My first kendo lesson...

[girlychuks]

Kicked my BUTT!
Things i have learned:
Traditional arts are MUCH more formal, and you learn things the FIRST time, because you don;t get told twice.

Shinai leave neat stripey welts.

Footwork is everything. After an hour and a half of footwork you calves hurt.


I LOVE KENDO

and I like being blue. now I can joke about roleplaying Smurfette in bed (any takers)

 

[arnisador]

I did iaido but never had the chance to do kendo. I knew the footwork was very important in it. Do they make you do hundreds of cuts a day for practice?

 

[Yari]

Foot work is important. No matter which style you pratice. It's the basis for movement.

In Kendo foot work is hard(on the legs) , but fast. It'll make your entering very fast and precise. Your timing and maai will be very good, since this is praticed every time.

If you have the time, iaido would be a great suppelment.

Keep up the good work!


/Yari

 

[Idaten]

I want to start kendo soon, but a school trip to England has left me short on cash.


Armour + Shinai + Hakama + Can't spell the name of the jacket w/o reference. = more work than time aloows right now.


Anyway, where do you study Kendo, Girlychuks?

 

[Yari]

Hi

I don't practice Kendo now.

Most dojo's have a set or two you can borrow, since the "fighting" isn't all of it. Kata is done a great deal too, and this can be done in a normal gi.

/Yari

 

[Carbon]

I heard that overtime Kendo can damage the tendants in your ankles.

 

[Idaten]

Over time, any physical activity can have bad reprocussions

 

[Yari]

Originally posted by Carbon

I heard that overtime Kendo can damage the tendants in your ankles.

It's true that any movement done again and again over time can result in injuries.

But the feet are under a great deal of stress in kendo, because they are ready to move all the time. So learning to relax the feet while moving will help a lot (this is the same for any movements the body does).

Streaching will help to. THere arn't that many muscles in the foot, but streaching will hlep flexability and blood flow, and therefor help against injuries.

/Yari

 

[Idaten]

Very true, I'm working to overcome years of not steching properly at the moment. Holding a stretch for less than 45 seconds does absolutely nothing....

 

[Old Warrior]

Originally posted by girlychuks

"After an hour and a half of footwork you calves hurt."


After 9 classes, I can state with certainty that after an hour of footwork I keep getting the same blister in the same spot on the ball of my left foot. It takes two days to go away. Also, that skipping motion to move forward still makes me feel like a bigger dork than I actually am. As of this moment I'm not a graceful warrior that moves across the floor like quicksilver. I'm more like a fat. old, clumsy guy with a stick.

 

[arnisador]

But is it fun?

 

[Yari]

Originally posted by Old Warrior

....fat. old, clumsy guy with a stick.

Don't worry. One day you'll only be a guy with a stick.....

/Yari

 

[tshadowchaser]

I am glad to see a few of you trying kendo. The art has always fasinated me and
i wish there was a good instructor close to me but that is not the case.
I'd like to here so more of what you do durring practice.


I did notice NO takers on the Smurfette .


Shadow:asian:

 

[Old Warrior]

Originally posted by arnisador

But is it fun?

Not yet. I am a highly skilled epee fencer and I enjoy the challenge of learning something that takes lots of pratice to get good at. But until, I have sufficient skill to allow me to bout, it is just frustrating work and I have to accept being content with learning a little each class. I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[arnisador]

Do you still (Western) fence, then? In a club or in competition?

 

[Old Warrior]

Originally posted by arnisador

Do you still (Western) fence, then? In a club or in competition?

I'm a member of Salle Santelli, Englewood, NJ. We take on all comers. Considering the fact that neither my training partner or I will ever see 50 again, we do all right.