Dojo blues

The cold and damp don't agree with my conditions and I'm still suffering from the cold / minor chest infection.  It kind of gives me the Dojo blues because I get frustrated with myself only being able to get to 70 to 80% of where I would expect to be 😕 From a health point of view however, the workouts do me good as I get to sweat out some of the cold, etc.

On Saturday our warm  up included some different core exercises on our backs.  Then it was on to Kata, and I now perform Naihanchi Nidan as my highest known Kata 😋.  After that we went through fundamentals, and with one of our other Sensei there, that was enough for one of our white belts to grade  to yellow belt 😋

Then it was on to drills:
Punching out of a situation - feet, knees, sitting, on our backs
Naihanchi drill in pyramid form. Do element one, then elements one and two, then elements one, two and three
Pull hands down; pull down, jab; pull down, jab, back hand punch
change partner and add three elements
head butt; head butt, knee; head butt, knee, opposite knee
change partner add final three elements
backhand slap; backhand slap, elbow; backhand slap, elbow, drag and neck take down
Full drill: Pull hands down, jab, backhand punch, headbutt, knee, opposite knee, backhand slap, elbow, arm drag and neck take down.

Finally it was on to Kumite, I only managed 1st out of three before I got winded, but session certainly helped health wise. 😋  Earlier in the week I had managed to attend another class with the same intent, that class was small so we worked on Kata and Bojutsu.

Earlier on the Saturday, in his class my son got to perform Pinan Shodan all the way through for the first time 😋 His practicing at home has paid off, and he was one happy boy, who got plenty of encouragement from his Sensei too 😋😋

Stuffed up Saturday: Kata, Kumite and Knives

One of the problems with my conditions is that I am prone to getting somewhat wheezy and spluttery in cold, damp conditions and Saturday was a perfect example.  So my time in the Dojo was the perfect way of sweating out a minor chest problem.

We started out with break falls plus warm up for 10 to 15 minutes, which I struggled to get through, but you have to keep on going.  Then we observed the usual formalities of the Dojo and time to clear the mind. Kata came next.  Naihanchi Shodan in single moves, then doing the  Kata with phrasing, to emphasize the combinations inherent within.  This was followed by performance, with the instruction to concentrate of the phrasing over speed.  Kata with intent is also a good way to work up a sweat 😊

The next part of the lesson was Kumite plus pad work.  We started off with two short sessions of sport Kumite (light to medium contact) punches and kicks, then kicks only, with different partners.  This was followed by pad work on punching out of a situation: Standing, kneeling and from the ground.  Finally we went on to structured Naihanchi based Kumite with different partners.  About half way through this, all the sweating paid off and I started to really enjoy the lesson 😊😊

The final part of the lesson was the really fun part.  Our Sensei had got hold of training knives which flash and sound when sufficient contact is made to indicate a serous wound.  We went through a series of exercises with these:

Short range push off and run,
Medium range push off and run
Elbow trap head strike, run (these three with the attacker drawing the knife)
Escape from knife to throat (Deflect, trap, forearm strike, knee, forearm and push away)
We also practiced the last as a drill in pairs.
As well as being serious, these drills are fun 😊😊😊

The end of the lesson was warm down Kata and the full formal ending.  For me, an excellent  and much needed workout and great fun.  Thank you all 😊😊😊😊

Potted Nerd: The Naihanchis

Naihanchi is the fundamental Kata family of my style, Shorin-Ryu.  Being one of the earlier Kata in the world of Karate, there are many different forms.  Where a style has only one Kata, this tends to be somewhat similar to my style's Naihanchi Shodan:

An example of this, but showing the degree of variation that can be found, is Tachimura no Naihanchi, as practiced in KishimotoDi (thank you to Noah Legel for introducing me to this style and Ulf Karlsson for making such a detailed video). Unlike most other versions of the Kata, this starts of to the left, rather to the right and, according to Motobu Naoki (translated by Adreas Quast http://ryukyu-bugei.com/?p=5358), this is may be a feature of the earlier form of the Kata, in the Koryū Shuri-te era (courtesy Andreas Quast article http://ryukyu-bugei.com/?p=4123#_ftnref10) when it was considered ti, predating the influence of Itosu Ankō.  The Chosin Chibana form of the Kata stems from lineage of Itosu Ankō.

The origins of Naihanchi are possibly Chinese, due to the long history of trade between Okinawa and China.  An article by Simon Keegan (https://toshujutsu.wordpress.com/2014/04/02/beyond-shorin-shorei-teaching-complete-karate/) Suggests that the source form may come from Taiwanese White Crane Boxing, known as Dan Qiu Ban Bai He Quan (Half Hillock, Half White Crane Boxing).  The form Neixi, contains the  same sweeping action found in the nami-gaeshi (returning wave) technique of Naihanchi and Neixi is pronounced Nohanchi in Fuzhou dialect.....

I tried to find a youtube video of Neixi but no luck.  I did however find a video of other forms of that style, the link to which is given below:

Fujian Half Hill Crane Boxing

Neixi isn't included[; but whilst my academic skills elude me here, in one one of the articles I read, there was the assertion that the Kata was based on a form no longer practiced by the originating style.

Naihanchi as a family, and Naihanchi Shodan of my style, clearly has a long tradition in martial arts, but apart from Shodan, the family also includes Nidan and Sandan, both practiced in Shorin-Ryu:

Chosin Chibana - Naihanchi Nidan

Chosin Chibana - Naihanchi Sandan

There are differing thoughts on the origins of these two Kata.  In the footnote of the article "

On the distinction between Shuri-te and Tomari-te" <http://ryukyu-bugei.com/?p=4123#_ftnref10>,translated by Andreas Quast, Gima Shinkin is cited as saying " in the Naihanchi kata he (Itosu Ankō) carried out a process of educational reorganization, which is why he divided it into three levels."  The Head of my own federation, Hanshi Koei Norhara, who studied in the lines of both Matsubayashi and Kobayashi Shorin Ryu, states in his book, "The Transformation of Tiy", that each was a Kata "invented by Itosu Ankō".

I don't think it likely that a definitive answer will be found, and all three are Kata are enjoyable to perform, but to me there seems to be more intent in Shodan than the other two.  Given that the Tachimura no Naihanchi Kata predates the work of Itosu Ankō, I think that the Nidan and Sandan Katas are his own work, but that is only my opinion. 😊

Monday Night Fright Night - featuring the Nerd

I promised my son I would do another Monday night training session, as he gets to train with the adults as well if we do that.  As it is half term, seemed like the perfect time to do it.  as there is grading next weekend for at least one of our Dojo, it was always going to be an attention to detail session.

After the warm up and formal opening, including Mokuso (silent thoughts, a technique I find useful in real life), we started with Kata.  We did all the Naihanchis and all the Pinans, and got to watch Passai Sho (black belts only).  Everyone got to do the step by step versions of the Katas, then performance up to what they know.  I felk confident enough to perform up to Naihanchi Nidan this time.  My son absolutely loved it, as he had never gone past Pinan Shodan before😊😊.

After Kata,we went on to fundamentals - punches (jodan, chudan, gedan) , receiving techniques (jodan, chudan gedan) , kicks (mae, yoshiro, yoko, mawaishi geri), followed by tsuki, shuto and uke.  As with the Saturday lesson, I tried to do as much of this  as possible fully, the only element I held back on was the quantity of "tsuki"  in the generic section, so I could complete the "uke" section. Currently the last elements aren't in our grading syllabus, but that might change, so it is important to practice all of them.

After that we went through all of the kihon katas, done both right side and left side, 20 in total done this way.  The grading syllabus only includes the right side, so this is the first time I had performed any of them on the left hand side 😊😊. I am gradually becoming more familiar with them, but get a little muddled on the middle ones.  To help me out, I went over them with my Sensei to document them for an aide memoiure.  Below is the full documentation of our kihon katas for the first time by me:

Kihon Kata

Shodan

2 punch combination, Mae Geri

Nidan

Mae Geri, 2 punch combination

Sandan

2 punch combination, Mawashi Geri off front leg

Yondan

Mawashi Geri off front leg, 2 punch combination

Godan

Right Mawashi Geri (land in front), left Mawashi geri (land in front), reverse punch, jab.

Rokudan

Ashi uke, jab, cross, Mawashi Geri

Nanadan

Mae Geri (land in front) right jab, back kick

Hachidan 

Mae Geri (land in front), back kick, reverse punch

Kyudan

Shuffle, backhand forehand punch, shuffle, backhand forehand punch, right then left mawashi geri, spinning kick

Judan

Shuffle, backhand forehand punch, shuffle, backhand forehand punch, right then left mawashi geri, hisa geri

I definitely favour the left hand side versions, being left handed, but I will get there.

After that, we had a couple of short bouts of light to medium kumite.  The first was punches and kicks, and the seconds was kicks only.   At the end of the first session, I had a bit of a panic as I had taken at least one punch to the ribs, and landed a kick on a block, catching an older bruise. With the pain and ragged breathing, it gave me a fright, but I managed to shake it off and rejoin in the kick bout, taking back over from my Sensei, who had filled in to allow my training partner a full go.

All in all, another enjoyable lesson 😊😊😊😊  Thank you very much to my Sensei, son, patient training partner and other dojo members for putting up with me as I plod along.🙏

Pushing Myself.

Lessons are rarely the same in our Dojo, which is a good way of keeping us on our toes :)

Our warm up was taken initially by our Senpai and included some different exercises, including cycling on our backs, but with shoulders raised, and this was followed by the usual formalities of the dojo.

After this was Kata - focusing on the Naihanchis.  My Sensei says my posture is improving slightly 😊😊.   This was followed by fundamentals, including punches, receiving techniques, and kicks. I - ran out of steam during last technique (Uke) which I had hoped to complete, so I was a little disappointed with myself 😞😞

After that was Pad work on kicks, punches and receiving techniques.  This was followed by Naihanchi drills with different partners; featuring crashes, head pull downs, knee strikes, forearm strikes, drags, punches, take downs and get aways.

Afterwards realised that I hadn't been cutting back on elements of fundamentals, as I used to to do all the techniques, but had done them all fully until the last one, then I was pleased with myself.  I realise my stamina is improving and am pushing myself more 😊😊

Dojo basics

Saturday's Dojo session was back to basics,  The warm up exercises included stretches, cami rolls and break falls.  After that, it was on to Kata.

For Kata, we went through Naihanchi Shodan to Passai Sho.  Each one was done step by step and then performance, with people who don't know the Kata dropping out on the performance part.  I only did Naihanchi Shodan as performance, because although I know the basic flow of Nidan and Sandan, I don;t think it's good enough to do perform in the Dojo as yet.

From there on, it was pad work drills with different partners, following the Naihanchi Shodan Kata 
Naihanchi pad drills following the Kata sequence.  We went through:

Crashes, 
Head control to knee strikes, 
Elbow strikes, 
Re-directions, 
Punch and Stamping kick combinations  (knee, ankle, shin, inside leg)
Arm drag, head control and over-hip take-down with punch, 
Followed by final stamping kick and away

It was any enjoyable lesson, but what was more enjoyable was the realisation that I am noticing the difference in getting through lessons 😊😊😊  The combination of  exercise and a change in medication is definitely working just now for me 😊😊😊.   There were definitely pains the next day though lol, I nice Okinowan tattoo on the inside of my ankle and aches all over, the price for improvement 💖💓😈

Dojo calm in the midst of things

This last week at home and at work has been a little mixed to say the least, some of it through my own shortcomings and some not, so time at the Dojo on Saturday was a welcome break.  The session was varied as always, which is one of the reasons I love training there 😊😊

There were the usual stretches, plus a few newer ones I first tried last Monday, followed by Kata; only Naihanchi Shodan, this time, as our work was going to be based on that.  I got complemented on being able to tense my stomach well to take a punch, which I appreciated.

Then there were a good few drills, some of which I certainly hadn't done before.  We started off with the Quadrant drill, with different partners,  but then did two drills new to me:

Forearm strike drills, with alternate strike, block, move arm combinations. We did right side then left side practice .with different partners.

Hook drills, alternate punch, block (Neko Ashi Dachi Shuto u
Uke), move combinations, firstly with ducking to change sides, then with take down after third repetition, with different partners.   

After that we went on to Kobudo, with both Bo and Nunchaku.  With Bo we did Kihon Katas Shodan and Nidan, with Nunchaku we did the first part of the Hamahiga Kata;  featuring direction changes and figure 8s. We also did some pad work with Nunchaku, on figure 8 strikes.

A really enjoyable lesson, and I now seem to be struggling less with staying the distance 😊😊😊😊.  I should put this properly to the test in April next, as I just booked mine and my son's places on an Iain Abernathy seminar in April.  4 hours should be a good work out 😊😊😊.

Competition, good news and Dojo day after.

This is by way of a multiple blog because so much happened in two days:

Competition 06/10/19:

I had triple nerves, both as a competitor and a father, as both me and my son were competing.  But I didn't need to worry.  It was at Inter-Club level, so not as intense,  Results were:

Son - NSa 2nd out or 6
Me - NSh  3rd out of 4
Kumite Son - 1 - 1 points, lost on extra minute 1st point

My son thought he had done better in the Kumite, but accepted the result, proud of him,  it was a wonderful day 😁😁.  Our Dojo won 13 medals in total, but more importantly was fun competing with friends.  Than you to my Sensei and all from the Matsuri Dojos.  A special thank you to Sensei Darren Hollis of the Stevenage Dojo for his encouraging words 😊😊.

Good News

First test results had been inconclusive, but lung age suggested 30 years older
Nurse appointment - new breath test, but said my description of what I did (karate, walking etc) and effects of steroid inhaler said differently
Doctor appointment - results from new breath test not fully uploaded, but showed oxygen levels improved to 97% and continued use of steroid inhaler may give some more improvement

Dojo day after

Lots of aches from the last two days.  We did Some different stretches and core exercises in warm up, then on to Kata: Naihanchi Shodan, followed by Kata and other drills with different partners:

Naihanchi crash - plus add ons
Pinan Crash, punch, arm control - plus add ons
Tegumi style, arm block, finger strike, hammer fist to arm, arm control - plus add ons

Then on to Kobudo, where we did Bo Kihon Katas.  What made it more fun was that my son, who was watching, was invited to take part by Sensei Alison.  He's been wanting to do Kobudo for ages, so all in all a really good few days 😁😁😁

Competition Time dojo

Today's session was dedicated to the inter club competition we have tomorrow, between our own association's dojos.  I'm doing Kata and my son is doing Kata and Jissen Kumite (full contact).  That's triple nerves, two as a dad and one as a competitor.....

So after warm up, it was straight into Kata, and I was first up.  Apparently my intent is now very good, I look like I'm trying to do serious damage 😊😊😊  However, there are still a good few points to work on.  After that, we did round about 45 minutes of drills based on punch / kick combinations to help those going in for Kumite.  Have to say I ran out of steam at that point.

Finally was reminder time, doing pad work based on dirty Naihanchi, to remind us of the self defence basics that get pulled from competition.  Was a really hot and sweaty session in the dojo, but tomorrow is the key.

Looks like I will need to learn point style fighting though if I want to fight, and I do want to try at least once.  My style doesn't allow full contact competition if you are over 35, so looks like I need to practice touchy feely Karate to get a go,  but I am stubborn..... 

Good luck to everyone tomorrow 😊😊😊

Roots and branches

I think for the issues in life that I face, I honestly believe any form of karate would have sufficed to help me.   From what I have read, many clubs of all styles from Sports through to Traditional, would have accommodated me, and for that I have to offer a massive vote of respect to the whole Karate family, and to the many other forms of MA that would also have welcomed me 😊😊😊   

  That said, I have to say that as a Nerd at heart, and only realistically ever going to use Karate as self defence, not in competetive fighting, I was lucky to end up first time in a Traditional dojo.  The Shorin Ryu style suits me just fine and also indulges the historical Nerd in me.

A practitioner of Wado Ryu asked in one forum recently why the basic Kata of many styles were similar and history Nerd went Shorin Ryu to Shotokan to Wado Ryu.  I think a few Karateka today are blissfully unaware of the tradition on which their enjoyment or competition is based,  no problems but that's not my style 😊😊😊 

  There are lots of detailed material available nowadays, with the likes of Patrick McCarthy and Andreas Quast delving into the history of Karate. Having bring lucky enough to have read some of their articles, it persuaded me to get hold of the book written by Sensei Koei Nohara, about the history to Tiy.  Haven't finished it yet, but have got to the point where it's compelling reading.

The direct relationship he suggests between Tiy and Kobudo Kata is especially interesting 😊😊😊  Then I lost my book on a train, so have to buy another copy, never mind, it is worthwhile.  Then along comes another of those I respect, Jesse Enkamp, saying he is going to go to China to look into the roots of Karate, just can't wait  😊😊😊