resistance training

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[ian]

(This relates to a previous thread on 'no-touch' throws)

Most of you will know I always rant on about understanding the training method in aikido. The conflict seen when two styles train together and the effectiveness of 'no touch' throws in one dojo but not in another seems to all come down to uke conditioning... they get used to a certain form of technique and almost flip themselves over to accomodate it.

I agree with a cetain level of compliance (to enable the same attack and defence to be practiced repeatedly) and I think as aikidoka we are often unaware that this happens throughout the martial arts (e.g. in judo you don't slip an unexpected punch in or ite their arm), though in a different way.

How do your respective dojo's avoid uke conditioning? Do you think it is necessary to overcome it?

Ian

[happysod]

After making the obligatory "you need compliance initially to learn the moves" caveat, we tackle this in two main ways.

1. We practice with 3 levels of uke resistance when practicing the standard moves - basic, awkward and stubborn.

2. For free practice and randori - if you don't feel the technique/atemi is being applied, see if it is... ok, so this one occasionally hurts :eek: but even then it's a valuable lesson for uke.

There's been several threads on this and someone (I think one of the Peters) gave an excellent pithy phrase regarding technique/resistance, but in my opinion this and all the "does it work" threads boil down to "can you afford to take the damage from training". If you can, then you can train bad habits out of people, if you can't, then you won't.

[BKimpel]

I have never seen 3 levels of stubbornness before – usually just resistance or non-resistance.

Many dojos use resistance at the different stages of a technique though, so as to concentrate on improving one thing at a time. For instance resisting the initial tenkan forcing nage to do it properly, or only resisting the pin (kansetsu) portion of a technique so they can concentrate on rolling over the arm, etc. Resisting every single thing also has value, but on the whole I find it easier to digest in portions.

Some resistance training isn’t used to perfect the technique at all – it’s used to force nage to use henka-waza (switching from one technique into another based on uke’s reaction to the first technique).

Now as for training yourself not to fall prey to the “no touch” techniques, by obstinately standing there instead of reacting...it will be less appealing after you get struck repeatedly with atemi because you didn’t move – but hey, it’s your face do what you want with it :)

Bruce

[shihonage]

http://www.aikiweb.com/training/ledyard3.html