A Martial Arts Karate in Christchurch
Welcome to Shizoku Martial Arts karate club in Christchurch. Truly a Family Martial Arts club, its right there in our name, Shizoku = family. If your goals are to learn ways to protect you and your loved ones in today’s world, you have come to the right place.
Locate Us
1 Shirley Road, Christchurch, New Zealand, 8013
Woodend Community Centre
School Road, Woodend
Call +64 21 823 857
Email : info@smakarate.co.nz
WHY IS MARTIAL ARTS IMPORTANT FOR YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
MOTIVATE YOUR CHILD
WHAT TO DO WHEN YOUR KIDS WANT TO QUIT KARATE?
About student levels and progress
Little Dragons gradings
Foot positions for the perfect stance
Punishment vs Discipline – Which is best to develop good behaviour?
Primary School Self Defence lessons
9 Strategies for preparing for bullies
Are you giving your child A, B or C options?
Make Hard Choices to Have an Easy Life
What is Martial Arts?
How to create your vision board – What do you want?
As we continue our discussion from classes on goal setting we move into the realm of vision boards. A vision board is one of the most powerful weapons in your arsenal of life. Understanding what you want to achieve and have happen, and being able to visualise it is extremely powerful. Without a target to aim for you simply drift through life. Achieving this, not doing that, but not focusing on what you really want to have happen.
A vision board is a great tool and one supported by just about every successful person on the planet. But how do you create one?
Luckily I have some insights for you. There are many ways and types of vision boards and they can be laid out any way that suits you and with any number of items. Let’s make a simple 9 quadrant one.
1. Grab an A4 sheet of paper.
2. Fold it into thirds then fold it in half. You should now have 6 quadrants when you unfold it.
3. Starting top left to right and working our way down number them 1 – 9
4. In each quadrant write the following words – 1. REWARD, 2. DESIRE, 3. MENTAL, 4. RELATIONSHIPS, 5. PERSONAL, 6. FAMILY, 7. WORK, 8. MATERIAL, 9. TRAVEL
5. Now grab another sheet and write 5-6 things for each heading. Take the first thing that comes to mind when you read the words written down. It can be anything. Now write short(6 months or less) or long term(more than 6 months) next to each one.
6. We are going to create a 6-month board. Of your 6 items pick the top 3 you would like to achieve in the next 6 months.
7. Go to the internet and search in Google for the 3 items you have written down. Grab any pictures or words that you find that envisions the item you have written down.
8. Here is the tricky part. You can either print out the pictures and cut them to shape or if you have access to a graphic software package like photoshop you can use this. Arrange the words & images you selected in each corresponding quadrant. Don’t worry about neatness but focus on your internal expression.
Hey, presto. You now have a Vision Board of your own. Place it up somewhere you can see it every day. I have mine on my wall in the shower and as a background of my computer screen.
Take the time every day to look at your board. Perhaps focus on one area. Dream of your goal. Picture yourself achieving that goal. Then go do your day. Watch what happens over time.
You can make Vision boards for any length of time but you must revisit them. Reassess your goals and create new boards every time from scratch. The effort of creation solidifies the desired outcome in your mind’s eye.
I would love to see your Vision Board and if you have any questions please do not hesitate to ask. The only thing that holds you back from achieving everything you want is yourself. So why would you hold yourself back?
5 ways to improve your own or your child’s focus
Being able to concentrate and focus is one of the most important skills for anyone to learn. It relies on self-regulation and understanding how to be in the moment.
Many studies say how well a child can navigate life depends on their ability to self-regulate. It determines their ability to use tools in their toolbox for life and create successful social interactions.
There is a lot of evidence that clearly shows that self-regulators are more likely to be school-ready, have a greater sense of well being and will see greate academic success beyond their childhood years.
So what is it that self-regulators know that others don’t?
But how do you build self-regulation into your own or your child’s life?
Generally, there are three components to building self-regulation into your life that will improve your focus and concentration.
Developing and applying self-regulation strategies at home is easily achieved. Applying these tools will help your childs focus and concentration and build those life long regulatory skills. Here are a few games you can play that reinforce these strategies.
The 5 simple games above will help develop great self-regulation skills and improve focus and concentration even in the oldest kid. Have fun bonding and playing these simple games and watch what happens over time. You may even notice variations on the above games within our martial arts classes. Flex your mental muscle and see what you can see.
Tips for Kata
Performing kata can be a nerve-racking experience. However, if you can maintain your composure and work your way through the kata carefully end to end you will find it a very rewarding activity.
There are some key things to consider when doing your kata. Judges do not necessarily know the kata you are performing so the way it is judged is not on the kata movements specifically but on your execution of the kata.
Key aspects such as Eye and Head movement, Crisp strikes, and blocks with balanced movement are being looked for.
Key factors:
Athletic performance:
If you make a mistake do not freak out. Just keep going as though you did not make a mistake. Display confidence in your execution.
Take your time, do not rush. Keep your head up and track your strikes and blocks clearly with your eyes and head. Breath throughout the kata exhaling on strikes and blocks.
The best tip for performing your kata is “PRACTICE”. Ensure you have practiced your kata again and again so the movements are second nature and you do not have to think about them too much. A great way to practice is to video yourself doing your kata and then review using an eye with the above items in mind See what you need to change and then repeat the process.
Kata is a rewarding and excellent teaching activity. Focus on the movements and techniques involved and break apart what you have, looking at possible applications.