Suburi 

Suburi - to swing, practice cuts down in the air against an invisible opponent. This is Kendo's equivalent of Shadow boxing. 

It can be practice Solo to focus on technique and timing at an individuals pace, or communally to bring out spirit, as you compete with others for endurance and speed.

Whether Solo or in a group Suburi is an invaluable tool in a Kendokas practice. It is the best way to focus on the individual movements and to build muscle memory. The oppoent you must defeat in suburi is yourself and your own bad habits.

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Here is a couple of thoughts about the feeling involved in Suburi -

MY ATTITUDE TOWARDS SUBURI by Anonymous

"When I first started kendo I struggled with suburi for a long time and still do, but at one point I thought I had learnt all the suburi and all it had to offer to me, I WAS WRONG TO THINK THIS.

 When I thought I knew all the movements for suburi I approached this with an attitude of just going through the motions i.e. senpei calls shomen sanjo hajime and so I would think “cut to centre of the head”

So for a long time my kendo did not improve and I became uninterested in suburi, sometimes when I am in a dojo doing suburi and look at the faces on some kendoka and the way they are doing suburi without any effort being put into the exercise I feel I can see what they are thinking or how they feel.

This for me now is not true suburi, suburi has so much more to offer me regarding my personal growth in kendo and my personality. When I am about to do suburi I want to have pride in what I am doing but also to be humble enough to be corrected by a sensei or fellow kendoka if I am doing something incorrectly.

I try to keep my hakama and kekogi tidy and to wear/put on as best I know how not only for my pride but also to create a good impression on myself and my kendo towards other kendoka/sensei whom I am training with. My posture/kamae during the dojo is also very important i.e. shizentai, chudan, sonkyo etc, for me these are best studied during suburi because when you are in bogu it is not so easy to see what your body/posture is doing.

0. Footwork I find is best studied during suburi because I have time to study: 
0. If my feet are correct both heals off the floor and both feet are facing forward and that my left heal is not turned inwards
0. If there is tension in the lower part of both legs and at the back of both knees
0. When moving forward I try to think left toes griping the floor so that when I kick my left leg back using my hip, I have a good foundation with my left foot gripping the floor also to snap my left foot back under my body
0. If my back is straight my chin pulled in and my body is square towards my opponent
0. My grip on the sword and that my cutting action is correct
0. When doing suburi there are various things I can do to improve and to keep suburi interesting for instance breathing using one breath and cut as many times as I can, and then next time try to cut more times using one breath and at the same time keeping a strong kiai.
   

Extending my steps using more power in my left hip and left leg at the same time trying to maintain a good posture.
When swinging the sword/bokken or shinai trying to cut in one motion concentrating on:

0. Correct grip
0. Correct tenouchi
0. Using large movement from the shoulders
0. Using the left hand for the driving force of the sword
0. Trying to keep my arms relaxed
0. Trying to cut quicker i.e. if we are doing suburi in a circle then wait for my opponent to start his cutting movement and then try and beat him to the finish

So for me suburi is very interesting, I can check my kendo because I have time to do so and usually I can see if I am doing anything wrong because I am not wearing bogu. I can also set myself tasks i.e. breathing, speed cutting, using more power in the left side of my body to push myself forward quicker. "

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Here is a list that is far from exclusive that details some of the suburi practiced at Bolton. 

JoGe Suburi - 

This Suburi is the first suburi taught at Bolton and is the first of all suburi during a practice. Its focus is on performing proper strikes, with correct timing and breathing.  Think of it as jodan-gedan suburi.

Start in Chudan-no-kamae. Step forward with your right foot, as it moves raise your sword in a stright high arc into Jodan-no-kamae (imagine smashing a light bulb in the ceiling with the tip of your sword). Bring your sword down in a straight line to Gedan-no-kamae (the point is towards the floor) as you snap your left foot back into the "Chudan foot position".

From here step back with your left foot and raise again to Jodan, then cut to Gedan (again in a straight line) as you pull your right foot . The timing of the cut should be that your cut finishes in Gedan as the trailing foot (your right foot going backwards, and your left foot going forwards) snaps back into "chudan"position.

From here step forward again with your right foot,  raise your sword to Jodan. Bring your sword down in a straight line to Gedan and snap your left foot back under you. Step back again and repeat . When you finish the excersise return to Chudan-no-kamae  

--> points to watch 

• maintain a straight line
• use the power of your left hand to push on the up-swing and pull on the down-swing.
• Dont bend your elbows on the raise - your arms should be the same as your chudan (just pointing up).
• Raise until you feel the elastic tension in your shoulders and then use the tension between your shoulders to push the sword back down from jodan.
• When moving through Gedan, keep your wrists quite loose and allow the point of the sword to go to the floor.
• Dont bend your back as you cut, a common habit is to lean forward as you cut Gedan

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Nana-mae Suburi

Once you have the movement and timing correct for JoGe Suburi, you then can try nanamae suburi. This is the same timing and cut as Joge suburi with the following exceptions.

As you step forward you cut from Jodan. But this time you place your right hand above your right ear and cut in an arc that would cut through your oppoents left shoulder (YOUR RIGHT). The cut finishes in Gedan as in joge suburi and will be in the centre of your body.

Raise to Jodan (in a straight line) step back and cut again to Gedan. Just before you cut your right hand is placed above your left ear, and the cut arcs down towards your opponents right shoulder (your left).The cut finishes in Gedan as in joge suburi and will be in the centre of your body.

Repeat

--> points to watch 

• maintain a straight line on the lift
• use the power of your left hand to push on the up-swing and pull on the down-swing.
• Dont bend your elbows on the raise - your arms should be the same as your chudan (just pointing up).
• Raise until you feel the elastic tension in your shoulders and then use the tension between your shoulders to push the sword back down from jodan.
• When moving through Gedan, keep your wrists quite loose and allow the point of the sword to go to the floor.
• Dont bend your back as you cut, a common habit is to lean forward as you cut Gedan
• Look to the sword and ensure that the blade part of the sword steers the movement of the sword. i.e you would actually cut in an arc rather than slap the target wth the side of the sword. 

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Katate suburi

Any suburi performed by holding the sword with only one hand. Commonly used in JoGe suburi with only the left hand on the sword, to ensure a straight line cut and that the power comes from the left hand. 

Other Suburi

Single Shomen suburi: Step forward and perform a single strike to an opponents head, the step back to chudan .. repeat

Nidan suburi. two level suburi, kote men, kote do, men men. etc

Sandan  suburi three level suburi ...

Renzoku suburi - repeated cutting

Box suburi - men - kote -  do cutting whilst moving the feet in a clockwise direction covering the four corners of a box shape o the floor. as there are 4 feet positions and only three cuts, the kendoka has to really think about what cut to do at what point. then mix it up by doing the excerise in a anti-clockwise direction.