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Thanks, Tyler! Last night's class was really good. For some reason I felt pretty gassed during hojo undo, but I felt my techniques were pretty strong throughout the beginning of class. One of my favorite training partners was back -- he's recovering from a dislocated shoulder, so I let him control the speed and intensity during kote kitae. He's a lot of fun to work with and we tend to work at about the same intensity, so it was great to see him there. We then worked ashi kitae (leg conditioning), and he's one of the few people that actually kicks me hard enough that I get real benefit from it. Good times! Individual sanchin was pretty crazy. During individual sanchin training, we perform sanchin with shime testing, and the instructor calls out the sequence of moves we're supposed to do. Typically it is four steps forward, pivot, four steps back, pivot, four steps forward, followed by the double strikes and the wa-uke strikes. Last night I performed this with our CI's father (kyoshi 8th dan). Well, he decided to really mess with me by changing the sequence, all while pushing/pulling/striking me to try to throw me off balance. He caught me off-guard on the first pivot, and I didn't do it as cleanly as I would have liked, but all in all I felt I did pretty well. Afterwards he told me that was the best Sanchin he had seen me perform -- and I told him, "You really were messing with me there, weren't you". His response was, "That was your Sanchin test. What you're doing next Sunday is for the audience -- as far as I'm concerned, you just passed it." After that we broke into groups. We had a really good balance yesterday -- four instructors and eight students, so each instructor worked with a pair of students. I worked with one of the stronger junior black belts (testing for adult black belt next week) on Seisan bunkai. It was a lot of fun and we both did pretty well. Our CI watched the whole thing, and gave us minor corrections throughout. I did get clocked a couple times when he got a bit overzealous (once on a tettsui-uchi to the temple, once on a bear-hug grab where he went high and brushed my left eye). Our CI did mention that in a black belt test things are wired to eleven and if your partner accidentally hits you, keep going. However, if the judges feel you are abusing your partner they may deduct points. All in all it was a really good session and we both were able to make some fine-tune adjustments. After that, the JBB had to leave so I worked with my CI and his younger brother on dan kumite. I felt that the one I did with my CI was one of the best ones I've done so far. I understand there are still areas I'm not perfect, but I'm feeling that I'm at a really good place for the test. I then repeated it with his brother (godan, super tall and strong), and he told me that felt really good as well. After that, we worked kata and then finished for the evening. 4 days to go, and I'm feeling really good.

Congratulations, Danielle! Before you know it it'll be another 15 years, time here seems to fly by.

Thank you for the encouragement, Bob. I really appreciate it. I know that I'm about as well prepared as I can be for the test next week. However, I know that my weakest areas are still the two sword defenses in the Seisan bunkai. Specifically, I need to get reps in with a GOOD partner to improve. I know that my partner for the test itself will be my CI, so I know that he'll make me look good. He'll also not let me get away with anything -- if I miss a defense, he will definitely let me know I missed the uke. At his father's birthday, I did ask him to not pair me with that nikyu for this particular week, because I do need to fine-tune my bunkai. I'm also planning on attending the prep class both times it is offered (wednesday and friday), so I can be as prepped as possible. I know I'm ready. I just want to score as high as I possibly can. Our CI has mentioned several times that a passing score on the test is 80 or better. Most shodan candidates usually end up in the 81-83 range, mainly because of things that they haven't been taught yet. I know that my CI wouldn't let me test if he didn't think I would pass -- I just want to do the absolute best I can. Thank you, Swede. I'm in that spot right now where I'm just nervous and excited enough that it should help my focus. I am not so nervous that I'll be unable to perform well.

Glad to hear you’re still training, Swede! And speaking as a parent it is a more fulfilling experience when you get to share it with your mini-me as well. I generally do one or two classes a week with my 9 year old son; we also have our age/rank specific classes. I have really enjoyed watching him grow and mature through karate. He has now been training at this dojo for about 4.5 years, and he should be testing for nikyu in the next couple of months. I don’t always stay to watch him in class, but when I do I’m very proud of how far he has come.

One week to go. A week from this coming Sunday I’ll be testing for my shodan rank. I’m feeling pretty good about most of the test. Tuesday night I attended the advanced adult class. We started out as usual… junbi undo, hojo undo, and sanchin. We then went off to do kotekitae and individual sanchin. When it came time for my sanchin feedback, Kyoshi (our ci’s father) showed me a subtlety to the wa-uke that Kanei Uechi had first showed him as he was preparing for godan. It involves using the secondary hand to trap/capture an opponent. It took quite a bit for me to understand what he was showing but then the light clicked. I’ve spent the past few days practicing it slowly and I’ve almost got it down passably. Another hundred repetitions before the test though… Unfortunately the rest of the class did not go as well. I was partnered with the nikyu who took most of COVID off so he is still very rusty. We worked our way through Dan kumite but only made it through half of one side of the bunkai. I really need to get some more reps in before my test. Thursday night I attended the early adult class and got to do some teaching. We had a new student on his second class, so I got to work with him on the hojo undo, kotekitae, and yakusoku kumite #1. After that we worked on kyu kumite and Dan kumite - one of my partners was a junior black belt who will be testing in November for his adult black belt — I was able to share some tips for how to deal with much larger/stronger opponents. Mainly it boils down to “don’t try to block me head on, get out of the way.” Tonight was prep class again. Only minor corrections on Seisan that I can practice over the next week. We also got invited to Kyoshi’s 72nd birthday party. Fun times!

I enjoyed the original movies when they came out, and the show is a lot of fun to watch. I’m looking forward to seeing how Chozen fits in with season 5.

I once did the same thing when I slipped and whacked my ribs on the side of the tub. Embarrassed the heck out of myself and bruised the heck out of my side. Glad you weren’t seriously hurt.

I'm making the assumption that your primariy focus is some type of striking art (karate, TKD, etc). I would take a look at your kata and two-person drills and look for throw/lock/choke opportunities as "finishing moves" at the end of those sequences. For example at our mid-level kyu ranks we have a prearranged "kyu kumite" sequence that has five sequences. The fourth sequence ends with the attacker performing a downward chop aiming towards the defender's head. The defender then steps into a shiko-dachi (low stance), performs an elbow strike to the sternum/solar plexus, and follows that with a backfist strike to the opponent's upper jaw (right beneath the nose). This postion has the defender primed to perform a number of different throws, such as an ippon seionage, o-goshi, or a number of other hip or shoulder trhows. In our "official" version, we perform an outer leg reap (o-soto-gari), but again, the position offers plenty of opportunities. The fifth sequence of those drills ends with the attacker performing a right roundhouse kick. The defender then performs an "x-block" (combination of gedan barai uke & chudan barai uke), then performs a watashi-uke (circular block), which spins the attacker around. The defender then finishes the attacker with a shoken-tsuki (one knuckle strike) to the back of the skull. This also places the defender in a prime position for several techniques, such as a rear naked choke. Our official version has the defender kicking the attacker's leg out from underneath him while pulling back on the shoulder, taking him to the ground, and then finishing him with a strike to the neck or floating ribs (whichever presents itself). I'd start with what the drills you're already comfortable with, and find the grappling techniques that present themselves in those drills.

Many moons ago, I studied aiki-jujutsu, which is nominally a predecessor to aikido. They key (fundamental) difference between aikido and the aiki-jujutsu I studied is the concept of the stun. Short version: When defending against an attack, your first move consists of a strike to give you a half-second or so to perform your lock or throw. I've seen other advanced aikidoka who have mentioned that very same concept. My understanding of aikido is that it generally assumes a willing (or at least non-resistant) attacker. A quick strike to the face or solar plexus can turn most untrained attackers into a willing subject -- for at least a half-second or so.

It's not immediately apparent when watching kata videos, but Uechi-Ryu has a concept of "flow" to it, where you generate power in one sequence and then carry that power and momentum over to the next sequence. This is somewhat opposite to the concept of "kime", or focus, and this concept of flow is where the kung fu roots come in. "Kime" and "flow" can be seen at two ends of a spectrum, and a student can choose how much of which to blend into their own technique. For example, in our first rank kata, Kanshiwa, the first 3 sequences are: Bow, step left to a natural stance, move hands up to tiger kimae. Pivot 90 degrees to the left into sanchin-dachi, left circle block, right seiken-tsuki, return right hand to kamae. Pivot 180 degrees to the rear into right sanchin-dachi, right circle block, left seiken-tsuki, return left hand to kamae. Pivot 90 degrees to the left into left sanchin-dachi, left circle block, right seiken-tsuki, return right hand to kamae. As a student gets more advanced, they can introduce the concept of "flow" into these basic moves as follows: - A student can use first pivot to "prime" their block and provide extra power to that wa-uke (circular block) - The student can then, instead of returning his hand to kamae proper, can then "flow" into the next sequence by immediately doing the 180 pivot and use the motion he would have returned to kamae to "prime" the next wa-uke. It can be very subtle, and it's not something you'd necessarily see in an instructional video, but the kung fu influence is certainly there.

Welcome to the forum! I'm also a Uechi-Ryu practitioner, and if you're interested I can point you to some pretty good YouTube channels for learning Uechi Ryu. Good luck on your journey. Keep in mind that the only person you're competing with on this journey is yourself, so as long as whatever you do today is better than what you did yesterday, you're making progress. Good luck!

Welcome to the forum!

Welcome to the forum! Good luck opening the new dojo -- if you haven't already checked it out, the Instructors and School Owners forum has plenty of good information for that.

It was a very good week The more I think about it, the more I think I'm going to pursue the instructor route after I pass my shodan testing. I do enjoy working with less experienced students and sharing my knowledge with them. This week has also been pretty good so far -- I'll have an update on that after Saturday class. I'm really enjoying Seisan (and its bunkai) -- it's probably my favorite kata right now. Uechi Ryu is a bit different though from many other karate styles -- we're still pretty close to our Kung Fu roots. One of the things that our CI has been talking about in our advanced classes lately is the concept of "flow". There is a balance between finding the kime ("focus") for each technique versus letting the power and momentum of one technique carryover to the next technique. It's one of those things that is more and more apparent as the student progresses from shodan through yondan (and up). Thanks DP. That is actually one of the things our CI talked about in our first class of the prep cycle -- the entire prep cycle is one long 3 month test. If he doesn't see you making the corrections he expects of you, he may or may not let you test. In his book that is one of the major differentiators between a black belt and colored belt -- the ability to take feedback and quickly apply corrections.

That is a loaded question. Karate is an umbrella term that covers many different styles and lineages. For example, Uechi-Ryu has been (relatively) lightly influenced by Japan and still has a very distinct Kung Fu flavor to it, especially as you look at the more advanced techniques. Other styles such as Goju Ryu are fundamentally Okinawan as well. (Remember, Okinawa has "only" been part of Japan since the late 1800's). As Karate spread to mainland Japan, it evolved to better fit with Japanese culture and ideals. If you look at the more Okinawan styles, their two-person drills tend to focus more on self-defense. You are expected to break your opponent's balance, push/pull him to manipulate the distance, etc. However in several more Japanese styles, you are not expected to touch your opponent in a two-person drill -- you don't want to disrupt their balance or stance. Finally we get to Tae Kwon Do, which is descended from Shotokan karate, but they added a Korean flair to it. Then we can also talk about American styles of karate, which again have been developed from Japanese styles of Karate. So I guess the answer is, is Karate Japanese? I would say yes and no. The term Karate was first used in 1920's Okinawa when bringing the art to Japan. All styles of Karate have some level of Japanese influence to them. However, all forms or Karate are not wholly Japanese. My .02 worth.

I’ve studied a couple of different styles in the past. As of now I’ve been training in Uechi-Ryu for about 3.5 years.

As of tomorrow, two weeks to go until the testing cycle. This week was a pretty good week karate-wise. Tuesday we had the advanced adult class, and we started working some two-person drills based off Seiryu and Kanchin katas (required for second and third degree). These were different enough that the first couple times through they made my head spin somewhat until my partner and I broke them down one step at a time, and then started adding speed to it. We then did a few other drills and then moved on to kata and then bunkai. Im feeling like my kata is generally getting stronger and stronger — there are a few items my CI wants me to focus on. One he wants to see me keep the elbows tucked towards the end. Also he wants to see me dig into the mats with my toes a bit more to provide a better base. However all in all I’m feeling really good. Thursday night I went to the adult beginner class due to a scheduling conflict with the Mrs. instead of working advanced material, I worked with one of our newer adult students on his 2-person drills. There were a few areas he needed to work on, so I was able to point those out to him. I also worked with some of the younger brown belts on their 2-person drills as well. It felt pretty good to be the senior student in class and doing a lot of teaching in addition to training. Today was the test prep class. We had an odd number of students today, so he had me work with one of the junior black belts who is prepping to test for adult black belt. He is one of those really lean and somewhat tall kids. One of the things I asked him to focus on was to be strong and sincere in all of his techniques. For example when we were doing kotekitae, I had to ask him to hit me harder, and I gave him some suggestions for how to generate more power in both his blocks and strikes. Dan kumite went really well today with no major hiccups, and my seisan kata was as strong as I’ve done it yet. I need to slow down and pause in a few places, but the corrections are getting smaller and smaller I’m getting really stoked for the test. Now to make sure I can ace the oral section

Congratulations! Your life will never be the same again. Enjoy the ride😎

I don't think Uechi-Ryu has this problem as much as many other styles, or I am very fortunate that my CI and his father are very well-connected with the heads of the different Uechi Ryu organizations. While Uechi Ryu has split off quite a few different governing bodies, most heads of the governing bodies received most of their dan gradings directly from Kanei Uechi (Kanbun Uechi's son). For example, the head of my organization received his 1st-6th dan gradings from Kanei Uechi (before he passed). This isn't to say that there aren't differences in how different organizations teach different techniques, and different organizations teach the same techniques differently. However, there is a great deal of communication between the organizations, especially the ones based in Japan and Okinawa. For example, if a student under another instructor comes into my CI's school, he can usually figure out which organization he trained in, based upon how he performs different techniques. They're not always "wrong" or "inferior" per se, just different. Maybe I'm just fortunate that my CI goes to Okinawa every year or two and trains directly with the heads of some of these other organizations.

As others have said, there are a lot of subtleties in Iaido and other sword arts, and a teacher will help you learn much quicker. With the advent of Zoom meetings, it's become much more common to do remote MA training, so that is certainly an option. However, I'd look for someone who is reasonably close to you, who you could visit in person every month or so. Video training is good -- in person training is much better.

I've quit martial arts several times in my life. At 19 I quit due to an injury that I sustained from "being stupid" - broke and dislocated my ankle and never did get back into it. At 23 I quit when I moved from the awesome dojo that I was at and couldn't find a convenient dojo near where I lived. At 45 I quit when I moved. I wasn't impressed with that school or franchise anyways. At 46 I started at the dojo I'm at now, and I'm going on 4 years there. So I guess I've "quit" a few times, but I keep coming back!

I remember a couple years ago, when I was having a discussion with my CI -- I had been out to San Jose with the company I worked with at the time. One of the gentlemen I spoke with mentioned how he had his son in TKD until he got his black belt, and then he disenrolled him -- thinking the black belt was the end of the line. I noted the number of black belts that he had that were still training, and he said that one translation of the term "shodan" is "beginner degree", and it's not until you reach shodan that you get to see the really good stuff. After this class, I'm in complete agreement. Thanks for the encouragement, guys! There were some parts that came fairly easily, and others that seemed just... wrong. But I am really looking forward to the next one of these! One of the reasons I have so much respect for him is that that even after 30+ years of training, he still makes it a point to train with people more experienced than he is, and still keeps trying to learn and improve.

Congratulations DP!

Welcome to the forum and welcome back o training! I took a pretty long break myself awhile back.

Yesterday we had our quarterly black belt training class -- as an ikkyu, I was invited, and the class was a lot of fun and I learned a LOT. The class started out with junbi undo (warmups) and Sanchin kata. Our CI then talked about working the trapezius muscles in Sanchin, and how we should bring the shoulders up and forward to tense the traps, and also how some schools expect you to tighten the neck muscles as well. (In fact, some schools do strikes to the neck during sanchin testing!!). We then moved on to some new 2-person drills that are based upon the kata (required for 3rd dan). Some of these were really hard to wrap my head around -- and from simple changes. Generally when we perform a kick in a drill, it's always performing a circle block with the front hand (usually to "cross"), and kicking with the front foot. In these drills he had us blocking with the rear hand (to "open"), and then had us kicking with the front foot (for the first drill) and the back foot (for the second drill). Again, it's a subtle difference but took a few tries to get my head wrapped around it. He then demonstrated how if you can keep your weight centered when you kick, you can kick equally quickly off either the front or back foot, which can be very advantageous in sparring. (Most of the time an opponent will expect a kick to come off the front foot when kicking in a defensive manner). The next set of drills had quite a bit of aikido flavor to them, since they all ended up with a takedown of some sort. One involved defending against a right front kick -- the defender would use the left hand to redirect the kick to the side while hooking the achilles tendon. They would then simultaneously step in and shuto-uchi to the neck (across the body). They would then be in position to sweep the supporting leg with an o-uchi-gari. With my judo and aikijujutsu background (granted, from 20+ years ago), I was able to pick this one up pretty quick. The next one involved a 3-punch sequence. Right to the head, left to the body, right to the head. The defender would step back and do a high wrist block, followed by stepping back for a low wrist block, and then stepping at a 45 degree in and to the side of the opponent, performing a double side-wrist block, immediately followed by grabbing the opponents wrist with your right hand, then pulling him into a wrist strike to the neck. The followup would be sliding the arm across his neck/body, and then either taking him down over the leg, or pigging him in an arm-bar with the arm across your abdomen. After that, we started started working the bunkai. Unlike the kata up to shodan, this bunkai involved sequences of multiple attackers. He would demonstrate a sequence on his wife, and then we would break up into 3-4 person groups and work that sequence. The class then ended with us learning/practicing the kata. For those of us who aren't working that kata yet (ie, first degrees or below), we just stepped through it 3 times, and then broke off to work on our rank kata. All in all, it was a great experience and I got to learn a lot of new material. I'll need to try to use some of this in class the next time we do 2-person drills. So our CI tends to use these quarterly training sessions to disseminate new information to the school -- for example, when he goes to Okinawa or to Michigan to train with his instructors, he'll bring back new techniques, or new interpretation on existing techniques, and he'll use these sessions to do a top-down dissemination.