Hands, fingers, elbows, shoulders, knees… what do they all have in common? The ability to inflict pain regardless of the strength and size of your opponent. Even the smallest joint in on your pinky finger if bent the right way will have the beefiest and bravest yelping in pain. This was sensei’s message tonight when he had us huddle around him as he showed us how to grab and twist fingers, hands, toes and feet - all to Brent’s delight as Sensei’s little demonstration puppet.

A few simply rules to remember - if your opponent’s palm is face up you must grab their wrist with your palm down and vice versa; don’t forget the role of the pinky finger both in grabbing and as a way of inflicting pain – this little digit can do a lot of damage; chiishi and nigiri-game are both training implements for strengthening fingers and hands – when gripping and twisting the training tools Sensei suggests it’s good to imagine that you’ve got hold of someone’s fingers.

Most of us would consider our thoughts to be pretty private things – a lucky thing too given the way our minds can wander… But, believe me when I say, if you’re thinking about ‘what you’ll have for dinner’ or ‘how much longer you have to stand in shiko-dachi’ while counting punches, Sensei will see it.

One of the first things that struck me about training with the students of the Honbu dojo is their concentration and focus. Each technique is delivered with full speed, power and utmost concentration and you can see that sensei’s famous words “each technique concentrate” have rubbed off on each of the senior grades. Rather than falling into habitual and rhythmic ‘counting’ patterns, in kihon (basics) and pair work, each technique is delivered as if it’s the first and only one. There’s also an emphasis on ‘not rushing’ techniques, and a slight pause or ‘focus point’ between each that’s just enough to keep those twitch fibers tingling and your partner on their toes.

“This is the mind of complete action. It is the moment in kyudo (Zen archery) after releasing the arrow... In shodo, it is finishing the brush stroke and the hand and brush moving smoothly off the paper… Zanshin means complete follow through, leaving no trace. It means each thing, completely, as it is… a mind of continual readiness, like a mirror ready to reflect whatever is shown to it…” (Zen monk, The Venerable Anzan Hoshin Roshi, 1988).

Zanshin refers to a state of ‘presentness’ and sensitivity to your surroundings in the absence of conscious thought. In holding the ‘yoi’ position for a moment at the end of a kata you’re practicing zanshin – continued alertness and readiness even though the physical part of a technique is complete. In martial arts, people talk about zanshin training awareness and the cultivation of that ‘sixth-sense’ – the ability to anticipate an attack before it arrives.

I think in our eagerness to complete a task we can often rush through kata or techniques, neglecting the finer details and finishing touches. Zanshin requires that we don’t become distracted by thoughts of the final product or what’s coming next. ‘Without this kind of ‘focus’ I think it’s very hard to improve in training. Routinely ‘going through the motions’ only serves to further ingrain what you’re already doing. And, this isn’t always a good thing as the one thing harder than learning new techniques is ‘unlearning’ bad ones.

* Click here for Español.

A little while ago an American TV crew came to the Honbu Dojo to do some filming for a reality TV show. Like all good reality TV shows it's a little ‘dramatised’ and at times I catch myself cringing. But, it’s still good watching Sensei in action, and for those who don’t know him, gives you a bit of an insight into what it’s like training here.

Some of you might think I'm already a little too obsessed with training... but, I have a confession...

The lovely photo on the right is what I might have seen this year if I hadn't spent New Years in the dojo. This may sound a little 'extreme' even for me. My friends definitely thought I was crazy. But, it was a once in a life-time opportunity and I think New Year is over-rated anyway.

Back in the days of the Yoyogi-dojo, a hard midnight training session was the traditional way to 'goshi' (bring in/cross into) the new year. While Toshi-goshi keiko (年越し) hasn’t been held since, Sensei decided that we’d revive the tradition for 2008.

There was a certain 'energy' about the place at training. While it was only meant to be a short session (11-12.30pm) I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised that we were still training at 2am. In the end, Sensei gave us such a work out we hadn’t given much thought to the New Year and it wasn’t until about 12.30 that we realised we’d trained right through the countdown.

Afterwards Sensei brought out a bunch of mandarins (customary new years food) and we all sat around and chatted for another hour or so before finally making our exit. Can't say it beats partying until the wee hours, but it was definitely a New Years I won't forget ;)