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Old 07-17-2008, 09:59 AM   #292
Kevin Leavitt
 
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Dojo: Team Combat USA
Location: Olympia, Washington
Join Date: Jul 2002
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Re: Aikido™ and Aiki…do. Where are we at?

Rob wrote:

Quote:
When you get some new person in your aikido class, you can lose instant credibility if you have to teach someone how to react to your attempt to throw them. You can say grab here and don't let go, show them some simple aiki-game, or impress them with wristy-twisty for a while. But it is always more impressive to a new person who resists (all they will typically know - tight muscles = more stability and resistance) and you instantly blow through that - without hurting them or taking advantage of them, they think wow - I want that. The better you can do that from odd positions the more impressive. And I guess that's the point - make the best "first impression."
You could teach them the basics of jiujitsu to provide them a decent framework to build upon. They will also begin to develop the conditioning necessary to develop Aiki skills later on.

This does a couple of things. One, it allows them to pick up "gross" motorskills and learn the basics of martial movement, they learn how to respond externally to the core, and they learn some pretty good skills that are martially sound. On top of that, they are getting in shape and beginning to develop that nintendo body. Oh, you also grab their attention fast and they see and feel the value of the training that is not reliant on them standing a certain way as uke. They learn rapidily what is successful and what is not.

I find it interesting that in most pedagogies we start people out with core curriculum say as an Undergraduate before moving on to a masters and PhD.

However in aikido we seem to feel that it is okay to skip all that stuff and allow people to move on to PhD level development from day one.

I say this after spending 10 plus years in aikido only to go back to BJJ and now Judo to develop a sound base. The last 5 years have been a huge epiphany to me that I think I had it all wrong. I only imagine where I'd be if I'd started out 15 years ago in BJJ or Judo and the last 5 years in aikido!

One thing I like about Aunkai Bujutsu is that Ark seems to tie all this together in a pedagogy that actually makes alot of sense. There is good balance and structure there for those that accept the training and have the patience to sweat it out.

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