Shotokanplanet.org

This is a log of my journey to Shotokan Karate Shodan and beyond.

Pivot with your partner

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Today’s class was mostly sparring drills but different.  Instead of putting on the pads and free sparring, Sensei Noia, had us work on some different drills with focus on foot movements and pivoting.

Start slow

We started class doing slow motion sparring drills with various partners.  The idea behind this is to constantly engage with your partner and if you get hit keep going.  Although it sounds simple, keeping the slow pace and not speeding up as you are working is hard for many.  Once see you punches coming at your face, you have a tendency to speed up but that defeats the purpose of the drill.  Moving slowly gives you time to defend the attacks and also look for openings for your own attacks.

Block and punch

The block punch drill is always interesting because no matter how well you can do it, your mind always gets in the way and you end up making a mistake.  At least that’s what I seem to do.  The drill itself is simple, you and your partner face each other, your partner punches, you block, then you punch with the other hand, the one you didn’t block with and your partner blocks with their other hand.  You keep going back and forth until someone makes a mistake then you reset.  After you get a good pace going, you can block and punch with the same hand.  An inward block followed with a straight punch always opens your partners eyes a little wider.

We did the same drill but from a fighting stance instead of a ready stance.  This changes the dynamic a little and it has a tendency to make your use the hand of whatever leg is in front more often.

One step away

The next drill was similar to the one step sparring drills that we often do but these drills are done slowly and the defending partner uses body shifting or a pivot get out of the way.  The big difference between this and the standard one step drills is if your partner shifts in to attack, you shift away, if your partner shuffles in, you shuffle away and if they take a full step in, you take a full step away.  You have to pay attention to their footwork in order to do this drill properly.

Pivot and then add a partner

We spent a lot of time working on pivoting with blocks and punches.  We started in a ready stance, from there we pivoted on our right foot, turning our body 90 degrees to the left and moving our left foot behind into a front stance while executing a downward block and reverse punch,  We then came back to a ready since and did the same but we ended up facing 90 degrees to the right.  The main goal is to use the hips to turn the body in a smooth motion.  I wish I would have done this drill when I was coming up through the ranks because it would have made one step sparring much easier.  We did the same foot and hip actions but instead of a block and reverse punch we used a front hand jab or front punch.

After we finished the solo drills above, we got a partner and used these same pivoting motions while our partner did the standard one step sparring attacks.  I often use a similar motion when doing one step in the past but ending up in a good front stance is better for those who will be examining.  Plus, the action of the pivot and the timing of the front and attacking hand it very fast and smooth.  You can also cover more ground if you move, what will become your front foot forward and then pivot if you want to end up 90 degrees away from your partner.  I found, that the block isn’t needed and you get totally out of the way while attacking.

We finished class with three katas of our choice and then went home.

Class summary

  • Slow motion sparring
  • Block and punch drills both from ready stance and fighting stance
  • One step matching your partners footwork
  • Pivot 90 degree and attack at the same time
  • End the class with kata

I forgot to add one drill that we did in class.  I might have been blocking it from my mind because I had a hard time walking for three days after it.  We did a very slow motion front snap kick to our partners stomach, then a fast front snap kick to the same area and then a slow front snap kick to the head or as high as possible.  They didn’t seem tough while I was dong them but the pain in my adductors that followed kept me from being able to raise my feet more than a few inches from the ground.  We only did five or six with each leg but that was more than enough.

Relax and hit hard

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Sensei Noia shared an important lesson with some of us tonight.  Everyone wants to strike hard but forcing yourself to strike hard and striking hard are two different things.  I went to class more stressed then usual and it had an adverse impact on my training.  My punches, even though they were strong, felt like I was punching through clay.  My hips were tight and even though they were working, they just weren’t giving my punches the power that I normally hit with.  The lesson is, don’t force your strikes, if they are forced, turn down the power and just let the hand or foot fly.  Enough talking about my problems…

Kata with some extra stuff added

We started out with Taikyoku Shodan.  Even though I enjoy doing the higher rank katas, I often find myself doing this kata.  It is all basics and even though it is a very basic beginner kata, the movements are good training no matter what rank you hold.  After the first kata, Sensei has us do each move with a rear leg kick.  For example, step into downward block to the left add a front snap kick and put the kicking foot back down behind and do then step into the next move with front punch and added kick for the entire kata.

We did the same kata again and added a spinning back kick to each move, putting the kicking foot behind again.  I wasn’t watching everyone else do it but I am certain that my kata was ugly.  It felt ugly and I am pretty sure it looked ugly but I made it through it as did everyone else.

Same kata again but this was a mental challenge.  We did each movement with an added punch.  For example, step into downward block to the left add a reverse punch and then a downward block again.

Doing things like this is what makes Karate so interesting and proves that you will never learn everything about it.  You can take the most basic kata and change it into something harder or more advanced.

Relax and hit hard

We spent a good amount of time punching the pads today.  We started out with doing reverses to the pads using as much hip engagement as possible.  This is pretty much were my problems began but I digress.

After that, came knife but not the standard knife hand that we find in many katas.  We did the knife hand strike with our palm up.  Again, the hip should throw the hand not the shoulder.  The move is done much like the same moves in Heian Yondan, Kanku Dai and Gojushiho Sho.

We did the reverse punches again but with a little different leg position in a fudo dachi or rooted stance instead of the standard front stance.  The back hip is a little more open than in the front stance and your upper body is near ninety degrees open compared to around 45 degrees when in a front stance.  This is the leg and hip postilion from the reach with reach, double punch, kick punch from Gojushiho Sho.

Next came front snap kicks.  I was able to somewhat redeem myself with the front snap kicks.  They didn’t start out too well but after some help from Sensei Noia telling me to square my hips and relax, they got progressively better and stronger.

Adjust your kata to your current ability

We finished up class with one kata of your choice.  Some final words from Sensei as class was ending, don’t go through the motions, do your kata with a mental picture of what you are actually doing in each technique.  If you are tired or stress, do your kata a different way.  You can go for speed instead of power or clean technique but no matter how you do it, adjust it to what you have available at the moment.

Class summary

  • Taikyoku Shodan with back leg kick
  • Taikyoku Shodan with spinning back kick
  • Taikyoku Shodan with punches
  • Hit the pads hard, don’t force the strikes and relax
  • Do your kata to your ability at that moment in time

 

Kata warm up, hitting stuff and more

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I was disappointed that I had to miss class last week but today’s class made up for it.  Since exams are over, there is a little less kihon and more hitting of pads and people.

Kata as a warm up

Sensei Noia has us start class with the Kyu rank katas as a warm up every so often.  Today was Heian 1 through Heian 5 along with Tekki Shodan.  After completing all six katas, he had us do all the katas in mirror image.

I find a lot of value doing the katas in mirror image.  I feel that it helps develop the other side of the body and I think we should, as Karate students, do it more often to make our training more complete.  Most of the moves flow well when doing them in mirror image but the toughest for me is doing the crescent kick with the left leg instead of the right leg.  We don’t do crescent kicks with the left leg too often and I noticed a big, not positive, difference in mobility and power doing the kick with my left leg.

Hit stuff hard

After the warm up, we found a partner and had them hold some foam pads for some striking drills.  Sensei had us start with closed hand drills which consisted of punches, hammer fists and back fists.  We followed those with open hand drills using knife hand, ridge hand and back hand strikes.  After that came elbow strikes to the front using the strike with our arm parallel to the ground along with strikes from our draw hand elbow.  Next came basic knee strikes with us grabbing the shoulder of our partner and pulling them down while striking them with our knee.

We haven’t hid the pads for a while and it felt good to get some stress from the work day out on the pads.

More kata

To finish up class, Sensei had us pick a kata of our choice.  After doing the kata, we went back to out partner an took one or a small group of techniques from the kata and used them against our partner who was attacking with the attack of our choice.  I always enjoy working on kata application with a partner because it adds another dimension to my training.  We did one more kata of our choice and bowed out.

Class summary:

  • Kata warm up, both normal and mirror image
  • Hit the pads with closed and open hands, elbows and knees
  • More kata with application of one or a small group of techniques