Speed, Speed, Speed…
Power that is instantaneous and formidable!

In a decisive technique, there is a power that is instantaneous and formidable. The basic techniques of Karate are influenced to a very great extent by speed. It may be a bit of an exaggeration to that in training in techniques, speed is first in importance and second in importance, but it is no exaggeration to say that the objective if basic training is maximizing speed.

Since the body is organized in thee basic parts, power comes from increasing speed in all of them. If the muscles involved are contracted as fast as possible, then the power that reaches the hand in punching, in order to take advantage of the pairing of forces that comes from withdrawing the other arm, it must be with drawn as fast as possible.

Speed is dependant, for one thing, on muscle control. When certain muscles contract, other muscles expand. In punching, for example, the triceps expand while the biceps strong contract. If proper coordination between the expansion and contraction is lacking, then the movement of the arm will not be smooth and an effective punching technique is not possible.

Beginners have a tendency to use unnecessary muscles. As a student, you must accept guidance and, according to your training, learn to control your muscles.

Do You Hit Things?
As karate is primarily a striking art, it is important to hit things like a punch bag, focus pad, kick shield and makiwara, training. One objective of a new and experienced karateka, is to encourage them to hit fast and hard.

Not only is this an essential part of a striking art, such as karate, it's also good fun!

A striking bag can be used to practice ground striking. It can be punched, kicked, kneed and elbowed. Used correctly it can improve the power of your striking and gives a great cardio workout as well, but if used improperly it can cause injuries. Make sure you use proper fists that are tight so you don't hurt your hands.

Avoiding bad practice
Often when people train on a bag their proper technique goes out the window. Feet come off the ground, the body is badly aligned, they wind up their strikes like a baseball pitcher. Don't exaggerate your movements and keep your techniques correct. Apart from the risk of injuries, your practising of these bad techniques will result in incorrect 'muscle memory' and so when you use your techniques against a real opponent, you will leave yourself open to counter attack.

Telegraphing of your techniques
Telegraphing means you make obvious preparations to throw a technique, cocking your fist back before throwing a punch is a good example. As the bag doesn't fight back people often forget the importance of being able to strike your opponent without signalling your intention to do so.

THE DOJO KUN

Should be spoken with pride!

The purpose of the Dojo Kun is to remind all of the students in the dojo, regardless of their rank, that the physical, mental, and overall growth that they enjoy as a by product of their karate training, must also extend beyond the dojo's walls.

SEEK PERFECTION OF CHARACTER
BE FAITHFUL
ENDEAVOUR
RESPECT OTHERS
REFRAIN FROM VIOLENT BEHAVIOUR

Character
This means that the art of karate is more than just physical. All beginners, especially the young, should be taught the importance of character building through discipline and rigorous training. For the beginner, the character building process begins with perfecting techniques through repetition. The spirit to fight will be achieved as one gains more confidence through development of stronger techniques. Train to bring out the spirit, not only to fight but to overcome personal problems especially in times of sickness, domestic crisis or business problems. It is a long path to develop these values but once the concept is understood and experienced it will provide a lifetime benefit of inner strength and peace.

What do you mean a good foundation?

When you were a baby there were certain milestones that you had to achieve in order to progress along the road in life. You had to crawl before you stood, stand before you walked, and walk before you ran. Karate is a lot like that.

Like a building you need a good foundation or you will topple to the ground. All right go ahead and ask what do you mean a good foundation. For those wondering what a building’s foundation and Karate stances have in common, it is balance. Balance is needed for everything from walking, to executing a throw even throwing an effective punch.

The ways that we form a good foundation are our stances.

One of the first things any student learns when they walk on the dojo floor is how to stand. It is the basis of all Martial Arts and probably one of the most important lessons a student will ever learn. And it is one of the aspects of training that is most overlooked by beginning students.

When we refer to stance, we're talking about a few concepts:

• Where the feet are positioned
• How far apart are your legs
• What is the weight distribution between your two sides

As a Martial Arts student, stance defines your balance and root. Too often in classes, students first focus on the hands. What is that technique the sensei is doing? Did he just punch with the fist down or up?

What needs to be focused on instead... is what are the sensei's feet doing?

In principle, even if a technique (a punch or strike) is delivered wrong, if the stance is solid it will be very difficult for an opponent to dislodge and gain advantage. Once an opponent is off balance, it is easy to take that person to the ground, toss them around, and have control of the situation

Longer, lower, get down, get a good foundation, make your stance strong!

Speed and Power...
why train at that level?

Be "Cobra Like" in your attacks!

Speed and power are extremely important if your goal is to end a fight quickly. One goal of the warrior is to learn to end the fight with a single blow! That's exactly where speed and power come in! Basically the more you practice your particular techniques, the more your nervous system becomes familiar and you will naturally get faster.

When you train at home, it's a really good idea to use mirrors because you can self-coach, so to say, and strip away wasted movements as well as to learn to utilize power centers (like the hips and legs). Very occassionally, we will train using video tape of your kata and basics. Then, you will see how much power you use and how good your stance and techniques are. Mirrors and video tape are only a snap shot of where you're at in your training. What is important is regular attendance, hard training, and improving difficult moves, or techniques in the dojo and at home.

As an example of speed and power training, you can immediately make your punch twice as powerful by springing off the slightly bent legs when you execute. BUT DON'T SLIDE... SPRING OFF YOUR BACK LEG, STAY ROOTED AND SOLID IN YOUR STANCE. Think of your body like a coiled up snake about to strike!

Sounds simple... but when you start thinking you are fast... you will actually start moving faster!

Get over any thought limitations you may have thinking you're slow. Keep the thought of speed on the forefront of your mind.

As you train at the dojo, to do those skills you wish to be faster and stronger at, make a conscious effort to do them with your best speed and power efforts all the time! Don't cheat yourself, by "dogging" it.... train hard for the hour you're at the dojo and improve at home on your own.

Time yourself. Count down how many strikes, front kicks or roundhouse kicks you can land on a target or heavy bag in a 10 second period. Seek to improve your numbers every session when you train at home.1965 JKA-USA(AAKF) Championships. Kenneth Funakoshi. Hawaii (left) meets James Yabe.JKA (center), 1962, 1963 and 1964 AAKF Grand Champion, in the semi-finals match. Funakoshi won the match with two mae geri's. Referee is Sensei Teruyuki Okazaki (right), )KA Chief Instructor for lTKF.