your one point...

how do you know you when you have your one point? ask yourself the following questions. are you more relaxed in all aspects of your life? is your aikido getting much better? are you dealing with stress better? you will know. i feel your one point continually grows stronger. it can sometimes regress. we need to constantly to be aware of our one point and constantly trying to improve it.

ki and shoveling your roof

with all this snow, i needed to remove some snow from my roof. at first i didn't want to get out on my roof, but when i couldn't find a roof rake. i knew i had to get up on it. i was lucking that i had good "ki". you need to be relaxed to do this dangerous task.

Sensei Tohei's "The Arts of Self Defense"

I just finished reading Sensei Tohei's book "The Arts of Self Defense". What a great book. If you take Aikido, you must read this book. It will provide you with a great insight into Ki and how it is used with Aikido. Even if you do not practice Aikido, you will enjoy the book. A true classic...

how many moves are there...

Last night at class, I was counting the techniques for a simple hand grab from a uke. I counted at least 9 different techniques. I think it's unlimited...

koichi tohei...aikido the arts of self-defense

i am currently reading a book written by tohei senesi. the book serves as the roots of aikido. my sensei studied unter tohei sensei. ki is such a part of aikido. i will report back after reading the book.

Knife attacks

Knife attacks can be scary. You must remain calm. If not, you will get hurt. Anticipating the attack is a must. You must have faith in your technique. You shouldn't look at the knife. You need to be aware of it but look at the whole attacker. Eyes will give you an indication of an attack besides body movement.

being soft

I recently attended a seminar. It was mentioned several times by the instructor about being soft. He said if your body is soft. It will be hard for someone to grab you. He showed us several techniques against softness/hardness. It was obvious of the benefits of being soft.