kiai.... LOUDER!!!

[FushinRyu]

well i've been having trouble with this one girl in class. everyclass when we do anything, she has a very very veeerrrry soft kiai where you can barely hear it. whenever we do kata, we can't get past the first move because my shihan wants me to start over and over again until she kiais loud enough.... but she never does. any suggestions?

[ninjanurse]

I had this trouble with a kid in my class until I told him to shout like he was cheering for his favorite football team...it worked!

[Rateh]

You might just have to give her time. When I started training I would kiah so quietly that I couldn't even hear MYSELF. I had a brown belt work with me for an hour to try and get me to kiah louder. After that I kiahed loud enough for me to hear it, but no one else.

The thing was, it wasn't that I wasn't trying, I was just so so so so very shy that that was literally the best I could do at the time. It was years before I could kiah loud enough that others could hear me, and years still till I kiahed as loud as a yell.

If she is anything like myself, having her kiah again and again in front of the class will do the opposite of what you would like. Instead of helping, you may be pushing her further back into her shell.

One thing that DID help me was competing. It was through competing in forms competition that I eventually was able to kiah at a yell. When everyone else is screaming their head off, yelling loudly isn't quite as scary.

[bushido_man96]

Some kids are shy, so it just takes time for them to come out of their shell. We spend most of our adult lives trying to get our kids to keep quiet whenever we are inside, to use the "inside voice," and then we take them to Karate class, and try to convince them that it is ok to yell inside. So, it can be a chore convincing some of the shyer ones.

[sperki]

I'm not very shy, but kiaing (is that really a word!?) during kata has always been difficult for me. It's always been more of a forceful exhalation; and I've never understood why some moves require a kiai, but not all of them. Should I hit my target harder in certain situations, or what? It's never been an issue with my sensei, but if it is with yours, you might try explaining why you're occasionally yelling at imaginary targets. And maybe you could explain it to me too

[white owl]

I agree with what has been said. My son has been doing karate for 4 years and he still does not kiai loud and Sensei's and I am all the time telling him to be louder which I no he can be.

[sensei8]

Kiai's so low that only a dog can hear them have plagued us instructors for along time.

The thing on the timid kiai's is this. Do your students truly understand the purpose of the kial? If they don't, then educate them on the purpose of and how to kiai. Once the student begins to understand the importance of the kiai, I believe that they'll kiai so loud that they'll strain their voicebox. Knowledge is paramount, this includes the kiai!!!!!!!

As far as shyness goes, this is a real situation and shouldn't be ignored nor should the student be made fun of...unless you don't want your student to escape their shell of insecurity. Greatest tool for any instructor with shy students is this...are you ready?...here it comes....PATIENCE!

Edited June 3, 2009 by sensei8

[whitematt]

well i've been having trouble with this one girl in class. everyclass when we do anything, she has a very very veeerrrry soft kiai where you can barely hear it. whenever we do kata, we can't get past the first move because my shihan wants me to start over and over again until she kiais loud enough.... but she never does. any suggestions?

It is a tough thing for people to do. Kids seem better about it than teens and adults.

Try doing it with her. Tell her on the count of 3, you are both going to ki-hap. Do it a few times together, and then count to 3 and let it her do it on her own (don't tell her.)

You could also try having her yell a word, something like "Hey!" For example you grab or push her, and she defends and yells "Hey!" at the same time. That can be easier for some people than a traditional ki-hap.

One thing I should add - ask your instructor how they would handle it.

[bushido_man96]

Others have mentioned "forceful exhalations" in place of kiai/kihap. I think that if you can get the student to start out with doing just forceful exhalations, then you might be on the road to gaining a full yell. After all, its the same thing, one is just more audible.

[FushinRyu]

i've tried most of these techniques but still no progress.... we teach the importance of kiai when everyone's kiai is soft and get in a circle and put our hands on our stomache and kiai... most of the students usually get louder but there are still a select few.... any other suggestions??? and in our school im not so sure if it's easier to get the children to kiai than the adults, cuz in my adult class there's only like 8-12 people and when we kiai we can literally shake the windows