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Old 03-16-2012, 03:15 AM   #28
Hanna B
Location: Stockholm, Sweden
Join Date: Dec 2001
Posts: 647
Sweden
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Re: Differences between female & male practitioners

Quote:
Jackie Adams wrote: View Post
You will always have a sex dissatisfied because you can never fully have a utopia of the sexes, blending the sexes as one.

Not painting a dystopian picture, but you will always have differences because of the sexes are different and that means needs and expectations are wholly different based on biology. A force that can't be defeated. My solution is to separate the sexes in their own classes, only to bring them together occasional for the benefit of each other's practice.
You will always have students dissatisfied.

If you teach one way, more men then women will be dissatisfied. If you teach another, the other way around.

One way of teaching and approaching training will appeal young people. Other ways will be more suitable for older students.

Some ways will appeal to people who want physical work out, who don't think training is training unless they feel exhausted after class. Other types of training will have appeal to technique geeks, who can linger on technical details forever and completely ignore fitness issues.

By all means, do create your two kinds of classes. But if you label them "for women" and "for men" -- or "people under 45" and "people over 45" - you will loose all those students who would have liked the other class better...

As people already have said, the difference in the sexes is not as big as we tend to think. But we always enhance it, someteims even create it, by silk gloving the women and sometimes having more "macho" expectations on the males.

When this discussion comes up there's always the guys who say "oh, but the women WANT it more delicate, it is obvious from how they attack". But they seldom ask themselves who really got the delicate ball rolling - if they possibly had a part in it, too.

I would certainly never join a dojo that has separate women's classes because a male teacher think we are so different. The odds are I won't learn much there. You'll keep the sissies... those who want to learn will go elsewhere. OTOH there are plenty of reasons for doing aikido. Wanting to learn is just one of them. So if your sissy women's classes will pay your rent *shrug*

Last edited by Hanna B : 03-16-2012 at 03:27 AM.
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