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Post by dhodge on Apr 16, 2013 7:53:07 GMT
Over my short time in karate I find the learning of new kata's a major obstacle. Retaining the movements is really difficult and I struggle to learn more than one every few months. This has become even more obvious over the past few weeks as our senior class has been going over a koten kata, junro kata and join. After going over them my brain is fried and I then cannot mind the Heian katas I have already learned. This makes me question why I train. Once I get into a kata I like it but learning it really kills my confidence.
I know that I am just beginner at 2nd kyu level but I feel I should be able to retain the first few moves of anything I spend time on but just find it so difficult. To learn a kata I need to think of it broken down into sections of combat and this helps me. How do/did you all cope with the katas
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Post by jimlukelkc on Apr 16, 2013 8:45:21 GMT
First off Derek, one kata every few months is ambitious and most people would struggle to attain any competence, especially if you are also trying to keep previously learned kata fresh and of high quality. Second, give yourself permission to fail ! Learning is a process of failing, re-assessing and improvement. It is ok not to immediately get it. Some people can make the shapes and skim the kata but will not have a deeper understanding of the kata and probably do not retain the information any more efficiently than you do. You really need to find the best way for you to learn and not to listen to the negativity in your own head. You presently view learning kata as " an obstacle" you speak of "killing your confidence" and it being " really difficult" " coping with kata". You view it as a struggle. Maybe relaxing your attitude will work? Try visualisation techniques and envision yourself performing the Kata perfectly each time. And do not beat yourself up when that perfection does not become a reality. Personally, if I struggled with a kata, I drilled it outside of class and did a little, often, building it up gradually until I could remember most of it, then I could concentrate on the areas giving me problems
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Post by Allan Shepherd on Apr 16, 2013 10:48:56 GMT
Hi Derek
Two things happen when we are "taught" a new kata, first of all we are generally building onto a previous kata and secondly we are trying to retain the new kata and the one(s) prior.
I was originally taught kata by dividing it into 3 or if a long kata into 4, building the third's or quarter's onto each other. Later on try "starting" the kata at various points mid way and also changing the shomen by various 45 and 90 degrees around the dojo.
Like Jim say's use the time outside of the dojo, maybe 10-15 minutes (longer if available) each day in everyday clothes to run through a chosen kata. I have a list of the 27 kata plus the 6 Taikyoku and work on them when ever the opportunity arises on a daily basis. Time well spent which helps the process inside the dojo.
Best Regards Allan
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Post by garage on Apr 16, 2013 13:10:13 GMT
Hi Derek
You are not alone in finding kata's hard to learn. The first problem is when you look at someone doing a kata you normally view them from the front so they are a mirror image of what you are trying to learn.
I have to image I am doing it and change the view point in my head. If you stand behind the person doing the Kata it can be easier to image you are doing it.
Describe it in words and I am quickly lost. As I am learning them the Kata's seem massive. I have a laptop and see the kata and try to remember the next move. Do this about 3 times a day for about 10 minutes. See and do.
Each kata has a story and I remember this rather than trying to parrot the moves. 2 weeks allows me to stumble through the moves and then start to sharpen them up. Then it doesn't seem so big anymore. I normally spend about a year running through them reinforcing all my bad habits.
Video can help you as you are more likely to tell yourself what is wrong.
I run through all katas each day about an hour in an order to avoid mixing them up.
Some weapons kata where you only seem to go back and forth I find especially hard to remember where I am, so I use a count in english as well as the story.
I think you are doing really well to manage a kata every few months. I am lucky to manage 1 a year.
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Post by malk103 on Apr 16, 2013 21:45:43 GMT
Take your time and when you have nailed a Kata then keep practicing it!!!
Different people learn in different ways and speeds so don't worry about it. I tend to learn best by doing a few moves over and over, then a few more on top, over and over.... I have also learnt myself with a laptop playing it out and keep pausing and going back. I have tried other ways but just got confused.
Once you have the layout keep going over it, then work on the fine movements, then work on speeds etc. Eventually when it becomes "easy" then work on applications and drill them.
Just keep doing it the best way for you!
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Post by elmar on Apr 17, 2013 12:27:35 GMT
Chunk it, and practice the chunks. Split the thing up into logical sets (short sequences), and select a sequence, spending the day on just that sequence. Most kata can be reduced to less than a dozen chunks, even the longest ones. Then you are not trying to remember 50 moves but 12 chunks. Much easier.
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Post by kensei on Apr 17, 2013 21:10:21 GMT
Hey,
Everyone learns differently and as a person with a learning disability I can tell you for SURE you need to figure it out for yourself.
However, all the above ideas are great. For me the best was actually learning the Bunkai, or a version of accepted bunkai...I needed to put my head into the Kata and I took a lot longer to come up the ranks than others because of my learning issues. I could not see the Kata in my head when I first started and got confused. Finally I needed to just do them till they were hard wired.
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Post by dhodge on Apr 18, 2013 13:59:03 GMT
Thanks all your help is much appreciated. Its good to see a wee post can get this forum posting again.
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Post by Gerry Boyce on Apr 18, 2013 15:37:40 GMT
Since I only self train I use Youtube to learn a new kata. Find a good video and follow along in your mind as the person performs it. Also, as others have written, learn the kata in logical sections will help retain it better.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 18, 2013 15:38:06 GMT
Split it into small sections and practice over and over. Supplement learning with 'best karate' and sensei youtube for performance and look for applications from instructors, club members and media.
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Post by D.Ram on Apr 22, 2013 11:28:33 GMT
My solution - book + youtube. I purchased a book that most closely conforms to my own school (Sensei Kanazawa's book on Katas, since I'm with SKI), and supplemented by videos of the same Sensei on Youtube - this works wonders! Of course, the assumption is that you'll practice outside class - if you just wait for the next class where your teacher will go through the Kata once more, then it will be slow progress...
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