Correct knife attack

Like most beginners, you don't know how to attack.

Test for Purple Belt 2nd Stripe

Renshi Bennati tested me for the second stripe on the purple belt tonight. I need to work on maintaining a vertical center line.

Turns out the "big drop" in the kata is more a goshi as opposed to a katsugi.

Test for Purple Belt 1st Stripe

Renshi Bennati tested me for the first stripe on the purple belt tonight. We did the exam after Mr. Coke's sparring half of his exam for Sankyu. I felt better prepared with this kata than I have with any other.

Open vs Closed Stance

I tend to use an "opened" stance because I do jujitsu and use both hands and knees to enter in on an opponent. Last night one of the black belts in Karate spoke about getting a sparring partner to open up their stance so that you have more options to attack.

A closed stance is turning one side toward the partner so that they don't have an open shot to your midline.

Work on ways to use your opponent to open up. As they open the door draft of the energy and attack.

Another black belt suggested I jump to the side and then do my mae gari attacks. This will cause uki to move and limit their options for a second.

Bruce Lee Quotes

"Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless-like water. Now you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup, you put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle, you put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend."

"All fixed set patterns are incapable of adaptability or pliability. The truth is outside of all fixed patterns."

"A wise man can learn more from a foolish question than a fool can learn from a wise answer."

More quotes at ThinkExist.com.

Fighting Kata

Tonight Sensei Bennati talked about Fighting Kata at the end of class. This was a new concept to me.

Normally I do what he terms Practice Kata, slow deliberate with attention to stance and details. But Fighting Kata is the other extreme; fast powerful as though you are in combat.

The mind must be in the moment, every strike, every kick, every step has purpose and is capable of ending the fight. One must not dwell on the moves already executed or think about what is coming up in the Kata. One must remain present without lingering mind.

Test for Yonkyu

Master Dave Joslin tested me on Naihanchi Kata tonight, for my purple belt. I am now a Yonkyu. Next step is Sankyu/brown.

As I learn finer and finer points about Isshinryu Karate they get applied back to the katas learned earlier and become new again.

1. Move foot
2. Catch
3. Step / set frame
   
4. Attack
5. Remain in Karate (zanshin)