Training out fear of (jiyu) kumite

[Nidan Melbourne]

Our juniors don't do jiyu kumite until they hold a Dan grade. And our adults do it in our advanced class.

Otherwise we do awase (soft & slow), point sparring and light kumite (takedowns, throws, locks, chokes, thigh kicks etc are allowed. just no knee joint kicks for obvious reasons)

[markr]

Thanks for all the replies, a very mixed range of views. I have to say, it was my dad who introduced me to Karate when I was a kid and we were not allowed to grade past 1st kyu until we reached 16 and joined the senior class, I can very much see this view point and to be fair, probably lean towards that myself, young children do not have the maturity required in most cases (on the flip size, if they need to wait 6 years to grade Shodan, how many young karata-ka would we loose?)

Having said that, we are in an organisation now that allows grading up to 2nd dan under 21 years so I feel if he is ready (big question!) then I should not hold him back; I agree with the car driving comment, only way for him to overcome his fear is to do more Kumite, it's a shame that Jiyu and free-sparring are not part of regular training so I will need to do this at home I think - I was worried that me being twice his size could not help but I'm thinking on my knees (and him with body armour initially) so I can't overpower him will give him a bit of confidence to work on his techniques (and I can start introducing a tap or two with my mitts

Thanks for the advice, I think we will see what he is like nearer the grading; I'm a big advocate of breezing the grading through preparation rather than scraping through and not really been good enough for the belt.

Mark.

[Nidan Melbourne]

Thanks for all the replies, a very mixed range of views. I have to say, it was my dad who introduced me to Karate when I was a kid and we were not allowed to grade past 1st kyu until we reached 16 and joined the senior class, I can very much see this view point and to be fair, probably lean towards that myself, young children do not have the maturity required in most cases (on the flip size, if they need to wait 6 years to grade Shodan, how many young karata-ka would we loose?)

Having said that, we are in an organisation now that allows grading up to 2nd dan under 21 years so I feel if he is ready (big question!) then I should not hold him back; I agree with the car driving comment, only way for him to overcome his fear is to do more Kumite, it's a shame that Jiyu and free-sparring are not part of regular training so I will need to do this at home I think - I was worried that me being twice his size could not help but I'm thinking on my knees (and him with body armour initially) so I can't overpower him will give him a bit of confidence to work on his techniques (and I can start introducing a tap or two with my mitts

Thanks for the advice, I think we will see what he is like nearer the grading; I'm a big advocate of breezing the grading through preparation rather than scraping through and not really been good enough for the belt.

Mark.

It is ok if you do it at a home. Even if it means you do it with him. You can easily help him learn how to fight bigger foes.

How often does he do kumite in the dojo?

[sensei8]

I have to ask the question, should 10 year old's be doing Jiyu Kumite ? Then again, I old fashioned and think 10 year old's shouldn't be allowed to be Dan grades either...so. Sorry I can't be positive about it.

Yes, they should. Why? It's part of a karateka's training, and in that, it's not age restrictive, imho. No, imho, a 10 year old shouldn't be a BB, but training in Jiyu Kumite ISN'T the same thing. Train in it, and trian hard UNDER the supervision of said instructor.

[Zaine]

I have to ask the question, should 10 year old's be doing Jiyu Kumite ? Then again, I old fashioned and think 10 year old's shouldn't be allowed to be Dan grades either...so. Sorry I can't be positive about it.

Yes, they should. Why? It's part of a karateka's training, and in that, it's not age restrictive, imho. No, imho, a 10 year old shouldn't be a BB, but training in Jiyu Kumite ISN'T the same thing. Train in it, and trian hard UNDER the supervision of said instructor.

Exactly this. Very little of Karate should be withheld because of age (and what is should be at the instructors discretion). The key is certainly to always supervise to ensure that it is being done safely and correctly. Just because they are young doesn't make them oblivious and if they think that you're holding something back from them it will cause frustration and it could turn them away.

[Nidan Melbourne]

I have to ask the question, should 10 year old's be doing Jiyu Kumite ? Then again, I old fashioned and think 10 year old's shouldn't be allowed to be Dan grades either...so. Sorry I can't be positive about it.

Yes, they should. Why? It's part of a karateka's training, and in that, it's not age restrictive, imho. No, imho, a 10 year old shouldn't be a BB, but training in Jiyu Kumite ISN'T the same thing. Train in it, and trian hard UNDER the supervision of said instructor.

Exactly this. Very little of Karate should be withheld because of age (and what is should be at the instructors discretion). The key is certainly to always supervise to ensure that it is being done safely and correctly. Just because they are young doesn't make them oblivious and if they think that you're holding something back from them it will cause frustration and it could turn them away.

I can agree totally with that. Anything you do with anyone in MA you should always be supervising them at it. Especially with Kumite where they could potentially injure somebody (mainly in light and jiyu kumite).

When we are teaching our students how to spar, we tell them to an appropriate level but if you are hit a bit too hard they should say "OOSU" or tell them that it was a bit too hard. but some students don't understand to pull the power off a bit because they are obviously hitting too hard. As you don't want to injure your partner. As you won't learn anything if you injure everyone you spar and they (your partner) won't learn anything nor will they want to learn how to spar

[brickshooter]

One way to help lower the fear is to wrap the kid up in protective gear and lightly hit him to show that it doesn't really hurt. Then layer them up with gear from head to toe before their match. Lots of MMA sparing is done in this fashion and it's amazing how much punishment the padding can absorb.

[guird]

See if your son has any friends his age/size in the dojo that would like to spar with him outside of dojo hours (under your careful supervision of course).

[devil dog]

I guess I'm not going to be unpopular here but I have a hard time understanding how a 10 year old is able to test for Shodan much less that he has not engaged in Kumite that much.

No disrespect intended but IMHO you can not be a BB without extensive experience in Kumite.

We start our students by allowing them to spar slowly and restric them to one or two techniques. As they progress and their technique and control increases so does the speed, power and freedom with which they engage in Kumite. Our Sankyu are engaging in Jiyu Kumite.

If he is afraid of Kumite and his instructor has not properly trained him in Kumite then he should not IMHO be testing for Shodan. Quite honestly I do not feel that a 10 year old has the maturity level to test for Shodan but I digress.

Getting hit and making contact is part of overcoming your fears and learning how to defend oneself. Kumite is an essential part of Karate and should be practiced often. All of my classes train in the basics - Kihon, Kata and Kumite. If you leave out Kumite you are not training in Karate IMHO.

[sensei8]

I guess I'm not going to be unpopular here but I have a hard time understanding how a 10 year old is able to test for Shodan much less that he has not engaged in Kumite that much.

No disrespect intended but IMHO you can not be a BB without extensive experience in Kumite.

We start our students by allowing them to spar slowly and restric them to one or two techniques. As they progress and their technique and control increases so does the speed, power and freedom with which they engage in Kumite. Our Sankyu are engaging in Jiyu Kumite.

If he is afraid of Kumite and his instructor has not properly trained him in Kumite then he should not IMHO be testing for Shodan. Quite honestly I do not feel that a 10 year old has the maturity level to test for Shodan but I digress.

Getting hit and making contact is part of overcoming your fears and learning how to defend oneself. Kumite is an essential part of Karate and should be practiced often. All of my classes train in the basics - Kihon, Kata and Kumite. If you leave out Kumite you are not training in Karate IMHO.

Solid post!!