Tournament

[monkeymorgan]

Sensei told me that he wants me to compete in weapons kata in our next tournament because Sensei Demora may not be able to come to many more. I don't object to going to watch but I don't want to compete. I've had knee problems for almost four years now and haven't been able to do a correct stance since then. My feet pronate A Lot, I mean I can turn them out over 180 degrees. My stances aren't even recognizable. I have worked with him and on my own and still can't get everything where it should be. He said my hands could make up for it but I disagree. I am pushing really hard to try and fix them but I still don't think I can fix things by April. The more I try the worse things get. I really don't want to go embarrass myself but I don't want to upset Sensei. What should I do?

[Zaine]

Talk to your sensei about it a little more, he can't make you do it. Also, maybe go get some physical therapy about that knee. That can be a big problem.

[deckerdude]

Zaine is correct monkeymorgan.

Your health takes precedence over your Martial Art, surely?

Sorry to say this but you will not be able to do much of ANYTHING if you are a cripple for the rest of your life.

A fact which your Sensei does not seem to take on board for some odd reason.

[Dobbersky]

Zaine is correct monkeymorgan.

Your health takes precedence over your Martial Art, surely?

Sorry to say this but you will not be able to do much of ANYTHING if you are a cripple for the rest of your life.

A fact which your Sensei does not seem to take on board for some odd reason.

Totally agree, competition trophies don't make you any better than you are already

Get you're injuries sorted first, then maybe when they're healed do you look at what your sensei wants

[evergrey]

Yeah, health and safety first!

And it's just kata anyway.

[Sainthood]

I agree with everyone. Health first. But if you could do the kata without damaging your knees you should give it a try. You may not come in first but there is no reason not to try.

[Harlan]

So what if you suck? Go and do it anyway.

First off, if your knees are that bad, you have more things to worry about than tournaments...like quitting karate altogether.

Secondly, unless you train with Fumio Demura, when else are you going to get a chance to be acknowledged as part of that group? It's a teacher's job to make sure you get the exposure that you should get to be acknowledged, and he/she should already know your abilities - bad knees and all.

[JohnASE]

If I understand your situation correctly, you don't think you can train hard enough to compete at an acceptable level, but your sensei thinks you can. It sounds to me like the main difference of opinion between you is either how much you can accomplish in the next month or what level is acceptable. I say talk it out. Try to convince your sensei that you're right, and give him the chance to convince you that he's right. If neither of you budges, you have to decide whether you want to compete at a subpar level or not.

Either way, don't train harder than you can physically take. Everyone is talking about safety and considering your health first, but I don't remember you actually saying your training is causing excessive pain or damage. If it is, maybe you should take it easier or see a doctor.

My personal opinion is that if your sensei isn't embarrassed by your competing, you shouldn't be either. He must think that the things you'll gain from competing are worth the effort or discomfort.

Regarding Demura Sensei, I see you're Genbu-Kai, so he's the head of your organization. He had a pretty big health scare last year., but I believe he's been out of immediate danger for a long time. I didn't get a chance to speak with him at his tournament last week, but I hear he's doing pretty well. He'll probably dial back on traveling, but I'm sure he won't give it up completely. He might not be able to give seminars like he used to, but I'd bet he'll at least try to make it to Genbu-Kai tournaments. You said "our next tournament", so I assume you're talking about a Genbu-Kai event.

[monkeymorgan]

Sensei is concerned with my health first. He knows that no matter what I will not complain. He has banned me from doing stances because he is afraid that the way I do them will cause me problems. I was told by a doctor I could continue my training. I don't plan on quitting karate until I'm in a wheel chair. Pain is no problem I have a very high pain tolerance thanks to my knees and my little brother, I have never quit because of pain. I just wanted to know if I should compete out of guilt or just go and show support for my dojo. After reading through your guys's responses I think I will just train twice as hard and see how I feel in April because even though I wouldn't win the experience I would get would be worth it I hope. Thanks for your responses they really helped.

[bushido_man96]

Who is in charge of you? You or this sensei? Answer seems easy to me. If you don't want to compete, then don't.