Adventures in a dojo continues
Needless to say, I just had some swagger as I left the karate centre and looked forward to my next session.
My second week at the Horizon Karate Centre started with me on the floor doing push-ups.
That is what pupils do when they arrive late for class. I didn’t mind that as any form of exercise is good exercise.
After my 10 push-ups, I was led to the beginners corner to refresh my body on what I have learned before.
With grading just a mere week away for my senpai’s (seniors) Hope Kotze, my first instructor had to train, however, I was still in good hands.
Second dan Lindi Engelbrecht, who has been training in the martial art for 17 years took over.
As we started with Oi Zuki, a normal punch, I found my body was less resistant and relaxed immediately.
After Soto-Uke, an outside inward forearm block we then moved over to the forearm block that I struggled with the week before.
The Uchi-Uke looks easy but is extremely difficult as the coordination between left arm and right arm can leave one confused.
But senpai Lindi was rather calm and showed no frustration as I struggled and she had to slowly instruct me on the correct procedure.
After what seemed like an eternity, I felt like a king as my body started to respond and both my arms started listening to me.
Senpai Lindi, started training in Karate when she was eight years old after she tried her hand in ballet and gymnastics.
At this point, I was happy that she didn’t excel in them as I would have missed out on a good instructor.
She kept on praising and encouraging the beginners and it made me feel confident in what I was doing.
She taught us how to punch correctly by showing us how to lead with the knuckles so they can absorb the impact and to tuck our thumbs just under the knuckles. This way, you don’t hurt yourself.
“Everything we do from how to make a punch to blocking is to build a foundation. It is essential you know how when you start learning kata which are small, structured practice routines which become second nature through physical training or kumite which is known as freestyle fighting,” she said.
One thing I am also struggling with is the differentiation between sensei (instructor) and senpai (senior) because they sound so similar.
At one point, I referred to sensei Wendy Wannenberg as senpai which was rather embarrassing.
However, I am looking forward to counting in Japanese because I memorized it during high school when I watched a lot of Japanese anime.
Although I’m not yet ready to join the official class, just knowing I am getting better left me beaming with pride.
I won’t share how I practice the moves I learn for a few minutes every night before I sleep because that is embarrising.
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Also read: Adventures in a dojo
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