How to Grip (Tenouchi) your sword for Fast and strong Kendo

#剣道 #kendo #kamae
In this video you will learn how to set up your arms, the grip ( Tenouchi) and how the shinai should be in relationship with out partner in Kendo.
This video complements my last video on Kamae, In kendo we need a kamae where we can have good Tenouchi, speed, control and also be able to be safe against our opponents shinai.
If you would like to watch last week's video or more kendo basics video check my Kendo Basics Playlist:
Kendo Basics Playlist:
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[@jinden33]

In terms of the wording for the grip (I also use it for describing how the left leg should be engaged) I like the term “dynamic tension”. It basically means to ALWAYS have your muscles working. An example is if you hold your arm out straight and you ask someone to push up and down on it and you are trying to hold it steady, you are applying both sets of muscles to fight against your buddy who is trying to move it. I hope that helps. Lastly, as the highest ranking member of Milwaukee Koyokai Kendo Club (I am only 3rd dan) we would like to thank you for all of your great videos. Your teachings are helping more than two dozen students take their kendo to the next level. Thank you so much! Should you ever find yourself in the Milwaukee, Wisconsin or Chicago, Illinois area, please let us know as we would be happy to have you practice at our club or we will drive to Chicago and practice with you there. Sincerely, Milwaukee Koyokai Kendo Club.

[@Kendotips]

Thank you very much for sharing your explanation, This is one of the big reasons I started the channel; We have many different ways of saying things even if we are talking about the same concepts, but it just helps people understand better to have different perspectives. I am glad I have been of help and I hope to keep going! I will take your offer next time I travel up north, If you ever visit Miami please let me know!!!! Thank you again!!!!

[@crisr.4108]

Arrechisimo hermano! 🎉 acabo de descubrir tu canal, estoy en Hungría y veo clases de kendo y a veces no comprendo al 100% las explicaciones, pero aqui aclaro mas las vainas pues. Muchas gracias mi pana! ⛩️

[@Kendotips]

Gracias! Eres Venezolano? En lo que te pueda ayudar avísame.

[@nathphil1968]

Great tips!!! No pun intended! 😅 Very useful indeed!

[@Kendotips]

I am very Glad that it was helpful! if there's anything I can do to help please let me know.

[@windhawk0012]

This is extremely helpful!

[@Kendotips]

I am very glad that it helped please don’t hesitate to message me if I can help you further.

[@louislamonte334]

Thank you so much for this!! Have a fantastic day today!!

[@Kendotips]

Thank you best wishes to you my friend!

[@user-sg8kq7ii3y]

One of the reasons I quit Kendo was because they forced me to place my left hand on the bottom of the shinai and my right hand forward. And they forced me to take a right foot forward stance. This put me at a great disadvantage, and I could never get used to this stance. I would much rather have my left foot forward, and my right hand on the bottom of the shinai. I honestly don't understand why they force you to take a certain stance. That's a like a right-handed kid showing up for his first Little League practice, and the coaches force him to use a left-handed glove and bat left handed. After one kendo practice, I experimented with my friends, and I took my natural stance. I performed so much better just by taking my natural stance, with my left foot forward. I hadn't even been practicing that way, but I was so much better compared to having my right foot forward. Makes no sense at all.

[@Kendotips]

That is a great topic you bring up. There are stances that allow you to switch feet, also when fighting with two shinai you have the opportunity to use the long sword in any hand your prefer, but that been said you need to learn the basics before changing. Maybe you perceive this as a disadvantage since kendo kamae be very different from many fighting stances, and maybe sparring with your friend could have been more comfortable but not necessarily effective ( I am speculating here I am not saying this as facts by the way). I am left handed and I don't feel this gives me any advantage or disadvantage in my kendo. I don't know how long you tried Kendo but I understand how it could make no sense for you, but if you have any questions I can try my best to answer them.

[@user-sg8kq7ii3y]

@@Kendotips Yes, my question is WHY do Kendo teachers force students to take a specific stance when no other sport forces that? Tennis, baseball, volleyball, boxing, etc. all allow you to choose whatever stance you're most comfortable with. Is it some type of Japanese tradition or something?

[@Kendotips]

@@user-sg8kq7ii3y I think you got it, maybe the easiest answer to that question is that Kendo is not a sport is a martial art, that been said there can be exceptions.

[@user-sg8kq7ii3y]

@@Kendotips I think Kendo is both a martial art and a sport. At it's core, it's a martial art; however, there are competitions, so, for me, that's what makes it a sport as well.

[@Keltsalk]

Another question about tenouchi is how tight you should grip the fingers of the left hand in quick sharp movement for quick hit? Or the high speed should be depends more on the movement of wrist and coordination of hands/left foot and so on..

[@Kendotips]

Sorry for the late reply, Ideally you want to grip it to the point where your wrists won't be stiff, and (if we are talking about big men) you want to do this towards the last part of the swing.

[@Keltsalk]

Thank you for your tips! It lead to think about improving such things. i guess that the typical explanations are enough to start finding your personal position of fingers/hands/shinai/body. However, everytime I asked myself about the angle between the left hand and shinai (should it be 180 degrees or could it will be higher - almost to the horizontal line hand-shinai?). At the end of hitting your left wrist should be curve-shape or straight depends on many factors, however, what do you think?

[@Kendotips]

It is hard to say because since you have flexibility the angle could be different depending on the technique, I guess the best answer I can give here is that you don't want to over extend your wrist or let your hands be on the side of the sword. I think that if you keep the hands on top of the shinai, you will have a natural, fast, and powerful form. If you ever pass by one of my live streams, please remind me and I could demonstrate.

[@ronin9450]

Im curious, what are your thoughts on grip distance (width?). I feel like using a size 38 tsuka ona size 39 shinai to lower the distance between my hands would feel more comfortable but I wonder what I would lose by doing that. From the limited discussions I've seen online, it seems that you get more strength and reach with a shorter grip length but you get more speed for renzoku waza with longer grip lengths

[@Kendotips]

There are a few differences I don't think that the reach difference is significant. The biggest difference for me is that it requires slightly less movements from your hands to move the tip this could be good but also bad ( over swinging is common when you start trying the shorter grip. I was encourage while in Japan to use a shorter grip as a mean of training but you have to find what is good for your body and style. At the moment I am trying with different shinai even though I have a favorite style just to see how it affects my kendo and Kamae

[@carr16k]

Never had much issue with my grip doing kendo all these years. But recently having 2 issues with my left hand for some reason. First is my little finger tend to get super stiff during training causing me to lose control of the finger momentarily, with the finger getting stuck at the grip curled position and not being able to straighten it . The other issue is for my left middle finger to feel pain for a few days after training. The pain is on the inside of the finger (palm side) just above the joint between the finger and the palm. Not sure what changed?

[@Kendotips]

What you are describing sounds like someone I know that described it as "Trigger Finger" (but please I can not offer any medical advice specially without having much information ) If that's the case I would suggest seeing a doctor. On a personal experience I used to have a lot of tendon pain when I was Nidan during some tournaments and tournament practice due to excessive Tension and my shinai having thin grip so my fingers were almost digging into my hand with the tension. What helped me in that situation was to fix my grip and changing to a thicker grip for a while. If I can help any further please let me know.! and thank you for watching!!!

[@carr16k]

@@Kendotips thank you. I'll try switching to a shinai with a thicker grip and reducing tension in my grip

[@MarinoFrana]

What do you mean "if you struggle with anything"? I struggle with everything 😅

[@Kendotips]

HAHAHAHA yest Totally, but I guess solving one at a time helps!!! Thank you for watching, and let me know if I can help!

[@Kendotips]

You may also like this video about knocking your opponent's sword out of the way: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y56UZ5iOic19jpI what do you struggle with when it comes to kamae?