So first off my apologies… it’s been a while since my last post and I’ve had several people ask me if I’m still writing this blog. The good news is, yes I am – have just been extremely busy over the summer.

One of the reasons I’ve had little time to post is that I’ve been away at the 20th KOI World Cup and Training Camp this past couple of weeks, which as per usual was a great learning experience, and a high level competition to boot, that drew competitors from around 15 countries.

Secondly, you might be wondering why at 4:04am I’m up writing this?

Jet lag.

😉

Anyhow I want to share a drill I picked up from one of the KOI instructors during the week. This is a fun exercise to help students develop their vertical jump for such katas as Kosokun Dai, or Unsu. And it’s one that you can do with your youngest students all the way up to your senior grades.

Unsu Team Kata Image courtesy of https://www.lka.org.uk/

Here’s how it works:

First you need 3 belts tied together, with the last belt wrapped up into a ball to form a weight at one end.

Now, students form a large circle around the sensei. The sensei spins in a circle dragging the weighted belt as they turn. Each student must jump straight up as the belt approaches, being sure to tuck their knees to their chest.

As the exercise progresses the sensei will turn faster and the belt will start to leave the ground forcing students to jump higher. A student is “out” when the belt catches/wraps around their legs and must step back and sit down. The game continues until only one student remains and is declared the winner.

This is a fun exercise you can try with students of any age. It develops their vertical jump and timing.

Enjoy!

Special thanks to Sensei Tommy Morris and all the KOI instructors for a great training camp and tournament. See you again next year!