QUOTE
October 20th, 2008
In This Issue
> Black Belt: Roles And Responsibilities
> Be Fascinated In Your Pursuit
> myGKR Training Tip Sample
Becoming a black belt is not just about knowing your kata and having a good standard of kihon and kumite. It goes much deeper than just the physical. Those of us that are privileged to wear the belt should understand the roles and responsibilities that come with it.
When a student puts on their black belt they automatically become a role model. Other students, especially children, look upon black belt students/instructors with a sense of awe. It is all they want to become…it is what many, if not most people start training in karate for in the first place. Earning your black belt and reaching the required standard is a fantastic achievement, similar to earning a university degree. You receive your black belt and a certificate to go with it. That’s the tangible evidence that you have made the grade.
However, the real evidence of being a true black belt is in the way we think and conduct ourselves, inside and outside the dojo. Being a black belt is an attitude, a belief that the unspoken code of integrity, honour and etiquette should be upheld at all times. If someone has incredible physical ability but has a poor attitude towards others, then they are an incomplete yudansha.
Some examples of the right black belt attitude are:
• edify seniors at all times
• never allowing others to de-edify seniors, or even other students for that matter
• show respect and courtesy inside and outside the dojo to all people
• maintain a good training ethic
• display excellent etiquette at all times
• be willing to help lower grade students
• humility
• respect
Everyone ages…it’s inevitable. There will come a time for all of us when our physical ability will start to diminish as we get older. That doesn’t mean that our black belt attitude has to diminish. With the right frame of mind we can still continue to train and receive the great benefits of karate, and still have all of the traits that make us wholesome black belts. Remember though, when we get older and our physical ability wains, and we have the wrong attitude, then at the end of the day we will have nothing.
The most important thing is to have a clear idea of what it means to wear/be a black belt. You must show maturity of mind and always have the right GKR Karate spirit. It is reassuring to know that to wear a black belt in GKR means that you have earned it and are among the best at your level. It is our responsibility to ensure that the black belt is never disgraced or brought into disrepute. Wear it with pride, but also show humility and remember it is always a privilege to wear the black belt each and every time we put it on, not a right.
Learning a new skill like the martial arts can be frustrating in the early days when your mind tells you to do one thing but the body does another, as you struggle with your coordination and balance.
There are many facets to your training and the reasons why we do what we do in self-defence situations makes it an interesting and fascinating experience. Take Kata for instance, and the bunkai, which can be interpreted in many different ways rather than being one-dimensional. To explore all the different situations that could arise from one type of attack; i.e. learning to block a front kick can take up a whole lesson just by itself.
The many hundreds of combinations that can be put together in any order can be mind boggling but also fascinating and fun! You will learn to slowly but surely adapt your body shape through stances, blocks, strikes, punches and kicks, and your coordination and balance will improve the more you train.
If there is any advice I can share with you it is that you need to ask a little more of yourself during each training session, pushing and stretching yourself a bit more each class and making the most of every valuable minute of your 1 or 1.5hour class. If you don’t train that little bit harder than the last lesson your karate will begin to stagnate and with no signs of improvement it can lead to frustration and loss of interest in training.
I am my biggest critic, though I always try to be constructive and remain positive in my search for my concept of perfection, I have not found it yet and possibly never will, but I am enjoying the search and am constantly fascinated by my never ending pursuit. Always work on improving your stances, refining and strengthening because they are the foundation to your karate, and, as the house with weak foundations will fail to withstand the extremes, so will your karate!
Visualise everything, if you have vision, it becomes a real situation in your mind. If you can imagine an attacker coming at you, you will make your karate more powerful and focused; a focused mind is a powerful one and will always give you the edge over others. Also ‘become’ before you are! If you always think one step ahead of where you are at the moment you will always be ahead, even if you have not yet reached Shodan-ho, you should always try to train and behave like a black belt with focus, integrity, and dedication.
Respect yourself and your fellow students, take the values that you learn in the dojo out and replicate them in your everyday life.
The first step towards achieving a powerful punch is correct technique; the second step is distance. If kumite is to be considered a valid tool for self-defence training, students should place equal focus on both technique and distance. As most only focus on technique however, its little wonder most people spar with clean punches but poor distance.
Distance Equals Power
It’s a simple formula, if your distance is out then your power output will be greatly reduced. If you’re too close, your technique will not achieve full extension – preventing your punch from developing its full momentum. If on the other hand you’re too far away from your target, you require over-extension – hence your momentum will be exhausted by the time you reach the target.
Legs Not Arms
The mistake most karate-ka make is they try to control distance with their arms. When you take this approach, your punching technique is likely to suffer. Others make the mistake of leaning forward in the upper torso to control distance. Once again this results in a compromise of technique – hence less power.
All distance should be controlled with your legs. In other words, if you need to get closer, step out a little longer with your foot creating a longer stance. If you find yourself much too close, step your rear foot back slightly creating a strong stance.
The key word is stance. Think about it, Kata is also a form of self-defence training. During kata bunkai training, we find ourselves taking on an opponent in different situations (at different distances). As such, we use different stances. The point is, we don’t use the same stance throughout but alter our arm or torso position. In fact it is almost the opposite; Kata promotes keeping the torso or posture similar throughout. The ONLY variance is our stance.
Next time you spar, pay close attention as to how you control your distance. Are you altering your stance, ie longer or shorter? Or are you altering the extension of your arm or the lean of your torso?
In This Issue
> Black Belt: Roles And Responsibilities
> Be Fascinated In Your Pursuit
> myGKR Training Tip Sample
Becoming a black belt is not just about knowing your kata and having a good standard of kihon and kumite. It goes much deeper than just the physical. Those of us that are privileged to wear the belt should understand the roles and responsibilities that come with it.
When a student puts on their black belt they automatically become a role model. Other students, especially children, look upon black belt students/instructors with a sense of awe. It is all they want to become…it is what many, if not most people start training in karate for in the first place. Earning your black belt and reaching the required standard is a fantastic achievement, similar to earning a university degree. You receive your black belt and a certificate to go with it. That’s the tangible evidence that you have made the grade.
However, the real evidence of being a true black belt is in the way we think and conduct ourselves, inside and outside the dojo. Being a black belt is an attitude, a belief that the unspoken code of integrity, honour and etiquette should be upheld at all times. If someone has incredible physical ability but has a poor attitude towards others, then they are an incomplete yudansha.
Some examples of the right black belt attitude are:
• edify seniors at all times
• never allowing others to de-edify seniors, or even other students for that matter
• show respect and courtesy inside and outside the dojo to all people
• maintain a good training ethic
• display excellent etiquette at all times
• be willing to help lower grade students
• humility
• respect
Everyone ages…it’s inevitable. There will come a time for all of us when our physical ability will start to diminish as we get older. That doesn’t mean that our black belt attitude has to diminish. With the right frame of mind we can still continue to train and receive the great benefits of karate, and still have all of the traits that make us wholesome black belts. Remember though, when we get older and our physical ability wains, and we have the wrong attitude, then at the end of the day we will have nothing.
The most important thing is to have a clear idea of what it means to wear/be a black belt. You must show maturity of mind and always have the right GKR Karate spirit. It is reassuring to know that to wear a black belt in GKR means that you have earned it and are among the best at your level. It is our responsibility to ensure that the black belt is never disgraced or brought into disrepute. Wear it with pride, but also show humility and remember it is always a privilege to wear the black belt each and every time we put it on, not a right.
Learning a new skill like the martial arts can be frustrating in the early days when your mind tells you to do one thing but the body does another, as you struggle with your coordination and balance.
There are many facets to your training and the reasons why we do what we do in self-defence situations makes it an interesting and fascinating experience. Take Kata for instance, and the bunkai, which can be interpreted in many different ways rather than being one-dimensional. To explore all the different situations that could arise from one type of attack; i.e. learning to block a front kick can take up a whole lesson just by itself.
The many hundreds of combinations that can be put together in any order can be mind boggling but also fascinating and fun! You will learn to slowly but surely adapt your body shape through stances, blocks, strikes, punches and kicks, and your coordination and balance will improve the more you train.
If there is any advice I can share with you it is that you need to ask a little more of yourself during each training session, pushing and stretching yourself a bit more each class and making the most of every valuable minute of your 1 or 1.5hour class. If you don’t train that little bit harder than the last lesson your karate will begin to stagnate and with no signs of improvement it can lead to frustration and loss of interest in training.
I am my biggest critic, though I always try to be constructive and remain positive in my search for my concept of perfection, I have not found it yet and possibly never will, but I am enjoying the search and am constantly fascinated by my never ending pursuit. Always work on improving your stances, refining and strengthening because they are the foundation to your karate, and, as the house with weak foundations will fail to withstand the extremes, so will your karate!
Visualise everything, if you have vision, it becomes a real situation in your mind. If you can imagine an attacker coming at you, you will make your karate more powerful and focused; a focused mind is a powerful one and will always give you the edge over others. Also ‘become’ before you are! If you always think one step ahead of where you are at the moment you will always be ahead, even if you have not yet reached Shodan-ho, you should always try to train and behave like a black belt with focus, integrity, and dedication.
Respect yourself and your fellow students, take the values that you learn in the dojo out and replicate them in your everyday life.
The first step towards achieving a powerful punch is correct technique; the second step is distance. If kumite is to be considered a valid tool for self-defence training, students should place equal focus on both technique and distance. As most only focus on technique however, its little wonder most people spar with clean punches but poor distance.
Distance Equals Power
It’s a simple formula, if your distance is out then your power output will be greatly reduced. If you’re too close, your technique will not achieve full extension – preventing your punch from developing its full momentum. If on the other hand you’re too far away from your target, you require over-extension – hence your momentum will be exhausted by the time you reach the target.
Legs Not Arms
The mistake most karate-ka make is they try to control distance with their arms. When you take this approach, your punching technique is likely to suffer. Others make the mistake of leaning forward in the upper torso to control distance. Once again this results in a compromise of technique – hence less power.
All distance should be controlled with your legs. In other words, if you need to get closer, step out a little longer with your foot creating a longer stance. If you find yourself much too close, step your rear foot back slightly creating a strong stance.
The key word is stance. Think about it, Kata is also a form of self-defence training. During kata bunkai training, we find ourselves taking on an opponent in different situations (at different distances). As such, we use different stances. The point is, we don’t use the same stance throughout but alter our arm or torso position. In fact it is almost the opposite; Kata promotes keeping the torso or posture similar throughout. The ONLY variance is our stance.
Next time you spar, pay close attention as to how you control your distance. Are you altering your stance, ie longer or shorter? Or are you altering the extension of your arm or the lean of your torso?
Comments welcome as always!
