Karate

Tuesday, October 20 – Today in Karate class we started doing our stretches a little bit differently. Instead of doing them alone we broke up into partners and did partner stretches where we had to work together to stretch each other out. This included exercises such as putting your feet together and locking arms to stretch out your back and legs. These stretches require that each person put a particular amount of force on the other to do the stretch right and therefore it requires the full participation of each person and team work. After we finished these stretches we stayed with our partners and got some pads to work on different blocks. We did high and low blocks for punches and kicks and then we tried blocking other varieties of more complicated attacks such as jumping kicks and spinning attacks. By doing this we learned that there is a variety of ways a person can attack you and it is important that you are prepared and ready for any of those situations by knowing how to block each attack. We were told that this was one of the most important lessons to learn when it comes to fighting.

Saturday, October 24 – I could not make it to Karate today because I at an interview at Smith College.

Tuesday, October 27 – Today in class we did our stretches wit partners again and worked together to prepare for class. Then we worked on timing by lining up in multiple rows and doing a series of kicks and punches with some blocks thrown in as instructed by the teacher and we all tried to do them simultaneously. At first it was very difficult for us to stay together as one group but the more we practiced at it the better we became at synchronizing our attacks and retreats. By the end of the exercise we were able to move as one unit and we found that this improved us as individuals in our focus and precision in all of our movements. After this we broke off into partners and worked on our one steps and our wrist grabs which I felt I was becoming increasingly good at. Then we ended the class with stretches as a sort of warming down to relax us after the work we had done.

Saturday, October 30 – Today is Halloween so in Karate class we celebrated with some candy before we began stretching. Then we stretched and broke off into partners to work on wrist grabs as a warm up. After we finished we were told that in the next Karate class we would be examined by the instructor and other black belts to see if we were ready to take a belt test and move up to the next level above our current rank. I had not taken a test since before the summer and I was eager to do this next one and move up to the next belt color because I felt I was more than ready. To prepare for this examination, we individually worked on our forms so that we would have them down perfectly for the testing. We were encouraged to ask for assistance on any of the moves we were having trouble with. I tried my best to take full advantage of this opportunity so I could improve my form enough to be considered for the next belt test.