Onegashimasu! Tonight's lesson is going to be on the hands-only performance of Sanchin Kata. Within our school, when we learn and teach and review for promotion, kata performance, we always have the student perform the kata hands only, then the stances only, and then the whole thing together. We have found that the students progress faster with fewer mistakes.
They secure the kata mentally and physically because they're able to focus just on that one portion. The nice thing about learning the hands only is the student, especially children, can practice anywhere. They can do it on the way to karate, on the way to home from karate, while watching TV, almost at any time because they don't have to worry about moving around.
Very little space is required. So there's four main techniques when we do Sanchen. You have your basic straight punch, your middle block, osayuke, and todoguchi.
So these are the four main techniques that we find in san-chin. So as we're doing this, we're going to focus on about five different aspects as you go through. You can go back later on, write these down, and then as you're practicing, they'll make sure that you're applying these basic principles. That's it.
intent of practicing the punches is not the punch itself, but what makes that punch effective, keeps the structure in line. So if we go back to a punch and we work from the chamber hand, we want to always make sure that this retracted hand, that the elbow is lower than the hand. So this is almost from the shoulder to the elbow, almost in a straight down, not in this position here where you can see it's already rounded my shoulder up and brought the hand lower.
This Retracting doesn't pull down flat, but it's as if you're pulling something in this way. And if you actually do this technique and pull, you can feel the back muscles begin to activate. Then you can go back and repeat that feeling because now you understand it.
So when you pull it, you actually can tighten those muscles as you pull. When the hand comes in, understand that this is the shoulder. From this little indention here where the bone's at, that's where the shoulder... the arm starts. So the actual body is inside here, almost in line with your nipples.
So as we begin to punch forward, the arm, the elbow follows the contour of the body, comes around this body. So it doesn't just come out straight, it pushes into that body. Remember the Muchimi, pushing into the body. That's the starting point of the punch.
So keeping this line as you're practicing in front of the mirror, when you block punch. You should still maintain that nice straight line. You shouldn't go from here and see your elbow rolled out. That's how you know that you're starting to lose the structure of the shoulder because the arm is staying outside. So again, bring the arm forward.
This will be the same thing as if you were blocking. The arm may be in a different position, but still the upper arm will follow the contour of the body. Rotating the arm, making sure that this elbow stays down. When it's time to retract it, you rotate the upper part of the arm as if you were... arm with a board, rotate it, then tightly pulling it back.
Again, elbows are lower. If I'm looking in the mirror, I can tell I'm doing it right because I can see my forearm. If I can't see my forearm, then I know my hands are too low. So right here at the diaphragm, just at the top of the stomach is where your hands will reside.
So again, keeping your shoulders down and relaxed, elbow down. which will put the elbow lower than the fist. And as you press forward, don't concentrate here, move the elbow forward. That will drive the fist and then all you have to do is rotate it down.
But it's not a full long extended punch, it's much shorter than what you think. So again, remember this is Goju route. We're not dealing with fighting somebody distance away. That's my gauge.
That's where I'm at when I'm touching this person. So my punch would only have to actually go that far before it would ever make contact. Given the fact that I'm also moving forward with the attack, so it actually makes the contact point much sooner than what most people would think of.
So let's start with the kata. So understanding we have a middle punch, we have middle block. Again, elbow is inside that same starting point. With the middle block, make sure that your hand is lower than your shoulder. And you have this little curve in your wrist, almost as if you were laying it on something and just leaving it there.
So you'll have this little curve. You shouldn't be in this position. Don't have the elbow of the hand higher than the elbow of the hand. The shoulder, just a little bit of shoulder, and the force is forward.
Not side to side, but forward. So as we're doing middle block, the arm again follows that contour of the body, keeping the fist pointing forward. Don't let your fist come to the side.
It's going to go forward. It's going to rub on that arm as if this arm weighs a thousand pounds. Pull this back, finish the block. So we do the fold. One, two, three, four.
five. And there's nothing wrong with practicing your kata just that way. You can practice in a staccato fashion.
One, two, three, four, five, so on. Or do it in a rolling count. One, two, three, four, five. Osayuki. What I've found works especially with children is the idea of the Hulk.
They all know who the Hulk is. He's got those big old trapezius muscles. This way.
Arnold Schwarzenegger. So when you When you get to the section where you begin to do osayuki and the hands open, press down like the Hulk. Press down with the shoulders, with the forearms, with the triceps, and then press, just roll down. So, again, what you'll see a lot of times is the elbows roll out.
By pressing down shoulders, locking that tight, that's going to lock this in place, then all you have to do is roll those hands down. Again with the little finger, niggety, like in sushi, niggety, gripping, niggety. rotate the bicep in. This is one piece, like a piece of iron. Rotate it in, roll, pull back.
Open for nukite. As the arms come follow, again, I'm following that contour of my body. Once it gets here, lock it down like the Hulk and press. Toriguchi, roll this in again. Get that little twist in the hand and that'll help lock this in position.
This hand comes in front again don't raise this up this should be down and forward as this hand comes across the body this handle slide to your wrist they both as this hand retracts they'll both turn over your fingers should be pointing in a downward motion again pull the elbows back and then press the elbows forward if you look in this position my bicep here and my bicep here and a straight line you shouldn't see the mismatch they should be almost the same if you brought this up it would probably be right back into a nice comparable position. So those are things you can look in the mirror as you're practicing it and checking on it. So again we always want to make sure whether you're punching or blocking, shoulder stays down and relaxed, elbows, the retracting elbow is always going to be lower than the fist, arms always going to follow and rub this contour of the body almost if you're trying to cut cut through that body you should hear that rubbing noise. Right so let's start with the San Shin Kata.
San Shin means three battles. So keep in mind that in this kata that number three is the magic number. Every third segment, every third step starts a new segment or performance. So keep in mind one, two, three when you get to that number three that technique means that there's a new start to the next technique.
So as we go through this you'll understand as we do that. So again starting from a Musubi Dachi, hands by the side, bow onigashimasu, San Chin, left hand comes out the right hand inside. Don't pull this way, see my elbows, fold everything straight in.
Down, grip the hands up, open and down. Now from here, right hand and this is a little bit lower, just a little higher because it fits into the camera. Your wrist is going to be here.
Again, follow the contour of the body. Your hands will raise just because of the simple structure of the shoulder and then from there just simply open up. Making sure again that both hands are below that shoulder.
So number one, you're going to pull. Notice my hand didn't go down, it comes straight back in. Again, the rotation of it because of the structure of my shoulder will rotate this hand into this position.
Don't drop this to pull it back, you lose all your strength. So it's one, rubbing, coming back to following that contour of the body. There's my punch, roll the elbow in and then turn the wrist. Two, on the right.
Right hand, roll that arm in and roll the fist. Three. This is the magic number three. That means there's going to be a change.
Punch. Pull all the way back to chamber. Bringing this hand across.
This is actually the blocking hand, not this hand. So you want to have the initial block that clears your path. There's my hand and I finish my block. And punch and block. So what I recommend as you're doing this, you have your three punches.
On this third one, the whole next segment is one technique. So we're not going to worry about turning the head and looking how we would when we're doing the kata with. in full motion.
So we're just going to focus again on the hand. So don't get caught up as, well, since Shion, when do I turn my head? When don't I? We're not worried about that at this moment.
So again, so all, this is all one motion now. Comes across, block, punch, block. Now you're right back where you started at the beginning.
So we're going to repeat the beginning again. Left hand. Notice again, I can see my forearm, so I know that my elbow's lower than my fist.
Follow the contour of the body. punch roll back following the contour of that body keeping a shoulder down punch roll third Oh magic number three San Chin Kata we're going to do the exactly the same thing we did before come back start the block finish the block punch we're right back to we were at the very beginning now we're going to do three punches one Two. So nothing's changed.
This is the third time we're doing this motion. Three. Here's the first big change.
Hands come up and open. This is the same thing as if I had both hands closed. Just open. Now, hook, press. down, push the elbows down, bring the hands down.
Now my fingers are not like this, they're pointing this way. So I've got this roundedness, this oval shape inside my chest. My hands are in the same place they were when they were here. right there.
Okay, so going back to here, we open, osayuke, press down the hok, fill it in your traps, fill it in your chest, fill it in your back, push those elbows down hard, rotate those hands. Nigiri, grab that little finger, turn and pull. Think of the kata saifa, those of you that know saifa, this is where you practice this motion. Little finger, rip, pull, making sure those arms follow the contour of the body.
Open the hands, nukite, spare hand. follow the contour of the body press down Hulk press down with the hands think of as if you're pressing down somebody's grabbing you and you're pressing down negatee rotate in again look my elbows I can see my forearm so I know my hands are in the right position follow that contour of the body open, press down. One more time. Remember, everything in this kapta is threes. Grab, pull, open the hands, nukite, out, hook, press down.
Now, the last movement of the kapta, top is Todoguchi. This is a little bit kind of a different technique for beginners but it's probably the most important technique. It's synonymous with Goju-Ru. So from here again rotate that arm in, twist this little finger in order to give you that nice tight feeling that you're gonna feel it from your shoulder all the way down into your wrist.
And this hand comes in here and supports. This hand will come across the face like we did in middle block, slide to the wrist. At this point in time, pull this hand straight back to your chest as they both rotate over, making sure your fingers are pointing down. Look at this angle.
So we have one, two, three. Three nice little Vs. Here's one V, here's two Vs. There, pull both straight back. You notice my hands don't drop. They don't do this.
Here, it's a middle block. Pull back. Fingers pointing down. Using the biceps, push forward. And then from there, come back to ready position and finish.
One more time facing forward. We're just going to go through the movements, follow along. Again, you can go back and just rewind this as many times as you like.
So starting from the beginning, onegaishimasu. San chin, yoi, left hand's underneath, bring the elbows back, fold it into your chest, down, grab, as if you're pulling roots of a tree, pull up, open, and then down. Right hand comes under the left hand, press the arms, use that contour of the body, and then open.
One, two, Three magic number all the way back Boom consider that one technique. We're going to start all over one two Three magic number we're going to do that same sequence again Punch. Three punches.
One, two, three. Bring it up. Open.
Nice tight thumbs. Hulk. Press everything down hard. Rotate those hands.
Make sure those fingers are pointing at each other. Starting with that little finger. Neagety.
Pull. Again, elbows are down. open, nukite, bring it down, let those arms follow the contour of the body, shoulders down, press, little fingers, nigiri, open, nukite, this is number two, nukite, grab, nigiri, pull back, open, third nukite, third osayuke, and then from here, rotate, turn that in, bring it to the back of this hand.
As this slides across, this hand comes up, they both turn over, this hand comes here to guard. Don't drop this hand, pull straight back, elbow down, press forward, bring the hand down, up and down, and you're finished with the kata. Let's do it from. the side. Starting here, come out, making sure that this hand stays below this shoulder.
Left hand will pull back. Right out. Now here's something that you can use to help you make sure that you're punching at the right height. The punch, if you look, extends between my wrist and the top of my elbow.
There. So if you see it down here, you know you're too far down. Right in between. Roll it.
Pull. Punch. Roll it. Third punch, that means it's magical.
Bring it back. Begin this movement underneath. Block. Punch. Again, notice I'm in between my wrist and the top of my elbow.
And block. We're going to start that motion over again. One. Two.
Three. Magic number three. Pull back. Same motion again.
And punch here. Three punches. One.
Everything starts with those three punches. Two. Three.
Open, nice tight thumbs. Shoulders down, don't let the elbows roll out. Bring the hands in. Niggity, rotate, pull, elbows are down, open, nukite, push forward, lock it down.
Niggity, rotate, open, press forward. Osa uke, one more. Nigiri, pull back, open nukite, hulk, press down, arm comes center line, following that motion, and press.
Good. Again, this is just, it's not meant to teach anything about the content, but give you just a framework to follow. As you get better with your karate training in general, and do more partner training, whether it be kakie, sandan gi, you'll begin to understand the feeling that you should have.
We'll talk more of that too as we get into some of the possible applications. not specifically so much for San Chin but for the other Katas, the San Chin will come back and that's how your San Chin grows. As you work other things, you begin to take that and put that into your San Chin Kata. San Chin Kata can be very easy. It can be an onion within an onion within an onion.
For beginner levels or people just practicing a lot, I've even found with some advanced black belts, they're not even aware of some of these interesting things. internal concepts that you should be practicing. Because again, remember when I teach a punch, it's a motion.
It's not, it may, could be the punch, but if I punch, I punch this way. So why wouldn't I want to punch this way? There's reasons why I might and reasons why not.
I always look at it, it could be a grab, it could be a strike with the forearm, it could be a strike with the bicep. So it can mean a lot of things, but what cannot suffer is that the technique, the shoulder down, elbow. everything to the internal structure the different parts that make it work and keep from breaking down thank you very time as we get going on we'll do the same thing here we're going to do Geki Sai Daini the same way Geki Sai Daini Ichi Saifa Seunchi all the Katas we'll learn it by hands we'll go back and do the feet and then we'll put them together thank you very much no money got to go say master