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Old 04-21-2005, 01:26 AM   #68
batemanb
 
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Dojo: Seibukan Aikido UK
Location: body in UK, heart still in Japan
Join Date: May 2002
Posts: 1,031
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Re: Defending against Aikido

Quote:
Michael Gallagher wrote:
Although aikido's ma-ai is at what could be called boxing or kickboxing range, the execution of the techniques takes you in closer than that. Sometimes not totally body-to-body, as in some versions of nikkyo, but MOST OF THE TIME you are inside arm's length. So if you've been trying to apply your techniques without getting closer than arm's length, no wonder you're having problems!
Ma ai (i'm translating as correct distance) is a key factor here, and it is something that changes throughout the technique. The starting ma ai may be at a distance (arms length or greater), but mai ai is dynamic, it changes right through to the end, you may be touching hip to hip at some point within your movement, this is still ma ai for that point in doing the action. You don't stay at arms length throughout the technique.


Quote:
Alex wrote:
You cannot push someone down when you're at arms length from them, which you have to be to lock your arm on their elbow to prevent the reversal.
I wouldn't lock my arms on anyones elbow, that just makes for too much tension and an opening for someone stronger than me to use.

Quote:
Alex wrote:
Grab a newbie fresh from the street tell them nothing but to stand still and do ikkyo on them.
When I opened my own dojo last June, all of my students were first timer newbies, including a very large (nearly 7ft tall) Russian. My techniques had to work if I wanted to get the club off the ground. I'm still open with 14 regular students .

rgds

Bryan

A difficult problem is easily solved by asking yourself the question, "Just how would the Lone Ranger handle this?"
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