Training

It’s not always deadly serious, sometimes we just have…

Whilst as a karate club we like to run a disciplined environment with good dojo etiquette, it is important to remember that we all do this ultimately because it is fun. This may be things like the water bottle challenge, pad work or occasionally the instructors engaging in a bit of light heated free sparring with one, two, three or more of the juniors simultaneously.

In this case one of our junior shodan black belt, Phoebe and I were having a little fun with an impromptu sparring drill after the lesson doing a block and counter attack and gradually getting faster until one of us got through and past the block when we realised we had an audience and they decided to film. The first spontaneous run through actually got a lot faster before it was filmed.

Featured Post Image by master1305 on Freepik

Young boy smiling and punching Training

Watch our new promotional video!

We thought you might enjoy our latest promotional video for the club as we return to dojo training in 2021. This video was shot during the class on Saturday 22nd May 2021 at our relatively new Bournville College Dojo (as unfortunately it was closed by the Coronavirus restrictions soon after initially opening). If you are an existing student and haven’t visited there yet please come and check it out, it’s a great venue to train in.

New members are welcome, please contact Sensei Susan Hession if you are interested in joining as always the first two classes are a free trial before joining. Please see our classes & fees page for information about class times and locations.

We’d like to thank Yvonne Skalban for producing this video for the club. If you are looking to have some video related work done please check out her site at  https://www.evproductions.co.uk

Adults dressed in karate suits in a guard pose Training

Welcome Back II – The return of the adults

Welcome back! It’s been a busy week here at Birmingham & Weoley Castle Shotokan Karate since this is the first week this year both adults and children have been able to train in the dojo. We have had new starters and returning students young and old , some who have not been able to train since before the pandemic. It will come as no surprise that we were overjoyed to see everyone face to face again. Whilst we have been able to keep in touch and train online in Zoom together these past months there is always that extra buzz being back in a dojo not to mention the relief that you no longer have to worry about kicking over your TV! 😃

With so many people unable to train in the dojo or at all for such a long period we have been easing people back into things this week concentrating on basics and kata that people already know but may have become a little rusty at for those who have trained before, rebuilding our fitness levels and of course introducing our new starters to the wonderful world of Shotokan karate. We of course aren’t out of the woods yet with covid-19 so this is all taking place whilst we adhere to strict cornavirus safety measures to ensure the safety and continued good health of our students and instructors.

On Saturday we had a visit from our good friend and Chief Instructor of Enso Shotokan Karate , Sensei Austin Birks 6th dan and Yvonne Skalban 2nd dan both former students of the late Shihan Cyril Cummins 8th dan. This proved the perfect opportunity to present him with a belated 60th birthday present which due to lock downs over the past year and his ongoing battles with cancer has not been possible until now. This was a framed Kanji (Japanese calligraphy script) that roughly translated to our late instructor’s and the club’s motto, Never give up, Never give in.

At present we are back in two of our three venues, Weoley Castle Community Church and Bournville College running classes for all ages and abilities, please see our classes & fees page for times and locations.

So indeed we are pleased to be able to say to all, welcome back to the dojo!

Here are a few photos from our first week and a video kindly produced by Yvonne from the class on Saturday. If you are looking for some video production work please check out her site at https://www.evproductions.co.uk.

  • The end of the session!
  • Warming Up 2
  • Warming Up 1
  • On guard!

 

Junior line up Training

Welcome Back I – The kids are back

Well its great to be able to train in the dojo now that the first stage of the coronavirus easing of restrictions is here, so we would like to say Welcome back to all our juniors. We have had a great week with the childrens classes resuming at Weoley Castle and Bournville College. It’s been great to see you all again in person and be able to welcome new starters to the club. In a few weeks time we hope to be able to welcome back our adult students as well.

Here are a few photos from our first return to dojo training in 2021.

  • Beginners lineup 1
  • junior and senior grade lineup
  • Beginners lineup 2

Training

Socially Distanced: The Training Continues

Well September is almost over and it has been a busy month. We introduced a booking system for classes due to the limited spaces available and although there have been a few disappointments we have been mostly able to let everyone train when they wanted to. Everyone is now getting used to socially distanced training and we thank all students and their relatives in helping us maintain social distancing and adhering to covid restrictions. As the Covid-19 situation has evolved around us and rules changed we have adapted and have and will continue to take all the measures necessary to protect our students and our instructors. Which is why we have recently requested that everyone wear a mask during training including children unless it would cause them undue distress (or can’t due to health reasons).

So what have we been doing during these classes, well as you would expect it has been various combinations of kata and basics. On the senior classes with myself for the black and brown belts we have been revising all of the kata we did during lockdown. For those who did it over zoom there is a difference to doing it in person without having to dodge furniture and where you can have a better visual perspective on each technique. Naturally people had started referencing direction based on their locations e.g. turn towards the sofa so doing the kata in the dojo with sufficient space and different cues at times was clearly like learning it anew. For others it was the first time they had done these kata and so it was something completely new for them. I of course also threw in some of the old favourites that everyone should know at their grades and went into some detail about various techniques. For the lower kyu grades we have concentrated on some of the Heian kata revising previous ones, completing ones that had been started prior to lockdown and learning the next one in the sequence. It has been a busy month we have covered Wankan, Jiin, Kanku Sho, Kanku Dai, Tekki Nidan and Sochin.on the advanced kata front plus revised Tekki Shodan, Bassai Dai, Enpi plus all the Heian kata. Some of these we did in depth others in passing. Kanku Sho being the first kata with one of the more complicated jumps it took a few attempts but everyone tried their best as always and we were getting there near the end. We have also done various combinations and basics with a strong concentration on controlling kicks rather than letting the momentum dictate your position and the technicalities involved when doing them to execute them correctly and with power. Finally we did a few exercises to make people think and not rely on “auto-pilot” to guide them.

I have observed the end of some of the other sensei’s classes with Sensei Mike taking his class through the kata Jitte and Hangetsu and doing exercises based on using basics in limited space. Meanwhile Sensei Sue has taken classes through basics and various advanced kata including some previously mentioned plus some socially distanced partner work as shown in the videos below. Sensei Faye, Sensei Jacob and Sensei Daniel have taken various children’s and adult classes which I have alas not witnessed personally due to timing and covid restrictions limiting movement between rooms However as with the classes mentioned above they too have been doing combinations of basics and kata.

It has been a busy but fun month and we look forward to pushing forward again in October, no doubt as the month progresses we may have a few surprises along the way but as always we will train on. Never Give Up, Never Give In.

Osu Sensei Richard

 

Grading

The Return Of The Karate-Ka

Well a new new routine has settled in since we have returned to the dojo so it seemed a good time to do a round up of the journey so far.The Longbridge dojo is yet to reopen but we are currently running classes on Mondays, Tuesdays (an extra night whilst Longbridge is still closed) and Thursdays at the Weoley Castle dojo. Since the return we have had a few junior students who trained throughout the lockdown on zoom take socially distanced kyu gradings under an adapted syllabus. We would like to congratulate all of you on your new grades, you’ve trained hard over the last few months despite the challenging circumstances and progressed. We have also had some new starters who we would like to welcome to the club as they take their first steps on their karate journey.

More generally we have been having classes consisting on basics and kata, going over some of the new things taught during lockdown and having a refresher on previous dojo teachings. Some of the more advanced kata covered have included Tekki Nidan, Sochin, Kanku Dai, Kanku Sho, Jitte, Hangetsu and Bassai Dai with lots of revision of the Heian kata and Tekki Shodan as well. I think we are all enjoying being able to train without worrying about hitting or breaking your furniture or computer (some of those kicks during lockdown did come dangerously close to the camera).

Here are a few pictures taken since our return.

  • August 2020 Weoley Castle Dojo
  • August 2020 Weoley Castle Dojo
  • August 2020 Weoley Castle Dojo
  • August 2020 Weoley Castle Dojo
  • August 2020 Weoley Castle Dojo
  • August 2020 Weoley Castle Dojo
  • August 2020 Weoley Castle Dojo
  • August 2020 Weoley Castle Dojo
  • WC_Reopening_1
  • WC_Reopening_2
  • WC_Reopening_3
  • September 2020 Weoley Castle Dojo
  • September 2020 Weoley Castle Dojo

 

Training

Practical tips for home training

Hello folks,

As we now all find ourselves at home, it seems an appropriate time to provide our students with tips that will help them to train within their own home. This is not a training regime or tutorial but general advice on home training and adapting their karate to the training environment.

I hope you find it useful,

Osu Sensei Richard

Training

The Dojo Diary: Sweeps & Throws on the Tatami

A number of students set out on Sunday 24th February 2019 to Sensei Mandie Read of Dudley Shukokai Karate‘s dojo to have a training sensei on the mats. The dojo ias fully kitted out with tatami mats and other equipment giving us the perfect opportunity to practise throws, sweeps and competition kata. We covered basic throws, reaps and sweeps with escapes from grabs and other scenarios.

Training

The Dojo Diary – It’s kicking at Longbridge (W/E…

Just a few short videos of the first class at longbridge on Wednesday night with the juniors and seniors working on Keri Waza (kicking techniques). Starting off slowly, then building up speed, this helps students guage distance, use correct technique and control when striking a target. Still a work in progress but a good effort by all.

The second class was an improtu kobudo (weapons) class by request with the seniors working on the bo kata shushi no kon.

On Monday night at Weoley Castle, we had a few surprise visitors with some old friends and former students of Shihan Cummins, Daniel Eccles and Yvonne Skalban dropping in and sensei Richard Amuzu coming by for a bit of bo practice.

Training

The Dojo Diary – Weoley Castle Dojo (W/E 09/02/2019)

As they say a picture speaks a thousand words and this entry in our Dojo Diary series of posts is going to take advantage of that old adage. Here are a few photos and videos from the Weoley Castle dojo on the 7th February 2019 where the session concentrated on kicking and sparring with Sensei Sue Hession.

  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019
  • BWCSK Weoley Castle Dojo 07/02/2019