No more than 3 Sanchin / day?

[johnaaron]

Greetings! I'm new to the forums, though I've been training for a fair amount of time.

And a question came up. I've trained with a number of teachers - all of whom have stressed very strongly the rule to do know more than 3 Sanchin / day. I had thought this was universal - but I've connected with a number of people - all very senior - who do not hold to the 3 Sanchin / day "rule."

So I'm curious - where did this idea come from? And what are the pros and cons? I've been sticking with it so long it's difficult do more - doesn't feel right. But I would like to delve into the origins.

Many thanks!

[Glenn]

I was waiting for some seniors to chime in about this, but I will throw my 2 cents out there. I have dabbled in Uechi Ryu for 30 years under a couple of instructors and do not recall any of them ever saying anything about doing Sanchin no more than three times a day. When I get the chance I will ask Dave (my second teacher) if his first teacher said anything about that, because I do know that teacher was very formal on Sanchin always being done in the same pattern with the same number of steps, and was always done very 'hard,' something Dave had modified due to other influences by the time I started with him. My first teacher on the other hand did not always do Sanchin the same way every time, for example he would often have the entire class doing Sanchin from one end of the room to another before turning regardless of how many steps were involved, while he would move around among the class correcting and checking the students, and I think we did it more than three times some classes but I cannot recall for certain.

As for why some teachers may have a rule about doing it no more than three times, it could be from a notion of not overdoing a strenuous activity, but I suspect it has more to do with "three" being in the name of the kata and the related importance placed on the number three in some Asian cultures.

Again, just my 2 cents.

[johnaaron]

I appreciate the reply. I'm really a bit puzzled. The idea of no more than three sanchin was presented to me very strongly - but three different teachers with somewhat different lineages. But it's certainly not universal. But for me, it's such a deeply embedded habit, it's probably better to just stick with it.

[ACloutier]

Aloha John, Good to see you on here too! My first Uechi-Ryu Sensei back in in 1976 told to do Sanchin three times a day. I took that to mean AT LEAST three times per day. In other words, to train daily. He never said I couldn't do more. He did say, however, that a single flawless performance should leave me exhausted....

[gmattson]

I've always recommend 3 sanchin a day, as a great way to wake up in the morning. Along with a few other exercises, I've been doing this set of wake-up exercises, without a break, for about 10 years. Doesn't mean you can't do a few more at other times. Perhaps someone misunderstood my recommendation as some kind of ritualistic demand. Nothing to this misunderstood understanding of sanchin.

[JG Bellone]

What I find always interesting is "someone" will say, "don't do more than 3 Sanchin's a day" but never explain why...
If a teacher doesn't explain why and help the student understand the reasoning, what kind of teacher is that?

Some do understand -
Some have a reason to share -
Secret unknowing...