2011-01-22 14:35:00
Today I did something new: I partook in kendo training.
Recently I've been getting the "itch" to pick up sports again. i've been running between the office and the railway station every day, trying to build up some stamina again. This is going slowly, but it's working. But as I learnt last summer, I doubt that I'd want to go back to long endurance running again. Well, as Menno so succinctly pointed out: "there's never a dull moment in kendo!"
The way I see it, kendo will be beneficial to me in a number of areas. Obviously it's good exercise, there's no doubt about that. It will hopefully also teach me some mental endurance and some much-needed humility. Personally I love the rigor, the tradition and the ceremony, so that's a plus. And physically? I can only dream of ever becoming as fast as some of these folks! One fellow I practiced with would be able to get in five to seven blows for every one of mine. The light footedness! Amazing!
There is one snag though. If I ever want to progress beyond the mere basics, wear a bogu and actually start fighting, then I will need to get over myself and start wearing contact lenses. There is no way that my normal glasses will stand up to the blows. So either I purchase expensive, custom sports glasses, or I get my eyes lasered, or I get contacts. Seeing how contacts are the cheapest and least permanent option it's safest to go with that for now.
The dojo in Almere, Renshinjuku, is an offshoot of a larger dojo in Amstelveen. There aren't that many kendo dojo in the Netherlands, but I appear to have lucked out with this one! For my taste the dojo has the right level of formality. I was dreading a group similar to my original archery group in Zutphen: no discipline, no rigor, just teenagers running wild. Luckily that is not the case at all! In the dressing room the atmosphere is jovial and informal, but once you go out to the training floor everybody gets serious.
I am really looking forward to next week's class.
kilala.nl tags: sports, kendo,
View or add comments (curr. 5)
Posted by Thomas
Thanks for the tips about contacts Hans.
And no, you're absolutely right: kendo and many (if not most) other martial arts about discipline and control :)
Posted by Menno
I've been wearing soft contacts for years now. It's a bit fidgety at first getting them in but with a little perseverance you'll get the hang of it.
The optometrist (if that's how you write it :)) were very helpfull. The show you how to do it and they are with you when you try it for the first time. And they will be there untill you get it right.
After that it's just practice at home. Also you won't be wearing them the whole day right away. There's a schedule for your eyes to ease into it. First day one hour. Second day two hours etc. If you get them in a holiday you can dick around to your hearts content :).
Posted by André (website)
Often a optometrist (if that's how you write it :)) will give you a set of contacts for free, just to try them out for a month. Tip; if you are going for contacts, don't buy contacts that you have to wear for 6 months. Better try 1-month contacs or even better, 1-day contacts. Then you'll have the possibility to throw a set away when they are not sitting comfortably. My 1-month contacts sometimes are wearable for less than 3 weeks and sometimes can be streched out over more than a month, depending on weather and other circumstances.
Good luck with your Kendo practice, very cool indeed. :-)
Kind regards,
André
All content, with exception of "borrowed" blogpost images, or unless otherwise indicated, is copyright of Tess Sluijter. The character Kilala the cat-demon is copyright of Rumiko Takahashi and used here without permission.
2011-01-22 17:37:00
Posted by Hans
I'm currently trying contacs and it is a real different ballgame then wearing glasses. And for get your eyes lasered, they need to be steady for a long time. Soft contacts are a good solution if the air is not too dry. In the office the air is somewhat dry at the moment so I have some trouble but the can be solved ;-)
BTW I liked your remark about teenagers go wild. With sports like these you don't want that ;-) It is about discipline and controlling your moves and the situation. Correct me if I'm wrong.