“The ultimate aim of Karate lies not in victory or defeat, but in the perfection of character of its participants”.
Master Gichin Funakoshi.
The above words by Master Funakoshi, founder of Shotokan/Shotokai have been widely quoted, but I wonder if that was what his teachers had in mind. Continue reading “Karate For “Perfection Of Character”: Truth Or Just Part Of The “Marketing”? - A Historical Perspective” »
This is something that has been discussed on my Facebook page before, but I wanted to go into more depth with it. Most traditional martial arts have been dumbed down. Karate applications (Kata bunkai) were dumbed down when the Okinawans decided to introduce it into their school system in the late nineteenth century. This dumbed down version was taught to the Japanese and from there to the Koreans. Continue reading “Kata Bunkai for Shorin Ryu Pinan Shodan (Heian Nidan)” »
John and Elaine Johnston have started up their own blog which will be well worth checking out. Sensei John Johnston is a 6th Dan Shotokan Karate and the people who he has trained with reads like a “who’s who” of early UK Shotokan Karate. He has competed at high level when it was much rougher than today’s competitions and has also done a lot of door work. Continue reading “Adaptive Karate Blog: With John & Elaine Johnston” »
Having recently attended the Traditional Shotokan Karate Association (TSKA) Residential Course (12th - 14th May), I thought I’d share my experiences with you.
Being my first time at the TSKA residential course, I wasn’t completely sure what to expect, though it was well recommended by my club-mates. Continue reading “Traditional Shotokan Karate Association: Annual Residential Course 2012” »
The following is para-phrased from part of a lesson given by Sensei Pete Manning 6th Dan Shotokan Karate, during the recent residential course hosted by the Traditional Shotokan Karate Association:- Continue reading “Kata And Its Bunkai Is Like A Sword” »
I have featured Sensei John Johnston, 6th Dan Shotokan Karate a few times before. I’ve published an interview with him and done a write up of a private class that I’ve been privileged to have with him.
However, it occurred to me that I’ve never included any videos of him teaching his own Adaptive Karate. So below are some videos from Sensei John Johnston’s own Youtube channel demonstrating kata bunkai. Continue reading “Adaptive Karate Bunkai With Sensei John Johnston 6th Dan” »
This post is following on from another posting that I wrote back in October 2011 about how some training methods introduced by the Japanese into Karate can be damaging to our bodies.
Going back further in Okinawan Karate history before Karate was introduced to Japan, they had the interesting concept of Shu-Ha-Ri, which I have discussed before. However, to recap: Continue reading “Do Our Training Methods Damage Our Bodies? (Part 2)” »
A lot is written these days about how the basic blocking techniques in Karate/Taekwondo are not really “blocks”, but close quarters strikes, releases from grabs/holds, joint locks etc. It is often pointed out that though we practice these “blocks” against straight punches, the creators of Karate would not have been facing that type of attack. So we have “blocks” that don’t really work, practiced against techniques that we are not likely to be attacked with. They only really work with a compliant partner with a pre-arranged attack. Continue reading “In Defence Of Basic Karate/Taekwondo “Blocks”” »
I am honoured to have recently had a second article published in Shotokan Karate Magazine. The article entitled Using “Whip” Technique, is available on this website for those who do not subscribe to Shotokan Karate Magazine. Although it primarily relates to Shotokan Karate, it should be relevant to other styles too.
I have recently received an email from the editor John Cheetham informing me that the article has been well received and forwarding a letter from a reader. I thought this letter raised some interesting points. Continue reading “Shotokan Karate Magazine: My Article & Letter From Reader” »
In many martial arts we are taught that on the climax of our technique we should “sink” into our stance. I will admit that if my knees are sore, I sometimes find this quite difficult to do.
But firstly, why do we do it? “Sinking” at the climax of out technique is a way improving our skeletal structure and helping us for form an immovable “root” to the ground, thus enabling us to more efficiently absorb the reaction energy to any impact from our blows. Continue reading ““Sinking” In Your Stance At The End Of A Technique” »