Cutting exercises in iaido

Frequently, seminars and training sessions start with some form of cutting practice. I used to wonder what the purpose of this was as I learned more and more about modern sports coaching theory and suffered more and more from RSI and Tendonitis. From this I decided to create my own set of cutting exercises and rationale for doing so which I present here for your interest or to be printed out and buried for 6 months in compost....

Firstly, if cutting practice is part of a warm up then it should follow the same rules for warming up in that it shouldn't cause damage or pain to joints and muscles. Movements should be controlled and use the fullest range of movement possible. 

Secondly, participants shouldn't be forced to follow the maximum speed of the instructor. Either the instructor dictates a reasonable speed for everyone to follow or individuals should set their own tempo.

Finally, I don't like using the dojo as a fitness gym in that I don't think any movements should be done just for sheer exercise; there are enough movements available to repeat that some useful technical development should be an output to the exercise, not just improvement in the exercise for the exercise's sake.

So here are some sample cutting drills that I personally use for myself at the beginning of training:

1. Standing swings

From a standing position, raise the sword and allow the kissaki to drop behind you. Swing the sword in a large arc finishing with the kissaki well below horizontal. Repeat.

The point of this is to create some flexibility in the shoulders and get all the connected joints working gradually to become "warmed up". It is important that at the end of the swing, the kissaki is not so low that the wrists are bent beyond an end-cut grip.

For added exercise one can a) bend the knees as the cut is made, b) come up onto the toes as the cut is made, c) remain on the toes and bend the knees as the cut is made. This final configuration really exercises the legs and develops balance.

2. Zen-Go Giri (forward, backward cutting)

Keeping the right foot forwards, shuffle forward and cut to the chin, shuffle back and cut to horizontal. Repeat.

The importance here is not to turn this into a high-speed chopping exercise. The sword should be lifted being sensitive to not allow it to drop below horizontal and being aware of how the grip is changing. The end of each cut should demonstrate awareness of ki-ken-tai-icchi and, in both moving forwards and backwards, the feet should move to consistent positions without losing balance or changing angle.

3. Chushin Giri (centre cutting)

With feet splayed apart, lift the sword up the left side, into the centre above the head and cut down while lowering the hips. Lifting up the right side, lift the hips at the same time and again cut down while lowering the hips. Repeat.

This exercise is meant to develop accurate cuts to the centreline whether one lifts the sword up the left or the right side. To do this I try to align my body centre with a vertical line within the room in front of me. Without going cross-eyed, I check whether my cuts are tending to be on the right or left side of this vertical line and then make suitable adjustments. It is also important to relax the wrists and grip while lifting up the side but to ensure that the sword is more or less horizontal before the cut.

4. Naname Giri (diagonal cutting)

I borrowed this from Shinkage Ryu. Starting from wakigamae (sword on the right), lift the sword and make a diagonal cut (from right to left) with the timing that the right foot reaches the left foot during the cut and the left foot moves back at the lower swing of the cut. Repeat on other side.

The purpose of this is to make hasuji-accurate diagonal cuts without excessive force but making the cuts as large and smooth as possible. During this sequence, concentration should be focused on the back and core muscles to keep the upper body vertical during all the movement and not lunging backwards and forwards or to the sides. 

5. Suihei Giri (horizontal cutting)

Begin from the preparation position of the 4th cut in Sogiri (with the sword lowered to the left side of the body and held horizontally). Without stepping, make a two-handed horizontal cut. From the end of the cut, release the left hand and repeat the technique with the right hand only. Repeat with both hands. Alternate between two-hand cutting and single-hand cutting.

The point of this is to make this cut without one hand dominating control of the sword. While making a one-handed cut, the right hand needs to allow the cut to extend forwards without raising or lowering the sword. While making a two-handed cut, the sword should not be dominated by the left hand only but both hands should work in union.

- - -

There are other "traditional" cutting exercises which are often used in seminars which are basically repeats of components found in Mae. I tend not to do these as they are repeated in the kata and/or are slightly distorted from the kata context. I have described them below but with a caveat of how I think certain elements should be emphasised in order for the exercise to be beneficial to technical development:

- Nukitsuke

Starting with the left hand gripping the sword and the sword held in the middle of the upper left arm, make a nukitsuke movement. Bring the sword back to the left arm and repeat.

I think the main benefit of this is to exercise the left arm and left side of the body adequately so that sayabiki is developed. Additionally, one should endeavour to keep the hips locked to the front while rotating the shoulders. Care should be taken to not use excessive force in the right arm as this isn't the movement to be found in the kata and tendonitis can easily ensue.

- Ochiburi

Starting at the end of kirioroshi, make ochiburi without moving the body. Repeat.

If one should do it this way then I think that it should be performed in a relaxed manner, paying attention to the position of the sword as it approaches the head and being careful to generate the cut by gripping the right hand rather than just swinging the arm. Again, this is an excellent recipe for tendonitis so careful control of the cut is more important than power and speed.

- Yokochiburi

Starting at the end of kirioroshi, make yokochiburi without moving the body. Repeat.

The focus here should be to try and move the kissaki and the right hand at the same time to avoid making the sword flick. At the end of the movement it is important the curvature of the sword positions the kissaki slightly inside of the right hand.

- Noto

From the position at the end of ochiburi, do noto. Draw the sword and repeat.

I think the main point here is accurate positioning of the left hand on the koiguchi before the right hand moves at all. Try not to muddle up the sequence of movements. Better still, don't cut yourself.