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Why we yell in karate

I’m sure you’ve heard karateka and martial arts ‘yelling’ during their kata and fighting.  It’s known as a ‘Kiai’, which is a Japanese term used for the sound uttered when executing a technique or move.  The words are a combination of Ki – life force and Ai – meaning to join, blend or harmonise. 

A kiai is used to focus energy into the move or technique, concentrating our physical, mental and emotional power into one point at one time, developing a strong spirit.

When teaching, children in particular, I explain it as creating positive energy through your body, bringing it up from the soles of your feet to your head.  It’s not just about yelling or shouting, it’s a feeling that you create within you.

Students often ask what sound they should make, and the answer is there isn’t a specific sound, it’s your energy that you’re releasing.  And it’s not to be over-used either, otherwise you’ll just tire yourself out and have no energy left to train or fight.

Think of a lion’s roar, they do this for various reasons, to scare off an intruder, another lion or a predator.  They can also roar to warn their pride of imminent danger.  And they definitely roar to ‘show off’ to other lions to prove they’re the head of the pride!  Consider how often they expel their ‘roar’ though?  They preserve their energy and only use it to gain maximum effectiveness when needed.

So, why use it within karate.  When executing a technique, we’ll use a punch as an example, there are many elements that go into it.  The position of your arm, creating power as you step through, hip thrust, wrist twist etc.  These are the mechanics of a technique.  What sets it apart is you, how you execute it, what you put of ‘you’ into it.  

One of the key principles of Wado Ryu is ‘yielding is more effective than strength’, meaning you don’t have to be a strong person to execute the techniques effectively.  Which often leads to the question ‘how can I punch someone effectively if I’m not a strong person?’

As you strike with the technique you exhale, tensing your body at the correct moment to create the ‘power’ within it.  A kiai magnifies this ‘power’ by expelling air from your body, releasing energy, making it stronger.   Ki = energy, Ai = join or harmonise, so a kiai is the expulsion of your energy in a positive way.

It creates an adrenalin rush through you, makes you feel like you achieve anything in the world, alert to everything around you, ready to move.  It’s a useful self-protection tool as it’s a quick way of creating confidence within yourself which you then portray to the other person, allowing you to control your emotions and the situation you’re in.

So when you’re next feeling lethargic, wondering where your get-up-and-go has gone, or just need a pick me up after lunch, stand up tall, take a deep breath and expel your energy.  You can yell out loud, or do it silently, and consider how you feel afterwards.

p.s. you will feel better and more re-energised, ready for anything!!

If you've enjoyed reading this blog please read ''What being a Black Belt means'