How do you defeat a person who never slows down?

Marcus, I tell you, never shows any sign of slowing down. Me, on the other hand, gets terribly exhausted every time I keiko with him. I still don't understand why. I haven't consumed any soft drinks for two whole days. And I still felt the same weariness that I felt when keiko-ing with him two weeks ago.

Maybe it's because I don't practice enough in bogu..... especially the men. It gets heavier over time, and I have difficulty breathing in it. Especially after kakari-geiko or something strenous, I can hear my heart thumping in my ears. Anyways, next time, I'm gonna go thru prac wearing the men the whole time.

So. Marcus came late. Arrived when it was raining. He parked the car like this:

(to be uploaded soon =P)

I was rendered speechless. Monday ppl are gonna find out that there's a hole in the hall.

Alright. Warmups and moku-so done, we proceeded on towards basic suburi practice. It's kinda difficult to concentrate when you got people shooting an ad for HO-HO-HO-HORLICKS running around. Started off with kirikaeshi waza. I broke a milestone today..... I can finally do Kirikaeshi in one breath!!!! I just gave it my all, poured all heart and soul and spirit, as if it's gonna be the last time I'm gonna do this, then wham-wham-wham-wham (change direction) wham-wham-wham-wham-wham (wait for a while) and a final WHAM.

Under extreme stress, like when doing kirikaeshi with the little oxygen you have, actually makes my cuts go faster. This is why many sensei would recommend kirikaeshi as a staple food in our training menus.

Marcus taught me how to do do-suburi. Keep both arms extended as if going for a men cut, but twist the wrists a bit, and make sure the left hand stays at the centerline. After that tenouchi must be inserted, and follow through. The trajectory of the shinai should graze the opponents' elbow slightly.

Do suburi finished, we did kakari-geiko, and finally jigeiko. By this time, we had only practiced for an hour or so, but I was already out of breath. I remember thinknging as I gasped for breath, "Woah. Marcus is like flooding me with his ki energy and draining my stamina away". And yet, it didn't seem as if the fella was slowing down. Whenever I leapt in to strike he would always have a counterattack ready. I strike men, he would push in, enter tsubazeriai (a position where the two Kendoka are locked against each other) and hiki-men or kote. Heck, he even has counterattacks against MY counterattacks.

It seems as if every time I grow stronger, he grows stronger as well. Or maybe his full strength hasn't been shown to me yet, and he's merely toying with me, offering little bouts of skill bit by bit. He is not someone to be underestimated. I have to be able to overcome him in order to achieve my goal: to be able to best Hakim in a three-point match. First him, then Arif, then Davis, then Pang, Mark, and whomever else that will help me improve. Then I'll be able to be Hakim's equal.

We did nippon shobu just now.

First bout:

I loosed a kiai from my dry and parched throat. Muscles ready to move, I planned to leap forward and strike kote-men. But before I could do that, Marcus brushed my shinai aside, and deftly manipulated his wrists to strike a clean men. Men-ari. Come to think of it, Marcus, it was a lot like a debana-waza to me.

2nd bout:

Tsubazeriai position. Marcus pushed hard, so I pushed harder. Marcus was heavier than me, and was using his weight as an advantage. I stepped back half a step and brought down my raised shinai as hard as I could (hiki-men). Men-ari.

3rd bout:

I had my hands raised, about to strike an opening which I saw on Marcus's do. Maybe it was due to fatigue, or lack of concentration, but I was too slow. Marcus struck my left kote. Kote-ari.

I resolved to do better in the future.

After that we took off our bogu and practiced kata, from the 1st form to the 5th form. We had to look at the book that I bought (KENDO: THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE, written by HIROSHI OZAWA) for the fifth form kata. You know, the one with the suriage-men (omote) in it.....

Doing kata after keiko is nice way to cool down a body still high on adrenaline. It also helps us to remember that Kendo was not developed in a day, but through centuries of warfare in Japan. We must also not forget that men died to bring us the techniques that we use today. So, kata to me is to honor those who have developed this art throughout the centuries. And since kata is more of a mental and spiritual activity rather than a physical one, it seems fitting that kata should be practiced every time after keiko, the more physical activity.

I'm off to bed now. My legs are aching. Still, the ache feels good. At least I use my legs. During weekdays I just sit on my buttocks the whole day. Sheesh. Oyasuminasai people. Good night.

izzaz