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Practice Specifics

We have 3 practice sessions (called keiko / 稽古) per week. Saturday is usually the best day for first-time members to come and start a trial session.

  • Monday
    • An unstructured one-hour training session for dojo veterans. Ask the instructors if this will be a good fit for you
  • Wednesday
    • A two hour session that typically consists of:
      • A warm up with the whole group
      • Short fundamentals training
      • All members based on the instructor’s plan train together
  • Saturday
    • These are two-hour sessions that typically consist of:
      • A warm up with the whole group
      • Short fundamentals training
      • Split off into group based on rank for instructor-led training

Starting Keiko
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At the beginning of practice someone will call out “Shuugo!” (集合) which means “gather up”. We all either line up (Wednesday / Monday) or make a big circle (Saturday) around the person that will take us through the first portion of our practice. If you’re unsure what to do, just watch the group and you’ll see.

The leader will call out the following:

  • “Ki wo tsuke!” / (気をつけ)　“Stand at attention!” Stand up straight with your heels together in a 45 degree angle. Shinai should be held in the left hand with the guard above your thumb, tip-angled down with the string at the back of the shinai (弦) facing up.
  • “Rei” (礼) “Bow forward at a 30 degree angle.” When bowing the motion stops at the hips and your eyes look down as well. Typically you will respond with “Onegaishimasu!” / (お願いします！) Meaning “Please instruct me / Please train with me.”
  • “Taitou” (帯刀) “Place your shinai at your hip.” Take the shinai and place it at your hip to simulate removing it from a scabbard or obi.
  • “Nukitou” (抜き刀)　“Draw your shinai.” With the right hand reach across your body and draw the shinai forward. Remove your left hand and rotate your right hand so it is palm-up. Take your left hand and and grip the shinai below the right. Grip the shinai so that the crease of your thumbs make a diamond shape along the hilt. Try not to grip from the side.
  • “Sonkyo” (蹲踞)　A formal squat used at the beginning and end of matches. While holding your shinai squat down then rise up. Don’t let your rear end move out and keep your shoulders above your hips.
  • “Shinai wo oitte” (竹刀を置いって) “Place your shinai on the floor” Place the shinai front of you with the tip facing outward.
  • “Jyunbi taisou” (準備体操) which means “prep-movements / stretching” and then calls out the specific stretches. We go through them to warm up our bodies. The leader counts “Ichi, ni, san, shi!” / “1,2,3,4” for the first four reps and the rest ouf the group counts back “Go, roku, shichi, hachi!” / “5,6,7,8” in a loud voice
  • “Shinai wo motte!” / (竹刀を持って) “Pick up your shinai”. We do sonkyo again and pick up our shinai.

From there various warm-up exercises are called out based on the instructor’s preferences for the group. The leader will demonstrate them before the group. The leader also calls out how many times to do the drill.

After Warm-Up
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The leader will tell everyone to line up. Children and beginners should be in the first line and more experienced people take the back. An instructor will take over demonstrating and explaining various drills. Once that is complete they will call a short break to get some water. During that time we gather our gear and get ready to line up.

Lining up for Practice
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Someone will call out “Men wo motte, seiretsu!” / (面を持って、整列) “Everyone grab your men and line up!”. The instructors will line up facing the students. The order of the line is generally:

  • From the student’s perspective the highest rank instructor faces them on the far left
  • The students line up facing the instructors with 3-DAN participants first in line from the left. 2-DAN, then 1-DAN then 1-KYU members line up to the right of each other down the line.
  • We try to make a symmetrical line with the instructors in the center. If there isn’t enough space then members with no rank yet or lower rank members will make a additional line behind the first. In any additional line the members should be directly behind the person in front of them.
  • When everyone has lined up the instructors will sit while the participants continue to stand. The instructors will sit in “seiza” 正座, where you kneel down then fold your feet so the tops are on floor, then sit onto your heels.
  • A 3-DAN member will call out the following for the group:
    • “Chakuza!” / (着座) All of the participants sit down in seiza while placing their shinai and gear down on the floor. Shinai should be on the left side of each person. Take care not to make a loud noise when placing the shinai down.
    • “Shisei wo tadashite, mokusou!” / (姿勢を正して、黙想) Everyone folds their hands in their laps and does a short meditation. Your eyes should be half-closed and you should consider why you came to training today.
    • “Shomen ni, rei!” / (正面に礼) Everyone rises up in seiza to their knees then turns toward the American and Japanese flags. We bow toward the flags by placing our hands in front of us in a triangle shape then fold from kneeling down. Take care to bow with your nose inside the triangle shape of your hands. Your head should not touch the floor and your rear end shouldn’t rise up during the bow. After you bow, as a group we rise up and return to our position facing each other.
    • “Senseigata ni, rei!” / (先生方に礼) In the same way as before, bow to the instructors in front of you.
    • “Otagai ni, rei!” / (お互いに礼) In the same way as before, bow in place. This is as respect to the other participants.
    • “Mentsuke!” / (面付け) - Participants that are wearing full protective gear will put on their 面 (men), the main head protection in kendo. Participants that aren’t at that point should wait patiently. Once one of the people that is wearing men rises, anyone else is free to stand up.

Practice Begins
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Depending on the day and the instructors, practice will be started once everyone is wearing their men. Listen to the instructors and make sure to focus on your form and safety, as well as the safety of others.

Practice Ends
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In the same way as before, we will line up to end practice. The order of bowing is different but everything else is roughly the same:

  • A 3-DAN member will call out the following for the group:
    • “Chakuza!” / (着座) All of the participants sit down in seiza while placing their shinai and gear down on the floor. Shinai should be on the left side of each person. Take care not to make a loud noise when placing the shinai down.
    • “Men wo tore!” / (面を取れ) - Participants that are wearing full protective gear will remove their men. Participants that aren’t at that point should wait patiently.
    • “Shisei wo tadashite, mokusou!” / (姿勢を正して、黙想) Everyone folds their hands in their laps and does a short meditation. Your eyes should be half-closed and you should consider how your training went today.
    • “Otagai ni, rei!” / (お互いに礼！) In the same way as before, bow in place. This is as respect to the other participants.
    • “Senseigata ni, rei!” / (先生方に礼) In the same way as before, bow to the instructors in front of you.
    • “Shomen ni, rei!” / (正面に礼) Everyone rises up in seiza to their knees then turns toward the American and Japanese flags. We bow toward the flags by placing our hands in front of us in a triangle shape then fold from kneeling down. Take care to bow with your nose inside the triangle shape of your hands. Your head should not touch the floor and your rear end shouldn’t rise up during the bow. After you bow, as a group we rise up and return to our position facing each other.
    • The instructors will say that practice for today is over and thank everyone for coming. You can stand up, collect your shinai and leave the dojo.