muttley

I have just started to learn this kata. It's the first new kata I have tried to learn since I went through Ji'in many, many years ago! I am finding it hard to grasp this kata, the mix of hard and soft I just can't get into my head! From what I have learnt so far, it's a lovely kata, just wish I could get it mastered.

This is a quite a good song (and video), kind of sums up how I feel quite often.

But, why do we pull our hand behind our ear and THEN start the block when doing a shuto uke? Wouldn't we be hit square in the face by the time the hand retreats to behind our ear? Why do we pull our closed fist towards our ear before performing an ude uke? I have never understood that. It doubles the time it take too do the block. Plus it opens up the guard. That can't be good... You are thinking too kihon based there. Get away from that, start looking at freeing up your art and interpreting the moves.

Yeah something like that, basically I sat my initial Dan grade with what was the EKGB, now training and licensed to KUGB so they need to grade me to make sure I am of Dan grade calibre I guess.

Since returning to training, I have got to transfer my grade to the KUGB as I achieved it at a non-KUGB affiliated club. Having looked at the syllabus, it's all pretty straight forward (I think), but the kata is where I am coming stuck. The syllabus states I have to do Bassai Dai as well as either Tekki Shodan or any Heian kata. I LOVE Tekki Shodan, but feel maybe I should do Godan or Yondan instead. What are the thoughts on this? Also, will consideration be made for slight variations in the kata as I have noticed slight changes in the way Bassai is performed.

Having said that I use my martial arts almost daily at work in a physical intervention kind of way, I really wish there was more to it than that. We should all be using our martial arts daily in the way we chose to live our lives, by being an example to others in how to live a peaceful existence. Sadly, I fail at this sometimes and feel I let myself down.

Serving Prison Officer. I use martial arts on a daily basis, not just in control and restraint techniques and personal protection (techniques which are based on martial arts in some way), but also in how I work: Awareness - spacial awareness and awareness of exit routes etc Maintain calmness under pressure Explaining what is self defence to lads who believe it be "kick the crap out of the other person"

Depends on how you look at it, drills involving the punching of thin air is not combat training either, 2 person Kata drills offer far more.

I really like the way it starts from the fence, I just think it's quite refreshing to see this sort of thing.

Seems to vary depending on the association, some have to do bunkai as part of their Shodan, others don't. Personally I am only just really looking at bunkai now (as a Shodan).

Every Karate-Ka studying Shotokan here under the KUGB are tought Kihon as the very first kata, a basic kata of 2 "basic" moves - gedan-bari and oi-zuki. The way this has been taught (in my experience) is as a turn to left, lower block against kick then follow up with a punch to the chest, turn block kick from behind, follow up with punch to chest etc etc blah blah blah. Yes that is a very basic description of what the techniques could be used for, however this very much depends on peopel attacking you, one from the left then one from behind while your back is turned. In my experience, this just doesn't happen. This video I found on youtube is a far more accurate description of the techniques used in Kihon (remember, the most "basic" of kata). Used against a single opponent the opening moves make far more sense in the modern world don't they? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dhQBv9-jbw Correct me if I am wrong.

To be honest, I think it depends on the style of karate you train, for instance, in my experience from Shotokan, shodan gradings are hard work but not as hard as say Goju or Wado shodan gradings. When I trained for my Shodan in Shotokan I knew I had the technique, the kata and the kumite, it was fitness and mental training that I needed help with to get through what will undoubtedly be the hardest grading you have ever sat.

I agree. Over time as the system gets canonized, it becomes tradition. Necessary for what? For learning the art of Shotokan - absolutely necessary, for learning to protect your life . . . not so much. I beg to differ on this. By "just doing the Kata" you have a point, but looking into the bunkai of the Kata then, in my view you are wrong. Wasn't it Master Itosu who said in his first precept: "Karate is not merely practiced for your own benefit; it can be used to protect one’s family or master. It is not intended to be used against a single assailant but instead as a way of avoiding injury by using the hands and feet should one by any chance be confronted by a villain or ruffian." Baring in mind his belief in Kata, is this not still true?

From what I have gathered from listening to his podcasts lately, he is saying that he is a pragmatic martial artist and that in his classes he trains his students in "realism". They train in making your escape after a pre-emptive strike, sparring against multiple oppositiions, weapon disarms etc etc. He does raise some very good points such as grappling in the street is likely to get your head kicked in at best, killed at worse as your attackers mates who you aren't grappling with are likely to jump in while you are busy focusing on the guy you are grappling with etc.

I think that the boundaries have become some what blurred too much of late with the onset of MMA. I like to watch MMA, it's great for spectator sports, but that is what it has become is it not? MMA students train to win on a "points base/KO" basis. Does this make it good for self defence? Indeed does any sport based martial art (Olympic Taekwondo for example) train it's students for an incident on the street? I feel (like many others) that martial arts are becoming more sports orientated and is this a good thing for the art? Kata for example is an essential part of karate training and are forms that can be used in self defence. Fighting on the other hand, as has been said by people more qualified than I am to talk on the subject is "what happens when self defence has gone wrong". This is a quote I can completely agree with, surely the training we do should teach us more than how to deliver the perfect technique to knock someone out on the street?

My Tokaido is quite simply the most comfortable gi I have ever owned, although it does make me sweat a fair bit, but then thats good, right?

I have one of these: http://www.tokaidojapan.com/ntokaido/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=33 It's a really nice gi

It certainly got me thinking about my movement, different ways to defend against a head/chest punch, front kick, thrust kick etc (ever tried walking into someone about to release a Jodan Mawashi-geri?) I found different things that worked really well (it was probably the first time I have carried out the double lower block against a "live" kick!), walking into a chudan punch and putting the punching arm into a joint lock, that's quite fun too!

What I meant by my previous comment was that for a martial art to be a good self defence tool, it has to teach more than how to be a good fighter. I think it was Iain Abernethy that said something to do with for a confrontation to get physical, everything else has failed. Therefore to fight someone on the street, you have failed at everything else that goes before (awareness, de-escalation, avoidance etc). And in my line of work, this is very true.

At the end of the day, is MMA self defence? After some of the podcasts I have been listening to, there is a lot of debate to be had.

Ok, so I went training last night at my dojo, arrived expecting a good session and was right up for it. After the warm up, Sensei came out and delivered what turned out to be a fantastic lesson that really got the "old grey matter" working. With a class of brown and black belts, Sensei started off on combination techniques...with a difference, everything was reversed! So instead of upper block, reverse punch, lower block. It was lower block, reverse punch, upper block and so on through all the "normal" combinations. This was quite a challenge, as my Sensei said "We come every week and do the same techniques in the same manner...we become something of a Karate Automaton" he raised some very good points about what if we are faced with a kick first? After this, we did some kata starting with Kihon. Something of a shock to the system, do Kihon slowly to get us thinking, we get to the last move and get told to do the kata backward to his count. I don't know if anyone has ever done this before, but doing even such a basic kata as Kihon in reverse is really quite a test. Amazingly after having done it backward, thinking about every move to ensure it is correct, doing it again "normally" makes you realise where your problems are! Thinking Kihon was difficult, Heian Shodan is far worse! ave you ever tried the 4th move backwards? Anyway, that was the end of the reverse things, but not the end of the grey matter work out! Next was one step sparring, first done "normally" then done on opposite hands, then done without being able to move backwards or by using a standard upper block, outside block or lower block, and then finally done with one hand tied behind your back. These little things which you wouldn't normally do, really get you thinking about your technique and range of movement it was quite an amazing and tiring lesson. If you have never tried before, give it a go, it is well worth it.

Sensei O'Neil really is just awesome!

We most definitely sing from the same sheet there.

I would say in your example, it maintains the traditional side of things as, by the sound of it, you would be teaching the 2 arts separately, the main issue I have is when it is literally Karate, Kick Boxing and Kung Fu (for example) all taught at the same time. What direction does a student at a dojo like this take?

Terry O'neil and Bob Poynton at The Shotokan National Karate championship (kugb). These 2 are quite insane and i have had had the "pleasure" of training with them all be it in a large group. I have also had a rather long a pleasurable chat with Bob quite a few years ago.