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Old 01-02-2017, 12:28 PM   #3
rugwithlegs
Dojo: Open Sky Aikikai
Location: Durham, NC
Join Date: Apr 2013
Posts: 430
United_States
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Re: Aikido and Health

http://john-hillson.blogspot.com/201...should-be.html

The Guidelines for practice certainly encourage health, and I do believe Aikido Can be healthy to practice - but without some vigilance, examination, reflection, and evaluation some practices can certainly cause injuries through excessive repetition or when performed by students who did not have sufficient preliminary training.

Most of the articles I found of older practitioners seemed to be from Yoshinkan or Ki Society, but Shodokan's practices look like they would be health promoting as well. Saito worked well with his weapons work long after empty hand looked less comfortable for him. (Yes, as an Aikikai student, I have not emphatically endorsed Aikikai as a healthy method as it was taught to me).

Unlike some other arts that have been subjected to kinesthiology studies, variations in teaching methods and practices in Aikido seem related to loyalty to a lineage. As lineages don't change, how do we improve on the practices in any dimension (the Guidelines call for us to have aikido be highly martial, highly creative, health promoting, and spiritually enlightening - it is sometimes difficult to move in any one direction without challenging another criteria.). As a larger art, we do not have basics or language in common and there is no clear central authority. Many various camps are not working to share insights and discoveries with each other, forums like this being the exception.

Stanley Pranin has many other articles on Aikido for health that I did not reference above.

What we are, what we can be, and what we should be (especially if Aikido is to be promoted as a CAM therapy) is still in flux for our young art.
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