Advanced Applications from Kihon

In the attached video, I combine two basic karate technique in a manner markedly different from the traditional. You may have seen chudan gyaku zuki used to attack the assailant's elbow in a prior article and video.  Here we expand on that.

The arm bar is used to break down the opponent's structure, rendering him in a vulnerable position- weight over the toes, head and shoulders down. With my opponent in a disadvantageous position, I am able to snake my arm below my opponent's and grip the back of his neck. Take note that in the video, I do not wind my opponent's arm to expose the crook of his elbow. This was done to keep my partner's shoulder intact and avoid a certain rotator cuff tear.

It may occur to some of you that this application of enkei gyaku zuki is similar to that of manji uke- arm bar and shoulder lock. I would encourage that kind of thinking. Practice along this line and you are well on your way to making yours a better karate.

towards a better karate

I am writing for a small audience of karate practitioners who believe their karate could be improved. If you see the rise of Mixed Martial Arts and begin to doubt your karate training, this blog is for you. If you have heard of hidden applications in kata, this blog is for you. If you are a practitioner of other martial arts like Judo, Aikido, or Tai Chi, and still hanker for more, this blog is for you. If you think kata sucks, this blog is for you. I fit the above profile and these are my thoughts on making a better karate.

The three K's
Traditional Karate may be said to be incomplete without it's three main components:kumite (sparring); kihon (basics); kata (forms). Kata is the DNA of karate. Like genes, kata give evidence of karate's origins, and also its potential. A better understanding of kata will help us determine where our karate may have gone wrong and how we might fix it. Naturally, any change in our understanding of kata will dramatically change our practice of kihon and kumite.

In the posts to follow I will explain how I interpret kata and make it integral to my karate training. For now, I will leave you with the thought that drives my obsession: Kata reveal that Karate is the original Mixed Martial Art.