Skip to main content

Kyudo Blog #4 - Stiff neck = good posture practice

Odd discovery today. Having a stiff neck provides excellent incentive for good posture during Kyudo.

Woke up with a neck so stiff that virtually any movement caused pain. It was amazing how good this made at maintaining my posture through a practice of the Taihai movements in my basement.

Can't say I recommend getting a stiff neck on purpose. But if you happen to wake up with one anyway, I can recommend practicing Kyudo while it still hurts.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Kyudo Blog #2 - Shinsa Prep

So, we're well past my first year. I decided to take the video shinsa for shodan at the end of the year. We also, have a new cohort joining the dojo. Things are getting interesting. This journey has not been at all what I expected. First, I had expected Kyudo to be both more and less introspective. Our dojo focuses more on Taihai, or the ceremonial/performance aspect of the art. And that comes with a lot of concern for harmony and beauty as a group. Making movements up to shai (firing line) in unison as much as possible.  At the same time the focus on the self is infinitely more than I could have anticipated as well. Posture, breathing, form and movements. Everything seems to have a right way of doing it. And none of those "right ways" come naturally. Beyond that there is also etiquette. Even things you might not associate with the practice itself are a part it. And all of these things then also need to be in harmony with everything else. Needless to say, I have a long wa...

Kyudo Blog #1 - The First Year

I've been practicing Kyudo for over a year now. Started in early April of last year officially. This November I'm hoping to attempt for sho-dan. And, I wanted to take some time to reflect on a few things: Why I started and why I continued. General lessons learned. Current progress and goals. As to why I started, I can't say that there is a single, clear answer. I was thinking about joining "something" and I had been somewhat intent on it being some Japanese Martial Art. Aikido was the only thing I had taken which I had remembered enjoying when I was young. I discovered Kyudo through the anime Tsurune , but I had already attempted contacting and joining the dojo in the past and that show was no longer front and centre. Then, I saw that they were sponsoring a local event which made me curious. I checked their Facebook page and they were having intro sessions later in the year. I signed up. Attended. Joined the beginners program. Completed it. Applied to join the reg...

WoT Getting Picked Up By Another Network?

A lot of people are hoping that, since the cancellation, WoT will be picked up by another network. I don't think it will happen. I didn't mind the show and while I have some beef with it, even the quality of the show isn't the reason I don't believe it will be picked up again. This could have been the best received series of all time and no one would touch it now. Why? Because it is an unknown factor now. Basically, WoT is a show based on an existing IP with an existing fanbase. What was completed of the existing TV Series drifted so far from the books that it alienated that fanbase. This is a problem because there is no built-in audience for what comes next. The book fans have no reason to come along because the storyline from the books is no longer recoverable. And, even the TV show fans aren't a guarantee. In fact, they are especially not guaranteed here. Another unique factor here is that WoT was on Prime Video. This is a streaming service many people simply get...