Kenpo Basics - General

General Basics

" KARATE GI BELT KNOT TYING "
Click on thumbnail to enlarge view

The Parker Kenpo Creed

Ed Parker

Student Creeds (From my school)

I will live by the principles of Gods Word: modesty, integrity, perseverance, self-control and worship God the creator of all things, who also bridges the gap between God and man, through Christ Jesus.
I will develop myself in a positive manner and avoid anything that would reduce my mental growth or my physical health.
I will develop self discipline in order to bring out the best in myself and others.
I will use the art of Kenpo constructively and defensively to help myself and my fellow man and never to be abusive or offensive.

Important Rules

Establish Your Base

First rule of Kenpo. If you don't have a solid base you'll be off balance and nothing will work.

Create Distance

Second rule of Kenpo - get away from the attacker.

Control, disarm, technique

Your first priority in an attack is to control whatever weapon an attacker might have. Second, disarm the attacker and third, run your technique to dispose of the threat.

Strike high/check low & strike low/check high

must

The 3 Stages Of Learning

Embryonic

You know nothing about Karate and are just beginning to learn the basic steps involved in techniques and forms.

Mechanical

You understand the mechanics of running techniques, but not necessarily the flow between techniques and you can't react to an instinctively attack.

Spontaneous

You understand both the mechanics of running techniques and how they flow together. You properly react to an attack without thinking.

Power Principles

Each technique in the Parker Kenpo system is based on one of these power principles. Techniques can, and often do, make use of more than one of these principles, but one of the three is always the overriding force behind the technique.

Marriage of Gravity

We have it whenever we sink or when all our force is going down. Use high wide kneel to accentuate Marriage or Gravity. Marriage of Gravity is essentially Back-up Mass on a vertical plane (we're moving in a straight line down).

Torque

Provides more power. To get torque, something must twist or rotate.

Back-up Mass

Putting your entire body into a move. We have Back-up Mass whenever we're moving in a straight line. This puts your entire body into a particular movement. Back-up Mass is essentially Marriage of Gravity on a horizontal plane.

Tap-Tap Drills

These are sensitivity drills geared toward increasing your blocking and parrying speed without the use of force. These drills should be run quickly, but with minimal power. They begin with two individuals, each in a Right Neutral Bow.

Beginner

Begin with right wrists touching. One person does a left inward parry on the other persons elbow, a right outward parry on the elbow, push elbow down with left palm and as right foot steps forward while you do a right vertical thrust punch. The other person repeats the same moves.

Catch Punch

Start with Beginner (above) then right leg cats back as we catch punch with left hand, right glancing back knuckle to triceps, left inward/downward parry/check and right foot steps forward as we do a right vertical thrust punch and the other person repeats.

Inward Elbow

Right inward elbow comes in, right leg cats back as we catch (open hand) the elbow, right upward back knuckle to underside of elbow, left downward parry/check and right foot steps forward as we do right inward elbow

Hook Punch

Right hook comes in, right leg cats back, left outward parry, right upward back knuckle just above elbow to pass the arm over my head, left inward/downward parry and right foot steps forward as we do right hook.

Uppercut punch

Right uppercut comes in, right leg cats back while doing left inward (low) parry, right hammerfist on outside of forearm, left downward parry/check and right foot steps forward as we do right uppercut.

Overhead punch

Right overhead punch comes in, right leg cats back while doing a left inward/upward parry, right back knuckle to ,triceps left inward/downward parry as right foot steps forward and we do right overhead punch.

Kumite

I believe that "without contact, there is no reality." Kumite is much like Kata in action. However, unlike Kata, it is spontaneous, instinctive and realistic.
Kumite is performed in a controlled non-threatening environment. It provides you with the opportunity to experience opponents and attacks in all shapes and sizes. When you participate in sparring, you are actually crossing the line between visualization and reality. You have the opportunity to put all that you have learned into practice.

Benefits from participation in Kumite:

There are many benefits from sparring. They are listed below.

1.    The development of a quicker response time. (reflexes).
2.    Increased endurance.
3.    The capacity to view your opponent objectively and thus instinctively know how to strike and how to avoid being struck.
4.     The ability to keep your emotions under control.
5.     Improved focus.
6.     The freedom to make the wrong decisions and learn - without suffering the consequences.
7.    The opportunity to role play (you can actually preset the kind of moves you wish to practice and then change off with your partner).
        For example: Student
        A.     Hands/feet - One does hand, one student does feet (simultaneously).
        B.      Circular movements/linear movements - each does one - etc.
        C.     Action/reaction - offense/defense.
        D.     Upright/Prone - One student does moves while standing to learn how to deal with an opponent on the ground and vice versa.
The Kumite is a voyage through your own imagination. There are no boundaries, only those which you impose upon yourself.

Freestyle fighting

PROGRESSION IN SPARRING

Well, what can I say about Freestyle fighting that hasn't already been said. You can buy any martial arts magazine and be educated on how to do the latest way to execute your spinning back kick or throw your back fist. What I will say is do not lose sight of the fact that Kenpo has two types of Freestyle, and how you move whilst executing it is down to you.
The 2 types are "STREET FREESTYLE and TOURNAMENT FREESTYLE."
The purpose of sparring is to promote the use of sparring as a vehicle of learning. Some of the advantages of sparring are that if your goal in the martial arts is that of the combat aspect, sparring is the first step to take to see how much you actually have developed in your body mechanics and what you need to work on. There is no "cheating" in how you actually perform.
This is where you can actually find out the truth if your "stuff’ actually "works". The disadvantage is obvious; there is a chance of someone getting hurt. Let me be the first to say, SPARRING CAN BE DANGEROUS! Especially if you are training with people who like to go that bit heavier.
Not everybody should take this step in his or her martial arts training. First off, I would like to say that it is not a wise decision to just walk out there using little or no pads for protection. There are certain steps that can be progressively taken to better prepare you for Freestyle fighting. First, watch a couple of fights. Decide, is this something that you would like to pursue. If you don't believe that your skills are adequate, find someone that has them, preferably someone that has done this type of fighting or training if that is what your goal is. Remember that the magic words are, "IT DEPENDS ON WHERE YOU WANT TO TAKE IT". Anyway assuming that you have the skills, or are learning them, and feel ready to take the next step, here are some ideas.
At second degree brown belt a major portion of your training time should be spent on freestyle. You MUST have a goal at each belt level and the desire to expand your vocabulary of motion. The basic concepts, theories and principles that you have learnt in your self defense techniques should now be blended with your freestyle and viewed as the total and whole of your fighting skills. They are not separate entities. What I will say is do not lose sight of the fact that Kenpo has two types of Freestyle, and how you move whilst executing it is down to you

Drills.

Order some good quality sparring gear, the dipped foam variety or proper boxing type gloves, set some basic rules, like when one guy says stop, stop. Decided and discuss how much contact is involved.
Now start working on the drills you have been practicing in the air and in your classes, go at it for about two minutes. The tricky part here is that you have to be realistic and have a realistic partner. Realistic meaning that both participants are visualizing that this is a real fight and in realizing this you are both not taking risk and doing unrealistic things. Assuming of course you are preparing your self for street freestyle.
After you have done this a few times start by working individual drills with a single move, and progress into multiple moves in your work out.
For example you can isolate a right punch and add in angle # l. One guy can feed nothing but the first punch and first angle, eventually progressing to the same angle as a follow through or as a
Retracting jab. Eventually you add feints. After you have got a pretty good feel for this combination try moving to kicking drills only. Work the same progression. Next try the same combinations using fakes, follow-through, jabs, and some footwork.
You can work through all the angles this way if your picking up fast and have the time to work on this. Each step should probably take some time, depending on what you're looking for.
Everyone is different. If you like, you can even take the same course of action using kick punch combinations. Work on these types of drills as long as you feel you need to. At no time should you step out on the mat if you don't feel comfortable in your skills to protect yourself. There is no lying here, guaranteed to be only the truth as it stands for you.
"Remember when skin kisses skin tension begins" (Ed Parker).
You will know when you did something wrong when you feel it. And you may curse everyone that told you that this or that are guaranteed to work, but have never taught you how to do it, while factors like power, speed, fear, adrenaline, feints, etc., etc., are coming into play. Anyway back to the point. You may want to continue at this level for some time.
For progression, look at your strong and weak points, and work on them. Learn something new each time you step on the mat, and refine the movement you already have.
Is a weak point your defensive skills?
Is a weak point your offensive skills?
Are your kicks accurate?
Are your punches accurate?
Do your kicks have enough power?
Do your punches have enough power?
Are your punches weak?
Are your kicks weak?
Are your elbows to high exposing your ribs?
Are your elbows to low exposing your head?
Have you got hit on your left hand or elbow yet?
Have you got hit on your right hand or elbow yet?
How about your rear leg?
How about your front leg?
Are you open to being swept?
Are you open to being grabbed?
It should also be about this time that you are figuring out just how much the human body can take in certain areas. You should be considering this as you start to work on your attacks and what you want to accomplish. You always want to fight someone better than you, stronger and faster than you, so that you have someone constantly pushing you.
Remember that throughout all of this it is still nice to go back to the BASICS so that you can "try " new things out. The main thing is that you have fun, reach your goals, and become realistic assuming that is what you are looking for.