How many suburi a day is good enough ?

[Pokie]

Sorry, I started this thread in dojo section. I'm beginner here, Im sorry about that.

I would like to increase the strength of my arms and cuts through suburi. Can anyone please tell me how much I should do a day ?

Thanks :puzzled:

[KATSUJIN]

but you dont cut using the strength of ur arms.....u use the snapping action of ur wrists to cut.....but if u want to improve ur basics...do abt 100 twice a day first....every 4 days, increase by 50. Dont do too fast.....

[Pokie]

ahh yes !! thanks ! every 50...every four days. So what is a good maximum suburi should I do ? Is there a balance between how many suburi one can do and the physiological damage it can do ? Like repetitive stress injury ?

snap of wrist ? thanks !

[aru-ma]

strengthening arms? just do it until you get tired:D but you shouldnt just concentrate on your arms, practice your wrist flexibility too.

just out of interest, where do you train in sydney?

[Raiza]

Originally posted by Pokie
So what is a good maximum suburi should I do ? Is there a balance between how many suburi one can do and the physiological damage it can do ? Like repetitive stress injury ?


Welcome to the forum, Pokie.

Yes, the potential certainly exists for a repetitive strain injury (RSI) if you do too many suburi, but it really depends on how you're doing the suburi to begin with. If you're using really strong cuts, the maximum number you can do will be much less than if you use weak cuts. If you're doing them incorrectly, this will also lower the maximum number of suburi you can do before problems occur. I think it's much better to do several dozen good cuts than several hundred lousy ones. Katate-suburi is a wonderful way to get people to rely more on their left arm than their right, so that suburi should always be included in your home workout routine.

Personally, I didn't do hundreds of suburi at home when I first started, and I still don't as I'm all too familiar with the whole RSI issue. I just try to make the ones that I actually do as good as I possibly can. If I'm doing the aerobic haya-suburi at home, then the end of my cut is not discreet (i.e. the cut doesn't end with a solid stop), and is what my Sensei refers to as "aerobics with a shinai". As for building strength and stamina, it's going to happen anyway as long as you're practising regularly.

Ultimately, it's not how strong your cuts are, it's how good they are.

I am presuming that you're new to both KWF and kendo. Please correct me if this is not the case.

Raiza

[Old Warrior]

OK friends, since it was brought up, I'd like to divert the chat to RSI. For about 3 weeks my left elbow is soooooo sore I can't squeeze the toothpaste. I ice it every night, take anti-inflammatories, and use Jointritis (a menthol based rub). Please don't tell me the only solution is to stop all kendo for a while. And for informational purposes, we do 200 suburi at every class (3-4 days a week). For an old guy like me, 300 is my absolute current limit.

[Hongsermeier]

Sounds like your already doing all you can without stoping kendo. I know with my knee problems the only added advice I have is maybe skip 1 practice a week(2-3 instead of 3-4). Could give the elbow more time in between to heal. Also, try doing a few suburi for a sensei at the dojo to see if he/she has any advice about your form that might help. :cross_eye

[Neil Gendzwill]

Second Hongsermeir's advice - check with your sensei on form. Partiularily check the position of your elbow at the end of the cut. The insides of your elbows should be facing each other, pointed a little up. This is accomplished by rotating the elbows up (the wringing the towel effect - we say tenouchi). If they are pointed straight up you might be overextending the joint.

[Hyaku]

After a substantial time swinging weapons I still get a few aches and pains after a hard session. Its never ending. I do most of my work with very heavy suburito to build and warm up. Now shinai feel like tooth picks.

An Orthopaedic surgeon I know tells me to ice joints only directly after an injury. After that they should be warmed. His advice seems to work well.

How about a supporter on that joint for a while?

Hyaku

[ben]

Old Warrior - This elbow problem you mention is often confused with tennis elbow, which it I don't think it is. I suffer from it too. Sometimes at night my elbow locks in a bent position and it's really REALLY painful to straighten.

I have been told that the problem is in fact that with all the contraction of the muscles around the elbow in kendo, the joint gets compressed and can't move as freely. The remedy is to try stretching out the joint. As well as not neglecting those wrist and forearm losening exercises that most of us do as a standard taiso/warmup (ie bend wrist one way and hold, the other way and hold).

You can use one arm to pull on the other and actually lengthen it. Or get a friend to pull. It takes a while and the effect seems pretty subtle at first, but it works.

b

[Kiki]

Sometimes at night my elbow locks in a bent position and it's really REALLY painful

I’ve had the same problem long before kendo. Have you tried bending your arms back up then lowering rather than forcing them down? This some how “releases” the lock and afterwards I can freely move my arms.

For about 3 weeks my left elbow is soooooo sore I can't squeeze the toothpaste

My elbow get sore sometimes too and it takes awhile to heal. I believe it’s from a tendency to hyperextend, aka bad form. The flip side is when it’s hurting I tend to protect my elbow(s) by keeping it slightly bent when striking which creates that every lovely hacking style, aka more bad form.

Seems to me the lower body get all the attention during the group warm-ups before keiko but the arms and wrists get neglected and we just jump into suburi. I’ve taken it upon myself to loosen those area on my own. This combined with doing slow suburi in an effort to improve form has considerably helped prevent injuries .

[Pokie]

heey thanks very much for the answers ! yes I am new to this forum..and new to kendo..I've only been training for 4 months consistently and 1 and a bit yrs training casually. I'm at sydney...I train both at UNSW and Willoughby, try to anyway. If anyone have a fair idea on who I am and wud like to guess, pls email me privately, you'd prolly be about 25% % right hahah. Thanks again !

[Pokie]

darn it..there you go..i juz did it..my last two fingers on my left are acutely strained...gona have to rest this out for 2 days till sat...bummer

oh yes..goodluck to australian team in Glasgow !!

[Marine_Boy]

You just need to do one PERFECT cut!

Stan:D

[samurai999]

When I was in a cast, I was doing up to ~280 suburi a day. 2 sets of 20 for each type I could think of.

Tim

[ian woods]

as many as you can do ....then10 more..go do now!!!!! :tired: