Beginner's Course Week 2

Hi everyone!

Hope you enjoyed the second session of this term's Beginner's Course.

Last week, our president, Wei Hao, has covered the general and safety aspect of our practice. So this week, I would like to go slightly more technical, and also touch on some of the dojo etiquette.
Please also refer to "Kendo Etiquette" section of our club's "Kendo for Beginners" guide: http://users.ox.ac.uk/~kendo/kendo4beginners/k4b2.html

Posture

1. Stay upright with shoulders back -- don't hunch over even when you are swinging the shinai.
2. Imagine a vertical line that runs through from the top of your head to the floor between your legs. Maintain this throughout.
   
3. Relax -- No point in tensing up. You need to be relaxed to move the way you want to. keep your arms and legs relaxed, and don't lock your elbows or knees.

Footwork

1. Legs shoulder width apart, left forward, right back.
2. Left heel off the ground, weight on the ball of both feet. (right heel should be very slightly off the floor as well)
3. Never cross your feet during movement, no matter which direction you are moving towards. (open and close)
4. Get back to the balanced, even position after each step. This is important because you want to be ready to go whenever you see an opportunity.

Just a small caution: if you are not used to walking or running bare foot, it's important NOT TO land on your heel first. We tend to strike the floor with our heels first if you are used to running with your shoes on, but doing this bare foot may cause problems. Try to delay your landing until your toe is down... it's hard to describe it, but try to think of it as running quietly. Striking with your forefoot will create a smooth and quiet movement.

Here are some videos from Youtube that might help you see what I mean:

Barefoot Heel Strike Running with Force - Slow Motion



Barefoot Forefoot Strike Running with Force - Slow Motion




Movement

1. When you are moving in suriashi (sliding footwork), try not to bounce up and down. Imagine a line horizontal to the floor running along your waist. As you move forword or back, the waistline should stay leveled with this imaginary line.
2. Remember not to let your heels go flat on the floor at any point in your movement! This is to allow agility in your motion, and also to protect your akelies tendon from snapping.

"Rei" at the dojo
When you enter the dojo (in our case, the sports hall), bow (rei) towards the general direction of where we practice. It shows your respect towards the people who use the dojo, and commitment to what you are about to do -- kendo. Don't forget to bow towards the dojo again when you leave: it will become natural after a while.

"Onegai shimasu" and "Arigatou gozaimashita"
We will cover more specific mannerism during kendo practice. But the important thing for now is that you respect the people you practice kendo with. For this, please remember the following two words.

Say "Onegai shimasu" at the beginning of each session and each practice, and "Arigatou gozaimashita" to thank at the end of the practice/session.

• Onegaishimasu is a bit hard to translate... in terms of kendo, it means something like "please teach me" as well as "let's train together". It shows good will and respect to your partner. "
• Arigatougozaimashita" simply means "thank you".

Shinai handling
Treat your shinai as if treating a real sword.
Do not leave them lying around where people may step on or trip over. Similarly, try not to step over a shinai, and NEVER kick a shinai out of the way. Shinai should be handled with care and respect. It will last longer with a bit of care, so you save money, and more importantly, it will be a lot safer for the people who practice kendo with you.

Don't forget to check for cracks or splinters before you start hitting something or someone.

Practicing at home
Remember what you were told at each kendo session; especially the safety aspects. Stretch well, and make sure that your surroundings are safe. Check the height of the ceiling, conditoion of the floor. Make sure you are not close to things or people when you swing your shinai. Not just in front of you... your shinai naturally falls back when you are swinging over your head!!

Stay safe, and be responsible!

That's it for this week: hope to see you again next week! ;)

--Naoki

Beginner's Course Week 1

Hi all,
A warm welcome to all beginners who have joined us this week! The purpose of this blog is to support the training sessions on Monday evenings, explaining a bit more about what was taught and practised that evening. Also, the previous entries, written for the beginner's course last year, may also be helpful and give an idea of what was done in the last beginner's course, if you would like to do some reading beforehand. For these first two weeks, in which an overview session is given, this blog will cover more general issues. This week, a few points on safety and training.

Hydration
Kendo can be physically demanding and tiring, involving a lot of moving around. Even in cold weather, it is common to sweat while practising. It is therefore important to keep well hydrated; drink fluid before and after exercise, and during water breaks. Also, if you feel that you are in need of water, tell a senior and stop to get the drink. Water or isotonic drinks are recommended; high sugar drinks can make you dehydrated, and sometimes carbonated drinks might not sit well in the stomach when moving around.

Warm-up/stretch
Again, as with all strenuous exercise, it is important to warm up properly to avoid injuries. Tense muscles and tendons are prone to injury when put under strain, such as during sudden movement in kendo. We perform a combined warm-up at the beginning of each session, but if you arrive late, make sure that you warm yourself up before joining in.

Injuries
There are a number of other points in the prevention of injuries to yourself. The most important is to keep the rear ankle off the ground at all times. This cannot be stressed enough. The most common serious injury in kendo is the snapping of the Achilles tendon. This happens if the calf is not warmed up enough, and too much strain is put on it when trying to push off on the rear foot. This excessive strain occurs when the foot is flat against the ground and so the ankle cannot flex. Hence, it is important to keep the heel off the ground. This will occur naturally if the posture is maintained correctly and will become automatic in time.

Relaxation/Control/Strength
Excessive strength is not required in the swinging of the shinai, and it is in fact counter-productive. Using arm strength makes the arm move more slowly, and results in loss of control: attempting to increase the speed of the cuts by swinging the arms makes them tense. Focus on keeping the arms and upper body relaxed, without attempting to cut quickly. This will also improve body posture. Finally, using arm strength when cutting will mean that when you are hitting a live target, the strike will really hurt, even with the armour on.

Equipment check
For the moment, the only equipment that you will be using is the shinai, the bamboo sword. It is important to check that this is safe to use; it undergoes a lot of stress as it strikes targets and get hit. A damaged shinai can send sharp and potentially dangerous pieces of bamboo in all directions. Avoid hitting it on the side with the string; this is what holds the leather caps together, which contain the bamboo slats. (Also, it is the side that represents the blunt edge of the sword, so there's not much good trying to cut with it.) Check that the string is tight so the caps cannot come off. The cap at the tip should not be damaged (so don't lean on your shinai!) The leather around the centre of the shinai should be tight. Check that there are no splinters or cracks in the bamboo.

Personal Limits
Finally, the person that knows your limits best is yourself. If at any time you are feeling unwell, do not hesitate to make this known to a senior and drop out; join back in if and when you feel you can carry on. Also, if there are any injuries that may interfere with training, please also make this known!

Beginner’s Course Michaelmas Term

Here is an outline of the beginner’s course, running the 8 weeks of Michaelmas term.

This is intended as an introduction to kendo for total beginners, but the exercises used should also be beneficial to advanced kendoka in improving kihon (basics). The aim of the course is to teach all the basic movements so that the shinai can be handled competently and exercises can be carried out safely on live targets.

An overview of everything on the course will take up the first two weeks, to give an idea of what will be achieved over the term. Following this, the next few weeks will revisit each aspect, using exercises intended to polish them. Finally, in week 8, a grading will be held in the same session as the Oxford Winter Cup.

The course is structured such that each session builds on what is covered the week before. The purpose of this document is that if you are unable to make a session, it is possible to check what was covered here. Also, this blog will be updated weekly for duration of the beginner’s course, will describe the exercises used in detail and the points covered that week.

Beginners can join any time in week 1, 2 or 3; however, membership forms must be in and paid for by the end of 3rd week in order to cover insurance with the British Kendo Association (BKA).

Week 1: Overview I
An short crash course quickly covering all that will be done over the next few weeks. There will
be a demonstration of a tournament (shiai) environment match at the end.

Week 2: Overview II
Continues from Overview I. The demonstration at the end of this session will be Kihon and practice exercises.

Week 3: Footwork, Posture, Kiai
A session focussing on the footwork and posture used in kendo. Suri-ashi, okuri-ashi, ayumiashi, hiraki-ashi, fumikomi. Smooth movement with correct posture, with and without shinai. Kiai (shouting).

Week 4: Shinai Handling
Correct holding and swinging the shinai (bamboo sword). Arm, elbow, wrist and finger action. Te-no-uchi, suburi.

Week 5: Ki-Ken-Tai no Icchi
Correct timing of movement and impact. Coordination of body, sword, and kiai.

Week 6: Men and Kote
Cutting of the head (men) and wrist (kote) targets. Use of te-no-uchi and ki-ken-tai no icchi.

Week 7: Kirikaeshi
Execution of kirikaeshi, an exercise involving a set pattern of cuts.

Week 8: Grading
Beginner’s grading. Testing of suburi, striking and kirikaeshi.

Grading Requirements

As some people are looking at grading at the end of May, here is a link to part of the British Kendo Association website:

http://kendo.org.uk/kendo/grading-requirements/

It states very clearly what is looked for by examiners at each level of grading. It is good to look at this even if you have not yet registered for a grading as it will give you an idea of what to work for, and at which point you should be thinking about taking a grading!

Additionally the questions (Grading questions- Kendo) and other requirements are also worth a look at ("Gradings").

See you at practice!

Hilary Term '10 wk 7 (08/03/10)

Hi all! Last Monday saw the people of the movement of beginners into armour, so this time we shall cover some points when putting on the bogu. It is easy to find how to put on bogu online, eg. (from e-bogu)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqSMDDmTAaE

Feel free to ask a member already in armour to show you how before the start of practice. It is good to practice putting on the bogu at home; learn to do it quickly so that during the line-up other members do not have to wait for you.

On this entry, what will be covered will not be how to wear the armour, but some small points to take note of when putting on each of the pieces, in the order they are put on. Remember that when putting on or taking off bogu in the dojo, always do so in seiza, at the side (not in the middle of) and facing into the dojo (more accurately, towards the shomen).

Tare
Make sure that the tare sits on your hipbone tightly when tying it on, this means that it will not slip down when moving around but is not tight around the stomach. The straps should be the same height as, and go around, the koshi ita (back board) of the hakama, not between it and the body. When tying the straps, ensure that they are not twisted but are flat against your body. This applies when tying all the other bogu on as well. Ensure that the knot does not protrude from the tare as they may be caught and untied during practice.

Do
The bottom of the do should rest on the tare such that the unpadded straps are just covered. Also, the top of a good-sized do should not be too far from the bottom of the men once the men has been put on. Ensure that the do is balanced and straight on, adjusted by tying the himo (strings) with different lengths. Also, when tying the knot at the back, the ribbon should have the loops pointing outwards left and right, not up and down. The knots on the front of the do should have the loops pointing either both inwards or both outwards, and the ends of the himo should be tucked in.

Men
Note that there are a variety of methods of tying the tenugui; choose one that suits you and your tenugui size. When putting the men on, put the face into the men as far as possible, such that the solid frame of the men is right against face. Do this by first fully putting the chin fully into the men, then bringing it up against the forehead. Make sure that the men cannot move around the head, as this can lead to it rotating around the head, or it coming off. Also if it is loose it will weigh on the head and be hard on the neck. It is important to have the himo flat against the men, as a twisted himo puts pressure against the head and if it is struck during practice, it hurts. The side flaps of the men should be pointing forwards, not outwards, as these protect the shoulders. When putting on the men, after tying the himo, put fingers between the back of the men and the head and pull outwards and forwards to achieve this, and to give some space between the men and the ears. Finally, the himo, once tied, should be the same length as each other and no more than 40cm from the knot.

Kote
Hold the kote at the joint when putting it on or off to reduce the stress on the wrist section of the gloves. Check that the himo are not dangling. It should not be tight around the wrist, as it must have space to flex in order to absorb impact: tight kote transmit the impact directly to the wrist. Remember to check this if you are wearing a wrist protector or guard.

Look forward to seeing all of you in armour next session!

Shiai rules and roles

Just a few useful reference when watching a shiai (match).
Please refer to published books or BKA official guide for more details!

For one shiai-jo:
3 referees

2 ribbon tying people (one on each side of the shiai-jo, with red or white ribbons)
1 score-board keeper
1 time-keeper (a person with a stopwatch and a yellow flag)

Score board:
men - M
kote - K
do - D
tsuki - T
hansoku - triangle
hikiwake - X

Words used in matches:

ippon
Ippon is a score. A normal match is "sanbon shobu" (or three-point match) where a competitor with two points win.
If two points are scored initially by the same player twice, then there won't be a third game.
If two competitors each score ippon each, then there will be the determining game, or "shobu".

hansoku
Hansoku is a faul. It happens most commonly in "jo-gai" which is a faul of a competitor stepping out of the shiai-jo.
Also, hansoku may be called by the referee if boryoku (violence) is used during the match.

shiai
Shiai is a match.

shiai-jo
A square field defined by a line drawn on the floor where the match takes place.
It's a square with two lines where each player stands behind with a toe at least touching the line.
The cross defines the centre of the shiai-jo.

When a player steps out of the square, the refree calls "jo-gai".
This is hansoku, and if repeated twice, would accumulate to ippon for the other player.

encho
Encho is a extended period of time in which the match continues beyond its normal time-limit.
This happens when the match hasn't been decided.

shinpan
Referee

"hajime" - "Start" refree's declaration of the beginning of a game (time starts)
"yame" - "Stop" refree's call to stop a game (time stops)
"wakare" - "Separate" referee's call to separate the two competitors to tooma.
"shobu ari" - "Match has been decided" - referee's call to declare the end of the match.
"hikiwake" -"Draw" - referee declares the end of match with a draw. This happens when no ippon has been scored by either of the competitors, or both scored one ippon each.

Hilary Term '10 Week 2-4

Apologies for the laxness of the blog updating recently! There has been much training going on and so forth, especially in the run-up to the Varsity match. To make up for it there is a massive post this time! Let's dive straight into the topics; the musings and opinion will be aplenty therein...

2nd Kata
Continuing the descriptions of the kata from the last entry, the 2nd kata form, nihonme, will be discussed. Starting from the nine pace distance, both uchidachi and shidachi maintain chudan and take three steps (ayumi ashi) in to issoku ito no maai. Uchidachi watches for and takes the opportunity to cut kote with a step (okuri ashi) forward and kiai “yah”. Shidachi drops both hands and steps (okuri ashi) diagonally back and to the left, avoiding the cut to the wrist. Following this, shidachi cuts kote with okuriashi and kiai “toh”. Uchidachi watches shidachi for zanshin, and steps back half a step (okuri ashi) to return to the centre. Shidachi moves right (okuri ashi) to return to his point. It is good for uchidachi to keep the point of the bokuto down and delay returning to chudan until after shidachi has reached the starting position in order to avoid ungainly manoeuvring of bokuto around each other.

Basic exercises and looking ahead to armour practice
There has not been much in terms of new exercises and techniques being practised on the Monday sessions, but the intensity of them is increasing. One may be tempted to wonder why it is that the same exercises are just being done over and over again, if there are other techniques and movements, and why it is that these are not being taught. It is important to understand that it is not sufficient to merely do the movements, but to be able to do them correctly, accurately and automatically without thinking about each part of the body. This condition is important as once in armour, the feeling is very different, and it becomes exceedingly difficult to consciously control each individual part of the body. Remember that if cuts are done wildly, it is very easy to incur injury. More advanced techniques require, for safety, both practitioners to be in armour: take the opportunity now to observe how the armour is put on by members of the club; this will give you an idea of what to do when you start using it later this term.

Motodachi geiko
The aim of motodachi geiko is to give the chance for a large number of members to practice many repetitions of waza and exercises in a limited time. Consequently, outside of stopping to give advice, the motodachi will seek to allow as many people to do the exercise as efficiently as possible. Assist the motodachi in this by being ready to step up and begin the exercise quickly; if you are the next person in line, watch the exercise and move up as soon as the person before you is done. Remember that motodachi may choose not to put away the shinai at the end of the exercise and move straight on to receiving the next kakarite. When doing the rei at the end of the exercise, allow the person behind you to move forward into position at the same time. The formality of taking a set number of steps forwards and backward at the beginning of the exercise is relaxed. Finally, and most importantly, never allow a queue to go empty. If a queue is significantly shorter than another, move to the shorter queue. Everyone doing this means that there will be equal opportunities for rest. If you are unwell or unable to continue, it is acceptable let someone know and drop out and move to the side and perhaps rejoin later; however do not hang back and stand around, as it causes confusion. Also there is no need to be polite and let someone go ahead; either person just stepping in and doing the exercise means that both people will finish faster.

Once again, well done for sticking with the practices as they have become harder and intense in order to prepare for moving people into armour this term! The work has been paying off: the improvement that we have seen is most impressive, and I look forward greatly to more members joining the ranks of those in bogu!