Strength training – Yes or No!
Are you doing strength training alongside your Karate? If not, then maybe you should consider it. Strength training is essential for your development within Karate. The purpose of strength training …
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Year: 2022
Application of Kata techniques
Kata was created to function in a perfect fight situation. Everything is predetermined. When we are attacked in a certain way, then we use a certain series of defensive techniques …
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Hidden techniques in Kata
Some instructors claim that Kata harbors hidden techniques, asserting that these were concealed during Karate’s integration into the Okinawan school system to prevent potentially dangerous injuries. The notion was that …
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Use of force
An important point to keep in mind in Karate is the use of force! If you practice Karate solely with force, your body will tense up. Making explosive attacks or …
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Interpretation of techniques (short version)
Most practitioners of Karate do not pay much attention to the whole technique. I think that is a fundamental mistake. Let us take Gedan-barai as an example; in most cases, …
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How to learn a Kata
Learning a Kata is a nuanced process that involves more than just mastering patterns and techniques. Here’s a step-by-step guide: Initial Learning. When starting with a new Kata, begin by …
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How to practice Nami-gaeshi
Nami-gaeshi translates into “wave return”, a more understandable description is “returning wave”. The name of the technique refers to the movement that the leg performs. The leg movement resembles an …
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Three levels of bunkai
Bunkai means “to break down”, and thus describes the whole process that lies in breaking down and understanding the application of the techniques in a Kata; we simply peel a …
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Ten Precepts of Karate
In October 1908, Anko Itosu (1831-1915) wrote a letter, “Ten Precepts of Karate,” to draw the attention of the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of War in Japan. This …
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