AikiWeb: The Source for Aikido Information AikiWeb's principal purpose is to serve the Internet community as a repository and dissemination point for aikido information.
Hello and thank you for visiting AikiWeb, the
world's most active online Aikido community! This site is home to
over 22,000 aikido practitioners from around the world and covers a
wide range of aikido topics including techniques, philosophy, history,
humor, beginner issues, the marketplace, and more.
If you wish to join in the discussions or use the other advanced
features available, you will need to register first. Registration is
absolutely free and takes only a few minutes to complete so sign up today!
I started studying aikido in September of 1999 at Susquehanna Aikido in York, PA. I live in Harrisburg, which is a 40-50 minute drive away.
When I started training there, I was single and ... well ... nearly ten years younger. Now I've got a wife and a three-year-old son. I've finished my bachelor's degree part time and gotten a masters degree.
In short, my life has changed pretty dramatically. One result has been that I wasn't training nearly as often as I really wanted to train. I was down to two to three times a month, primarily due to the distance and resulting travel time eating into my evenings. I was driving for as long as I was training, and the long evenings away from my family meant that I kept choosing to not train. As a result, my skills pretty much stagnated or even back-slid.
As of December 1st 2008, I've been training at Itten Dojo, which is barely 15 minutes from my house. I've trained with them several times over the years and gotten a good vibe. I'm happy to be there, and while I miss my friends at Susquehanna Aikido, I'm enjoying training more often and training differently.
As others who have changed dojos point out, things are different at different places. The training and techniques at Itten Dojo are in some ways very different from what I was doing before. I'm a white belt again after nine years of training -- and loving every minute of it. I'm finding that I'm uncoordinated and that many of my ingrained habits aren't working at the new dojo. But I'm also finding that a lot of my training carries over after I make a few adjustments. My approach is to try to do exactly what I'm shown without consideration of what I know from previous experience. So far, that approach is serving me well.
01-14-2009 01:59 PM 
Now I've got a wife and a three-year-old son. I've finished my bachelor's degree part time and gotten a masters degree. 