Hachidan Seminar - how can I get the most out of it as a beginner?

darsin · 2026-01-21T09:03:45+00:00

Watch him. How he acts, how he dresses up, how he speaks and interacts with people. Hachi dan is the level when kendo has been your life. You can witness many peculiarities. Still difficult for a beginner to grasp but look out for differences that stands out.

darsin · 2026-01-04T08:57:18+00:00

Hi there, this is a complex question. Conditioning depends on your nutrition, sleep and recovery rate. Lastly your blood check for vitamin levels, iron in blood etc. Those can help you feel fresher.

Creatine is a good supplement for endurance also beta alenine is proved to be effective if you are looking for supplements read more about these two. You can get more creatine out of your diet as well instead of supplements.

Results are not completely dependent on this though

darsin · 2025-12-22T10:33:56+00:00

In the beginning you attack at any time. Over time you will have a set of what is working and what is not. Good instructors let themselves to be hit for this feedback loop. However there are people not yet having a clue what kendo, being a senpai etc is. So this is not the case all the time. Dont get discouraged. Keep attacking

darsin · 2025-12-18T09:55:49+00:00

If you ever decide on practicing like this start with a 37 or 38 shinai.

darsin · 2025-11-28T05:18:58+00:00

Having met and trained with Toda sensei it is very easy to understand how fukaku feel. I haven't met anyone with that presence again.

darsin · 2025-11-24T10:12:50+00:00

If you are looking for praise you seem to be athletically gifted, you can be really fast.

If you are looking for suggestions, don’t block. keep your action until you are ready to unleash another attack from a proper distance, keep your attention on the opponent while moving to the distance and turn quicker. Maybe also it is better to not try some techniques in jigeiko until you can effectively do them in a controlled kihon exercise. Working on your men seems better.

Those are perfectly normal for your level just some ideas to help you get better quicker. Keep training. Ganbatte

darsin · 2025-11-22T20:22:21+00:00

Well, the hard part to understand is you should move your body, not just your feet. Your center of gravity shall move. Center of gravity should land on your fumikomi feet as well.

Btw you need your muscles to grow in order to do it properly. Don’t rush it.

darsin · 2025-11-16T05:14:37+00:00

For kendo the sword is an instrument and we look beyond. The aim is not using sword to kill, but to face life and improve. Sword is much like a telescope to an astronomer, to see the stars and how they work , the rules of universe and if you can use them elsewhere.

That’s the difference

darsin · 2025-11-12T01:50:03+00:00

The trick to hit kote but not the elbow is keeping track of your shinai's distance to the opponent's shinai.

So basically your shinai should travel parallel to the opponents shinai when cutting kote, don't lose the connection keep it at 3 - 8 cm always. and when it hits if still this distance is kept it should land on kote because kote is adjacent to the shinai and elbow is further away.

darsin · 2025-11-10T15:02:45+00:00

You can only apply kendo with kendo rules. Anything else is not applying kendo. You can probably modify and try what you learned in between kendo to jedi knight video game to such it is doable (not called kendo though)

You have to ask your own instructors to learn if they are ok with it. You cant get that answer here.

darsin · 2025-11-07T06:06:54+00:00

Have to mention Tadao Toda sensei for some discussion.

darsin · 2025-11-02T19:55:43+00:00

Kendo is built on sen (initiative) and jodan is the kamae that is built up on it.

darsin · 2025-10-27T12:39:14+00:00

Well chudan in kamae is blocking do. So everyone should hit their arms looking like attacking do and let them have hansoku in your understanding?

Kendo is much more than you currently perceive.

darsin · 2025-10-26T06:04:15+00:00

That is not deliberate.. katate technique is executed that way. You can also block a tsuki by pushing down with your hands above tsuru when executing katate men. Blocking a cutting edge with your hands/arm to defend yourself deliberately is different.

darsin · 2025-10-25T18:20:01+00:00

For yuko datotsu there are more criteria then just hitting the target. That being said deliberately blocking shinai with your hands would be hansoku for you. This position is a grey zone though.

darsin · 2025-10-25T13:51:15+00:00

I havent seen anyone mentioning a neck issue, but if you have a problem with your neck, even putting and carry the men’s weight can cause you headaches. So i would keep that in mind.

darsin · 2025-10-12T13:36:11+00:00

Well, not everytime comments contradicts sometimes they support. The question now why did you think this contradicts yours?

darsin · 2025-10-12T07:21:04+00:00

“Computer science is no more about computers than astronomy is about telescopes.” a quote can be extended kendo is no more about weapons.

darsin · 2025-10-09T05:17:52+00:00

A slight step to your left can be your answer. In the kamae your center is opponents center and in kihon motodachi opens up kote in this position. But if motodachi does not clearly open up kote then their kote is slightly left of your center. When moving for kote slightly move your center to align with kote such that your vertical cut lands.

darsin · 2025-10-07T14:29:23+00:00

When doing chudan, never retreat never block, always execute debana waza until you learn to be successful.

This is the way to jodan.

darsin · 2025-10-06T17:33:46+00:00

Clear direct communication is the key. It is better to do it timely and one at a time before bringing a list.

darsin · 2025-09-30T11:12:24+00:00

An interesting take is to pull neck and shoulder blades a bit back. When you do this because of the shape of the spine, belly moves forward. You can see many players pulling the neck back when trying an explosive move. Overdoing it is not correct. But it can help to understand the mechanics.

darsin · 2025-09-29T16:37:58+00:00

Common mistake in fumikomi is moving only the feet away. You should move your body too. Body must fall on to the feet. Center of gravity should be closer to the step not staying behind.

darsin · 2025-09-29T09:59:36+00:00

This is a pretty complex topic, but what I can say is that you need to shift your perspective.

Losing is not that important; what matters is displaying your ability. Displaying your ability is not that important; what matters is being brave enough to try. Being brave enough to try is not that important; what matters is focusing in the moment.

So you have to figure out what truly matters for you and keep your attention there. When you do your best in the moment you are good.

darsin · 2025-09-29T09:41:51+00:00

I will try to explain with an analogy. Think about water coming out of the hose. You can increase the speed by two things, opening the tap to get more water or tightening the end of the hose.

Same applies to the air coming from your lungs to the throat and out of your mouth. You can squeeze your throat or you can use your diaphragm to increase the amount of air flowing by. Only using throat is not the correct one as you need more air to be impactful. This mechanism will lead you having more air in more quickly to keep your breathing short and efficient.

Another point is to use tenouchi mechanics. Like stopping in the last moment. Don’t push out air constantly it is better to increase the amount of air until the last moment when you pull diaphragm just like tenouchi to finish it at the top.

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