Karate Accoutrements

Today, the last day of 2018, I tried something new in daily training. After kihon drills, I did ten heian kata, two each of the five, the first of which was done very slowly while holding ten pound dumb bells. The second repetition was done kata tempo. The purpose of holding weights was not so much to gain strength, except insofar as the campaign against sarcopenia continues, as to get an exaggerated feeling of what Mr. Rick Hotton encourages, the feeling of falling into technique, the feeling of dropping into blocks, punches, and kicks. The weights exaggerated that feeling, especially when I put them down to do the full speed kata. Drop, fall, move easily and swiftly into the next groove.

Weights help. So do jump ropes and exercise bands. In batto-do we use the suburito to exaggerate the feeling of which muscles contract and when to improve basic form. In boxing we use the heavy bag and the speed bag to improve the power and accuracy of punches.

In 2019 all the accoutrements of my exercise will be pointed to improving my shotokan and battodo. Jump rope work will increase stamina. Weights will preserve and extend muscle mass. Bands will build explosive power. The heavy bag will advance the power of punches and kicks. 

Karate Cart

I've trained every day this week, and for most of the weeks this year. What a difference daily training makes. I like Funakoshi Sensei's comparison of karate training to pushing a cart uphill. You can't stop or the cart will roll backwards. And another adage I like is there are really only two things in karate that matter; beginning and continuing.

Also, I trained with Bruce Green (8th dan, ISKF) Sensei's shotokan group at the Mapleton YMCA on Monday. It was wonderful to sweat together with so many dedicated karateka pursuing similar goals. The black belts got to do Tekki Nidan too, which is one of my favorite katas.

Hold On to Hojo Undo

During today's training, I did all "blocking" and striking techniques holding ten pound dumbbells. Naturally I worked the techniques slowly while holding weights to avoid injuring these aging elbow, shoulder, and wrist joints. It feels great after working for ten or fifteen minutes to put down the dumbbells and do the same techniques full speed. Such snap, such power, such speed.

The integration of hojo undo, or supplementary karate training, is also called kigu undo. Most karateka know about the centrality of makiwara board training, but few realize that hojo undo is a rich field of many strength and conditioning training opportunities.

When shotokan karate moved from Okinawa to Japan, some of the hojo undo training opportunities did not take root. However, this is part of our roots and we should work hojo undo routines and devices into our regular training. The difference it makes will become obvious very quickly. I worked Meikyo and Gojyushiho Sho today too. Love those kata.

Antidote to Jittery Jitte: Repetition and Realism

Today I did Jitte kata many times. Once the moves of a kata become ingrained I can relax into them. There is no thought of what comes next, only the "do-it-now" urgency of simulated combat. I never liked the bunkai that emphasized defense against bo. I am largely self-taught in kobudo but occasionally an advanced kobudoka friend will give me pointers on sai, nunchaku, and bo. Watching someone who knows how to fight with a bo makes you realize how pathetically unrealistic are most of the bunkai against bo among karateka for this kata, including Nakayama Sensei's exemplified in the clip above.

I prefer Didier Lupo's more practical applications portrayed below. His approach is more simulated combat than idealized combat. The next time you are tempted to imagine your Jitte is defense against a bo, resist. Stick to thinking of more practical applications like strikes, throws, and more strikes.

Bassai Sho Off

Today's training was fun. I worked about 25 minutes on kihon and then 25 minutes on kata and kumite. I train on my own so kumite work lacks the advantages of a partner, but I work the jyu ippon kumite drills that Yahara Sensei pioneered, working on that recoil-explode dynamic.

For kata I worked Tekki Nidan and Tekki Sandan. Then I worked Hangetsu, working that steal-step-block-kick-punch-block sequence. Love that.

And finally I worked my chosen kata for next rank exam, Bassai Sho. I try to model Ohta Sensei's example, pouring power and kime into every move. 

This morning I read the 10th and 11th Principle of Karate by Funakoshi Sensei. Now I turn to grading my AP Stats students their fall research projects. I bow slightly to the work ahead.

10. Put Karate into your everyday life and you will find its subtle secrets.
11. Karate is like boiling water, without heat, it returns to its tepid state.

These are great ideas. I now approach grading like facing an opponent. I need to prevail. And the constancy of training reminds me that karate, like life, is pushing a cart up hill. Don't stop.

The Bombur of Bassai Dai

Today I did the so-called "brown belt katas," including tekki shodan. During Bassai Dai I think of Bombur the fat dwarf stuck in a barrel fighting orcs in the river battle in Peter Jackson's film version of "The Desolation of Smaug." Big core, swinging techniques, breaking through defenses.

During Empi I think of alternating between high and low attacks. Strike high to the head, then drive in, unbalance foe and strike again. During Jion I think of power, lots of power.
While doing Tekki Shodan I think of being able to fight from the side, turning sharply and sending strikes from odd angles.

Do I love my karate, warts and all? Yes, I do. Funakoshi Sensei in the 20 Principles of Karate tells the Hagakure story of the Master Swordsman who said the point of training is to get better than you were yesterday, and tomorrow to be better than you were today. Another Sensei said only two things matter in karate; beginning and continuing.

The Sans

I've been doing daily training since we moved to Boulder. I'd started doing that in Tucson during our last year there as well. It makes a difference in terms of flexibility and deeper understanding of moves.

Today I did KWF basics with emphasis on generating power from maximum rotation and pressure to the floor. Nishiyama Sensei always stressed "squeeze-expansion," but Yahara Sensei takes this idea "to the maximum."

In my personal training which takes about one hour, I do kihon, kata, and kumite drills. I do ten-fifteen kata repetitions, selected either in sets of five kata done slow then fast. Or, I select semi-randomly. Today I did the "sans." I did four Heian Sandans, then four Tekki-Sandans, and finally two Bassai-Shos. I know Bassai-Sho isn't a "san" kata, but whatever. Love these three katas.

Yahara Sensei in action

For jyu ippon kumite training, I first did attacks, both left then right leg leading of oi-zuki jodan, oi-zuki chudan, oi-maegeri chudan, mawashi-geri chudan, and yoko kikomi geri chudan. Then, doing the KWF max pressure on rear leg and counter followed by shift in. Training alone is hard to gauge proper distance, but these daily training sessions will form a good base upon which to push my future partner and help him or her improve.

I love karate.

Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen: A Most Aggressive Sequence

In today's training, I performed the kata Heian Yondan five times. The fourth kata in the Heian series is a real treasure of mine. It is second only to Heian Godan as favorite of the Heian kata.

What I noticed today was the extreme aggression of the attack sequence in moves 11, 12, and 13, shown in the screen shots of Osaka Sensei's near flawless performance of Heian Yondan with commentary by Nakayama Sensei.

What stood out while doing this amazing kata was the grabbing motion of the left hand, between moves 12 and 13. The sequence here is shuto uchi-age shuto -- mae geri -- tate uraken (kiai), or, ridge hand strike to head/neck-ridge hand block -- front kick -- grab with left, step in and strike backfist to face, chin, or neck. That is nasty. Grab the target, perhaps a fist, or sleeve, or arm, and then drive in with your whole body to deliver the strike with kiai and kime. Done properly, this sequence could well incapacitate an opponent.

The wealth of combat information in our kata is amazing.

KWF 2018 Summer Seminar in Payson AZ

There are many takeaways from this summer's Karatenomichi World Federation America seminar last weekend, 13 - 15 July 2018 in the beautiful setting around Payson AZ. One is that KWF principles are extremely difficult to achieve habitually, at least for me. The alterations of the basic ideas many of us learned years ago under the tutelage of masters like Hidetaka Nishiyama Sensei are simple enough in theory. But to apply for example, the technique of blocking front attack by moving to the side (crossing the t, in the terminology of Kane and Wilder's "The Way of Kata") then loading the rear foot to build maximum potential energy by rotating hips farther than what seems usual or comfortable, or, as Yahara Sensei says, taking it "to the limit," before exploding forward with an incapacitatinly strong counter, and then shifting forward again, ready for next technique, is really difficult. But it is really effective. When I do jyu ippon kumite correctly, it is really effective. Getting it right time after time is challenging, very challenging, but the striving, the reaching is key.

The other takeaway is cherishing the generosity of our seminar leaders. Mr. Vern Vaden, with so many years of competitive experience and experience-derived insight into our system, taught the importance of eye vectors and looking where you're moving. And Mr. Tom Hyder, also with decades and decades of competitive and instruction experience, focused on using KWF principles in sparring and fighting. And there was Mr. Anthony DeSardi, moving through the rows of seminar participants, fixing errors, offering alternatives, whispering encouragement, and stressing the importance of proper basics, rooted stances, relaxed and quick moves, and always reminding us of the joy of doing karate. All these great karate men, with well over a century and a half of combined karate experience from which to draw upon, were so willing to share. Ask, and you'll get an answer, sometimes three. Work hard, and you'll get what you're after; better technique.

At the awards banquet on Saturday night at the La Sierra Mexican restaurant (which has excellent beef fajitas!) I was honored with a KFW certificate as a Level C instructor, examiner, and judge. I think this photo captures the shock and amusement of my teachers that someone like me with such an elementary understanding of our system might someday actually be teaching others our principles. But, they let me keep the certificate, so I'll strive to put it to good use. My friend Mike Indelicato also passed his yondan rank exam, and Mr. DeSardi his 7th dan, Class A instructor, examiner, and judge, and was invited to join the prestigious Shihan Kai of the KWF. With the assistance of men like Tony DeSardi, our organization has a brighter future. I suggested he may want to now also seek admission into the Roman Curia as a trusted adviser to the Holy Father.

Finally, the Japanese term "gassuku," or 合宿 which means "lodging, or working together." Mr. Tony DeSardi and Bernie Sensei, both with many years of experience in a related system of Okinawan weapons called Kobudo, shared lots of fundamentals with me outside the dojo, out back on the parking lot, near a dumpster. They stayed late, after formal training had ended for the day, and shared their expertise with me. This is another example of the takeaway of generosity, and the willingness to share, even when tired, when someone wants more information. Thank you sirs!

Five Challenges, One Task

Today I practiced the following shotokan katas: Nijushiho, Chintei, Sochin, Meikyo, and Unsu. Not one of these advanced kata is easy to do. But the one that stood out today as especially challenging was Meikyo. How do you get hip power in those moves from 24 to 33, from the hammer fist to the jump? Unless my shoulders are completely relaxed, I cannot get power in that sequence. But I worked this sequence many times. The power began to slowly drop lower, away from shoulders and toward hara. Meikyo is a beautiful kata. I once heard someone say that Nishiyama Sensei loved this kata. I can see why.

Meanwhile, Five Years Later...

With the help of Midori-san, my beautiful wife, I re-connected today with this old blog of mine, formerly called ShotokanCrossFit. I re-named it Kihonkatakumite after the 3Ks of many Japanese martial arts, referring respectively to basics, forms, and fighting; or, fundamentals, applied fundamentals, and testing fundamentals under pressure.

Since book face and instahowyousay have more or less eclipsed blogs and blogging, my interest in blogs and blogging has been renewed. It's the love of the anachronistic in me. I don't much care about audience, other than I wish them good things. I do care very much about exploring the pursuit of improvement in things that I do, namely, KWF Shotokan, Batto-Do sword art, occasional forays into jujitsu, and the education industry.

Until next time, which hopefully will not be in five years.