Kendo proletarian. Kendo, what do beginners need to know? Which is better to choose

Kendo classes are held barefoot and in a special form - hakama and keikogi. On average, with due diligence, it should take from 3 months of training to be allowed to train in armor.

You can start exercising at sportswear, but as soon as you are convinced of your desire to study further, you will need:

Get the necessary uniform - keikogi (jacket), hakama (skirt-pants). If you have the financial means, try to get a kendo uniform as soon as possible, because it is not allowed to practice kendo in a normal sports uniform.

Price per mold

Prices at the beginning of 2006 range from 1800 to 3000 rubles. The option for 1200 rubles differs in the thickness of the keikogi, as well as in the fact that at first it will be heavily painted. When buying a hakama, pay attention to the size.

It is recommended to buy a hakama that is about 5-10 cm shorter than your real height. Especially if you are a beginner. A long hakama will only get in your way. A properly sized hakama should end just below the ankles.

Sword for shinai training

swords - bamboo (shinai) and wooden (bokken).

sword price

The average price of a bamboo shinai varies from 1,000 to 3,000 rubles.

Which is better to choose?

For starters, the most ordinary shinai will do. Bokken - depending on the tree from which it is made - from 400 rubles and more. If there is a choice, it is better to take the one that is heavier.

After purchasing a bamboo shinai, you need to take it apart and oil it so that it lasts longer and does not break or crumble.

  • learn count
  • Learn the basic words and phrases used in training
  • Acquainted with general rules behavior in the dojo

What to do if your ankle hurts in kendo for beginners?

Please note that when practicing kendo, especially at the very beginning, the ankle can be very sore due to the peculiar position of the body while sitting with legs bent under oneself - seiza.

The only way to deal with this pain is to endure as much as possible. Over time, the pain will go away.

Can you train with a knee injury?

If there was a knee injury, then training should be approached very responsibly and consult an instructor. If the knee injury was minor, you can try to practice in the knee pads.

What to do if corns interfere?

Another problem for beginners is worn feet and calluses on the left hand. Wearing feet can be dealt with by sticking a plaster before training, buying a protector or Czech shoes. You can engage in them only as needed.

Fighting calluses on your hand is almost useless. When the skin on the hands becomes thicker, and the grip of the shinai is more correct, the problem will disappear.

Looking good is very important in kendo.

But that doesn't mean you have to buy yourself a $200 silk striped hakama and speckled keikogi. They won't help you train better. Buy a standard keikogi hakama kendo set that is sold at any online retailer for $40-$100. It will last you a few years. Be careful when choosing, because the set of clothes for kendo and iaido is different. Before buying, consult with your instructor, this will save you from most mistakes.

How and where to buy kendo equipment in Russia

Unfortunately, there is no decent store in Russia that would sell kendo equipment. Therefore, 95% of purchases have to be made through online stores from Japan and Korea - they work quickly and in most cases with high quality. In this regard, to purchase via the Internet, you will need an electronic card - Visa or MasterCard (depending on the store). If you don’t have it, then it’s better to get it, as it will come in handy more than once.

Unfortunately, the customs code of the Russian Federation imposes quite serious restrictions on the purchase of goods by individuals from abroad. Namely, you cannot buy things more than 1 time in 3 months, and if the amount of your order exceeds 10,000 rubles, then you will have to pay a fee equal to 20% of the difference in the amount of your order and 10,000. In addition to all this, customs works extremely slowly and the branch where you need to pay the fee is located at the opposite end of the city. In this regard, the release of the parcel from customs can take at least 2 days.

Read the foreword from Hiroshi Ozawa's book The Basics of Kendo:

1. What is Kendo?

The practice of Kendo has a long tradition in Japanese culture. Originally a way to wield a sword, Kendo has been more fully understood through respect for the natural laws of the battlefield.

It can be divided into the following three components:

  • The path of the body - how to hold the sword, maai (spatial distance separating two opponents), etc.
  • The way of the sword - how to strike, the right moment to strike, etc.
  • The path of consciousness is the right mental attitude.

Although this division provides a convenient basis for theoretical understanding of the main elements of Kendo, in practice they are so closely intertwined that the differences between them are not always so clear. However, it is imperative that those who study Kendo first grasp these basic ingredients and realize that practicing Kendo is much more than just a way to defeat an opponent.

2. Why do Kendo?

Depending on the prevailing social conditions of the era, Kendo was practiced at different stages of its development for different purposes.

And although everyone who starts Kendo will have their own personal motives, it can be said that today the goal of Kendo is to develop healthy body and consciousness through prolonged practice (keiko).

In Japan, approximately five million people practice Kendo, both in schools, factories and police stations, as well as in dojos.

Today's Kendo is a technique that allows the opponent to strike at predetermined points with a shinai (bamboo sword). In this sense, Kendo can be referred to as modern species sports. However, we must also preserve the spirit of Kendo, which has remained a tradition throughout the ages.

The original motto of Kendo was: "Winning means life, defeat means death."

And although today this should not be taken literally, it is nevertheless very important to develop a serious attitude towards the practice of Kendo, the purpose of which should be the formation of a comprehensively developed personality, which includes both physical and spiritual and social development.

Tips that can help you understand the essence of Kendo practice

  • In the dojo, let go of the personal relationship with your comrades. As long as you are wearing a men (protective mask), your opponent should be perceived as an opponent, and keiko (occupation) as a one-on-one clash.
  • It must be recognized that each person has their own style and philosophy of Kendo, which must be respected, but at the same time it is necessary to maintain a sense of harmony in the group.
  • Keiko must be performed with a complete union of spirit (kihaku), physical strength and technique.
  • Each keiko and each strike during keiko must be performed with the feeling that this is your last and only chance.
  • Throughout keiko, strive to develop your personality with all your might.

Improve your Kendo by giving your all to keiko for its own sake. At any stage of training, it must be remembered that Kendo is impossible to know, rather, it is an art, the study of which gives constant pleasure. Therefore, Kendo starts to work out well for you automatically, after a certain period of time.

3. Develop a generous and humane attitude towards your opponent

Despite the fact that Kendo goes through various stages in its development, its essence (honshitsu) remains unchanged: one person comes face to face with another person with a shinai in his hands, consciousness meets consciousness and opponents strike. Through the training of the spirit and the correct, honest and energetic performance of keiko, human nature is ennobled.

At first, this may seem like a paradox. How can human nature be ennobled by the fact that a person waits for the moment when the enemy is exposed and strikes?

Kendo teaches respect

To understand this, it is necessary to realize that today Kendo is practiced in an artificially created environment. Attacking and parrying are done with the full knowledge that no one really wants to kill or hurt an opponent. Rather, on the contrary, involved in such an action, both opponents compete and interact with each other. Never forget to respect the enemy and recognize his human nature, but at the same time, resist with all your might. In this way, each can ennoble the human nature of the other. The rules of the competition are there to help maintain this vital balance.

Also, winning a Kendo match is certainly important, but it's just as important in the difficult situation you're in to beat yourself. In other words, in the study of Kendo it is necessary to form a spirit of self-denial which will lead to the ennoblement of the individual.

Women and Kendo

Today, in the United States, and in other countries, the number of women practicing Kendo exceeds the number of men. Moreover, it is predicted that this trend will continue into the next century, so that eventually more women than men will practice Kendo. And although it is difficult to understand why this is so, it seems that Kendo offers women something that other types of martial arts cannot.

For a long time, many women have been attracted to such types of martial arts as Judo and Aikido. Very often this comes from the desire to acquire certain self-defense skills. Kendo, on the other hand, requires the use of special armor and therefore does not fall into this category of martial arts.

Reasons why girls should do kendo

Thus, it must be recognized that women enter it for some other reason. Some of them are no doubt similar to the reasons mentioned by Japanese women practicing Kendo.

Not only does Kendo relieve stress and give you a sense of physical and mental well-being - many sports do the same - it builds confidence in yourself.

Moreover, it can be cultivated in a non-threatening environment because, unlike most other martial arts, the use of armor in Kendo means that no physical contact actually takes place.

It must be emphasized that the Kendo practiced by women is not at all different from the Kendo practiced by men. Since the foundation of Kendo is not physical strength but the right waza and the right mental attitude, it is equally suitable for both men and women. And so the current trend is extremely encouraging.

In the Look-Ideal catalog you will find more than 300 fitness centers in Moscow, as well as yoga centers in Moscow.Kendoin fitness centers in Moscow: reviews, price, rating, photos, address on the map, filtration by location.

Great seating areas and family leisure to maintain health and beauty are fitness centers in Moscow. Each visitor has the opportunity to choose from a huge and varied range of services that provide fitness centers in Moscow: classes with personal trainer fitness or power aerobics, group or corporate sports, aqua aerobics, children's fitness, different areas of yoga, special fitness programs for pregnant women, physiotherapy, restorative programs, etc. Practically in all Moscow fitness centers there are profitable programs for corporate services and regular promotions for the purchase of club cards, which can significantly reduce annual costs for maintaining health and overall body tone.

your mark

Great

Doesn't fit anywhere

Wild Eco Fitness Club is located on the street. Rodionovskaya, in the Kurkino area. You can get to it by the following routes: from Planernaya metro station on minibuses No. 268 and 870, as well as by bus No. 268 to the stop “6th microdistrict. Kurkino. You can get closer to the club by minibus number 569. Eco Fitness Club is ready to receive its visitors every day from seven in the morning until midnight. You can come there with children - it works kids club, ready to accept children from 3 to 14 years. Open for adults Gym, a fitness studio for women, a wide range of water programs is available - aqua aerobics, cardio lessons, strength lessons, as well as specialized classes and mixed-type workouts. Fighting programs include kickboxing, judo, kendo, wrestling and self-defense. Eco Fitness Club is notable for the fact that visitors have the opportunity to train in the open air - a gym is equipped in a tent on an open area, and an aerobics room is located in a huge gazebo surrounded by coniferous trees in a nature protection zone. It also offers bicycle rental, basketball, beach volleyball, paintball, and you can also play football on professional artificial turf. Willd club is equipped with simulators from the world's leading manufacturers - HOIST, HAMMER, FLEX, ICARIAN. The latest line of excellent exercise equipment is selected exclusively for training programs developed by the Laboratory Sports Technology together with world and European champions S. Shelestov and S. Savina.

The history of modern swordsmanship, called kendo, begins with the traditional Japanese swordsmanship of the ancient samurai of the ken-jutsu school. This is a whole culture based on the concepts of nobility and honor of Japanese knights. The kendo section in Moscow tempers the body and spirit of a fencer in various duels with an armed opponent. This sport for adults and children is regarded as a cultural asset that connects the history and philosophy of Japanese culture. Kendo classes in Moscow are held under the supervision of real masters and graduates specializing in professional equipment sword possession. The monthly price, equipment prices and other additional attributes are quite reasonable, you can find out more about them from your trainer.

The art of fencing (“the way of the sword”) received its name at the end of the 19th century. Like the kendo school in Moscow, this sport originated from the traditional possession of cold weapons kenjutsu, which means “sword art”.

What a future swordsman should know

The kendo section in Moscow combines the principles and traditions of its progenitor, which is expressed as follows:

  • a swordsman armed with a sword cannot make a mistake - one mistake can cost him his life;
  • Kendo for beginners implies that inattention or excessive carelessness of a person with a sword is fatal to him;
  • the same situations or the same fights for women and men do not exist, each fight is won only with a renewed spirit and desire to win.

As in real life, students should take such things extremely seriously, because there may not be time to think about a critical situation.

Kendo classes in Moscow educate a person in the spirit of a deadly threat, where skills honed through intense training can reflexively save a student's life. In the Japanese school of fencing for men, the word sword is perceived as a natural extension of the hand, capable of sowing death with one touch.

The kendo school in Moscow associates training paraphernalia with real weapons that train the spirit and a cold-blooded view of the situation.

"The Way of the Sword" means the formation of a swordsman as a person capable of withstanding a deadly threat. Kendo for beginners assumes that it is considered impossible to achieve perfection in the art of swordsmanship, so the fundamental principles of constantly honing your skills are above all in the philosophy of swordsmanship.

The History of Kendo

Traditional kendo for adults is one of ancient species martial art Japan, which is about a thousand years old. Back in 1185-1233, during the time of Kamakura, the ability to shoot a bow, fight with a spear and wield a samurai sword was honed on the island of the rising sun, which was considered basic training young warriors. Unlike modern martial arts, in the art of kendo, women swordsmen did not exist then.

Over the next few centuries, the samurai sword began to be used not as the main weapon, after which it temporarily moved into the category of decorative or ritual objects, which was used only in critical situations requiring self-defense. And only at the beginning of the 17th century the sword again becomes the main and traditional attribute of the Japanese samurai, from that moment the ability to use it in battle plays a key role.