The secret of getting power is really very simple...Practice your form.
There is a formula in Karate. It is:
Attitude + Form = Speed = Power!
Most people study Karate to gain power, but at first they do not understand how to get it. Many try hard to be powerful but usually end up quitting Karate after a short while because they do not have the power they wanted. Unfortunately, they never understand what real power is.
Attitude
Your attitude is simply the way you think. If your attitude is to get power right away, perhaps because you are scared of being beaten up, or you want to be able to bully others, you will not stay with Karate long, because it will not be meaningful to you. The proper attitude consists of thinking thoughts that help you, "emptying" your mind of unnecessary thoughts that hurt you, and practicing proper form, slowly and carefully. Patience is a definite requirement.
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Form
Your form means how you block, punch, kick, or strike.
The quality of your form is determined by how well you do these self-defense techniques. In the beginning you cannot present good form and be powerful at the same time.
Practice your form with care and attention, without trying to be powerful. Just focus your energy on doing each movement correctly. As you practice your form, you will get better and faster. Then you will become powerful -
without trying.
If you maintain the proper attitude and practice correct form, you will see what real power is. You will also begin to understand what Karate is all about and you will not give it up in frustration.
Self-Understanding
Power also comes from understanding yourself, not just from being physically strong. The questions to ask yourself are: 1. Why do I want to take Karate?
2. Do I really want to learn?
3. Am I afraid of making mistakes?
4. Am I afraid of defeat?
Those people who can be defeated are truly powerful people, for they are the ones who learn and grow from their defeat.
The following story is about a young man named Miguel, who learned the true meaning of power when he didn't have it.
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Miguel finished his warmup, doing 50 situps and 50 push-ups. His body felt strong. He had been working out with weights and felt confident of his strength. He felt his muscles growing, but he also felt stiff and tired, as if he had been working out too hard.
Today, however, he was participating in his final round of freestyle competition. Miguel got excited when he thought about winning. He had won all his bouts against his fellow students so far. His father had always told him that winning was all that mattered. Since he and his father worked out together, and his father had been in the Marines and a college football star, Miguel very much wanted to please him and be like him.
Miguel, however, also liked to dance. He had joined a dance class at school and at first was embarrassed that the class consisted mainly of girls, but he wanted to try it out and stayed with the class. He was afraid to tell his father about his interest in dance. He had tried to play football but found that it was too violent a game for him. When he suffered an injury in the tryouts, he decided it wasn't for him.
Although his father was unhappy about Miguel's decision, he urged Miguel to practice Karate so he could "be a man."
Although Miguel signed up for his father's sake, he found that he really liked Karate. It was taught by an older man who was gentle and understanding and who helped Miguel see that the art of Karate was like a dance - and that appealed to Miguel.
Today, during Miguel's final round, he was unusually excited because his father was there to see him compete. He noticed that his stomach started to hurt. He was very nervous and felt conflict within himself. On the one hand, he loved 44
Karate and respected his Karate teacher and his teachings. On the other hand, he respected his father, but was afraid of him.
He wanted his father's approval but he couldn't find it in his heart to compete the way his father wanted him to. Miguel had worked very hard for this day, and now that it was here, he felt this conflict inside him. He watched the other bouts with a mixture of excitement and anxiety. He knew that his father was watching him. And he knew that his father would only accept him as a winner.
Suddenly it was Miguel's turn. He jumped up and came forward to the freefighting area. He was ready, but tense. He wondered who he would fight. He had seen all the other boys compete before him. A person came up behind and passed him.
"There must be a mistake!" Miguel thought, almost out loud, as the person turned to face him. There before him stood Suki, a girl! She was 16, two years older than he, and a higher rank - a brown belt - while he was a green belt. She practiced in the evening adult class so he had only seen her a few times. He couldn't believe it! Why her? Why a girl? He felt his face redden. How could he fight her? Although he had sparred with girls before, he had never done it seriously.
"Bow, please," he heard his teacher say. While thinking, Miguel bowed to Suki, and then both of them bowed to their teacher.
"Ready," their teacher called. Miguel's mind raced with confused thoughts. What will Dad think of me fighting a girl?
Should I go all out? But before he could resolve his questions his teacher shouted, "Begin!"
"Point!" called his teacher. Suki had immediately moved in with a round house kick and caught Miguel wide open. He 45
looked at his father and then back at Suki. "OK," he thought,
"girl or no girl, I must fight!" With that he jumped forward with all his might and attacked.
"Point!" his teacher called again. Suki had easily and effortlessly blocked his attack and counter-attacked, scoring again.
Miguel was shocked! He started to get angry and more tense. He had trained for so long and felt so strong. How could this girl score twice on him? Again he attacked. With a flurry of techniques he charged his opponent and again she easily and gracefully moved out of his way, moving effortlessly and lightly as she dodged his attacks. She didn't look strong, but when she moved her techniques were very powerful. He, in contrast, looked powerful. He had developed a strong body weightlifting and could deliver a powerful punch or kick. And yet he couldn't score on her!
For the full two minutes of the bout Miguel went all out, giving his opponent the best he could, to no avail. He felt stiff and awkward pursuing her. She made him look like a muscle-bound ape, falling all over himself trying to capture a hum-mingbird. Just before the call to end the bout, Miguel felt his feet go out from under him as he tried one final and hopeless technique in an attempt to score. With all his might, with all the muscle and strength he could muster, he shot out a strong front thrust kick. It was like kicking the wind, and he fell forward in an off-balanced attempt.
Miguel got up, stunned but not hurt. Suki was standing in the ready position in front of him. She didn't even look tired, while he was sweating and out of breath!
She smiled at him, not a smile of victory, but one of 47
understanding. He knew he had been beaten, not by her as much as by himself. And she knew it, too, from her smile. He saw how his attitude had beaten him, how he thought that brute strength alone could win. He wanted to be powerful, to physically compete and dominate, and he learned that this idea of power wasn't useful in freestyle. That, in fact, it got in the way. Real power was agility, gracefulness and relaxation. Suki had wonderful technique. She didn't have weight training or muscular strength, but she had excellent form. Miguel's muscular power simply became useless with Suki.
Miguel looked at Suki and he, too, smiled. He realized the truth of her smile and understood one of the basic principles of the Art of Karate his teacher had talked about. "Real power not only comes from form, from being relaxed and gentle, but from understanding yourself, and knowing how to learn from defeat."
Miguel bowed deeply to his teacher and to Suki. He understood something important. The real lesson was in learning who he was. Realizing this, he knew he had "won" and would always be a "winner," even if he lost the bout. Now he could face his father as a "winner," knowing that the real victory was in learning what he had learned that day.
