Mental Why Do I Practice with My Sensei?
The other day, during the last 30 seconds of practice, I did aiuchi-men practice (mutual men practice).My practice partn...
剣道Cat Haru-chan
Mental 
Footwork Do We Ever Graduate from Beginner Practice?
My dojo is a dojo for “adult beginners.”It is a very small dojo, but every few months or so, a new student joins us.At m...
Mental I’m on a journey to find my voice
When did it start?I wonder when I first began thinking about kisei...When I think about it, kisei is actually one of the...
Mental My Other Teacher: “🌸The Beginner🌸”
Lately, my blog posts have been getting longer and longer... Are you free right now?Are you sure it's okay to start read...
Mental Why Do I Compete in Tournaments?
Last week turned into a "mitori-keiko (watching practice) week" for me for the first time in quite a while.The reason wa...
Others Learning Kendo Through Sewing (Part 2: Goal & Satisfaction)
This blog post has become the longest in Kendo Cat blog history. A bathroom break is recommended somewhere along the way...
Others Shinai Bags, Anyone? – A Little Shop Is Born
Have you all noticed something...?Detective CatHm? What's that?There hasn't been a single advertisement anywhere on my b...
Mental A Big Question: What Exactly Is Shinai Kendo?
Hello everyone! It's Haru, the Kendo Cat!For the past few months, I've apparently been known as the ♡Kiken-tai no Icchi ...
Shinai practice Learning Kendo Through Sewing (Part 1)
It’s been a little while — Kendo Cat Haru-chan here.Many years ago, after I moved to Hawaii, I ran into a problem. I had...
Kata practice The Importance of Uchidachi
Every Tuesday is our Kata practice day.Our Sensei says, “Kendo Kata is not arranged in order of difficulty, so even begi...
Kata practice Two Roles in One: The Chopstick Method
One of the things I aim for, both in Nippon Kendo Kata and in shinai kendo, is “to feel the opponent.”The person standin...
Mental Adult Method / Child Method
At last, I’ve started to even have nightmares about achieving ki-ken-tai no icchi in my dreams. This is Haru-chan, also ...
Shinai practice Ki-ken-tai no icchi from Beginning to End
Hello, it’s Haru-chan, your ever-familiar self-proclaimed “ki-ken-tai no icchi neurosis” cat.Today, while continuing my ...
Shinai practice Rain or Shine, One beat!
Today, after practicing basic Ippon uchi no waza (one-strike techniques) for men, kote, and dō, I moved on to jigeiko.It...
Others Tying, folding…
Phew, I made it through today’s practice safely again.Last time, Celery senpai guided me through a lot of things, and my...
Others Waaaaah! I can’t take this anymore!
Sometimes during keiko, I just want to claw at my head and scream:“Waaaaah! I can’t take this anymore!”Even though my se...