Killer Miller
Brown Belt
Joined: 29 Nov 2002
Posts: 732
Location: California
Styles: JKA Shotokan
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 Posted: Wed May 04, 2005 1:00 pm Post subject: An Evening With Hidetaka Nishiyama |
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This post was originally published as an article in a dedicated KarateForums.com Articles section, which is no longer online. After the section was closed, this article was most to the most appropriate forum in our community.
It's a typical Friday afternoon after a very hard day at work. Several of us fellow Karate-ka gather and argue as to whom has the junkiestvehicle. "Let's take your car. Not mine, I just bought new rims for mine. Let's take yours…" We flip a coin. "You loose, we'll take your car. Let's go, we're running late." We head out in heavy Friday traffic for downtown L.A. - tonight is Friday night. Team training.
We arrive in downtown LA - streets appear to be empty. Gangs, weirdos, bums, thieves, to name just a few, are waiting as prey for their daily meal eying salable parts on our vehicle during our approach for a parking space. We decide that it's best to park on the main highway in front of our dojo – a car full of black belts has no defense against invisible thieves of downtown LA.
We walk up to the dojo hearing kiais that echo blocks away. Supposed white belts with perfect technique and lightning speed – the black had worn off the belts years' prior... "Ah, Central. Can you feel it, Joe?" Joe replies, "Yeah, magical isn't it!" We watch the wrap up of the afternoon advanced class for a few minutes to ingest the energy before us that will soon be expelled through our souls. "Hidetaka Nishiyama - The master of masters!" Nishiyama was teaching the class as the students (mostly other instructors) are flush white from exhaustion and dripping wet like an over soaked sponge. We all work our way to the back locker room and get our gis on for training. Class is now over and it is time to enter the dojo as Nishiyama-sensei takes a break in his office.
We enter the dojo and immediately bow before entering further. Quiet sets in now, no talking, as we empty our minds in preparation for the intense 3 hour plus training session we are about to enter into. We do a combination of relaxation and stretching as a way of channeling out our nervousness/jumpiness from affecting our training session. The team captain enters the dojo with two pails of water, rags and a touch of bleach in the water. "Everyone grab a towel!" "Osu!" is replied as we grab a damp towel. We take a towel and run up and down the wood dojo floors with the rag in both hands and bent over like a bunch of dogs at feeding time. This is a tradition to strengthen our legs as well as clean the floor before training from sweat and bacteria.
Next enters Nishiyama-sensei to the dojo floor, a small fit Japanese man that carries an edge of the old Samurai – he is a descendant of a long line of Samurai. "LINE UP!" shouts the team captain. Everyone quickly lines up in order of rank, then quickly into kneeling position – which is difficult to figure out at times considering that 95% of the team training class are black belts and many of those belts have turned white as well. The team captain loudly echoes through the dojo "Mokusoh!" (Note: Many westerners have a tendency to say "Mo Kuso!" which is not a good thing to say and will give us a good, private chuckle as we are trying to clear our minds). Everyone is dead quiet starting out with heavy breathing and then greatly slowed down for a pin drop to be heard – this is to clear our minds of everyday events so that training is the only thing in our thoughts.
"Yame!" "Otagani rei!" We now bow to the picture of Funakoshi on the wall, again to Nishiyama-sensei and then turn to our right corner and bow to the team captain and guest/assistant instructors as well. Karate-ka quickly spread out for warm ups – starting with stretching. We do all of the typical stretches, then a few Nishiyama specialties – Nishiyama was a chiropractor, as I recall or a similar profession and would make you feel like a new man or woman prior to obtaining your sore bones and muscles through training. It was almost worth the beatings just to get stretched out. We would spend between 15 to 30 minutes stretching out, depending on how hard we would be training that night.
"Yohi!" shouts Nishiyama, "Hidari Gedan Barai." Left leg forward, downward block and kiai was always a given... "Five-way kicking both sides – slowly and perfectly" as Sensei would say with his gruff voice and poor broken English. Five way kicking would be front kick, side snap, side thrust, round house, then back kick without your foot touching the ground and maintaining a freestyle sparring stance during and when done kicking – then the same thing on the other side. "Ichi, Ni, San, Shi, Go, Roku, Sichi, Hachi, Ku, Juu" as Nishiyama-sensei counts to ten. Each count of one, in Nihongo (Japanese), would represent all five kicks on both sides. Then, after the count of ten, "Now, full speed with kiai!" Again, we hear a faster version of counting which sounds like "Ich, Ni, Son, Shi, Go, Rok, Sich, Hach, Ku, Chu," except much faster. The 10th kick would be a loud roar of kiais that would almost scare away the thieves about to strip our cars outside the dojo (although, our radios and wheels would still come up missing after training). Then in Sensei's classic samurai style of voice, "Ah, poor spirit. Ten more, KIME!" We would do ten more full speed. Our legs are starting to get warm and tired, but maintaining good technique still. Then, "I said more spirit. TEN MORE, KIME!!" We do ten more – our legs are turning into rubber at this point and most gasping for air as we dance in a puddle of sweat. Most kicks are starting to look like leg jerks now instead of actual kicks. "Last Ten. Full speed!" Now we are about to drop as we think we are going to get to rest. "Last Ten." Now our legs are starting to hurt. "Last Ten. Now use hips to raise knee to target" As we all think that we are going to drop dead, we start to get our second wind, and the kicks actually start looking like kicks again. "Last Ten. Breathe from stomach." We finish the fourth set of "last ten" quite impressively! Now shake it out.
We bounce around, shake, take some deep breaths and then about a minute later "Sanbon tsuki, kiba-dachi!" says Nishiyama. "Slowly." This is straddle leg stance, 3 time punch – starting with the right side punching, then left. Our slow execution of technique, after our previous warm-up, is actually our rest. Nishiyama does not believe in breaks between training sets and teaches to rest through slow movement and breathing. The slow breathing allows oxygen to the blood stream for a clear mind; good blood flow and prevents lactic acid from forming in muscles. Additionally, the slow movement keeps the muscles warm and not tensing or pulling in the process. After a set of ten, then it's "Full speed with kiai!" After about four sets of ten, then it's the infamous "Last ten." We do another three or four sets of last ten with kiai on the last punch. Note: in team training class, we always finish a technique, or combination of techniques in a sharp, fast, strong freestyle position and stance – as if you are executing another punch. Nishiyama-sensei feels that you must "always" be ready for the next action and also that the freestyle position, or block return, could also be used as a punch – e.g., Kizami Tsuki (short jab). He was very adamant about this and would make a point of this every time you forgot to do it!
Next warm up would be combinations. It would seem that Nishiyama's warm ups were few, but there is a lot of activity crammed into the warm-ups. We would pair up, facing a partner on one side of the training hall (if Nishiyama was in a festive mood, we would do the short distance of the walls. Otherwise, the long method was in store for us!) and Sensei would say, "Do your favorite combination and kiai on the last technique" – again returning to a stout free sparring stance with conviction. He would have the person you are attacking literally run back wards until he or she bounces off the other wall. The attacker would have to keep up attacking the other person using their favorite combination, and yet maintain continuity, speed, sharpness and purpose of what you are doing. Nishiyama would get out his well known and well used Shinai (the bamboo Kendo swords) and poke you in the buttocks or backside if you weren't keeping up with the pace or getting sloppy in your technique. Again, "Ichi, Ni, San..." then "last one." We knew by now what that really meant! A good hour to hour and a half has passed now, thinking what's next? "Five minute break." He meant five minutes only! We all quickly bow out at the door and take our break.
Five minutes have passed: "Line up!" Everyone rushes in the doorway and quickly bows in. Since we have taken our break and we are somewhat refreshed, Nishiyama-sensei uses this time to explain a new concept or two (actually one concept with two variations). "Kake-waza and Sasoi-waza" he explains – one is to quickly fake a three quarter punch to draw in your opponent and quickly counter after their technique is executed in their relaxed stage. The other is to create a realistic fake three quarter punch and quickly counter in a split second before they can react. The object was to pick up their breathing timing to catch them in a non committed relaxed state for the advantage. Again, we would start off doing these drills slowly – emphasizing breathing and breathing timing. Now "Full speed with kiai." We drill and drill and drill – rotating partners after each set of ten. "Last time." Here we go again!
What's unique about Nishiyama's methods of competition training is he would only work on one or two concepts for the entire night. However, he would make us do those one or two concepts every possible way and under every possible scenario... you would truly learn or program the concept into muscle memory (or subconscious) where it became a natural reaction and felt comfortable using it at any time – without thought. Slowly at first to understand the outside movements, then full speed to develop continuity of technique and write the techniques into memory. There is not much talking in Nishiyama's classes, but full of learning and experience when you are done. He believes in teaching by doing and not by talking – you can only write concepts into muscle memory through repetition of technique. He also believes that you will execute or perform in real life situations and tournaments with the exact quality that you practice. If your conscious mind becomes confused, distracted or goes blank, you revert back to your subconscious database of techniques. Basically only executing the technique as good or bad, fast or slow, stable or not stable, as you did when you practiced. Do it perfect in training, you will execute it perfect in real life or in competition or don't train for that day at all! You will have wasted your time and everyone else's time as well.
We are now at the last part of training for the evening, Kumite (tournament style free sparring). This was typically only for the last 15 minutes of the night – but you would think longer. Nishiyama's philosophy is to not get his team members gun shy of being hit too much during the learning process and provide a little sparring to apply what you have learned to real sparring situations. Although, there are nights with the major focus of the evening being tournament sparring – TRUST ME, you went home HURT and BRUISED! "Jiyu Kumite! Focus on Kake-waza and Sasoi-waza!" shouts Sensei. Now we apply the concept we have been working all night on in a tournament sparring situation. This is entertaining, educational and awe inspiring to watch. Other Karate-ka whispering, "What a putz" or "That guys awesome!", etc. Then it's their turn to spar. All that cheap talk goes out the window because it's time to see what you are made of as well - they are typically not as good as they thought...
Finally, the last part of training we've all been waiting for and really enjoy is our warm down for the evening - our stretch down. Sensei would spend another 15 to 30 minutes stretching. It would be some of the best and most unusual stretching you've ever done. He would work out every sore muscle and sore bone you acquired through the evening. Cracking backs, necks, deep tissue techniques, etc. You felt like a new person – or at least until you woke up the next morning. Anyhow, training was complete. We would all retire to the nearest restaurant draining their water dispensers, chat about training, have a few beers and head on home looking forward to the next training session.
Hidetaka Nishiyama is one of the true hard core instructors left from the old days and methods – a true Samurai by character. He is a very unique individual and has committed his entire life to maintaining the philosophies, skills and training methods of traditional Karate. He grants very few interviews, not in arrogance, but because his way of life and philosophy of maintaining the traditional spirit of the art is more important to him than developing a sport or fame of media. He is a very stern individual, yet a very compassionate individual as well. Nishiyama has trained and coached many national and international champions over the years. Students travel from many states and many countries to have an opportunity to train with him. He touches everyone's life in a way that could not be explained without experiencing his greatness. I write this article to give those a "small" glimpse of what it is like to train with Nishiyama-sensei and share my gratitude as to how he has shaped my wonderful life as well.
Thank you Nishiyama-sensei!
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Mizu No Kokoro
Shodan - Nishiyama Sensei
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