Fantastic Course with Makita Sensei
JKS England hosted Sensei Takuya Makita a senior JKS Honbu Instructor at the Djanogly Academy in Nottingham on Sunday 2nd of April.
Alan Campbell Sensei opened the course, welcoming everyone and introducing Makita Sensei who he described and an exceptional all-round instructor with a long and successful international competition career in both Kata and Kumite. Alan then went on to present Matt Price with his Nanadan (7th Dan) Certificate from Japan and shared his pride and admiration for what he has achieved and gives to the association and its members. It was a special moment for the Price family as Zoe Price was presented with her Yondan (4th Dan) certificate.
Matt Price Sensei led a tribute to Seb Mitchell a talented Karateka and JKS Squad member who was tragically taken from us in truly awful circumstances. He shared his appreciation for all the words of support and condolence that had been received and how grateful the family were for the kind words from his friends in the JKS. He also thanked all those who made donations towards his legacy. One minutes silence was held in memory and respect to Seb. Following the warmup, which was led by Matthew Yardley Sensei, Makita Sensei took the class though several exercises to relax and loosen off the shoulders. Over the course of the seminar, Makita Sensei focused on several key themes, starting with the connection, mobility of the shoulders and control of body movement. The mobility of the shoulders was identified as a key part of the seminar, and this was reflected in the time that was devoted to the exercises.
He worked on this mobility and body control and talked about punching long, using the whole body, and making use of this flexibility within the shoulders. The focus of the early part of the seminar was on the shoulders and the exercises which involved rotating to shoulders opening the chest and building a connection with the body. He also talked about using the body, hips, and legs and how this all connected as part of the techniques.
Makita Sensei changed the focus towards kicking and we went through an exercise that involved lifting the knee and balancing before we moved to kicking. The second element was working on Mai Geri, Yoko Geri and Mawashi Geri kicking and returning to stance which again for focusing on connection and technique and the use of the hips.
The seminar moved to switching stance which explored how to control the body by demonstrating movement and not making a noise. He pointed out that switching quietly with no noise showed you were in control of your body, but making a noise demonstrated that you were not. He was able to demonstrate how to move silently by controlling his muscle groups and using his hips to transition from one stance to the other. This movement then progressed with the inclusion of Gedan Barai and
Gyaku Tsuki which highlighted the connection between the hips, blocking and punching.
This progressed into a multi-directional 360-degree rotation kick and punch drill that articulated the point clearly and challenged the participants to use their hips and body connection with each of the techniques. The combination was broken down into sections and then built up until it was completed in full and was repeated in both directions several times.
The learning for the first part of the course was carried over into Jion and Makita Sensei was able to demonstrate how those principles should be delivered within a kata. His exquisite movement, timing and body control highlighted what he was looking for from everyone present.
He broke Jion Kata down into sections which provided an opportunity for everyone to pick up the key learning points and accommodated those who had perhaps never practiced the kata before the seminar. The timings of each section of the kata were explained and Makita Sensei demonstrated with great skill and precision how each element should be performed. It caused quite a bit of amusement when Matthew Yardley Sensei was stretched and squashed in three directions to demonstrate the last sequences of the kata, which explained practically the correct positioning and movement.
Makita Sensei taught Hachimon Kata which was new to the majority of those in attendance, but again incorporated all the learning form the first part of the seminar. Hachimon a very fluid kata and Makita Sensei demonstrated how each of the movements can be achieved through control of the body and broke the kata down into sections so it could be explored in detail.
The final Kata Kibaken which was performed in Kiba-Dachi brought another quite excellent JKS England seminar to a close.
Please check out the JKS England Website and Facebook Pages for the latest details to make sure these excellent courses are not missed!
A Dan grading then followed once the course had ended. Many congratulations to those who passed at this attempt. Dan Passes
Shodan
Artin Sehraby - Can Do Martial Arts
Boran Kala - York Karate Dojo
Ethan Chippendale - Harrogate Shotokan Karate Club
Connor Caswell - Harrogate Shotokan Karate Club
David Renghea - Walsall Karate Dojo
Ashni Suthaharan - Walsall Karate Dojo
Kaya Sudra - Bunbu Dojo
Zak Palmer - Somerset Ryū Karate
Nidan
Juan Rodrigues (crossover) - Bristol Karate Academy
Joel Oliver - Bristol Karate Academy
Joseph Lawson - Bunbu Dojo
Thomas Harding - JKS Top Valley
Tian Elaouami - Walsall Karate Dojo
Sandan
Daryn Hobden (crossover) - Harrogate Shotokan Karate Club
Yondan
Pious Matthew - JKS Shotojuku Karate Club