A new Tuesday 6PM General Class debuts in January, led by a senior blackbelt, and focusing on Introduction to Kumite, Functional Flexibility, kata, and strength training.
The dojo is pleased to announce the addition of a new Tuesday General Class for Adults that replaces the existing Tuesday 6PM Functional Flexibility Class.
The class, taught by a senior blackbelt, will begin on January 14, 2025, and will join the other Adult General Classes offered throughout the week, with some special emphasis on Functional Flexibility, Introduction to Kumite, and other key subjects.
Introduction to Kumite
While the Friday 7PM Kumite Class welcomes students (8th Kyu and above) of all skill and experience levels, it can be daunting for new students to approach kumite.
The new Tuesday 6PM General Class will offer select students the opportunity to practice and train in kumite in a setting designed for less-experienced karateka. Emphasis will be placed on using safety equipment, learning basic movement, and building useful combinations and techniques appropriate for every skill level.
Kumite will be offered as part of the General Class, but the class will also offer all the subjects normally present in a General Class – strength training, basic techniques, kata, etc. Participants wishing to do kumite are reminded to bring their kumite gear and wear the appropriate elements already in place at the start of class. (Students in the class who do not wish to train in kumite will do endurance heavy bag and pad work instead.)
The Junbi Undo
The Junbi Undo 準備運動 ("preparatory exercise") is the set of stretching exercises formulated by the founder of Goju Ryu, Chojun Miyagi. (For a timeline of the history of karatedō, read more here.) Since its introduction in the early twentieth century, the Junbi Undo has been adopted as the standard stretching and class preparatory exercise for almost every form of karatedō and many other martial arts as well.
Goju Karate
To see two videos on the Junbi Undo 準備運動, visit the Videos Section.
However, the Junbi Undo is designed as a preparatory exercise: not as complete stretching and flexibility training.
The new Tuesday 6PM General Class offers a greatly expanded version of the standard Junbi Undo, but also goes much further. Through a series of different exercises, students will focus on mobility development, joint strength, and body control.
In addition to improving existing flexibility, there will also be an emphasis on repairing flexibility-related injuries as well as working with flexibility limitations to improve overall performance.
Class Debut
The Junbi Undo: Functional Flexibility class will debut at 6PM on Tuesday, January 14, 2025. The dojo will open at approximately 5:30PM on those days.
The class is open to all Adult students, and all ranks.
Note that the existing Tuesday 6PM Adult Functional Flexibility Class will not be offered on Tuesday, November 19; Tuesday December 3; and Tuesday December 10th, 2024. Instead, the regular Blackbelt-led Jishu (self-study) will replace it.
Please visit the Class Schedule for a complete overview of the class schedule.
