As we have been discussing in class, practicing basics and
hyung precisely are important and have benefits, but you must also get out of
your comfort zone to ensure your techniques are effective in all practical applications.
If you can only perform techniques one
way and move one way, you will be limited in your ability to defend yourself
and could actually mentally get stuck and freeze.
By doing things similar but different it helps create new
neuropathways that allows us to move more freely. Some of the exercises and drills that force us
to move differently, perform techniques on different sides, and/or makes our brain
make different mind-body connections include (many of which we have practiced
in class) include:
·
Performing hyung mirrored
(i.e., start to the left, versus the right)
·
Performing hyung with
reverse strikes.
·
Practicing various basics
at different heights (low, medium, high) and in different directions (downward,
upward, outward, etc.).
·
Practicing combinations
using different stance transitions than normally practiced in basics or hyung
(e.g., transition from a side horse to a cat stance)
·
Practicing techniques
and hyung at different speeds and cadences
·
Practicing techniques,
hyung, combinations imagining different scenarios
·
Practicing techniques while
imagining targets at different distances (i.e., close in, kicking range, just outside
kicking range).
In addition, by continuing to push ourselves outside our
comfort zone we are less likely to become complacent. While it is great to feel comfortable in performing
techniques and feeling proficient in hyung, if we do not continue to explore
ways of doing things differently then that complacency can lead to laziness. One of my favorite quotes is by Norman Augustine
(United States Under Secretary of the Army from 1975 to 1977 and chairman and
CEO of the Lockheed Martin Corporation), “There are no lazy veteran lion
hunters.”
Imagine what it felt like the first time you performed a basic
side kick well. If you stopped there and
never tried to improve it and perform it differently, how much more competent
would you feel performing that technique?
When we get lazy, we stop growing and learning. When we practice outside our comfort zone and
practice the new ways, we not only improve our competency but also our confidence
which will lead us to continuing to be open to trying new ways of practicing.
Regards,
Kelly
“Karate is like boiling water: without heat, it returns to its tepid state.“ ~ Gichin Funakoshi (1868-1957), founder of Shotokan Karate
