DO cuts: need help

[xvikingx]

My DO cuts suck. They usually end up just below the DO(right where it meets with the tare) or it ends up just above it (in the ribs). Rarely do I land my cuts on the DO. Also my left hand is often off center. As a result of this my DO cuts are very soft (because I don't want to hurt anyone), so when I do land a good one it is very weak. My distance on the other hand is fine; I do not cut to deep. Comments, suggestions, and/or refferals to past threads please. Thank you in advance.

[emitbrownne]

I also suffer from this problem, and because I am tall It makes cutting Do on smaller kendoka a particular pain.


One way of training which I have now found, which seems to be helping, is to tie my Do to a hanging punchbag.
This way even if I miss there are no screams :D.
Get confidence and strike as hard as you feel necessary.
Because its a hanging punchbag, I can go through my opponent as well as cut and go off to the side.(going through can often be a problem when using a static dummy)

Try variable hieghts... even some ridiculously low and high... just to get you aim/posture/timing right... :)

Hope this helps... its helping me so far :D

[Neil Gendzwill]

Missing high or low is often the result of aiming too much. People don't want to hurt the other person, so they try to really guide the attack with the right hand. They get the opposite effect. For an accurate, strong doh you need to attack with the left hand. Pull strongly out and down with the left hand. At contact, your left arm should be straight out, roughly chudan level, left hand below the right. There should be at least a one fist gap between your forearms. To aid in this practice, motodachi should turn to the right, so that you're hitting the front of the doh. This is less painful for him, and also less worrying for you as you can just concentrate on the correct swing. Also, when learning doh it is better to go through on the left rather than the right.

[Haggis]

The advice I have received about targeting the do properly is to keep eye contact with your opponent throughout the cut. I have no idea why that helps, it just seems to.

I have never tried to hold back do cuts, thats not to say I put all my weight and take a run up at the guy but I figured "would my opponent hold back on me? Probably not".

I think emitbrowne has the right idea with the punching bag, just put some bluetac or sticky tape eyes on it as well :P. I wish I could rig something like that up where I live...damn small roomed uni colleges.

[supernils]

Try to do the Do-cut in the shape of a half heart (see attached).
Go straight up in the middle and cut DIAGONALLY DOWN.
Horisontal cuts often misses and when they hit they make a silly floppy sound.

Experiment/exercice:
Stand in front of your opponent on your left knee and right fot as if you're about to get up from seiza. You should now have her/his Do in front of yur face.
Then you make a crazy killer cut diagonally down on his/her Do. Don't be afraid of letting the Shinai slip off the Do (downwards). Performed correctly this makes a beautiful sound.
Now make a crazy killer horisontal cut.
There is a big difference in the sound and feeling of these two cuts.

My 0,02 SEK (Swedish "Krona")

[slidercrank]

Try to do the Do-cut in the shape of a half heart (see attached).


If I may add a bit of clarification: the half heart shape is traced by the kensen (the sword tip). Your left hand should merely go up and down in a straight line. Your left wrist rotates outward as it comes down, swinging the kensen outward. Your both hands should come down to the same level as your normal kote cut.

[xvikingx]

If I may add a bit of clarification: the half heart shape is traced by the kensen (the sword tip). Your left hand should merely go up and down in a straight line. Your left wrist rotates outward as it comes down, swinging the kensen outward. Your both hands should come down to the same level as your normal kote cut.

Ah hah... I think that maybe one of my major problems (with this cut). Now that you metion this I realize that I bring my left hand straight up but swing it out and back in with the cut. I would like to thank everyone for their help. Neil, thank you; can usually count on you for delivering the goods. If you have any other advice keep it coming.

"One way of training which I have now found, which seems to be helping, is to tie my Do to a hanging punchbag.
This way even if I miss there are no screams ." I have a mannequin I dry my bogu out on and practice with, but I live in a small Japanese apartment. I can only practice men uchi from the wrist (sorry I forgot what this is called :down: ). This actually brings me to a second question: whats a good way to practice this outside of the dojo?

[Neil Gendzwill]

Get an old shinai and cut it down to half length or less. You might see instructors with shinai like this, used to let students hit (uchi-komi-dai). You can also weight the end of it with one of these (http://www.e-bogu.com/sushwe.html). Now you have a tool for practising with a low ceiling.

[Dino_k]

When hitting DO, try to adopt the Nanamen buri style like during suburi warmup. Practice hitting without moving across. On impact, both hands should not cross and strive to get back to the chudan gamae position. Wrist should be on top of the tsuka. Both forward and reverse DO cut should be the same. Once you are confident, do the follow thru. You should be able to hit DO with a fair degree of accuracy.

K

[emitbrownne]

One way of training which I have now found, which seems to be helping, is to tie my Do to a hanging punchbag.
......Because its a hanging punchbag, I can go through my opponent as well as cut and go off to the side.(going through can often be a problem when using a static dummy)
If you try this, remember zanshin.. there is nothing more embarassing than being disarmed by a punchbag.... (like I was last night... D'oh)

[xvikingx]

If you try this, remember zanshin.. there is nothing more embarassing than being disarmed by a punchbag.... (like I was last night... D'oh)
:silly: I have been beat up pretty bad by the low door ways during "heya geiko". MEN ARI!!! :hurt:

Thanks again to everyone for their advice.

[jollibug]

Hello! I also have trouble with my do hits and am a bit confused...In my old dojo when we hit do, we were allowed to move our left hand so that it would grip the shinai just below where the right hand is (the arms won't cross when you hit). I notice that they never do this in the dojo where I practice now. Is moving the left hand technique wrong?

[Anjin-san]

I've HEARD that its ok, after the cut when you're going through on the right, but to be honest I don't feel too good about it.

What I prefer to do is let go of the shinai with my left hand but still keep it in my hand, balanced between my thumb and index finger. When I'm clear of the opponent I pull it back into place from the left hand.

Hope this helps

[ratdeau]

Hello! I also have trouble with my do hits and am a bit confused...In my old dojo when we hit do, we were allowed to move our left hand so that it would grip the shinai just below where the right hand is (the arms won't cross when you hit). I notice that they never do this in the dojo where I practice now. Is moving the left hand technique wrong?No, it's only easyer for beginners.

[Optomitrist]

wow this post is old.

If you do the do hit properly, you wont have any problems. So do it just right and everything should fall in place. :rolleyes: