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Old 04-29-2012, 07:13 AM   #4
Shadowfax
 
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Dojo: Allegheny Aikido, Pitsburgh PA
Location: Pittsburgh PA
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 948
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Re: My aikido is at the crossroads

So what is the problem? Are the people who are "laying the hammer on you" throwing you too hard for your skill level? The tell them to ease up. You have the right to see that you are safe as much as they do. If not then what is the big deal? If the ukemi of your uke cannot stand up to hard throws then ease up. You don't have to throw hard in order to gain from the training. In fact I find that as I teach myself to lighten up (for the sake of our beginners) I find that I am becoming even more aware of small internal things that I would never notice if I was just pounding on ukes. It is so hard to slow down and lighten up but it is valuable training. In fact I currently often don't even complete the throw and just take uke to the point of unbalancing in order to work on not being attached to/focused on the throw which should only be the result of a well executed technique and not the technique itself.

Personally I love to be thrown hard but often will not allow someone much junior to me to throw me hard because I don't feel that they can do so safely. If I get hurt I can't train. Iv'e already had a couple of injuries and they have been due to juniors whose technique is not safe enough for fast throws. And the fact that my ukemi was not quite good enough to save me from such. And this could be one of the issues with a few of your training partners as well.

And when you are in your 50's you will understand a bit better. Injuries are easier to come by and slower to heal. I'm only in my early 40's and am finding this to be true.

Last edited by Shadowfax : 04-29-2012 at 07:20 AM.
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