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Old 05-18-2007, 10:23 AM   #9
George S. Ledyard
 
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Dojo: Aikido Eastside
Location: Bellevue, WA
Join Date: Jun 2000
Posts: 2,670
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Re: Observing a technique

What I tell my students:

1) look at the feet - what is the footwork pattern?
2) look at what the arms are doing?
if you get another repetition:
3) look at what the relative timing is of the feet and hands

Most people at the beginning cannot see the whole, they need to break it down into pieces. I still use this method myself on those rare occasions when I see something that I have never seen before.

People often don't know how to look. At seminars I don't know how often I get up there with my partner and initiate the attack only to have them do something TOTALLY different from what the teacher had demonstrated or the uke attacks with a completely different attack than what was just shown. You wonder if you were actually looking at the same thing.

At least get the footwork. The footwork moves the body and the handwork comes from the body movement so if you get the footwork you have a good chance of getting the rest, even if the teacher didn't do many repetitions.

George S. Ledyard
Aikido Eastside
Bellevue, WA
Aikido Eastside
AikidoDvds.Com
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