Learning to Punch In Karate

In order to learn good karate and its proper execution, one must use various approaches. Many of the approaches I have used in the past to help my students and myself learn karate are explained by the various authors we have read this semester. Harri-Augstein & Thomas’s (1991) approach to learning through reflection and conversations with oneself and others is one of the main ways to learn the intricate movements of karate. William Glasser (1986) and his idea on how learning occurs only if a basic need is being fulfilled also finds its way into the karate class.

For learning to occur in karate, one has to be aware of what one is doing. It is impossible for a karate student to walk blindly through karate, not knowing what is going on around him/her or to him/her. Reflection is the key to learning karate; taking what one is doing, looking back on it, and learning from it (Harri-Augstein & Thomas, 1991). A learning conversation develops when a karate student is forced to ask him/herself whether or not they did a technique properly or not. If they did, they must ask themselves what they did so that they can continue doing it. If they did not do it properly, they must ask themselves what they did not do properly and then what they can do to fix it so that they do not repeat their mistakes.

For a student to really get something out of karate, they must feel they are fulfilling a need. Glasser’s (1986) needs: (survival, belonging, power, freedom, and fun) fit very well into why most people start karate. As I have progressed in karate, I have found that it has fulfilled all five needs in me. Thus karate has become a real learning experience because it has become an essential part of my life. When one realizes this, one can draw more out of karate in order to fill this need. Instructors, as well, can adjust the way they teach in order to better fill the needs of their students. Thus the instructor is reflecting back on their experience in teaching karate and adjusting their style in order to allow their students to get more out of their study of karate by having it relate to them and their needs better.

Harri-Augstein & Thomas’s (1991) idea of reflection and learning conversations apply well to the learning of karate. Reflection is the key to learning karate and this is done through the learning conversation with oneself and with others. In doing so, the practitioner can advance to higher state in physical and mental well-being through their learning of karate.

When one studies karate, they are studying a system of self defense with out the use of weapons. Karate literally translated from the Japanese means "empty hand". This type of self defense can be troublesome to learn because of the way society is arranged around armed system of defense. Because of this, one must actually think about what one is doing in order for it to work. Thus, reflection is the key to opening the door to the world of karate. One has to look back at what one has done in karate and learn from it. Harri-Augstein & Thomas’s (1991) idea of "learning conversations" fit this style of learning nicely. In order for a student of karate to learn everything that goes into making the body a weapon, one has to have a conversation not only with oneself but with others about their education in the martial arts. One has to ask themselves what they have done and then ask what they have learned from it. If what they learned was positive, then the practitioner needs to ask what it was they did so that they can continue doing it. If what one learned was negative, then the learner must ask themselves what they did that was wrong and what can be done to fix the problem so that the mistake is not repeated.

An example of this is when I learned how to punch in karate. Learning this technique was difficult for me because it is different from the way a boy learns to punch growing up in the streets. Punching in karate is very different than punching in a common street brawl. When one is punching in karate, their body is in a particular position, called a stance, which has many intricate details to it. In a stance, one’s feet must be in the proper position, the knees must be bent at the proper angle, the backbone must be kept as straight as possible, etc. The punch also has many details to it. The shoulders must be kept square, forceful breathing must occur, and one must keep their center of gravity between one’s stance, etc. All of this must be done to execute a perfect punch, a punch that has the potential of knocking an opponent out. Thus, one can see that in order for this to be learned, reflection and conversation with oneself and others must also take place.

This unfamiliar way of punching almost made me quit karate because I developed a personal myth (Harri-Augstein & Thomas, ?) that I would never be able to punch correctly and thus never be able to be successful at karate. It seemed that whenever I fixed one problem, another would pop up and take its place. However, when I started to converse with myself as I practiced and learned what I did wrong, I was eventually able to correct the problem and punch properly (Harri-Augstein & Thomas, 1991).

Though this system of reflection and conversation, one becomes aware of how the body feels when it does a perfect punch, or any other perfect technique. Being aware of this mode of learning can greatly help the student by speeding up the learning process to where it is almost instantaneous. Thus, instead of being told every time by the instructor when one makes a mistake, the student can fix the mistake by him/herself. This applies to everything in karate as well as anything else in life.

Karate, however, will never be learned by anybody unless they get something out of it. Glasser’s five needs give a basic outline to the various reasons why someone begins karate. The first reason is a need for survival. My initial reason for beginning karate as a young boy was because I was being picked on. I needed a way of surviving and fighting back. I was not alone in this need for many of the people I knew who joined the karate class because of this need. Survival is a basic human instinct and karate helps people feel fulfilled in terms of this need by giving them self-confidence and strength which they may not of had before.

The second reason, belonging, plays a key role in any learning event, no matter what the subject is. My karate experience was great in filling this need because, I felt that I belonged to the karate class. If I did not feel that I belonged, I would not have gone back. One must feel a sense of belonging in karate in order to learn it.

Power, the third need, is the most common need and perhaps the most destructive one in karate. Many people come to karate because they need a sense of power, either over their surroundings or over other people. Unfortunately, I was one of these people in certain respects. Because of my need to survive, I felt that karate would give me the power I needed in order to stand up for myself. I soon realized that this need for power was a dead-end street. I found that I did not want to be like those people that I was afraid of. I did not want others to fear me. Luckily, I found another outlet for my power need, the power I received from karate by helping other people. Instead of using the martial arts in the way that most people expect, I used it in the way that it was initially intended to be used for. The philosophy behind the art of karate encourages its practitioners to be fair and good; to use karate as self defense only, either for oneself or for others who need it. The more I studied the art, the more I moved towards this perspective. I still gratify my power need every now and then, I just do in a way that is positive to other people. Power, in any sense of the word, is neutral. It is how people use their need for power that problems can arise.

I experienced the satisfaction of the freedom need in that I was away from my parents for two hours a day, two days a week, doing the thing that I enjoyed. Later in my karate training, I experienced a freedom of the mind while performing karate in that all of the day’s pressures would melt away and I would be left feeling refreshed. The last need is love. This is perhaps the need that comes last in a karate practitioner’s evolution of needs, as it did in mine. In the end, one can develop a sense of love for your fellow students and a love for the art itself. This love often times is reciprocated and one becomes truly content with themselves and their art.

My experience in instructing karate has helped me to understand how the process of learning in karate takes place. As with all instructors, no matter the subject material, I found that I had to adapt my teaching style in order to accommodate for the needs of all my students, because not everyone learns in exactly the same way (Harri-Augstein & Thomas, 1991). By adapting my teaching so that I could address each of these needs, I found that learning took place easier than before when I did not adapt my style. Instead of trying to beat a concept into the head of a student who was falling behind, I would step aside and look at how I approached the situation and then asked myself what I could do to present it another way. More times that not, I was able to present the concept in a way that the student could understand. I soon realized that once students feel that their needs are being fulfilled, they can learn karate in earnest by becoming reflective practitioners.

Karate is like any other learning experience, one must feel that what they are learning is important for the initial learning to take place. Then, reflective practices can come in and enhance the students learning to where, in time, they can teach themselves. Thus, the goal of Harri-Augstein and Thomas, in terms of learning karate, is completed. Students learn that they can teach themselves karate and perhaps carry that over into other aspects of their lives.

Intricacies of learning to punch in karate:

Proper foot position

Knees bend at the right angle

Hips turned at the right angle

Tailbone tuck in

Keep heals flat on the ground

Shoulders are square and relaxed

Arm is locked out

Hand is made into a proper fist

Contraction of abdomen through forceful breathing

Punch is aimed properly

Mind is focused on what one is seeing and doing

Glasser, W. (1986). Control Theory In the Classroom. New York: Harper & Row.

Harri-Augstein, S. & Thomas, L. (1991). Learning Conversations. London: Routledge.

Harri-Augstein, S. & Thomas, L. (?). Self-Organized Learning.