Easing back into training
Training this week went really well, even though there wasn’t much of a turn-out (only myself and Jyastin-kun!). Still, it made for an excellent session, as we both got plenty of instruction and had the opportunity to focus on improving the quality of our technique.
We actually had Dai-Sensei taking us for this class (well, it should be just ‘sensei’, but since it’s our usual instructor’s dad [who I trained under in 07/08], Dai-Sensei is a good term I think [i.e. Big Sensei]!), since sensei is currently in hospital recovering from what sounds like a crazy bout of asthma. At the start of the lesson he asked if there was anything in particular that we wanted to do, and I piped up that it would be good to go through basic combinations/techniques, as well as kata – i.e. essentials for our grading. This was a good move, as it meant I had a chance to brush up on the combinations required for grading and get plenty of attention critiquing my technique. While we weren’t doing a crazy cardio-intensive workout, I continued with my push since my last grading to train with the same focus and discipline I’d demonstrate during a grading; while I’m not sure if I trained to this degree, I know I worked hard during the session, even if it only involved relatively simple repetition.
Going through kata was also very beneficial, as it gave me the chance to question some of the finer points of my kata, especially stances, armwork and some of the kicking techniques in there that are a bit on the new-ish side of things. I was also able to clarify where to vary between hard/soft techniques in this kata.
It was a great way to gently roll back into training after a couple of weeks off. I’m going to try to incorporate kata training around my weights sessions so that I start or end with a few run-throughs of my kata to help solidify the concepts and better my technique.
So yeah, it’s good to be back 😀
