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Old 08-21-2006, 08:55 AM   #12
David Racho
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 17
Philippines
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Re: conditioning routines

You know, I've not known people to train in Aikido as an exercise, or rather purely for the conditioning. They sometimes say that, but it's usually just a part of the reason why they take up Aikido in the first place. My opinion is that more "brute" strength wouldn't hurt, and at least one Shihan has said it in passing "why not?" so it's a good idea to do functional weight lifting (more along the lines of power-lifting as opposed to body building) to actually get physically stronger.

If you can squat double your bodyweight, and do the other standard compound movement exercises (squat, bench, overhead press, chins, etc.) you'll perform better aikido.

Your technique may be good, but all other things being equal, the strong person may possibly have an advantage. Plus if your cardio endurance is good, you can train longer.

Boxer's already know how to punch. They mostly train to last 15 or more rounds. The recent UFC fight with Royce Gracie and Matt Hughes showed that even if Royce had 99% skill and Matt had 96% (or lower), but he had the overall better conditioning ... so, there.

Finally, if you look bigger, out in the street, people will be less likely to victimize you.

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