|
It seems that the typical kumite stance works really well esp. when you put your hands up to cover your head and ribs. A bladed stance provide less targets for your opponent to hit and is much easier to defend against his strikes.
From this stance, you can counter-punch with fast jabs (oi tsuki) alternating between his head and ribs, or cross punch (gyaku tsuki) his head/chin when your opponent try to left hook you. Of course, you must provide a visible opening (in your right chest/head) to lure in his left hook. Once your opponent launch his left hook, quickly counter with your right cross. Boom! Counter-punched and KOed (hopefully).
Mix it up, mix it up! |
|
Read more...
|
|
|
Last Friday sparring and training was another eye-opener. Having incorporated some western boxing into our training with advance techniques as taught by Rodney King and Mark Hatmaker, we find them especially useful against a typical Shotokan sylist, esp. the hook punch. Called kagi tsuki in Karate, the hook punch is seldom taught in most Karate schools who prefer to focus on straight punches like oi tsuki, choku tsuki and gyaku tsuki.
This blends well with our Kissaki Kai approach of moving 45 degree into the opponent or quarter turn facing the opponent. It'll often open up a gap in the opponent's defense for you to throw in the hook. I need to polish up my hooks on the bags and ensure proper alignment of my elbows when I throw my hooks to generate enough power for a KO and to prevent injuring my elbows.
Next stop, combos and mixing it up! |
|
Read more...
|
|
|
Just realized that I too suffered from typical martial artist delusion of perceived skills vs actual skills. Worse, I'm not as fast or strong as I think I am! Thanks to Vince and his evolution of training approach emphasizing Aliveness, all my "personal myths" are busted. The myth buster: constant sparring against a moving resisting opponent.
Sparring with a fast ex-national Karateka, Alex and a Muay Thai exponent, Imran showed me just how much I need to brush up on my skills and fitness. The good thing is: the more I spar, the more I improve. Add in intense aliveness drills and core strength workout, we'll have a perfect mix of balance training.
nothing beats sparring to develop functional fighting skills. |
|
Read more...
|
|
|
Did some boxing recently and realised that typical Karate head gear with face cage really hampers visibility or peripheral vision: which is a crucial component in any fights, esp. when defending yourself from harm.
I didn't realised this earlier because the typical Karate kumite (traditional Shotokan ways) use mainly linear attacks (many straight punches).
Now western boxing is whole different ballgame. The typical Karate head gear with face cage simply reduce my defense to nil. I couldn't see those hooks and uppercuts coming in fast and furious. Beautiful art, western boxing. Now, let's hope my new head gear will provide much better visibility without sacrificing too much protection. |
|
Read more...
|
|
|
Just realised yesterday I've gained 2kg. This is rather disappointing, and reminds me not to slack in my training, or eat unnecessarily. The Chinese New Year holidays and abundance of food, dinning, tid-bits aren't helping. :-(
Even if I can't train due to my knee injury, I must at least keep up some core strength training. I recalled how weak I felt when I missed training for over 6 months previously. Need to motivate myself to do more core strength workout for my tummy; was too engrossed with my arms, and still is.
This is the time when I think about how important it is to stay fit in order to execute any fighting techniques with success. Strength, speed, stamina, endurance: all inter-related, all important to a Karateka. |
|
Read more...
|
|
|
<< Start < Prev 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 Next > End >>
|
| Results 121 - 125 of 132 |
