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Old 07-07-2005, 07:23 AM   #11
philipsmith
Dojo: Ren Shin Kan
Location: Birmingham
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 362
United Kingdom
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Re: Mat Fit Compared To Overall Fitness

Quote:
Mark Walsh wrote:
Stephen - In general aikido gets physically easier the longer you practice as you relax into it, that's why many senior grades are fat .
Mark, I don't know who you could be thinking of .

One other aspect of "mat fitness" is the falling involved. A study a few years ago on Rugby players showed that those who stayed on their feet longer when tackled had more energy at the end of the game than those who "went to ground" . The energy involved in picking up your body is quite large (around 700 Newtons of force for an averagely built woman) and you may do that i.e. take ukeme, up to 100 times per session. I dont know the calorific expenditure just imagine how you would feel after 100 press-ups!
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