Training equipment - makiwara and taketaba

I have been meaning to install a makiwara for quite a while now and with Eugene's help we made and installed one just over a week ago. Its a pretty simple piece of kit (2 planks of springy wood, an old cotton obi and some tape) but essential to traditional karate practice.

Makiwara practice undoubtedly helps condition and harden the hands but actually correct practice helps focus power through the whole body to coordinate the strike and so trains the ability to focus power accurately (kime in Japanese).

The base is buried about 2 feet deep to give sufficient stability. In the past when I made a makiwara for the back garden at our house in the UK I concreted in the base but found that actually the concrete crumbled and broke up after some time and repeated use. So this time its just buried firmly and we will see how that lasts. The striking pad is made form an old karate belt wrapped flat around the makiwara at chest height and secured with strong tape. Simple but works well and is not in fact too soft as it quickly compacts with use.

And thanks to the generosity of a neighbour I have harvested a huge bundle of fresh cut bamboo canes (it grows everywhere in Okinawa and quickly too) which inspired us to make a taketaba (which simply means 'a bundle of canes' in Japanese) which is used particularly by Goju-ryu karate practitioners to strengthen the nukite, or spearhand strike. I have never used this piece of kit before so this is new but immediately I can see the benefits. Not only does it toughen up and strengthen the fingers but also improves the accuracy of the spearhand strike as you naturally aim to strike cleanly between the canes and ever deeper through the cane bundle.

Next on the list of traditional training kit to make and try out - chishi . Easy enough to make and it will be interesting to see how closely the traditional chishi exercises overlap with the sledge hammer exercises we have been doing in our conditioning sessions.

Build update

I just realised how long it has been since I last posted an update on the dojo build. My only excuse is simply that there's been a lot going on over the past couple of months and doesn't time fly! So how is the dojo coming along I hear you ask? Well we have been training regularly in jujitsu and goshinjitsu at the Budokan in Naha for several months now and have a good core group attending regularly. I'm very happy with the effort and progress the guys are making and they obviously enjoy the sessions. There's a lot, lot more I want to do to explore, learn and teach but that's a whole other very long conversation. However turning to the dojo construction project at my house things have slowed down considerably due to lack of time and money. The quotes to get a contractor in to do the build were just too expensive so its back to the self build option. But the process of scouting around for quotes and meeting various people in the local building trade here has given me a few good contacts. I have been asking these guys to keep an eye out for excess or recycled building materials so I can keep costs down to a minimum. So as batches of materials become available I will nab them on the cheap and build bit by bit as it becomes possible. So how long until the dojo is built? It could be a while but in a way I quite like the idea of that, building it bit by bit, by hand. Both English and Japanese languages share the sentiment of the value of 'putting your heart into something' (in Japanese kokoro komette tsukuru) to produce something special. I would like to feel I had done that with my dojo.

Training and Goshinjitsu practice principles

New post on my Training blog:
http://shinkijukutraining.blogspot.com/2010/04/training-and-goshinjitsu-practice.html
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The seasons march on and the cherry blossom has appeared

 

Happy days - the cherry blossom has started to come out here in the garden below the dojo. Okinawa, being the mildest region in Japan, always sees the blossom earliest and this year its right on cue, if not a little early. Its lovely and when the seven cherry trees in the garden are in full bloom it will be a wonderful sight and we are going to have a steady stream of friends and family popping round to enjoy it. But I'm also reminded of the famously fleeting nature of cherry blossom, it really doesn't last very long at all, and time is marching on. I have had a couple of quotes in since my last post, one for timber frame, the other for steel frame, and frankly they are both way above my budget. So its time to rethink the design a little bit and ask myself what I really need and want to achieve, as well as get creative and look for ways to either find cheaper alternative partners or drive the prices down. I think I can negotiate down the quotes I have received somewhat but its hard to know the margins and levers in this local market so I'm reaching out to new friends and contacts here for help and advice.

The good news is that I have 20 straw tatami mats arriving next week. This adds to the 10 or so I already have put aside from the house renovation. One of the guys at the karate club is a tatami maker and he has very kindly offered to help by bringing around old tatami mats collected from clients when they refurbish their homes. My plan is to try out a double layer dojo floor with old thick straw tatami mats as the base secured in a frame with 20mm EVA jigsaw mats on top. Usually on a concrete floor you would want 40mm EVA mats to have a good protective cushion for breakfalling but the prices out here are astronomical so going for 20mm will save me a lot of money. I'll test out the combination at some point next week so lets hope it does the job!

Back to thoughts on slimmed down redesign of the dojo. What do I need? Ideally all I really need to do is make the space rain and typhoon proof. If I can't achieve that then all the mats will need to come up every time it rains which is going to be at the very least a pain in the neck (but would be a good workout!). So what if I go for a design that requires a sturdy frame and permanent roof and some side panels but leave more open spaces that can be covered by waterproofed heavy bamboo roll blinds? This will bring down the material costs quite a bit. I can also cut costs by doing as much of the work myself as possible - so the north porch and bridge for instance - I hope Eugene is good with DIY!

Its a new year - time to get cracking!

Things have been on hold on the dojo construction over New Year as we settled into our new home and enjoyed a steady stream of friends and family visitors. But that has also worked out well as I've made a friend who is in the building trade here and very keen to help out with getting the dojo up and running, and another friend who is a carpenter by trade although he works as an english teacher here. And I've had some fun tracking down bits and pieces of training kit including some alternative stuff such as tractor tyres, sledge hammers, ropes, sledges and sand bags as well as some good old fashioned weights and barbell.
My new builder friend is very kindly taking me to a steel frame fabrication company this week to get some quotes so if the price is right this might be the way we go. There are some advantages over a timber frame in terms of strength and quick assembly time (they prefabricate it offsite) but I still prefer a wood frame from an aesthetic perspective so the final decision is yet to come but I can't hang on much longer. At the very least I hope to get the hanging brackets made up for the heavy bags by these guys we will see on Thursday. Fingers crossed!

Job done!

Victory!! - the offending concrete pillar is no more. And what's more I managed to remove it without sending cracks down into the rest of the house (phew!). So major step 1 in prepping the dojo space is done and just in time as we will move into the house this weekend. Finally we get into our own house and home:).

The open mat space in the dojo is going to be at least 6 x 7 metres which should be plenty of room to practice those 'big' sacrifice throws we all love, not to mention weapons work with the 6ft bo staff. I can't wait to get this built!

Getting back to the saga of the 3 day battle with the concrete pillar for just a moment, I was reminded of another principle of combat when the pillar finally fell. I had attacked the pillar systematically, knowing that just pounding it with the hammer randomly would never get me anywhere (well not for a very very long time anyway). So I worked around the base of it, chipping away its support piece by piece, chopping out the steel bars and then finally it cracked at the base and fell over under its own weight. A perfect example of 'kuzushi' - which in martial arts terms describes the unbalancing of an opponent through the process of putting them in a position where their stability and ability to recover balance is destroyed.  The noun comes from the verb kuzusu meaning to level, pull down or demolish.

Without well executed kuzushi, attempting to throw an opponent ,especially one who is bigger than you or resisting the throw, becomes extremely difficult and usually requires sheer brute strength to pull off. Kuzushi can be achieved a number of different ways (positioning, using the opponents momentum against them, by striking or even feinting or distracting the opponent) and I find an active awareness of 'kuzushi' is equally essential in both karate and jujitsu training. Good 'kuzushi' enables even an opponent who seems to made of concrete to be beaten with ease!

View from the dojo

Thought I would share with you the view looking south from the dojo and the house. Its green and pleasant and quite quiet here towards the top of the hillside which really makes it a pleasure to be here. I really look forward to sharing it with family and friends in the future.

Immovable object vs irresistable force - day 2

After several hours of work I now have what I can best describe as a concrete and steel spider sculpture. Having stripped out the 12 internal bars, removing 4 completely I'm down to the core concrete which is only about 50cms thick so that should be a breeze! (not). While working away at this task I have been thinking about the Japanese term 'nintai' which means endurance or perseverance.

Traditional Japanese martial arts often refer to 'nintai' as a very worthy value and essential to cultivate as a martial artist and improved human being. And the character 'nin' is also a very beautiful, balanced character containing the characters for sword and heart within it. I have decided the character 'nin' will be prominent in my dojo to remind me daily of lifelong 'nintai' as well as the tasks involved in building this place.

Immovable object vs. irresistable force

Step one in the dojo build: Remove the re-enforced concrete pillar from the future mat space. This lump of concrete and steel has been here immovable for over 30 years since the house was first built and is fact the top of one of the major support pillars for the whole building. It hasn't visibly weathered in any way at all (good news for the house) and I suspect will be an absolute bitch to take the top off. My tools - angle grinder, trusty sledge hammer and a relentless inability to accept defeat!

The tricky part is that I absolutely do not want to crack this pillar below the level of this floor for obvious reasons. So getting this wrong could put a rather serious dent in all the very expensive renovation work which has been going on the in the house below. I can't just smash this thing with abandon. This needs somewhat of a surgical approach albeit applied with a sledge hammer!...

...3 hours in and I have confirmed 2 things I suspected. One - this thing is packed with 20mm steel bars, no wonder the house has stood up to 30 years of Okinawan typhoons and tropical rainstorms so robustly. And two - this job is going to take 2 or 3 days and plenty of blisters and plasters!

well at least the weather is fine and I'm not stuck behind a desk;)

Dojo fit out and kit list

I'm starting this list so that we (you know who you are:) can work up a good comprehensive but affordable (!) kit list for the dojo. We are going to train in jujitsu and karate for real life self defence and competitive situations as well as modern and traditional weapons, and combat fitness so I need to fit out the dojo to best support that. Please add comments to this post and I'll edit and add in items to the list as we decide them.

OK, for starters, some obvious stuff:
Judo mats - approx 6m x 7m space - 40mm interlocking EVA foam mats
Heavy punch/kick bag
Makiwara
Weapons rack
Kick/punch pads (x4)
Kettlebells (various sizes)
Barbell(s)
Power bands (need to fix anchor points in the dojo too)
Pull up bar(s)
Big sand bag(s)
Boxing gloves (4 pairs)
MMA gloves (4 pairs)
TRX trainer(s) - never tried this but looks excellent for core strength training and flexibility so on the list for now

Wood, steel, stone - choices, choices...

Having put together my initial design based on a timber frame with block walls I have had a few thoughts about redesign myself and been given a few pointers from some local experts that now have me in a bit of a quandary. I've decided to go for smaller, slightly higher horizontal windows on the basis of safety, as the dojo is about 3 floors up, and reducing unnecessary costs where I can. So that will mean a bit more blockwork than before. I'm also thinking about incorporating in some skylights if possible to let more natural light in. But the big question is whether a timber frame will be typhoon proof. My builder says he would use a steel frame due to the length of the beams. He definitely knows his stuff when it comes to construction but I also know that he will often present his preferred option (based on time, cost, hassle, the skills available, etc) as the only option. So do I go with my gut instinct which is to build with timber, a natural beautiful material that I can work with easily, or the steel frame option?? I have to decide this before anything can move forward...

cool xray view of dojo design

The space and the first design

The space...

Its about 12 x 7 metres in total

And my current design (courtesy of Google Sketchup - what a great free tool! thanks Google) looks like this from the road end (north west corner)

And the back view from the south west corner

The design is timber frame based with a simple corrugated steel roof. Red Okinawan tiles look great and would add a very traditional look but require a much steeper pitch to the roof so unfortunately I don't think thats an option as all the power, phone and cable lines come into the house from the west side (the side the dojo is on) just above the existing roof. I will post the 3D design online soon too.

Getting started - welcome!

Its been a long held dream of mine to move to Okinawa, the birthplace of karate (and my wife), to live a life more balanced between family, training and work (and roughly in that order of priority). Finally, after 10 years together in the UK, we decided to make the move and came out to Okinawa to live permanently at the end of August 09'. Having been very fortunate to have a fantastic place to live with a potential space for an attached home dojo I have decided to get stuck in and build it as soon as possible. A dojo is more than just a training space as many martial artists will know very well. Nagamine Shoshin, the founder of Matsubayashi-ryu karate in Okinawa wrote - 'The dojo is the place where courage is fostered and superior human nature is bred through the ecstasy of sweating in hard work. It is the sacred place where the human spirit is polished.' I like that. But the first challenge is building the dojo, which I will document over the next few weeks. I want to build a training hall that both fits purpose and a basic simple esthetic. A space that can evolve and be modified as the training needs evolve. And I've never attempted a build project on this scale before. So its going to be fun!!!