had my first Bujinkan class tonight!!!!

[LuzRD]

ok, so i hadnt even met with sensei before tonight i had only emailed with him a couple times. He invited me to his private dojo at his home, for a small class on tuesdays.
tonights class starts (only 3 students tonight, i guess 2 others were sick) and he has me just get involved with the class. class tonight was all about the hanbo (i think it was a hanbo, bout 3' long (i dunno you tell me)) so we were working nice and slow (just like he kept reminding us to do).
Sensei was always right there ready to answer all of my questions (and i asked alot of questions, and i have ALOT more ) , and patiently pointing out what everyone was missing, or when we had our timing/distance/order wrong etc.
so after what seemed like 30 minutes of examining the mat up close and personal like, he announces that the 2 hour class was over. sheesh those 2 hours flew by. i cant wait for more abuse/learning!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i cant remember the last time i had to pick myself up off the floor so much as i did tonight (go ahead, lets here your best drunk jokes :barf: )

after class he asked me how i liked it (i loved it), and invited me back, but theres no class next week. so i gotta wait 2 dang weeks.

thanks all for letting me get that out.

questions/comments/concerns are all welcome!

 

[Zida'sukara]

Congrats to you!!!!

I know you truly liked it, can hear and almost feel the excitement in your post in Germany. :boing1:

Pfffiew 2 weeks waiting sure is along time when you are so excited about it. Good luck on that!!

 

[LuzRD]

DANKE!!!!!!! Ich liebe Bujinkan!!!!!!!!!! sorry its been an awful long time since i tried to say anything in German (as you can likely tell).

im like a big ugly kid on christmas morning, well more like 2 weeks from christmas morning after seeing all the toys that hes getting and cant play with them yet.

Ive been trying to remember all the stuff sensei showed us on tuesday, but i know im forgetting some of it (probably alot of it). so i just keep going over what i do remember.
I suppose that may be helpfull, concentrating on 2 or 3 things instead of a half a dozen should make it easier for me to practice the small things that i kept "oopsing" in class.

i can see it now. im going to end up spending alot of money on practice stuff to have here at the house. sheesh

 

[Carol]

So glad to hear that you found a school and that you're loving it! That is awesome!

 

[LuzRD]

thanks Carol! i ended up googling and finding a Godan right over in Derry. hes only like 20-30 minutes from me. small class, good people, comfortable mats (i know im going to be getting to know the mat VERY well. weve actually already spent considerable quality time together )

the only down side is that im way too giddy for someone thats this sore, its annoying hahaha

wicked good time

 

[Zida'sukara]

Guten Morgen LuzRD!! (Good Morning)
(Before you know it, this thread has turned in to a German language class. )

A small class and so close to your home, that sounds very good. And concerning the mats....I think that I will soon spend a lot of time with them too.

 

[bydand]

Notes, lots and lots of notes. They help you remember later what you covered and are a great memory jogger. Do them right after class when everything is still fresh in your mind and your instructor is still there to help with names and such, if they are not busy. Good luck! Enjoy!!

 

[rutherford]

Notes, lots and lots of notes. They help you remember later what you covered and are a great memory jogger. Do them right after class when everything is still fresh in your mind and your instructor is still there to help with names and such, if they are not busy. Good luck! Enjoy!!

I was going to suggest the opposite. At this level, I'd not try to remember anything but Ukemi, San Shin, and Kihon. At home, practice falling and rolling until you're sure you know the San Shin and have had it corrected several times, then practice it as well. Gradually build up an understanding of kamae and begin practicing some kamae flow drills at home.

Don't collect any techniques or worry about any oopses in class. Treat every class, and indeed every engagement with a partner as a completely new experience. Only carry the principles of good movement: back straight, lines of movement, etc.

Go to class regularly. Gambate!

 

[bydand]

I was going to suggest the opposite. At this level, I'd not try to remember anything but Ukemi, San Shin, and Kihon. At home, practice falling and rolling until you're sure you know the San Shin and have had it corrected several times, then practice it as well. Gradually build up an understanding of kamae and begin practicing some kamae flow drills at home.

Don't collect any techniques or worry about any oopses in class. Treat every class, and indeed every engagement with a partner as a completely new experience. Only carry the principles of good movement: back straight, lines of movement, etc.

Go to class regularly. Gambate!

I should have been clearer actually. My first pages of notes concerned mostly the phrases used in the opening bow-in and the closing bow-out, along with the names of what we were learning, not a discription of the actual techinique, mainly because I found it impossable to discribe the "what" of a technique, let alone do it again from notes at home. I found the useage of Japanese terms very difficult and the names would totally escape me (still do to tell the truth ) I found that by writing them down and going over them at a later time to be much better for me to remember them and what to do when.

 

[Zida'sukara]

Some of those words do not get into head too.

But how do you write them down? You cant do it in the dojo when you are training. Writing them down later is also not an option because by than, you already forgot them.

It would be an option to ask it after the lesson but you cannot keep bothering your teacher after every lesson to repeat everything. Till now I just trained and mostly remembered half of the word which was enough for others to fill it up till I learned the complete word.

But technics was just a matter of practicing practicing and dont forget practicing.

 

[bydand]

It would be an option to ask it after the lesson but you cannot keep bothering your teacher after every lesson to repeat everything. Till now I just trained and mostly remembered half of the word which was enough for others to fill it up till I learned the complete word.

I think I may have been lucky, but I've never had an Instructor who thought taking a few minutes after class to clarify a question was a bother. Most of them have actually said time and time again that they would be more than happy to go over that days class with anybody afterwards to fill in their notes. As I said, I may just have been lucky.

 

[LuzRD]

I think that i will take a pad of paper and a pen to class, if nothing else i will at least take note of the oopses that i know i am having trouble with.

I sure that after a few weeks of wishing that i had written more, i will learn to know what parts of class to make note of after class. I may actually learn the names of what im doing haha.

Ive heard it said a few times not to worry about techniques (per se), but instead to get "a feel" for it so it can come naturally and not feel like you are doing a set order of movements to accomplish "a move". If this is the case, how would i differentiate notes that should be written, and notes that should be discarded for the better understanding of taijutsu?
Ive felt (from a zero experience standpoint) that once one has the basics to a comfortable degree of competence that what was learned after that point would naturally be learned more easily. Does that make sense? Should i just shut up and learn? haha

I dunno, thank you everyone for your responses to date. You have all made me feel a little more comfortable knowing that your all here/more experienced/willing to help, and a buncha all around good people!

 

[bencole]

I think that i will take a pad of paper and a pen to class, if nothing else i will at least take note of the oopses that i know i am having trouble with.

Please do not even consider doing so at any point *DURING* class. If you need to make a few notes at the end of class, that is fine. But to think of writing anything down while the instructor is teaching is outright rude.

There is going to be way too much for you to write down anyways. At this point, focus on one thing and one thing only. You are not there to collect a whole bunch of stuff so you can practice things (incorrectly) at home.

Pay attention to what the teacher keeps telling you. In the beginning, it will be simple things like keeping your back straight when moving your foot back. It's not sexy and not a technique, but *FAR MORE IMPORTANT* to your overall growth than any sexy technique.

-ben

 

[Shicomm]

It seems like someone had fun!
Nice to know that the family has grown a little bit again

Enjoy your training!

 

[LuzRD]

Please do not even consider doing so at any point *DURING* class. If you need to make a few notes at the end of class, that is fine. But to think of writing anything down while the instructor is teaching is outright rude.

There is going to be way too much for you to write down anyways. At this point, focus on one thing and one thing only. You are not there to collect a whole bunch of stuff so you can practice things (incorrectly) at home.

Pay attention to what the teacher keeps telling you. In the beginning, it will be simple things like keeping your back straight when moving your foot back. It's not sexy and not a technique, but *FAR MORE IMPORTANT* to your overall growth than any sexy technique.

-ben

Ben thank you for your response. I should have clearly said that i meant to jot down a couple notes AFTER class, i would never try and do it during class as i would feel like a real tool, and likely be used by sensei to "participate" in the next series of tutorials.

Maybe ill have the pen and paper ready incase i need to make note of somthing that i am completely screwing up so i can at least work on the small details outside the dojo.
Ill ask sensei next class how he feels i should (or shouldnt) do this. So he and i are on the same page.

I am not one for sexy techniques, i think that one of the major reasons i decided Bujinkan was right for me, was the lack of "set in stone" A,B,C,D series of movements for each particular result.

Shicomm, i sure did! and im feeling it today more so than yesterday (that means im learning right?? haha

thank you all