Pg. 30 2025-26 Health & Wellness Magazine Lincoln Daily News More than a dojo: the healing power of Yoshukai Karate In a seemingly ordinary building in Lincoln, Illinois, a small dojo holds generations of discipline, resilience, and martial tradition. At its core stands Sensei Dan Dugan, eighthdegree black belt and founder of the Yoshukai Karate Alliance. With over five decades of training behind him, Dugan doesn’t just teach karate, he embodies it. Yoshukai Karate, meaning "training house of continuous improvement and development," was brought to the United States in 1966 by Japanese martial artist Yuki Koda, who eventually opened a school in Lincoln in 1971. Dugan began training a year later and has remained committed ever since. He opened his first dojo in Atlanta, Illinois, in 1976, and over the years, helped expand Yoshukai across the state and even into Puerto Rico. At one point his network included nine schools. Yoshukai is rooted in nine martial arts styles, including Chito-ryu, Judo, Japanese Jujutsu, Shorin-ryu, Shorei-ryu, Wadon Kung Fu, and Shaolin Boxing. While the curriculum includes sparring, weapons, and katas, Dugan emphasizes that the true heart of Yoshukai is character development. "The main emphasis is formation of character," he explained. "Trophies are nice, but they're not going to help you in a self-defense situation." That balance of practicality and personal growth came into sharp focus at age 58. A former bricklayer by trade, he fell 35 feet on a construction site, suffering a shattered face, fractured skull, broken pelvis, multiple vertebrae injuries, and internal bleeding. Despite being told he would need four weeks flat in bed and eight weeks of rehab, he returned to class in just nine weeks. “I wasn’t pop-pop punching,” he said, “but I was doing Tai Chi, keeping the metabolism moving so I could heal faster.” He credits his physical condition and mental training with his recovery. Health and wellness are central to Dugan’s philosophy. From stress relief to physical therapy, his training regimen includes deep breathing, controlled movements, and fullbody coordination. "Stress management is built into everything we do," he said. "Tighten your muscles, then relax them. That’s how you learn to control your body, and your stress." The dojo welcomes students young and old, tailoring lessons to individual needs. One young student who struggled with coordination due to their autism made remarkable progress through consistent training. "We showed his mom a few months later, and he was doing combinations, boom-boom-boom. It does work. It’s hard, but it works." Continued --
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