Since payday has hit (thankfully), it was time for us to restock our pantry for the coming month. I had been informed by The Mighty Mr. Erbe that our local County Market was being surprisingly trendy and stocked Bawls (both regular and sugar free) for the discount price of $1/bottle.

I had ordered it before from Thinkgeek.com and by the time you added shipping and tax into the mix it ended up at around $38 for 24 bottles. I’ll take a 40% discount and being able to have my Bawls immediately, thank you very much.

I also took the opportunity to check to see if County Market has continued to carry my beloved Flavorite Beef Noodles, and they do. So I bought the entire display. They’ve punched up the package design, unfortunately the happy cow did not make the cut this time around.

Thanks for the tip, Dave!!

Today marked the first workout during which and ‘s annual goal overlaps with ours… this month they strive to do 100 Sochin and 100 Unsu kata.

It was a smallish crowd today… just Darren, , Garls-san, and me. We opened up the morning with 45 minutes or so of Sochin, we all got to 15 kata before they switched to Unsu. I took the opportunity to grab some water and then knock out another 18 Sochin, which brought me to 33 kata in almost exactly two hours (including warmups). I always like the workouts where I get to add a percentage point!

I found out some interesting things today… I did not know that has competed in some tournaments with Sochin and trained intensively in this kata for some time. It shows in his technique, I wish I was as natural in my side kick elbow strike combinations. Also, came with a *can* of Bawls in tow. Apparently you can purchase the cans from Caseys. I wonder if it’s cheaper than the bottles…

It was a good workout today, the weather was simply beautiful for such endeavors. It’s going to be a good month!!

Average Kata per month (as of August 31): 155.88

I have been exchanging emails with Sensei Hassell occassionally relating to my research into Sochin, during which he mentioned some interesting points of study regarding the origins of this kata.

Now, it is widely reported that Sochin has its roots in Dragon Style kung fu, however there aren’t a lot of details relating to its origins aside from the fact that it was probably taught to Sensei Funakoshi by one of his main instructors, Yoshitsune Azato. Azato likely learned the kata from Ankichi Arakaki (1899-1929). There is some good evidence that the original name of the kata was Hakko, but as Sensei Hassell put very well, “the meaning of that name is lost in the mists of history.” The Shotokan version of Sochin was largely developed and introduced by Funakoshi’s son, Yoshitaka.

Sensei Hassell gave me some areas to explore in order to find out more about Sochin’s origins. He directed me toward the Chinese Bubishi, where movements similar to the opening high-low blocks of the kata can be seen in illustrations. He also made mention of a Japanese deity known as Fudo Myo-o or Acala. Fudo literally means “immovable”, and is used as a synonym for sochin-dachi (many Japanese translations still refer to fudo-dachi). Fudo Myo-o is known as “The Immovable One” and is depicted in statues around Japanese temples as defensive guardians.

Interestingly, several statues show him with one arm upraised above his head, sword held aloft to strike down demons. The other hand is held in front of his hip, clutching a twisted rope intended for subduing evil spirits. This position is very reminiscent of the opening technique of Sochin kata, and the translation of the name Sochin means “tranquil force” or “protecting the peace.” It seems somewhat logical that Hakko /Sochin might’ve been inspired by the intensity, rooted strength, and defensive principles that Fudo Myo-o represents.

Thanks to Sensei Hassell for pointing me down this path, it is a very interesting topic!

I would like to reiterate, these are just my thoughts. I am no expert, but I have been through this kata quite a bit this year.

For the next technique, the left arm straightens out toward the rear and the body pivots 180 degrees to perform a head level crescent kick that contacts the outstretched hand at face level. The right hand should stay in its previous punching position, as it helps to anchor as you come around and land in sochin-dachi with a high low block similar to the opening movement of the kata.

Sensei Brewer has often said that this point is useful for regaining one’s center as they enter the “homestretch” of the kata. This series of movements should not be rushed and adequate pause and tension should be applied when landing in stance. I have found that it is important not to lean with the shoulders and to focus on not letting the rear end drift outwards when performing the crescent kick. This provides a solid, upright center to drop into the ground when landing.

The outward block/lunge punch combinations that follow should mirror the knifehand block combinations for strength, seperation, and distinct tension. I have had to fight letting my shoulders roll forward and my rear end sticking out as I perform these techniques, focusing on one’s center and stance really helps to make these combinations pop. There should be a conscious effort to not “flow” these techniques together. They are distinct and individual to reinforce the rooted nature of the stance and the power that is inherent to the block punch combination.

The final movements of this kata are an exercise in both tension and relaxation. Turning toward the front, full range of motion is important to make each of the two outward blocks big and strong. The face level front kick should be fast, snappy, and controlled when stepping back into sochin-dachi. As the foot steps down, the right hand slowly pulls back to the chest as the left hand extends out into a punch. This technique should be slow to show contrast between the fast hard kick and the strong tearing motion.

The final two punches should be sharp and explosive. I have been working on squeezing my center briefly at the end of the slow tearing motion in order to allow my body to reflexively relax so I can get the most speed and power out of the last two punches. A pause should be allowed before returning to natural position, and the return to yoi should be done slowly and controlled.

I hope these thoughts on Sochin can help. I am still learning all the time, so please share any of your own findings as you get into this kata.

I would like to reiterate, these are just my thoughts. I am no expert, but I have been through this kata quite a bit this year.

The six movements following the side snap kick/backfist/elbow strike combinations are knifehand blocks. Early on, I realized that pivoting with a feeling of tension in my rear leg helped brace my body when spinning and gave a great, strong feeling coming into the first knifehand block of the run.

After watching Sensei Osaka’s video again, the most striking element for me is the distinct and sharp nature of the first four knifehands. They are completely seperate attacks, each distinct with very little (if any) flow between them. Care should be taken to make full range of motion when transitioning between these techniques, a lack of this will really affect how strong this portion of the kata looks.

The only knifehands that have any direct connection to one another are movements 23 and 24 (the knifehands that go back “up the middle”). They flow together like many of the other pairs of knifehand blocks do in the Heian kata, and are punctuated by the sliding forward rising spearhand thrust to the throat. That movement is somewhat seperate and distinct itself, however there is less pause here than between the knifehand blocks.

Sensei Enoeda’s book “Shotokan Advanced Kata Vol. 2” does an excellent job of describing the next two combinations: “Without moving the hand position, perform a left front kick… Perform a right front kick whilst doing a simultaneous block and attack with the arms – a right inner arm twisting block and left close punch, forward, both to head level. [A]s the foot snaps back, step forward… and downward, still keeping hand positions. As the foot snaps back… step forward into [sochin-dachi] and perform a simultaneous left inner arm twisting block and right close punch – by reversing the arms.”

I originally misinterpreted the twisting block as being cranked against my own shoulder and this is not the case. It is a very similar arm motion as an outward block, but the hand comes back slightly past a 90 degree angle. The feeling of the block is in fact twisting outward, not cranked back as I had originally assumed. The attacking hand is punching, very similar to the punch in Tekki Shodan.

That’s all for installment four… a quick note on technique numbering. I am largely doing necessary movements, counting combinations as one “movement”. My numbering will vary from other published works, but its all in there.

Tonight’s workout was interesting. There was an extremely small crowd ( and must be the draw or something), so Garls-san led the first class in a really killer basics class. Forty-five minutes of nearly talk-free basics, it was a nice change of pace and a good review.

Sensei Brewer arrived in time for the second class and led everyone through all of the Heian and Tekki katas, Bassai Dai, and several (complete, in honor of our missing black belts) Kanku Sho. We then got pads and mouthguards out for some 3-5 time attack.

I ended up across from for the first segment, her attacks are both strong and furious. I had a good time getting to spar her, but before I knew it Sensei Brewer had tagged in for her.

This is always where the fun begins. We were given the go-ahead to counter attack at some point during the 3-5 time attack, so I knew the next 10 minutes were going to be interesting. Tonight it seemed that every time I would commit to an attack (and occassionally get in), the Universe would create a void that sucks all oxygen and sound out of the negative space between Sensei and I right before the flurry of his counter attack would hit.

Once, after my attack that may or may not have actually been in range, I successfully avoided Sensei’s attempt to grab my gi sleeve. So I did what any self-respecting person would do so close to danger. I ran. I got out of there just fast enough to hear the telltale sounds of Sensei coming in. Desperate to protect my brainpan, I ducked just in time to see a punch sail just into my field of view. I have dubbed this method the “Saving The Brain Stem” evasion.

Don’t get me wrong. Sensei caught me on more than one occasion tonight. In fact, we ended with a very good exchange where my side kick landed and he chased me down and put a hand pad right on my chin. I love the give and take of kumite.

But still, I find myself pondering that moment between attack and counterattack. I have to figure out either how to better utilize that, or how to make an more expeditious retreat. During a brief moment of insanity, I thought of doing The Hartman Special, but I knew that would ensure my destruction. I don’t like that my brain is entertaining that notion.

Oh yeah, I got 10 Sochin in before class. w00t.

I’m very sad to report that my Aunt Gail passed away yesterday, losing her fight against brain cancer. She was a fantastic lady and she will be sorely missed. It is comforting to know that she is no longer in pain and can finally enjoy the rewards of the great life that she lead.

Goodbye, Aunt Gail.

I would like to reiterate, these are just my thoughts. I am no expert, but I have been through this kata quite a bit this year.

The side snap kick, backfist strike, landing in elbow strike combinations are some of the more difficult techniques in Sochin kata. I had very real problems getting my body around for the motion, let alone finding power in the backfist strike and the elbow strike. The way I got around it was keeping awareness of two things: my chambering for both the kick and the backfist strike, and where my stance landed.

By connecting the “cup and saucer” hand motion that precedes the backfist strike to the chamber for the side snap kick, it helps to reinforce the center of the body as you spin to throw the techniques. Sensei Brewer recently provided advice to really think of the backfist strike as the attack, to reach with that fist and really think about hitting hard with it. That keeps the back straight, the shoulders upright, and the intent of the combination intact.

The landing and elbow strike essentially sets up technique sixteen (which is again, the same combination the opposite way). Sensei Quinn told me that it was important to step more straight down from the side snap kick chamber, to prevent overextending the body. If you overextend the body this causes your hips to be over-rotated, which makes the second side snap kick virtually impossible to throw withe the appropriate power. Stepping down in this fashion also allows for maximum “settling” into sochin-dachi which gives a good foundation for a strong elbow strike as well.

and I have been experimenting with various configurations of side snap kick and body rotation, and it appears that the proper execution of the side snap kick and backfist combination for techniques 15 and 16 really makes all the difference in executing the next series of techniques well. Throwing the backist hard and outward like Sensei Brewer recommends is great advice, it really helps to prevent the body from overrotating into a close backfist strike, which opens the hips too far and makes the second side snap kick more difficult.

Unfortunately, some of these principles are hard to illuminate in words. If this is unclear, I’ll show what feeble examples I can provide if needed. Just ask. 🙂

That’s all for installment three, more tomorrow.

I would like to reiterate, these are just my thoughts. I am no expert, but I have been through this kata quite a bit this year.

A few of my dojomates and I had a bit of a difference of opinion regarding the turn into the Heian Godan style high low blocks. I spent part of tonight watching some of the videos that I have of people Higher Ranked Than I doing this kata and it appears that there is no “bringing together” of the feet before stepping out into back stance for the high low blocks. Sensei Brewer made an important observation on the high-low motion here: the upper block is a smash, not a block. It should be strong, and not an afterthought. It is also important to take the time to fully stop this motion before moving back into sochin-dachi, or else it is very difficult to maintain ones center.

The next four techniques are the same as the first four techniques, with one noteworthy difference. Movement 6, which is similar to the opening movement of the kata, should be done sharply and quickly. This is where the dichotomy of speed and power is really shown. Being able to demonstrate building power in the first movement and power generated from speed in movement six is a very important notion in this kata. Just the same as the explosive power of the two punches in movements three and four, movements six and eleven should both be dynamic.

Movements 7, 8, 9 and 10 are the same as movements 2,3,4 and 5. Please see the other post for my thoughts on these four techniques.

Turning into the second Heian Godan style high low block, it is important to really reach across ones body and get the full range of motion. Failure to do this will result in short, weak looking technique and will make it even more difficult to maintain tension in the center of the body that is required to get back to sochin-dachi for the next four movements.

Again, like movement six, movement eleven should be done with sharp tension and a solid connected finish. Time should be taken not to “flow” these techniques together too much, they should each stand on their own. Care should be taken to ensure that the increased speed does not compromise the sochin-dachi, I fought (and still fight) the urge to let that rear knee sink in to generate a little more snap to the hand movements. Because this movement is sharp, it is important to take the time to show the differences in speed moving into the next vertical knifehand block. Again I come back to taking the time to let this technique unfold and really grow the tension, then release it again with the two punches in movements 13 and 14.

That’s all for installment two!

I’ve been asked to clean up my Sochin notes into a consumable format, so I thought no better place to communicate them than here. Over the next few nights, I will be transcribing my thoughts on segments of Sochin kata. I would like to reiterate, these are just my thoughts. I am no expert, but I have been through this kata quite a bit this year.

Without further adieu…

Sochin is characterized by strong rooted movements. This should not be news to anyone that is looking to perform this kata, you need look no further than Osaka-Sensei’s JKA series video to see this. Every movement in this kata is distinct and powerful, and these concepts are important to demonstrate with the first technique.

I have seen many variations of the first technique of this kata. Both Sensei Osaka and Sensei Quinn demonstrate this motion similarly, however there are several other interpretations that I have been a party to. This high low block is somewhat circular in motion… while the left hand rises and ends similar to a rising block, the right hand performs an exagerrated circular motion, ending similar to downward block only more rounded at the elbow. The palm of the closed fist should be pushing downward and outward at the finish of the movement. The start of the movement is where the difference appears to lie. It appears that the JKA interpretation of this kata has the right hand come back behind the right hip, swinging back and over the head before coming down into the circular finish of the motion.

When I was first working on this kata, Sensei Brewer instructed me to have the feeling of squeezing together with both the knees and the elbows, which really helped in drawing everything closer to the center but I found would leave me with a subconscious pause at the top of the motion. This was very clearly a mistake in my understanding of the movement at that early stage. Sensei Hassell went further along this line and describes the motion slightly differently, stating that the hand should not drop back behind the hip, but should come up from ready position above the head in a gradual flowing motion downward. He said that the extra movement backward would provide an opening that he would rather not give a would be attacker. I can see the wisdom in that.

As I researched further and really watched Sensei Brewer and studied other videos, the intent of a continuous flowing motion with gradually increasing tension to the end of the technique was very clear. There should be no pause, no stopping as the body settles down into sochin-dachi and gradual squeezing of tension as the blocks lock together. I found that with repetition my shoulder muscles and tendons would get sore from holding the weight and the tension throughout the movement, I recently realized that tensing the pectoral muscles can prevent a lot of that trauma and really locks your technique into the center.

There is not much to be said about the second technique, the vertical knifehand holds the same characteristics as the first movement. Many people want to leave tension off the start of the technique and pick it up at the end, but in reality the tension should grow continuously throughout the motion. I found that punctuating the end of the technique by squeezing *slightly* helps to get the relaxation that leads into the following two punches. Also, the arm should be level with the shoulder, and the palm should be as flat as possible when pushing outward at the end of the motion.

Sensei Brewer described the first four movements of this kata as a growing storm… the first two movements are slow and strong like a storm rolling in and building power. The two punches should be light lightning, fast and explosive. Much of the difficulty in Sochin kata is purely this notion… being rooted in sochin-dachi and still relaxed enough to have explosive power.

Sochin-dachi itself is a bit of a challenge as well. Starting off the kata, it is very important to keep the hips, shoulders and back all in line in order to enable the knees to press outward and your hips to drop down. When transitioning to the second movement, I have the trouble of my back knee dropping inward because my butt sticks out as I move. Tension in the stomach and across the shoulder blades help alleviate this problem, but it is one of the areas that still gives me difficulty. Also, when doing the two punches it is important to be aware of hip action. It should really be vibration, if you trend more toward rotation naturally you will find that you will likely throw your knees out of stance and it will take some effort to keep the stance strong while the punches stay powerful.

That’s all for installment one, thanks for reading.