8/10/07 – Friday Karate classes.

Good classes!

The first class started with some kihon drills. We put one foot on a line on the gym floor, stood upright with our knees slightly bent and moved in to a front stance while turning only on our heel of the back leg. We then did the same thing but instead of a front stance, we moved in to a back stance.

After that, we moved in to a horse stance and went from facing one direction to the opposite direction back in to a horse stance. We then moved in to a front stance, pivoted on the balls of our feet and then threw a back kick. The idea of these drills was to prepare us for spinning hammer fists and spinning back kicks.

Now on to the fun stuff. We then had a Sensei stand in front of us, we moved in to a horse stance and then turned around and threw a hammer fist in to a focus mit. This was a lot of fun and I was able to generate a lot of power. Next, we moved on to spinning back kicks. This was a lot harder for me. I was able to turn fairly well but throwing the kick and keeping my balance at the end of the turn was touch. It was also hard for me to hit the target and I ended up kicking one of my Senseis’ arms.

In the second class, we spent more time on some kihon drills but we also worked on the application of some of the moves. We spent some time working on some moves from Heian Nidan. In the first few moves of Heian Nidan there are some blocks and strikes and as my partner threw a punch, I would block the punch and then take their punching arm and put them in what was equivalent to an armbar. The move had us bring our hands together and push against both the tricep area and forearm area. It brought back memories of my Aikido days in the past.

We also worked on another move where our partner grabbed at our gi and we would step back, pull them off balance and lock their arm. This also brought back memories of Aikido but after locking their arm, we could bring a knee up in to their core area or throw a nice back fist to the face.

All of my classes are so much more enjoyable now. I am not sure if I am getting better but I feel like I am learning and understanding more than ever before.