Power and breathing: common problem?

[Spartacus Maximus]

I have been struggling with what seems to be a very common problem when trying to generate power. It is even more obvious with strikes which are meant to be short and compact.

I have heard and seen countless times that power is generated from the lower abdominal area just below the navel. Whenever I try this, I feel like I am moving slower. The main problem is breathing at the same time because whenever I try to contract for the instant of a strike, I have a reflex to hold my breath. I KNOW I am doing something wrong but I am very frustrated and puzzled on what it is and how to fix it. What I do is definitely not what my teacher can do. I just don't get it! I understand how he does it, but I still don't know how I can do it myself.

I would appreciate any ideas on how to improve this, especially the breathing problem because I'm certain I'm not alone.

[Wastelander]

You feel slower because, most likely, you ARE slower. You're trying to move in a way that doesn't feel natural, so your body takes longer to do it. With practice, it will become more natural, relaxed, and fast. You are most likely holding your breath because you are trying to hit hard, and it's making you tense. A lot of people end up holding their breath when they try to hit hard.

I have good news for you--these things can be overcome! As my Sensei says, "if you want to be good at hitting things, you have to hit things." Spend lots of time with the makiwara, the heavy bag, and hand-held pads. When you do, take it slow and stop worrying about power. Instead, focus on the timing of your breath and muscular engagement. Once everything is in sync, you'll be able to hit harder and faster.

[Karate4Life]

OSU!

Yes, Wastelander is right on the spot with his post. I spent my first years in Karate in a dojo that basically did non-contact Karate, and when I hit the pads for the very first time in a Muay Thai gym I was shocked to see how fast I ran out of gas and could not go on anymore. Further to my dislike nobody applauded my performance because my hits were superhard, quite contrary, hehe. After this I knew that I needed to change something.

Indeed: If you want to hit hard, you've got to hit hard, and you're not supposed to hit the air. Practice will get you there, and especially bag or pad work will build up the stamina to go through several hard rounds of hard full-contact work. But watch out: Tensing up and overdoing it will lead you nowhere. The hardest hits I have ever had to take came from two guys (a boxer and a kickboxer) who looked super-relaxed all the time but were able to move so incredibly fast and tense up for just that tiny plit second to take all the air out of me.

You're a Karateka, so I'd like to recommend to cross-train at least a bit with boxers or kickboxers. You will find that since these people mostly don't care about "correct" stances and "form" they usually have a great advantage over us Karateka in terms of fluidity of motions and hitting hard. After all, in many dojos we learn how NOT TO HIT, while these guys learn HOW TO HIT.

OSU!

[devil dog]

You feel slower because, most likely, you ARE slower. You're trying to move in a way that doesn't feel natural, so your body takes longer to do it. With practice, it will become more natural, relaxed, and fast. You are most likely holding your breath because you are trying to hit hard, and it's making you tense. A lot of people end up holding their breath when they try to hit hard.

I have good news for you--these things can be overcome! As my Sensei says, "if you want to be good at hitting things, you have to hit things." Spend lots of time with the makiwara, the heavy bag, and hand-held pads. When you do, take it slow and stop worrying about power. Instead, focus on the timing of your breath and muscular engagement. Once everything is in sync, you'll be able to hit harder and faster.

Spot on and solid post!

I totally agree with Wastelander. Makiwara and heavy bag practice are great for increasing your power.

Start slow and concentrate on putting your body into the strike and not just your arm. Breathe out when striking. The speed will come once your muscle memory starts to develop and it becomes second nature. It doesn't happen over night. With all things, it takes time to get good at.

[cheesefrysamurai]

You should try to coordinate your strikes with exhales. I sometimes make a slight sound when I strike the bag, sort of a sssss sound, just to reinforce the direction of my breath

[sensei8]

Common problems?

Holding their breath!!

[Karate4Life]

OSU!

Common problems?

Holding their breath!!

Indeed. I find this most common with most beginners. I know it took me a long time to fix that myself.

OSU!

[Spartacus Maximus]

It is difficult to explain precisely what I mean because I don't know how to describe it well. I try to make conscious efforts to generate power with the lower core area but it is hard to breathe out completely. It always feels like I am holding some of my breath during the instant I squeeze my core. I have no control over this happening and it becomes very demanding when doing kata where some parts must remain tensed while the core is tensed only for an instant to strike.

I am a shorin ryu karateka so the best example would be naihanchin kata. The legs are supposed to stay tensed and dynamic contractions of the lower core are supposed to be used to execute the many short hand techniques explosive and powerful. I will so venture to guess that Goju ryu and Uechi-ryu have similar principles in the kata Sanchin.

[Wastelander]

To me, it sounds as if you are tensing too much. It's quite common for people to try to completely lock down their muscles when told that they need to tense certain areas of the body at certain times. In reality, you only need to tense enough to get the job done. If you completely contract your core muscles, it will tend to seize up your breathing for an instant. I believe that may be what you're experiencing.

With regard to Naihanchi, the same thing applies--too much tension in your legs is going to increase tension in your core. Increased tension in your core slows you down, and takes up the "slack" before tension causes your breathing to seize up. With my Naihanchi-dachi, I go for "springy" rather than "solid," if that makes sense?

[Harkon72]

This is what I find funny, and you will when you notice it. The fabricated hissing noises that boxers make when they punch. Not all boxers do it, especially these days. It may be their technique for generating focus and power, it may be a habit, it may be a fashion among their gym mates, I don't really know. If you notice someone doing it, you will find that there is a pronounced in-breath just before the technique, so wait for it, block and counter. As I said, it's not as common as it used to be but still a fashion some boxers follow.