This is a log of my journey to Shotokan Karate Shodan and beyond.
I was really sore from class last night but I have to keep up with my kata at home.
12 – Tekki Shodan
1 – Heian Sandan
1 – Heian Yondan
3 x 15 – weighted side bends with 20 pound dumbbells.
3 x 15 – lying side leg raises
3 x 15 – lying leg raises
3 x 15 – crunches
Overall is was a good workout but I really need to spend more time on my horse stances.
I am sure that many of you that read this go to class every now and then thinking that you just don’t feel 100% and then end up working harder than ever before.
I was warming up before class started and I just really wasn’t there mentally. I had some stuff on my mind and my muscles felt tight for some reason but once we started class, everything cleared up. We did so much kihon that I didn’t a chance to think about anything else but the moves I was doing.
I knew class was going to be a little different because we started with 20 push ups. Then came some burpies and some dynamic stretches to the front and side.
We began our basics with a horse stance and then we would slowly step across and move back into a horse stance. While still in a horse stance we did slow motion side thrust kick and then side snap kick.
Next came front stance work with various blocks and reverse punches. We did motion downward block and reverse punch. We then did rising block, outward block and inward block all with reverse punch, still in slow motion. Sensei Noia had us go slow so that we could concentrate on making each move correctly with attention to good stances and hip rotation. After doing the moves in slow motion, Sensei would have us do the moves at full speed and power while still concentrating on doing the moves correctly.
Sensei Gatch was watching my outward block with reverse punch and said “that was a really good punch”. I thought about what made that punch different tonight from punches before and I think, because I was focusing so hard on my stances, I didn’t even think about the punches or blocks, they just came natural. I have been told by Sensei Noia and Sensei Gatch that I think too much about the moves instead of just doing them. Even though both of them have been telling my that for a long while, it’s been years now, I think I finally was able to realize it.
We then moved into back stances. I was really trying my hardest to do a good stance tonight. I am still having some issues with tucking my butt under but my stances felt lower tonight than they have in a while.  We did back stance with knife hand blocks and then moved into front stance with nukite. We also worked on back stance with knife hand block, moving into horse stance with elbow strike and finishing up from the horse stance with a back fist. Moving from the back stance to front stance is much easier for me than it used to be. It did get harder when Sensei had us add the front kick from the back stance though.
We also did a lot kicks tonight. We started with stepping forward, double front snap kick. I feel at home with this move. From low stance, we did one kick chudan, stepped forward and another kick jodan, then back into a nice low front stance. After those came front snap kick followed by side thrust kick, to the side, using the same leg. Then we did double roundhouse kicks.  We then did front snap kick followed up with side thrust kick to the front from the same leg.
Next was solo one-stop sparring drills. We did each of the attacks and then the block and counter a few times and then finished up class with our own belt kata up to the first kiai.
I was feeling very sore and could hardly catch my breath at the 40 minute mark but I kept on going even though my arms and legs felt like jello more than a few times. Any feeling of less than 100% was certainly no where in my mind after the first few minutes of started.
Today was the American Shotokan Karate Tournament held by our club at one of the local colleges. I have entered this tournament for the last three years along with my wife an son.
First the good news. My son took third place in kata and kihon. He looked really good and one kihon match in particular, the judges selected roundhouse for the move and he looked incredible. His kicks were way up there and his moves were very strong and solid.
My wife and didn’t do as well this time. We both didn’t place and I was really frustrated with my own performance this time. I thought my wife looked really good and had some excellent hip rotation. I, on the hand, thought that I was down low in my stances but I guess I wasn’t. I did Tekki Shodan as my first kata and lost quickly and then Heian Godan as my second kata with the same result.
Since I didn’t do so well, I came home tonight and had a good workout.
I did the following workout:
16 – Tekki Shodan
After every second kata, I did a core and or hip exercise.
3 x 15 – weighted side bends with 20 pound dumbbells.
2 x 12 – Glute bridge (3 second hold for each rep)
2 x 12 – lying side leg raises (3 second hold for each rep)
2 x 15 – lying leg raises
2 x 12 – Clam shells (3 second hold for each rep)
My kata felt much better at home than it did at the tournament. I did have a good sweat going at home and was much more focused.
At least I have more experience.