pace/speed in forms

[Spartacus Maximus]

To anyone using solo forms(kata, hyung/poomse, taolu) or techniques sequences:

In practise what is the usual speed? What rhythm is used ie: is each move done one at a time step-by-step OR some moves/parts flow into one another?

For this discussion the focus is on individual personal training as the conditions for skills evaluation or demonstrations are separate points.

[sensei8]

Whenever learning a new kata/etc., I always went one step/movement at a time until muscle memory kicked in.

I’d do sections over and over and over before moving to the next sections, making sure to do the previous sections, and then flow into the next section(s).

To decide each section I’d section out said embusen. For example, in Pinan Shodan, Shizentai stance, then turn to the left into a Neko-Ashi/Soto-Uke, Tetsui-Uchi, Shizentai stance/Tetsui-Uchi…that’s section 1…so on and so forth per each section(s).

Afterwards, I’d do said Kata as it was taught to me with emphasis on breath, posture, focus, timing, speed, so on and so forth.

 

[KarateKen]

"Kate is good for breaking a sweat, it won't help you win the tournament." - Terry Silver 

[Montana]

We do our kata one sequence at a time to the call/count of the sensei. In a class of students, it's less chaotic and allows the sensei to watch each students movement. Someone making a mistake stands out pretty obviously that way as opposed to one student being on the 8th move, another on the 7th, another on the 12th and another finishing.

[bushido_man96]

On 9/29/2025 at 1:50 AM, Montana said:

We do our kata one sequence at a time to the call/count of the sensei. In a class of students, it's less chaotic and allows the sensei to watch each students movement. Someone making a mistake stands out pretty obviously that way as opposed to one student being on the 8th move, another on the 7th, another on the 12th and another finishing.

We usually do the form once like this, and then the students do it once at their own count, that is, once they've got the form memorized.  I like to teach it count by count, and then as they get better, add in rhythmical nuances.

[Spartacus Maximus]

Is there a some difference between the way you do your forms in the dojo/school and how you practice them by yourself on your own personal time in private?

Personally when practising kata alone it makes sense to do everything step-by-step. Pace and rythm would depend on when the kata was first learned. 

Edited Tuesday at 04:03 PM by Spartacus Maximus

[sensei8]

Pace of any form are flexible to somewhat of a degree. Look at WKF and the like tournaments, the given pace has given pauses throughout. Normally, said pauses don’t last as long as we see in the WKF and the like, and I believe that the competitors longer than normal pauses are more for the dramatic effect.

[Zaine]

It really depends on what I'm doing. Sometimes I go slow to help emphasize techniques and feel them through. When I do this, I often employ some amount of dynamic tension (similar to Sanchin). Sometimes I do it faster than I would normally go so that I can push myself. When I do it for tests I do it at what I consider a normal speed. A valuable practice is changing up the cadence of your kata. What does it look like if you can't move your feet? What does it look like in a space too small for the kata? 

All this changes, of course, when you want to compete. The kata becomes less about the effectiveness, and more about the performance. You benefit from taking dramatic pauses, going fast with some sequences, and slower with others. This may seem silly, but I have found use in practicing kata this way, as well. Plus, if you're doing demonstrations (in public places or even just in front of peers) it does look cool if done with skill.

[Zaine]

1 minute ago, Zaine said:

A valuable practice is changing up the cadence of your kata. What does it look like if you can't move your feet? What does it look like in a space too small for the kata? 

 

I posted this and then had more thoughts. I want to come back to this point, in particular, because doing this really created a lot of growth in my martial arts. As we know, kata is not a choreographed fight. No one with any actual understanding of kata who was unfortunate enough to need to use their training in a real situation would start doing pinan shodan to get out of it. Instead, if they have worked the techniques in pinan shodan with a partner, they might be inclined to use a particular technique from that kata in their attempts to get away from the confrontation.

By adding restrictions to your kata, you open up lines and variations in your technique. You start to ask yourself "how would this work if I couldn't take a step? How would this work if I couldn't extend my arm all the way?" These questions and concepts can then be drilled with a partner. You end up exploring more than the surface level of a kata. It's an incredible way to gain understanding. When I started doing this, I was already a black belt. The growth you experience as you rank up becomes increasingly incremental and you learn to look for the change in different ways. Doing this, on the other hand, was anything but incremental for me. It really pushed me towards growth much faster than I had expected.

[DarthPenguin]

For me i generally practice either the full thing with pacing as i would usually do it (so if two techniques are chained together i would do that - if a long pause etc i do that) though with less force / power than when performing it for testing or even in the class. If not running through i might perform a small sequence i want to work on, but again i will chain it as if i was performing it. In my head i think of it like the way i would perform BJJ drills: eg if drilling an arm bar from closed guard then when first learning you take the grips, pause, break posture, pause, perform hip movement, pause, legs for armbar etc. but once you know it, when drilling you might not go full force but you try to flow more.

For me i find it helps with making sure i don't lose the transitions from one technique to the next, though i am less experienced than many of you so possibly i am wrong lol

I do like Zaine's idea above though - sounds interesting! We did something tangentially related in a style i used to train where for grading you had to perform the 'form' of the prior grade with 'free direction' where you were expected to add in changes in direction / jumping variations of kicks etc. as you saw fit. Was quite a useful drill to work on what parts of the combinations in the form lent themselves to a change in angle etc and which should flow together:" eg a right leg mawashi geri followed immediately by a left leg ushiro mawashi geri may be easier to remain facing same way, but for the block afterwards or hand technique afterwards maybe you could adjust your footing and target a different direction etc