I put a call in to T. yesterday. He trained bloody hard in the year or so during which I was teaching, and he was starting to get pretty good, but unfortunately I had all the hassle with changing location, taking onboard the kids from Dan’s old dojo and time pressures with my change of lifestyle etc. T stuck with it until I took the decision to close up the dojo and I honestly felt like I’d let him down. Teaching the kids had its merits, but it was never what really interested me at that stage.
I'm still more interested in teaching adults, since it has a direct impact on my own technique and also gives me the opportunity to practice for myself.
30 Sept 2008
26 Sept 2008
Scary stuff
I’ve just acknowledged another lesson re-learned last night. In order to stay sharp, do something that scares you on a regular basis. Get your adrenaline going. Get your body used to the rush and learn to work with it. Become familiar with the adrenal response and how it affects your motor skills, vision, clarity of thinking etc.
It’s no wonder I blanked this out last night. When you’re tired it’s not easy to take onboard challenging advice.
It’s no wonder I blanked this out last night. When you’re tired it’s not easy to take onboard challenging advice.
25 Sept 2008
Choice of Lesson / The Poker Game
I'm not interested in sport karate. Not really.
So when we started to work on some sport techniques in class tonight I was a bit disappointed and part of my mind was dismissive of what was being shown to us.
Lesson 1: You can't always choose the nuggets of useful info that may get thrown your way.
However, just as I was getting frustrated, I was quickly taught that I should be taking note, since sport karate is largely about deceiving your opponent and that deception allows you to land your technique.
Just like pre-emption on the street.
I have bad "tells" too. My partner saw me coming a mile off and each time told me why.
"You're taking a breath before each attack,"
"Now you're dipping into the movement"
"Your punching arm is telegraphing because you're winding it up"
"Your eyes widen each time you're about to launch"
Working on strikes infront of a mirror while staying relaxed should assist in patching some of these flaws.
So when we started to work on some sport techniques in class tonight I was a bit disappointed and part of my mind was dismissive of what was being shown to us.
Lesson 1: You can't always choose the nuggets of useful info that may get thrown your way.
However, just as I was getting frustrated, I was quickly taught that I should be taking note, since sport karate is largely about deceiving your opponent and that deception allows you to land your technique.
Just like pre-emption on the street.
I have bad "tells" too. My partner saw me coming a mile off and each time told me why.
"You're taking a breath before each attack,"
"Now you're dipping into the movement"
"Your punching arm is telegraphing because you're winding it up"
"Your eyes widen each time you're about to launch"
Working on strikes infront of a mirror while staying relaxed should assist in patching some of these flaws.
23 Sept 2008
Pushing Against an Open Door
I think this blog will be very beneficial as time goes on – a great resource to refer back to. The Word file format I’m using at present is very easy to access from my desktop on a daily basis. It’s the easy access that has meant I’m writing quite so frequently.
One important task I have yet to tackle is the formation of a solo training regime. I want to improve my actual physical techniques and strength.
Here are some solo training tips I have just grabbed from the web:
“Use only one submission technique for the whole session. If all you are using is a straight armbar the opponent will get pretty good at defending it and you will get much better at figuring out answers to their counters. The next time, switch to a different technique.”
“When sparring beginners allow them to start with you pinned or nearly submitted – work your escapes!”
“It's fine to build stamina on your own. Solo training is great for building up the numbers of punches and kicks you can perform in a row. Great for building power and speed.”
“Spar with an open door as your enemy.”
Now, I'm not sure quite how the last one works, but it sounded kind of interesting!
One important task I have yet to tackle is the formation of a solo training regime. I want to improve my actual physical techniques and strength.
Here are some solo training tips I have just grabbed from the web:
“Use only one submission technique for the whole session. If all you are using is a straight armbar the opponent will get pretty good at defending it and you will get much better at figuring out answers to their counters. The next time, switch to a different technique.”
“When sparring beginners allow them to start with you pinned or nearly submitted – work your escapes!”
“It's fine to build stamina on your own. Solo training is great for building up the numbers of punches and kicks you can perform in a row. Great for building power and speed.”
“Spar with an open door as your enemy.”
Now, I'm not sure quite how the last one works, but it sounded kind of interesting!
Dancing Freak
Here’s an extract from an article on visualisation:
“…certain styles of Kempo, teach a method of freestyle Kata. Students imagine what the attacks are and then move spontaneously to deal with them. According to history, freestyle Kata practice was the method of training for real combat. By picturing multiple attackers and then moving to defend against them, a person learns how to move instinctively, a necessary skill for self-defence.”
I should give this a go. I’ll look like a dancing freak no doubt, but perhaps it will provide a useful training experience.
“…certain styles of Kempo, teach a method of freestyle Kata. Students imagine what the attacks are and then move spontaneously to deal with them. According to history, freestyle Kata practice was the method of training for real combat. By picturing multiple attackers and then moving to defend against them, a person learns how to move instinctively, a necessary skill for self-defence.”
I should give this a go. I’ll look like a dancing freak no doubt, but perhaps it will provide a useful training experience.
20 Sept 2008
The Double-edged Sword
Like a growing number of karateka, in the last couple of years I have moved away from my original 3Ks training regime in an effort to explore practical self-defence applications of my art.
This move is a double-edged sword.
It’s challenging to gather training partners together who have their own schedules, preferences of location, etc. It’s tough to plan practice sessions in a balanced and inspiring way. It’s not cheap to source mats, mitts and pads. Travelling many miles to attend seminars is time consuming and financially burdensome. Engaging in more realistic training will, by its very nature, come with bumps, bruises, cuts and scrapes.
But those barriers are surmountable.
The benefits are many; the chance to set and work towards my own goals, improved fitness, greater physical strength, enhanced self-confidence. Now, more than ever I’m convinced of the need to take responsibility for my own training.
Like any other weapon, with practice the double-edged sword can be mastered.
This move is a double-edged sword.
It’s challenging to gather training partners together who have their own schedules, preferences of location, etc. It’s tough to plan practice sessions in a balanced and inspiring way. It’s not cheap to source mats, mitts and pads. Travelling many miles to attend seminars is time consuming and financially burdensome. Engaging in more realistic training will, by its very nature, come with bumps, bruises, cuts and scrapes.
But those barriers are surmountable.
The benefits are many; the chance to set and work towards my own goals, improved fitness, greater physical strength, enhanced self-confidence. Now, more than ever I’m convinced of the need to take responsibility for my own training.
Like any other weapon, with practice the double-edged sword can be mastered.
19 Sept 2008
An introduction to Koryu Uchinadi
Friday lunchtime, and I’m still trying to take in all that happened on Wednesday evening. I can remember most of the Koryu Uchinadi drill Ben taught us and I’ve made the best written notes I can. Unfortunately I can’t remember the last part of the sequence or how it loops. Hopefully C or M will remember, but if not I’ll have to ask Ben via email.
I found some footage of the same application flow-drill on Patrick McCarthy’s Youtube page, though it’s a bit rough and ready and too fast to absorb in places. The participants were obviously going at it hell-for-leather, so its tough to see the detail.
Ben’s understanding of karate is on a whole different level – he seems to have absorbed a principle-based-training model that seems as desirable as it does foreign, and for that reason his view of kata is far clearer and less dogmatic than mine.
His applications for the “hopping backwards through rice paddies” mnemonic from Chinto freaked me out. I’d previously visualised some of the applications that were described on Iain’s message board but still not been convinced as to their effectiveness (or even whether they truly could be accepted as part of the original kata), but damn me when he choked me out or did that neck destruction technique with the bouncing foot motion I was totally freaked. His level of knowledge is clearly exceptional.
I found some footage of the same application flow-drill on Patrick McCarthy’s Youtube page, though it’s a bit rough and ready and too fast to absorb in places. The participants were obviously going at it hell-for-leather, so its tough to see the detail.
Ben’s understanding of karate is on a whole different level – he seems to have absorbed a principle-based-training model that seems as desirable as it does foreign, and for that reason his view of kata is far clearer and less dogmatic than mine.
His applications for the “hopping backwards through rice paddies” mnemonic from Chinto freaked me out. I’d previously visualised some of the applications that were described on Iain’s message board but still not been convinced as to their effectiveness (or even whether they truly could be accepted as part of the original kata), but damn me when he choked me out or did that neck destruction technique with the bouncing foot motion I was totally freaked. His level of knowledge is clearly exceptional.
17 Sept 2008
upcoming training...
Well, I’ve got a venue sorted after talking with the Ashton Leisure Centre and will be training tonight with Ben assuming everything goes according to plan. I’ll probably take the Bunkai Jutsu and DVD player incase we run out of ideas.
15 Sept 2008
Iain Abernethy Seminar
I went to Iain Abernethy Seminar yesterday at Brighouse near Leeds. At the end of the seminar I also bought Iain’s 2nd Kata Bunkai DVD with Naihanchi and Bassai kata analyses. From the content of the seminar and previous articles he’s written on Naihanchi I expected to see some pretty brutal applications for this kata, but the Bassai section caught me by surprise. I hadn’t any idea of some of the neck wrenches and (in particular) the nasty arm manipulation techniques he’s described.
As the review on the cover describes, the DVD has wall-to-wall content and is very good value for money. I’m not sure that the Seisan/Hangetsu one will be important to my current needs, since the shito-ryu Seisan is so different to that of other styles. The Pinan series DVD may be worth buying for the progression from basic and core techniques through to more elaborate fighting methods, rather than diving in the deep end, but I’m not familiar with the Pinan katas of course.
Whilst writing my message to Iain (asking about local training in KBS), I acknowledged that I should have spoken to J or I about a private training session in order to cover the content I want to. This should be next on my list of activities after training with BR. B has offered to get together sometime this week and I’m really pleased about that, the difficulty I need to overcome now is how to find a good venue. Possibly an Ashton squash court will do?
As the review on the cover describes, the DVD has wall-to-wall content and is very good value for money. I’m not sure that the Seisan/Hangetsu one will be important to my current needs, since the shito-ryu Seisan is so different to that of other styles. The Pinan series DVD may be worth buying for the progression from basic and core techniques through to more elaborate fighting methods, rather than diving in the deep end, but I’m not familiar with the Pinan katas of course.
Whilst writing my message to Iain (asking about local training in KBS), I acknowledged that I should have spoken to J or I about a private training session in order to cover the content I want to. This should be next on my list of activities after training with BR. B has offered to get together sometime this week and I’m really pleased about that, the difficulty I need to overcome now is how to find a good venue. Possibly an Ashton squash court will do?
19 Aug 2008
Throw into Jujigatame – J showed me some important steps to follow in the transition from throw to armlock (or perhaps more accurately, from clinch/roll into the armlock).
Use left hand (usually grabbing lapel), to pin opponent’s left shoulder to the ground. Use right knee on opponent’s chest or stomach. Step over opponent’s head with left leg and apply the lock.
When applying the lock in a class situation it’s obviously important to ensure your training partner’s safety, keep hold of his lapel with your right hand and THEN apply the lock once in the lying position. In a live fight you could obviously drop into the lock in one motion.
Raising the hips applies more pressure to the joint. In order to utilise this effectively, secure the opponent’s arm against your chest as tightly as possible and THEN raise your hips to apply the pressure.
The escape:
Just as the lock is about to be applied, use the pulling action of the opponent to help you twist your body around to your right and slip out from under his left leg. Your head is the last part of your body to escape.
The counter:
Assuming the opponent tries to achieve the mount position having escaped the lock, use your left foot to stop him by pushing on his upper right thigh. Now pull his arm (the right arm which should still be securely in your grasp, off to the right side of your body (across his body) and curl your right leg over his left shoulder and around the back of his head. Secure the leg by hooking the crook of your left leg over the ankle of your right foot. Doing so will apply the triangle choke.
Use left hand (usually grabbing lapel), to pin opponent’s left shoulder to the ground. Use right knee on opponent’s chest or stomach. Step over opponent’s head with left leg and apply the lock.
When applying the lock in a class situation it’s obviously important to ensure your training partner’s safety, keep hold of his lapel with your right hand and THEN apply the lock once in the lying position. In a live fight you could obviously drop into the lock in one motion.
Raising the hips applies more pressure to the joint. In order to utilise this effectively, secure the opponent’s arm against your chest as tightly as possible and THEN raise your hips to apply the pressure.
The escape:
Just as the lock is about to be applied, use the pulling action of the opponent to help you twist your body around to your right and slip out from under his left leg. Your head is the last part of your body to escape.
The counter:
Assuming the opponent tries to achieve the mount position having escaped the lock, use your left foot to stop him by pushing on his upper right thigh. Now pull his arm (the right arm which should still be securely in your grasp, off to the right side of your body (across his body) and curl your right leg over his left shoulder and around the back of his head. Secure the leg by hooking the crook of your left leg over the ankle of your right foot. Doing so will apply the triangle choke.
21 Jul 2008
Confusing hips
The Double hip technique and other checkpoints I’m being taught at Ashton are certainly providing me with greater power than I had before. I’m confused as to which direction my hips should move for chudan uchi uke though.
6 Jun 2008
Poo Punches
Did some more padwork at Ashton Shukokai last night. I can’t believe just how poor my punching technique and power generation are at present.
How can I improve? I need to practice the hip twitch for punching and get on with some pad work. Keep the structure straight for impact, legs, back, shoulders and arm.
How can I improve? I need to practice the hip twitch for punching and get on with some pad work. Keep the structure straight for impact, legs, back, shoulders and arm.
1 Jun 2008
Functional Kempo
Stumbled across another good Youtube site “Functional Kenpo”. This was exciting to see because the teacher in the clips is obviously very skilled, he’s great at explaining, very keen to show a lot of info in each clip, and it’s definitely a no-bullshit approach.
Kenpo itself isn’t a term I’ve ever thought to search for on the web. I stumbled across the Functional Kenpo clips through various links. Seeing the clips made me realized that the emphasis of some of my previous instruction was kenpo based – in particular the “Delayed Sword” technique shown in the Functional Kenpo is exactly as I was taught for Nekoashi dachi chudan shuto, mae geri chudan, but the application was never illustrated in this way. Now this probably shouldn’t surprise me.
The problem of how to interpret the system’s kata in a way that is compatible with the style, still remains. For example, one of the golden rules in most kata bunkai philosophies is a “hikite hand always has something in it”. This would suggest to me that the philosophy adopted by these kata bunkai exponents is more influenced by ju-jitsu and other grappling arts, than from kenpo-karate. Lots of techniques in each kata have a hikite hand and a striking hand. Now you watch this chap practising his kenpo and you’ll see that most of the work is percussive strikes chained together and that all-important pulling hand may never actually grab anything – it’s either chambered ready for the next strike or press-blocking an opponent’s limb. One of his favourite techniques is an arm-bar and this obviously involves catch and hold, but what about the chains of percussive strikes? How do we find those within the kata and still stick to the hikite hand “golden rule”.
Now thinking back on a number of lessons, I vividly remember seeing some applications from my previous instruction that were DEFINITELY of a kenpo nature. There were koken uchi strikes to the ribs, eye rakes, glancing elbows etc. and all with a fluidity and speed that were pretty impressive to see. These were classed as “high level” applications, but they were obviously very practical whilst still being definitive of the style.
So… how do I use the knowledge I’ve gained to progress?
Kenpo itself isn’t a term I’ve ever thought to search for on the web. I stumbled across the Functional Kenpo clips through various links. Seeing the clips made me realized that the emphasis of some of my previous instruction was kenpo based – in particular the “Delayed Sword” technique shown in the Functional Kenpo is exactly as I was taught for Nekoashi dachi chudan shuto, mae geri chudan, but the application was never illustrated in this way. Now this probably shouldn’t surprise me.
The problem of how to interpret the system’s kata in a way that is compatible with the style, still remains. For example, one of the golden rules in most kata bunkai philosophies is a “hikite hand always has something in it”. This would suggest to me that the philosophy adopted by these kata bunkai exponents is more influenced by ju-jitsu and other grappling arts, than from kenpo-karate. Lots of techniques in each kata have a hikite hand and a striking hand. Now you watch this chap practising his kenpo and you’ll see that most of the work is percussive strikes chained together and that all-important pulling hand may never actually grab anything – it’s either chambered ready for the next strike or press-blocking an opponent’s limb. One of his favourite techniques is an arm-bar and this obviously involves catch and hold, but what about the chains of percussive strikes? How do we find those within the kata and still stick to the hikite hand “golden rule”.
Now thinking back on a number of lessons, I vividly remember seeing some applications from my previous instruction that were DEFINITELY of a kenpo nature. There were koken uchi strikes to the ribs, eye rakes, glancing elbows etc. and all with a fluidity and speed that were pretty impressive to see. These were classed as “high level” applications, but they were obviously very practical whilst still being definitive of the style.
So… how do I use the knowledge I’ve gained to progress?
30 May 2008
Martial Arts Explorer
Found a good site on Youtube – Martial Arts Explorer. Some excellent tips:
When working on a technique to the opponent’s inside, if they strike with their free hand use the chambered shuto (i.e. cross parry, then strike).
Crane stance (as per Rohai) can be used as a takedown if opponent is getting too close and has his arm around your neck in a “friendly” and disarming manner in preparation for a headlock.
I’m still finding it damned difficult to get my head around the fact that the process of bunkai
needs to be very very flexible.
Zenkutsu dachi gedan harai uke as a takedown;
Opponent grabs with RH. RH hammerfist into crook of elbow (L5) LH uppercut punch to face. LH grab back of neck. Turn 90 degrees left and takedown using LH in gedan harai uke movement.
27 May 2008
Bunkai progress
I engineered an application from Seipai last night. I’m not sure which HAOV it’s most suited to countering – essentially an attempted lapel grab, but I hadn’t come up with anything appropriate for that particular mnemonic previously. I think its more practical than previous seipai techniques I've seen but it works on a similar principle.
23 May 2008
Pad work
We did some pad work last night from which I really learned a lot. RELAXATION of punching arm, shoulders and torso provide greater power. Don’t drop into low stance – unnecessary. I was taught also that its possible to punch very hard even off one leg – it’s the body movement forwards that generates a large amount of power in this instance. I have a tendency to let the elbow of my punching arm flair out when striking a pad. I'm not sure whether this is a bad habit I've developed due to a lack of practice over the past year or so, or whether its something that comes from never having done any serious pad work, and punching air instead.
The strikes we practised were:
The strikes we practised were:
- Chudan tzuki from heiko dachi
- Chudan tzuki with sliding left leg into kihon dachi. Stretch left hand out infront, inflate chest and raise up on left leg. Slide right foot forward and punch mid-step before planting right foot. Ensure that you don’t drop down and ensure that right leg doesn’t step forward too far.
- Mawashi empi with sliding left leg into kihon dachi.
20 Jan 2008
New Year, New Start
Did a couple of hours of karate with G yesterday and made a start to the new year’s training. Basically we practised our kata and critiqued each other, with emphasis primarily on the enbusen and getting back to the starting point. This is a great method for establishing whether one’s stances are correct.
Being quite tall I’ve often found that my stances are wider than they should be (probably because I’m trying too hard to get my balance). The strange thing is that when G mentioned this, and I reduced the width of my shiko-dachi for example, my stability actually improved.
I will probably be allowed to try for my 2nd Dan in March, so I want to and need to train regularly from now until then. My plan is to do some kata each morning or evening at home on the wooden floor. That way I'll be able to get my physical strength back as well as refresh my techniques. Its amazing just how fast you lose it when you stop training for a bit! I’ve only got 6 weeks to go before the exams...
Its been difficult to make time for posting info here recently too. No internet access worth speaking of at work though its nice having a wireless enabled laptop at home.
Being quite tall I’ve often found that my stances are wider than they should be (probably because I’m trying too hard to get my balance). The strange thing is that when G mentioned this, and I reduced the width of my shiko-dachi for example, my stability actually improved.
I will probably be allowed to try for my 2nd Dan in March, so I want to and need to train regularly from now until then. My plan is to do some kata each morning or evening at home on the wooden floor. That way I'll be able to get my physical strength back as well as refresh my techniques. Its amazing just how fast you lose it when you stop training for a bit! I’ve only got 6 weeks to go before the exams...
Its been difficult to make time for posting info here recently too. No internet access worth speaking of at work though its nice having a wireless enabled laptop at home.
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