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Old 05-20-2016, 02:33 PM   #39
jdostie
Dojo: Aikido of Livermore
Location: Ceres/CA
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 22
United_States
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Re: Officially done with mat-slapping forever

"Slapping" when you can roll seems a waste. However, break falls that simulate - and sometime are - a result of inability to roll or round off the corners should be practiced. What if you are falling on your face and your feet are trapped, have you practiced a technique for absorbing that impact? Same falling back, or what about juji-nage if Nage doesn't let go?

I've had a few falls where something was in my path and rolling wasn't an option, yes, I scraped up my forearms, but my head was in tact... A break fall on concrete is going to hurt, but it's going to hurt less than a face-plant on concrete. So I say teach it - in context, and use it on the mat - in context.

(I've also had a bicycle crash where years of rolling probably saved me from a trip to the hospital, had I attempted to slap on that one, something would have gotten badly hurt). Fill the tool box with tools, and choose the right tool for the job.
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