As the summer slowly transitions into autumn the days get shorter and cooler. In Japan however Mother Nature saves the worst for last. 40 degree days with humidity at 60% and climbing; the kind of weather that would make you lethargic in beach wear let alone moving around in bogu. This is for certain not my first summer in Japan, but this summer I did have a first experience.
In kendo it is generally expected that you put up with the uncomfortable, tough it out, suck it up, and so on. However it was this very attitude that landed me in the emergency room, unable to walk, hooked up to an IV drip for 3 hours. During practice at Shudokan I decided to soldier on in spite of feeling rather ill. It wasn’t until the room was spinning and I was ready to vomit, that I took off my bogu and stopped. At that point it was too late, I could no longer make it home on my own.
A quick internet search for “heat stroke and kendo” (*in Japanese) reveals a handful of documented cases of students dying from heat stroke during or just after practice. I think it is safe to assume that the cases that made the news are only the tip of the iceburg. Is the “tough it out” attitude in kendo dangerous? Should instructors be wary of people exhibiting signs of heat exhaustion? How does one know when enough is enough? In my case I was lucky enough to have my sempai looking out for me. Had I been alone that day who knows how I would have ended up?
It’s the responsibility of both the students and the instructors to ensure that people are not pushing themselves into dangerous territory. While I think that the “tough it out” attitude in Kendo is overall beneficial, people should still know their physical limits. I’m not just talking about fatigue, but actual health complications. Also, people within a dojo should be watching out for each other at least to an extent. If someone looks like they’re about to pass out, showing some concern just seems like the logical thing to do. I would say that it’s part of the dynamics within the dojo itself.
Thanks for adding your comments Andrew. This is exactly the kind of talk I was hoping to generate.
This particular incident was entirely my own fault. I was unable to differentiate between fatigue and heat exhaustion. That is what really scared me, because initially it didn’t feel too different from the usual fatigue I experience in the summer months.
Of course instructors should be responsible for their students and watch out for their well being, but it’s impossible to keep a close eye on everyone while teaching at the same time. So if you have to look out for yourself, can you be confident in your own judgment? I used to be, but not anymore. Which got me thinking, is education necessary? Not just for personal safety but to protect the dojo itself. This may seem ridiculous to some but as the number of people doing kendo increases, so do the chances of such an incident happening. In a country like the United States it would only be a matter of time before someone files a lawsuit.
Just food for thought.
I think education would definitely be helpful. When you’re engaging in intense physical activity with a good amount of heat-trapping equipment for a couple hours, complications are bound to arise eventually. Even things as basic as knowing the symptoms of dehydration, heat stroke, etc would be good to know, just for general knowledge or whatnot. But then, how would you go about educating everyone in the dojo, particularly instructors? Mandatory courses? Seminars? Just hope that they figure it out eventually?
http://www.budo.ac/kendo/kendo_archves_e/hyperthermia_2006/hyperthermia.htm
Very serious and unfortunately all too common
Bloody hell. I heard from this incident and it scared me a bit. I was in Kyoto a few weeks ago and during the practice I thought I was dying.
Maybe I had the same symptoms as you. Usually I always feel better after practice but after these practices all I could do was drink lots of stuff that’s for sale in the vending machines on the way to the bus.
Toughing it out should be ok but under these extreme conditions extra caution should be taken.
Hope that you won’t have any side effects from this experience.
since all the sensei are on holidays i had the sempai leading role of the class last week. i was told explicitly not to induce ppl into heat strokes lol. sounds like a joke but it’s summer in spain too (albeit a whole lot less humid) and it’s easy to start feeling ill when the keiko starts to get a bit tough.
i think winter is best for the tough love last man standing kamikaze keikos. you can prove your spirit and willingness all the same whilst risking your health a lot less…