This set of Sai Combinations is a set of Kobudo Kihon or basics. Kobudo is the use of traditional Okinawan Weapons including the Sai (metal truncheon).
This is the third of three Sai drills that we practice in the kobudo program I run at The Academy of Traditional Karate. This set of combination Sai blocks and strikes is a good drill to continue refining your Sai techniques after mastering the basic set of Sai blocks and basic set of Sai strikes.
Sai Combinations Freeze-Frame Step-by-Step Breakdown
Sai Combinations is a kobudo Sai Kihon drill which focuses on three sets (low, middle, high) of Sai block and strike combinations. There are five low block/strike combinations, four middle block/strike combinations and three high block/strike combinations. The stances are all Zenkutsu-dachi (front leaning stance), stepping forward slightly offline and then striking back to the center. The Sai combinations are practiced on both the right and left sides with four repetitions of each block/strike combo. Only the first of each repetition is shown below but all four are shown in the practice video.
[Note: The photos below are freeze frames from the live action practice video, so they are not as perfect as if they were specifically posed photos for each move.]Opening Sequence



5 Low Blocks











4 Middle Blocks









3 High Blocks







Closing Sequence




Sai Combinations (Blocks & Strikes) PDF Reference Sheet
The following PDF reference sheet is a distillation of all the moves in the drill to use as reference while learning and practicing the Sai drill. It is useful to help you remember what all the moves are until they are committed to muscle memory or for review to remember them after returning to the drill if it hasn’t been practiced in a while. I had created this reference sheet when I was first learning the drill myself. I hope it helps you as much as it helped me.
Download Sai Combinations (Blocks & Strikes) Drill PDF Reference Sheet:
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