A Beginner's Point of View 34-35

Day 34:

Today was more kiri-kaeshi. Even though last week sensei said we would work on receiving, today we gave again. Over and over, giving kiri-kaeshi to him and some senior students. Each time we would complete a full drill, we would receive advice on how to improve our technique.

Myself, I seem to be "out of alignment". I was told that my posture was not bad, but not perfect. It appeared like I was leaning forward, but was not really leaning forward. It was described to me as my upper half was forward of my lower half. My shoulders and spine were straight, but they were ahead of my hips. It was not easy to understand or even correct, but I seem to be improving my posture simply by trying to keep my whole body in line vertically.

We did kiri-kaeshi so much, that the time just flew by. I gave the closing ceremony again. I did better, but still not perfect. It seems that the list of commands I've been studying from wasn't perfect. At least this time I waited for everyone seated on the Dan side of the dojo to finish taking off their men and kote before continuing. I should also learn to cover my feet completely if I need to move out of seiza and just sit.

Day 35:

Today, we suited up in full bogu to practice giving kiri-kaeshi. It was a good exercise, since we would be expected to do the same for testing. A couple of the senior students put on their bogu so we may practice giving kiri-kaehsi to multiple different people. Some would not step back until we pushed them back, others stepped back automatically. Sometimes they would block our strikes, sometimes not. As long as I did not hurry, I successfully performed kiri-kaeshi each time. Sensei reminded us that kiri-kaeshi does not have to be lightning fast. It instead must be 'decisive'. Each strike must function independently, as if it were the last strike we will ever make. This broke up the exercise into smaller segments that were more manageable.

Our head sensei was actually present during the entire practice this time. He split his attention between our group and watching the other group, which was comprised of students who needed a refresher on basic strikes and footwork. The head sensei gave me some advice about men strikes. He said I was lifting the shinai too high. It was a waste of energy the way I was doing it. He counseled that I should raise the shinai just enough that my left fist would be even with my eyes. This goes slightly against what I was taught by sempai. Sempai said to raise the shinai so that both fists were above my eyes, so I may see the target. I'll try doing it the way the head sensei says. Maybe it will conserve energy.

There are so many things to remember during kiri-kaeshi, it can sometimes be overwhelming: footwork, striking, rhythm, pushing, counting, kiai, and spacing, which is called maai. Still, sensei promises that we will practice kiri-kaeshi so much, we will be able to do it in our sleep.

Today, I almost finished practice without needing to stop. At the very end, I was feeling light-headed and off-balance. I decided to move off to the side and sit in seiza for a short time. After a minute of just breathing, I felt better and it was time to perform an abbreviated bowing out. I hope my endurance increases some more. It's embarrassing to have to stop and breathe while everyone else keeps going.