I trained in Uechi -Ryu for about a year in 9th grade, but I got with it. If I knew how good it was back then, I probably would have stuck with it longer. I might pick it up again in the future. Uechi-Ryu is definitely my favorite style of karate!
Yes! I´m a 6´dan Uechi-ryu practitionner. I train this Karate system and Goju-ryu since 1988. I went to Okinawa 4 time, and I met old Uechi-ryu masters. Originally this system of self defense has no high kicks like we see on this video. Also, in Okinawa Uechi training is a lot much harder. They literally can kill with one open hand blow. Also, they keep the hands open (dragon technique) to grap opponents arms or cloths in the defense techniques, and then they strike, maintaining the defense's grip. Keep the great work!
You're one of the few martial arts vloggers who give a fair assessment of a style or system. A lot of other so-called vloggers out there trash styles they don't let alone practiced!
Thanks! When i was younger and less experienced i trashed them. It’s all ego. They have a lot to offer in my view and it’s cool how different training methodologies evolved
There are 3 sister styles: Goju Ryu, Ueshi Ryu and Isshin Ryu. Do not forget that all well known Karate founders were acquainted to each other and and a yearly gathering on Okinawa where they trained together. There are many styles of Karate. People like to focus on what is different between them. But a real martial artist, sees: they are all the same.
They are not the same, i train different styles cause they aren't the same and have something new to teach me , training different styles to become a hybrid fighter
Uechi Ryu is also known as Pangai noon Kung fu(see roots in Fujian China) it had only 3 Katas in the past and belongs to Naha-Te . Body hardening known in Kung Fu as Iron Shirt(Tiebushan) is a important thing and the style is self defence-orientated. Greetings from Germany -
@@inside_fighting but if i conditioned my hand such an extent i can break someone hand while i block some one punch even i can block someone kick it can severely damaged the leg is it not so ?
I was very fortunate and got to train karate in Okinawa for a year. Of all the styles there Uechi Ryu guys were my favorite. They are tough as hell and fought knockdown rules and kickboxing very effectively. When I go visit Okinawa I always look to train with them. I think in Tokyo there is a Shidokan karate school that has connection to some Uechi Ryu. So he does Uechi Ryu body conditioning with Shidokan knockdown karate rules. It's a good combo
Yes I have never study it but 42 years in Martial Arts Uechi Ryu is the most basic Karate I have ever seen. But make no mistake it’s extremely effective because that all they do is the basics over and over again and again. No matter what style you study if you meet a true Master the are master of the basics . They’re no secret in Martial Arts just years of practice and proper motion. Keep in mind in Uechi Ryu they condition their finger tips , thumbs and big toe that what they strike with that takes years and years of training.
"all they do is the basics over and over again and again..." Shhh... you're revealing the hack to becoming a badass fighter....this is still my focus, maybe one day I'll get it right...
Okinawa has a much different karate. Lots of standing grapple combined with strikes. Still do the forms sometimes, the body mechanics are really good for scrapping but it’s also good for old guys to work mobility.
Yeah, i would have thought he would have used footage of Uechi-ryu fighting techniques (Kiyohide) or something, that footage actually used was not really up to what the style has to offer. Fighting people in okinawa is way different, the shorin ryu guys there are jumping you like the muay thai mae mai guys too and battering your collarbone with their heels and who knows what like you never gonna see outside of japan
Isshin-ryu, Tatsuo Shimibuku was a tough little man who beat the crap out of a bunch of marines from Tennessee. Which is why there is so much Isshin ryu in Tennessee.
I really like the way you put it at the end: “Think of sparring as just another skill development drill.” I’ve always felt that way, but never quite found the right way to say it.
Been thinking about the boxing approach to protecting one's head, as compared to the 3+ years I spent training Uechi-Ryu long ago. Will keep thinking, but off the top of my head: - In Sanchin kata, the karateka makes a cast-iron kettle out of their thorax, from throat to perineum. This means clenching abdominals in a certain way, circular breathing, and pulling the shoulders down towards the hips. You'll see long time Uechi-Ryu people doing kata topless, and their shoulders are locked in low, with enormous trapezius muscles. The strength, speed and power come from this compression (and locking it into the ground with the specialized stance), So, it would be very unnatural for a Uechi-Ryu fighter to hunch their shoulders up around their head. - As you noticed, Uechi-Ryu in self-defense application emphasizes quickly closing with an attacker, using elbows, knees, short punches, back fist, low kicks against highly vulnerable areas (armpit is a favorite target in bunkai). You can't spar that way without serious padding (which they used to do back in Okinawa, whoever walked away from the match was the winner.) Our teacher taught us the blocks, then taught us how to respond to a strike with our own strike, without blocking. If in a fight for my life, though, I wouldn't be thinking about being true to a style. So, I don't know. Toughness - yeah. Quite a thing, huge confidence builder, for the teacher to show you how strong your body could be. Me, 130 lbs (I did say "long ago"), I once took a toe kick in the balls and kept sparring, such was the focus and intensity we were taught. Needless to say, I was surprised I didn't immediately drop, moaning!
@@magvs_mæstro216 the shoulder drop in conjunction with the iron jacket training can be found throughout southern style "short fist" kung fu, which is okinawan karate's roots
Sanchin and naihaunchi kata exist in Isshin Ryu and we also practiced Sanchin with gi top removed and light strikes above the obi to check foundation of stance, and dan levels would get leg strikes (no kicks) towards the upper legs. We also practiced “chart movements” which were as much about conditioning as it was about form.
I have been a Uechi-Ryu, pronounced, "whechi-ru" practitioner since 2021. Just a FYI, after Kanbun Uechi passed away, this Karate style ended up splitting into ~15 different karate associations. Respectfully, I am part of the #Kenyukai Association, under Grand Master Kiyohide Shinjo (10th Dan). When I was younger, I was briefly a part of Goju Ryu. Thank you for recognizing our phenomenal Okinawa Karate style 🙇♀️!!!!
Gotta say it: I LOVE your channel, precisely because of presentations like this one. I am very enamored of Japanese and Korean systems, though I seek useful techniques and approaches from any style. Defense is my focus. At nearly 62, I personally don't want to compete, but I want to train for toughness and intensity.
It seems like karate has so many effective older practitioners who can still train and get a lot out of it. It’s an under appreciated aspect of the art.
Interesting system. And I agree of what been said in the end of the channel about between sparring/sport combat and street fight. When I was competing in the Brazilian Jujitsu with and without gi, I won most of the fights and lost some only by decisions though I never had any injuries in every competitions and I thought I would be tough when encounter in street fight. I was deadly wrong. One day I get into a brawl fight when I was alone and I was off duty as a bouncer, I was ambushed by an attacker, when the fight situation happened one on one, I got the attacker's limb and able to bring him to the ground and armbar him and I thought he won't be able to retaliate after I broke his arm. Yes, he did retaliate me real quick and fast I didn't expect. He bit my upper inner thigh, I think he tried to bite my nuts but he missed. Damn lucky me. When he was bitting me, I went to one of his eye and I kicked hard to his head then I ran for my life as if I was like in the friday the 13th movie or chase by a psycho killer or something. I mean it sounds funny but I was lucky then. The guy was arrested in the end. Bless him too and I hope he will be alright. From there, I resign my job the next day and find other job, I mean a decent job.
Interesting seeing these drills, my father trained under Ryuko Tomoyose in the 60s for 3 or 4 years and I recognize them as drills he had my brother and I do as kids
You’ll understand the “no contact” sparring once you conditioned your body to a certain point. Once the hands and feet become like rocks? Then it takes very little effort to hurt somebody else. There’s a method to the training that can only be experienced first hand, and can’t be felt through video. I first experienced it demonstrating some blocking techniques to my brother a couple of years ago. A light tap caused his arm to go numb. That’s when I realized the lethal potential that can be cultivated in traditional karate.
Is it impossible to explain? You kinda already did. You struck someone with your (I'm presuming) arm, and theirs went numb. That's kinda the whole point of the kote kitae, no? Soften them up so they're easier to manipulate/escape from. I'm not sure what you mean by "no contact" - not sure if you mean literally zero contact, or if you mean "light contact". As said in the video, if you train yourself to miss/fall short of your target, then that will be what you're accustomed to. That doesn't mean you can't make contact though. That's where communication and progressive skill training comes in. If you've made your body into "the ultimate weapon", but have no control over it, then is it really all that useful? Just has a whiff of "we don't spar because it's too deadly" about it, but hopefully I'm just misunderstanding. No offence intended, just genuinely curious as to what you meant.
@alpachinko9154 The part that is hard to explain is the feeling of learning that your body is no longer normal. Striking someone lightly with your own hand is analogous to striking them with a hammer. Everyone starts to feel soft and delicate after a certain period of training. That’s why the no contact sparring makes sense. Which is more time training with less injuries. The no contact sparring is nothing new either. Seki Sensei uses it for swordsmanship. People for thousands of years have used no contact sparring, or very light contact. We have a tendency of thinking in modern times that we always have to train as close to real as possible. But a lot of these training methods were developed before modern medical practices…modern medicine has made people much greater risk takers. While these older methods have been proven effective for hundreds to sometimes thousands of years. Now I am a proponent of full contact sparring on occasion throughout the year if possible. Nobody follows tradition of challenging other schools or practitioners to test our skills. Trust me, I’ve tried multiple times throughout the years. So we have to incorporate harder training on occasion to substitute what we don’t experience in regular day life. Personally, I’m of the position that point fighting should be the majority of training. With gear first until they develop self control, and then move to without gear. If the practitioner isn’t competing or fighting outside the school? Then incorporate hard contact sparring. Remember, you might not have the medical resources available if you get injured. Just something to think about. I also don’t think older karatecas were necessarily better in skill on average, but their approaches were much simpler to avoid risk of unnecessary injury.
I was doing Uechi Ryu for a little bit, and had to stop due to relocation, but when I did they often put a black belt guy with me to practice, and he was trying to be soft with me, but even though he was not using any strength, he still hurt me (And I am not a soft guy, just not hardened like him), and he'd tell me to punch him hard, so I did, and he'd tell me to punch him harder, so I punched him the hardest I could and he still asked me to punch him harder, I was like if I go any harder my hand will break, those guys who harden their body in Uechi Ryu are like walls, very strong people.
One of my father's friends was a Sandan (3rd degree black belt) and he taught him the Iron Body aspect. I grew up getting beat on, with love, from my father, and I am grateful for that little gem of Uechi-Ryu Karate. I still condition, just not as hardcore. Their Iron Body with a solid kickboxing skill has done me good in a sparring match.
This is amazing. Love your input on these traditional Okinawa styles. Uechi Ryu has the most obvious White Crane influence karate, hence why their Sanchin kata has open hands compared to the Goju Ryu closed fist version. It’s amazing how they use the Shime (body slapping during Sanchin to test their stability). Very similar to Goju and I guess it’s a thing in Naha-te
Okinawan systems all used low kicks in the original art. You even see it in the 1960’s. It was only after the high kicks became popular in tournament competitions did everyone start to do high kicks.
The calf conditioning we do in my gym is sporadically using them until you automatically learn how to get out of the way. Man your videos made out much more value in my style and my gym friends. We actually do a lot of things that weren't used a lot by other people.
Great video. Excellent analysis of a good Karate system. Your comments at the end about the differences between street fighting, drills and sparring were worth watching the whole video.
Uechi Ryu (way-chi roo) is a grappling striking Okinawan adapted shaolin style which is referred to as half hard half soft style. The sparring portion of this is in class where they refrain from head strikes out of respect for other students. In true sparring head hits are allowed. All in all your video is a great take on this family style of martial art. Thank you!🙂
Came from a Jeff Chan video where he spared Nathan Levy, an active UFC lightweight and Jeff mentioned Nathan did Uechi-Ryu Karate, and I searched for that style and I ended up here.
Okinawa Ryu Hojo Undo and Sanchin training is about tendon cultivation because there was no rotator cuff or tendon repair surgery in past. There's Traditional Uechi Ryu training, with only low kicks, and sport kumite uechi ryu training for competition with high kicks. I saw Shinjo Kiyohide kill an opponent with an Uechi Ryu toe kick to the temple during kumite in Okinawa . But traditional Uechi Ryu only kicks low. . .A toe kick to the groin and a shin kick through the knee joint to break the knee. Uechi Ryu hand strikes are to maim or kill. Dragon Boshiken, Tiger Tooth Shoken, Crane beak finger strike, Tiger paw strike and Crane forearm radial bone strike. It's a simple but effective unarmed defense art in it's traditional form with conditioning and tendon cultivation training that forges very strong old men.
well most guiness book record holders for breaking stuff are uechi ryu guys and kiyohide is no kitten either. But from my experience the animals styles are pretty misunderstood, especially if they are mixed like in uechi with dragon, tiger, crane. I mean just look at hakutsuru karate jutsu nobody would really think this stuff works although it was practiced by most of the strongest karate guys.
I like Uechi Ryu. It's sort of a sibling system to okinawan Goju Ryu which I did for a while. They both translate well to Kyokushin and similar modern full contact styles, but at the same time, there's a lot of valid self defense stuff in there which modern styles neglect. These styles by themselves are very comprehensive and very good, but the problem with karate always stays the same. Most schools stick to outdated and way too formal training methodologies. That needs to be addressed, and some schools do, but most don't.
I liked your statement at the end. Uechi ryu stresses mushin or no mind. In a critical situation if you have to think about what to do it is already too late. Kata builds muscle memory, which overides the autonomic nervious system.
I did uechy Ryu back in the mid 90s I believe. I was young. I never really took it to seriously. My father on the other hand absolutely loved it and ended up getting his 1st degree black belt. He almost got his 2nd. But ended up getting sick. The place we trained at was in beverly Massachusetts the master or head guy was Ron labree im pretty sure he moved to California and opened a studio. I wish I never stopped doing it.
I'm black belt in Okinawan Shotokan Karate and I agree with you of developing the 'bad habits'. It almost killed me in various street fight in the 80s and 90s.
Another great video coach! Appreciate your deep dive into martial arts and in particular the ones that may not get as much emphasis appreciation or attention.
Any dojo that alllows hick kicks quickly spawns a generation of kick scoopers. The retraction is drilled as part of the style and reenforced with kumite realities.
Shotokan, Kyokushin styles are good doing Marketing but that's sad legendary Styles like Uechi Ryu doesn’t have fame and are a style that almost doesn't exist anymore
I've studied Uechi Ryu since age 13 ('87) and trained with many Masters. Kenyukai. Straight to the point; way of the open hand, finger strikes and low toe kicks, fingers to the eyes and throat, toes beneath the navel, pelvis, inner thighs. In China, Kanbun Uechi was gven a name which translates, "one touch means certsin death". There is no closed fist in original 3 kata, except shokun - one lnuckle punch - penetrating damage. This system assumes and is dependent upon intense conditioning, but thats not just iron shirt, its hand and feet. It requires developing one's fingers and toes to penetrate with a force that would destroy undeveloped hands and feet. As Master Uechi said, all is in Sanchin. 80% of Uechi Sanchin is internal, thus invisible. It is tendon through chi and chi through tendon. It's what develops the power that far exceeds athletic strength. One can train all they want through calisthenics and many other valuable exercises and never approximate the inhuman power of Sanchin. 3 conflicts; breath, mind/spirit, posture/body/technique. Thank you for posting this video. I enjoyed it very much.
One of my favorite systems. I plan on training in it one day, hopefully under the guy in the video you see getting hit on the calves, he actually teaches near me. Great content as always.
I trained in shorin ryu (1983-2005) and body conditioning is as important as breathing air. I joined Shotokan with my kid and I’ll be training her like how I was trained when I was 11. There’s no body conditioning in Shotokan I’m in, which seems to strives for perfection. Okinawan karate strive for protection. Self defense is just not blocking and striking, it’s also the ability to receive strikes.
Since you've already done a video on dog boxing you should do a video on ground dragon boxing also called 山东地龙经拳 it's a kung fu style that also has a focus on ground fighting
Godo juku karate is awesome it's a hybrid style that combines Uechi Ryu and Goju Ryu with Budo Shito Ryu karate with Kodokan Judo and Kito Ryu Jiu Jitsu with traditional respect but heavy emphasis on sparring
It’s great that Uechi-Ryu is getting more spotlight. Is it possible if you could cover Motobu-Ryu Karate? If I’m correct, I heard that the founder, Motobu Choki willingly went to Okinawan’s red light district for street fights to battle test his style and ended up with good results.
I'm a Brazilian Luta Livre Guy but love all martial arts and that's very sad when a style of martial arts starts to disappear that's Happen with Brazilian Luta Livre.
Hi I learned this style we did a lot of body pounding. this is not pure Uechi ryu we held our hands much different we used the one knuckle fist. the style came from Pan Gai noon the tiger crane and dragon we had white eyebrow one knuckle fist we learned a close in style. our elbows were tucked close to the body not like what your showing. we learned half soft half hard .
I think that an Okinawan Karate practitioner wouldn't have any problem to spar with a Kyokushin karateka. I also think that an Uechi Ryu, Goju Ryu, Isshin Ryu Karateka, could join a Kyokushin tournament without facing traumatic changes.
Kyokushin is the only art I know that don't typically punch to the head, but allows kicks to the head. I wonder if Uechi Ryu inheritted this from Kyokushin or whether it is vice-versa.
As a traditional Okinawa Karate geek, I thank you for showing love to the traditional side of things too, much appreciated. By the way do you have your opening song somewhere as a download? LOL
Been studying Uechi for a few years. Good style. Honestly don't think the kata is practical. The circular blocks take to long to complete. Love the various strikes like the finger thrusts and other strikes.
The intentionally missing theory btw I think the same thing thing, that's why in kyokushin we practice the head strike in drills not in sport full contact and also for the tripping same thing in drills and bunkai from kata
If you noticed where the guy turns after getting hit in the face, the other guy is throwing a punch to the back of the head. We train to punch on the back of the head, because it ends fights. Could even kill someone (really situation), that's it's purpose. It's original school is out of southern China. That's why it's combative, not really for sport.
I have read and heard often that the men how founded modern Okinawan Karate were already high level Judokas at the time. Do have any information about this?
I know that Oyama the creator of Karate Kyokushin are Black Belt in Judo and the Creator of Shotokan are friendly with the creator of Judo they train together in Tokyo true friends, Japanese Martial arts are brothers it's normal people in Japan train Karate and Judo.
I think extending the arms is derived from its earlier ancestor arts such as pak mei,bai he(white crane),chow gar...etc,where the extension is used in training for developing hard bridges(using the body structure) that are used in qcq, I don't it has anything to do with pure self defence rather it is a tool to develop a skill that is used in self defence,also when extending the arms,you have to round the back and hollow the chest as it is seen in sanchin, it also throws me off when i see them extending the arms and then dropping it down when fighting.
I still think kyokushin is the most effective karate system because of the live sparring but uechi ryu is pretty formidable too. But they go pretty extreme on conditioning that I’m sure they get arthritis when they get older.
when talking about hand positioning around min 2 and why they are low, let me throw you something to play with. when puting the hands in the correct way first you put your elbows a fist away from your body and then you push them inside a bit. then you rotate your forearms inside. when the hand is open in that position, tip of the fingers should be shoulder high. and then you open palms rotating muscle fibers in the other direction. so there is a lot of muscle rotation and when performed in mentioned way, and with the mentioned body conditioning, and the muscle tension and breathing pattern, it makes from your body a shield. so its a style thing and has its own purpose and one should not confuse it with real situation, combat sports, or any other hand positioning.
imo head movement for no reason is unnecessary and really serves no purpose, I've seen a few UFC fighters who do this (Josh Emmit I think) and it just looks silly .... I was glad to see Valentina Shevchenko point this out to one of the fighters on the UF TV Show
@@inside_fighting one guy was doing the same side to side head movement regardless of distance, to me thats unnecessary , watch the Ultimate fighter and what are your thoughts on Valentinas comment, I thought it was spot on
There are two Korean martial arts that I think you'll find, interesting. Hwa Rang Do, a art that covers all areas in a fight, including knife fighting. Modern Farang Mu Sul - modern take of hwa rang do and even has inspiration in Kali.
@@masterchief1172 I’d say it’s good to focus on one. I’d go check out kyokushin, Ashihara or enshin if there are schools near you if your goal is fighting
@@inside_fighting I've visited almost all Okinawan schools in Paris. Some are very legit and have a deep understanding of kata with 9th dan senseis from Okinawa, but they seldom spar honestly. I think they value sparring but they don't spend much time on it. I value sparring. That said, sparring and self defense are two different things. Yes sparring brings a lot of value that can very beneficial for self defense conditioning and training. Not that easy to find Okinawan schools that spar it seems like. Thanks for your answer.
@@Gieszkannethe "y" isn't silent, it's just pronounced differently. Pronounced more like "ee" so for example "Ryu": "Reeeyoo" instead of "Raiyoo" This is part of the difficulty in translating between completely different languages, in this case, Japanese and English
Y'all, none of these are spelt with English characters so, there's no "correct" way to spell them. The pronunciation is the only important thing here, as if you said the words the "American" way, it would be difficult to understand, or at least be a very strange way of speaking to a native Japanese speaker.
