One of the great myths out there is that Kyokushin doesn’t punch to the face. Let me clear that up. If you’re competing in Kyokushin tournaments, the rules are very clear: no punches to the face. Full-contact kicks, knees, and body strikes, yes—but no face punches. That’s tournament rules. But if you’re training Kyokushin and not adhering to tournament rules, there are no limits. In real self-defense training, you must strike to the face. At our school, we do. Now, I’ll add a caveat. We believe