The joints must play freely and not be blocked by force. Regular stretching helps, fascia training, etc. So it depends on agility (test with kata Ukenagashi Okuden) in order to achieve a quick effect (cutting).

It becomes clear: too much force makes you hard and immobile. This error can be corrected when practicing kata. Western attitude is: strength favors speed. Good movement a strong body are helpful and represent a basic structure. It soon becomes clear that good pulling technique is not everything. Speed can be practiced in the practiced processes of a combat event ( Kata). off, he also attacks with technology and comes up to him. The speed increases relative to the position of the attacker! An attacker has triggered three problems: the Iaidoka is prepared and, if necessary, gives way. If I go into the opponent while pulling (the specialty of Iaido), the situation worsens for the opponent, who at the same time has to cope with my counterattack by approaching. If I evade in action, the situation improves and I have more time. Existing constant attention ( zanshin) enables anticipation and understanding of the situation. Preparing in time for deployment is smarter. Hectic ripping out the blade as quickly as possible for fight is just a sporting idea. In the Nukitsuke, forces are controlled via the back, do you feel it? Drawing the blade is only the second step One should understand that the hands are only power transmitters. One should also think about the interaction with the physical situation. If the movement of the left hand is clearly and correctly controlled, matching the cutting angle, the movement of the sword becomes more free. A harmoniously coordinated movement is ideal, so that the forces are balanced when drawing the sword. The right hand grabs the handle, the left hand is busy pulling off the saya ( sayabiki). This works particularly well with good left hand technique. Quickly pulling the katana ( nukitsuke) frees your blade. However, if you practice speed incorrectly 1.000 times, you approach an optimal movement very slowly. Getting these out of the Saya quickly is an important technical aspect of Iaido practice. Some techniques are practiced in iaidokata (look at Ganmenate, Sotezuki, Shihogiri), where you can use the handle to create a pre-fight, especially when an opponent wants to grab your sword. As long as is in the sheath ( saya) it can do little except impress with sheer bargaining. There is the erroneous assumption that Iaido practices drawing the sword as quickly as possible.

Iaido technique