I promised to myself that I would not gripe about my physical ills on the blog, but since I've had some time off working on the house I've collected a slew of small issues. Most notably my right foot has three puncture wounds that have healed enough that I can endure class, but last week's session produced a tear in the pad of my big toe. Which simply produces the worst pain until it healed up. I guess it's the constant pulling and movement.
So last night I'm doing good, but notice another spot on the right foot is giving away. Great. This time near the pinky toe. I should have called myself Pinkytoe instead of Potatoefist.
It was just Mark and I until an boy of about five was brought into class. This isn't usually a big deal, but the kid's parents are the most beautiful people I've seen. All white teeth and blond hair with a tan. And on top of that the boy is able to focus the whole time! Damn perfect people.
Reed Sensei had us go through movement drills that made us look absolutely horrible. So move forward, block/strike, turn to the open part of the stance, block and strike, turn forward do it again and move forward. We looked worse than the five year old. Super embarrassing. At one point a guy came in to watch and I think he left after 10 minutes. Probably wondering why a couple of advanced belts looked like lurching drunks.
We finished up with Kata work and although nothing new was learned on the Kusanku I did refine a few pieces.
I'll be in out for the next month making attendance very sporadic. I'm hoping December allows me to get into a regular pattern.
Thursday, October 29, 2015
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
Move and Sprawl
Two nights in a row! I'm practically a lifer at this point. Ha! After such a long time off I was incredibly sore on Tuesday. I still felt pretty horrible this morning, but I was kind of excited to work on something new.
Unfortunately plans went a little sideways because we did a lot of basics which I clearly needed. Shudokan uses a very direct approach and they are okay about crossing feet on attack which I can't even begin to do unless I concentrate really hard. That and very twisted torso on the reverse punch. I mean it makes sense to cover a lot of distance, but it takes a lot relearning on my part.
I'm also out of practice as it relates to distance and contact. My left punch was severely needing some recalibration. I struggled so much and partner was a slight 19 year old girl. If I made a poor contact I would have taken her head off.
While we practiced variations on that Reed Sensei brought out the mats and for the next session. Which was defending against the sprawl. The standard first attack from someone with a wrestler background which goes for the legs needs to be countered by a sprawl. Basically jetting the legs out wide and making your weight forward and down. Each of use did a couple of go rounds trying to tackle someone our own weight, but Reed is a big man and it didn't go well for me.
We then did a 6 o clock, 12 o clock position to turn the attacker over and get into an arm bar. Lots of fun, but I split my food pad and ground a lot skin off my feet ouch.
Great night and I feel very exercised. Well see how I feel tomorrow!
Unfortunately plans went a little sideways because we did a lot of basics which I clearly needed. Shudokan uses a very direct approach and they are okay about crossing feet on attack which I can't even begin to do unless I concentrate really hard. That and very twisted torso on the reverse punch. I mean it makes sense to cover a lot of distance, but it takes a lot relearning on my part.
I'm also out of practice as it relates to distance and contact. My left punch was severely needing some recalibration. I struggled so much and partner was a slight 19 year old girl. If I made a poor contact I would have taken her head off.
While we practiced variations on that Reed Sensei brought out the mats and for the next session. Which was defending against the sprawl. The standard first attack from someone with a wrestler background which goes for the legs needs to be countered by a sprawl. Basically jetting the legs out wide and making your weight forward and down. Each of use did a couple of go rounds trying to tackle someone our own weight, but Reed is a big man and it didn't go well for me.
We then did a 6 o clock, 12 o clock position to turn the attacker over and get into an arm bar. Lots of fun, but I split my food pad and ground a lot skin off my feet ouch.
Great night and I feel very exercised. Well see how I feel tomorrow!
Monday, October 19, 2015
Big Sweatin'
I just realized I haven't posted since August! Well I'm back for at least three sessions before travel and work get in the way again.
Back in August we decided to work on the house again which meant that we'd be working every night and every weekend. It's been grueling, but we've made major progress. During this time the only time I've had to myself to practice is really early in the morning. Three katas a day has allowed me to keep most things in place. I was rewarded in class when Reed Sensei said, "well you've obviously been practicing", boom!
After a brief warm-up I taught, or retaught, Sarah the staff routine and after a few goes at that Reed moved me back to the Kusanku and refined my boo-boos. I got learn the next section which was a lot of fun.
On the ride home I realized I haven't been moving like that in a long time. Lots of ab work to jump around. Argh. This weekend I turned 49 so I felt pretty good that I still move pretty well and kick pretty high.
Back in August we decided to work on the house again which meant that we'd be working every night and every weekend. It's been grueling, but we've made major progress. During this time the only time I've had to myself to practice is really early in the morning. Three katas a day has allowed me to keep most things in place. I was rewarded in class when Reed Sensei said, "well you've obviously been practicing", boom!
After a brief warm-up I taught, or retaught, Sarah the staff routine and after a few goes at that Reed moved me back to the Kusanku and refined my boo-boos. I got learn the next section which was a lot of fun.
On the ride home I realized I haven't been moving like that in a long time. Lots of ab work to jump around. Argh. This weekend I turned 49 so I felt pretty good that I still move pretty well and kick pretty high.
Tuesday, August 18, 2015
New Kata 2
After warm up Reed Sensei got me back on Kusanku to introduce me to the next couple of pieces. Since I actually haven't seen the complete kata I have no idea it's overall length or complexity. So it's kind of fun to iron out the components as they come.
Periodically Reed will stop and work through a piece of the kata. When I asked he said he hadn't taught this one in five years! I don't know if I could remember anything if I stopped doing it after 6 months. He certainly has a phenomenal memory.
After that it was back to the elbow techniques. This time I was trying to test my knowledge by going first, but I was only able to get through the first five and still needed hints. We got through the two bunkai and application and then moved up to Mark's third kata's work. I hope I'm helping him memorize this stuff because it comes slow to me.
The heat is almost unbearable outside, but the sport's club where we have class is nicely air conditioned. For some reason I don't cool down that much when I'm changing out, so I'm perspiring before we even get started. I'm wearing a light gi and it feels so close and clingy. Yuck.
No running or weights due to travel and I'll be leaving town tomorrow for the rest of the week. I'm 200 lbs this morning. Hopefully I can keep it under control.
Periodically Reed will stop and work through a piece of the kata. When I asked he said he hadn't taught this one in five years! I don't know if I could remember anything if I stopped doing it after 6 months. He certainly has a phenomenal memory.
After that it was back to the elbow techniques. This time I was trying to test my knowledge by going first, but I was only able to get through the first five and still needed hints. We got through the two bunkai and application and then moved up to Mark's third kata's work. I hope I'm helping him memorize this stuff because it comes slow to me.
The heat is almost unbearable outside, but the sport's club where we have class is nicely air conditioned. For some reason I don't cool down that much when I'm changing out, so I'm perspiring before we even get started. I'm wearing a light gi and it feels so close and clingy. Yuck.
No running or weights due to travel and I'll be leaving town tomorrow for the rest of the week. I'm 200 lbs this morning. Hopefully I can keep it under control.
Thursday, August 13, 2015
New Kata!
As I've mentioned before Shūdokan is very focused on kata. The preset movements act as a foundation to everything done at the school. First comes kata, then the bunkai and finally the application.
Unlearning the casual brutality of my old school is not difficult, but I often look back fondly on how tough it used to make me feel. I miss the physical contact, but not the injury so I console myself with the excitement of learning new stuff as a replacement. However, my learning curve is a bit modest. At six katas, I'm still getting fine tuning tips and reminders about footwork etc.
To my pleasure, last night Reed Sensei hit me up with, "let's work on a new kata tonight" again. Before that started Mark and I went through the ten elbow techniques and then worked on the Kyoku series.
The Kyoku are specific to Shūdokan meaning that they aren't supposed to be shared openly. That being said they feel fairly normal in the scope of kata, but their bow in and out are unusual. Working with Mark on their bunkai and application didn't take that long since we'd worked on them in the past I could kind of remember them reasonably well.
My new kata is called Chattan Yata Ku San Ku. I have no earthly idea if I'm spelling that correctly. Apparently, we borrow several kata from Yata from Chattan (or maybe that's the other way around?). Reed Sensei tells me this is black belt kata which will have some jump kicks. We made it through the first leg so now I have something new to practice!
Exercise note
I'm trying to keep consistent with the running. I got up to 2.5 miles, but it was littered with stops and one of my calves gave up on the return. Assuming I have time tonight I'm going to try again and see how it feels.
I'm keeping up with the weights, but's relegated to the weirdest most broken up schedule I could imagine. For instance I did shoulders at 5 this morning. What the hell is wrong with me!
Unlearning the casual brutality of my old school is not difficult, but I often look back fondly on how tough it used to make me feel. I miss the physical contact, but not the injury so I console myself with the excitement of learning new stuff as a replacement. However, my learning curve is a bit modest. At six katas, I'm still getting fine tuning tips and reminders about footwork etc.
To my pleasure, last night Reed Sensei hit me up with, "let's work on a new kata tonight" again. Before that started Mark and I went through the ten elbow techniques and then worked on the Kyoku series.
The Kyoku are specific to Shūdokan meaning that they aren't supposed to be shared openly. That being said they feel fairly normal in the scope of kata, but their bow in and out are unusual. Working with Mark on their bunkai and application didn't take that long since we'd worked on them in the past I could kind of remember them reasonably well.
My new kata is called Chattan Yata Ku San Ku. I have no earthly idea if I'm spelling that correctly. Apparently, we borrow several kata from Yata from Chattan (or maybe that's the other way around?). Reed Sensei tells me this is black belt kata which will have some jump kicks. We made it through the first leg so now I have something new to practice!
Exercise note
I'm trying to keep consistent with the running. I got up to 2.5 miles, but it was littered with stops and one of my calves gave up on the return. Assuming I have time tonight I'm going to try again and see how it feels.
I'm keeping up with the weights, but's relegated to the weirdest most broken up schedule I could imagine. For instance I did shoulders at 5 this morning. What the hell is wrong with me!
Tuesday, August 11, 2015
Low Legs, Lowest Legs
It was a fantastic evening. I had been having a difficult time keeping a regular schedule in the last month mostly due to season tickets to our local Women's soccer team and a lot of social obligations. So actually getting to class has become a pleasure as well because it acts as a stabilizing force in an otherwise chaotic schedule.
There are 10 techniques and I notice everyone has there mnemonic. Here is my new list:
I worked the rest of the class with MaryAnn Sensei on her application of a Gojo Ryu kata. I'm about a foot and half taller than her which is great for her because of the Aikido-like management of the attacker. I walk up behind her and grab her arms which lead to a complicated arm lock (because I don't let go), a heel to the groin, followed by a Judo throw. I think it's a Harai goshi or Hane Goshi, but unlike a Judo throw there is no way to exit and slap. So you just eat the mat with your arm drawn up behind you.
When it was my turn to be the defender I was operating at the height advantage/disadvantage. I have to squat lower than MaryAnn's hips to do the hand work and the throw. After four attempts I ended up having to stop due to burning knees and thighs. I'm sure I'm not doing something correctly, but this is for MaryAnn's next rank so I doubt I'll need to work on this anytime soon.
There are 10 techniques and I notice everyone has there mnemonic. Here is my new list:
- Stop 1
- Stop 2
- Stop 3
- Waiter 1
- Waiter 2
- holding
- Slippery
- Elbows
- holding
- Knockdown twist
Of course, this morning I can't remember what I call number 6 or 9, but I'm getting better!
I worked the rest of the class with MaryAnn Sensei on her application of a Gojo Ryu kata. I'm about a foot and half taller than her which is great for her because of the Aikido-like management of the attacker. I walk up behind her and grab her arms which lead to a complicated arm lock (because I don't let go), a heel to the groin, followed by a Judo throw. I think it's a Harai goshi or Hane Goshi, but unlike a Judo throw there is no way to exit and slap. So you just eat the mat with your arm drawn up behind you.
All 40 throws. The Harai and Hane are tucked in there.
When it was my turn to be the defender I was operating at the height advantage/disadvantage. I have to squat lower than MaryAnn's hips to do the hand work and the throw. After four attempts I ended up having to stop due to burning knees and thighs. I'm sure I'm not doing something correctly, but this is for MaryAnn's next rank so I doubt I'll need to work on this anytime soon.
Friday, July 31, 2015
Exercise Note 2
The heat in the area is showing no signs of going anywhere so I grabbed my running sandals and hit the road in 100 degree, arid heat. The strange thing about being in such a dry stretch is that it didn't appear that I was sweating at all. I am fairly used to perspiring a moderate amount trying to move my 200 lbs around. I realized later that it was probably evaporating as fast as I was producing it. I never felt uncomfortable, but I only ran for 13 minutes netting me a 1.3 mile run. Not very exciting, but with reconstructing my gait and a slight fear of overdoing it in the heat I thought I did pretty good.
I only took one pause at the turn around, but I did feel sorry for people out in the heat as I trundled by. A man chasing his stomach while his lovely moobs swayed to a mild beat has got to put anyone off their chow. I wonder how my wife can tolerate the site. However, this might explain why she has the lights off in the bedroom when I come to bed.
The important part of this note (really not all about self-loathing) is that my legs don't hurt at all, but I have a small amount of tenderness on the tip of one toe that must have been rubbing incorrectly. Talk about a great progress. My knee didn't show any sign of wear or tear and my legs feel comfortably exercised without the gripping pain from my last go round.
I squeezed in a shoulder work out while we watched TV later in the evening. It feels great to use weights again after all this time, but I must admit it's a bit upsetting to use such small amounts. I'd rather keep away from injury though and I'm keeping my eye on the long path.
For those of you interested in near barefoot running here's the site I eventually chose because of the price of make it yourself shoes Xero Shoes.
I only took one pause at the turn around, but I did feel sorry for people out in the heat as I trundled by. A man chasing his stomach while his lovely moobs swayed to a mild beat has got to put anyone off their chow. I wonder how my wife can tolerate the site. However, this might explain why she has the lights off in the bedroom when I come to bed.
The important part of this note (really not all about self-loathing) is that my legs don't hurt at all, but I have a small amount of tenderness on the tip of one toe that must have been rubbing incorrectly. Talk about a great progress. My knee didn't show any sign of wear or tear and my legs feel comfortably exercised without the gripping pain from my last go round.
I squeezed in a shoulder work out while we watched TV later in the evening. It feels great to use weights again after all this time, but I must admit it's a bit upsetting to use such small amounts. I'd rather keep away from injury though and I'm keeping my eye on the long path.
For those of you interested in near barefoot running here's the site I eventually chose because of the price of make it yourself shoes Xero Shoes.
Thursday, July 30, 2015
Gettin' Swole
Since my crippling run on Sunday I haven't put on the sandals for my next run, but I would say I'm more or less back in working order. All the pain I experienced several days after is gone and my legs feel a bit stronger.
The problem with going for a run is that we are going to be hitting 100 today. The only time to run being late in the evening and that's when I'm trying to get ready for bed. A conundrum since I need to get back out on the road. It might be a short run (1 mile), but it'll be getting out there for a little bit to toughen those feet up and work on my technique.
Just as I left the house last night my wife said, "have fun", which I rarely think about anymore. While I attended at my old school I made her say, "break a leg" as way of fending off injury. That honestly didn't work since I was fending off injury constantly. And now when she says have fun it appears to have the opposite effect. Last night was an unfortunate repeat, but it started with a moment of enthusiasm.
Reed Sensei asked me if I was ready to learn a new Kata! I was very excited by this even though I could work on what I have for some time, but I ended up spending the class working on the staff routine with Sarah. Again the class went quickly because of the focus on refinements, but I didn't get learn anything new. Sad face.
I got home and had some energy after dinner and descended into the basement and actually worked out with the weights. Finally putting a light workout on my chest. My morning push up regimen hasn't been able to keep up with my aging muscle mass; giving me the appearance of a post-menopausal B cup. I really don't like taking my shirt off. This is one very important reason to get the weights. Of course I don't want to hurt myself so I had to take it easy last night with very light weights and two sets. Maybe in a year I can build up to something more. At the very least I'd like to have some tension in my muscles. I hate looking in the mirror and seeing something that looked like a man, but now a melted candle shaped one.
The problem with going for a run is that we are going to be hitting 100 today. The only time to run being late in the evening and that's when I'm trying to get ready for bed. A conundrum since I need to get back out on the road. It might be a short run (1 mile), but it'll be getting out there for a little bit to toughen those feet up and work on my technique.
Just as I left the house last night my wife said, "have fun", which I rarely think about anymore. While I attended at my old school I made her say, "break a leg" as way of fending off injury. That honestly didn't work since I was fending off injury constantly. And now when she says have fun it appears to have the opposite effect. Last night was an unfortunate repeat, but it started with a moment of enthusiasm.
Reed Sensei asked me if I was ready to learn a new Kata! I was very excited by this even though I could work on what I have for some time, but I ended up spending the class working on the staff routine with Sarah. Again the class went quickly because of the focus on refinements, but I didn't get learn anything new. Sad face.
I got home and had some energy after dinner and descended into the basement and actually worked out with the weights. Finally putting a light workout on my chest. My morning push up regimen hasn't been able to keep up with my aging muscle mass; giving me the appearance of a post-menopausal B cup. I really don't like taking my shirt off. This is one very important reason to get the weights. Of course I don't want to hurt myself so I had to take it easy last night with very light weights and two sets. Maybe in a year I can build up to something more. At the very least I'd like to have some tension in my muscles. I hate looking in the mirror and seeing something that looked like a man, but now a melted candle shaped one.
Tuesday, July 28, 2015
Burning Thighs
My foray into barefootish running lead to an immediate physical blow back. I finished a mile and half loop and felt pretty good until the next day. The idea is that because you are moving so carefully you insulate yourself from impact and thus running doesn't cause any issues to knees and back.
What is not mentioned is that if you are still out of shape your body is going to be pissed off after a surprise exercise session. I got up on Monday morning barely able to move my legs. My left knee felt liked it had been kicked by a mule which is an unfortunate sign that I overdid the exercise. On the flip side I had zero problems with my feet.
So it was off to class in the evening with my normal pattern of trepidation, but it this case it was founded on the concern that I could barely walk up the stairs. Thankfully we did a bit more warm up than usual and I didn't suffer horribly when we had to run around the room five times. The class went smoothly. I ended up doing the elbow techniques and staff routine with Sarah the whole time. She's better at picking everything up than I was. But I could be an awesome teacher as well. Hah.
I got home and told my wife how it was going to be the last cool night in awhile so we should go to an outdoor brewery and enjoy the evening air. She agreed, but later asked to take the bikes. I thought to myself, "well this is going to be challenging", but it wasn't far so I thought we'd be okay.
The next 45 minutes almost led to a divorce. My wife, who is always flawless in directions, decided to take a different route. Again, I wasn't worried, because she always finds routes that are usually faster. We ended up converting a 15 minute ride into the tour de France. I have never been so agitated. It was like she was choosing a larger hill at each bad turn. My already burning legs were on fire. I had no idea there was so many hills in the Rose city. Lactic acid aside, I was also only riding a bike that only has three gears. More suited to beach cruising our pleasure bikes turned into mobile torture devices. My wife, however, had the indignity to never appear to be out of breath.
We eventually got to the brewery. I waxed philosophic about how the ride home would be easy, but my newly shredded legs were like pushing a rope. By the time I got to bed I could barely walk. Today was hilarious because I had to walk down stairs to leave and I had to clutch the railing like a sailor on the deck of ship getting tossed in massive waves.
This should be a running day, but I don't think that's going to happen.
What is not mentioned is that if you are still out of shape your body is going to be pissed off after a surprise exercise session. I got up on Monday morning barely able to move my legs. My left knee felt liked it had been kicked by a mule which is an unfortunate sign that I overdid the exercise. On the flip side I had zero problems with my feet.
So it was off to class in the evening with my normal pattern of trepidation, but it this case it was founded on the concern that I could barely walk up the stairs. Thankfully we did a bit more warm up than usual and I didn't suffer horribly when we had to run around the room five times. The class went smoothly. I ended up doing the elbow techniques and staff routine with Sarah the whole time. She's better at picking everything up than I was. But I could be an awesome teacher as well. Hah.
I got home and told my wife how it was going to be the last cool night in awhile so we should go to an outdoor brewery and enjoy the evening air. She agreed, but later asked to take the bikes. I thought to myself, "well this is going to be challenging", but it wasn't far so I thought we'd be okay.
The next 45 minutes almost led to a divorce. My wife, who is always flawless in directions, decided to take a different route. Again, I wasn't worried, because she always finds routes that are usually faster. We ended up converting a 15 minute ride into the tour de France. I have never been so agitated. It was like she was choosing a larger hill at each bad turn. My already burning legs were on fire. I had no idea there was so many hills in the Rose city. Lactic acid aside, I was also only riding a bike that only has three gears. More suited to beach cruising our pleasure bikes turned into mobile torture devices. My wife, however, had the indignity to never appear to be out of breath.
We eventually got to the brewery. I waxed philosophic about how the ride home would be easy, but my newly shredded legs were like pushing a rope. By the time I got to bed I could barely walk. Today was hilarious because I had to walk down stairs to leave and I had to clutch the railing like a sailor on the deck of ship getting tossed in massive waves.
This should be a running day, but I don't think that's going to happen.
Friday, July 24, 2015
Exercise Note 1
I purchased some Bowflex adjustable weights off of Craigslist this week and started a modest work out routine yesterday.
In the evening I did an 8 mile bike ride followed by a half mile run with my new sandals. I should mention that I ate a huge amount negating any of the positive effects I was working towards, but I woke up feeling a bit fitter. I'm sure it was all psychological, but I'll take it.
As promised, running in sandals turns out to be a less stressful activity that one would think. Because you are conscious of your feet, you become careful about the force you place on them which evens out your running. I also had to make sure that I keep my posture upright. I realize a half mile isn't saying much, but my feet and legs appear to have no issues. I'm not sure how this is going to pan out as weather gets colder, but I'm anxious to try a longer run when I get back from our weekend.
My goal is to run regularly for a month. When the scorching heats the area I don't even want to go outside, limiting my time to the evening or the morning. We'll see how that goes.
In the evening I did an 8 mile bike ride followed by a half mile run with my new sandals. I should mention that I ate a huge amount negating any of the positive effects I was working towards, but I woke up feeling a bit fitter. I'm sure it was all psychological, but I'll take it.
As promised, running in sandals turns out to be a less stressful activity that one would think. Because you are conscious of your feet, you become careful about the force you place on them which evens out your running. I also had to make sure that I keep my posture upright. I realize a half mile isn't saying much, but my feet and legs appear to have no issues. I'm not sure how this is going to pan out as weather gets colder, but I'm anxious to try a longer run when I get back from our weekend.
My goal is to run regularly for a month. When the scorching heats the area I don't even want to go outside, limiting my time to the evening or the morning. We'll see how that goes.
Wednesday, July 22, 2015
Big Shūdokan 50
I guess I should express some enthusiasm for making it to my 50th class, but in all actuality I haven't passed a year and relatively speaking I haven't learned a lot of the syllabus.
That being said, I've enjoyed the class immensely and love the folks there. Progress feels slow, but every time things speed up I can barely keep up. So maybe the pace is just right for me.
Monday night I helped teach the squirrelly kids basic movement to "wear them out". All that I succeeded in was to tire myself and doubt that the kids were getting the point.
The rest of the night I spent teaching Sarah the beginnings of the staff routine, Chattan Yatta. She's got a lot of experience in her old school so she was able to pick up a lot faster than I originally did.
Fitness Report
Living in the Rose City can be a trying experience in that life here is a never ending exposure to delicious food and wonderful beers. As my friend likes to say, "sometimes you have to pump the brakes!" referring to slowing or stopping the cycle of visiting a new restaurant or brewery every couple of days.
So I do what most people do; I find something different to get me motivated. I'm back up to 205 and I'd rather not be there since it's not muscle. So I bought some weights off Craigslist. This had to be the shadiest thing I've ever done.
"Cash only, no check" muttered the barely articulate man in a heavy eastern European accent. The boxes were brand new and I assume must have fallen off a truck somewhere. Clearly not what he had in the pictures as they were photographs he must have pulled off the web somewhere. I quickly loaded the boxes and took off.
The other part of my healthy regimen is to get back to running/jogging. I say this so often that it all sounds like a joke to me. However, after reading the book "Born to Run". I got motivated by the idea that I could possibly run longer than my best three miles.
To this end I ordered a kit to build some running sandals. We'll see how this pans out. I did a test last week to the end of my street and, low and behold, it wasn't bad. I'll let you know how it goes.
Thursday, July 09, 2015
Inauspicious Return
After a month of having an unsettling bronchiospasmic cough that still appears once in a while I was pretty excited to return to class. I think I've been out for almost two months at this point.
I got in late by my standard (five minutes till) and no one was there. Which always leads me to think that I may have gone on the wrong day or they had a holiday and neglected to mention that to me. However, I had a text chat with Sensei and knew that everyone should be there.
Before we got started a very muscular man came in with his 6 or 7 year old son. I didn't get to chat because we started to line up pretty quick, but before Sensei rushed in I overheard him talking to his son. It was along the lines of "I know you don't want to come sometimes; I know it's fun when your brother is here; sometime we have to keep coming to build on things...". I was impressed because this was a very big man. The kind I associate with brash, over the top personalities that come with steroid laden work outs and gold chains. However, this guy was extremely mild and obviously a thoughtful and caring parent. So point to him for breaking my mental stereotype.
Although his son seemed hesitant and shy, he opened up nicely during the class and participated fully during the class. Sensei does work with the kids very well.
After bow-in Sensei grabbed me and we went through Chattan Yata (the staff kata) again. So much for my warm up! He fine tuned six areas that had fallen off in my practice and then I literally spend the next forty minutes practicing the kata and getting those pieces he mentioned back in alignment.
This got me to thinking. Of all the practice I do - over time I manage to lose components of kata and technique regularly. I remember all the forgotten stuff as soon as it's pointed out, but my memory apparently can hold so much if it's not constantly being reemphasized. To test this I was trying to do some of my old TSD katas this morning and for the most part they are only living as pieces. I'm sure I could relearn without too much effort, but I assume my focus should only be on the task at hand.
The last ten minutes of class was spent on wrist locks! Finally something I could do with some confidence. As I assumed - there are only so many variations on a theme, but always something done a little different. I definitely brought a bunch more then they were teaching and they were okay with that.
The way I was taught:
- grab same side wrist with thumb up
- grab same side wrist with thumb down
- grab opposite side with thumb up
- grab opposite side with thumb down (kinda dumb, but you need to know how to get out of stuff)
In each of those there should be an escape and or a lead in to capture and lock. Shudokan (or whoever donated these techniques) allows for rotation in a grip where TSD does not. Both are effective. So I feel like I expanded by personal canon and maybe got a little respect from the gang. Weeee.
The reason it was inauspicious was because I was sweating so profoundly I couldn't believe it. The work with the staff was so completely tiring that I had to periodically stop for a drink of water. My shoulders are screaming today and my neck feels two inches thicker than it should. Nevertheless, it's awesome to be moving again!
Sunday, June 14, 2015
Off Task
Hey loyal followers and anyone else that makes it to this page! I haven't posted in a bit because of family issues and an unfortunate cough that has turned out to be bronchitis. I'm looking forward to seeing the end of it, but I'm only on week two and I've been told the minimum is four to six weeks. I'm going to try to return to class tomorrow to see how I do. I'm almost up to 50 classes and I love a milestone, but to what end I'm not sure. Just that it's a nice round number.
Thursday, May 28, 2015
Story Time
One thing that I very much like at this school is the "story time" component. Apparently, the original gringo got his stories from the Japanese master and would periodically tell them. In time each school leader would repeat them so after awhile everyone would get the details; a verbal history as it were.
These stories are where the kata came from and how they have changed and why. Yesterday's story was about the elbow techniques that we have to know. The basic ten moves we have to know for the first black are performed with another person (Uke) who pretty much just throws a straight punch. But because there are ten of them my poor memory struggles to get past four or five. Everybody seems to be making a mnemonic to remember, but so far that hasn't happened for me yet.
The story of the elbows is that Ichigawa was in Europe (Switzerland?) with Morris Mack Sensei. He had a dream that included a kata of elbow techniques. When he woke he approached Morris and said I think this is for you. Morris said thanks and learned it, but didn't think much of it. Over time that kata became the ten techniques we know now. While we learn them Reed Sensei also shows the things that have changed even through his sojourn; an open hand here versus and fist there. It gives the feeling of acting out living history.
During the warm ups I was telling Reed that I really liked how I wasn't constantly fighting injury in this school. This is germane because I woke up this morning with a mangled neck again and shoulder again. I can't figure what I'm doing that flairs that but it was completely gone for the last couple weeks. Sigh. I've also started running again which makes my legs completely fried. Stretching feels I'm pulling scabs. I definitely have to work that in more regularly.
One of the teenage students, Kyle, is going to be off for the summer. I told him that I hoped I'd be farther ahead by the time he got back. He said, "If youre better that would be great for me to learn from and if you're not it'll give me an opportunity to resume where I left off". Either way he wins.
These stories are where the kata came from and how they have changed and why. Yesterday's story was about the elbow techniques that we have to know. The basic ten moves we have to know for the first black are performed with another person (Uke) who pretty much just throws a straight punch. But because there are ten of them my poor memory struggles to get past four or five. Everybody seems to be making a mnemonic to remember, but so far that hasn't happened for me yet.
The story of the elbows is that Ichigawa was in Europe (Switzerland?) with Morris Mack Sensei. He had a dream that included a kata of elbow techniques. When he woke he approached Morris and said I think this is for you. Morris said thanks and learned it, but didn't think much of it. Over time that kata became the ten techniques we know now. While we learn them Reed Sensei also shows the things that have changed even through his sojourn; an open hand here versus and fist there. It gives the feeling of acting out living history.
During the warm ups I was telling Reed that I really liked how I wasn't constantly fighting injury in this school. This is germane because I woke up this morning with a mangled neck again and shoulder again. I can't figure what I'm doing that flairs that but it was completely gone for the last couple weeks. Sigh. I've also started running again which makes my legs completely fried. Stretching feels I'm pulling scabs. I definitely have to work that in more regularly.
One of the teenage students, Kyle, is going to be off for the summer. I told him that I hoped I'd be farther ahead by the time he got back. He said, "If youre better that would be great for me to learn from and if you're not it'll give me an opportunity to resume where I left off". Either way he wins.
Thursday, May 21, 2015
Notices Of Age
I am absolutely in the worst pain right now. Apparently abundant manual labor around the house is no substitute for the gym and moderately hard aerobics. I discontinued running awhile back because I just didn't seem to be able to put it to my schedule. The same goes with the gym. Since I've moved to the Rose City I haven't been able to look at a gym because of the time commitment.
Which brings me to why I'm so uncomfortable right now. Last night we started late and MaryAnn Sensei led the warm-up. Although she is thorough, I can barely stifle an inward groan sometimes. She takes a long time and doesn't use an out loud count. This leads to the occasional late start. Last night was an impressive detour into yoga moves. If it were anything but in our class I would have applauded because I clearly needed to work on torso flexibility, but the warm up went into the 30 minute mark and I was groaning before we finished. What happened to my flexibility?
While we were finishing up Reed Sensei placed rubber disk in patterns around the back of the room. This indicates we'd be doing movement drills. Again this can be onerous, but are great for reminding our feet what they need to be doing. However, last night they went into new territory. I thought doing cartwheels was a challenge, but we did a one knee down squats. Again this shouldn't have been an issue, but even after one run of 10 or so squats I could feel my hams lock up. By the 20th I could barely stand up.
Thankfully everyone was very supportive, but I think they were a bit concerned since my face was not only congested red, but I was sporting a rictus of pain. After that, we were asked to see what we needed to work on. I partnered with Kyle to work on details of Pinan Shodan.
When I got home I needed to mow the lawn. Now a considerably daunting task since my legs weren't really supporting my weight. It was like someone removed my knees. Before I hit the sack I took a Alleve and I think it was the only thing that allowed me to get out of bed today.
Which brings me to why I'm so uncomfortable right now. Last night we started late and MaryAnn Sensei led the warm-up. Although she is thorough, I can barely stifle an inward groan sometimes. She takes a long time and doesn't use an out loud count. This leads to the occasional late start. Last night was an impressive detour into yoga moves. If it were anything but in our class I would have applauded because I clearly needed to work on torso flexibility, but the warm up went into the 30 minute mark and I was groaning before we finished. What happened to my flexibility?
While we were finishing up Reed Sensei placed rubber disk in patterns around the back of the room. This indicates we'd be doing movement drills. Again this can be onerous, but are great for reminding our feet what they need to be doing. However, last night they went into new territory. I thought doing cartwheels was a challenge, but we did a one knee down squats. Again this shouldn't have been an issue, but even after one run of 10 or so squats I could feel my hams lock up. By the 20th I could barely stand up.
Thankfully everyone was very supportive, but I think they were a bit concerned since my face was not only congested red, but I was sporting a rictus of pain. After that, we were asked to see what we needed to work on. I partnered with Kyle to work on details of Pinan Shodan.
When I got home I needed to mow the lawn. Now a considerably daunting task since my legs weren't really supporting my weight. It was like someone removed my knees. Before I hit the sack I took a Alleve and I think it was the only thing that allowed me to get out of bed today.
Tuesday, May 19, 2015
Softshock
After two plus weeks off I was experiencing my normal anxiety about returning to class. I may have mentioned this before, but it's like experiencing a panic attack. The adrenaline is spiking and I feel absolutely weak. I know, intellectually, that I'll be fine when class starts, but wading through that is challenging.
What made me nervous is that I feel out of shape and it was going to be a long night. I was hosting the after class practice in the basement dojo and that can run on till 7. So I'll be going from flaccid to three hours straight.
Class whistled by and I did some focus time with MaryAnn Sensei on the Goju kata, then we did a little work on the Pinan Shodan. This time doing the application work which everyone finds very fun. I partnered with Olivia and once we worked out the bugs we moved very well together.
During After hours I worked with Mark most of the time on his three applications. Which in any situation is a sickening amount of stuff to remember. He did great until the last bit which is when he lost a few moves. We tied it together and thought we were great until Sensei came by and point out that we missed a huge amount of stuff. Back to beginning!
At the end of the night we reviewed the application drill that we had gone through during class and I was partnered with MaryAnn Sensei and she demonstrated that enthusiasm doesn't always equate with smoothness. It's a hell of a thing to talk to a senior and ask them to slow down.
As of this writing I'm only experiencing modest soreness, but I imagine as the day progresses I'll be begging for ibuprofen.
Thursday, April 30, 2015
Downright
After being overwhelmed on Monday, a little dedicated time in the evening to work on the kata appeared to let things settle in my mind. Although I still have to stop and think, I can keep things separate now. I mean I have to really think the whole kata through before I do it. Thankfully they are really short.
We went over the 6 major blocks; which I find very different from my own. Anytime we do a block we initiate with elbows stacked. It's somewhat exaggerated, and when we do them at speed a lot of that is lost, but we practice all at three speeds. The lesson is that you want to get it correct, but at speed you're not going to be perfect. And that you have to practice at high speed.
After that we worked a bit more on Pinan Shodan before Mark and I worked on his kata, bunkai, application work.
At the end of class we gathered at the front for a lesson. Reed Sensei likes to spend a few minutes for an instruction or moral tale. I wasn't sure what to make of these, but I enjoy them because I can't think of anytime in my life that anyone actually said this stuff (maybe Sunday school?). Last night's lesson referred to eye gazes. To recall we tend to look up and to the right and if stretching the truth we tend look down and to the right. Thus the term "a downright liar". Obviously it depends on lots of factors, but it was pretty cool.
He finalized the time with a poem:
I'm born with a set of tools,
A shapeless mass,
And a book of rules.
I need to build
before I die
a stumbling block
or stepping stone.
I don't think I have that totally right, but you can see that where he was going with it. Nice sentiment and places the work in creating the people we want to be in our own hands. Or that's how I interpreted it.
We went over the 6 major blocks; which I find very different from my own. Anytime we do a block we initiate with elbows stacked. It's somewhat exaggerated, and when we do them at speed a lot of that is lost, but we practice all at three speeds. The lesson is that you want to get it correct, but at speed you're not going to be perfect. And that you have to practice at high speed.
After that we worked a bit more on Pinan Shodan before Mark and I worked on his kata, bunkai, application work.
At the end of class we gathered at the front for a lesson. Reed Sensei likes to spend a few minutes for an instruction or moral tale. I wasn't sure what to make of these, but I enjoy them because I can't think of anytime in my life that anyone actually said this stuff (maybe Sunday school?). Last night's lesson referred to eye gazes. To recall we tend to look up and to the right and if stretching the truth we tend look down and to the right. Thus the term "a downright liar". Obviously it depends on lots of factors, but it was pretty cool.
He finalized the time with a poem:
I'm born with a set of tools,
A shapeless mass,
And a book of rules.
I need to build
before I die
a stumbling block
or stepping stone.
I don't think I have that totally right, but you can see that where he was going with it. Nice sentiment and places the work in creating the people we want to be in our own hands. Or that's how I interpreted it.
Tuesday, April 28, 2015
A Little Overwhelmed
I think I officially hit the point of saturation yesterday. I'm up to six kata and I'm struggling to keep it all straight. They start to fold in on one another and then I have to go back and start over again during practice. Then they evaporate altogether!
I got to class a bit early and asked one of the young black-belts if they knew the second Geki kata. She had no idea what I was talking about. So I guess Reed Sensei is assigning me kata based on an algorithm know only to him. I'm not complaining other than I don't think I'm doing things justice. I can do the technique well, but have a hard time remembering transitions and stances.
In my latest case the two Geki kata are very similar and start off the same, but change subtly after the first run 1/3. So now they are blended and I'm struggling to keep them separate.
Added to this is that the whole class is learning a kata together (Pinan Shodan) which is fun and all, but as in the case last night I'm removed to help the black belt test guy. Which I love, but then I lose the content of the other stuff!
So until I can settle the Gekis I'm going to have to practice more in the evening to separate them. Another concern is that my forms from TSD are going to go away! How do we keep all this in place?!
I got to class a bit early and asked one of the young black-belts if they knew the second Geki kata. She had no idea what I was talking about. So I guess Reed Sensei is assigning me kata based on an algorithm know only to him. I'm not complaining other than I don't think I'm doing things justice. I can do the technique well, but have a hard time remembering transitions and stances.
In my latest case the two Geki kata are very similar and start off the same, but change subtly after the first run 1/3. So now they are blended and I'm struggling to keep them separate.
Added to this is that the whole class is learning a kata together (Pinan Shodan) which is fun and all, but as in the case last night I'm removed to help the black belt test guy. Which I love, but then I lose the content of the other stuff!
So until I can settle the Gekis I'm going to have to practice more in the evening to separate them. Another concern is that my forms from TSD are going to go away! How do we keep all this in place?!
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
New Stuff
After warm up I was directed to MaryAnn Sensei while each group went to work on different things depending on skill. I was supposed to check off on Gekki SaiDai-Ichi and then learn the next in series, Ni. I love this kata because it's relatively short and incorporates sanchin.
We went through it a few times and refined some pieces and then moved on to Ni. It starts pretty much the same way, but moves to open hand Sanchin and changes to cat stances in the end. Fun!
I finished the day working on Wando with Kyle. I had to straighten out the starting stances.
I also realized that I have been given a lot of respect in that they continue to teach me Black belt level kata. I was struck by the fact that no one else seems to be working on the things that I'm working on. It could be that I'm being taught things that are somewhat for someone getting close to the test or for the 2nd degree. I'm really not sure, but it is fun.
We went through it a few times and refined some pieces and then moved on to Ni. It starts pretty much the same way, but moves to open hand Sanchin and changes to cat stances in the end. Fun!
Not me, but this is exactly the one I just learned.
I finished the day working on Wando with Kyle. I had to straighten out the starting stances.
I also realized that I have been given a lot of respect in that they continue to teach me Black belt level kata. I was struck by the fact that no one else seems to be working on the things that I'm working on. It could be that I'm being taught things that are somewhat for someone getting close to the test or for the 2nd degree. I'm really not sure, but it is fun.
Thursday, April 16, 2015
Fight Night 2
One of the returning Black Belts, Olivia, requested a sparring night so I wasn't too surprised to find that we were going to do last night. What I was surprised by was my physical response - total adrenaline wipe out. I know everyone is different about how it hits them, but for me it's always been complete exhaustion. It's like I have all the after-effects and none of the exhilaration.
We had a brief warm up and then spent a good 20 minutes on movement drills. Basically trying to speed up our ability get in and out of distance. The drills are great because they drive in the idea that you don't need to cross your feet to move in all directions and that you can actually move quicker as a result.
The class had about 12 people so I got two matches in. One with Mark (the brown belt) and one with Reed Sensei. I got Mark 3 to 1, but Reed whooped me 3-0. I'd like to think that I got a couple of good ones in, but they were either obscured or occurred at the same time and he presents way better than me. By that I mean he ke-ayes appropriately. It always takes me a few minutes to remember that. Derp.
We had a brief warm up and then spent a good 20 minutes on movement drills. Basically trying to speed up our ability get in and out of distance. The drills are great because they drive in the idea that you don't need to cross your feet to move in all directions and that you can actually move quicker as a result.
The class had about 12 people so I got two matches in. One with Mark (the brown belt) and one with Reed Sensei. I got Mark 3 to 1, but Reed whooped me 3-0. I'd like to think that I got a couple of good ones in, but they were either obscured or occurred at the same time and he presents way better than me. By that I mean he ke-ayes appropriately. It always takes me a few minutes to remember that. Derp.
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