Welcome to Sanrin’s digital training program! Please read on to find out more about the program, what equipment you may need to participate, and what to expect on a weekly basis.

Goal

This class aims to add a bit of fitness, stretching, wellness, and martial skill into your weekly schedule. Whatever your starting point for fitness and martial arts experience, you can make this fit with your personal goals.
The disclaimer – digital training often lacks the hands-on element of a physical program. If you have found a class or teacher in your area that you like, I encourage you to keep at it. But there is a lot of upside to digital training as well, which I will outline.

Class Details

The goal of this online class will be to utilize a variety of tools that you can easily put in your home in order to develop an enjoyable fitness and skill development program. The classes will contain some or all of the following:
  • Stretching and warmups
  • Padded bag striking (heavy bags or freestanding bags, easy to acquire)
  • Karate (empty hand) fundamentals
  • Kobudo (ancient weaponry) fundamentals
  • Kata
  • Cool down and wellness practices

Recommend Equipment

Participating each week requires very little equipment. Here’s the recommended setup:

Space

Please leave about 10 square feet of clearance around you so that you can comfortably move. High ceiling clearance would be a bonus because of our weapons training.

Digital Setup

A basic digital setup will be required to observe and participate in class.

  • Zoom – You don’t actually need to pay for anything here, just be aware of how to use Zoom. Classes will be held using this technology.
  • Webcam – You can use your phone, but a laptop and webcam is often the easiest to use. I connect my laptop to a TV using an HDMI cable so that I can see everything on the big screen.
  • USB Mic or Earbuds – Your laptop and phone likely have a mic built in, but sometimes it’s nice to have good earbuds or a usb mic to improve your communication.

Striking Bags

Punching, kicking, and other strikes are an important part of the program. As such, it is recommended that you get something to hit. The good news is that striking bags are affordable and easy to acquire. Here are some recommendations:

  • Hanging Heavy Bag – A hanging heavy bag provides excellent resistance and sways as you hit it, which provides you an opportunity to work on footwork as well. You’ll need to have proper joists to hang it, or purchase a separate hanging heavy bag stand.
  • Freestanding Bag – A freestanding bag gives you greater mobility to move the bag around and make it work in your space. The only downside is that it does not sway in the same way as a hanging bag and can tip over when struck too hard.
  • Bob Training Bag – The Bob bag is nice because it simulates striking targets on the human body. The downside is that it is pricier.

Weapons

One of the neat features of our program is weapons. Not just for self defense, weapon training improves coordination and encourages you to think about your martial arts in a broader context.

  • Inexpensive Bo – The best way to get a bo is just go to Lowe’s and get a six foot dowel. Generally the 1.25 inch diameter is best. Make sure to sand it before use.
  • Nice Bo – If you’d like to upgrade your bo, you can choose from a variety of woods and get something more professionally cut.
  • Short Bo (Jo) – If you have limited ceiling clearance, just grab a Jo instead.
  • Inexpensive Sai – They have some problems with their construction and shape, but they get the job done.
  • Nice Sai – I can help you pick out size, shape, and details.

In-Person Opportunities

We will arrange for in-person training periodically. This will help participants get to know each other and expand their training into partner-based drills.

Ready to participate? Fill out the sign-up form and waiver below:

 
 

 

Sign-Up Form
Training Waiver