Did the unthinkable (my Aikido journey)
- Thread starter TDWoj
- Start date
There are only two belts - white and black. The kids, I think, get stripes on their belts for accomplishing techniques, but other than that - white belts for kyu ranks, black belts for dan ranks, and that's it.
I'm thinking that Yoshinkan is not governed by the centre in Japan that administers aikikai (the name escapes me for the moment). I was reading the site of the dojo you are training in, and from what I read, Yoshinkan is nothing whatever like what I'm training in. Stands to reason that their ranking system would be different as well.
It struck me as I was reading your dojo's website, Yoshinkan seems to be more physically oriented, a different training discipline altogether.
That's not to say aikikai is for sissies. If you could see the way the students were flying around the dojo tonight in the second class (including me!), well, it would make some people go pale at the thought of taking up this discipline (I was feeling a bit pale myself watching the instructor demonstrate). But there's more of a "contract" between nage and uke. It's both nage's and uke's job to make sure uke doesn't get hurt, at least during the training. Of course, during freestyle randori, all bets are off, and it's every man (and woman) for themselves.
-TD, wondering if the day will ever come she does a randori
I'm thinking that Yoshinkan is not governed by the centre in Japan that administers aikikai (the name escapes me for the moment). I was reading the site of the dojo you are training in, and from what I read, Yoshinkan is nothing whatever like what I'm training in. Stands to reason that their ranking system would be different as well.
It struck me as I was reading your dojo's website, Yoshinkan seems to be more physically oriented, a different training discipline altogether.
That's not to say aikikai is for sissies. If you could see the way the students were flying around the dojo tonight in the second class (including me!), well, it would make some people go pale at the thought of taking up this discipline (I was feeling a bit pale myself watching the instructor demonstrate). But there's more of a "contract" between nage and uke. It's both nage's and uke's job to make sure uke doesn't get hurt, at least during the training. Of course, during freestyle randori, all bets are off, and it's every man (and woman) for themselves.
-TD, wondering if the day will ever come she does a randori
ad_adrian
Twitter: adadrian
ah ok thanks for clearing that up td. yeah thats what i thought there was only white and black but i know there is brown belt.
mine is associated with the yoshinkan hombo in japan. although most of it is training i would say 20% is spiritual and training the way of harmony etc....
mine is associated with the yoshinkan hombo in japan. although most of it is training i would say 20% is spiritual and training the way of harmony etc....
TD and adrian, within this gigantic umbrella called aikikai, and presided by aikikai hombu dojo, there are pretty much the full spectrum of styles, ranging from hard, physical self defence oriented all the way to spiritual, soft and self perfecting.
I would say that at most aikikai dojo there are only white (kyu) belt and black (dan) belt. for adults. Some have colors most don't.
Regarding Yoshinkan. Well it was originaly the dojo at which Gozo Shioda taught at after being live in student of the founder during the 30's and the late 40's. He was dispatched to teach the Tokyo police aikido. Back then classes at a regular aikido dojo were small and the instruction scarse and more personal. At the police however there were big groups and Shioda realised he had to teach in a more systematic fashion. He started to stress angles, body positions, and optimal use of body mechanics. The techniques were broken up into static and 1-2-3 type of motion. Not unlike how Saito sensei of Iwama fame did. This has stayed till this day within Yoshinkai, the organisation around Shioda that functioned independantly of aikikai. Focus is put on learning correct basics from firm and static positions, and from there move inte flowing aikido later. It's still aikido, just as the stuff we do within aikikai is aikido. As long as there is a clear technical line back to the founder, IMHO.
/J
I would say that at most aikikai dojo there are only white (kyu) belt and black (dan) belt. for adults. Some have colors most don't.
Regarding Yoshinkan. Well it was originaly the dojo at which Gozo Shioda taught at after being live in student of the founder during the 30's and the late 40's. He was dispatched to teach the Tokyo police aikido. Back then classes at a regular aikido dojo were small and the instruction scarse and more personal. At the police however there were big groups and Shioda realised he had to teach in a more systematic fashion. He started to stress angles, body positions, and optimal use of body mechanics. The techniques were broken up into static and 1-2-3 type of motion. Not unlike how Saito sensei of Iwama fame did. This has stayed till this day within Yoshinkai, the organisation around Shioda that functioned independantly of aikikai. Focus is put on learning correct basics from firm and static positions, and from there move inte flowing aikido later. It's still aikido, just as the stuff we do within aikikai is aikido. As long as there is a clear technical line back to the founder, IMHO.
/J
Lollipop said:I think you would be determined enough to do it! Look how far you have come! Keep it up we are all proud of you!!
Thanks, Lollipop. I appreciate the support!
It's something my mates at the dojo have noticed - my persistance. Some of the lads that started with me have dropped away, never to be seen again. Others only come once or twice a week. When they ask me how often I come, and I tell them 4 times per week, they are simply boggled.
Me, I can't believe I've lasted this long myself. Previously, whenever I started any kind of physical fitness program, I'd lose interest in a month. This, however, keeps me both physically and mentally stimulated, which is what I like about it.
I'm think, though, that I'm going to have to start with weapons practice soon - it's a 5th kyu requirement.
-TD, hoping she won't knock herself out with the bokkan
GlimmerMan
Huge Member
TD - I have been reading your posts in this thread with interest, but not really commenting much, as I don't know much about training in Aikido. However, I find you quite inspirational. I used to train pretty seriously in kickboxing when I was at uni and was in the best shape of my life for that very reason. Like you, I would train at least three or four times a week, but since leaving uni, the jobs I have taken have been pretty unsociable in terms of the hours I work and I don't get an opportunity to train as much as I did with the classes being at set times. To counter-act the lack of kickboxing training, from a cardiovascular fitness perspective, I hit the gym these days as I can go pretty much any time during the day I like. I found your comment about losing 19 pounds pretty astonishing and I would like to say well done to you! Losing weight is no easy task, so keep up the good work!
Lonewolf
Semper Fi
I agree with you Glimmer you Mad Swine!!!!HHAAAHHAHAHA!
When I was studying I was training four Hours a day at My Kung-Fu Studio,
this every day!
Not to mention that I was training every day!Even the Week End!
plus I was Jogging and pumping Iron!!!
I was an avid jogger!!!
In those days I never got into arguments!I had no time and I was so confident and Cool that I never needed to fight!!!
Of course Life took its revenge and when I started working I had to drive
two hours to go and two Hours to come back!
plus all the extra work I had to do...!
However,I trained only four hours a week!!
Which is better than nothing!!!
Now I practise no more!!
i plan to start training again in a few weeks !
maybe !
Peace Mike!!!
Francois
When I was studying I was training four Hours a day at My Kung-Fu Studio,
this every day!
Not to mention that I was training every day!Even the Week End!
plus I was Jogging and pumping Iron!!!
I was an avid jogger!!!
In those days I never got into arguments!I had no time and I was so confident and Cool that I never needed to fight!!!
Of course Life took its revenge and when I started working I had to drive
two hours to go and two Hours to come back!
plus all the extra work I had to do...!
However,I trained only four hours a week!!
Which is better than nothing!!!
Now I practise no more!!
i plan to start training again in a few weeks !
maybe !
Peace Mike!!!
Francois
Lollipop
Banned
TDWoj said:
Hey girl, see others couldn't hang as long as you have! And you are putting in alot of time! I don't know much about you classes or martial arts, but from reading all of the post I am learning some! Seems very hard and you have to be determined and you are dear!!
Thinking about you!
GlimmerMan said:
Thanks, GlimmerMan! I've gotten totally hooked on aikido, and I get really grouchy when I have to miss a class for any reason. I'm also hoping the weight loss continues because I think it would be easier for me to do aikido - stiff joints and muscles plus too much weight is hampering my progress somewhat. One or the other has to go, and so far, it's easier to lose weight than to try and get my stiff joints to unstiffen.
I also like getting out of my place at set times, and I'm hoping if a long-term contract job comes up, it won't interfere with my going to class.
Good for you that you are at least going to the gym to keep in shape. Me, I hate going to the gym, for a number of reasons; the difference between going to the gym and going to aikido is that here it is six months later, and I'm still going to aikido - while if I had just been going to the gym, I would have quit in under three months.
Amos Stevens
New Member
ROLLING ROLLING ROLLING(oops thats's a tv series not TD)
I'm trying to remember why I was so anxious to start doing ukemi again... ow.
I took a couple of hard tumbles in class last night, landing on my shoulders which, this morning, are letting me know they are not happy with being so thoroughly abused. No torn muscles, though, just achiness, so I'm not worried I've injured myself again. I may not be going to class tonight as I have a meeting I have to go to - but I haven't made up my mind yet if I'm going to the meeting or not. Aikido is like an addiction....
A friend of mine took some photos of me practicing ukemi (see the sample upstream), and right away I could see what I was doing wrong. I spoke to my sensei about my ukemi issues - I can see what I'm doing wrong, I just don't know how to fix it. She suggested that I focus on where my feet are, which, I know someone here said I shouldn't, but this really is a problem for me. My leg always swings sideways and not up when I go over, and this results in my rolls being incorrectly executed (and leads to injuries). And it's all because I have no idea where my feet are in relation to the rest of my body, once I can no longer see them.
Last night I tried doing forward rolls (from kneeling position) slowly enough so that I could see where my leg was in relation to the rest of my body (not easy to do because flexibility is still a problem), but focusing on my feet seemed to help. It'll take a while, though, before I can feel where my legs and feet are.
It's another one of those strange issues I have - if I don't see it, it's not there. So once I lose sight of my feet, they're in business for themselves, and I don't seem to have any control over them... weird, ain't it?
Oh, and I was looking forward to falling down again, wasn't I... why was that, again? Ow....
I took a couple of hard tumbles in class last night, landing on my shoulders which, this morning, are letting me know they are not happy with being so thoroughly abused. No torn muscles, though, just achiness, so I'm not worried I've injured myself again. I may not be going to class tonight as I have a meeting I have to go to - but I haven't made up my mind yet if I'm going to the meeting or not. Aikido is like an addiction....
A friend of mine took some photos of me practicing ukemi (see the sample upstream), and right away I could see what I was doing wrong. I spoke to my sensei about my ukemi issues - I can see what I'm doing wrong, I just don't know how to fix it. She suggested that I focus on where my feet are, which, I know someone here said I shouldn't, but this really is a problem for me. My leg always swings sideways and not up when I go over, and this results in my rolls being incorrectly executed (and leads to injuries). And it's all because I have no idea where my feet are in relation to the rest of my body, once I can no longer see them.
Last night I tried doing forward rolls (from kneeling position) slowly enough so that I could see where my leg was in relation to the rest of my body (not easy to do because flexibility is still a problem), but focusing on my feet seemed to help. It'll take a while, though, before I can feel where my legs and feet are.
It's another one of those strange issues I have - if I don't see it, it's not there. So once I lose sight of my feet, they're in business for themselves, and I don't seem to have any control over them... weird, ain't it?
Oh, and I was looking forward to falling down again, wasn't I... why was that, again? Ow....
shihonage
New Member
TDWoj said:
I had this issue too. I still have it, only in regards to different things. I think its a part of a larger issue. This issue is also about the "hope" vs. "focus".
When I do some techniques that I am perpetually not good at, I have a tendency to "hope" they work past a certain point instead of actually FOCUSING during the entire length of technique to make sure its done correctly. This used to be a lot more severe but its still there allright.
I missed last night's class because I had to go to a meeting, which was probably just as well as my shoulders were still hurting. They're better today, though I'm a bit uneasy around the area I injured, and I'm wondering if I should go to class tonight or wait until tomorrow. I've never been to a Wednesday night class, and I don't know who teaches it. It's an "all levels" class, which, translated, means playing with the big boys again, I fear....
There are so many techniques I can't do despite having done them almost in every class, that I get frustrated sometimes because I can't remember the moves (feet, again! WHERE are those darn things supposed to go?). I swear some of those moves require 6 feet and eight hands to execute! Grrr!
Right now, I'm having trouble with pins. Sensei keeps saying "long back! long back!" and I'm trying to figure out how to make a short back longer....
Usually, when I'm watching a demo, I'm preoccupied with what uke is supposed to do and how painful it's likely to be (usually, very). I have to shake myself out of that and watch the demo from nage's point of view, but then I get lost because I'm trying to watch the feet, watch the hands, watch where the hara is supposed to be, thumb up, thumb down, where to go when it's ura, when it's omote.
The thing I liked about last week's "big boys" class was that we focused on one attack (yokomenuchi) but many defenses, so I didn't have to concentrate on both nage and uke, I could just focus on what nage did. And we did some deliberately in slow motion so that we could focus on where one's centre was supposed to be (and for once I didn't have to focus on where my feet were in relation to the rest of me because where the centre went, the foot followed naturally).
Just a few more days to this weekends seminar with Donovan Waite. Different styles and different approaches to the same techniques is what makes aikido so much fun, for me, anyhow!
There are so many techniques I can't do despite having done them almost in every class, that I get frustrated sometimes because I can't remember the moves (feet, again! WHERE are those darn things supposed to go?). I swear some of those moves require 6 feet and eight hands to execute! Grrr!
Right now, I'm having trouble with pins. Sensei keeps saying "long back! long back!" and I'm trying to figure out how to make a short back longer....
Usually, when I'm watching a demo, I'm preoccupied with what uke is supposed to do and how painful it's likely to be (usually, very). I have to shake myself out of that and watch the demo from nage's point of view, but then I get lost because I'm trying to watch the feet, watch the hands, watch where the hara is supposed to be, thumb up, thumb down, where to go when it's ura, when it's omote.
The thing I liked about last week's "big boys" class was that we focused on one attack (yokomenuchi) but many defenses, so I didn't have to concentrate on both nage and uke, I could just focus on what nage did. And we did some deliberately in slow motion so that we could focus on where one's centre was supposed to be (and for once I didn't have to focus on where my feet were in relation to the rest of me because where the centre went, the foot followed naturally).
Just a few more days to this weekends seminar with Donovan Waite. Different styles and different approaches to the same techniques is what makes aikido so much fun, for me, anyhow!
Amos Stevens
New Member
NO snarling or arguing with the Sensei TD