I have had to miss a couple of classes because I was sick one week and my wife was sick another but luckily, I didn’t miss the class we did today.  Sensei Noia shared a new kata with us today and it is called Nijushiho.  This is a kata that I have wanted to learn for some time but I was having a tough time trying to learn it from a book or videos on the internet.  This kata translates to 24 moves but even though it is a short kata, it has some moves that require good coordination and varied timing.

Nijushiho kihon and kata…

For the first 15 minutes of class, after our warm up, we worked on some of the kihon (basics) of Nijushiho.  The first group of moves was from a horse stance, we reached with our right hand, threw a side thrust kick while pulling the our right hand (fist) to our right hip then stepped back down and into the horse stance and threw a left handed reverse punch.  We did the same movement but to the left side.  We did the next drill from a horse stance again but this time we did a rising elbow strike to the side, then shifted in, staying in a horse stance and did a cross body type punch with both hands, one hand high and one low, then shifted back and did a downward block.

After the kihon, we moved into the kata itself.  I really like the way that Sensei Noia teaches kata, he had us work on the first few moves and then after, we do them five times, he has us move on to the next few moves.  After we get through about a dozen moves, he has us start at the first move and go all the way to the last move that he showed us.  When doing this type of training, we end up doing many moves but I really do not notice it because the pace is slow enough to learn but fast enough to get a great workout.

I like this kata a lot and I hope that we spend a lot more time working on it in the future.

Today, Sensei Cieplik, had us work on some different drills that were not only physically challenging but also mentally challenging.  Reverse blocks and kata application always makes for a good class.

Kick and reverse blocks….

After our regular warm up, we did stationary front leg front snap kick with rear leg front snap kick.  Then came the same thing but with front leg roundhouse kick with rear leg roundhouse kick.  The last kicking drill was front leg front snap kick with rear leg front snap kick, step down and triple punch.

For our kihon drills, we did moving forward and back with reverse downward block, jab and reverse punch.  This was one of the those hip loosening drills.  Next, we did reverse rising block with reverse punch.  We had to close and open the hips the each move.  After that, we did the standard moving forward and back with outward block, jab and reverse punch.

The next drill was a little different.  We did a stationary jab and front leg front snap kick at the same time and then stepped in to a front punch.  The idea is to confuse your opponent and then gain distance by stepping through and drilling them with a front punch.

Hug your knee….

We started in a front stance and then pulled our front leg back and hugged our knee.  The idea here is to bring our knee to our chest but mine doesn’t make it far, yet.

The next drill we did started in a front stance, we then stepped back, bring the front knee up, and then back down and in with a reverse punch.

For this drill, we started in front stance with a stationary reverse punch, then we stepped into  a low front stance with a reverse punch.  Next was stationary reverse punch, step in to a low lunge with reverse punch and then step again with reverse punch.

Kata, partner up and more kata…

We did Jion many times, working in the details of each move.

Next came some pad drills.  One partner held the pad and the partner punched down and in to the pad.  The idea is to punch with a vertical fist and flick the fist, from the top down just before striking the target.  If any of you that take class with me are wondering about how effective this punch is, please as Sensei to demonstrate it on you.  He demonstrated it to me and even a light punch using that hand motion hurts.  Remember “power goes in.”

Next, we went back to kata and did Bassai Dai. 

Now, back top the pads.  One partner held the pad vertical to the front with a corner up and the other partner did the inward block and reverse block from Bassai Dai on the pad.  The idea was to have the block end at the same place on the pad for both blocks.

We also worked on the first move of Bassai Dai.  The key to this move is to land the front foot and then push the hips under as the back foot lands and the back knee touches the front leg.  It almost feels like two movements but when done quickly, it looks like one movement.  The idea here is to hit with the entire body, not just the arms when doing that move.

We finished up doing Tekki Shodan and the lower belts and for all the upper belts, we did Kanku Dai in a straight line.  Sensei often says, if you fight your balance, the technique will rise.

This was the first Thursday class of the new year and a new session for us and Sensei Cieplik gave us a review related to kicking.

Kihon review….

After the warm up, we started with front leg, front snap kick followed by rear leg front snap kick all on one count.  After that, we did the same type of movement but with roundhouse kick in place of front snap kick.

Sensei gave me some advice about how make the roundhouse kicks better.  He said to get in to a very low stance after the first kick and try to bring the hip around.  The idea is to bend the front leg and get very low and then throw the hip forward instead of throwing the leg or foot forward.

We then moved in to blocks with reverse punches.  We started, moving forward and back, with with rising block and reverse punch, inward block with reverse punch and downward block with reverse punch.  We did the same but this time with outward block, jab and reverse punch.  The key to the drill is to have three distinct hips movements.  For example, on the outward block, your hips are near a 30 degree angle, when throwing the jab your hips are fully open at a 45 degree angle or more and when throwing the reverse punch, your hips are straight ahead.  If your hips are too far open when blocking, your jab will only get power from your arm and shoulder and not the hips like it should.

The next few drills we from a horse stance.  We started with stepping across in horse stance while keeping the moving foot or the big toe in contact with the floor at all times.  For the rest of the drills, we had to keep the moving across foot in contact with the floor until we executed that kick.  We did the following kicks, side snap kick, front snap kick to the side, side thrust kick and a combination, side snap kick followed immediately with side thrust kick.

Get a partner and kick some more…  

For this drill, we started facing our partner in a front stance and alternated roundhouse kicks but we did one kick, pulled back half way and then did another kick before we set our foot down behind.

We continued with roundhouse kicks but this time, we did a roundhouse kick over our partners arm, that they were holding out in front of them and then we were to pull the hip back as hard as possible.  Instead of pulling the leg back, the key here was pulling the hip back.

Finish up with a lot of kata….

We finished up class with Heian Shodan, Hiean Nidan, Heian Sandan, Heian Yondan, Heian Godan, Tekki Shoddan, Jion and Bassai Dai.

One of things that I enjoy about taking classes with Sensei Cieplik is that he often revisits concepts or techniques after a period of time based on what he sees us doing in class.  Today, after doing our warm up kicks, he had us work on dynamic tension.

Dynamic tension….

From a front stance, pull with the front leg and push with the back leg until you cannot hold it and then let the kick fly.  Try to think of this concept like pulling a rubber band from both ends.

With the above in mind, we did many front snap kicks with front punch.

The next drills we did were from seiza (sitting on the floor with the buttocks resting on the heels.  The first drill was moving from seiza to kneeling position.  For the next drill, the idea was to lean back from the kneeling position and then straighten back up.  Some of us did a few kicks from seiza but my knees told me don’t even think about it.

The next drill was a “salad bowl” exercise.  From a front stance, the idea was to shift our weight on to our back leg, drop the hip and then spring forward and jab.  The jabbing motion will go on its own if this is done correctly.  This movement can be compared to the way a tiger loads up all of its weight on its back legs and then springs or launches forward.

Watch your partner very close….

For the next drill, we partnered up.  The idea behind this drill was to watch our partner either make them attack or catch their tell ( showing them prepare to attack.  It could be something as simple as them raising an eyebrow or seeing their shoulders raise up just before they begin the attack.

We finished up class with kata.  We did all of the Heian katas, Tekki Shodan, Jion and Bassai Dai.  A key point that Sensei made was for us to present ourselves and be sure to have good posture before we start our kata and all the way through.  Good posture usually means better technique.

This was the last Thursday class of 2011 and I can say this was the best year of Karate classes yet and I am sure that 2012 will be even better!

For the last Tuesday class of 2011, Sensei Noia gave us class full of kata, basics and good, old fashioned pad hitting.  Hitting stuff almost always makes for a fun class and today was a fun class.

Warm up with kata….

We started out doing Heian Shodan, Heian Nidan, Heian Sandan, Heian Yondan and Heian Godan.  I always enjoy this type of warm up.

After the kata warm up, we moved on to basics.  We started by moving forward and back across the dojo with 5 different stances.  Those stances included, front stance, back stance, horse stance, cat stance and cross leg stance.  This was stance only drill with no arm movements.  Next, we did the same stances but added block and reverse punch.  We followed that with one count with stances and two techniques of our choice.   For example, we would do a front stance with a rising block and a back stance with knife hand block.

Hit the pads…

We spent the rest of the class hitting the pads.  The idea was to hit the pads without using a punch.  For the first drill, we could open hand techniques such as knife hand, ridge hand, back hand and palm strike.  The next drill let us use hammer fist and back fist.  For the last drill, we could use our elbows both horizontal or vertical and draw hand strike behind us.

Whenever we do drills like these, not using the common techniques, it always makes for an interesting class.

Sensei Cieplik has been telling us for many years, “from hip!”  Today, we had another taste of the type of power we can make when we use our  hips when we do our techniques.  Making power with a minimum of body movement is easy if we use our lower body instead of our shoulders and chest.  More about this below….

Start out with many kicks…

We started with front leg front snap and  rear leg front snap kick.  Moving forward with double front snap kick.  Moving forward with double front snap kick and then with double roundhouse kick.

We followed up with step across in a horse stance then with side snap kick, side thrust kick and both with one step.

We moved in to basics next with inward block, elbow strike and back fist and did this a number of times.

For the next drill, one of my favorites, we started in a front stance, loaded up our weight to the back leg and then reverse punched.  This movement always feels so strong because you have to use the hips and the entire body to do it.

The next drill was, from front stance, stationary jab and then step in with front punch.  Doing the jab first makes us throw our entire body into the front punch.  I am not sure how it looks but I would guess it is one of the strong moves in Shotokan.

Get a partner and hit them with your hip….

The the next drill, we partnered up.  We stood in a front stance and put one fist on a pad.  We pulled the hip back, same side as the fist, and used the hip and leg to push our arm forward.  We followed that drill with the same move but using a reverse punch instead.  The idea with both of these drills is to get under your partner by dropping your hips and using the salad bowl motion that Sensei often talks about.  We are using our locked arm as a push bar and our hips and lower body to move our partner.  We didn’t have to throw a single punch to move our partner back just by using our hips.  This is a concept that always sounds easy to do but is hard to actually perform.

Sensei always says this type of movement is like pushing a car in the snow.  You cannot push the car from your upper body, you need to drop your hips and get under it to push it forward.

There is a message that Sensei Cieplik often tells us about how the higher belts often share their knowledge with lower at some point.  He shares this information with us so that we can make it easier for those that follow us to reach their ranks and I know that many higher ranks have helped me get to Shodan.

Get those kicks in…..

After the warm up, we did stationary knee strike with front snap kick.  Then front leg front snap kick with rear leg front snap kick.  Next, we did front leg front snap kick, rear leg front snap with triple punch.  We finsihed up our kicks with front leg roundhouse kick and rear leg roundhouse kick.

Standard kihon…..

Moving forward back doing rising block, inward block and downward block all with reverse punch.  We did outward block with jab and reverse punch next.   We finished up the kihon with front stance with inward block, horse stance with elbow strike and back fist.

Share high belt knowledge with lower belts….

For the rest of class, Sensei had all of the black belts line up at the front of the dojo and he gave each one of us a lower rank to work to help them improve a basic movement, stepping forward with front punch.  Sensei paired me up with a very good purple belt.  She always works very hard in class and there was little for me to have her improve on this movement with the exception of having her punch through me to an imaginary target behind me and to punch more from her lower body.  Her punches started out with enough power to sting but after just a few minutes, she was punching really hard and I was glad to have the pad on my stomach.  I am confident that if she punched someone in the face or solar plexus, she would drop them.

Even though I have been helping out with classes for almost five years now, it always makes me feel good when I can share something that my Sensei shared with me and help someone improve.

I really enjoy a good warm up, especially when it involves kata.  The was no disappointment to today when Sensei Noia had us start by doing all Heian kata and Tekki Shodan for a warm up.  When I do this warm up, I am pretty sure that my first katas look, less then great, but as the blood gets moving and the joints warm up, the katas improve.

Stance basics….

After my favorite warm up, we moved in to basics.  We stated in a horse stance and did 60 or punches and blocks.  After that, we did cross leg stance and cat stance for many punches and blocks too.

Next, we started moving forward and back with outward block, jab and reverse punch.  Then came,  what is most Sensei’s favorite movement said with heavy sarcasm, front stance with inward block, horse stance with elbow strike and back fist and front stance with reverse punch.

For the next drill, we did stationary front snap kick.  Then we did stationary front snap kick with punch while in a cat stance.  we finished up our kihon with moving forward front leg front snap kick and rear leg front snap kick for each one count.

More kata….

What’s better than warming up with kata, doing more kata during class.  We worked on Heian Godan, Tekki Shodan, Jion, Bassai Dai, and our own belt kata.  We did our own kata (Kanku Dai for me) three times but just up to the first kiai.  We then did one more kata full out at 100% to finish things up.

We didn’t do a lot of different movements in class today but Sensei Cieplik made sure that we did the few drills and movements the correct way.

Get the basics done….

After our normal kicking warm up we did moving forward and backward three times with downward block with reverse punch, rising block with reverse punch and inward block with reverse punch.

Next we did front leg roundhouse kick, rear leg roundhouse kick and reverse punch.  We followed that, starting in a horse, then moved across with side snap kick and then side thrust kick.  As always, the idea is to keep the moving foot in contact with the floor and making sure to move from our hips and not our shoulders.

For the next drill we did a roundhouse kick, then pulled the hip all the way to the back and then brought the kicking back to the front and stepped down in to a front stance and did a reverse punch.  The idea here is to recover your balance from the kick and then do the reverse punch while driving the hips forward.

Hit them with your leg….

Because of the last drill, we moved in to groups of three.  One partner held a pad on their stomach and other other held a pad at shin height.  When stepping in to punch, the idea was to hit the low pad the shin and punch the pad.  The idea is to throw your leg at them and once it hits the pad, let the punch fly.  Throwing that leg forces us to use our hips when moving forward and throwing those punches.  The punch just goes out because the body has stopped moving and the extension of the arm happens as the body stops.

Kata at the end….

We spent the rest of the class working on kata.  We started with the black belts and Kanku Dai.  We then did Heian Shodan trying to punch the same way that we did when doing the pad drills.  Next we did Heian 2 – Heian 5, Jion and Bassai Dai finished it up.

Sensei Noia had us spend a lot of time basics today but he had us put extra attention on our stances.  I can’t speak for anyone else but since we have been spending more time on stances, my stances have improved a lot.  I can hold a stance much longer than before and I am able to keep my knee from moving side to side.

Stance, stance, stance, stance….

After our warm up, we moved in to a horse stance and did punches.  We did singles punches, double punches and triple punches while holding our stances.

Next, we turned our toes out toward the corners and squatted down until the top of our legs were parallel to the floor.  I should say that many people were able to get in to that position but I was not one of them.  These old hips of mine are story for another day.  From that stance, we did rising blocks and outward blocks.

For the next drill, we lined up, side by side, the long way across the dojo and did stances only across the floor.  By stances only, I mean with no hand techniques.  We did front stance, back stance, horse stance, cross leg stance and cat stances back and forth.  After that, we did the same stances but with different blocking techniques and all with a reverse punch.  You really need to focus when doing a block or reverse punch from a cross leg stance or cat stance.  I have found that if you drop down, even just a tiny amount, when doing the arm techniques, it centers my balance and makes the move powerful.  Just grounding myself and dropping my center of gravity, even a half inch, made a big difference.

It didn’t get any easier.  Next came back stance with knife hand block and reverse punch.  After that we did rising block with reverse punch.  Again, dropping down when throwing the reverse punch makes a big difference.

The next back stance drill had us doing ridge hand, followed with same hand knife hand block and reverse punch.  I have a picture in my mind of how this drill could be applied to real life but I will leave that up to you to imagine.  Or leave a comment below and tell me how you would use it.

The next drill was done in a moving horse stance.  We did a jodan knife hand strike that is the same one used in Ji’in.

Kata and one-step sparring….

We finished up with some kata.  We did Taikyoku Shokan, then Heian Shodan then Taikyoku Shodan again.  Next came Jion where Sensei counted out each move for us.

We then did one-step sparring but we could not counter attack with punches or kicks.  We could use elbows, hammer fist, back fist or other counters.  This really made the old mind work hard after 50 minutes of hard work.

We finished up class with out own belt rank kata (Kanku Dai for me).  The first kata as slow but perfect and the second one was all out, 100% power and speed.   My 100% was 100% for that moment in time though which I guess is still 100% no matter how I look at it.