards.
Constant exercises are important for limbering up and for strengthening the muscles of the body.
Such breathing and cries help the rhythm of the karate attack, focus more force in each blow or block, and psychologically invigorate a person while disconcerting the opponent. The language of karate is chiefly Japanese. A karate training hall or gym is called a dojo, and the white, pajamalike garment worn in all training is called the gi. More than 200 specific Japanese terms are used for the various blows and moves that are employed in formal exercises called kata. Degrees of achievement are formally recognized in karate training, each represented by a cloth belt of a particular color worn around the gi, the usual colors being, in ascending order, white, green, purple, brown, and black.