Best forms for home Solo practice (limited space)?

[Scott Lazovic]

Dear friends,
As I spend a lot of hours at work and I have a terrible problem to have a fixed program, most of the time I train alone. In the past, I have trained mostly on karate and boxing.
I would like to summarize wich forms from every martial art are suitable from small space (even very small space), and have the most benefits for the body.
Some examples that I have found are: Sanchin kata, 3 Tekki katas (they require some space and no much tension used), some static hung gar forms (like iron thread, Kyu Kyun), praying mantis (sarm bo jin that require some space), Tensho kata.
TKD has some Poomsae that require little space, but as I see (only my opinion because my knowledge is 0 on TKD) they do not use any tension (or dynamic tension) so I don't know how really beneficial would be for practice.
Can you suggest me some other or point me what is more beneficial for solo practice (and require small space)?
Thank you

 

[jobo]

Dear friends,
As I spend a lot of hours at work and I have a terrible problem to have a fixed program, most of the time I train alone. In the past, I have trained mostly on karate and boxing.
I would like to summarize wich forms from every martial art are suitable from small space (even very small space), and have the most benefits for the body.
Some examples that I have found are: Sanchin kata, 3 Tekki katas (they require some space and no much tension used), some static hung gar forms (like iron thread, Kyu Kyun), praying mantis (sarm bo jin that require some space), Tensho kata.
TKD has some Poomsae that require little space, but as I see (only my opinion because my knowledge is 0 on TKD) they do not use any tension (or dynamic tension) so I don't know how really beneficial would be for practice.
Can you suggest me some other or point me what is more beneficial for solo practice (and require small space)?
Thank you

your not learning karate by doing forms, so why do forms ? you can do fitness in a very small space, but then if you open your front door there's a very big space available.

if you want to practise some karate movements, break it down in to segments that fit the space you have

 

[Flying Crane]

If you are practicing your kata, which is a good thing to work on when you are by yourself, then I would assume you are practicing the kata that you have learned from your teacher, in the system that you study. You wouldn’t simply go and try to grab kata from other systems that you haven’t studied.

 

[geezer]

Wing Chun’s “Siu Nim Tau” and “Biu Tse” Can be done in a very small space. “Chum Kiu” takes a little bit more. Since space is your main concern, you should change styles and take Wing Chun!

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

You can

- train a subset of your form, turn around, and repeat.
- add in a backward step before your forward step. For example, instead of step in your back right leg, you can step back your front left leg, you then step in your right leg. This way you still have right forward step that coordinate with the rest of your body. You just add in an extra backward step.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

Kung Fu Wang is right for a change. I used to do my Isshinryu kata in the shower, in place. Works fine.

 

[_Simon_]

Kung Fu Wang is right for a change. I used to do my Isshinryu kata in the shower, in place. Works fine.

Ah that is so cool haha..

Yeah some great ideas so far. And it may mean just adding in a half step backwards or so when needed.

I train my kata in the back area of the house, and alot of kata I can do without shuffling, but Taikyoku Ichi etc there is never enough room for my long legs moving in deep forward stance! So at the start on the second movement, I end up stepping up a slight step, which is a cool little challenge.

And then later after the three punches and kiai, with the 270° turn, I just reorient and turn to face 90° to my right and continue, just so I can fit the whole turn in properly. I then turn back when I'm doing the next set of three punch-steps.

The fun one is doing the Kyokushin Taikyoku Sokugi kata, same stepping pattern but with a range of different kicks haha, very challenging not kicking a wall!

In other words, you can certainly do those forms which require less space (Tekki/Naihanchi, Sanchin, Tensho, Saifa, Yantsu), but you can still modify the other forms so you don't miss out on training them

 

[Deleted member 39746]

Ah, i forget the name of the Tai chi, but i think one of them has quite tight forms, in that you don't require a lot of space. One of the main 4 i think.


Most of them give you the benefit of some room to move though. It seems to be a minority that you have forms for restricted spaces. (not that they don't exist but they seem to be the minority, at least without alteration) I know of some short and i think tight fist forms from some chinese martial arts, but no idea the names or what goes into them.

 

[Scott Lazovic]

Thank you all very much for your replies. I already practice forms broken and adjusted to my small space. Your comments are very useful.

 

[Martial D]

Thank you all very much for your replies. I already practice forms broken and adjusted to my small space. Your comments are very useful.

All three WC forms have minimal travel distance.

 

[geezer]

All three WC forms have minimal travel distance.

Yep, but even with modified footwork the Long Pole would be tricky!


On the other hand, I sometimes practice "center-grip" staff movements in escrima using a short piece of dowel such as a couple of feet of closet rod or a couple of bastones (escrima sticks) held together. You can practice the movements and power generation without having to swing around six feet of wood and busting the light fixtures.

 

[Martial D]

Yep, but even with modified footwork the Long Pole would be tricky!


On the other hand, I sometimes practice "center-grip" staff movements in escrima using a short piece of dowel such as a couple of feet of closet rod or a couple of bastones (escrima sticks) held together. You can practice the movements and power generation without having to swing around six feet of wood and busting the light fixtures.

You know what I meant, wise guy

 

[Yokozuna514]

Dear friends,
As I spend a lot of hours at work and I have a terrible problem to have a fixed program, most of the time I train alone. In the past, I have trained mostly on karate and boxing.
I would like to summarize wich forms from every martial art are suitable from small space (even very small space), and have the most benefits for the body.
Some examples that I have found are: Sanchin kata, 3 Tekki katas (they require some space and no much tension used), some static hung gar forms (like iron thread, Kyu Kyun), praying mantis (sarm bo jin that require some space), Tensho kata.
TKD has some Poomsae that require little space, but as I see (only my opinion because my knowledge is 0 on TKD) they do not use any tension (or dynamic tension) so I don't know how really beneficial would be for practice.
Can you suggest me some other or point me what is more beneficial for solo practice (and require small space)?
Thank you

There are katas that do not take a lot room like Sanchin, Tensho and Yantsu, however, as some have suggested you can do standard katas by staying in place (just switching legs). I recently heard this called Otel-Ryu or Katas for doing in a hotel room sized space. Whether this is an actual designation or something someone made up on the fly to be cheeky, it conveys the idea of doing kata in a limited space very well.

 

[geezer]

...as some have suggested you can do standard katas by staying in place (just switching legs)...

This is a good way to train. Learn to do techniques in the smallest place possible and still make it work.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

It's a good idea to train 4 combos in the direction of E, S, W, and N. Repeat those 4 combos 20 times daily. This way when you need to get into a fight, you will have at least 4 combos that you are fresh with.

Those E-S-W-N combos training doesn't take much space.

For example,

E - groin kick, face punch.
S - roundhouse kick, side kick.
W - hook punch, back fist.
N - foot sweep, leading arm jam, face punch.

You can change those 4 combos every week, every 2 weeks, or even every month.

 

[_Simon_]

This one's cool, not so much kata, but different training in areas that are small

And this one has some kata practice ideas, pretty much what others said with switching feet

 

[wab25]

I train my front snap kicks in the WC. After I do my business, I face the john and throw a snap kick over the top of it with each leg. This forces me to do the correct motion (chamber, kick, chamber) otherwise I have to explain why I am kicking the john or the wall. I also can't lean back at all. Further, it doesn't take much time.

Find a technique or transition from any kata you know, that you want to train... then find an obstacle that you can do it around. The smaller the space, the better. You can even visualize doing the kata to that point, then do the piece, then continue on with the visualization. Be creative.