Back In The Saddle

Akimashite Omedetto Gozaimasu

After three weeks off it finally felt good to be back at Karate. I missed everyone and it was great to be back among them and training alongside them. It was a tough class last night. Sempai Harvey did his usual Warm Ups but he scaled it down and warned us all to go easy and not pull anything. My ears heard him advise us but my brain and body paid no attention. I was a tad too excited being back and Training.

And what do you think I did last night? I pulled my groin muscle during the warm ups. Actually I think I did it in when I was walking to Karate last night. I slipped a little on the sidewalk last night. While walking up a slope my right foot slid away from me and I felt a little pull in my groin. And at Karate I aggravated it more.

About Pulled Groin Muscles in Martial Arts

I may sideline myself tomorrow night and not do Class, as for Kagami Biraki which is on Saturday, we'll have to wait and see.

Groin pulls and strains are quite common in Martial Arts, along with other pulls/strains in the back, knees, elbows, and ankles.

Which is why we all do a good stretch before Class. I normally do some stretching on my own before going up to the gym but I did not do that last night. Really ought to do some cool down stretching on my own after Class too that may help.

Found another interesting Karate Site

The Karate Athlete Site

It's A Long Road Down The Martial Art Path

In Karate or any Martial Art it's a lengthy "study". I know some Black Belts in my Class have spent years at it to reach Black Belt status. Some are not in too big of a hurry to Grade and reach the next Level While others are more interested in "The Belt". Our style is a Journey and not a "brisk walk". I've been constantly reminded that. We are still reminded that.

Before the Coloured Belt System they just used the White Belt. And that was it. The colouring of the belts came much later. I believe when the Art Forms left Japan and moved to the West that is when they began to colourize the belts.

It should not be all about "The Belt" it's a lot more than that. And some just don't see it or get it. As for me this Karateka is taking her time at each Level. I am enjoying the ride still and still have the passion. I'm eager to see what is coming up for me and what I'll be learning next. I am in no hurry and not going to rush to Grade, when I am not ready to Grade. Some Grade when they are not ready. The Levels are getting harder now and we've been told to take our time, try and perfect the Level, and get it down and then Grade.

Happy Holidays

Kurisumasu Omedetou

Sparring Rocks

Karate was a lot of fun last night. We are in Grading Time at the Dojo. While Sensei is busy Grading Levels the rest of the Class are placed in the hands of Higher Belts. Last night after an intense Warm Up (Thanks Sempai Harvey, love your warm ups). Harvey does great warm ups and he's always cheering us on. After the Warm Ups we were told to put on the Gloves. I of course did a teeny tiny happy dance as putting on Gloves means Sparring (and boy do I love Sparring). We worked on Sparring Techniques. We did hitting, defending, blocking, and kicking. And boy did I have fun and worked up a sweat. I am slowly understanding Sparring and getting the hang of it. I am still a tad afraid and confused by it but as I gain more confidence in it that should all fade. I really like the Sparring Drills, the one on one contact. Sparring is more fun when you have a Sparring Partner.

I find we don't do enough Sparring. Some of my On line Karate Pals tell me that they have Classes 3x's a week, and one Class is devoted to Sparring. I think I will bring this up with Sempai Domenic. Drills, Basics, Kata, and Pair Work is fine and I do not mind doing that. But doing Sparring would be nice too.

We did some cool Drills. Sparring with one hand only, then switching to the other hand. I do find one side works better than the other. Also I find when I Spar I prefer one side over the other. In time I guess the other side will catch up with the other side and it will get easier using the weaker side.

After the Sparring Session we did some awesome cool down and stretching. And boy did that feel good.

I really like the Karate Environment. We encourage eachother. Help eachother. And we have a lot of fun doing it. I really like watching the Higher Belts Spar, they are very good at it. Sempai Domenic is awesome at it.

Still A 6th Kyu

Here I am still a 6th Kyu. I passed everything but the Kata. But around the end of January Sensei is allowing me to try again with the Kata Section. If he's satisfied then I am a 5th Kyu, if he's not then I have to repeat the whole Grading Test.

Just realizing that you can have the best attendance in the world, show up to every Class, be on time for Class, stay late after Class Training, do all the Clinics, go in and do extra Training Sessions on Friday, be totally committed and disciplined to the Art. And having all that still won't save you at Grading Time.

More is expected out of you. What you did in performance wise at White Belt is not acceptable at Green Belt Level. If you are doing all that then a 2nd, 3rd rate preformance is not acceptable. So I will be kicking it up a few notches and proving to Sensei and everyone else that I deserve to advance. But above all I will be proving it to myself.

I was pumped and psyched for the Grading and felt confident enough in everything and then it all fell apart as it got closer and closer to Grading Time. I began to panic and doubt myself. I started to worry about everything. Especially the "Fighting". That was weighing heavily on my mind. I was not there in the Kata, it felt that I was just doing the motions of it.

I have a second shot at the Kata portion of the Grading so I have until the end of January to get it all together.

There is something that I do not understand. There are people in Class who I only see at Grading, they do a few Classes leading up to Grading, then when the Grading is done they barely show up. they're late for Class all the time, and they pass like that.

Maybe that is the key to it all. Only show up to Class a few times before Grading, don't do the extra Training Sessions on Friday, be late to Class, don't show up at all on Saturday, do a few Classes after Grading, and then don't show up again until the next Grading Period comes around, and above all don't stay late after Class and Train. As I see it people are doing it this way and are passing.

While I am doing the complete opposite and I fail a part of my Grading?

So here I am still a 6th Kyu, just sitting on the edge of 5th Kyu.

Call Me Sempai Fran or Fran

Wow changes galore are happening to me. I am doing some Volunteering with the Club, now that I am in Green Belt Land it's something that is required. Which is cool with me. My first duty was taking down all the names of attendees to Tomorrow's Karate Social. Cool. It gave me the chance to learn the names of the White Belts.

And I am now "Sempai Fran". Which is weird. My back was turned and Ava (White Belt) came running up to me calling "Sempai Fran, Sempai Fran". Then it dawned on me that I am Sempai Fran and she was calling for me. Hard getting used to.

Some Higher Belts prefer you call them Sempai, me I am flexible. Call me Sempai, Sempai Fran, or just call me Fran. I will not let it go to my head though. Actually in all honesty to me I am just Fran Wado Ryu Karate Student.

I do believe that all Junior Belts have to address me as Sempai though. Not sure though, I wonder if there is a Sempai Handbook or Rulebook?

Washing The Obi

I get asked by Lower Belts this quite a lot.

"Does the Obi get washed?"

There are several schools of thought on the subject. Some Okinawan schools believe that by washing the belt you wash the spirit of the belt away, this applies to several Japanese schools as well.

Many belts in the west today are made in Asia and are made differently without the added Chemicals to keep the Belts from bleeding their colours therefore washing one of these coloured belts will result in the belt being faded and a whole load of stained laundry.

Therefore, I would suggest not washing the belt for the two reasons stated above, I doubt it will ever get that dirty that it would require washing anyway. People argue that their gear smells though.

Here is what I do. After I train and get home if my Gi is not that dirty I take everything out of my Gear Bag, hang the Gear up and let the air at it, I hang my Belt too, along with the Crop top and T=shirt that I wear under my Gi. And if my Gi is dirty I wash it. I also leave my Gear Bag open.

My opinion is this. When you wash your Obi you are washing away all the Knowledge that you've gained.

T Minus 9 Days And Counting

T Minus 9 days and counting until I Grade for 5th Kyu. All we've been doing lately in Class is Grading Material. Mostly Pair Works. I have that down now and have had it down for a couple weeks now. Think it's time to concentrate less on Pair Works and more on the rest of the Grading. But that is one person's opinion.

Without jinxing myself (not that I am superstitious) I think I will do all right. I hope I do anyway. The only thing is Free Fighting, I am not that comfortable with it yet. Would be a help if we did some of that in Class. I mostly have everything down, Kata needs a touch up. But other than that I think I am good to go.

If I pass great. If I don't then that's okay too. It won't phase me or deter me in anyway. I love Karate, have a passion for it big time. And failing a Grading will not stop me from doing something that I love.

I am though feeling a tad nervous, scared, and anxious. I bet I am not the only one either.

Wish me luck BLOGGER LAND, see you on the other side of 5th. Fingers crossed.