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I have done a little video to cover the main points I try to bear in mind when teaching and training, when it comes to punching and the main four blocks.
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This is a talk through of Wado Ryu Pinan Sandan kata with me picking out the main training points that I bear in mind.
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This is a video of me slowing running through Wado Ryu Pinan Nidan kata, at a pace where I am still overcoming tight ankles, lack of flexibility and having had Covid just after the new year.
You will see the flow of the kata and me working on some finer details as well as ideas that have come to my head.
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Here we now string together more movements, even going up and down the whole hall as training practice.
Flowing like water, Ryu Sui, is important but it takes time.
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We've had a video on moving swiftly around a triangle that points backwards, and this one is with us moving forward.
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This is just me doing some freeform thinking around my personal experiences in Wado Ryu karate training as well as the minute amount of sword work I have done.
Extracting the sword from the "saya", the sheath, has to be made up of three parts, similar to the approach of karate technique application in Wado Ryu. You cannot imply pull the sword out with one arm, unless it's short that it. You can to pull the saya back and then turn the body to apply the cut or thrust.
Wado Ryu karate has its San Mi Ittai. Every application of technique brings together various aspects, unless you want to stand there and trade punches, which is also an option.
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When you see "taisabaki" translated many people call it Body Shifting but it is more appropriately Body Management.
It's not just about moving completely out the way as ideally the movement that you make provides safety from an attacked, but also keeps you close enough to make your attack to. We try to avoid getting out of their distance and then having to come back into attacking distance. If you can move and counter attack at the same time, then that is great.
Taisabaki doesn't have to be all stiff and upright. The movement is caused by an urgency to react and be safe against an incoming attack, whether it is jodan, chudan or gedan. You can flex and move accordingly. For example, in Wado Ryu Kihon Kumite 4 and 8, your head is moving here and there in reaction to the jodan attack. The body is not bolt upright.
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There are a few people who remain exceptionally great at kicking as they grow older. There's no such thing as natural ability, just sheer hard work and practice.
For many of us our flexibility and capability can decline through old age or a bit of laziness like on my part. It does mean we have to think differently and perform more efficiently.
This video covers the lower kicks we can do and remain just as effective.
This is just in the context of dojo sparring and health through training. It's not meant to be an MMA beating or WKF championship strategy.
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For those that don't do Wado Ryu karate, and even for those that do, gyakuzuki no tsukkomi is a strange beast.
Nobody punches like that... people will say. What are we doing, punching midgets in the face?
Personally I think there is a lot more in it.
In Wado Ryu karate we have a range of basic punches that we practice which are related.
My feeling is that we start with Junzuki, then Junzuki no tsukkomi and then that leads to Nagashizuki.
Same with Gyakuzuki, Gyakuzuki no tsukkomi and then Nagashi gyakiuzuki.
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Well, it's not secret, just under-trained and undervalued in my opinion.
A lot of it is about hiding your movement, but also making an effective action and not to just take up a position in readiness for your first technique as it should actually be your first technique.
If you don't get the pun, "hiden" in Japanese means secret.