Semi-hajimi with Yonkajo

We worked on yonkajo this morning. This is a technique I've learned to like. I had trouble understanding how it worked at the beginning, but now I find it fun to do, and it effectiveness is gradually increasing. Roland Sensei had us practice shomen uchi yonkajo osae I & II, finishing the class with a short hajime-like training. It wasn't a full-blown hajime, as he had us start slow and gradually picked up the pace.

A new student came to the dojo for his first class and ended up training with me. He's done Tomiki Aikido before, so he understood the idea behind the techniques, but the details were quite different. The class was pretty fast paced, but he walked off the mat with a big smile, so I think he had a good time.

quick note on Saturday night

Last night we worked on shomen tsuki shomen iriminage I and II. We practiced the two techniques and then did them both in hajime (continuous doing the technique quickly over and over) for 10-15 minutes. I hadn't done hajime in a little while and really enjoyed it. We finished the class with a kokyu-ho technique in kagarigeiko.

During class, a few times I found myself using the strength in my shoulders. I need to be sure to focus on starting the movement in my hips and using that power instead.

Chino Sensei at Honbu Dojo

Last night I made the trek out to Honbu Dojo for Chino Sensei's class. There were twenty-five students or so on the mat, a good number for the size of the dojo. Surprisingly, a large portion of the students were brown belts. Usually when I go to Honbu, a most of the students are black belt, with a few browns and whites sprinkled in, but for some reason, most of last night's class were browns belts, with some white belts and just a few blacks. Strange, but in no way was that a detriment to the class.

We did a number of techniques that I either had never seen before or have only done once or twice. Here's a list:

katatemochi ikkajo osae I (suwariwaza & tachiwaza)
I was wondering how to do this one few weeks ago. I'm glad I got a chance to try it out.

katatemochi kotegaeshi I & II
My kotegaeshi experience to date has mostly been with shomen uchi. I found these techniques rather fun, with the interesting direction change in the middle of the technique.

To finish the class, Chino Sensei did another variation on katatemochi kotegaeshi II, but with just one pivot from ai-hanmi and a shuffle forward. I couldn't get the handwork on this one, but I'm not discouraged; I'll get it to work eventually.

Osu!

Thoughts on test day

Test day was last Saturday, and with four different levels of tests, there was a good variety of levels on display. The 10th kyu students were taking their first test and struggled a little with the format, not knowing where to stand, starting the technique before the Sensei's call and things like that. I believe I saw a little frustration flash across the Sensei's face. However, the subsequent tests were much better. The most impressive thing was the level of focus everyone had.

There's a pretty good core of students that has developed over the last 6 months, and while we're mostly still beginners, there's a fair amount of dedication among the group. I hope everyone continues to train as hard as they have been.

My own test, 5th kyu, went pretty well. My kihon dosa (basic movements) felt solid without too many extraneous movements, but afterwards, Sensei did say that I need to be careful about keeping my neck and head in line with my spine and not let it lead when starting the movements. As for the techniques, here's a shakedown of my thoughts:

shomen uchi shomen iriminage I
I learned to keep my striking arm in contact with the uke while entering and move my head past the uke's head after the entry

shomen uchi yonkajo osae II
The initial application of the yonkajo has improved a lot, but I still need to work on getting the uke moving forward on the initial pivot and using that momentum to apply the control.

katatemochi nikajo osae I
After applying the nikajo and bringing the uke down to one knee, rotate the uke's wrist forward and stretch the arm out far enough to give yourself room to step forward and continue the movement. Remember to maintain the lock into the shoulder throughout the technique.

suwariwaza ryotemochi kokyu-ho II
Starting with a strong seiza is really important. When uke applies pressure, move your center underneath the uke's and make them fall forward so that they're leaning on shite for balance.

shomen uchi kotegaeshi osae I & II
For the kotegaeshi ichi, I need work on the footwork for the final step and throw. It seems like I'm running out of space and can't fully step thorough.

But I did pass, so I can relax and just enjoy training for a while. My next test only involves 2 new techniques, but along with those, I'm expected to know all of dai ichi and they'll call out 4 randomly during the test. Sound like fun?

Osu!

No Ego

Training continues and my next test approaches. I'll be testing for 5th kyu on Saturday. I know the six techniques on the test and am pretty relaxed about it. But more important than the test, I've been trying to find something in my Aikido.

It seems I'm at the point where I'm trying to learn how to align my entire body in the movements and draw power for the technique from my center. Right now I'm working on refining my body's movements to draw out and focus this energy and make it available to use. Of course at the same time I'm trying to be aware of the uke's energy and momentum, but I feel like I still need to further develop my own power and balance before I can really manipulate the uke effectively.

It's a difficult process and one that the concept of "no ego" becomes important. As soon as you let your ego enter a technique, you start using external physical power to get through the technique. The goal goes from learning how to blend with the uke, to getting to the end of the technique to prove to yourself, the uke, or a third party that you can do it. By taking the focus away from having to prove something, you can try focus on the true difficulty of Aikido, extending your sphere of control past yourself and into the uke.

Ego gets in the way of this by forcing you to give up part of your control. Instead of giving your entire focus to the technique, your ego consumes part of that focus, sapping the effectiveness of your Aikido. While you may be able to make your technique more powerful physically, the blending aspect will suffer.

Osu!

The Dai Ichi Challange

My feel for Aikido seems to have been slipping away from me lately, but this week I've tried to improve my diet and even do a bit of stretching at night before I go to sleep. This seems to have been working, because now my body's feeling lighter and I'm able to bring more fluidity to the mat.

This, combined with a great class today, has renewed my enthusiasm for training. Did a bit of test training with Bryce and worked on katate mochi nikajo osae I and shomen uchi yonkajo osae II. The yonkajo is still a bit of a mystery, but we were able to work out the angles for the nikajo.

After this, Roland challenged the six of us by seeing how far we could get through dai ichi (a set of 21 basic techniques) in 10 minutes with both partners doing left and right side. The techniques were a bit sloppy toward the end, but Bryce and I for the most part were able to perform. However, we only got through 3/4ths of the techniques before the 10 minutes were up. Sensei wants us to be able to get through all 21 techniques in 10 minutes. 頑張らないと！

This was followed by a bit of jiyuwaza practice for Sensei. He's doing an Enbu at another dojo on Sunday and intends to take his 5 dan test at the end of June. We each did one-on-one jiyuwaza followed by a chaotic go-nin dori (five attackers) jiyuwaza.

Osu!

Kyoto trip

I neglected to write about the trip some of the people from the dojo and I took to Kyoto a few weeks ago. It was a great trip and I hope I can keep in mind some of the many lessons I learned and at some point internalize them. The five of us visited Payet Sensei's dojo and were welcomed very warmly by the other students.

Among the highlights of the trip was Payet Sensei's incredible ability to absorb uke's balance, the 5 hour izakaya nomihodai (all you can drink), picnicing in the imperial gardens and performing an enbu on hardwood (picture) in the middle of a shrine.

I hope it's not too long before I get down there again.

Osu!