PRACTICE

Kendo Practice

A Kendo practice is composed of many types of training. Each type has a different purpose for developing the Kendo student.

Kendo, like other martial arts requires discipline and a dedication to training. A new student begins with learning the basics such as: etiquette (reigi), different postures and footwork, and how to properly swing a sword. The student progresses through a series of skills preparing them to begin training with armor (bogu).

Once a student begins to practice in armor, a practice may be composed of any or all of the following types of practice and this will depend upon what the instructor’s focus is at a particular time:

Kiri-Kaeshi: successively striking the left and right men, practice centering, distance, and proper cutting while building spirit and stamina.
Waza-Geiko: technique practice in which the student learns to use the many techniques of Kendo with a receiving partner.
Kakari-Geiko: short, intense, attack practice which teaches continuous alertness, the ability to attack no matter what has come before, as well as building spirit and stamina.
Ji-Geiko: sparring practice where the kendoist has a chance to try all that he or she has learned with a resisting partner.
Gokaku-Geiko: sparring practice between two kendoist of similar skill level.
Hikitate-Geiko: sparring practice where a senior kendoist guides a junior kendoist through practice.
Shiai-Geiko: competition matches which are judged on the basis of a person scoring valid cuts against an opponent.