I don’t share many links here but Kagawa Sensei is an inspiration to me. He carries a lot of muscle, moves like lighting and has kicks that make my jaw drop. The video is in Japanese but I was able to easily follow along. Thanks to DVDMILLENIUM on YouTube for sharing.
One of the rules of Karate etiquette, in the club I belong to, is never leave a black belt standing without a partner when you are told to get a partner. This is extremely disrespectful to the black belt and to the Sensei teaching the class. Even if you are brown belt or below and you already have a partner who is brown belt or below you need to make sure that the black belt without one has a partner. This means you might have to leave your partner to go with the black belt but it will certainly show that you respect the higher rank student and maybe keep the entire class from doing many push ups.
My Sensei has often told me that it takes 30 years of training before you actually begin learning your Martial Art. This 30 years is comprised of 10 years each of learning to relax, learning to adjust and learning to move naturally. Below is my interpretation of what my Sensei, Sensei Cieplik, has shared with me and is subject to change as I learn more about this over the coming years: Relax During the first decade, we must learn to relax. Instead of punching and kicking with tense neck muscles and teeth gritted, we need to learn how to strike or block with loose muscles. Tightening at the last moment, at the moment of impact is the key to speed, power and good technique. An overactive mind and tight body is not something that will give you the results you are after. For example, if you drove through heavy traffic …