Last Sunday class, Mike [again] discussed the importance of exhaling with the cut. Last night I realized that I more easily forget to do this than, for example, kiai during karate practice. But more importantly, I also realized why I was doing this, and perhaps I'm not only the one:
We listen to our blades to judge proper edge alignment and tip velocity. No sound = bad alignment, and/or not enough tip velocity. Brief sound = twisting the blade. Sustained "woosh" = good alignment, good velocity, etc. I caught myself holding my breath so I could hear what was going on, because a quick exhalation is sufficient to drown out my Albion Meyer indoors*, and certainly outdoors where there's already plenty of ambient noise.
I don't have a conclusion to this, I just wanted to throw this thought out there. Maybe Mike or someone else has a suggestion..
* EDIT: My Albion Crecy is very loud, but I don't often use it indoors, so I haven't yet determined if it is louder than me or not. :-)
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This is a great observation, and it's probably what a lot of people do without realizing it. My suggestion is, don't do it. :)
ReplyDeleteAlso, there is more to the whoosh...like where is the most intense part of the whoosh, and other factors, but that's neither here nor there.