Redding Shotokan Karate

My thanks to Hiroko for video-taping our practices the last few weeks. We have been getting two DVDs a week from her, so sometimes it's hard to keep up with my "educational viewing." However, I find it interesting in a lot of ways. For instance, I have seen Gareth improve markedly lately (although his stances leave something to be desired). I have also noticed many things about myself that urgently need improvement.

For instance, I forget to keep my hands up in our slow/light jiyu-kumite practice sessions. Not all the time, just some of the time - I think it's when I'm trying to keep relaxed instead of getting uptight and excited. Also, some of my evasive techniques (avoiding continuous attacks) appear ... ah ... evasive. I would prefer to appear aggressive yet waiting for my opportunity. Ha-ha.

Then there are the kata. Sometimes they appear ok in regular motion, but when I do frame-by-frame or slow-motion (my DVD player will do 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, and 1/16 speed) I think it looks horrible. My timing is off, my knees do funny things, my hips don't maintain a consistent level, and I can see many times my upper body is not solidly connected to the lower body, which frequently does not maintain a good connection with the floor. Ack!

And the left heel! I know my ankle is stiff from an old skiing injury, but it's quite obvious why I don't maintain the consistent hip level, and why I tip forward in kiba-dachi zuki sometimes.

If, as Mr. Ohshima says, he can slow down action around him so that it appears that his opponents are moving in slow motion, how torturous must it be for him to witness our practices and exams! One would think that he might attempt the reverse, and speed things up to hide our transgressions, or to get the event over with faster. He must have a very strong mentality if he does not do this.

No wonder that high-level seniors pick out things we need to improve on so easily - things we never think about needing improving. It must grate on their optic nerves to watch us stumble around. OK, I should get rid of the "we", "our", and "us", and substitute "my", "I", and "me".

I used to think there were three main phases of kata practice - learning the floorplan (including all techniques), learning the sequences and bunkai, then self-expression. Now I know there are many phases, actually more of a continuum, which may lead to my kata appearing as good in 1/16 slow motion as it does in normal speed. Talk about a long-term project!!