KarateKid7

Appreciate everyones comments. Train Hard. Osu.

Thanks for your advice everyone. Bushido your tips were exactly the sort i was looking for but nonetheless greatful for everyones contribution. Osu. Train Hard.

slow kicking. when it comes to practicing them, we all hate doing them and seeing the higher grades perform them with ease. breaks our confidence totali. what kind of stretches/exercises will specificialli help height and control with slow kicks... im expecting a reply saying "practice". i mean beyond that, any specifics would be much appreciated. stretches/specific isometrics etc. my slow kicks are appauling literalli cant get above stomach height and my left is worse than the right so i want to get a symmetrical level of dynamic kicking control atleast.

friend just as you humbly intended to point out that karatekas refer it to as chi, for your benefit also, I think you will find that Ki and Zanchin are not one and the same. Osu

your response provided me with the right sort of insight i was looking for - some of which makes sense as my sensei is always hinting very obscurely at some of the things you shed light on. thank you. osu.

Could anyone give me some brief insight into the link between karate and chi. One example that comes to mind is the "moving chi" employed in kata such as sanchin and tensho and Iv even heard links between chi gung and seienchin. Less obscurely, the Kiai is a release of built up chi. Could the advanced practioners of karate in this forum give me any advice into implementing chi (visualisation, breathing) into kumite and kata training. For example do people who cross train between chigung/qi gong and karate imagine chi flowing through their gyakazuki punches and uraken when training? Any comments would be gratefully welcomed.

reference to shogeris comments. i dont think zanshin is merely survival. its something a whole lot deeper. from what im aware, its about being aware n focusbut focus doesnt alwayz mean raw survival. i think its something we all strive to understand but never quite get there.

markusan, your ideas are intriguing. thank you.

thanks. that was really insightful. so i wouldn't have to abandon friends etc...sounds silly i know but could it be viewed as showing weakness if you had many relationships.

does this involve no attachment to anything?

im glad this spawned an interesting discussion. thanks for you replies. i was at a formal occasion and some street thugs randomly came in and attacked an old man because he told them to leave. i was going to step in (i did not know they were armed at this point) as he was the father of a friend and loved ones were all around me and were potentialy going to get hurt. luckily the police were called. it was very random and very stupid. infact i didnt realise they were armed till the whole situation was exposed in the police arrest.

your claims are amazing. have you specialised in transferring the "mind" to the body? can simple meditation and chi gung exercises put you on the path?

sorry what do you mean by telegraph?

if you have a form such as sanchin (equivalent of iron-shirt qi gong in karate), perform these with quite some tension and slowly with the proper breathing. dont do this without proper instruction though. THis will definteli increase your dynamic strength. You could perform your forms slowly imaging you are moving in water against high resistance. This will again build dynamic isometric strength which is vital for any martial artist.

thanks guys

thank you all for your tips and advice. all much appreciated

my sensei made us do some drills last lesson involving extension of the legs from a crane stance. i.e. bring the knee up and extend the leg in maegeri position to c how high and how long u can hold it. i just cudnt hold it out at all! and also it wasnt high at all. any ideas on how to improve this coz i think it will make my kicks much better...my sensei called it passive static something. any ideas?

my sensei made us do some drills last lesson involving extension of the legs from a crane stance. i.e. bring the knee up and extend the leg in maegeri position to c how high and how long u can hold it. i just cudnt hold it out at all! and also it wasnt high at all. any ideas on how to improve this coz i think it will make my kicks much better...my sensei called it passive static something. any ideas?

thanks mate.

does anyone know the bunkai of the last two moves? is it linked to gung-fu by anychance. the chicken beaks i think are probably blocks but it seems surreal and being the last move as a signature move almost seems to hint to me the kata is symbolising the tip of an iceberg by suggesting a fighting system related to gung-fu. our head sensei was saying something abt this. anyone kno what im ranting abt? if not. no worries.

Thank you all so much. MJC the great - thanks for the reassurance coz its really what i needed. Its about a frame of mind isnt it - kumite. I reli wish i cud find the link between kumite and kata. recentli iv been doing more bunkai of kata which is good i suppose. il train hard and wait and see thanks folk!

thanks guys. all ur advice is much appreciated. i think different mindset would help me. also the drills and geetting into it again with more practice. lol i like the joke about sacrificing kumite for inner calmness. i thought it would help my kumite. Maybe too much neglect is bad. wasnt wise of me. i need my confidence back up too as i am getting hammered by students i used to make meals out of. its point fighting mind you. not knockdown but ye as long as i improve my stamina and zanshin, things should hopefully look brighter. many thanks

iv jus gotten back into kumite...essentially the application....iv been focussing mainly on the spiritual and kata side of karate but then when i jumped back into serious kumite training after a yr or too, i feel so rubbish! i lack stamina which means after some intensiv drills, i cant even keep my guard up resulting in me getting smacked in the face. opponents i used to make meals out of have improved so much (sure my kata is better than theirs). I lack mainly flexibility speed and focus. My combos and counters are pathetic. Every one is hammering down on me and i feel inferior...please help! Any advice for the course(s) of action i should take would be greatly appreciated.

iv jus gotten back into kumite...essentially the application....iv been focussing mainly on the spiritual and kata side of karate but then when i jumped back into serious kumite training after a yr or too, i feel so rubbish! i lack stamina which means after some intensiv drills, i cant even keep my guard up resulting in me getting smacked in the face. opponents i used to make meals out of have improved so much (sure my kata is better than theirs). I lack mainly flexibility speed and focus. My combos and counters are pathetic. Every one is hammering down on me and i feel inferior...please help! Any advice for the course(s) of action i should take would be greatly appreciated.

what does one mean by "blocking drills"?