Shokotan karate class emphasizes self-defense for child students
Summer Howatt-Nab, Athens NEWS Special Projects Contributor
April 28, 2005
Kids dressed in dogi bow respectfully. Their bare feet hit the wooden floor of the dojo. As they exercise in unison, their punches and kicks are accompanied by the shouts of "Kiai!" Welcome to the Shotokan karate club.
Wendy McVicker, sensei (instructor) of the beginning karate class, loves the fact that Shotokan, a form of karate for beginners, is a martial art that emphasizes self-defense. Before McVicker got involved with karate, she was wary that it might encourage violence, especially in children, but she quickly learned that Shotokan was about self-defense and not fighting.
The Athens Community Center's Shotokan karate club is part of the International Shotokan Karate Federation and the Japan Karate Association (JKA). According to the JKA, "Karate for children is not only fun, it provides many important benefits to young people. Some of these benefits are referred to in Japanese as chiiku (mental development), tokuiku (moral development) and taiiku (physical development). In all these ways, karate is profoundly helpful to young people in dealing with the many challenges facing them in today's society. It brings them balance and perspective at an age when these are needed most and it adds a strong foundation to their character."
"With the kids especially, I try to emphasize self-discipline, self-control and good training habits," McVicker said.
Additionally, they are learning self-defense at a young age. As a result, "We do a lot of repetition, because we believe that's what you need to do to train your body," she said. "So if you're in a self-defense situation, you can react quickly without having to think."
As the beginning karate students go through their exercises in unison, they shout "Kiai!", which punctuates their punches and kicks.
"The kiai power yell focuses your energy, scares your opponent and tightens your muscles," McVicker explained. Karate training stresses the application of maximum power when delivering a technique, and that is often supplemented with a kiai. That shout, in conjunction with the expulsion of air, can reinforce a strike or a block by maximizing bodily strength.
The Midwest Self-Defense Arts Association defines a kiai as "a muscle-tightening yell that adds power to a technique, reduces shock to the body and causes your opponent to hesitate." The breath is exhaled quickly with a loud yell that originates deep in the abdominal area, tightening the muscles throughout the body.
Though the yelling may sound harsh, the repetition of the kiai is part of the training process, McVicker explained. "We shout as part of our training to develop our reflex action, since it's really important for self-defense that you don't react slowly," she said. "You want to make a sharp shout, so that it trains the reflexes."
The students learn the art of self-defense throughout the lessons, including one in which they defend themselves against multiple attackers.
"That's why they're turning in different directions," McVicker said. "The forms could seem pretty arbitrary, so we practice and demonstrate what the effect would be in a real situation. For example, one move may look like you're just raising your arms," she said, "but in actuality you're blocking an attack and then countering."
She pointed out that the students learn many techniques that are effective self-defense maneuvers, even though they are not allowed to use them in sparring.
According to the JKA, Shotokan karate focuses on three exercises. "Kihon (basic techniques), in which you learn the basic blocks, punches, kicks, and stances of karate; kata (forms) in which you practice and physically remember the various kihon learned; and kumite (sparring) where kihon and kata techniques are matched against a real opponent." McVicker said the kids never do unpredictable "free sparring," only "three-step sparring," which is totally choreographed, she assured.
"The person who's attacking knows exactly what they're supposed to do, and the defender knows exactly what they're supposed to do to defend, and then counter," she said. McVicker explained that learning those steps is necessary in order to train your body to react effectively. Eventually, faster and more advanced "free sparring" will follow after more training.
"Our philosophy - the Shotokan philosophy - is develop your tools first and then you can use them," she explained. Shotokan is distinctive because of the focus on perfection of all blocks, stances and strikes. "It is sometimes called 'traditional' karate, but some people might argue about that," McVicker said. "Some schools put together mixtures of other things."
Regardless of style, most karate organizations practice kata, or choreographed movements that McVicker likened to "dance combinations that illustrate various techniques in a flowing sequence." Kata emphasizes the application of deep and powerful stances, power, balance, and proper breathing. In order to maintain the energy necessary to work a kata correctly, the student must learn to breathe properly, according to the JKA. Throughout the exercise, McVicker reminds her students to breathe. "If you hold your breath, it's a lot harder," she warned.
The dojo echoes with McVicker's words of guidance and encouragement such as "Widen your stance" and "Don't take your eye off the target!" As McVicker weaves in between the rows of students, making slight adjustments to their shoulders, hands and legs, she says, "You're attacker's coming from this direction. Now, down-block their attack."
McVicker has been training since 1991 and has earned her third-degree black belt, or sandan. Her black belt is faded and entirely white near the knot from the black thread shredding after years of use.
"It's funny, you start out with a white belt and eventually end up with a white belt, because you keep training in it and it turns white," McVicker said. "It's like the zen of karate or something."
Another zen-like piece of wisdom, imparted by 11-year-old student Andrew Gibbons, is "You must respect your elders who are more experienced." Gibbons is a green belt and often comes to the beginner's class to help out and to train, even though he is in the advanced class taught by "Sensei Howie," also known as Howard Beebe.
Gibbons said the adult class is similar, just more advanced. "Students range from 10 to... well, grown up," he said.
McVicker explained that once the more advanced kids get past a certain level, they are able to take the class with the teenagers and adults. Beginning Karate consists primarily of white and yellow belts.
Occasionally, a more advanced student helper, or senpai, leads the beginner students. Brown-belt Rachel Weekley, 13, is McVickers's senpai who leads the class in the warm-up and cool-down exercises. Near the end of the lesson, Weekley and Gibbons give pointers to a small group of yellow-belt students.
Gibbons said he's been in McVicker's karate class as far back as he can remember. "I like to take the classes all year-round, as
Comments
Please log in to post a comment.
