Brown Belt Goju Ryu questions

[AdamKralic]

AdamKralic, bushido_man96, Wastelander and sensei8.

Thank you for all of your great advise and wisdom regarding karate.

I would of course never go in a street fight and hope never to get in one. That's one of the very reasons why I started karate. As you know, it's all if I have no other option and something tries to stab me with a knife and there is no way to run away.

More importantly, I have learnt to remember to use sidekicks, intercept with kicks, moving sideways and of course, the fact that I don't have to train full-contact and that semi-contact will be okay for sole safe-defense.

I have the techniques down, not that my belt reflects it, but that I know I can do it myself. Now I have to use it actively next time and succeed with becoming better.

If anyone feels like dropping their feedback and advise, please do not hesitate.

Other than that, thanks for your great advise!

You're welcome. You are underestimating what you ARE learning. You are learning to deal with an opponent. That's huge. Fight more. As Wastelander mentioned...do a tournament. They are often. Most are open to all who want to attend. All have rules posted that you can go over well in advance of the tournament date. They will make you a better fighter both in the dojo and in that "one bad day" street fight.

You will be very nervous in all of those situations. The tournament will help you learn how to deal with nervous energy...in a safe environment.

[bushido_man96]

You are welcome. As AdamKralic mentioned, spar more often. As often as you can. You will get better. But when you spar, don't just spar. In class, take some days to spar with a goal in mind. Pick a day that you will focus on learning to use and apply that defensive side kick. Pick a day where you work mostly on footwork, to move sideways and not backwards so much. Other days, focus on putting it all together and winning. Use those days to learn, so when you get to tournament, you have worked on those things in class, and have them down.

[sensei8]

You are welcome. As AdamKralic mentioned, spar more often. As often as you can. You will get better. But when you spar, don't just spar. In class, take some days to spar with a goal in mind. Pick a day that you will focus on learning to use and apply that defensive side kick. Pick a day where you work mostly on footwork, to move sideways and not backwards so much. Other days, focus on putting it all together and winning. Use those days to learn, so when you get to tournament, you have worked on those things in class, and have them down.

Solid post!!

[shinobitribe]

Is there any way I can practice karate at home without equipment? I only have the gloves, I have nothing to punch to other than a pillow. I usually practice kata at home, but it would be convenient to spare with something a little harder than a pillow, I just dont have the money to afford it.

Some tips

1: You can hang up a t shirt or newspaper and try using snap punches or kicks with hikate(pulling back) and bring your hands back to guard. A lot of times (myself included) we tend to leave our hands or kicks out after an attack, leaving ourself open. Punching bags are good to train for power but using a soft target where you just make light contact with improve you kimae or focus.

2: Some of the pre arranged (yakusoku) kumite have tae sabaki built into the techniques. We practice some pre arranged kumite where moving off the line is the first defense and then you use your hands or legs. you can practice that at home.

3: Also get a friend to attack with a single technique or hang a tennis ball and you move in 8 directions: back(south), front into the attacker(north), east(right) and west (left)/ Also practice 45 degree movements: north east, north west, south east and south west. There are a few videos on youtube.

4: condition your body. I use a cricket bat to condition my knuckles, forearms, thighs etc. When i mean condition, I dont mean bashing the crap out of your body. I hit my body moderate power and have been building up the power gradually over time I do this probably do this once every forthnight to give my body time to recover and for bones to thicken and repair themselves. be very careful as this can damage your body in the long run. Go easy on yourself and over time you can build it up.

5: I dont have a makiwara at home, so i have taped a street directory and I use it for conditioning my fist. Again, I go very easy on the punches.

[Harkon72]

This is encouraging, you don't really need expensive equipment to practice good Karate. I practice in my kitchen, I have an old wing chun wall bag for conditioning. It is only recently that I have bought a Thai Shield and some focus mitts. Also you must consider the times when you train alone and have no partner to hold said pads for you. Kata was designed to perfect Karatedo and you don't need a lot of space. Good luck with your training.