The Drills have it (or is it the Aches?)

 

The weather since I last wrote here has been rather hot, which places a big limitation on what I’m able to do. On particularly warm days, my son and I have shifted our training sessions from Saturday daytime to Monday evenings, to take advantage of the cooler temperatures. This has paid off to some extent — on at least one occasion, I managed to walk home from the Dojo without a break. The first time I tried that, I believe I needed four or five pauses. So getting back into training is definitely proving beneficial there.

I’ve continued making notes on drills — checking them with our Sensei — so I can remember them for practice at home (or in the open space nearby), which we do from time to time. I generally include these in my blogs to help date them for future reference, and this entry is no exception, with three drills listed below from simple to more complex.

This Monday was cooler than most of our previous sessions, and my breathing felt easier, so I decided to push myself a little. The first sparring-type exercise was introduced early in the lesson (following our warm-up, of course): one person attempted to grab the other’s Gi while the other tried to block. If a grip was made, the defender had to break free. My partner was my son, and it began well. The exercise lasted a minute; we each managed a few successful grabs and breakouts (one of mine was an arm bar, which I was quite proud of). However, during the third or fourth attempt, I struggled for breath and dropped to the ground, trying to roll out — but instead just collapsed in a heap.

I’d become so engrossed in the exercise that I ignored the warning signs of overexertion. I was completely out of breath and struggled to recover due to my COPD. It took my inhaler and around 10 to 15 minutes of slow breathing to re-centre myself. From then on, I was ultra-cautious for the rest of the lesson, taking part mainly in Kata. Still, I realised I’d managed 50 seconds in that sparring drill — not far off my pre-COVID level.

In the final third of the lesson, we started full sparring (albeit light contact), and I couldn’t resist having another go. Again, my son was my partner, and again I clocked around 50 seconds, this time pacing myself more effectively and recovering more quickly afterwards. I was then able to take part in the Kobudo segment of the session with much less downtime.

I left feeling pleased with that final sparring round. Although light, we exchanged solid shots, and I didn’t end up on the floor. Just how solid was confirmed the next day when my calf was sore from a well-placed mawashi-geri! But there were absolutely no repercussions for my breathing — so that side of things feels like a definite win 😌.

While the job hunt continues to be much tougher than expected, Karate provides structure to my week — a routine to build around — and a chance to do something positive and creative like writing this blog. If you’ve read this far, thank you for taking the time. I hope you found it of interest.

REY
16-07-2025

Below is a key to the abbreviations and the exercise listings.

a) = attacker d) = defender Rh = right hand Lh = left hand

1) Both in fighting stance. a) Jabs d) Lh counter with outside block, controlling the arm d) Steps past on outside with right leg d) Rh back-fist to face, then pushing a) down over right leg

2)

a) Wrist grab d) Sweep grabbed arm up as in outward block d) Sweep other arm under and outward, as in matching outside block, grabbing attackers raised wrist d) Continue sweeping motion to extend arm and open opponents back d) Hook punch to ear/neck area with free hand d) Added extra drop elbow onto back of attackers extended arm d) Perform arm bar and turn to throw opponent to ground

3) Both in clinch, left arm behind neck, head down to prevent head butt a) Pushes rh up inside clinch for eye gouge (simulate) a) Locks rh behind head, left leg knee strike to abdomen/groin a) Releases grips, sweeps left arm under and round d) right arm a) Grabs left wrist with lh and pulls d) across a) Right arm raises to perform arm bar, right elbow goes on top of left elbow of d) a) Extension of arm continues to complete arm bar and lower head a) Right hammer-fist to l side of d) head under ear, push hand past head and pull up (chin, nose, eyes) a) Right leg back to complete pull up. a) Release both hands and lh punch to exposed throat, chin, etc