Sunday, June 24, 2007

Advice from SPC

I talked to SPC at the SCKF Tournament.

I asked him what I should do to fix my habit of blocking. He said that blocking is not good. He suggested few methods:
1. When I practice against little kids, I know for sure that I can beat him because they're slower and I can see them completely (I can see all the moves and their whole body b/c they're so small). If I can see them coming to attack, then try my counter-attack Wazas. Also, practice my Seme and Waza on them. THEN, take that to a higher level opponents. I should be able to see them as well.

2. He also said that, first, I should try to see them coming. If I see them then attack, it's already too late. I must 'feel' them coming. (UG mentioned this many times, too) I really didn't know what this meant. But, I had few instances when I could 'feel' that the opponent was going to attack (certain target too). I don't know how to explain this, but I could just 'feel' it. (I'll try to work on it and explain further once I get the grasp of it)
Once I practice 'seeing' them coming in, then try to 'feel' them coming in. He said that the ultimate goal is to feel them coming in even before they attack (and do my counter-attack).

3. I told him that when I tried to keep my Kamae (and not block), the tip of my Kamae often slips off from the opponent's Do and the opponent hits a valid Men. He said that if I'm not keeping a straight Kamae, it's my fault. I should not try to force blocking the opponent by holding a strong Kamae (hard to explain but I often try to point at Tsuki to make the opponent's Men invalid), but my Kamae should be in the center and aim the tip to his Tsuki.

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