I've been enjoying reading posts here for ages, but I keep getting a big message pointing out that I've never posted and should stick my head above the parapet.

I figure if I'm going to do it, it may as well be in YMAS as the message suggested. I can get shot down all in one go, and relax a bit from there on in.

My main style is Aikido, which I've been doing for about 20 years. Say what you want about it, it's teh d3adly when I do it! (Mainly because my lack of natural coordination leads to accidents.)

My second (much more recent) style is Kali, which I am loving.

My main views are these:

1. Bad martial arts aren't generally the fault of a particular style, but of how that style is taught, practiced, and TESTED.

2. Regardless of what it teaches, any martial art class can be counted as good if it delivers what it promises. Light-cardio-dance is fine if its NOT pretending to be anything else.

3. Its' perfectly ok that not everything you do in a given martial art is an effective fighting technique, but you'd better be fucking clear about what those bits are for. (This is particularly true of TMA, where lots of the development exercises look like technique. I guess in MMA/Boxing, a sit-up looks like a sit-up so no-one is going to try and sit-up someone to death in a bar fight.)

4. All martial arts are changed by what makes them popular at the time. Getting numbers on the mat risks your art. Aikido attracting the hippies proved that.

Lastly, I'm off to a joint MMA & FMA course next month where I expect to have my ass handed to me all day. Will it put me off Aikido when it happens? NO, because I enjoy Aikido. Will it change how I practice my Aikido? Too fucking right! Same as it did when it met Judo. Same as it did when it met Kyokushinkai. If you can't take a humiliation now and then, you'll never grow up to be a ninjer.

Nice to meet you all...

Now, feel free to pop a cap in my ass.

This may not end well..

Welcome to Bullshido

*sigh* Watch video and learn.

YouTube- Words of Wisdom PT 1 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TL05Es8LVAQ&feature=related)

HAHAH STFU N00B

Sike, welcome to bullshido. Avoid this thread until your dying day because it will likely go down hill fast :)

Grab my wrist - as I welcome you to the site.

You might surprise yourself at the seminar. 20 years of training should at least have taught you something. Don't be so humble.

How many Aikidokas does it take to change a light bulb?





One, but the lightbulb has to attack first!

This poster has some unique insights... he had to go over some familiar material to get to those insights is all.

Haha Yes I have often felt like I am dangerous as hell... due to being such a spaz hen learning something new.

the point about making a distinction is golden: The truth is that if we take Aikido essentially and we consider it an exerscize in certain movements then it can be decent movement exerscize. If we temper that with an understanding of making the circles smaller and smaller and as the op said consider what stuff is a bit too fanciful, then what we eventually get imo is something that looks lke Aikijutsu and can be useful for certain situations. You can get good weapons retentions skills with Aikido under certain circumstances. Edit: its also a great art for a big strong guy who wants to be a bouncer.... Sankyo, Shihone nage, Kote Gyshe (horrible spelling) work when you are big and strong ane want to remove someone from the scene... they work quite well as long as you make sure you are on their flank.

Doing anything for 20 years deserves some aprobation.

Grab my wrist

I've just realized ... they teach the anti-Aikido at Women's defense classes. LET GO OF MY PURSE! I DON'T KNOW YOU!

20 years of training should at least have taught you something.It didn't help Rudy

Doing anything for 20 years deserves some aprobation.Read my previous comment :-)

Read my previous comment :-)

The unfortunate reality is that bad habits take longer to undo than learning good habits. its a hell of a lesson to swallow.... I remember my first taste of it

It is definitely something to consider and a good reason why catching **** because of bad training might be tough love for people.... more than they may realize.

What one absolutely cannot do (and so many people do this imo) is say "well I have been doing this ass backwards for 20 years, so I have to keep going."

3. Its' perfectly ok that not everything you do in a given martial art is an effective fighting technique, but you'd better be fucking clear about what those bits are for. (This is particularly true of TMA, where lots of the development exercises look like technique. I guess in MMA/Boxing, a sit-up looks like a sit-up so no-one is going to try and sit-up someone to death in a bar fight.)



All of those who are serious about self defense or sport fighting will know that thats a load of bologna and a waste of time.
:icon_blac

Uh oh OP,

Now you've opened the door to aikido bashing... :)

Now I've got 5 years into aikido, and was fortunate that my sensei's cross trained. One was a judo coach, another was into karate -- which lends to my viewpoint as that aikido as primarily taught today will teach to to breath, relax, a false sense of security, breakfalls and bad habits.

Now my take on good aikido is to include *proper* atemi (not the bull pucky classical tsuki where you leave your arm out to be grabbed, but how to hit someone in the face, it'll help your technique, seriously), and include varying degrees of resistence to the techniques. Add the understanding that, as was put earler, make the circles smaller... abbreviate and improvise a bit. You won't have room for a tsuki kote gishe (sp?) in a bar, and no one is ever going to punch that way in a realistic standpoint. That should be the realization during the multiple attacker randori sessions, but unfortunately IMHO that is lost because it is just too frick'n compliant.

The OP seems open, and he's not spouting (yet) that his aikido is teh d3adly, and likes and learns from other martial arts. Cool.

If he starts going on about sensing ki, and the too deadly to spar, then rip him a new asshole. OTOH, if he's not delusional, likes learning stuff from other arts, then let him wear his fancy black skirt and do his ballet.

OP -- your first post probably should have been in Newbie town to avoid the riff raff.

Uh oh OP,
Now my take on good aikido is to include *proper* atemi (not the bull pucky classical tsuki where you leave your arm out to be grabbed, but how to hit someone in the face, it'll help your technique, seriously), and include varying degrees of resistence to the techniques. Add the understanding that, as was put earler, make the circles smaller... abbreviate and improvise a bit. You won't have room for a tsuki kote gishe (sp?) in a bar, and no one is ever going to punch that way in a realistic standpoint.

Have you ever seen vids of the Hatenkai Aikido guys? That sounds a bit like what they're doing. I don't know all the details (don't read Japanese) but it looks as though they're trying to (re?)create a fully noncompliant, full-contact style...

The Shodokan empty hand vs. knife stuff actually looks like it might be rather useful, dare I say practical? (ducks) in a str33t situation, whilst reminding one that knife vs. empty hand is fucking hard without getting cut. Well from some of what I've seen on video anyway. If there was a school anywhere near me, I'd be checking that out to make my own mind up.


That should be the realization during the multiple attacker randori sessions, but unfortunately IMHO that is lost because it is just too frick'n compliant.


Seagal's black belt tests apparently involved multiple attackers going full-on against the defender. As you might expect, it ended up as a manpile with the person on the bottom getting pounded - within seconds. Or the defender getting pushed up against a wall and pounded on.

I was watching that and thinking 'someone might learn something that could save their life in a fight if they did that more often'.

Uh oh OP,

OTOH, if he's not delusional, likes learning stuff from other arts, then let him wear his fancy black skirt and do his ballet.

OP -- your first post probably should have been in Newbie town to avoid the riff raff.

In the OP I recall the poster going to rock up to a MMA/FMA course, knowing in advance that it will not stop his Aikido, regardless of the outcome.

Plus he had the stones to post this OUTSIDE of newbie town. I hope he tears the course apart. Bring on the riff raff, he can take it, Ki or no Ki.

Hello again.

Well that's been gentler than I expected, thanks.

(I should emphasise that next month's MMA/FMA thing is a course, not a match)

As for my posting this on YMAS instead of the newbie page: Self defence needs to be practiced against real attacks, not the gentle ones you get on the newbie page ;-)

I watched that video about alive vs dead drills. I can understand the sigh that came with the link though. We visit a lot of other Aikido clubs, and almost none practice 'alive' drills. Ever. Forget resistance, just the changes in range are going see them killed.

We already practice a lot of 'alive' drills regularly at my Aikido class, though we do practice the 'dead' drills too. I think there is still a place for the dead drills when learning new techniques. I think it's good to start learning any technique from a dead drill, until you get a decent grasp of the mechanics.

Also, the first 'alive drill' you do after practicing forms for a while is usually so embarrassing and demoralising, that it is a really important lesson in itself. Its especially good when we have someone of a different style visit the club, as suddenly there is a whole new bag of dangers we just wouldn't see if made them behave and do 'Aikido' attacks.

I'll admit I don't have a good ground game. I also don't teach groundwork, because it is outside my area of competence. What we do though, is near the beginning of each class (immediately after the warm-up), everybody takes it in turns to play some submission ground work against everyone else. One minute bouts, swapping partners each time until everyone has fought everyone.

We have a couple of ex-judo d3adlys and until recently a bjj guy, who offer tips if they are feeling generous, or embarrassing defeats if they aren't.

Its a useful exercise on three counts. First, it's a great warm-up/exercise. Second, it gives everyone a chance at developing at least a bit of a ground game, without being too heavy for the aikido purists, or older members. Third, it reminds everyone that ground exists and is important.

I'll never beat an experienced ground fighter as a result of this, but hopefully I won't loose against an idiot just coz I'm shocked it's happening on the floor.


I'm not trying to pretend that we are some hard wu-tang Aikido style. We dance around in dresses same as the rest of them, and TBH my fighting sucks. But we do try our best to train intelligently.


Nice to meet you all.

P.S. Thinking of a sign-off but all the Cobra Kai stuff seems to be taken. Might go Deadwood if swearing is ok?