Aikido for 12/28/2011

Aikido for Tuesday's class, Ken continued his practice from last Tuesdah's week with a shift from the shomen, overhead strike to first a side-yokomen to more of a left-or-right hook. We spent most of this great class working on this movement and kuseshi or breaking uke's balance after throwing a right or left hook. During this kinds of classes I think it would be some valuable cross training to work out and learn some traditional western-style boxing just because of fast and effective quick fist work is inside. Good class.

Aikido for 12/21/2011

Aikido class for Tuesday was taught by Ken and there was just Garry, Craig (a new beginner), and myself. After warm-ups we worked on overhead strikes starting from shomen but bringing out the portable mats so we could practice as near full-strength. I miss-judged the distance a couple of times and ended up getting hit directly in the face a couple of times but then we moved to shomen techniques with a nage working on kuszeshi (breaking-balance) after uke attacks with stronger and dedicated shomen attack.

Aikido for 12/17/2011

Garry taught the open class and after warm-ups (unusual as we normally go straight into practice) but since I had asked we work on break-falls, we spent the first half-hour of the class doing break-fall exercises before moving into the 4th kyu testing techniques including yokomenuchi kotegashi omote and ura, yokomenuchi yonkyo, ryo-katatetori shihonage. Garry suggested for those techniques that uke was comfortable with, that uke take break-fall. I was able to get in some great break-fall practice working with Clint, Ty, Tommy, and Ken along with Ty's and Tommy's younger brothers. Good change of pace and a enjoyable, but bruise inducing class!

Aikido for 12/15/2011

Tip taught class and after warm-ups, we worked on a number of different techniques where nage steps back and brings the grabbed hand for katatetori up and to throw uke either for a kokyunage, shihonage, or an iriminage. We finished class by working jo kata number 1.

Aikido for 12/13/2011

Ken taught the open class and since it was just Garry and I, we worked on more advanced kuseshi or balance taking practice where from various type of direct tsuki, starting from the mid-section and then moving to more short jabs and straight punches to the face, nage's goal was to move either back or to the side while usually bringing the inside hand to block and breaking uke's balance. Good class and good training.

Aikido for 12/10/2011

I taught the Open Aikido class on Saturday and given the students who were present, I decided to go through the 4th kyu testing requirements as a review and to give those who would be testing next more practice on these specific techniques.

Aikido for 12/08/2011

Tip wasn't able to teach Thursday's class so I volunteered to teach. During warm-ups and since there was only Garry, Ken, Nate, and Clint in attendance, I decided to follow Garry's suggestion to have everyone teach at least one technique. So after doing our standard katatetori kokyunage tenkan and irimi techniques; Clint started off with doing shomenuchi ikkyo. Nate followed with a neat exercise where nage lead uke with a light touch through katatetori shihonage omote and ura. I followed with a tsuki iriminage. Garry's technique was a yokokymenuchi technique with Ken doing a different type of kokyunage. We came back to Clint who finished off the night with a tsuki kotegashi. I worked with Ken on the kotegashi and we did a variation from Steven Seagal movie. Cool stuff and although at times I felt off a bit, a good class.

Aikido for 12/06/2011

Ken taught class and after warm-ups, we worked on katatetori kokyunage tenkan and irimi before working on a couple of different kokyunages and other techniques before we practiced a randori with shinahs. Nage's role was just to get out of the way of the shomen strikes with shinah but be aware of the other uke's attacking. Getting hit with the shinah doesn't hurt that much, more of a sting but the bamboo sword still increases the intensity of the training and is a good to reveals the shortcomings and sloppy movements. If you bend over or lean back, it is harder to move in a different direction and with other uke's coming in, that delay usually results in getting hit. On my second randori, I moved into an uke's strike too soon and got git across my left temple, stinging but not a direct blow but still showing that gap in my movement and awareness. These exercises are good training.

Aikido for 12/3/2011

Yesterday for the Open Aikido class, Garry started off with warm-ups (which is somewhat unusual for him on Saturday). We had a larger class with over nine people there including Ken and myself. We then practiced the following:

• katatetori tenkan kokyunage
• katatetori irimi kokyunage
• ushiro ryokatatetori sankyo
• ushiro ryokatatetori kokyunage
• tsuki tantodori gokyo
• We finished class working on Saotome Sensei's exercise where uke is solid with a forward punch and nage lightly touches the fist, connects with uke's center and then moves to either side followed by second uke grasping the first uke and then nage needs to move both

A good class and I am glad to see more people attending classes.

Aikido for 11/29/2011

My primary spiritual practice is Aikido

Tuesday night Ken taught with Garry and Tip and myself. I believe this was the first time we had just a yundasha class, just by-happenstance, but one of the best Aikido classes I have been priveleged to attend in a while. After warm-ups, Ken had us spend some time with a very strong uke in the tenkan exercise. I worked with Ken on this exercise and it was so illuminating in my own techinque. We all know the tricks and so our Aiki had to be present to move and interact with uke. Ken is very powerful and strong, so my Aiki needed martial and physical intent to break his balance and complete the movement with my body.

Since Ken first returned from his Tai Chi Week-long Seminar, his emphysis on the nine-staff metaphor, of generating power building from the earth through the feet visualizing your body connecting the various parts of the body to the forward hand. We spent some time working on pushing uke with this technique and I could feel the power transfer through to my final push to throw uke.

This upcoming weekend, I'm being formally welcomed into the Colorado Springs Friends Meeting here with a potluck (formality and Quakers in the same sentence is somewhat incongruent). While thinking about this public acceptance and acknowledgement by the Friends here in the Springs is special and important, I realized that Aikido is really my primary spiritual practice and has been for some time but is easily accommodated by being a Quaker within the local and national Friends organizations. It is a false dichotomy to think that a person has to follow a disjoint life when it comes to religion and spirituality, that one choice fulfills every need. That may be the case for many, but for me, practicing Aikido and being a Quaker is harmonious and complementary both sets of values and community are important and valuable.