GojuRyu Bahrain

Advanced Karate training is a hot topic for me....I can ramble on and on...so excuse the length of my post....As the previous posters mentioned already, several reasons could be the cause for experienced students to leave a club. I can think of the following: 1. Goal (i.e., black belt) achieved: moving on to something else. What to do: Not much to be done, except to respect their decision. 2. Life priorities change: Maybe the age of 1st - 3rd Dan coincides with people completing their studies, moving up their job ladder, or starting a family. All these changes leave less time for Karate. What to do: Respect their decision. Keep in touch, their life may change again and allow a return to Karate later. 3. Knowledge exceeds skill: At some point (often between Shodan and Nidan) a Karateka's knowledge advances faster than his/her physical skill level. As a new Shodan one might be proud (but ignorant). Then, continuing the training, one's knowledge expands and one notices all those tiny mistakes everywhere. It feels like moving backwards for a while. That can be quite frustrating. What to do: Sensei to explain the situation. Student to stick to it. Work through this phase, realize one's progress, compare to other "advanced beginners" and keep practicing! 4. Not enough peers at comparable level: leading to lack of challenge, frustration and then boredom. Mixed classes (beginners and black belts are not enough). What to do: Talk with instructor about advanced classes (Black belt only). Find additional and/or new club offering advance classes. Go to seminars inside and outside of your organization.. if they don't let you do that: Change club immediately! 5. Instructor only fit to teach Kyu-level Karate: He/she could be excellent at teaching basics (I know I am not!). Dan-level Karate (as Wastlander pointed out exactly) should be different: More individual, advanced concepts! What to do: Student: Time to think & study yourself. It is actually rare to find an instructor who can really guide advanced Dan students. Seek one that can! Instructors should conduct advanced classes (I mean black belts only!). Also, instructors should admit their limits, let students progress with other teachers if ready. The teachers biggest achievement is a student who surpasses him/her!

Greetings everybody! Haven't been posting for a while as I was busy with life ... and Karate. Wish everyone a belated successful 2015! Train often, train hard! Personally, I ended 2014 by finally testing for 4th Dan, after more than 10 years of training (since 3rd Dan). It was a good and rewarding experience to go wide and deep into Karate, take some side roads (Uechi Ryu and Shotokan, etc..), and really work on Sepai (which is the Kata for 4th Dan in my organization) so that in the end I felt fully ready for 4th Dan. Now I am wondering, what will be next? What distinguishes a 5th Dan from a 4th Dan? I am working on that and am curious about your thoughts/opinions! --- btw, here is my Sepai: If my test-partner agrees, I will post the Bunkai as well...I know that's the interesting part

Congratulations! 50 years in the same martial art is impressive! I just felt a bit sorry for myself turning 40 soon...now I have no excuse! Keep it up (I am sure you will)!

Thanks for your replies so far. Not much dis-ambiguity then about Tensho Kata. As you, Nidan and John, I practice Tensho regularly (every training), usually after particularly strenuous exercises/sanchin or at the end of the workout, with the intent to "come down" and regain the "Ju" side. This should be in-line with Cheesefriesamurai's Sensei saying as well. I do not practice Bunkai for Tensho, although my teacher mentioned that Tensho shows soft conflict resolution in a way that does not harm an attacker: The attacks are redirected and the attacker is only unbalanced and pushed back instead of killed or crippled. However, recently I found this video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=34e77CtQjVc) which I liked a lot.

Do you practice the Kata Tensho? I am curious what you think about this Kata: How often do you practice Tensho? What is the intent behind this Kata? Are there Bunkai associated to the moves? Do you practice the Bunkai? How does Tensho fit into the Goju Ryu curriculum? (What makes it similar to other Goju Kata, what makes it different?) I appreciate your thoughts!

Yes, Shotokan Dojos tend to be less application focused and have a less mixed curriculum, i.e., concentrate on Kihon and Kata an Sports competition. Now, this is a crude generalization and there are many shining examples that do things differently, but on average I have seen what you describe....

Grading for a higher rank requires skill, knowledge, and attitude. Assessing the knowledge and especially the attitude of a person takes time and a reasonable relationship between examiner and examinee. Besides, asking for a belt-test seems like a poor option compared to finding the right teacher. ---------- 7:1

I enjoyed reading this article. Thanks for the link @Wastelander (& and thanks for the article @Jack)!

I can't stand "Senseis" who mistake their static students for a Makiwara... I feel that any form of hard contact with a compliant partner (during critiquing of a technique as in this case, or during any other demonstration for that matter) shows either poor control or a badly twisted character of the person doing the contact. Conditioning drills (KoteKiTai) are something else, of course. Also, sparring or "live" drills are a totally different matter as well; there, some (or even a lot) contact is necessary.

Ha funny, I always perceived it the other way round: that Shotokan schools differ in their curriculum whereas Goju Ryu schools are more similar... I attributed that to the fact that Shotokan teaches more Kata (compared to Goju Ryu) so that, naturally, some Katas will be neglected based on the instructor's (conscious or unconscious) preferences. Maybe this is partly because I don't take the additional beginner's forms too serious and tend to ignore them.... On the other hand I have the impression that, keeping Kata aside, the curriculum (Kihon, Kumite, Bunkai, fitness) of schools of both styles vary a lot more depending on the school's orientation towards sport vs. self defense and much less so as a function of their style.

hi Spartacus, I have practiced this way of kicking while doing Uechi Ryu. Conditioning was started on half acar tire fixed on the wall. We started with gentle pokes and increased intensity over months. Also, jogging (barefoot) with the toes in this position helps strengthening the muscles needed to make the toe/foot stabil upon impact. My Goju Ryu Sensei also told us that toe kicks were state-of-the-art in the old days before tournament Karate. Nowadays, in colder climates i would recommend sturdy boots to achieve a similar effect

In my style of Goju Ryu (Yuishinkan) the Kata are supposed to end back at the Happo (place where it started), with the exception of Tensho (and Gecki Sai Dai Ni), which end one step further back. Not only the techniques and the sequence, also the position is considered important... Isn't it nice to have something to work on?

I would always go with a heavier Gi, and I would avoid such cheap beginner's Gis.... They shrink, they don't fit well, under pressure they tear, and the worst is that hey look like pyjamas...get a decent Gi for USD 100 to 150, I prefer Kata cut with shorter arms and legs.

I posted my comparison of Sesan - Seisan - Hangetsu - Seishan earlier: http://www.karateforums.com/sesan-seisan-hangetsu-seishan-vt45116.html?highlight=sesan It is quite interesting to look at other styles / approaches and see how techniques diverge over time.. NidanMelbourne, I wonder if you are supposed to end the kata on the same place where you started?

Here is a video ( ) it gets interesting at ~0:20 ... ignore the striking power (the guy is obviously much heavier than his demonstration partners), the point is the speed of delivering several arm techniques in very rapid succession. Also notice the target areas.Power is largely irrelevant for open handed strikes to eyes or throat. Too much power would actually injure the attackers hands...I remember Gushi Sensei (Uechi Ryu) emphasizing on "Speedo, speedo! Pointo, pointo!"

i vote that it is important, but like with anything, there are pros and cons with rotational dynamics: PRO (using rotation increases) Power, reach, commitment to the technique CONS (not using it helps with) Speed (frequency of strikes), precision (to hit the target), better defensive posture (see below) Most styles that I know have a heavy bias for rotational dynamic so the benefits should be more accepted. Others , particularly Uechi Ryu or Ving Tsun have a lot of techniques that focus on fast hands while maintaining a compact torso musculature (no or very restricted rotation), which is helpful to resist incoming strikes. Pros and cons, practice all, I say!

Hi MrNice, Out of your list I have practiced (to some extent) all styles with the exception of Kyukushin.....for me, Goju Ryu is The Thing, because the fundamental stategy fits me best. BUT, as others mentioned before, all styles can be the best depending on you, the instructor, and lots of additional circumstances.

Around 2/3.... 25 years...crosstrained since 22 years.

Welcome! Of course everyone makes mistakes. After 25 years of practice maybe no longer punching with the wrong arm, but smaller mistakes... Wrong spirit, little posture problems (my head is always too far forward...), no mental focus. But this is a good thing: mistakes are the only chance to learn! What could you improve if you don't make mistakes (or don't realize them at least?

Absolutely agreed! I like Iain's material because it seems well researched and very applied. I hope i can train with him sometime.

Kihon Ido (fundamental techniques in motion) allow for turns and so do partner exercises. Especially, because the turns in Taikyuko are wrong from the Goju Ryu perspective, as I explained before. Punching over long distance is not included in any of the other Katas (that contain the core concepts of Goju Ryu). Neither is Oi Zuki. I just did all Katas and checked. Really. There are only 5 Oi Zukis, one in Sanchin and two in each of the Geckisai forms, which are fairly new themselves. Oi Zuki in Zenkutsu Dachi is a Shotokan concept (appears for example in the Heian Katas, and sporadically in advanced Katas like Jion, Gankaku etc..). But not nearly as often as time is spent on practicing it in Kihon. Based on this my question is: Why should Goju Ryu Karate-ka spend much time on a concept that wasn't important enough for the founder(s) of our art to be included in our core Katas? (I play the devils advocate here; for my Nidan in Shotokan I have done a lot of Zukis in Zenkutsu Dachi)

Hi Dani, I may fit your profile, because I practiced Goju Ryu for 16 years (3rd dan). After moving to a place with only Shotokan Clubs I started Shutokan to have somebody to train with (got a JKA 2nd Dan along the way)... But Shutokan never caught me as much as Goju Ryu, which is why I keep practicing (I gathered a small group, actually). Now, does it make sense to train both styles at the same time? Generally, cross training is good, but if one starts training simultaneously in these two styles without solid foundation in one it might cause more confusion than do good. So, why divide your focus early on? On the other hand, if you are mature in one style (brown or black belt) and want to explore the other - go for it! I could also see the benefits if you want to supplement your training with a specific skill-set (for example sports Kumite) that is not taught in your regular Dojo. Finally, a comment on the JKA; I don't think they teach Funakoshi's unmodified Shotokan...They teach strong athletic techniques that have little use outside of sports Karate. And they are ridden with political schemes and petty "I am the head instructor"-struggles, in my experience.

Interesting Question. I wrote earlier how I introduce Karate stances through a simple partner exercise. I use this as a warm-up game (Actually, it's simple standup wrestling): Two partner hold a firm Judo grip on each other. Both have the goal to control their partner's movement. Only Karate stances are allowed. Whoever moves his/her opponent to a wall wins (padded walls only!). Reset and continue immediately! Start with low intensity pushing, then increase intensity, then include pushing & pulling. Experiment with Zenkutsu Dachi, Shiku Dachi/Kiba Dach, Sanchi Dachi, Neko Ashi Dachi. This exercise teaches intuitively which stance is best for which situation. Dachi Waza Bunkai, if you will... The same approach should be used for all motions in Karate, including the Kata.

Well, (this is strictly my personal opinion - I might be wrong ) the Taikyuko "Katas" do not fit into the Goju Ryu system. Instead, they teach bad habits: 1- stepping forward in Zenkutsu Dachi with Oi Zuki 2- even worse, stepping forward Zenkutsu Dachi with a block 3- mawate; the turns are performed by moving the back foot (moving the body into the attack). In all later Kata, turns always include evasion by moving the body off line (moving the front foot). Obviously this is quickly expanded to throws. 4- promote wrong concept of distance (opponent is simulated too far away). I believe the intent behind the Taikyuko were to train large groups of beginners in body awareness (so that they know where their left foot and right arm are etc..). I strongly believe in small-group training and there body awareness & coordination can be learned through Kihon, Kihon Ido and partner exercises within the Goju Ryu framework, i.e., in line with later Kata principles.

Taikyoku Gedan / Chudan / Jodan - Yellow Gecki Sai Dai Ichi - Orange Gecki Sai Dai Ni - Green Saifa - Blue Seyunchin & Tensho & Sanchin - Brown Sanseru - Shodan Shisochin - 2nd dan Sesan - 3rd dan Sepai - 4th dan Kururunfa - 5th dan Suparimpai Personally, I would favor the following order: Sanchin - Beginner onward Gecki Sai Dai Ichi - Yellow Gecki Sai Dai Ni - Orange Saifa - Green Seyunchin & Tensho - Brown Sesan - Shodan Sanseru - 2nd dan Sepai - 3rd dan Shisochin - 4th dan Kururunfa - 5th dan Suparimpai