Why do you practice?
 

I've been thinking about all the reasons that drive me to drag my training gear all over the country when I travel, just so I can spend a few hours a week in a dojo. There are lots of reasons for starting training, but what it is that keeps you coming back year after year, decade after decade? For me it's the endless journey of improvement and refinement. I muse about it in my blog post at
http://budobum.blogspot.com/2013/09/...-counting.html

Re: Why do you practice?
 

I'll steal my teacher's answer, cuz I've never heard a better one: I can't not.

Re: Why do you practice?
 

Every time I've left due to injury I've had to come back; there is something I get from aikido training that I don't get from anything else I've done in life.
Since I don't get it from weapons (aiki or other), even paired practice, it clearly has something to do with the hands-on contact with another human being - as well as ongoing fascination with the huge wonderful puzzle of how to keep improving structure and all the other things that make it work better....
What keeps me going day to day is also knowing I'm unlikely to be in better shape than I am today so I better get my ass in to the dojo unless on a given day I'm truly ill or unsafe.
Michael, your quote may just be an apt shorter version of this :-)

Re: Why do you practice?
 

My aikido training is an ongoing attempt to become more comfortable in my own body.

Re: Why do you practice?
 

I think it's unique to every person. I don't think someone else's reasons can ever be yours.

Re: Why do you practice?
 

It's helpful to have soft options, for occasions when you don't want to utterly destroy someone. It's also a good legal defense, by the way- "I practice the least violent martial art there is. My intention is always to cause less harm."

Re: Why do you practice?
 

Honestly I think a lot of people muse and ponder it too much. Or as my dad used to say, "whatever floats your boat". It floats my boat. And that's good enough. Do I need deeper reasons? Frankly I think most reasons folk come up with are at best ad hoc justifications, attempts to give weight and confirmation to what they're doing rather than somehow feeling they're otherwise just wasting their time.

FWIW my wife trains and shows dogs. Why? Um, well, she's good at it, she enjoys it, she likes spending time with the animals, it gets her out of the house, it's good destressing, and, and, and, well, I could go on for hours. But in the end it's because she enjoys it. For all those reasons. And others. Do you really need more reasons?

Our time is limited. And I want to do things I find enjoyable, challenging and fun during my short time here.

If the question is "why this instead of something else" I think the only real answer is that "this" (whatever that may be) is something that I enjoy more than "that". And I reserve the right to move on to "that other thing over there" if that turns out more interesting than this. Or that. Or... You get the drift...

It seems to me one needs to consider these things if one feels they're in a rut. But if you're havin' fun, feelin' groovy, and more satisfied each day than you'd be if you weren't doing whatever, well, keep it up...

Or maybe I've just lived in California too long and I'm turning in to "that" guy....

Re: Why do you practice?
 

Ultimately, because I like it. There's a lot of other benefits and needs and so on, but right now, it boils down to that.

Re: Why do you practice?
 

I wrote a blog saying pretty much this exact same thing a few weeks ago in the External Aikido Blogs forum.

Re: Why do you practice?
 

Okay, I'm ready to change my answer:

"To learn and practice throws and joint locks."

Re: Why do you practice?
 

Keeps me healthy mentally and physically. I've also become fascinated with how you break the human body down. Great great stuff!

Re: Why do you practice?
 

Keeps me healthy mentally and physically. I've also become fascinated with how you break the human body down. Great great stuff!

Re: Why do you practice?
 

Because I suck.

Re: Why do you practice?
 

Because...

I want to progress.....no one will teach me the secret techniques anyway. :p

Re: Why do you practice?
 

Aw, heck, I will. Just slip a few $20 bills into an envelope and send it to.... :D

Re: Why do you practice?
 

I often say its because I don't golf.

(Something about those wind-mills and clown-faces just freak me out.)

Re: Why do you practice?
 

THAT's it, Lynn...the marketing we need to restore Aikido to its rightful place in popular culture...miniature dojo courses. I can see it now....

First "hole"....shikko into a teeny one room tea house beautifully designed and painted, just maybe a little on the garish side....nikkyo the evil chado teacher....

Second "hole"... forward roll into a tiny and very lovely, but maybe a little on the garish side, garden....do a disarm when the evil ikebana expert suddenly pulls out the little okubo shears....

Re: Why do you practice?
 

Onegaishimasu, I studied Buddhism, particularly zen Buddhism for 10 years before I began aikido. I was also a reader/writer of poetry. The practice of aikido seemed to me to be a physical expression of everything I already held dear. It, like Buddhism and poetical notion, didn't save my life at one time, it keeps saving it, so I practice and carry on the practice.
In gassho,
Mark

Re: Why do you practice?
 

Sounds familiar... I think I see where this is going:

Re: Why do you practice?
 

Totally agree - all other reasons as Keith says are just justifications for my Aikido addiction