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With COVID-19 it's not easy to get your Aikido practice in. I've switched to mainly weapons training these days and put together a video on how to hold the sword for Aikido practice.
While in Japan, I learned that the weapons training should compliment and build the Aikido practice and techniques.
Aikiweapons and Aikido are part of the same system. Lifting a sword is like lifting your partner when executing a technique.
We all know what Aikido means, right...."The Way of Spiritual Harmony....." But, for me, just recently the meaning has changed.
After re-reading The Spirit of Aikido for the 7th time, I realized that in his book, Kissomaru Ueshiba defines Aikido as, "The Way to Harmonize the Spirit."
That's very different to what I always thought it meant. And of course after doing Aikido for over 29 years, teaching for over 19, I've kind of developed my own interpretation and meaning of Aikido.
OK, I finally finished editing my new vlog. It took way to long because I was so busy working on other peoples YouTube channels.
I wrote an article about 3 months ago on the three things you can do to improve your Aikido, and shot a video. I think tips like these are great, especially for beginners and sometimes they'll even help out the seasoned Aikido practitioners. Someone like me, that's been doing martial arts for 44 years, I sometimes forget to stick to the basics, like staying in shape! And of course, as you get older, for some reason it gets harder to do those things you should be doing, like practicing Aikido!
My name is Erik Calderon and I've been doing martial arts from the age of 5. When I was 20, I got this incredible itch to move to Japan and study martial arts full time.
In 1989 I went traveling to Mexico with my Dad. One night, he had some business to attend to, and I was left in the hotel to kill the time. I turned on the tv and a movie called, "Nico," was airing.
It was interesting, and I enjoyed watching it. I especially like the martial art that was highlighted in the film, Aikido. I knew nothing about Aikido, but from what I saw, it looked like fun.
When I got back to Boston, I looked up a few Aikido schools and started taking Aikido classes at Shobu Aikido of Boston under William Gleason.
I read every book I could find on Aikido and learned about it's history, it's culture and its philosophy.
Learning about the history of Aikido and Japan and how it influenced the development and ultimately the meaning of Aikido is very important to make note of. During the war, and Japan's loss, the martial arts as a whole changed in
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Of course, I'd like to say that it all depends on the instructor and where they learned Aikido. Throughout my years of training in Aikido in Houston, Boston, San Francisco, Austin, San Antonio, Arlington and in Tokyo, I've seen many different styles and systems of weapons being taught.
Essentially Aikido comes from three different arts, The Long and Short Sword, The Staff and Unarmed techniques; Kenjutsu, Jojutsu and Daitoryu Aikijuujutsu.
In 1991, after studying Aikido for a year at Shobu Aikido of Boston, I decided to move to Japan to further my studies and understanding of what Aikido is.
I read a lot of books on the idea of using weapons, and, studied and applied those ideas at the dojo in Boston under William Gleason.
When I got to Japan, taking classes at the Aikikai World Headquarters, also known as Hombu Dojo, I did not see nor take any weapons classes. I did hear a rumor that there was a class, but I never saw nor attended it. I was also a student of the Sophia Aikikai Club at Jochi Daigaku (Sophia University), but never experienced weapons training there as well.
I did take an apprenticeship from Kato Hiroshi, which did teach weapons. He taught them as he had learned from Morihei Ueshiba better known as O'Sensei, or Great Teacher. And, in every class, Kato Sensei would spend about 45 - 60 minutes teaching weapons. That's where I got a very strong basic foundation of the weapons and how they apply to everyday Aikido practice.
While I was training under Kato Sensei, he taught that each Kyo has a significant meaning: Ikyo - Physical Strength, Nikyo - Technique, Sankyo - Flow, Yonkyo - Focus, Gokyo - Disarm.
In light of that teaching, I've been creating my vlogs to highlight that teaching. I just finished my vlog on Nikyo, which is about technique. And yes, the title is click bait, and if you are wondering, there really is no secret technique, but the obvious, deliberate practice, and hours, weeks, months, years, decades...of deliberate practice.
Watch my vlog, comment, share, like and subscribe to my channel!
I've been teaching Aikido for about 20 years now, and I've made it an important point to stay in shape. Teaching means that I don't get to train a full hour or two like my students do and get a really good work out, burn calories, gain strength...all that good stuff that comes with training....maybe that's why so many aikido instructors are overweight!
So I've put together my own training program with running, pushups, sit ups, pull ups and my favorite Rock Climbing! Sometimes I get super lucky and only one or two students show up for class; then I get to train! I love those days.
I put together a vlog detailing one of my workouts. Check it out and please subscribe to my youtube channel:
So, you think you need natural ability or talent to get good at Aikido.....think again! Geoff Colvin wrote a book called, "Talent is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else."
It's a great read and very inspiring, well, to a certain degree...don't think it's easy to become great. There are two main ingredients to becoming great and two things that are going to help you get there.
Watch my vlog to learn more about what you need to become a world class Aikidoka!
In Japan I learned about Ai-Uchi or mutual destruction; that means that your initial movement needs to be moving in a way that you are actually going straight into an attack, irimi. I've been studying this for that past several weeks and created a vlog about it. Please watch, share, like, comment and subscribe to my channel!
11-28-2020 03:51 PM 
