Unsu Jump!

[Shotokan Student]

As for why I am doing Unsu, well my instructor tells me to jump and I don't ask how high, I just jump, so I don't have a lot of answers.

I really appreciate all of your help. Haven't checked here in a while, so I have some new tips to help me along. My jump is better than it was before, but still have to get the knees properly tucked in and gain some height.

Thanks everybody, bit nervous because I am participating in a competition in a few weeks. I don't like to let my instructor down, but sometimes I feel I don't look good enough to represent the school. Practice practice practice.

[bushido_man96]

Just keep practicing, go out there, and try your best. That's all you can do, and that's all anyone can ask of you. As long as you do that, your instructor shouldn't be able to say much about how you represent your school.

[JusticeZero]

I guess I'm curious why you are doing Unsu at this stage of the game. It's a very advanced kata and only a few, even the best, can do it right (Unsu in general that is).

Most likely the same sort of egotism that leads people on my art's forums to ask for tips with advanced movement sequences without being able to articulate which one of the sub-movements in the technique they are trying to do, then offhandedly comment on not having the basic default stance that a student spends their first day learning down.

[Shotokan Student]

It's so disheartening on this forum at times. I mean, some of you are so open minded and helpful, but others seem to be quite negative. Really don't understand this side of martial arts. I've been at this for about a year now, and I do have the basic stances etc, however, I did not learn the terms for the stances. We have word tests every three months, but so far the stances were not part of the testing.

Maybe I shouldn't be surprised at the negativity and egotism I sometimes run across in this art. I try to keep it as a spiritual growth aspect of my life, but it must mean something very different to some people.

Thank you bushido_man, and others like you who have been supportive without trying to make me feel bad about learning.

[Traymond]

Well obvously you dont have to make it look like Michael Milon's Jump...thats to pretty for me. But I am no good at helping you with this one, since my jump is only half good as my teacher tells me. but I was never fond on jumping thats why I dont teach this or the akamine no jiwa kata. But I was told to practice on a trampoline for two months to get use to a good unsu jump.

I was never fond of Unsu.

[Traymond]

It's so disheartening on this forum at times. I mean, some of you are so open minded and helpful, but others seem to be quite negative. .

Haha tell me about it...but dont worry just ignore those that are and have fun.

[JusticeZero]

Sorry if I have upset you; mostly I have a highly developed cringe reaction because of how many people come into my art doing that sort of thing.

"I wanna know how to fix my (insert series of advanced movements here) can you help?" "Well, first you need to develop your basic stances and structure before we get anywhere near that stuff; you still haven't got your first week stuff down." "You @#$%&! You don't know anything!"

It gets really tedious, and I am as a result quick to see such tendencies.

[sensei8]

Took me long enough to get the Enpi jump right

Yeah! That jump looks easy enough, but, once you attempt the jump for the first time, it's not that easy. Although, that jump in Enpi is much easier than the jump in Unsu.

Shotokan Student,

Please don't allow others to rob your love of the Martial Arts; those that try to tear you down are a dime a dozen. As bushido_man96 said...just don't give up on the jump in Unsu, it's one of, if not the most difficult jumps in any Kata/Form around. I never thought that I'd get that jump right, but when I did...sheech...I went..."Whoa! I did it!" Then I did it again...and again...then I feel hard because I was dead tired. But now, my right knees a basket case so I've got to do adaptations of that jump, with approval from my Hombu, when I do Unsu.

Hang in there, pretty soon you'll be flying high with the other eagles!

[DWx]

Can't give you advice on the actual technique but for the jumping part, check out this thread for some tips on gaining height

http://www.karateforums.com/jumping-higher-and-further-vt34124.html

[Shotokan Student]

Thanks for the encouragment. I don't like to let opinions get to me, guess I was a bit sensitive after reading some of the comments, but just another thing I have to grow past.

sensei8, if you read this, was your knee hurt from jumping or other activities? My right knee has a big bruise on the side, just realized it's from the fall in Unsu. Just wondering if this form will be the death of my knee.

Thanks for the link dwx, hope to find some help there.