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Old 08-17-2009, 09:38 AM   #26
ninjaqutie
 
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Re: What should I be prepared for when starting?

Quote:
Mary Malmros wrote: View Post
While the tops of your feet do come into contact with the mat during seiza, they're not supposed to be moving across it so as to create scrapes. If they are, that's a sign that something isn't right.
I think what they were trying to get at is that while you are learning, more then likely you are going to get matburn and such because you aren't used to moving in that manner. I know that when I first started, I got matburns on the top of my feet. Once I learned and remembered to stay on my toes, things got better.

~Look into the eyes of your opponent & steal his spirit.
~To be a good martial artist is to be good thief; if you want my knowledge, you must take it from me.
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Old 08-17-2009, 10:15 AM   #27
sammywhip
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Re: What should I be prepared for when starting?

Well, thanks for all the advice guys! I'm really excited, and I love being a beginner, so that part will be fun! I can't wait to get up there and start.
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Old 08-17-2009, 10:35 AM   #28
Reuben
 
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Re: What should I be prepared for when starting?

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Sammy Gray wrote: View Post
Well, thanks for all the advice guys! I'm really excited, and I love being a beginner, so that part will be fun! I can't wait to get up there and start.
All the best

By the way, Aikido takes some time to appreciate so give it a few months at least before deciding whether it's for you.

The techniques might seem ineffective and alien at first but when you do get them, it's kinda like a mini enlightenment.

Concentrate on the process rather than the end goal. It's going to be very different than karate.

If your body is not used to it, your first lesson might give your muscles a feeling that they've been wringed out but this quickly disappears after a few classes.
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Old 08-17-2009, 10:40 AM   #29
sammywhip
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Re: What should I be prepared for when starting?

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Reuben Yap wrote: View Post
All the best

By the way, Aikido takes some time to appreciate so give it a few months at least before deciding whether it's for you.

The techniques might seem ineffective and alien at first but when you do get them, it's kinda like a mini enlightenment.

Concentrate on the process rather than the end goal.
Focusing on process is a strong point of mine. I'm a philosophy major! Haha.
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Old 08-17-2009, 11:43 AM   #30
SmilingNage
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Re: What should I be prepared for when starting?

Not to make an issue of this Mary, But there are times when the tops of your feet come in contact with the mat, albeit most of them are instances where ukemi and or shikko has gone wrong. Depending to which school of thought you subscribe to, when executing back rolls, either you will be using live toes to step back with, or you will be tucking your foot exposing the top of the foot to the mat. Since he is new, and the thread is about what to expect, sore tops of feet are what to expect; Unless you started on mat that doesnt use tatami, simulated tatami or canvas

The mat will certainly let you know when you have fallen incorrectly, and when you have let your tops of your feet come in contact with the mat. The mat is your best teacher as well as your friend, if you listen to what it is telling you.

Last edited by SmilingNage : 08-17-2009 at 11:45 AM. Reason: Need to add something to a sentence

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Old 08-17-2009, 02:39 PM   #31
Phil Van Treese
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Re: What should I be prepared for when starting?

Be ready to work and sweat, to learn and to be humble, and to say thank you at all times for all those who help you learn.
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Old 08-17-2009, 06:25 PM   #32
Suru
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Re: What should I be prepared for when starting?

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John Matsushima wrote: View Post
Be ready for pain....and lots of it.
There will me discomfort and/or mild pain. I agree with "lots of it," but I have to clarify and say small levels of pain, many times. If you are receiving excruciating pain, find a better dojo. That said, when I'm on live toes in hanmi handachi or suwari waza, the pain can get severe. If I had done this every class, I believe I would have gotten used to it.

Drew
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Old 08-20-2009, 01:31 PM   #33
Shadowfax
 
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Re: What should I be prepared for when starting?

Most of the pain I've experienced so far has been off the mat the next day as I discovered muscles I had never used quite that way before and at times that was indeed excruciating pain. We don't do a ton of Suwari waza and Sensei is kind enough to not keep us in seiza for long periods of time. Something my knees are eternally grateful for. I agree that most times on the mat the discomfort we experience is mild and quite tolerable.
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Old 08-20-2009, 05:53 PM   #34
Suru
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Re: What should I be prepared for when starting?

Quote:
Cherie Cornmesser wrote: View Post
Most of the pain I've experienced so far has been off the mat the next day as I discovered muscles I had never used quite that way before and at times that was indeed excruciating pain. We don't do a ton of Suwari waza and Sensei is kind enough to not keep us in seiza for long periods of time. Something my knees are eternally grateful for. I agree that most times on the mat the discomfort we experience is mild and quite tolerable.
What Cherie says here, I certainly hold true. Being thrown, even after you have learned safe falls (ukemi), means getting back up. Now, I probably have one of the largest leg-to-torso ratios. Every time I get up, I use possibly the longest quadriceps and hamstrings of anyone who isn't super-tall. I remember how painful stretching those muscles would be, and I would actually shake during the warm-ups. The worst part was that I thought I was the only one in agony, the stretches being no big deal at all for everyone else.

Each person, or at lest many Aikidoka, might have his or her own hot-spots where the pain seems specific.

Drew
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