Karate Katas helping my Judo and Kickboxing a lot

[kozushi]

I am finding the lessons contained in the taikyoku, heian, bassai and kwanku katas very helpful in my judo and kickboxing. (I've been at these things for 22 years!) I've gotten several very important lessons from the katas:

1. Cross feet over when moving close to or away from your opponent: this keeps you ready to hit, and confuses him as to what you are doing since your stance changes sides.

2. Always leave an opening for your opponent, which draws his attack - and you know which one it draws so you can prepare for it - but keeps you very strongly defended in other areas, again, forcing him almost, to attack at that opening which you are aware of. The karate stances are created for this reason, I think. The shuto position leaves your head open on one side, for example.

3. Attack the opponent's limbs to confuse him and make openings. Thus, the shuto "blocks" chop through his guard. The down block attacks the opponent's top of the foot. EVERY BLOCK IS ACTUALLY A STRIKE!

[kansascityshuffle]

I'm surprised it's helping. When I got into muay thai I didn't really progress until I temporarily forgot the karate I did for years. After I became proficient enough in muay thai I started to combine the karate I knew. In my experience it's very hard to learn a new martial art if you don't temporarily empty the cup before filling it up with new knowledge.

[kozushi]

Right. My situation is the same. I have spent my life doing judo and kickboxing. The karate is really a new thing for me. So, I am adding the karate skills onto my kickboxing and judo skills. Actually, in some respects, replacing my older skills with the more tactical karate skills I am learning and drilling in the katas.

I think my experience, which is the reverse of the normal for karate, might reveal things about karate that some people might miss going the other (normal) way.

Like I wrote above, much of karate seemingly is about "inviting" attacks. There is no way you should do this until you are comfortable with covering everything up like the typical boxing or MT guard - arms up, even one leg up for MT.

[brickshooter]

I am finding the lessons contained in the taikyoku, heian, bassai and kwanku katas very helpful in my judo and kickboxing. (I've been at these things for 22 years!) I've gotten several very important lessons from the katas:

3. Attack the opponent's limbs to confuse him and make openings. Thus, the shuto "blocks" chop through his guard. The down block attacks the opponent's top of the foot. EVERY BLOCK IS ACTUALLY A STRIKE!

Sorta. A lot of the Karate techniques are taught differently at different levels. As a novice, it's a pure block. At the intermediate level, it's a strike to the limb. At the higher level, it's a block + a grab + a strike to a vulnerable area.

For example, remember the "fencing stance" and the shuto knife hand that looked like a you're holding a knife? As I understand it, you described a shuto block while in a back stance. Very common.

Lower level - just a simple block. Intermediate level - strike to the opponent's upper forearm. At the higher level, the foward striking hand first softblocks a head punch. The other hand grabs the attacker's arm and pulls him off balance (kuzushi) while falling into a back stance to use one's body weight. Then the original blocking hand delivers a shuto strike to the carotic artery. But all in one motion.

All of the other Karate blocks operate the same way. Lower level - block. Mid level - strike. Upper level - block, pull defender's guard away, strike.

Regardless, the mechanics are the same at all levels.