Hengestu kata has more to it than only moves
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Doug
Side thrust kick your partner
Today’s class involved a lot of kicks again but this time, we were hitting things, such as our partner holding some pads. There was some kihon and kata also but the kicks were the focal point today. Warm up and get to work We started with similar warm up from last week but Sensei had us add some shifting drills this time. We did shifting across the dojo and then job back a few times to get warm. Next came stances only across the dojo and then stances with a single technique. After that we picked a single block to do across the dojo and after that, the same block with a reverse punch. Kick your partner We started in a horse stance, taking a long step behind with a side thrust kick across the dojo in both directions. Next, we got a partner and some pads and started kicking. …
Basic Karate kata with many options
After years of Karate training, the best thing about Karate is you can always learn something new. No matter how much you train or how many skills you developed, there is always room to improve and learn something new. I recently had a class where my Sensei, Sensei Noia, had us work on a basic kata, Taikioku Shodan, in three different ways. Taikyoku Shodan with kicks The idea is to do the kata, and after each move, you add a rear leg kick and put the kicking leg back down behind you, then step into the following technique with a kick after each move. It goes as follows: Downward block to your left, front snap kick with your rear leg and put it back behind you. Step and front punch, front snap kick with your rear leg, and put it back behind you. Continue this for all 20 moves. You can also …
Challenge your balance and your technique will rise
Some simple words, “challenge your balance and your technique will rise.†This is a concept that my Sensei, Sensei Cieplik, shared with me many times over the years but it took me a long time understand. The words are simple but applying them takes a lot of trial and error in the secret lab called my body. I will use Kanku Dai as an example but this concept applies to all kihon, kata and even kumite to some extent. The idea is to find ways to force yourself to keep good posture whenever you are doing Karate. Doing kata and kihon techniques with your feet on the same line with one in front of the other will help you reach that goal. A drill that my Sensei shared with me was to do a kata, Kanku Dai which has a lot of front stances, with my front stances inline. Trying …