Kicking Bean

On Friday, Bean took his first Karate test and he passed with flying colors. He's now an orange belt! According to mom, he did his thing real big and represented our clan to the fullest. Big ups Bean - I'm real proud of you!

For who don't know, Karate is a striking art, featuring punching, kicking, knee/elbow strikes and open hand techniques. Karate is characterized by the use of the hips and stances to generate striking power, by the distinctive use of breathing (sharp, explosive exhalations) to focus power, and by the practice of prearranged forms (called kata). One who practices karate is sometimes referred to as a karate-ka (Japanese, "karate practitioner").

Kata means 'form' or 'pattern'. It is a series of movements and techniques linked together by the physical/combatative principles that the kata expresses, represented as a fixed sequence of moves against imagined opponents. The moves themselves may have multiple interpretations as self-defense techniques. Sparring may be constrained by many rules or it may be free sparring, and may be practiced both as sport and for self-defense training.