Karate Talk

Karate "In The Moment"

When I say that I am going to start doing karate for me again, does that mean that I won't help teach anymore, won't help someone who asks me, won't work with other people or be involved in group activities like team training?

Of course not.

What it means is that I am going to go back to my karate roots.  Whenever you are confused or frustrated, try going back to first principles.

Think back to when you first started training.  It really was all about you!  You watched other people not to criticize, but to see how they were doing it properly so you could try to imitate them.  You got instruction from sensei, and you spent your class time trying to figure out what was going on, and concentrating hard on making your body do the moves which were unfamiliar and sometimes uncomfortable.  You focused on improving, and when you got to see Sensei nod and move on without correcting your back stance, for the first time ever, that was really something to celebrate!  You didn't think ahead much beyond getting through class, the next class, or maybe your next kyu exam.

As karate becomes more natural, we sometimes lose that focus.  If you don't have to concentrate so hard on how to make the stance, the technique, the combination, your mind is free to roam other pathways.  Maybe you start looking at the people on either side of you, in front of you or behind you, and judging their karate.  Maybe you start thinking, "my stances are better than his are", "I'm faster than she is", "he doesn't have good hip rotation", etc., etc.  When you're told to do combinations full speed, maybe you're trying to make sure you can keep up with the guy next to you, instead of concentrating on doing the best technique you can at YOUR full speed.  As you become involved in tournaments, training camps, and other "extras", it's that much more natural to compare yourself to the others around you, critically or otherwise.  The problem is, you sometimes lose your day to day focus in the process.

So what does doing karate "in the moment" mean? 

It means that when you are training, you shouldn't be thinking beyond that training session.  You can't move on to what's coming until you finish what is going on.  So for that hour, hour and a half, two hours, just think about karate.  Concentrate on what's going on in the dojo at that moment.  Concentrate on the combination you are doing, on the kata you are doing, on the kumite and your opponent.  Don't think ahead to the dan test, the tournament, that are coming up.  The only way to prepare for them is to train hard and train well, which means concentrating on your training right now.

It means that when you are training, you should worry about your own training, and not someone else.  So when you are training, concentrate on how well YOU are doing that combination, that kata, that kumite drill -- not on how well someone else is doing it.  Don't worry about their speed or their technique, just worry about yours.  Don't worry about what they might be thinking of you, just do the best you can.

It means that when you are training, you should not be thinking ahead even to the next movement.  When you are doing kata, complete every technique and make it count, don't rush ahead to the next one.  Same with combinations, don't fluff your way past the first move or two in order to finish up faster -- make sure that you do every technique, and do it correctly and completely.  When you are sparring, make sure you do a complete block before you start to throw your counter.  Don't assume that you are doing a technique correctly just because you've been doing it for months or even years -- sometimes, you've been doing it wrong, or not doing it as strongly as you could, for months or even years.

It means when you are doing a technique, don't just think of how it will end, think of how it begins, what it does in the middle, and how it gets to the end.  Make sure that you are doing it properly at all stages, and don't think that the only thing that counts is that you ended up in the right stance doing the right technique.

I have done the last two trainings "in the moment".  The difference was incredible, and it hit on so many levels.  For starters, I had a better attitude toward even going to the dojo.  Instead of going because it was expected of me, I remembered a time when I went for the fun and the challenge, when all I demanded of myself was to try hard and show good spirit, instead of demanding that I live up to a certain standard of skill.  Once I decided to let go of others' expectations from me, I walked into training with the old light-hearted enthusiasm.  I also slowed myself down, not demanding the kind of speed I can am capable of and that I felt was expected of me all the time, but really trying to think about each technique and stance, to make them as strong as possible.  I honestly didn't care if I was going slower than some of the other black belts, and it was so liberating.  I concentrated on what my body was doing, in a way that I haven't in a long time:  are my knees pushed out properly, are my hips tucked under, are my abs tight, are my heels flat, etc., etc.  REALLY thought about it, like you do at yellow belt when you the movement doesn't come naturally and Sensei is telling you how to make it happen.  When Sensei came with some instruction, I didn't tense up because it meant I had screwed up again and set a bad example; instead, I thought about what he was saying and tried to apply it, and instead of being frustrated and defensive, I might have made an improvement.  I left the dojo so very much happier.

There are many analogies that can apply to how this works and why.  The Japanese tea ceremony is one nice analogy, where the point of the ceremony is not so much to make good tea (although of course you hope to!) but just the process itself:  You will only get this ceremony, this moment, once, so it is important to do it beautifully and really appreciate it.

A great karate analogy is what Master Yaguchi emphasizes, which is that the most important thing is to make the technique.  He has said that he expects people to be able to end up in a proper back stance, with their hands in the proper knife hand position.  Anyone can do that.  What matters is how you got there.  How did you make the technique?  Similarly, I think, anyone who keeps training can end up in a tournament, can pass a kyu or dan exam.  But how did you get there?  Karate is not about the end product, it is about making the technique.  Training should be the same.

So to me, training "in the moment" is "making your technique", the technique in this case being the karate itself.  If tournament or testing could be considered the completed technique, then your regular trainings are the process of rotating your hips, pulling your draw arm back, keeping your chin up and your shoulders down, to make that end technique.  When you train "in the moment", you are concentrating on the day to day creation of your karate, on the making of your karate.  Absolve yourself of the responsibility for what will happen a week, a month or a year down the line, and just worry about what you can make happen today.  Let go of what happened last week, last month or last year.

Not only will you build better karate if you keep your focus, but the process is much more enjoyable.

Some Understanding

I had some other posts planned, but instead, I might take a break from the blog.  I'm feeling that I have some understanding trouble, and rather than display ignorance, I wonder if I should take some time and do some thinking, to make sure that my words are right words.

No, I'm not giving up karate or anything like that.  And knowing me, I'll probably change my mind in 2 days and put up another post, and start being all opinionated again.  It's just that right now there are a couple of things I am struggling with, and try though I might, I really can't understand them.  In fact, at this moment in time, I'm having some trouble even accepting them.  So I wonder, what else am I not understanding?  Are there things that I don't even realize I misunderstand, or misinterpret?  When I post up in this blog, am I saying things that are wrong, that are misleading?  Am I mistaken about what is important, what I should be focusing on?

It's unfortunate that this hit me right after I finally had some good trainings, and was feeling really good about my karate for the first time in a long time.  But, that's how it goes, yes?  It's time for the mental aspect of karate to kick in.  It's nice that the physical seems to be coming together at last, at last, and I really hope that I am right about that.  But obviously, some thinking is also required.

Dan Testing, Part I: Before the Test

Preparation for a dan test should start well before the test, as in months ahead of time.  A dan test is a milestone to the martial artist, a test of their abilities, efforts, commitment and understanding.  For most people it is also a nerve-wracking experience, particularly the first time.  Nothing else is quite like the Shodan test in karate.

Preparation for your dan test should include:

1.  TRAIN.  This may seem obvious but there are a surprising number of people who don't do it.  A good rule of thumb is to spend a minimum of 4 dojo sessions each week, and then train on your own as well.  They aren't going to give that rank away to you, you must earn it, and it takes hard work.  Increased training means increased skill and improved fitness and endurance.  It also shows your commitment and understanding.  Don't skip trainings unless you absolutely must (illness, injury), and add trainings, training camps, seminars, tournaments, etc., wherever possible.

2.  LISTEN.  You will be getting a lot of input throughout this process, from your Sensei and your sempais.  Sometimes you will be really grateful for it, when someone tells you something that suddenly makes things start to come together.  Most of the time you will probably just listen and give it a shot the way you would regular instruction.  Sometimes you will find that you are really tired of everyone picking on you, and it will be all you can do to nod and say "osu!"  However, remember that they all want you to do well, and that the advice you are being given is based on their experience and understanding.  If you're really tired of hearing someone say that you need to pull your draw arm back, consider that if 4 different people have told you that, then it's probably something you really need to fix!  And listen to the advice and critique given to other people as well.  Almost always, advice given in class by your Sensei will apply to several people in the class, and not necessarily just the one he is speaking to at that moment.  Use that opportunity to get some free input, and double-check to make sure you're doing the technique properly.

3.  WATCH.  Watch those who outrank you, particularly those that you feel are really skilled martial artists.  See what you feel their real strengths are, and work on trying to improve your own skills in that area.  Also watch those you outrank, because everyone has their strengths and weaknesses.  See what they do particularly well, and try to judge whether or not your own technique measures up.  Look for obvious flaws, especially things that people have been telling you to correct.  You can learn a great deal from just watching!

4.  STUDY.  Yes, study.  There are many things you can study to help you in preparing for your own dan test.  Begin with your kata.  Do you know what it means?  Do you know how many movements it has, and where the kiai points are?  Do you know the bunkai for it?  Move on to other dan tests.  Take every opportunity of watching people take dan exams.  Note down what basics (kihon) combinations they are required to perform, and practice them.  Note down what second kata they are given.  Get familiar with the whole process, what order people are called, what is required first, etc.  When it's your turn, you'll have at least an idea of what to expect.

5.  CONFIDENCE, NOT ARROGANCE.  They aren't the same thing, and it's an important distinction.  Confidence comes from training hard, increasing your understanding, and feeling your karate improve.  Arrogance means you think you already deserve the rank.  Arrogance means you will dismiss the advice in this blog posting, along with most of the other advice that you are given, because you think you know better.  As soon as you adopt that attitude, you will stop improving in the martial arts.  Senseis can smell this a mile away, and they do not reward you for it.  Remember that the top senseis themselves value the time when they can train under an instructor and receive input, rather than relying on self-training all the time.

6.  "I'LL TRY", NOT "I CAN'T".  Don't limit yourself in terms of what you can accomplish.  This applies across a myriad of aspects of karate, from flexibility to strength to speed to timing.  As soon as you change "I can't" to "I'll try", then you've already started to improve.

7.  KEEP YOUR PERSPECTIVE.  As your dan test approaches, especially in the weeks immediately before, it should become one of your highest priorities.  If you don't take it that seriously, you won't put in the time and commitment required to train the way you should, and you won't be mentally focused.  Be careful not to get injured, be careful to eat right and get enough rest so that you are as healthy as possible.  However, don't take that too far.  Don't use it as an excuse to shirk other responsibilities, and don't make the dan test so important that nothing else matters.  Remember that this is just one step in your martial arts career.  You will pass, or you will not pass.  That's just how it goes.  All you can do is prepare yourself the best you can, and hope for the best.

When Karate Goes Personal

Anyone who has trained in martial arts, in a good dojo, can attest that there are great friendships to be made.  You share a unique bond with your fellow karate-ka which is composed of shared endeavor, shared understanding of a specific small world, and hopefully, shared growth on many levels.  Many times, these friendships will extend outside of the dojo and become part of your personal life as well.  Equally, many of us karate-ka will bring interested friends or partners into our dojo world, hoping to share this aspect of our lives with them.  When it works out, it adds another layer to your relationship.

So what happens when something goes wrong in one world?  How do you handle it in the other world?  For example, if something happens in the dojo that upsets you with a personal friend, can you keep yourself from taking it outside the dojo and being resentful?  And if something happens in your personal life, can you keep it out of the dojo?  What happens when you can't, and whose responsibility (if anyone's) is it to try to smooth things over?

Ideally, yes -- and you should.  However, in practice, it can be very hard to pull off.  I can come up with several examples of this.  Once during a sparring drill, a man accidentally popped with girlfriend in the nose and she got a nosebleed.  As she glared at him through streaming eyes, Kleenex to her nose, he had no idea how to react.  It was an honest accident, she'd kind of walked into his punch, but no one likes to get hit, and everyone likes to think your significant other will somehow manage to avoid hurting you!  The Sensei broke the tension by looking at the boyfriend, laughing, and saying, "man, it sucks to be you!"  We all ended up laughing and things were fine.

Another time, there was a conflict between two women who had met in the dojo, become friends in real life, then started to have a falling out in real life.  One woman tried very hard to ignore that and train as usual.  The other woman took it to the dojo.  She talked to other members about how hurt/angry she was, she talked to the sensei and sempai about it.  She painted a very convincing portrait of the injured innocent, and gained a great deal of sympathy -- to the point where some of the other people went to her former friend and talked to her about "being nicer".  The other woman became increasingly uncomfortable, but equally unwilling to resort to the same tactics, or to bring something personal into the dojo.  She stoically held her ground through a cold freeze that lasted several months.  Eventually, the woman who had been complaining left karate, while the quieter woman remained in the dojo and gained the overall respect of most members by her handling of a very difficult situation.  In this case, people trying to come in between and help actually made things much worse.

One of the hardest personal/karate issues is a couple that trained together and gets divorced.  One woman who used to train with her whole family took 3 years off after her divorce.  Not only was she very busy trying to build a new life, but the memories were probably pretty hard for awhile.  She is back now, with her kids.  Her husband is not, and probably won't ever come back.  Usually it seems to work out that way -- one stays (or returns), the other leaves.  Sometimes, one or both will go to a new dojo, with new acquaintances and no painful memories, and no risk of running into their former spouse.  In order to preserve a good dojo atmosphere, it's necessary to be very careful not to get in the middle or take sides.  Of course, it could be argued that this is a good policy for your personal life as well, unless there are some serious circumstances that warrant such a thing.

In the dojo, it is the responsibility of the senseis and sempais to make sure that the training atmosphere is good, and that personal conflicts are not allowed to affect the smooth running of the dojo or to interfere with the training of others.  Although it would depend on the circumstances, in most cases it would seem best if they refused to get in the middle, forbade others from doing so, and advised the people involved that if they can't keep their personal strife out of the dojo, then perhaps they need to take some time off of training.  In the end, a personal conflict carried over to the dojo not only interferes with the other students' ability to train, and thus is very disrespectful to them, but it is also highly disrespectful to the sensei.  If you can't control it, then stay away until you can.

In terms of your personal life, it's obviously your personal responsibility to make sure that you don't take dojo incidents out into the "real world", or to handle them responsibly if you do.  I've had people I really hated to train with, that I felt were disrespectful to me and to others, who were arrogant or careless or outright dangerous.  Some of them have wished to get together outside the dojo, and I have always politely avoided doing so.  I had no interest in being "friends" with these people, as I felt that there dojo behavior reflected certain personality traits that I didn't care to deal with in a friend.  Other times the conflicts have come with people I truly am friends with, and have necessitated a few difficult talks one on one, to discuss issues that can no longer be ignored.

It all comes down, in the end, to the dojo kun.  Respect your karate, respect your personal relationships, and give the best of yourself to each -- AND allow others to do the same.