The force of Spirit that perfects

Scott middleton sensei April 2019, Halmstad Sweden

  As some of my friends already know I attended a training camp with Scott Middleton sensei of the WTKO this weekend he is an awesome instructor, so knowledgable, crafted, detailed, intense and really knows how to draw a class out of themselves. Encouraging us to sincerely to do our best and step up to the challenges that he throws at us. When I trained with him last year I remember being greatly relieved that he unapologetically pushed the class to capacity in order to make people dig deep and shine. He does this with great skill and balance...and fun of course, at times this weekend I felt like a kid again.

This got me thinking about another aspect of martial arts that was heavily pushed in the '80s and '90s and it was pushed to such an extreme that I think it ultimately was a detriment to the health. By the age of 16 I was in continuous pain, couldn't sit down for more than 20 minutes, I was hungry all the time and obviouslöy dehydrated. One class I remember particularly, I was about 15 years old, we were working on kumite and the floor was dirty and grippy...bounce, bounce back and forth with various techniques we went. Up and down the floor, full on, full force all the way, all in... as it always was then, with no balance only fire. It was called 'budo spirit'. After about an hour of this session and I came to a final technique in a long line of techniques bam bam Kiai!! and I slipped up and landed on my butt. I slipped because the soles of my feet blistered off. AND then, what did I do? I carried on...Dumb, in many ways? Yes, did I feel proud that I persevered? Yes. Does this make it right? You decide.

Fast forward 20 years later to the south of Sweden, April 2019, where suddenly my level of understanding about the expression of spirit and what it meant deepened and went to the top of my list for emphasising in myself and those I coach, along with posture, feet, stance, intention, and breath. The total necessity of expression of spirit stood out and shone as I watched the black belt grading that happened during this weekend on Saturday. This is from my FB account of the mindblowing demonstration of the arising of spirit. 

On Saturday there was a black belt grading. There were 4 testing. There was obviously a lot of nerves and they had to get up and start there test with Kata...😲 it was VERY tough, their nerves completely inhibited them from 'shining' Scott Sensei kept on and on at them and wouldn't let them off. Asking questions and pushing them, demanding that they do better...well, as the test progressed the participants fighting spirit started to shine, more and more. As this process happened the techniques, stances, power got better and better...at the beginning of there was no way they looked ready for black belt by the end of the test they were black belts. Their level went through the roof.

Not in the extreme though.

As you have already read in my account of a typical class in the 80's and 90's it was seriously questionable and there is A LOT of very bad coaching practises out there (I suspect that there still is). Allowing ourselves to be subject to someone else's stupidity, ego and simply hurting people is a matter of self-esteem issues, setting up boundaries in ourselves and being brave enough to take a pause to stand up and say quite simply, 'No'. The problem is that this type of challenge often happens in front of a lot of people so it takes an extra push of bravery and commitment because we may, in our minds stand to lose a lot...but in reality we only gain and strengthen ourselves as well as giving others the opportunity and power to say no too. I understand that this would be almost impossible for a beginner to do, and as they become indoctrinated they too will accept 'bad' coaching. It's up to us as experienced adults to be clear about all this and develop a strong culture of good coaching practises and respect.

What I loved about Scott Sensei approach was his balance in this. There were moments when we were focusing on details, studying and moving with great care and consciousness, then were times to press all in and do the technique with 'Speed and power' as he would say, allowing the possibility of chaos and a deeper expression of ourselves to shine. And this chance was only available in very short bursts of 4-10 times before we moved on to the next subject.

From now on, at the appropriate time, I will ask for the techniques to be done with 'Spirit' and speed and power. On Monday I experimented with my class and explained what I had seen during the weekend. I set up the training so that we could work with the expression of spirit becoming the icing on the cake...the results were tremendous!! As soon as there was an understanding of spirit and letting it shine through one's movements everything that the students did went up a level, their stance, position, posture and passion shone. Osu!

Photo by Sourav Mishra from Pexels

Stand back

I realise that we all have different coaching techniques that work for us, that we draw on from our favorite bag of tools and that we use to help us explain and demonstrate the intricacies of our art. I feel strongly that we need to have the best interests of our students at heart as well as the path that we are teaching, keeping it safe and intact. As with all skills, there is only so much that can be read about it, the real transmission happens one to one and it is the skill of this that obsesses me regularly and what I will be discussing today.

 Instructing, being a 'sensei', is a responsibility, a lot can go wrong and we can do way more harm than possibly imagined to the people that trust us to teach and nurture them and to the children that parents put in our care. Image the damage that we could do if we kept teaching karate like it was taught in the '80s and '90s! I enjoyed this time I was empowered by it, but was it good for my body, no! Was it probably shorting my life span and causing me a lot of pain, YES absolutely! It is up to us as coaches/senseis to stay up to date, open and evolutionary in our approach and to be humble life long learners ourselves. 

I regularly ask myself this basic question in all areas of my life: What are my priories?

When it comes to teaching karate, I am very careful and conscious of what I'm there to do, why the students are there and what's important. I remember that they are sons, daughters, mothers, and fathers and that they are loved. The details of the sessions vary from week to week but there are overarching aspects that are ultimately important throughout one's life and in the dojo and there needs to be cross-fertilisation here. For me, I am looking for the qualities of health, longevity, happiness and feeling wonderful as often as possible in and out of the dojo. We have the possibility, as coaches, to evoke a sense of accomplishment, increase self-esteem, efficacy, and joy in our classes for our students and over a long period of years these feelings are highly beneficial to the human being and their personal surroundings. 

Personally, I don't like interfering too much with the student's processes and development, even though I am, at the same time, an advocate of intensity and the necessity of reaching saturation points and breaking through...there just aren't many ways of getting information across if time is short, especially when our great instructors are only visiting for the weekend. But in general practice, I don't like to be in my student's faces and telling them to change and fix a pile of stuff. It's overloading a process that is life long anyway.  The most helpful information that I can be consistently insistent upon is 'the' principles and giving very personal homework/information for the person in I'm directly interacting with. And even then one change/improvement at a time is most effective. One of my absolute favorite aspects of the WTKO (World Traditional Karate Organisation) is that their teachings are based on solid principles. One of the huge benefits of this is that is cuts across styles, associations, and affiliations. Principles of movement are the foundations on which efficient, dynamic and powerful movement is built whether you are a javelin thrower, long jumper or marathon runner. The principles are the same and a defining character that they have is that they help me to iron out the hypocrisies in my practice and the way I'm moving.

Standing back, looking and watching, not commenting continuously, letting the student do their work and make there own connections and mistakes is vital. The skill is in seeing what the student really needs and asking oneself the question, as their coach, what piece of their personal puzzle will be useful for them to know, will actually make a difference and evoke change for them today if they are told? This requires quite a lot of discernment and sensitivity on the part of the coach. The relationship between student and sensei is at it's most effective when it is deeply personal. I have always said that when people 'perform' karate it's like reading a book. How they are mentally, emotionally and obviously physically is displayed for all to see. What a wonderful honor to be part of the positive development of an athlete and a person. The process of improved development can work from the outside to the in. Making an outer correction to the body shape causes a body, mental and emotion hook up and can shift a person and affect their general state and sense of well being immediately. Is'nt that wonderful information? This is not just my imagining this is actually proved now. Standing in a certain postures changes brain chemistry!!

Photo by Igor Rodrigues on Unsplash

So cut the training session or camp. If I am overly correcting (critical) emotionally intense and demanding most people will go into stress mode and will not be able to 'do it', they will not be able to make the corrections or change anything, they will end up feeling not so good about themselves and most likely feel inadequate. I have trained with many coaching styles and personally love the 'in your face' boot camp style where it's full-on, too much information, super challenging and very physical including getting pushed around a bit, this is my bread and butter and how I was raised into the world of karate. I take it as a compliment actually when it dished out to me. But would I do it to others? NO WAY.

So anyway, I have made a major discovery...as I explained already I like trusting the process of the student's personal evolution and them coming to their own ahah moments. But I have recently discovered something extraordinary. The further I stand back and I mean as far away from the students as possible the better. I can see and hear what's going on for them more effectively. Recently, I have literally been standing in the corner of my dojo and watching. And guess what? I have been able to really see what is going on for them. I then have not only the personal space to think about what I'm seeing and advise on corrections more appropriately but also the input that I give them has become laser focused and right on. As a result during a period of 2 weeks, the improvements in my dojo went through the roof, it was marked and for me, jaw-dropping.

The author and Mullin sensei demonstrating, Hagfors/Sweden 2018

My inspiration for these insights come from our amazing instructors at the WTKO, senseis, Richard Amos, John Mullin, and Scott Middleton, I am also inspired by the dedication and commitment of Sensei Michael Fahlsten here in Sweden. They all have such different approaches. I have most recently had the honor of training a number of times in the last year with Mullin Sensei who has an extraordinary ability to bring the best out in students. I have watched it happen a few times now. In the space of an hour, students that were fairly average became extraordinary, the level was lifted beyond what was seemingly possible. I watched in more detail in order to try and understand what Mullin sensei was doing, and, well, he stands back and he watches. When he steps in instructions are to the point and I think that mostly he has a way of interacting that simply makes people feel good about themselves and what they are doing. His detail in the instruction is perfectly placed, personal and empowering. To see what happens to the class in his presence is what prompted me to adjust my teaching style and really start looking at what it means to be a 'Coach' and ultimately a great sensei and look at what I wish for my students. I want the best results for them, for their knowledge, and flourishing understanding. If I define what that means for me at the moment, a coach/sensei is one that brings the best out of the athlete under their care, empowering them to become the best version of themselves inside and outside of the dojo. 

OSU!

Training through injuries and physical problems, are they really setbacks? No, they are not!

My Martial arts history, like many, is riddled with physical setbacks, not only with minor injuries that pass easily but also with damaged spinal disks and returning to training after pregnancy, which I did twice. Once as a very fit 23-year-old and then again in my late 30's - both very different experiences, the latter being much tougher. Presently my issues are a bit more tricky with the hips and the discovery that they hurt because the top of the leg joint isn't positioned correctly in the hip socket and never has been.

It all just goes on in the background of what is my love affair with Karate. Over the years it is becoming clear that these apparent 'problems' are actually helping to mould me, not only into a more intelligent healthy person who is making healthy lifestyle choices because of them but also I am a more skilled Karateka. I am guided by pain sometimes and motivated to not do things with my body that hurt it at others, therefore making me more self-aware and mindful in my body when training...this is one of the aims of our art, right? I am sure that anyone reading this post can relate, I'm not talking about anything new here.

I think that it would be boring to go through my personal injuries and how I got over them in detail, so instead, I will focus on the positive discoveries that came about because of them. The search for relief has brought insight into a better way of living, being and most importantly training. We all often need the motivation to treat ourselves well, so I have compiled a list of tips that will help you to keep doing what you love!

Treatment and action methods as a way of injury prevention

Let's be straightforward here, if we train Karate regularly we need regular treatments. There is no way that we would drive a car without servicing it. I have had to accept the fact that, actually, I am an elite athlete. My training routine, attitude to karate and approach to life all point towards this being a fact. The difference is that I choose not to compete in competitions. But this choice has caused me to not take myself quite as seriously as perhaps I should. I bet that there are many of you out there with the same misconception. Please take yourself seriously and see if you can adopt some of these healthy ideas.

• Have regular treatments. I recommend that for those not competing, going for a treatment once or twice a month will help injury prevention. My personal recommendations are: find a good sports therapist that has the full range of massage skills. Especially someone who is skilled at deep tissue massage, trigger point therapy and myofascial release technique. The latter is the BEST EVER for muscle/structural realignment and flushing out new and old injuries. If you can find a good 'real' massage/sports therapist, hold on to them. (A word here, the more experienced they are the better for you. At least 5 years is my minimum)

• Sometimes we need an Osteopath or Chiropractor, but if your massage/sports therapy is going as it should be, these treatments may not be needed so often. My recurring spinal issues are often organ or stomach related which are distinct from actual spinal injuries, this could worth tuning into for your self.

• Warm up properly! Personally it takes me 20 minutes to get thoroughly warm and personally, I do better with dynamic stretching because I'm already flexible. Most of my students NEED static stretching after warming up (I don't care what the experts say) They really need it. I have been training since I was a child and I'm not convinced that Static stretching is good for a young body, especially one that is going to train its entire life. But in the case of adults starting once their body is set, working on flexibility is a must. But these days Omega oils, water intake and magnesium are usually needed in ordered to help the older body loosen up and stay loose as it gets older too.

• A super favourite of mine is the Win Hoff Method Every day after going for a walk I have a VERY cold shower for a least 4 minutes and I also take a cold shower after a heavy training session. For me the results are:

1. I reset my body once a day.
2. Pain levels in my hip have gone down by 95% - 100%
3. I can walk upright again.
4. My immunity is ace. The cold showers kick out anything that tries to start. 
5. Increased energy levels.
6. Fewer headaches.
7. It acts as an anti-inflammatory.
8. I could go on and on...

• Visualisation I'm sure is not new for any of us. As the joke goes, 'If you are talking to me and I don't look like I listening it's because I thinking about kata' or as my husband often asks at quite intimate moments, 'what ya thinking about?' I truly cannot bring my self to be honest sometimes! Personally speaking, if I visualise a kata wrong, I do it wrong. If there is a gap in my visualisation and it is incomplete in some way, my physical kata becomes incomplete as well. Even though I may know the kata just from a physical perspective my previous visualisation overruns it. It is a known fact that those athletes that train and use visualisation have greater muscle bulk than those who don't use visualisation. Therefore we can absolutely use visualisation (and breath) to repair injuries and promote cell growth. I am doing this myself and it's working.

• Meditation, quite Mindfulness practises...there are so many different emphases, types and schools of meditation that can have important ramifications throughout our entire life, aiding mental, emotional and physical health. Meditation was once explained to me simply as 'one pointed concentration' so it can be anything that you want it to be. But for me and the way I practise karate and my attitude to life, meditation offers a complete contrast. It is a calming influence aiding me to live in a very different part of my nature and collect myself in a different way.

• Lastly Hatha Yoga - 'the preparatory stage for physical purification that the body practices for higher meditation'. Anyone that I have spoken to about yoga in relation to their karate injuries has said that once they started Yoga the injuries went away. That's good enough for me so I have started.

My next step is to find out about blood types, diet and how this affects pain levels and training abilities. My basic understanding is that different blood types thrive on different foods and that high acidity levels are a tendency amongst people that train hard like ourselves. This over time is damaging to our joints and bones. As we know many Karateka has hip and knee problems. Is this purely down to incorrect training methods, positions and overuse or could these issues be addressed through correct diet? I think so. I would love to know what anyone else out there knows and what books or web pages to look at.

In the meantime, my greatest respect goes out to you all. Osu!

My martial arts history.

My Martial arts history:

I have been training in martial arts for around 33 years. I began my love affair with Karate at the age of eleven shooting through my kyu grades and achieving black belt 1^st dan at the age of sixteen and 2^nd Dan a couple of years later, both under Enoeda Sensei...and both times he gave me a very hard time, if my performance wasn't perfect my grading was over! At this time I was training in England with the KUGB/JKA during Enoeda Sensei's rule! Without disrespect to my full time instructor I consider Enoeda my first Sensei, taking the opportunity to train with him once or twice a month. He truly molded the essence of my karate and effects the way I train twenty five years later. A truly inspiring character, I remember very clearly the adrenalin coursing through my system whilst waiting in the line up and the electricity in the room when he entered. My focus and ability shot up to way beyond my normal capacity when training with him, and when he stood in front of me...I would rather have died that not give 500%. A nod was all I needed to push on harder...it meant I was on the right way and that was inspiring to me as a young athlete.

 During this time I was heavily involved in competition karate at regional and national level winning many titles in both kumite and kata, I was maturing very nicely in this area. But as time went on I started to feel uneasy about my 'real' karate abilities and as some of you may remember we didn't use mitts or shin/foot pads in the 80's/90's it was all about touch control, I became aware that I wasn't able to do anything else, I had the growing concern that if I was attacked for real, I was too highly trained in touch control, physically and mentally, to be able to help myself or anyone else. I also had this nagging idea as a young idealistic person, that Karate was so much more than being the best, winning and training until your body wouldn't work anymore. The result of these ideas caused me to retire at about seventeen from competition, I just wanted to go deeper into the art.

During these early years I began my coaching career and proudly helped nurture our first students to black belt. This experience inspires me even today to strive for excellence as a coach and I place the same demand for excellence on my students and they thrive.

The side effects from over training too young caught up with me and I was eventually in pain all the time. Training six to seven times a week, is too much for a growing body and this was not understood at that time. It was all about 'Budo spirit' then. I knew that I needed to study some sort of martial path and I started Aikido, training in both arts for about a year before moving fully over to Aikido. I found it to be SO completely opposite to Karate that it took me about eighteen months before I could even see what the teacher was doing with his hands and feet!! But I persisted and started to help with the children's group, eventually taking it on completely and growing it to be the biggest childrens club in England. I incorporate some of Aikido's principles into my Karate and teaching even today, and was over joyed to train with Rick Hotton last year who has taken the incorporation of Aikido into Karate to an amazing level. 

After eight years of flying joy it was time to move on, due to a late start in university studies I moved away from my home town and had to shut the Aikido club. Feeling the urge to move away from the Japanese arts I found in my new university city an extraordinary school teaching Tiger-Crane Shaolin Kung-Fu, we studied the complete art, Chi-gong, Ti-chi, through to the iron shirt aspects. I consider my self every lucky to have studied this art for three years before I moved to Sweden in 2005.

Once I moved to Sweden, I couldn't find any interesting clubs to train with, I was so shocked that that they in general took 2-3 months off during the summer! I found it hard to believe that they were serious about what they were doing and became quite dishearten actually. So I continued by myself for a few years, with a brief encounter with the lovely style of karate called Ashihara. In 2010 a spent a breif but amazing six months in Scottland and found a SKIF club in Peterhead, taught buy two inspiring Sensei Mark and Libby Donaghy. I had the opportunity to train with Sensei Kanazawa and his son in the same year, their karate was perfect for me and inspired me to keep going once I returned to Sweden. 

In 2014 I moved to Hagfors, Värmland (Sweden) and decided that my time of isolation needed to end and I sent up a club in 2014. The club presently has 35 members, 15 of those are under 25 years old. It has been an amazing so far. My karate and my skills as a coach have grow massively since opening the club, I have been over joyed to see my students achieved and improve. It has taken a lot of faith in myself which at times has almost failed me.

But as I keep moving forward on the this path I am growing and understanding more and more. Since meeting Richard Amos and the World Traditional Karate Organisation www.wtko.org last year (2015) I'm being blasted into the next levels and have become totally inspired to go deeper and look closer.

My plans for the future are to do the instructors course with Amos Sensei and somehow I feel passionately that there are just not enough women in karate at the 'top of the tree', so to say,  and certainly not enough revered as top coaches. Yes, I know that they are there but have you noticed that they have to be the most amazing champions in the world to be there. I feel that women don't push themselves forward enough, and often are behind their follow men because of certain natural factors like having children. But we have masses to offer as women in martial arts and I have discovered since running my own club, in my own way, that a different quality is allowed to manifest itself. I am able to discuss and incorporate themes and issues that aren't normally brought out. This is one of my reasons for setting up a blogg, I want to discuss what I'm doing not only as a coach but also a women in a mans world. I feel vulnerable doing this and that perhaps I will open myself to attack, but this is not a reason to not do it.

Oss!

My back ground:

• Owner of an Organic Honey company, Swedish Forest Honey. www.swedish-forest-honey.com
• Qualified Injury/Sports therapist, have be practising for 25 years
• Presently studying Master of Science in Integrated Health Care.
• Seventeen years study with a meditation and mindfulness teacher.
• Masters Degree in Fine Art.
• 3rd dan Shotokan Karate
• 1st dan Aikido

About me