# just took my first lesson in enshin karate



## jarrod (Jun 9, 2009)

pretty cool style!  it is the first school i've visited in denver so i'm still going to shop around, but i really enjoyed it.  i liked being back in a more traditional setting, but it was a little weird training in the same class as kids.  there was an athletic adult black belt there that paired up with me though, so i certainly got my training in.     

for those that don't know, enshin is a kyokushin offshoot which was founded by a man with a judo background.  so it's a bareknuckle karate style which also allows judo throws.

if i stick around, (& it does feel like a good fit for me) there will be a few things from my previous training that will be hard to change.  for one, when we throw in shingitai jujitsu, the idea is to drive your opponent through the floor & land on him as hard as you can.  of course we don't do that in training, but in enshin they want to stay up & deliver finishing strikes.  not that difficult as i've dabbled in san shou a bit & liked that strategy just fine.

also when they kick they throw their hand back for balance.  which is how i used to do it until my kickboxing coach kept punching me in the head every time kicked.  

speaking of punching, i'm concerned that i'm going to crack somebody in the dome by mistake during sparring (head punches are not allowed).  but i suspect i'm a ways away from sparring.    

there are a few other things different for me, but i like working on getting to the throws from a striking situation, & the clinch is a lot more fun with a gi on.  

really cool style, & even if i find something else it's fun to get a bit of exposure to different arts.  

jf


----------



## Daniel Sullivan (Jun 10, 2009)

Best wishes to you!  Keep us posted!

Daniel


----------



## Grenadier (Jun 10, 2009)

jarrod said:


> speaking of punching, i'm concerned that i'm going to crack somebody in the dome by mistake during sparring (head punches are not allowed). but i suspect i'm a ways away from sparring.


 
I wouldn't worry just yet.  When you are ready to engage in the full contact sparring, they'll most likely pair you up with an advanced rank.  Most likely, it will be with one of their senior black belts, and as you gain in experience, the brown belts will be used. 

Glad to hear that you're enjoying your Karate training.  If the school looks to be a good one, and if it's giving you what you want, then stick with it.


----------



## blindsage (Jun 10, 2009)

You are lucky to be able to study Enshin in Denver. Is Master Ninomiya around the dojo much? There are some really interesting strategic approaches when you start doing their sabaki technique. Hope you enjoy it, it's great training.


----------



## searcher (Jun 10, 2009)

I agree with blindsage.    To get the chance to study Enshin in Denver is very cool.

Full contact will take a little adjustment, but man it is fun, fun, fun!!!!


----------



## stickarts (Jun 11, 2009)

Awesome! Good luck!


----------



## punisher73 (Jun 11, 2009)

Glad you like your classes.  If you are interested here are a couple of books.

First, is the autobiography of Enshin's founder.  I found it to be a very good read.
http://www.amazon.com/My-Journey-Ka...=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1244738863&sr=1-2

Second, is a book about Enshin Karate and it's strategic approach. It's out of print I believe, but another good book if you can find it.
http://www.amazon.com/Sabaki-Method...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1244738863&sr=1-1


----------



## jarrod (Jun 11, 2009)

blindsage said:


> You are lucky to be able to study Enshin in Denver. Is Master Ninomiya around the dojo much? There are some really interesting strategic approaches when you start doing their sabaki technique. Hope you enjoy it, it's great training.



i don't believe he is around this particular dojo much.  but there are several high ranked black belts there, & i believe the head instructor won the sabaki challenge a few times.  i'm going back tonight, hopefully i've adjusted to the altitude better in the last two days.  but i doubt it.

jf


----------



## terryl965 (Jun 11, 2009)

jarrod just keep working on that light air, it takes time to adjust. Best of luck in your training


----------



## blindsage (Jun 11, 2009)

punisher73 said:


> Second, is a book about Enshin Karate and it's strategic approach. It's out of print I believe, but another good book if you can find it.
> http://www.amazon.com/Sabaki-Method...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1244738863&sr=1-1


 
Great book!


----------



## jarrod (Jun 11, 2009)

2nd class was essentially a repeat of the first.  i really like working on connecting the strikes & throws, which we've done toward the end of both classes.  i asked the sensei afterwards about sparring & he said they usually do it thursdays, but they had too many first timers tonight.  

we also ended with some bare knuckle body conditioning, which i really, really liked.  it's like playing slug bug for grown-ups.  

jf


----------



## jim777 (Jun 12, 2009)

Lots of good styles came out of Kyokushin, glad you are liking yours


----------



## MilkManX (Jun 15, 2009)

punisher73 said:


> Glad you like your classes.  If you are interested here are a couple of books.
> 
> First, is the autobiography of Enshin's founder.  I found it to be a very good read.
> http://www.amazon.com/My-Journey-Ka...=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1244738863&sr=1-2
> ...




I study Enshin in Tucson under Sensei Rhoads who has been friends with Kancho Ninomiya since they were in Kyokushin together in NYC in the 70's.

There is a revised edition of the Sabaki Method book coming out later this year with 20-30 new pages!!

@ the OP.

Dont sweat the sparring. It will happen. Generally when there are alot of new inexperienced students we hold the sparring at my dojo also. It will come. My legs are thrashed from this past Saturday.


----------



## jarrod (Jun 29, 2009)

well i've done enshin 3x a week for the last 3 weeks, it's safe to say i'm hooked.  during free form sparring drills i have popped people in the face a couple times, but fortunately they have been little taps & my apoligies were easily accepted.  it's just so hard not to take an opening you've been trained to take.  in boxing & KB, i was a notorious head hunter.  so it's forcing me out of my comfort zone, but it's hard for me!

i've also gotten used to the kids.  i usually am paired with another adult, but occasionally i'll work with kids a little.  i discovered i really like throwing children around.  i'm kind of like a big ferris wheel to them.  

jf


----------



## Tensei85 (Jun 30, 2009)

jarrod said:


> pretty cool style!  it is the first school i've visited in denver so i'm still going to shop around, but i really enjoyed it.  i liked being back in a more traditional setting, but it was a little weird training in the same class as kids.  there was an athletic adult black belt there that paired up with me though, so i certainly got my training in.
> 
> for those that don't know, enshin is a kyokushin offshoot which was founded by a man with a judo background.  so it's a bareknuckle karate style which also allows judo throws.
> 
> ...



That's awesome! I wish I was in the area, that's pretty much up my alley. 
Don't worry about cracking people in the head, the 1st time I started studying other arts I had already been in M.A. for 10 years so at that time I kicked one of the asst. instructors in the head in sparring and almost knocked that person out.

Then another time I punched the top student in the head in front of the class, which was kinda embarrassing for them but I tried to tone it down as much as possible. 

But that's part of training sometimes it just comes out. "reactionary force"

Best of luck! I'm kinda envious :ultracool


----------



## MilkManX (Jul 7, 2009)

Osu!

Maybe when I come to watch the Sabaki Challenge next year we can meet up.

Glad to hear you like the training.


----------



## Frostbite (Jul 14, 2009)

I've actually been considering Enshin myself.  There's a place here in Orange County that offers it.  I was doing Muay Thai/BJJ but I started going back to school so my free time has drastically decreased.  Luckily the Enshin classes work perfectly with my schedule.  I'd love to see some regularly updates on your impressions of the class, J.


----------



## jarrod (Jul 14, 2009)

well i'm afraid i decided to end my short time in enshin.  it's a really, really cool style, but i was simply having to unlearn too many things for my comfort.  mainly i was having difficulty not punching in the face when i saw an opening (i'm a bit of a headhunter by boxing standards) & the gripping restrictions were also difficult for me with my judo/sambo background.  the sabaki method is very valuable; but once again i'm most comfortable in-fighting so it was just too many changes for me too late in my MA training.  

milkmanx, i'd still like to go watch the sabaki challenge, gimme a holler & we'll meet up.  

jf


----------



## Frostbite (Jul 14, 2009)

Hmm...sounds like Daido Juku might be a better fit for you if you're interested in pursuing the Kyokushin offshoots.


----------



## jarrod (Jul 14, 2009)

i really like what i've seen of daido juku, but i don't think there are any schools around denver.

jf


----------



## Frostbite (Jul 14, 2009)

I don't know if there are any schools in the US, let alone Denver.

At any rate, I think I'm going to try an Enshin class myself in the next little while.  I'll have to keep you all updated.


----------



## jarrod (Jul 14, 2009)

please do.  i think it would have made a terrific foundation style for my goals, but at this point it just felt like a step back.  not in terms of skill, but in terms of options.  

jf


----------



## Frostbite (Jul 14, 2009)

Replace head punch with head kick?


----------



## jarrod (Jul 14, 2009)

shortest distance between two points, my man.  old habits die hard.  

there's also the issue of not being able to grab both sides of the opponent's gi when attempting a throw.  i thought judo had a lot of grip restrictions!

jf


----------



## Frostbite (Jul 14, 2009)

jarrod said:


> shortest distance between two points



I think technically, that'd be a headbutt.


----------



## jarrod (Jul 15, 2009)

you mean you don't keep your hands in front of your face? *gasp*

jf


----------



## Frostbite (Jul 15, 2009)

jarrod said:


> you mean you don't keep your hands in front of your face? *gasp*



LOL...touche.


----------



## blindsage (Jul 16, 2009)

Sorry it didn't work out for you Jarrod, but glad you still like and respect the system.  In my old (similar to Enshin) training we didn't have head strikes either, but there were no real restrictions on throws (for those of us cross training in small circle Jiu-Jitsu at the school).  I also often thought about the no head strikes on my own and would practice seperately for using them, and when I would spar with other people outside the school, I would intentionally practice head strikes.  I've never really had any problems with it in practice.


----------



## MilkManX (Jul 21, 2009)

I can see how that would be hard to unlearn.

At my Enshin dojo we do knockdown rules 90% of the time.

Sometimes we do self defence and there are no rules(its a controlled situation though but still) where head punching and 2 sided throws are in.

Its not perfect but what it does it does very well and I enjoy it.

Yeah when I come to Denver next year I will let you know. 

Osu!


----------

