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Old 11-02-2012, 08:55 AM   #2
Cliff Judge
Location: Kawasaki, Kanagawa
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 1,276
Japan
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Re: Aikido and sparring: how to?

Quote:
Long Trinh wrote: View Post
Greetings fellow Aikidokas

I'm new to the forum and a humble 4th kyu. Nevertheless it has become part of my life and I can no longer live without being thrown or throwing people at least 3 times a week

I live on campus (college student) and mine is totally secluded and I have no car. There's a martial art club on campus that teaches both Aikido and Tongsudo (some forms of Korean Karate). Somehow I'm the only Aikidoka there. Other people just love punching and kicking stuff.

Now my question is, to get some training in, I often spar with people in the club. Since then I've noticed that as an Aikidoka I can deal with a substantial attack (tsuki, yokomen, shomen, etc.) but when it comes down to sparring, i.e assume a fighting stance and jabbing with fists and legs as fast as possible, I'm a little clueless. For once the attacker doesn't put momentum into the attack. Second they are pretty much static, maybe only pivoting to face me. Taisabakis for evasion simply takes too long to dodge a quick jab, and the moment I could grab a limb they would quickly retract it (not that they have put any force in the attack anyway).

And again, since aikidoka don't attack save for atemi, I feel quite at a disadvantage with all those fists flailing around at full speed.

Now I know that I'm simply a 4th kyu, and that Aikido is not necessarily meant for sparring (ain't nobody got time for that ) , but how do you deal with it?

Appreciate your wisdom!!
Hit them with shomen or yokmen attacks, see if you can break their posture or maybe even try to block you. if they block you, try a technique. Might only work the first couple of times.
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