Solo Kihon
Partner Kihon
Full Kihon Demonstration
Kihon Tips from Kyle Sloan

1) Honte Uchi — normal strike

2) Gyakute Uchi — reverse strike

3) Hiki Otoshi — downward strike

4) Kaeshi Zuki — low weapon thrust

5) Gyakute Zuki — high weapon thrust

6) Maki Otoshi — envelope, drop down

7) Kuri Tsuke — guide and stick to weapon

8) Kuri Hanashi — guide and let go

9) Tai Atari — crush the body

10) Tsuki Hazushi Uchi — deflect a thrust, strike

11) Do Bari Uchi — sweeping strike

12) Tai Hazushi Uchi — evade and strike

Solo Kihon

  • 1. Honte Uchi

    • 1. Honte Uchi

    • Watch Video

  • 2. Gyakute Uchi

    • 2. Gyakute Uchi

    • Watch Video

  • 3. Hiki Otoshi Uchi

    • 3. Hiki Otoshi Uchi

    • Watch Video

  • 4. Kaeshi Tsuki

    • 4. Kaeshi Tsuki

    • Watch Video

  • 5. Gyakute Tsuki

    • 5. Gyakute Tsuki

    • Watch Video

  • 6. Maki Otoshi

    • 6. Maki Otoshi

    • Watch Video

  • 7. Kuri Tsuke

    • 7. Kuri Tsuke

    • Watch Video

  • 8. Kuri Hanashi

    • 8. Kuri Hanashi

    • Watch Video

  • 9. Tai Atari

    • 9. Tai Atari

    • Watch Video

  • 10. Tsuki Hazushi Uchi

    • 10. Tsuki Hazushi Uchi

    • Watch Video

  • 11. Do Barai Uchi

    • 11. Do Barai Uchi

    • Watch Video

  • 12. Tai Hazushi Uchi

    • 12. Tai Hazushi Uchi

    • Watch Video

Partner Kihon

  • 1. Honte Uchi

    • 1. Honte Uchi

    • Watch Video

  • 2. Gyakute Uchi

    • 2. Gyakute Uchi

    • Watch Video

  • 3. Hiki Otoshi

    • 3. Hiki Otoshi

    • Watch Video

  • 4. Kaeshi Tsuke

    • 4. Kaeshi Tsuke

    • Watch Video

  • 5. Gyakute Tsuke

    • 5. Gyakute Tsuke

    • Watch Video

  • 6. Maki Otoshi

    • 6. Maki Otoshi

    • Watch Video

  • 7. Kuri Tsuke

    • 7. Kuri Tsuke

    • Watch Video

  • 8. Kuri Hanashi

    • 8. Kuri Hanashi

    • Watch Video

  • 9. Tai Atari

    • 9. Tai Atari

    • Watch Video

  • 10. Tsuki Hazushi Uchi

    • 10. Tsuki Hazushi Uchi

    • Watch Video

  • 11. Do Barai Uchi

    • 11. Do Barai Uchi

    • Watch Video

  • 12. Tai Huzushi

    • 12. Tai Huzushi

    • Watch Video

Full 12-Kihon Demonstation (Solo)

Kihon Tips from Kyle Sloan

  • The jo should rotate in a plane vertically. This means you will have to shift your hips slightly as you draw.
  • The drawing action comes naturally from your shoulder. From the honte-no-kamae posture, allowing your shoulder to relax will draw the jo smoothly.
  • As you draw, your hand should rotate from its beginning position to a palmed position. In the beginning we teach the rear hand cups, then draws. As you advance in skill, work toward starting in normal grip, and the rear hand moving to a cupped or palmed position at the end.
  • The drawing action should be reversible. You should be able to thrust the stick at uke with natural motion. If the first three elements are not present, you will find it difficult to thrust.
  • As you draw, allow your weight to sink down. There’s a tendency to allow our weight to shift into the heel as we draw.
  • As you draw, think about pushing the front hand forward. This helps with not rocking your weight back, and also helps keep the hand extended so the advanced arm doesn’t collapse at the elbow.
  • The front hand does not move. It’s like shooting pool. The front hand is the targeting mechanism, the back hand simply pushes the stick directly forward.
  • Lift the jo, and your center at the same time.
  • Lift your rear hand fully upward. There’s a temptation to move the jo forward early. Always try to use full range of motion.
  • As the strike progresses, the jo moves forward.
  • At the end, the hands should “wring” the jo as if it were a wet towel or mop. I find the “V” created by my thumb & index finger on both hands line up on top of the jo.
  • The bottom hand should be about two fists width from your center.
  • The jo should rotate in a plane vertically. This means you will have to shift your hips slightly as you draw.
  • The drawing action comes naturally from your shoulder. From the gyakute-no-kamae posture, allowing your shoulder to relax will draw the jo smoothly.
  • The drawing action should be reversible. You should be able to thrust the stick at uke with natural motion. If the first two elements are not present, you will find it difficult to thrust.
  • As you draw, allow your weight to sink down. There’s a tendency to allow our weight to shift into the heel as we draw.
  • As you draw, think about pushing the front hand forward. This helps with not rocking your weight back, and also helps keep the hand extended so the advanced arm doesn’t collapse at the elbow.
  • The front hand does not move. It’s like shooting pool. The front hand is the targeting mechanism, the back hand simply pushes the stick directly forward.
  • Lift the jo, and your center at the same time.
  • The front hand should finish with the pinky on top, your hand vertical to the floor. If you allow your wrist to break so that your palm is in contact with the jo, you will find you’re doing kote-hineri to yourself when you push on something.
  • Once you draw the jo, try using your front hand only to execute the strike. This helps refine the line of the strike. Add the back hand into the mix, but make sure you are not using it to generate power as you strike.
  • Assuming the jyodoka is setup in hiki-otoshi-no-kamae with his right foot back, the left hand should be against the chest near the middle of the pectoral muscles
  • Maintain eye contact. Don’t look at the bokken as you try to execute the kihon.
  • The left hand controls the end of the jo all the way through to the end of the strike
  • The right arm should be fully extended and the right hand should be relaxed.
  • Lift with the right hand until you achieve full extension.
  • The right hand action of the strike is much like throwing a softball
  • The emphasis is transferring energy forward into uke, not downward to clear the bokken
  • In the beginning, allow the right hand to come forward through the strike until it makes contact with the bokken. Once it makes contact, take about a one inch step forward with your left foot. This is the transfer of body weight through the jo.
  • Continue the strike until the jo is parallel to the floor. You will find you are probably ending near uke’s navel.
  • Tori steps forward as uke steps backward. Once the step is complete, tori brings the jo into the honte-no-kamae position at uke’s eyes.
  • At this point, tori can draw the jo with the left hand, and allow the right hand to become the one that controls the end of the stick. Repeat steps on the other side.
  • In two-man kihon, we begin from weapons crossed at maai.
  • Maintain eye contact. Don’t look at the bokken as you try to execute the kihon.
  • Uke initiates the action by raising the bokken to strike. It is important that uke not commit weight forward, otherwise he may not be able to escape safely.
  • Tori pushes the jo forward with the back hand. This action allows the forward hand to move upward and the jo to rotate.
  • Practice the rotation slowly to ensure you are keeping the jo rotating in a single plane pointing at uke. It is very easy to allow the jo to swing out so that the tip of the jo loses alignment with uke.
  • Turning action comes from the hips.
  • As the jo drops, keep it close to you. When I was learning jo, we tried to allow the jo to brush our gi as it moved into the bottom position.
  • Allow your weight to sink downward.
  • When pushing forward to strike, you may find it helpful to push the jo with the palm of your rear hand. As the jo pushes forward, your hand will naturally rotate to a grip.
  • The initial strike is at uke’s center. It is unsafe to come to the eyes immediately, should you lose balance, accidentally fall, or uke respond improperly. Target uke’s center line at his sternum.
  • Once you have completed this strike you can safely move to jo to cover uke’s eyes, as you are no longer moving.
  • Repeat steps on the other side.
  • In two-man kihon, we begin from weapons crossed at maai.
  • Maintain eye contact. Don’t look at the bokken as you try to execute the kihon.
  • Uke initiates the action by raising the bokken to strike. It is important that uke not commit weight forward, otherwise he may not be able to escape safely.
  • Tori pushes the jo forward with the back hand. This action allows the forward hand to move upward and the jo to rotate.
  • Practice the rotation slowly to ensure you are keeping the jo rotating in a single plane pointing at uke. It is very easy to allow the jo to swing out so that the tip of the jo loses alignment with uke. The jo should maintain center. Some folks have difficulty with this because of shoulder issues. You can use a mirror if practicing by yourself to monitor the position of the jo.
  • The initial strike is at uke’s center. It is unsafe to come to the eyes immediately, should you lose balance, accidentally fall, or uke respond improperly. Target uke’s center line at his sternum.
  • Once you have completed this strike, raise the jo directly overhead again and execute a honte-uchi strike.
  • In two-man kihon, we begin at distance.
  • Maintain eye contact. Don’t look at the bokken as you try to execute the kihon.
  • Starting from hasso-no-kamae, Uke initiates the action by raising the bokken to strike. It is important that uke commit to landing his strike. This is a long distance to cover.
  • Tori, starting from honte-no-kamae, steps to a slight forward diagonal to his left.
  • Tori should strive to use the last 1/4 to 1/3 of the jo. This creates a more efficient lever to work with.
  • Tori’s action comes largely from the shoulders. Maintain the grip in honte-no-kamae, and use your shoulders to pivot the jo. This part reminds me of uke’s role in gyakute-uchi during two-man kihon.
  • Uke should maintain stiff arms for his safety.
  • When I first learned this technique, we desribed tori’s throwing action as cutting a crescent shape. If you go from the high maki-otoshi position back to honte-no-kame, this crescent is automatic.
  • In two-man kihon, we begin at distance.
  • Maintain eye contact. Don’t look at the bokken as you try to execute the kihon.
  • Starting from hasso-no-kamae, Uke initiates the action by raising the bokken to strike. It is important that uke commit to landing his strike. This is a long distance to cover.
  • As uke, we often try to be nice and actually don’t aim at tori’s head. Remember, the objective is to cut tori’s head, not his right shoulder.
  • Tori, starting from tsune-no-kamae, steps to a slight forward diagonal to his left. This is a small step, just enough to grab the end of the jo. It might be helpful to review tips on tsune-no-kamae froma previous online lesson.
  • This piece courtesy of Henry Copeland: You should always move the foot first. Once your foot is in the air, lifting the jyo and stopping it will actually lengthen your step a little. The important thing is to get out of the way before the bokken reaches your head. Your hands can move considerably faster than your step. If you are having problems with stability, you may be lifting the jyo incorrectly. When the jyo comes up, you should be looking over the top of your right arm, not under it. Your right hand should be a little to the left of your left eye. There is no push outward or upward to stop the boken. The stopping effect is due to efficiently connecting of the boken to tori’s center of mass.
  • Tori should strive to use the last 1/4 to 1/3 of the jo. This creates a more efficient lever to work with.
  • The jo should have a slight angle downward at tip, and be at approximately tori’s forehead.
  • Tori should squeeze his shoulder blades together.
  • Once contact is made with the bokken, tori should push straight up to full extension. We often bail out of this pushing action which helps with breaking uke’s balance.
  • In the trap position, the tip of the jo should have a slight upward angle. Should uke try to cut you, he will be moving into a wedge that forces him downward.
  • Uke’s escape mandates he close his right hip before extracting his left foot (which is closest to tori).
  • In two-man kihon, we begin at distance.
  • Maintain eye contact. Don’t look at the bokken as you try to execute the kihon.
  • Starting from hasso-no-kamae, Uke initiates the action by raising the bokken to strike. It is important that uke commit to landing his strike. This is a long distance to cover.
  • As uke, we often try to be nice and actually don’t aim at tori’s head. Remember, the objective is to cut tori’s head, not his right shoulder.
  • Tori, starting from tsune-no-kamae, steps to a slight forward diagonal to his left. This is a small step, just enough to grab the end of the jo. It might be helpful to review tips on tsune-no-kamae from a prior lesson of the week.
  • This piece courtesy of Henry Copeland: You should always move the foot first. Once your foot is in the air, lifting the jyo and stopping it will actually lengthen your step a little. The important thing is to get out of the way before the bokken reaches your head. Your hands can move considerably faster than your step. If you are having problems with stability, you may be lifting the jyo incorrectly. When the jyo comes up, you should be looking over the top of your right arm, not under it. Your right hand should be a little to the left of your left eye. There is no push outward or upward to stop the bokken. The stopping effect is due to efficiently connecting of the bokken to tori’s center of mass.
  • Tori should strive to use the last 1/4 to 1/3 of the jo. This creates a more efficient lever to work with.
  • The jo should have a slight angle downward at tip, and be at approximately tori’s forehead.
  • Tori should squeeze his shoulder blades together.
  • Once contact is made with the bokken, tori should push straight up to full extension. We often bail out of this pushing action which helps with breaking uke’s balance.
  • Make sure to keep pressure on uke. Don’t let the tip of the jo swing back. 
  • Uke should maintain unbendable arms for his safety as he escapes the push off.
  • In two-man kihon, we begin at distance.
  • Maintain eye contact. Don’t look at the bokken as you try to execute the kihon.
  • Starting from hasso-no-kamae, Uke initiates the action by raising the bokken to strike. It is important that uke commit to landing his strike. This is a long distance to cover.
  • As uke, we often try to be nice and actually don’t aim at tori’s head. Remember, the objective is to cut tori’s head, not his right shoulder.
  • Tori, starting from tsune-no-kamae, steps to a slight forward diagonal to his left. This is a small step, just enough to grab the end of the jo.
  • This piece courtesy of Henry Copeland: You should always move the foot first. Once your foot is in the air, lifting the jyo and stopping it will actually lengthen your step a little. The important thing is to get out of the way before the bokken reaches your head. Your hands can move considerably faster than your step. If you are having problems with stability, you may be lifting the jyo incorrectly. When the jyo comes up, you should be looking over the top of your right arm, not under it. Your right hand should be a little to the left of your left eye. There is no push outward or upward to stop the boken. The stopping effect is due to efficiently connecting of the boken to tori’s center of mass.
  • Tori should strive to use the last 1/4 to 1/3 of the jo. This creates a more efficient lever to work with.
  • The jo should have a slight angle downward at tip, and be at approximately tori’s forehead.
  • Tori should squeeze his shoulder blades together.
  • Once contact is made with the bokken, tori should push straight up to full extension. We often bail out of this pushing action which helps with breaking uke’s balance.
  • Make sure to keep pressure on uke. Don’t let the tip of the jo swing back!
  • Uke should maintain unbendable arms for his safety as he escapes the push off, especially as we get to the trap position.
  • When the jo reaches vertical, break uke’s balance by pushing the bottom (left) hand at uke’s stomach as if you are trying to punch him. Maintain unbendable arm — if you collapse uke might fall forward into you.
  • Push uke off as he steps back. The temptation is to push off too early.
  • In two-man kihon, we begin at distance.
  • Maintain eye contact. Don’t look at the bokken as you try to execute the kihon.
  • Starting from hasso-no-kamae, Uke prepares to thrust by moving the bokken to his left hip. This coiling action stores energy like a spring.
  • Tori starts in ichi-monji-no-kamae with the jo held above his head. Make sure you control both ends of the jo.
  • Uke releases the stored energy and thrusts at tori’s solar plexus. This is some distance to cover, so ensure you are committing to actually landing the strike.
  • Tori’s left hand and left foot go back at the same time. You should make contact with the bokken during this phase.
  • Tori’s right hand and right foot go back at the same time. This action uses tori’s mass, rather than muscle, to create a drawing action to off-balance uke.
  • Tori should look like he is executing a trap block, just that he is bent at the waist.
  • Tori must be certain to coil as he releases his back (left) hand. Releasing the left hand, pull the jo with the right hand, twisting the hips.
  • The jo should come to rest on tori’s chest. Tori’s left hand can come to his chest, trapping the jo. This is important! If the jo is not on the chest, tori must try to grab it out of the air.
  • Finish with hiki-otoshi, forcing uke backward.
  • In two-man kihon, we begin at distance.
  • Maintain eye contact. Don’t look at the bokken as you try to execute the kihon.
  • Tori starts in honte-no-kamae.
  • Starting from hasso-no-kamae, Uke tries to cut tori’s right leg. Aim for the thigh, possibly as low as the knee.
  • Tori replaces his leg with the jo.
  • Tori’s right hand and right foot go back at the same time. Tori’s right hand moves to control the far end of the jo.
  • Tori’s left hand and left foot go back at the same time. During the step, tori’s left hand slides up, near the middle of the jo.
  • Tori’s hands are palms away, unbendable arm. Tori’s right hand should be near shoulder height.
  • Having successfully intercepted uke’s strike, tori repels uke by drawing the jo with his right hand, pivoting in his left palm and executing a honte-uchi strike. This strike may feel much like a hiki-otoshi as in the beginning of #7 kata.
  • Begin in right honte-uchi.
  • Draw the jo with your left hand, until your right hand can cover.
  • The right hand moves to the right thigh, palm up.
  • In two man kihon, uke would launch his attack once the jo is on tori’s right thigh. This is his best chance to attack, as the jo is not pointing at him.
  • Tori steps back with his right foot until even with his left foot. The right foot should not take a full step back.
  • As tori steps, the left hand comes over the head. Tori’s left elbow is by his left ear, his forearm is parallel to his feet, the jo is hanging from his left hand.
  • Tori may left the jo slide in his right hand.
  • Tori steps back with his left foot, finishing with honte-uchi.