We practiced our basic techniques on the spot - straight punch, rising block, outside block, lower sweep and front kick. We then practiced front stance and how to turn and then put these two together practicing stepping forward and performing the techniques.
We then moved on to 3 step sparring - attacking our partner 3 times while the block and vice versa.
Finally, we practiced kata - kihon kata.
Less than 5 weeks to go until the grading! Please let me know if you want to grade so I can help you prepare. The grading will be at Kelsey Kerridge Sports Centre on Saturday 7th December - times TBD but expect approximately1300-1800. The price will be approx. £25 - which will include training with Sensei Roy Tomlin MBE. You can attend the training without grading for approx. £15. I will confirm details toward the end of November.
Our lessons from now on will focus on the grading syllabus for 9th Kyu. You can find the grading syllabus on our website - I've translated the technique names into English for easier understanding. For the first grading, you will need to perform 4 different basic techniques (stepping forward and turning), 3 step sparring defending face and chest attacks and finally, kihon kata. There will be a mock gradings on 4th December (and possibly 27th November) so you know what to expect. A simpler 10th Kyu grading is available to some of our younger students, should they find learning the kata difficult.
We practice Shotokan Karate, a Japanese martial art. One of the core precepts of karate is around respect, and a lot of this comes from Japanese culture. I've added an etiquette guide to the website to help. Key points include:
There's a lot there and it's okay to make mistakes, but please try your best. It's particularly important when we go to the Cambridge Dojo for the grading as we want to make a good impression.