I was born, in 1959, into a caring family. My father was from a modern Mennonite background and my mother from a city family. The big things in New Hamburg, Ontario, the small Canadian town where I grew up, were baseball, hockey and, to a lesser degree, lacrosse. I was not a sports-oriented kid, so…
To get power in your techniques, whether it’s punching, striking, blocking, kicking or throwing, you need certain common components. But remember, all these different facets of applying power must come together in a fraction of a second, so you have to train yourself thoroughly in how to make these things work separately and as a…
In Japan, Shihohai (worship in four directions) is the first ceremony conducted in the Imperial Court at the beginning of each New Year. It is said to have its origins in yin and yang (two primal opposing but complementary principles) but there is no documentation available that clearly indicates this path. However as yin and…
Modern karate, I believe, has strayed from the correct path, with many instructors separating the practice of kata and kumite. They think the two are not the same thing. I disagree with this point of view. When I started karate, in 1981, I enjoyed both kata and kumite, but we trained in them separately. It…
In order to improve your overall technique, you need to introduce the concept of “sinking” into your training. You must feel as if you are dropping into the ground, as well as adopting a dead-weight feeling in your striking limbs and a dropping/sinking feeling while throwing. With the combination of these concepts added to your…
In June, 2006, I traveled to Kasukabe and Tsukuba City, in Japan, to join the Ryusei Embukai, attend a clinic by Sakamoto-Sensei and train with Okashita-Sensei afterwards. I was accompanied by two of my senior students, Warren Tresidder and David Waterman. On June 24, we were invited to witness a demonstration of technique by Sakamoto-Sensei,…
On July 24, 2006, Matt Mannerow and I drove from our Ontario towns to Cincinnati, Ohio, to train with Roland Figgs-Renshi and exchange techniques and ideas about Ryusei karate. We arrived at 3:30 p.m. and settled into our motel room not far from the Figgs home. Figgs-Sensei met us at the hotel and then drove…
Oshi-zuki, or push punch (think the sequence in Chinto), is often taught as two oizuki (lunge punches) in a row. While this the right way to learn it, oshi-zuki is really much harder than this to do properly, and has applications that aren’t readily apparent in the basic execution. In fact, it’s not really a…
In January 2005, following a serious dispute with the Chito-Ryu Sohonbu (Headquarters), the membership of the Australian Chito-Ryu Karate Association elected to separate from the International Chito-Ryu Karate Federation and pursue independent research into the technique and legacy of the founder, Dr Chitose. This was a serious and tumultuous decision, as many of the voting…
Very early in their training, karate students are taught a basic punch called oizuki (lunge punch). It is used frequently in basics, bunkai (applications) and kata, and is usually executed in hangetsu-dachi (the Ryusei forward stance). The beginning student should step first and then punch – the base must set before the punch is executed….
The following document, translated by Mario McKenna, was written by Sakamoto-Sensei to North American Ryusei instructors before he conducted his clinics last October. Within Ryusei Karatedo system, kata, and techniques we can see the expression of ‘keii’ (literally ‘form and intention). Regarding keii, when performing [kata] three years ago I said: “There are thousands of…
Ukemi (breakfall)—how should it be used and what is its real importance to karate practice? Ever since I started training over 22 years ago, I have done ukemi. I was always fascinated by breakfalls, but I did not until recently understand the role that ukemi can and should play in our training. In my practice,…