A Big Change

After twenty-five years of smoking 1.5 packs of cigarettes per day, nearly every single day, I've managed to quit smoking, thanks to Chantix. (Champix, for those of you outside of the United States.) I've been free for two whole weeks, and what's more, I feel like a major shift has taken place inside of me, with regards to smoking and how I view it in my mind. I took the Chantix for a total of 18 days, and I quit taking it, three days ago.

First things first, though:

I've been free of that horrible addiction for 13 days, 15 hours.

I've NOT smoked 409 cigarettes. (That just blows my mind!)

I've saved $110.00.

My lungs are clearing up and cleaning themselves out. My breath, clothes, and hands don't stink like cigarettes, and I can smell foods, rain, soap, and a myriad of other things. Food and coffee taste better, and I don't get nearly so winded so quickly. My pulse rate is lower, and I'm not constantly feeling the urge to go out and have a cigarette.

Somewhere along the way, I realized that cigarettes are just nothing but poison. I was watching a video on YouTube, where the host put a glass of water in front of a smoker and said, "This is a glass of bleach. How deep is your urge to pick it up and take a sip?" The smoker replied that he no urge to do such a thing, and said, "It'll kill me!" And then the metaphorical light bulb kind of lit up over his head. ;-)

I really don't intend this to become a smoking cessation blog, but it really is a major component of my overall training, and getting in better shape is what has really driven this quit. The Chantix has made me develop acne, so I've taken myself off of it, but I suspect that there's no longer any need for it. I'm free!! :-))

Wansu and Chinto Kata, and other stuff

Got the Wansu kata memorized, and have started work on the Chinto kata. Workouts are still going well. Last night was my back workout: Lat pulldowns, seated row, shrugs, deadlifts, and triceps pushdowns, each exercise done for three sets to muscle failure in each set, around 6-10 reps, without sacrificing attention to form. Today, my traps are pleasantly sore.

I am now in Week 7 of my workout regimen. I'm still growing like crazy, and at the same time, getting RIPPED!! My clothes are all fitting differently and I feel GREAT!!

Monday night, in karate, we pulled out all of the Bobs and punching bags/stations, and went freestyle for one minute at each station. I went to throw a right front snap-kick and jammed my big toe. A few minutes later, on a different bag, I did it again... Holy crap, that hurt!! It's been tender and swollen, but I don't think it's broken. I still have good range of motion with it, and it doesn't hurt to bear weight, so I think it'll heal up on its own.

On Saturdays, before our freestyle class, we've been going through Hock Hoccheim's Close Combat drills, and he's going to be holding a seminar at our dojo on the last weekend of this month. I'm looking forward to that. Those of us who are in this first group/class, will be the instructors for future classes, so we're being worked hard and we're training hard. The classes cover hand, knife, stick, and gun tactics, and borrow tactics from martial arts, law enforcement, and elite military combat training. (SF and SEALs, mainly)

All in all, I'm very satisfied with my progress in all three areas. I'm doing a lot of training at home in addition to my weight training, and it's starting to pay off in my balance, flexibility, and speed.

What an amazing book....

I'm currently reading this book, and absolutely loving it. This man didn't lift weights seriously, until he was in his mid-thirties. He's 61-years old, and looks downright amazing.... Below, I've included a YouTube video of him talking about different things.. It's definitely worth a look.

If you...

If you are going to show up and give your usual lackluster, halfhearted performance;

If you are not going to be worthy of the belt that you wear around your waist;

If you are going to just slop your way through every technique and kata, the way you've done, day after week, after month, after year;

If you really just don't want to be in class, and you're soooo bored that you can't even bother to act like you give a damn;

STAY HOME!!! QUIT!!! Don't let the door hit ya' where the good Lord split ya'! GET OUT!!!

You drag the entire class down, provide a crap example of what a higher belt-holder is supposed to be, and you make our whole class look bad.

GO. AWAY. No one wants to look at your face and read how very very bored you are. No one wants to look at your sloppy, half-assed techniques. No one wants to talk to you, since you never speak above a mumble, anyway.
GET OUT!!!

Last night's class! FUN!

Last night's class was great! After our 30-40 minutes of calisthenics and stretching, we pulled out the dummies and went through one minute practice rounds, where we just threw punches and kicks, chops, elbows, and knees... After that, Sensei pulled out a staff with thick, soft padding on the end. One at a time, we would lie down, and he swing the staff down, trying to swat us with it. We were to roll over and over, keeping our hands up, and then get to our feet while protecting ourselves.

The first time, I did okay... I got thumped in the head, at the very end. The second time, though! The second time, I was fast! Rolling over and over, avoiding every swat of the staff, and then I found myself pinned by the base of one of the dummies, so I flipped my legs over in a backwards somersault, since I couldn't roll my body as a unit anymore. When I flipped my legs over, I used the momentum to carry me to my feet and came up with my arms raised and crossed overhead in a block, just as Sensei brought the staff down for another strike. It was perfect. The staff ended up between my crossed wrists.

It was fast, fluid, and it just worked out perfectly. I love it when that happens! :-))) It's also nice to know that my speed and reflexes haven't degenerated that much, compared to when I was in my twenties.

Miscellaneous Updates

I ordered a Shureido gi, a few weeks ago. I absolutely love it. The jacket is actually long enough, and the crotch-to-waist measurement of the pants is short enough that I don't have to constantly pull up on the legs of the gi, whenever I raise a foot, or go to squat down. Very very nice, and well worth the money. I'd like to actually have one more, and may buy another, in a few months.

The Wansu kata is coming along nicely, but I still have a lot of work left to do. Of course, after the Wansu, it's time to begin working on the Chinto kata, which is another long and complex kata, but I'm less daunted, now that I've got the Naihanchin kata down, and I've got approximately one-third of the Wansu memorized.

Workouts are still going strong, with unflagging intensity. I took the weekend off, but this morning, walked and jogged a mile. This afternoon is my day to work my back. Lat pulldowns, seated row, shrugs, deadlifts, and triceps pushdowns. I'm loving the way I'm starting to look and feel!

Funny thing about working out, though: There are about 50 different kinds of protein powders and tons of different supplements out there. Each supplement makes grandiose claims to be the latest, greatest thing, and promises to do everything except balance your checkbook and make you a millionaire. (I think I just pulled a muscle, rolling my eyes...) The only thing most of them are good for, is ensuring that the user has the most expensive urine in town. Hahaha...

I've narrowed it down to three supplements: A basic protein powder, a multivitamin, and fish oil capsules. That's it. That's all. The fish oil capsules supply the much-needed Omega-3s that most people don't get through their diets. (Unless they are real fish aficionados, which I am definitely not!)

80% of how you look and feel, is based on two things: Your fork and knife. The remaining 20% comes from what you do in the gym.

Check this guy out:

Found a good video of the Wansu kata

The same uploader has good videos of the Chinto kata, as well. What a relief! I've searched and searched for a good instructional video on both of these kata. It's a little less daunting...The sound quality for this video really stinks, and the narration is out of sync with the movements, but this video coupled with this PDF, really makes it more accessible.

Sparred again, tonight! HOOAH!!!!

We had a big class, tonight! Thirteen people showed up, and our combined heat managed to raise the temperature of the dojo from 71F to 76F, by the time we were finished with our half hour of calisthenics. We did some medicine ball drills -- A stance drill, and then a speed drill.

After that, we had sparring. I was called out for the first match, and called on to spar against the black belt that beat me so badly, the last time we sparred. I thought, Oh boy... Here we go...

We bowed to Sensei, bowed to each other, touched gloves, and then went for a single round. Just before hajime, I got into a Seiuchin (horse) stance, turned sideways to him. I felt cool, loose, and relaxed. I waited for him to throw the first shot and really focused on my defense. My plan was to stay either all the way out, or get inside and bang to the body, since I'm 5'10" and he's 6'2" or 3" and has greater reach, power, and speed than I do.

My biggest mistakes, the first time we sparred and I got blitzed: I let my hands fall to chest level, I didn't move laterally very much, and I started out in a Seisan stance, more or less squared up to him. Bad mistakes, all of them...

This time, I was sideways to him, tried to circle to my right and away from his power, and I kept my guard up. He threw a lot of techniques to the head, just as in our first match, but because my guard was up, he only got one punch that came through and popped me in the nose. What felt best, was when he tried a spinning back-fist and he hit only my gloves. The only other real shot he managed to get in, was at the very end, where I got my guard too high, and he ripped off a kick to my mid-section that had me briefly feeling a little green around the gills. The match was over, by then.

I was able to time him a couple of times, and I was able to get inside and hit him a few times to the mid-section; not hard enough to hurt him at all, but enough to let him know that I was right there in his wheelhouse and popping him pretty good.

All in all, I'm very pleased with how the match went. Of course, I'm still not at black belt level by any stretch of the imagination, but I feel like I was a lot better, this time out. Next time, I'll be even better.

Things I need to work on: I need to move laterally more, need to be less flat-footed and more mobile so I can pop in, strike, and then get out. Because he's a taller opponent and likes to throw punches and kicks to the head and face, I need to work on getting lower, slipping those punches and kicks, and then banging back before he has time to get set again.

Good stuff... I learn so much, every time we spar, and I wish we'd do more of it. Now that my techniques are improving through working the kata and stances, sparring is a lot more fun!

Okay... Onward and upward!

Killer workout, this morning. Chest, shoulders, and neck. Flat bench press, inclined bench press, overhead shoulder press, and weighted neck-lifts, three sets per exercise, each one taken to muscle failure between 8-12 reps. My shoulders, chest, and lats continue to widen and broaden, and my waist continues to get smaller. My legs are getting a lot stronger and bigger, too. From workout to workout, I'm consistently raising the weights by an average of 5-7 lbs per exercise. The changes are exciting to see, and I feel great!! I'm being very careful to take my time to warm up, stretch out well, and do a light warm-up set before each exercise. In this way, I think I'll be able to keep from injuring myself. At this point, it really feels like the sky is the limit!

I've been working and working on the Naihanchi kata, and I've really got it in good shape. It doesn't feel nearly so awkward, anymore. In fact, I've even come to like it quite a bit. I'm ready to start viewing videos of the Wansu kata now, and if I can divide the kata up into halves, thirds, or quarters, maybe it'll be easier to memorize. I'm excited about it, and feel very encouraged by my rapid success with the Naihanchi. (Of course, I'm constantly working on the Seisan and Seiuchin katas, and I have a lot of refining of the Naihanchi kata, to do.) Anyway... It's getting there! :-)

Naihanchi Kata - FINALLY!

I finally got the Naihanchi kata memorized. Writing it out, step-by-step, was just the thing I needed to do. It seems funny now, that I ever had a problem with it! :-) Now comes the practice, practice, practice, and refining it. I have my freestyle class this afternoon, so I can work on it more, and demonstrate it for my Sensei, so he can make any corrections that need to be made.

I won't be eligible to test for green belt until November, so I have plenty of time to work on both the Chinto and Wansu kata, which are a lot longer and look to be a lot more complex.

It's taken me a couple of weeks to get the Naihanchi kata memorized, and I'm giving myself a month a piece, to memorize the Chinto and Wansu. This will give me a couple months of practice to get them into satisfactory shape for the next belt test.

After learning these next two, there are only three more empty-hand kata left, in the Isshinryu lexicon: The Kusanku, Sunsu, and the Sanchin katas. If I can get the Chinto and the Wansu though, then I am confident that I will be able to learn these last three. Along with those, I think the Bo kata is also a requirement, and possibly the Sai kata. I don't really know, though. No mention has been made of either of those. There may be Tonfa and Kama kata too, but again, no mention has been made of either of those.

I'm taking the day off from working out. I got up and walked a mile at 4 mph, and other than keeping up on my protein intake, I haven't done anything else. Maybe this evening, when I get back from class, I'll put in a workout, or I may leave it until tomorrow evening.

I spent the morning working on my motorcycle. I pulled off the windshield, saddlebags, saddlebag mounts, passenger foot-pegs, passenger backrest, and luggage rack. The bike's profile looks really low, sleek, and mean, now... I took my windshield bag and mounted it to the front of the handlebars over the headlight. The bike really looks great... Without the saddlebags in the way, the pipes really stand out, and without the windshield, saddlebags, luggage rack, and passenger backrest, it doesn't look like a grandpa bike, anymore. Hahahaha...

Learning and Remembering Kata

Good grief... I consider myself a reasonably intelligent person, but nothing makes me feel dumber than trying to learn a new kata! The Naihanchi kata is the one I'm working on, at the moment. For whatever reason, it's just not going into my thick skull. I'm also going to be learning the Chinto kata, and the Wansu kata, and both the Chinto and Wansu are lengthy and complex. By comparison, the Naihanchi kata is very short and simple, but it's giving me fits.

If anyone has any tips on learning and remembering kata, I'm all ears...

Browsing around, I found this article. It's pretty good.


This is another good link!


Update: I actually took out a legal pad and wrote out, step by step, every movement of the first half of the kata. The second half, is exactly the same as the first half, just done on the opposite side. Finally! I think I'll be able to get it, now. From here, practice, practice, practice.

Waiting for FedEx to arrive... I ordered a Shureido gi, and I'm looking forward to receiving it. :-)

Continuing to work

Phew! Just finished a killer workout!

Three sets of each, each set taken to muscle failure:
Flat bench press
Inclined bench press
Overhead Shoulder press
Neck lifts (with a head harness and chain that I can thread through weights)
Flies

I am SMOKED!!

Yesterday was:
Squats
Hamstring curl
Calf raises (weighted)
Preacher curls
Forearm curls

Tomorrow is:
Lat pulldowns
Seated row
Shrugs
Dead-lifts
Triceps pushdowns

By cycling these three workouts, I'm working my whole body in five days, and then taking weekends off to rest and recuperate. Of course, I have karate on Mondays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, and on Mondays and Thursdays, we do a TON of core training, which is why it's pretty much absent from my workouts. I'm also constantly working on kata, kicks, punches, balance, and I'm looking into making a homemade makiwara.

Every morning, while it's still so freakin' hot, I've been walking a mile on the treadmill. When it cools down a little, I'll be taking The Bear with me, and walking a mile every morning and evening, with him. :-)

It's ironic that at the late age of 41, I've got the best body I've ever had, and I'm in nearly as good of shape as I was when I was in the Army, from the ages of 17-23.

No Easy Way Out

(Song by Survivor) The intro is powerful stuff. Great song, and great scenes from the movies. Train hard! Train to WIN! Never cheat yourself. Give it everything you've got, all the time! Bring your focus, discipline, intensity, and passion!

Attitudes Redoux

Last night, I went through the Seisan kata with our brown belt, and we went over and over and over it, before class started. He's coming along, and I am glad to help him. He had his belt tied correctly, too. :-)

I overheard the white belt asking questions of Sensei, when we were doing drills. I think his interest is finally beginning to pique, and that's a good thing. Between a couple of drills, I caught his eye, grabbed my belt, and motioned to his, raising an eyebrow and grinning. This time, he let me help him. I tried to show him by untying my belt and having him follow me, but he still wasn't getting it, so I had him untie his belt, and I tied it for him. I'll probably have to show him a few more times, but he thanked me.

The last third of class, we were working on kicks. Front snap kicks, crescent kicks, heel strike/thrust kicks, etc. I was next to the white belt, and his kicks weren't really coming together, so I explained to him that kicks don't start with the foot; they start with the hip, go to the chambered knee, and the lower leg and foot comes out like a whip, and that the hip is like the handle of the whip. He and I went through a few kicks, and I saw the little light-bulb come on. Very gratifying for us both, I think. :-)

I'm pretty sure his mother has forced him to take karate, for whatever reason, so I'm sure that accounts for part of his attitude, in the beginning. Also, as I reflect on his attitude last week, I'm thinking that he was probably embarrassed, so he tried to cover his lack of knowledge, but heck, we don't know what we don't know, so I was glad to help him out.

I always try to see the best in people, and inwardly, I'm cheering for this kid. He only shows up on Mondays and Thursdays, so I don't get much time to work with him on stuff. I wish he would show up on Saturdays, to the freestyle classes, when there's a lot more time... Ah well... I'm glad he's coming along. I hope his interest continues to grow, and correspondingly, his level of effort.

Last night, I had my belt ceremony and was given my orange belt and kyu certificate. Very gratifying, but the sheer amount of work ahead of me, between orange and green belt, is a little daunting.

For whatever reason, the Naihanchin kata is just not sinking in... It's a short kata, but lord... I feel stooooopid!! Hahaha! I'll get it, though. It's like learning a new piece on the piano: At first, it's stilted, jerky, and very halting, and it stays that way for a long time. It's discouraging.... Then, one day, for whatever reason, I sit down at the keys and the song takes a huge leap and it's smoother and more cohesive.

I think that learning a new kata is a lot like that...

Healed!!!!

My elbows are absolutely pain-free! I've been working out like a banshee all week, but NOTHING! No pain! I had a final appointment with my chiro/joint doctor this morning, and he said that my results are better than even he had anticipated!


Yesterday's workout was lat pulldowns, deadlifts, seated rows, shrugs, and triceps pushdowns. Tuesday's workout, I did bench press, inclined bench press, and shoulder press. Monday's workout, I did squats, hamstring curls, calf raises, and then preacher curls and wrist curls.


All of the upper body work, plus slinging the plates around as I changed out weight for different exercises, would have killed my elbows and made them hurt like they were full of broken glass, just a month ago. I feel fantastic! (Well, let me qualify that: My whole body is sore as hell!) But no elbow pain.


My chiro/joint doctor has been using something called A.R.T., or Active Release Technique, which consists of him pressing into my forearms and elbows on certain points with his thumbs, and having me go through range of motion movements. Then he picks a couple more points, and has me go through some more ROM movements.


Today was my fifth visit, and truth be told, I really didn't need to go, but I thought I'd go have one last checkup. Four visits, and this injury that has plagued me for the last year and a half is 100% healed! It's a miracle...


Dr. Jacobs, thank you, thank you, thank you!! :-))))

A Tale Of Two Attitudes...

White belt who has absolutely no enthusiasm, drive, or interest in karate.

Brown belt who's suffered a brain injury and has been away from training for five or six years.

I got together with the brown belt, and we went, step-by-step, through the Seisan kata. It's great helping others with their kata, because I learn a lot myself, as I show and explain. He was grateful for the help, and I asked him what was going on with his belt... It was tied like a bathrobe sash. We fixed it, and he thanked me for my help, and I thanked him for the opportunity to help. Very gratifying....

White belt also ties his belt like a bathrobe sash, and has done so since he started coming to class, a couple of months ago. I offered to show him how to tie it, but he said, "Oh, I know how to tie it. I was just in a hurry and worried about being late." He didn't fix it, didn't let me help him, and blew me off. I tried to help him with a basic drill that we were doing, a few weeks ago, but even when I showed him how to do it, and demonstrated how to place his arms and hands, he still just did it the way he felt like doing it, which was basically to half-ass it and continue to do it wrong and project  the absolute utmost lack of interest.

Screw it... I'm done helping him. If someone else wants to help him, fine... They can waste their time. There aren't words enough to even begin to describe my level of utter apathy, as it now applies to him.

*shaking my head....*

Belt Test! YES!!!!

I went to class this evening, and I ran through Charts I and II, hit the makiwara a round of fifty strikes, practiced a bunch of kicks, and then went through the Seisan and Seiuchin katas a few times. I was all sweaty, and then Sensei came over and said, "We're going to start your belt test in a few minutes."

We sat in the tiled area and went over the history of Isshinryu and the history of Shimabukuro-sama. Then he had me run through Charts I and II, including doing the knuckle pushups on the tile floor. Then we took a short break, and he then had me run through the Seisan and Seiuchin katas. He gave me more suggestions on the Seiuchin, but he seemed pleased, overall, with my performance. He told me that he was going to promote me, and that orange belt was the first of the intermediate belts, and that I would have the next three kata to learn. (Naihanchi, Wansu, and Chinto.)


He also said that he appreciated the intensity that Julia, Mari, and I brought to the class. I commented on one of the brown belts in particular, who also really brings an intensity and a solid work ethic, and said that he was an inspiration. We talked about the black belts that have come through his tutelage. I always enjoy talking with him... I learn a lot, and not only respect him as my Sensei, but also really like and respect him as an individual.


Brad didn't show up today, but hopefully, he will show up on Monday. Sensei and I discussed his situation, and Sensei seemed pleased that I am willing to take Brad under my wing.

Phew! What a day! I'm still all sweaty, but very happy!

 I read this from beginning to end, this afternoon, and intend on making a slower, more thorough study of it:

New information that has come to light....

Okay.... As I alluded to in the comment section of my last blog post:

The new brown belt that we have in class apparently sustained severe head trauma in "Operation Iraqi Freedom," and there's been some damage to his frontal lobes. He trained at a different Isshinryu dojo for ten years and earned his brown belt, but he's been away from it for five or six years. Between the injury and the lengthy break, he's suffered what looks like total amnesia, as far as karate is concerned.

Now that I know the full story, I have a lot of compassion for his plight. Saturdays are our freestyle classes, where karateka show up and work on whatever they choose to work on. The senior belts often help out lower kyu, and Sensei is available to offer help, pointers, and corrections.

I'm going to try helping this brown belt. (First of all, I'm going to show him how to properly tie his belt.) I'm going to ask him if he'd like to work on stances, or go step-by-step through the Seisan kata together, or maybe work on charts together. I can use the work on all of these, and as one combat vet to another, he may be receptive to my help. If he's not, that's okay, too.

I can help him with the basic stuff, especially since it's all fresh in my mind. Charts, the Seisan and Seiuchin katas, and basic stances. He's obviously got the training, and as I help him, it will help me. Maybe as we go through different things, it will begin to jog his memory more... He's good about showing up, and I think he's doing his best, so I feel moved to help him. If he's a brown belt, at one time, he was obviously good. I want to help him as much as I can, so that he can become good again.

Picked up another one.... *sigh*

We've had two new students join our class. One is a teenager who is new to martial arts, and the other is an older guy who's supposedly a brown-belt.  The young kid has absolutely no enthusiasm, and even when I and others spend time showing him a basic drill and how to hold his arms and hands, he does it so half-heartedly, if at all. No spirit, no willingness to even try to do it right. He acts like it's all a big drag. If it is, then why the hell does he even bother to spend the money and invest the time to show up? *shaking my head...*

The brown-belt is worse. He's supposedly trained for ten years at another Isshinryu dojo, under a different Sensei, but his gi doesn't fit him. He's tromping around on the heels of his pants, and ties his obi like it's a bathrobe sash. He doesn't know any of the most basic drills, the most basic stances, and doesn't know any kata, at all. But he's a brown-belt and out-ranks the rest of us who have been training our hearts out. It's ridiculous... I'm sure the other two brown-belts who really train hard and know their stuff, can't possibly be real pleased about it.

So now we have three slugs. The white-belt who can't be bothered to even try, the brown-belt who just can't possibly be a brown-belt, and another brown-belt who has absolutely no enthusiasm.

I look at the black-belts that show up to class, and I respect the hell out of every one of them. Each one of them is an amazing fighter, displays a ton of heart, train their hearts out, and really have some snap and pop to their techniques.

We have five brown-belts. One is out due to a bad shoulder injury, two of them train their hearts out and really work hard, and the other two are just absolute slugs.. I know I shouldn't worry about what anyone else is doing, or what they are getting out of the class, but it still bugs me. If they don't want to be there, why do they bother? *sigh* I would never dare broach the topic with Sensei. If I were a teacher, I wouldn't want to hear a student bad-mouthing other students, and I've only been at this dojo for seven months. I'm also a "butter belt," so it's better that I just keep my big mouth shut and just keep right on working my ass off.

I'm testing for orange belt on the 24th of this month, and I'm looking forward to it. I'm going redouble my own efforts, because there is a lot of room for improvement with the Seiuchin kata, and with Charts I and II.

I showed Sensei the kick that I came up with, and he liked it. One of the brown-belts said that she learned a similar kick in Kachi-Kimbo. I thought that was really cool... There is nothing new under the sun, and I'm not arrogant enough to think that a kick that powerful would be something that no one else has ever thought of or tried. Instead of being disappointed, I was glad. It reaffirms that it's a good and true technique, and lets me know that I'm on a valid pathway of thought.

Here's a photo we took last night with Sensei Fugate, since all three of us are yellow-belts, for now:

Came up with a new kick!

This morning, after feeding and watering the animals, I ran through a couple of kata, and chart 1, outside in the grass. It was still nice and cool, with a good cloud cover, and the grass was fresh with dew. It was really nice. I did a few rounds of karate breathing, and then launched into the Seisan kata and did that three times, then did the Seiuchin three times, and after working through chart 1, which is all of our punches and blocks, I focused on a couple of specific exercises that I wanted to improve. Working on this stuff outdoors was different, and very nice. I enjoyed it.

I came in the house, and thought about working on the Naihanchi kata, and I was thinking about the wave-form kick featured in that kata. The Naihanchi stance is narrow, compared to the Seisan or Seiuchin stances, and somewhat pigeon-toed. It is a good fighting stance for a narrow area, or fighting in tight quarters.

The wave-form kick is a low kick thrown from left to right, or right to left, with the kicking foot crossing in front of the standing leg. It's usually thrown to inside of an opponent's knee.

I was messing with this concept, and tried it by passing the kick behind the standing leg. It didn't seem to do much, at first, but then I started it by starting by flexing the knees so I was a little lower, shifting the hip to the side first, and then throwing the kick low. This causes the kick to strike with the heel. Wow! Very powerful!

If it's thrown higher, the strike is with the ball of the foot, but it loses a lot of power. If an opponent was standing to my side and I nailed him in the outside of the knee with this, he wouldn't see it coming. No one expects a kick to come from that angle, and the kicking leg is hidden by the standing leg.

I don't know if this kick is part of some other system, or if someone else has come up with it before, but it's not part of Isshinryu. Can't wait to show this to my Sensei on Monday.

Just finished reading this. It was very good. Richard Kim, "The Weaponless Warriors; An Informal History of Okinawan Karate."