My Japanese sensei when I lived and trained in London said two moves without breathing was the maximum possible. A kata like kanku dai is 60 moves, so you have to breathe. Another sense, 5th Dan, said he learns a kata around breathing, short breath here, long here, fast or slow breath. Then he keeps concentration on that as he repeats the moves of kata learning speed, power, etc but breathing. My 6th Dan Sensei said last night at training that art in karate is do nothing. Three steps with one punch. Only at the very end do we kime. Then relax totally. Instantly. Which sounds so easy but is so hard in practice. Art of do nothing. Relaxed state allows fast movement. Breathing in or out allows relaxed state. Midlevel front snap kick should mean relaxed body with exhale. So many people inhale, hold breath and kick, then exhale. And wonder why they feel slow and out of breath. I was always one second or so begind 5th Dan last night in kihon, because he is relaxed when moving. And that's down to breathing.
The science on this is moving really fast. I think in part it comes from the number of people wanting to engage in physical fitness post pandemic, that and things like cross-fit.
I'm fascinated by idea of instant stillness after kime. The idea of such virulent opposites achieved in a nanosecond. Physiology must come into it. Brain training too I guess. Some PhD candidate somewhere could make a name for themselves. I enjoy training more the less talking their is. It might be chemical, hormones released perhaps.
It is indeed an interesting area. I heard that the Shotokan approach and the Wado approach are quite different, although I have only picked that up from the Wado side. I think the objectives are identical though. It's that use of the word 'kime' that differs.
Neuroscience and the study of the brain are areas that are advancing all the time and the lab boys and girls are very interested in altered states, meditators etc. All I get from it is the human brain is an amazing piece of kit.
In Wado it's the opposite. The tension (focus) happens at the beginning, the rest is follow-through, with the 'kime' being in the whole body. The body IS the kime.
But, as I said the objectives are intended to be the same.
My Japanese sensei when I lived and trained in London said two moves without breathing was the maximum possible. A kata like kanku dai is 60 moves, so you have to breathe. Another sense, 5th Dan, said he learns a kata around breathing, short breath here, long here, fast or slow breath. Then he keeps concentration on that as he repeats the moves of kata learning speed, power, etc but breathing. My 6th Dan Sensei said last night at training that art in karate is do nothing. Three steps with one punch. Only at the very end do we kime. Then relax totally. Instantly. Which sounds so easy but is so hard in practice. Art of do nothing. Relaxed state allows fast movement. Breathing in or out allows relaxed state. Midlevel front snap kick should mean relaxed body with exhale. So many people inhale, hold breath and kick, then exhale. And wonder why they feel slow and out of breath. I was always one second or so begind 5th Dan last night in kihon, because he is relaxed when moving. And that's down to breathing.
The science on this is moving really fast. I think in part it comes from the number of people wanting to engage in physical fitness post pandemic, that and things like cross-fit.
I'm fascinated by idea of instant stillness after kime. The idea of such virulent opposites achieved in a nanosecond. Physiology must come into it. Brain training too I guess. Some PhD candidate somewhere could make a name for themselves. I enjoy training more the less talking their is. It might be chemical, hormones released perhaps.
It is indeed an interesting area. I heard that the Shotokan approach and the Wado approach are quite different, although I have only picked that up from the Wado side. I think the objectives are identical though. It's that use of the word 'kime' that differs.
Neuroscience and the study of the brain are areas that are advancing all the time and the lab boys and girls are very interested in altered states, meditators etc. All I get from it is the human brain is an amazing piece of kit.
Kime to me means instant a punch fully expands you tense body for a millisecond then completely relax. Its incredibly hard to do.
In Wado it's the opposite. The tension (focus) happens at the beginning, the rest is follow-through, with the 'kime' being in the whole body. The body IS the kime.
But, as I said the objectives are intended to be the same.
It's all fun stuff.
A woman at my dojo, 2nd kyu, is wado trained. Her movements seem to be more graceful and circular in style.