During a break in morning practice: “What’s your name?” I asked my practice partner. “Hino.” He said. “I’m Yeoh.” “Pleased to meet you.” “Pleased to meet you.” He smiled, and said. “Shall we?” I was later reflecting on my morning practice with a fellow dojo member. “I practiced this morning with someone who didn’t grab [...]
I have been training aikido at Honbu Dojo (Aikikai Headquarters) since February, and steadily ramped up the number of times a week that I train, from twice a week in January, to four times a week in March, to averaging seven times a week now, including about five times a week in the morning, at [...]
At an introductory seminar to Aikido, I learned about how to structure a class for complete beginners, and of different paths to understanding. Aikido is a martial art, and as such, it’s meant to be experienced. I wish we had spent more time doing Aikido basics, instead of talking about principles and how they worked, [...]
Synthesized over the course of three aikido practice sessions this week, key learnings are in bold. Starting position: Extend right hand vertically or palm-up. Partner grabs your wrist with his left hand. Extend left hand above. Partner grabs your left wrist with his right hand. You are now in gyaku hanmi stance. Your elbows are [...]
