-by Joshua Black
The makiwara board is used mainly for
practicing hand techniques,
although foot
techniques are sometimes practiced as well. Ideally,
a second, more sturdy
makiwara would be used for foot techniques.
Pay strict attention to good form,
including proper balance and hip
rotation.
In most cases, the point of focus is
about two inches on the other
side of the makiwara board when it is stationary. At the
point of
impact, sharply let out a short breath, breathing in while
withdrawing. This gives good training in breath control. In hand
techniques,
take care to strike correctly with the first 2 knuckles
of the fist while keeping the
wrist straight.
There will be a tendency for the hand to bounce
off the makiwara
at first,
but constant practice will correct this. Beginners should
start with 20 to 30
punches per hand and slowly work their way up.
Makiwara training may cause injury to certain
individuals. Makiwara
usage is
not recommended for adolescents while their bones are still
developing. The
bones in a young person are not hard enough to
withstand the stress placed upon
them by this type of training.
Use at your own risk!
What is a makiwara?
A makiwara is a punching
board. The head usually has
layers of
straw padding, bound with rope and covered in canvas and many times
the other
end is buried and held in place by the earth. When struck the
makiwara provides
some give as the board moves because the head
isn't secured.
Traditionally, a makiwara
board is seven or eight feet tall and stands
vertically in the earth. Typically, the board is thicker and wider at
the
base.
Approximately four feet of the makiwara stands above the
ground, so the top is
level with the chest when in your punching stance.
The remaining length is
anchored below the ground. The head of the
makiwara is cushioned and forms the
impact point for hand and
sometimes foot techniques.
Karate conditioning
focuses primarily on the use
of the makiwara.
The makiwara is
struck repeatedly with increasing intensity, resulting
in toughened, calloused
hands and enlarged (calcified) knuckles.
Seiken (forefist) and tegatana
(knifehand) are the two primary
techniques, but any surface such as palm heel,
elbow, knees, and
kicks may be used.
Training on the
makiwara is fairly basic, simply
hit the post as many
times and as often as you can withstand without injury. If
you suffer
a bruise or break in the skin, you should hold off training until
the
wound is healed.
You can also
supplement your training by striking
into a bucket filled
with sand.
Makiwara boards should
be punched daily, but there is no
strict set
regimen. The key is not hitting the makiwara so hard that you hurt
yourself, but repetition and consistency.
Makiwara trained hands
are pretty obvious and can be ugly to people
(though I personally find them quite awseome in
their deadliness, but
that's my opinion). If you like to show off, they are a
sure sign of
dedicated training in the old ways.
The makiwara is very versatile,
and can accommodate practice
of
open/closed hand strikes, kicks, knee strikes and elbow strikes.
Most
sources recommend a regimen of hitting the makiwara 50-100
times per day, with
each hand. It is especially important to train the
weaker side of the body just as hard as the dominant side.
At first, hitting the makiwara
more
than a few times may hurt a little,
but with training, the pain goes away
and the student can hit the
makiwara more. It is important to note that you
should not use the
makiwara so much that it causes harm. Like all good
training, there
should be no permanent damage. Proper use of the makiwara will
leave
a hard callus on the striking area, numbing it. Improper use will
cause pain,
bleeding, or cramping.
Many Western Karate practitioners do not
include the makiwara as a
part of
their training, saying the damage that they believe it will cause to
the structures
of the hand over time. Others train in the "sport" oriented
styles
that have become popular, which do not emphasize practicality in
their
training. Makiwara training a lost art and needs to be kept up.
Usage will condition the hands/feet for delivering
force, and train the
hips, legs and shoulders to function in a way that generates the most
punching power,
and allows the practitioner to maintain a stable
position throughout the
motion.
People under 18 years of age should avoid hitting
the makiwara,
as the
bones of the hand are not fully developed until the middle teen
years. Training
with a makiwara at this age can damage the growth
plates and stunt growth of
the arm. You should train only under the
supervision of an expert until he/she
feels you are capable of controlling
your training yourself. To begin with,
start training with a lower number
of repetitions, and use common sense. If any
swelling, bruising,
laceration/tearing of the skin or loss of function occurs,
do not train on
the makiwara again until you are fully healed, or after consulting your
doctor,who will probably tell you that your are crazy for doing this in
the first place.
