Aikido Style

Aikido Emphasis

Grappling, throws and softness

Aikido Beliefs

This martial arts style method is considered one of harmony or blending therefore little physical strength is called for.

Aikido also emphasizes the concept of the ‘centreline’ which goes through the top-centre of your head, down your entire body and evenly dividing it. The centreline is important in aikido since most of one's key spots such as the face, throat, solar plexus and genitals slide near the centreline.

Aikido Principles

The basic principle of harmony is that, instead of moving forward into the attacker’s strength, you progress relative to the strike, either around it or perhaps to redirect it around you.

A second principle of Aikido is actually what I phrase the ‘principle of illusion’. A pupil will give the opponent the false impression and self-assurance that his technique will go as planned. The opponent therefore doesn’t hold back and commits himself, which incidentally falls right into Aikido’s strength. The Aikido pupil will choose from entering or turning techniques to blend with his assailant and finish the strategy with a throw or joint locks.

Aikido Stance

A good stance and superb balance is emphasised in Aikido. The leading foot is placed ahead and the back foot about 90 degrees to your forward foot, setting up a triangular stance. Body weight should be distributed across the whole area of the feet with the feet being flat on the ground to form a solid stance. The Aikido stance serves two purposes. It reduces target area against an assailant when compared to being square-on. Secondly it enables easy side step to avoid and move around an attack. The spine should remain as upright as you can for stability.

Aikido Movement and Footwork

In Aikido sliding and staying considerably more connected to the ground makes it tough to shove over and throw a pupil onto the floor. This is achieved due to body weight distribution mentioned earlier as well as movement which comes from your hips rather than the legs or feet.

Also because Aikido’s body movement is concluded relative to the assailant it comes as no surprise that there are a number of turning and pivoting movements ranging from straight line entering techniques, circular movement and pivoting movements. In addition they can also be led in, outside, front of, sideways or to the back of the opponent. Therefore from as little as twenty fundamental movement techniques there are hundreds of implementations.

Aikido Techniques

Self-defence

Aikido defensive techniques for the most part consist of throws and pins. Beginners are taught basic defensive skills prior to freestyle self-defence or weapons are taught. The list below outline some basic Aikido throws and pins. Note although the list may look over bearing to a newbie (just like with all other martial arts styles), it is intended to provide a general understanding of Aikido techniques.

Technique 1: a restrain working with one hand on the elbow and one hand to the wrist that throws the aggressor to the floor.

Technique 2: a pronating wristlock that torques the arm and applies painful nerve strain.

Technique 3: a rotational wristlock that directs upward-spiralling tension up the arm, elbow and shoulder.

Technique 4: a shoulder control akin to technique 1 but with both hands holding the forearm. The knuckles (in the palm side) are occasionally placed on the recipient’s radial nerve on the periosteal of your forearm bone.

Technique 5: Looks visually like technique 1 but an inverted grip of the wrist, medial rotation of an arm and shoulder, and down pressure applied to the elbow. Familiar in knife and weaponry take-downs.

Four-direction throw: The hand is folded back and past shoulder, securing your shoulder joint.

Forearm return: a supinating wristlock-throw that stretches the extensor digitorum.

Breath throw: a loosely applied phrase for mechanically unrelated techniques. They often do not use joint locks like other techniques.

Entering throw: a throw from which you proceed through the gap occupied by the assailant.

Heaven-and-earth throw: moving forward, the practitioner sweeps one hand low (“earth”) and also the other high (“heaven”) that unbalances the opponent in order that he or she easily topples over.

Hip throw: aikido’s unique version of a hip throw.

Figure-ten throw or figure-ten entanglement: a throw that locks the arms against each other.

Rotary throw: the practitioner sweeps the arm back and locks your shoulder joint to throw.

 

Beginners are also taught basic Aikido holds to experience the energy and the lines of force of a hold. The following are examples of some rudimental holds:

Single-hand grab - one hand grabs one wrist.

Both-hands grab - both hands seize one wrist.

Both-hands grab - both hands seize both wrists.

Shoulder grab - a shoulder grab. Sometimes coupled with an overhead strike.

Chest grab - taking hold of the (clothing of) chest.

 

Counter-Attack

Aikido techniques are designed to course serious injury to an assailant and because of this self-defence, without inflicting serious injury, is emphasised. Offensive techniques like strikes to the body, in contrast to defensive rotating of joints, strangleholds, restraining techniques and throws can be a controversial topic. Quite a few masters feel that Aikido’s peaceful purpose is lost as soon as offensive techniques are used. Other folks see no contradiction in employing hits for self-defence. Many nonetheless, who've also worked to conserve the integrity of the art, know that a highly trained and serious attacker is going to inevitable beat Aikido techniques should there be no offensive techniques. It is therefore largely agreed that using offensive techniques in this manner, to prevent an experienced and determined opposition, is the last option.

Strikes and grabs are typical Aikido offensive techniques, targeted at critical pressure points around the body. They can also be employed as feints, to distract or unsettle an assailant to allow the application of another technique. Basic offensive techniques consist of:

Front-of-the-head strike - a chop on the head. Much more lethal variants of this approach target the bridge of the nose and the maxillary sinus.

Side-of-the-head strike - a diagonal chop to the side on the head or neck.

Chest thrust - a punch or open palm (classically used to not necessarily hurt the opponent) to your torso. Specific points range from the chest, abdomen and solar plexus.

Face thrust - a punch or open palm on the face usually below the chin.

 

Aikido Weaponry

Weapons lessons in aikido typically include the short staff, wooden sword and knife. These days, some training centres include firearm-disarming techniques.

Aikido Training

You can find both mental and physical components of training in Aikido such as controlled breathing, meditation, flexibility and stamina workouts. There is much less focus on weight training since pushing or extending movements are considerably more common in Aikido than pulling or contracting moves.

The mental part of Aikido training emphasises the opportunity to relax one's body and mind in preparation for any situation. It's necessary to the pupil to get instilled with the faith and pose to carry out the daring entering and turning moves that underlie the principles associated with aikido techniques.

A significant percentage of just about any aikido school incorporates throws. A novice will discover how to correctly fall or roll so that he will be able to join a companion and become acquainted with pre-arranged forms deemed vital to aikido training. In the forms the opponent learns to blend with and handle approaching energy and put the receiver/defensive player in off-balancing positions. Whilst the receiver/defender of the technique discovers to be relaxed and flexible to attain balance, cover up weaknesses and pin or throw the enemy. The ultimate purpose of these forms is to conceptualise space and movement relative to one another. As a student advances Aikido freestyle training against several opponents are performed.

Aikido Katas & Forms

For most styles of aikido, kata as a set of prearranged techniques will not be used as the primary training method. Instead kata training must exist side-by-side together with free-style training.

Kata is also used to show particular techniques that are deemed unsafe to utilize in freestyle training.

Aikido Grading

Aikido pupils frequently progress through a number of as many as seven degrees (dan) each obtained through a number of up to five “grades”. Various aikido organizations use belts to distinguish pupil grades. White and black belts are widely-used to differentiate lower and higher grades, though some schools also utilize more colours.

Aikido Criticism

One common complaint of Aikido is that its freestyle training are staged. The counter argument is that the assailants being thrown are trained to utilize a strategy of permitting themselves to be thrown to avoid injury. Resisting the throws, in which the unqualified would do, rather than going with it could cause considerable muscle and/or bone damage.

Comparable Style

k1 - Jujutsu

Normal 0 false false false EN-GB X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi; mso-fareast-language:EN-US;}