Kendo NYC – A Great Way to Improve Physical Fitness and Develop Focus and Concentration

Kendo is a Japanese martial art that trains both body and mind. Utilizing bamboo swords, protectors, and established rules to teach self-defense, focus and discipline.

Sensei holds a Master’s in Sport Science and attempts to blend traditional teaching methods with cutting-edge sports science methodologies. Additionally, he hosts Scotland’s senior Kendoka at his Northern Seminar.

Early Life and Education

Kendo is a martial art which utilizes practice swords (katana) along with various stances and techniques. Kendo can be both physically demanding and mentally engaging; its practice provides great benefits for physical fitness as well as developing focus and concentration.

Sensei Kataoka offers his students an engaging learning experience, guided by a proven process that facilitates steady development in all ages. His approach strikes a perfect balance between rigor and humility to make classes fun and engaging.

He hails from Kochi, Japan – renowned for producing Kendo virtuosos. Sensei Hashida has competed at the highest levels both in Japan and North America; only two other Senseis in America have accomplished all six dan ranks in both Kendo and Iaido.

Professional Career

Kendo (or “the way of the sword”) is a Japanese martial art that encourages students to develop both strong spirits and healthy bodies. Kendo can be an immensely rewarding challenge that many individuals pursue throughout their lives, leading many to practice it throughout their lives.

Kataoka Sensei is a skilled and accomplished competitive kendo player, having won several tournaments. As an instructor he focuses on strengthening fundamental techniques.

The Dojo offers both traditional and modern training techniques, in a safe, supervised environment. There are classes for adults, children, beginners and free play/supervised sparring with bamboo swords; in addition to teaching students respect for themselves and others while honing discipline and focus.

Achievement and Honors

Students of this school train in Kendo, an ancient Japanese sword-fighting art that dates back over two millennia. Wearing padded armor and bamboo swords during sparring matches, their students develop discipline, self-defense skills and self-confidence as they work toward becoming professional sword fighters.

Kataoka Sensei is an internationally-recognized teacher and competitive kendo practitioner, known for his emphasis on strong fundamentals that enable college students with busy schedules to experience steady and tangible improvement over time. His teaching methods emphasize strong foundations to create steady development despite time pressures.

He specializes in hand-crafting bogu, the traditional uniform worn by kendoka. His work is so durable that some clients have had their bogu for decades! In addition, he repairs shinai (the handle of bamboo sword). Perhaps most important to him though, kendo helps foster good character among children – teaching children the value of respect and integrity, according to him.

Personal Life

No matter your motivations for learning kendo – whether competitively or just fitness related – learning it offers many advantages; however, finding the right instructor is paramount to avoid injuries.

Salet Sensei originally held classes once every week at Ripley Greer in rented rehearsal space, with students signing in on paper forms and transactions tracked on an Excel sheet in Google Docs.

He believes anyone can do Kendo, but you must have the right spirit and commitment, including carrying around chest armor, robes, and a helmet big enough to give Darth Vader pause. Additionally, meditation sessions with Mook-sang bring students closer to having the pure hearts found in baby unicorns.

Net Worth

Kendo, originally developed by Samurai warriors, is a full-contact sword art practiced as both an exercise and form of meditation. Players use unsharpened practice swords (katana) while performing set forms called kata against an imaginary opponent.

Gordon Small is an esteemed and talented kendoka, having competed in various tournaments and won awards such as All Japan Teachers Championships. He studies under Shozo Kato Sensei.

He believes a sensei must always remain humble and continually learn – both as a student and teacher – in order to provide his students with an optimal environment to excel. Additionally, his focus lies on protecting kendo from McDojo-ism as opposed to “McDojo-ism” common among many other martial arts.