Pinewood Karate

Professor Okazaki. Founder of Danzan Ryu jujitsu. Check out the photo to see where you are in relation to him in our Pinewood lineage . #pinewoodkarate #jujitsu #danzanryujujitsu #okazaki #napakids #streetsafety #selfdefense #napavalleykid #napacommunity #napamartialarts #martialarts #martialartslife #streetsafety101 #streetsafe #napalife #safeandstrong #newyearsresolution #safeandstrong #covid19 #coronavirus #quarantinelife #virtuallearning #karateathome

A massage liniment known as dit da jow is traditionally used to treat an injured area. The name dit da jow in Chinese, translates as fall-hit wine. These formulas are often closely guarded family and martial art school secrets. The fall-hit wine is usually prepared with rice wine and is traditionally stored in a clay jar and buried in the ground for several months or years. Aged dit da jow is felt to be stronger and therefore more effective therapeutically. . Some... of these liniments are made with Turpentine as the base. It is interesting the Turpentine is derived from Pinewood (Pine trees) and has been used medicinally since ancient times. . These days, companies, mainly in Asia, commercially produce liniments that are sold in small glass bottles and are available on the internet. . Some high level martial art practitioners are trained in massage, bone setting, splinting, herbology, first aid, physical therapy and other forms of restoration therapy. . Pinewood Karate, through the Napa Valley School of Massage, teaches restorative massage to selected students and uses these liniments in lessons. @ Pinewood Karate See more

In Traditional Chinese medicine, a bruise is considered an area of blood and chi stagnation. . Gently massaging the injured area is felt to be beneficial in restoring blood and chi flow. . Follow @pinewoodkarate to learn next about how liniments are used to heal in the martial arts.... See more

Learn to change your karate stances and body positions! . From the attention stance, you can move to a ready position by placing each of your feet on two of the corners of the base of the triangle. . You could practice bowing correctly like we do in class chin down, back and neck straight, looking at your opponent through your eyebrows watching his every move.... . Notice that the point of the triangle would be pointing towards your opponent. We assume that your opponent is in front of you but of course, the opponent has the ability to move too. . In the next photo, I am pivoting my left foot so that I remain in balance and don’t strain my left knee. Then I step forward with my right foot to the top point of the triangle. . With my feet in new positions and my body at a new angle, I assume a horse riding stance. You want to tuck your tailbone under and straighten your low back. . I am balanced, with my weight in the center. My hands are akimbo (akimbo means that my hands are on my waist). . Note: I am keeping my hands akimbo (on my waist) to allow me to concentrate on my stepping technique. . This movement allows me to advance slightly toward my opponent while creating a beneficial angle for my self-defense technique. . Alternately, I could be in the ready position, then pivot my left foot and move to a back stance (defensive position) to face an opponent to my left (either the opponent moved to a new position or there is a second attacker). . In the last photo, I am back at the base of the triangle and have been grabbed - either grabbed by one or both of my wrists or grabbed from behind with a bearhug. . In this photo, I sink my weight and spread my fingers. This is a defensive posture that would allow me to start my defense with either a painful joint lock or body throw. . Since you have two feet and there are three points on the triangle, you can move around in circles (clockwise and counter clockwise) while each step is made in a triangular pattern. . The point is that it is usually to your advantage when attacked, to not retreat or advance in a straight line. Rather, it is more efficient to step in a triangular pattern. @ Pinewood Karate See more

Need an activity at home for yourself or the kids? Try this easy guide for changing karate stances and body positions! . First make the triangle and a lesson for movements will follow. .... . In this lesson, we are going to make a triangle on the floor with painter’s tape. You will need a roll of 1 painter’s tape, scissors and a ruler. . Since this triangle is approximately shoulder width, the first step is to measure your back from one shoulder to the other. . In the third photo, you can see the ruler on my back to get an idea of how large the triangle should be. . Once you have that shoulder width measurement, cut your tape to make all sides of the triangle that same length. . The next step is to tape your equilateral triangle (all three sides are the same length) on the floor. It is painter’s tape so it should peel up easily when you are finished training. . Stay tuned for the movements to follow! . #pinewoodkarate #napakids #streetsafety #selfdefense #napavalleykid #napacommunity #napamartialarts #martialarts #martialartslife #streetsafety101 #streetsafe #napalife #safeandstrong #newyearsresolution #safeandstrong #covid19 #coronavirus #quarantinelife #virtuallearning #karateathome @ Pinewood Karate See more