Kagami Buraki 2010 – Saturday 6 February 9am at the dojoAs Sensei writes... “Kagami Baraki is our first “official class” of the year and signifies the start of the new year for us – it also means “to break the mirror” so time for some more “new years resolutions” – so please come along and share some energy to help kick start the dojo into 2010. We normally have a short class and then head out for breakfast for those that can make it.”  To get you started, here’s a lecture by Kaicho, as recorded in his Meditation book, about striving to polish your inner self.

Meikyo: Spotless Mirror                                     “When we do a traditional spring cleaning, we try to make everything spotless. As part of this cleaning, we must remember to clean ourselves and our spirits, not just our surroundings.  Think of a mirror. Usually, we will remember to clean a mirror: we polish it and try to keep it spotless. In time, dust will gather on the surface. We must polish the mirror again so that we can see clearly. Sometimes, we become so busy that we don't give enough attention to our cleaning. The mirror becomes cloudy and it is difficult to see in it. The mirror is only useful when we clean it regularly.  Now think of yourself as a mirror. We all remember to keep ourselves clean, not only at a certain time, but every day. Yet, while we remember to wash our faces, brush our teeth, and take a bath, we often neglect to clean our insides, to maintain a level of spiritual cleanliness. This is one of the main reasons for studying karate and for practicing meditation. Training in karate can help you improve yourself, both physically and mentally. But we must also remember to meditate and to polish our spirits regularly.  Each time you come to karate class, I want you to think of polishing a mirror. Use your training as a time to polish yourself, to strive to see yourself and others more clearly. In time, you will begin to understand yourself-and other people-better. Try to make every class an opportunity to make yourself-and your mirror-spotless.  The idea of meikyo sounds simple. Yet it is easy to become spiritually and mentally lazy. Instead of seeing clearly, we can become confused, upset, disappointed, and discouraged. We become careless and can get injured. But, through simple daily polishing we can avoid many problems in our training and in our lives. When the mirror is spotless, the right path is clear. If you strive to keep yourself like a spotless mirror, gradually you will be able to see things more clearly. In time, you will start to appreciate life so much more than before. This is one of the goals of your training. 
Quote of the Month~ The katas are the essence of Karate; without them Karate would be the mere learning of various fighting and self-defence technique, expressing nothing and allowing for no aesthetic development. Katas are the distilled, concentrated wisdom, understanding, and experience of hundreds of great Karate masters, translated into a language of rhythmical movement, breathing and peak awareness. When one begins to understand them, one glimpses a new world of untold internal riches. ~ Peter Urban   (The Karate Dojo) 

On the Horizon

     Monday 8 February:  Children’s programme starts for Term 1.     February 13-14:  Wellington dojo celebrates opening of new dojo.  Should be a good party!     February 26-28:  Lantern Festival in Albert Park celebrating Chinese New Year – Seido karate demonstration by both Auckland dojo’s – watch for more details coming soon – OSU!     March 12-14:  Nelson Dojo annual Karate Camp – a great camp if you can get to it. Talk to your instructor if you have questions. Advertising notice and registration forms pinned to the notice board.      Thursday April 1:  Term I ends - Kids programme stops for holidays. Make a habit of checking the wall planner and notice board every time you come to the dojo so you know what’s happening. 

Oshi Shinobu Osu        Be patient with yourself and with othersby Kaicho Tadashi Nakamura

Osu is made up of two characters. The second character conveys the idea of shinobu, patience. The first character means to keep, or to maintain. Therefore, osu means to be patient, in this context.                        Osu is a word that we have all used hundreds of times in our training at the dojo. To some of us, it means nothing more than something we have been told to say to our seniors and to our teachers. Without more understanding, its use can become mechanical.                In its basic sense, osu is a greeting that we use for respect, both for people and for the dojo. Osu is used to convey the message of greeting and the sense of respect to others; it also has an important message for the person using the word.                     Each time we use the word osu we should be reminding ourselves to have patience, or shinobu. It is very easy to allow ourselves to lose patience. When the weather is hot and uncomfortable, some students arrive at the dojo feeling irritated; it is very easy to say to ourselves, “Today, I have no patience because I’m feeling uncomfortable and pressured.” Then, we allow ourselves to treat our fellows with disrespect. This is wrong, and we say osu to remind ourselves that we should not let this happen.                              Patience applies to the correct concept of training, the one that I want all my students to follow. The purpose of karate training is to train the body – to make it strong and powerful. This is not approached in isolation. The body is trained by training the mind. When the mind and body are strong, this leads to a unification that produces a strong spirit, which is the real goal of karate training. A strong spirit produces a harmonious individual. Achieving this goal, through the right training, requires patience. Each time we say osu we are reaffirming our determination to achieve the real purpose of karate.                 It is common to hear people talk about chance in life. Some people lament the lack of opportunity and feel sorry for themselves, while others wait passively for the right chance or opportunity. I do not want my students to wait for opportunity or chance in their lives. If we are patient and strong, we shall perceive many more chances and opportunities than we ever did before, and we should take these. This applies to all my students, those who are musicians, lawyers, doctors or other specialists. If we are patient, we can better assess what life is offering us. Many times, opportunities to advance and grow are offered to us, but we turn them aside, not recognising them for what they are. Don’t wait for “chance” and say to yourself, “Something will come along.” With patience and persistent effort in your training and in your professional life, you will be in a position to recognise when to actively take the opportunities that life offers to each one of us.                               Be patient with yourself and with others. Let yourself grow and develop, and allow your training to have time to take effect. Remind yourself of these ideas constantly. Each time you greet your sensei, your seniors and your fellow karatekas with osu, remember that there is a message there for you.

 Seishin Tanren Training  Korner - Training in the heat!This month we feature the important issue of how to keep yourself safe when training during the hotter weather.   Murray Hames,  NZRP. 1^st Kyu 

Everyone knows how hard it is training in the hot weather. Sweat starts to flow off you as soon as the warm-up begins and the air in the dojo can seem suffocating. Temperature and humidity are both high in Auckland during the summer months and it is important for karateka’s to be ready to manage through this time, particularly by ensuring you have adequate fluids on board.  Over 60% of your bodyweight is made up with water and every organ system we have relies on adequate water to function properly.  Water carries nutrients around the body, helps to flush out toxins and provides moisture for your eyes, nose and throat.  The good news is that Seido Karate has always encouraged several simple ways of making summer training easier and healthier. Our class timetable avoids the hottest part of the day, instructors take the class outside to the park or have the roof fan operating if staying inside, water breaks during the summer classes and educational reminders to students about maintaining regular fluid intake during the day. How heat is produced in the body:  Normally if the air temperature is greater than skin temperature, the body gains heat from the environment. We also absorb radiant heat from the sun and even the ground. Heat is also produced from the metabolism of internal organs and muscles. When exercising, 75% of energy created by muscle contractions is converted into heat. Heat regulation and dissipation:  If the body produces excess heat, special temperature receptors send messages to a part of the brain, called the hypothalamus, which in turn sends further nerve messages to transfer blood from the centre of the body to the skin. Other nerve messages open up blood vessels in the skin, and stimulate sweating. These mechanisms promote heat loss.  Importantly, it must be remembered that children may experience greater heat stress than adults. This is because of their smaller body mass but a relatively larger surface area than adults, less developed sweat response and increased relative heat production during exercise.  Humidity:  Higher humidity, where there is more water vapour in the air, reduces the amount of evaporation of sweat possible. This can be a problem, as evaporation of sweat is the best way of cooling the body during exercise.  Sweat itself does not provide cooling, Rather it is evaporation of the sweat that allows heat to escape from the body. In high humidity the air will not accept as much water vapour and so sweat will just roll off the karateka, and he or she will remain hotter than when exercising in the same temperature in dry heat. When extreme, this can put an individual at risk of heat disorders.  Sweat:  Sweat contains water, electrolytes (minerals that are essential for our body to function; primarily sodium, but also potassium, calcium and iron), urea and lactic acid. Evaporation of sweat is the most efficient way for the body to lose heat. How much one sweats depends on your genetic makeup, gender, how hot the weather is, how acclimatized to heat you are, how intensely one exercises, and your cardiovascular fitness level. In general, more sweating will promote efficient cooling of the body. As mentioned above, the rate of sweating is higher in humid conditions but the cooling is less. During high humidity, sweat can't evaporate. Sweat that builds up and rolls off doesn't function in the cooling process. However, this depletes the body of vital water and salt. As dehydration progresses, cooling becomes more difficult. Performance drops and heat injury becomes a possibility.   Sweat losses are probably greater than many athletes appreciate. Sweat rates of 2 to 3 litres per hour can be expected during short periods of hard exercise in the heat, such as we engage in during a hard class. Even in cooler conditions losses are considerable. On a cool, dry day runners are estimated to lose around 1.2 litres per hour at 6 minute per mile pace. This fluid loss doubles on a hot, humid day. Fluid is also lost through moisture in exhaled air. Effects of heat on physical performance:  It is normal for the body to get hotter when exercising, and there are benefits with this - after all, that’s why we ‘warm-up’ at the start of a class.  Obviously, the higher the exercise intensity, there’s a greater heat production by the muscles. But when exercising in hot weather, the movement of blood to the skin to remove heat from the body, along with fluid loss from sweating, can reduce the body’s ability to supply oxygen and fuel to the muscles. This will reduce muscle endurance and work capacity, increase lactic acid production in muscles and cause an earlier onset of fatigue than if the body was cooler. The body will use up energy stores of muscle glycogen more rapidly and the individual feels that they are working harder.  A loss of 2% bodyweight through sweat causes an increase in perceived effort and has been shown to reduce performance by 10-20%.  A loss exceeding 3-5% bodyweight reduces aerobic exercise performance noticeably and impairs reaction time, judgment, concentration and decision making. Acclimatization:  Heat acclimatization is a process by which the body makes adjustments to promote better cooling in hot environments. i.e. sweat becomes more dilute. The threshold at which sweating begins is lowered and the sweat rate is increased.   The volume of blood increases and the cardio-vascular system becomes more efficient.  The core body temperature is lowered, allowing an overall improved ability to tolerate the heat.  These changes take time to fully complete and will only work if you are well hydrated.  The best way to acclimatize to the heat is simply to exercise in hot weather. Training every third day in the heat for 30 days has been shown to produce heat acclimatization. Daily training in the heat for 10 to 14 days will do this more quickly. Dehydration:  Dehydration is the common term used for a body water deficit. (Medically this is referred to as Hypohydration). Dehydration results in a lower blood volume, which reduces the body’s ability to both store and dissipate heat. This decreased cardio-vascular function puts strain on the body and reduces the ability to perform endurance exercise or intermittent vigorous exercise over a long time period. Dehydration does not have as much effect on muscle strength. Hydration:  The average person is recommended to drink 8 glasses of non-caffeinated, non-alcoholic beverages during normal temperature conditions. Athletes require more than this, particularly in hot weather. As a guideline, the Institute of Medicine recommend 3 litres (13 cups) of fluids per day for male athletes and 2.2 litres (9 cups) for females.  An adult typically urinates 1.5 litres per day, and also loses another 1 litre through breathing, sweating and other bodily functions. A simple guide to know if one is adequately hydrated is that urine colour should be a very pale yellow. Darker urine indicates less fluid in the body. Believe it or not, an eight colour of urine scale has been developed by Doctors to indicate hydration status.  Karateka are encouraged to increase fluid consumption over the 24 hours before a hard training session. Entering a class well hydrated will put you a step ahead with how you will perform during the class. Scientists have shown that many athletes do not take in adequate fluids. The prime reason is that thirst is a poor indicator of your level of hydration. This occurs as even though the muscles may have lost a lot of fluid, the body makes a priority of maintaining pressure in the central venous system, which tricks thirst receptors in the hypothalamus. By the time you are thirsty, you may already be 1 to 2% dehydrated.  Along with increasing fluids in the day before exercising, The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends drinking as much as comfortably tolerated during and after exercise.  After exercise the ACSM recommends fluid equivalent to 100% of sweat lost during exercise. To determine the amount of fluids needed, one can weigh himself or herself before and after training. Any weight loss will be primarily due to water loss.  On an contrary note, while adequate hydration is important, drinking copious amounts of water, or over-hydration, does not seem to improve performance. It may, in rare instances, put one at risk of reducing salt levels in the body.  What is it best to drink?  Plain water seems to remain the best fluid along with a healthy diet. It is quite alright to include other fluids such as fruit juice, tea, milk and so on in your daily intake. The main thing is that adequate fluids are taken in prior to training.  During exercise for up to one hour, water is recommended as the best fluid replacement, as it is quickly absorbed and no other nutrients are needed. When training longer than one hour, it has been shown that sports drinks, containing water with small amounts (4-8%) of carbohydrates and electrolytes, enhance performance. Higher concentrations of carbohydrates, such as found in fruit juice or soft drinks (often around 11%), slow down water absorption in the stomach and so are less effective.  Everyone should be aware that alcoholic drinks reduce strength, endurance, coordination and reaction time. Alcohol is also a powerful diuretic and so promotes dehydration. It also slows muscle recovery after exercise. Unfortunately, these effects can persist for some time after a night of moderate to heavy drinking. Some of us can vouch about these effects at Saturday morning conditioning classes!  What you can do?·         Drink plenty of fluids during the day, as well as replacing lost water after training.·         Drink a variety of fluids, primarily water, but some sports drinks may be useful to replace carbohydrates and electrolytes after training. Avoid soft drinks, alcohol and caffeinated ‘energy’ drinks.·         Avoid training in the hottest part of the day if possible. Vigorous exercise should be done in the morning and evening during the hotter summer months.·         If you have been off over the holiday break, ease back into training to allow your body to acclimatize to the heatListen to your instructors. As Kyoshi Bruce said at the beginning of last year’s camp “Water is the most important nutrient while you are here”.  Osu.