Chris Li’s Part 3 of Analysing Aiki is a terrific read on unbalancing and the mental/physical connection between uke and nage. I think there might even be seeing some support for the humble Aikiphysics Base of Support and Topple theory, but this time from a credible source Mr. Yoshimaru’s heels are floating, the center of gravity of the triangular body… Read more →
Category: internal strength
What is Aiki?
Chris Li of Sangenkai, Hawaii provides a multipart brilliant translation of a Japanese work analysing Aiki, by a prominent student of the Daito Ryu’s Sagawa Sensei. Read on for more http://www.aikidosangenkai.org/blog/ Its terrific food for thought with our own humble efforts to date looking decidedly shabby. Read more →
REED13 registrations are open!
Hi Everyone, REED13 registrations are open for our August seminar with William Reed Sensei on reed13.aikidorepublic.com/registration Thankyou for the very strong support and intrest we have received in the past few weeks, locally with offers of mats and help on the weekend and incredible intrest from interstate colleagues. We have finalised a very exciting programme with Reed Sensei starting on… Read more →
Internal Strength, but wait theres more…
A real pleasure to have Andrew Sunter sensei visit our dojo again. We have been exploring internal strength and its ‘Ura’? existence in our school for some time now, and so the opportunity to practice with him after he had a chance to work with Gleason Shihan in Sydney was a terrific opportunity and quite a few more concepts to… Read more →
Andrew Sunter Sensei, Guest classes Thursday April 25th (ANZAC Day)
UPDATE: We will be at the Mt. Gravatt Showgrounds for this event – from 6:30pm. See http://www.aikidorepublic.com/dojo-alternate-location On ANZAC day, Thursday April 25th we will have good friend and senior aikido instructor Andrew Sunter Sensei as guest of the dojo (see brief bio ) to teach two classes. Sunter sensei is one of Aikido Yuishinkai’s most senior instructors and a… Read more →
Solo training in Aikido
Solo training is not a new idea in aikido, when you think of all the taiso at the start of class and the weapons kata there is plenty of it. But what is relatively new (well what’s old is new anyway) is the idea of purpose behind solo training. “Your aikido will only improve when your concept of aikido improves”… Read more →
Everything is Soutai
“Everything is Soutai” There were the confusing and somewhat troubling words that Okajima sensei left me with on my last visit to Japan. Confusing mentally as well as troubling that this might be the direction that the successor of Aikido Yuishinkai is headed and what might become of Aikido arts?. With the fullness of time, and insights from around the… Read more →
Internal strength and Aikido – An experiment in breaking boards
A little unconventional – but great to see someone (Ian ) putting aikido to the test and finding it comes up trumps. Physics (www.aikidorepublic.com/aikiphysics) says there is the power of a lawn owner in dropping the centre just a few centimetres – and here it is in action. don’t try this at home kids 😉 Read more →
Getting an Internal Strength Baseline
A few weekends I managed to get down down for an Internal Strength workshop at Steve Seymours Sensei’s dojo in Balmain, led by Michael Dreyer Sensei (a student of Bill Gleason Shihan and IS affectionardo). Aikiweb.com in recent times has seen an increased focus on this approach and essence in Aikido, so much so its its own topic now on… Read more →
Special Class: Personal protection and core strength, Dec 4th 6:30pm+
Special Guest Class Catherine Schnell Sensei, Tuesday December 4th 6:30p – 7:30p An introduction to Personal Protection 7:45p – 9:30pm Aikido and the Core Location: across the road at the Hamlyn Harris Pavillion, Mt. Gravatt Show Ground www.aikidorepublic.com Its our pleasure to announce that long time budo buddy Catherine Schnell Sensei will be visiting our dojo on December 3rd. Sensei… Read more →
An Aikido Conversation in Melbourne
This past week I found myself in Melbourne for work and had opportunity to catch up with budo buddy Catherine Schnell Sensei at the Aiki-Centre, whom i met quite a few years ago during a Budo tour of Melbourne (See trip report Budo Bums Aikido in Melbourne here). During the course of that nights regular practice we shared some ‘conversation’… Read more →
Shobu, Shobu
I’ve just spent the week in the USA just outside of Boston for a sports technology conference. After some scouring of the web I discovered William Gleason Sensei’s Shobu Aikido dojo which seemed like too good an opportunity to miss and get a taste of something quite different. Fortuitously following the conference Gleason Sensei was running a weapons seminar. With… Read more →
Kuzushi on Contact – Ronin Shugyo Tuesday 26th June
On contact with Uke the conflict is over – the rest of aikido Kata is just exploration!. Kuzushi is a term for where Uke’s balance is taken and broken, where ukes centre is gathered and held. The techniques of Aiki are explorations of taking balance with pushing and pulling, and then leading Uke through movement to projection or pin. The… Read more →
Business and Pleasure in Japan
Visiting Japan brings with it the pleasure of seeing old and new friends again, some indulgence in my favourite hobby of aikido (a kind of energy minimisation problem in a martial context) and the very serious business of sports and sports engineering. Last month was my most recent trip which might be of mild intrest. See Business and Pleasure for more Read more →
Core strength, internal strength and Aiki
Last week we looked at some core strength exercises as a major component of our warmups and integrated it into normal practice waza as well. Its something I’d like to pursue for the next little while and see how it goes. Ever since the winter camp I’ve been ruminating on an aspect of aikido called ‘internal strength’ which for some… Read more →