Just because it is the first kata, that doesn’t mean it has boring bunkai.
Three bunkai oyo applications for the first kata in Goju Ryu, including throws! With demonstrations by karate spouses included.
Tag: Goju Ryu
Video: Geki Sai Dai Ni Bunkai
Take-downs, chokes and grabs – all hidden (in plain sight!) in Geki Sai Dai Ni.
This kata is often overlooked due to its status as a beginner kata, but for the curious practitioner, Geki Sai Dai Ni holds many fascinating bunkai.
Video: Kakie and Shisochin Kata
Kakie, the pushing hands technique, is often neglected, or used too simply as just a conditioning exercise. We chip a little off the bunkai iceberg by showing how kakie can be used to tease the bunkai out of Shisochin, a senior kata specific to Goju Ryu, and brought back from mainland China by Kanryo Higashionna Sensei.
Video: Goju Ryu Basics for Beginners
Want to learn karate? Don’t know where to start? This video introduces you to the very basics of Goju Ryu, the building blocks upon which everything is built.
But Still. I’m So Sorry.
Karate has survived two world wars, Spanish flu, numerous recessions and the worst McDojos in the world. It will survive this. I’m not worried about karate – I am worried about you. The student. The instructor. The dojo parent. Wherever you land in the constellation of people that make up a dojo, I worry. I hope you are okay. I hope you have your health and your livelihood.
Late Bloomers Welcome
I got an email from a possible student the other day, asking if we offered adult classes, or if we… Read more Late Bloomers Welcome
Shu-Ha-Ri – The Martial Recipe
In studying, practising and teaching karate, I have come across the concept of Shu Ha Ri a few times. Of… Read more Shu-Ha-Ri – The Martial Recipe
Martial Heart Series: The Concept of Giri
Whether it is the federation that supports its instructors with consistent training by bringing in instructors from around the world, the sempai that took the time to train you on a Sunday morning on a rugby field when the dojo was closed, the junior that asks the questions that you hadn’t considered, or the Sensei who works tirelessly to keep the dojo open so that you can train with others – no one becomes a martial artist alone.
Hojo Undo 101: Chishi
A number of people look at martial artists and think, ‘do you even lift, bro?’ Actually, yes, we do lift, bro.… Read more Hojo Undo 101: Chishi
Fifty Fights, Two Hours and Ten Lessons
After a lesson covering some of the basic principles, gumguards were shoved into mouths and half-gloves pulled on. We lined up, the timers began, and so went 150 minutes of fighting. Here are ten things I learned while getting the shit kicked, punched and thrown out of me. Take them as dojo advice, or life lessons – I think the two are inseparable.
Zojo Dojo 