Karate Homework Suggestions

[lowfreq42]

Hey there,
I've done aikido and judo for about 9 years, but I'm a beginner in karate. I did a lot when I was a kid, but now I'm 41 and training with a local shotokan school (currently 8th kyu, but my instructor reckons I'm closer to 6th kyu proficiency....still a newbie). I only get to train in class once a week, if I'm lucky, so I want to train at home to supplement my limited class time.

However, I'm at a loss as to how much, and what, I should be practicing. I'll give more details about my situation, and maybe some of you old hands can give me some direction!

As I said, I'm training shotokan, currently working heian shodan, nidan, and just starting sandan. A few problems I seem to have are not staying loose, holding my breath, and moving too slowly. The stances and transitions are still awkward for me, and I'm trying to remember all the characteristics of each stance, and it takes me a while to get to it. Apparently, I move like I'm in molasses! Kime is still really elusive to me as well.

It would be easy to say "just stay relaxed", "breathe", "move faster"....but that hasn't worked for me thus far....

Would anyone happen to have a routine you do at home, you could share with me, or have any recommendations?

Thanks a bunch!

 

[Bill Mattocks]

Practice walking through the kata, concentrating on your feet only. Let your arms hang. No kicks. Bend knees. Breathe in or out with each step. Go slow.

When your stances, stepping, and transitions feel better, start adding punches and kicks.

Kata is breathing, balance, then power, then speed. Kime joins the party somewhere in there.

Be patient with yourself, but persevere. You can do this.

 

[twendkata71]

Practice walking through the kata, concentrating on your feet only. Let your arms hang. No kicks. Bend knees. Breathe in or out with each step. Go slow.

When your stances, stepping, and transitions feel better, start adding punches and kicks.

Kata is breathing, balance, then power, then speed. Kime joins the party somewhere in there.

Be patient with yourself, but persevere. You can do this.

very good advice. I would tell my new students that are struggling the same advice.
Might I suggest as a training aid the book Karate kinematics and dynamics. It has hundreds of training exercises and drills to develop the novice and advanced karate ka. It also breaks down the physics of karate and underlying principles of movement.

 

[lowfreq42]

Bill, thank you for the advice! Good idea, isolating the footwork. I'll start that tonight. Twendkata, thank you as well - I just ordered the book you recommended. Much obliged!

 

[Human Makiwara]

At 8 - 6 Kyu you may have a hard time trying to correct and implement every element perfectly. Pick something like footwork for example or your hand strikes. Focus on making those better. Walk through the kata at a super slow, deliberate speed and try to correctly apply each technique. Then move through the kata at a medium pace. Then go all out. Blast through applying power, speed and snap at the expense of perfect technique. If you practice your kata in these 3 rhythms/speeds you will have a better understanding of your kata in total. Soon you will be able to combine things that you are doing at all 3 speeds at once. Practice, practice, practice.. I try to walk through all of my kata each day at least once.

 

[lowfreq42]

I just got the book I ordered yesterday, so I look forward to trying some of the exercises in it. Good input, Human Makiwara, I'm going to implement that as well!