anyone here ever tried to do a kata with their eyes closed?

[CoryKS]

When I first began I would do kata with my eyes closed in order to divorce my movement from my orientation. My instructor often has us begin the kata facing the back of the room, side, corners, etc., and I always got mixed up. By closing my eyes, I found I was able to concentrate on how to move rather than where to move.

 

[Senjojutsu]

When I first began I would do kata with my eyes closed in order to divorce my movement from my orientation. My instructor often has us begin the kata facing the back of the room, side, corners, etc., and I always got mixed up. By closing my eyes, I found I was able to concentrate on how to move rather than where to move.

You beat me to this point!

It is amazing how certain students doing kata(forms) have directions that are totally keyed to (starting) room orientation - especially if the school classes always faces "one way" for kata practice.

Never mind blindfolds - just change orientation - or have them start halfway through.

Just have the opcorn: ready - or the Valium.

 

[bushidomartialarts]

Once you've gotten the hang of it, go one step further and do your kata without moving at all.

 

[SahBumNimRush]

You beat me to this point!

It is amazing how certain students doing kata(forms) have directions that are totally keyed to (starting) room orientation - especially if the school classes always faces "one way" for kata practice.

Never mind blindfolds - just change orientation - or have them start halfway through.

Just have the opcorn: ready - or the Valium.

As black belts we start our students practicing their forms backwards, from the middle of the form and going to the end OR the beginning. It is important as an instructor to be able to know the forms inside and out, front to back. I think the blind fold, the starting in the midst of the form, and going backwards are great exercises for developing a deeper knowledge of the patterns (not necessarily the applications) of the forms.

 

[Aikicomp]

I have my students do kata with their eyes closed for all the reasons mentioned above, it's a great way to not be fooled by what you see.

We also do self defense with them closed as well, because, you never know what will happen on the street.

If for example, a student is having a problem with say a particular Judo throw or Aikdo technique, I will have them close their eyes and try it and usually they do the technique smoother and easier, because they are not relying on what they see, but, what they feel.

Also, I will have them do joint locks and control techniques with eyes closed because one of the most important things about being good at applying joint locks and controling someone through them is the ability to feel what your opponent is doing and feel what you are applying.

Practicing in this manner can give you the ability to move from one technique to another efficiently and smoothly without giving away your intentions to your opponent.

Very good training!

Michael

 

[kaizasosei]

I rely on my feeling as much as i do my eyes, or even more. Used to do those sorts of exercises-some sortof crazy.
But practicing mostly indoors with lots of glass and porcelan around, i may just do serious damage. My room always get sortof messed up anyhow from all the shurikenmisses and rougue sword slashes. The most annoying thing is a newly installed chandelier that wasnt there before-i've hit it a bunch of times already..

A while back i had to fix up my whole room and i fixed and painted all the damage. But it's starting again....

 

[Kyosanim]

So me and my Sandan (Senpai) friend and a brown belt were kind of messing around after Shotokan class today. and while we were training. and sandan said that years ago our sensei used to have people do their katas with their eyes closed.

So I tried heian nidan. I could not complete fully the kata, lol. I'd get to the reinforced block, then when i turn for the gedan barai's at the end and whatnot, I'd fall, haha!

Its hard to do a kata with eyes closed cause your balance is all screwed, lol!

Sandan got through bassai dai ok, but not without stumbling and almost falling himself.

Brown belt - she did bassai dai almost perfectly. So I started teasing Sandan - She did better than you and she's a brown belt! My friend said 'Well guess I'll have to give her my belt then' and he untied his belt and gave it to her! lol. Too funny

So any of you ever tried a kata with your eyes closed? What happened with you? Today was the first time I ever tried that. It was good for a fun new experience. I think it even might be helpful cause i have to keep a stronger stance to hold balance even more. I've a feeling it might help make kata better, what you think?

I have tried it a few times but only with poomse I was very familiar with. I did okay until I had to do the ones with jump kicks. It is kinda fun to try, though you will fall a lot lol.

 

[Balrog]

So any of you ever tried a kata with your eyes closed? What happened with you? Today was the first time I ever tried that. It was good for a fun new experience. I think it even might be helpful cause i have to keep a stronger stance to hold balance even more. I've a feeling it might help make kata better, what you think?

We do it all the time. It's one of my favorite teaching techniques, because it makes you visualize the form in your mind and really cements the memorization phase of learning.

 

[Tez3]

It's good to do kata blindfold, backwards etc but much more important to my mind is know the Bunkai, inside out. That is the point of kata really, not perfect movements done elegantly but positive, working self defence and fighting techniques.

 

[tshadowchaser]

Actually I have my class do forms with their eyes closed or blindfolded at least once a month.
Not only dose it eliminate the process of learning a form with a set reference point to focus on but it also helps with coordination.
I will admit it can be interesting to see where one actual ends up and how well some of the moves are done when a person can not see.

 

[Stac3y]

We do it sometimes. It helps with balance, as well as testing how well you really know your kata--some people get the look of the training room so ingrained as part of the kata that they can't even do the kata in a different location--it helps break them of that. It can also be entertaining. Doing Chung Mu (which has a flying side kick in it) in a small room full of people with your eyes closed can have comical results. Since we do audible breathing, it reinforces that; if you aren't breathing audibly, and listening to the others, you may wind up having a collision. We also do work with kicking shields with eyes closed sometimes. That's fun.

I also like to do kata on the beach, right where the surf comes in. The sand gets pulled out from under your feet, so you have to constantly adjust your balance. It's cool.

 

[Sukerkin]

For a change I am out of step with almost all posts here . I don't believe that practising kata with your eyes shut provides that much in the way of benefit (altho' kudos to those that can do so).

Eyes (senses) first, sword next ... never the other way round. There are some kata that presume total darkness with attacks guided by sound but even there to train without looking would be a retrograde step.

Of course, when you're wanging steel about, there are other H&S issues besides just not falling over if you tried to perform kata 'blind'. It's bad enough for the half-blind and severely vision impaired students I've trained with and they are used to their conditions.

 

[Ken Morgan]

For a change I am out of step with almost all posts here . I don't believe that practising kata with your eyes shut provides that much in the way of benefit (altho' kudos to those that can do so).

Eyes (senses) first, sword next ... never the other way round. There are some kata that presume total darkness with attacks guided by sound but even there to train without looking would be a retrograde step.

Of course, when you're wanging steel about, there are other H&S issues besides just not falling over if you tried to perform kata 'blind'. It's bad enough for the half-blind and severely vision impaired students I've trained with and they are used to their conditions.

A swordsman/woman will know where their tip is at all times, you should be able to complete a kata with your eyes closed, and have it be no more dangerous then having one's eyes wide open. But you are correct, metski (sp?) is a very important piece of sword kata.

 

[Sukerkin]

There's a double entendre there but I shall skirt around it :lol:. To be clear, I didn't say I couldn't do it, just that I don't see {yeah, visual cortex based pun attack!} there was that much real value to it. Note I didn't say I could do it either :lol:.

I'm not sensei of the world, so people don't have to agree with me {Cartman voice} "Just respect my authoritaey!"

 

[Stac3y]

There's a double entendre there but I shall skirt around it :lol:.

Don't you mean "hakama around it"? :wink1:

 

[Blade96]

Nice posts here, guys.

 

[Aikicomp]

Don't you mean "hakama around it"? :wink1:

Well done! :rofl: :asian:

Michael

 

[Laus]

The run up to my black belt test happend to span the christmas holidays. Queue dojo Christmas party. We were at one of our students' restaurant, and after dinner, as is tradition, we rearanged the tables and started into the drunken kata. Somewhere along the line someone decided I needed a blindfold, and grabbed a dinner napkin and tied it around my head. I start to remove my party shoes but am promptly ordered to put them back on. So, drunk, blind and in heels I proceed to bust out a wobbly but otherwise respectable Sanseiru. It went quite well, except that I was turned around at the end, facing left. Fun times.

 

[Blade96]

lol - drunken kata! :uhyeah:

I'm gonna try that again on tuesday.....kata with my eyes closed. =]