I mean, it depends on what you're trying to get out of your martial arts. If you're looking to compete in combat sports, you probably aren't going to get as much benefit out of Aikido as you will from other martial arts. Aikido can fill other roles though, like personal growth, spiritualism, and physical fitness. I also believe knowing more realistically combat oriented martial arts give more opportunities to use techniques from the more esoteric arts, as you demonstrated by using Jiu Jitsu to attain a wrist lock learned from Aikido. If all you know is Aikido, you're actually going to have a harder time using that Aikido, whereas if you know how to actually fight you can find a place for those techniques.
I would agree 100% Although I don't even think of aikido as a combat sport, to be honest. I see it as a traditional martial "art". There is a lot of art I don't like, hence why I don't buy it. It's the same for aikido, I didn't get into aikido for fighting, I started to add the joint locks to my current martial arts skill set. Thanks for watching and for a great comment.
@@martialartsunlimited01 I have a similar take, I would add Ueshiba spent a lot of time as a traveler, same with Tai Chi, it's designed to work in full winter dress, in ice and snow while wearing a backpack to defend against ambush by multiple robbers. No matter what you train, under those conditions, you must use something like Aikido or Tai Chi.
While Aikido, Tai Chi and TKD tend to be the butt of MMA jokes, and undoubtedly for a number of reasons, I can attest that Aikido can help people survive bad situations if they know what they are doing. Like most martial arts, it mostly depends on the teacher you learned from and equally important, that you know and understand the limitations of your surroundings. Sadly, that covers only about a quarter (or less) of the Aikido practitioners that claim to have a "mastery" in the art.
Very true, I always try and tell people that often it is not the art, yet the instructor that is teaching that makes a style either good or bad. Not always, yet often.
There's a reason OSensei made everyone wear white belts until they got their first black belt. Because he thought you wouldn't really start knowing Aikido until you became a black belt and then you could start learning properly.
@@N17C1 Lolz. The reason is: coloured belts were not common in martial arts. Only Judo had them. Then slowly other arts adopted them. Most Aikido styles still only use white and black.
I recall reading Aikido and the Dynamic Sphere and saw the section about how samurai trained in marksmanship, archery, spear fighting, sword fighting, horseback archery, and a long list of other warfare tactics. Jiujitsu the way I understand it was an umbrella term that encompasses unarmed combat. Judo narrowed its focus to throws. BJJ narrowed its focus to ground fighting. Aikdo narrowed its focus to joint locks and throws from standing grabs and basic strikes. The kind of conflict people on the internet want to pit aikido against requires multiple skills instead of a single skill.
So true, that's what I have been trying to tell people. Plus as another commenter pointed out, the old school aikido was much more Combative and aggressive, it wasn't until later in his life did it become a more peaceful system.
Aikido is so fun. Every day of training is learning something new and I have been practicing for six years. The variety keeps it fresh. I'm 41 and I don't feel like getting hit hard or having my shoulder taken out of the socket. I get to train with high intensity but lower risk of injury. Learning how to roll/fall is also highly practical irl. Tripped in a soccer game or fall on the ice? No problem.
I practice aikido because it's fun, safe and the people are nice, unlike what i can see in some sports, where some are jealous, contemptuous, incapable of benevolence.
Yeah I think by adding in competition, some of the arts that were about self improvement and the betterment of the individual, have gotten lost and the ugly side is what we end up with
I'm a sandan with USAF East. I have trained other martial arts as well and I think one of the main benefits of aikido for martial application is their footwork. If you are in a very martial dojo, that helps in regard understanding practical application application as well. If you are in an aikido dojo that emphasizes the soft, spiritual, conflict resolution aspects, you will probably get a bad surprise in a violent confrontation. And...aikido isn't bound by rules. I mean, one can practice it for whatever reasons they want. There are a lot of boxing and kick boxing training programs people go to for physical workouts, camaraderie and self development with no intentions of ever getting in a ring. One final thing. When people see the photo of O'sensei that is in most dojos he is old with a wispy beard and a calm and peaceful gaze. When he was young and 250lb and training very tough people, he was a freaking beast. He went through that process to become the other. Not the other way around.
In Japan a lot of aikido practitioners I encountered were also judoka one of them actually compared it to BJJ practitioners who also do Capoeira, functional movements that help with the "main art". The guy who said that was a black belt in Aikido, Judo and Nippon Kempo he was also a massive handful to spar with.
"We don't compare wrestlng to boxing". Such a simple statement but profoundly accurate. So why do people have such a hide time understanding this when it comes to aikido?
I started teaching actors a year ago. I have also thought them a little bit of Aikido every day. The semester is soon over and I just got some interesting data: this is the first semester ever when the students have not had any injuries that would need medical care while acting. They are also exceptionally good at cooperation. I think this could be achieved with some other martial arts too. My point is that martial arts can provide people so much more than just the ability to fight.
Aikido , Taijiquan, can work if you have an understanding of how to use them. Most people do not have that understanding when teaching. Also one important thing about these systems, the general public gets use to one or two things and they don't want something else to be good, because that means they would have to change what they do or make room for another. People these days are afraid to stand alone, wanting to be in a group, especially the group that is most popular. Peace
Interesting perspective. Although I don't think it is just these days, humans by nature are pack animals. So, while people want to be individuals, they are also always seeking a group to fit in. When it comes to aikido, I believe it can and does work, when used as intended. The problem is we want to make it fit how we wanted it too, and not the other way around. Thanks for the comment.
In my opinion Aikido would be best as an "advanced" class for people who already know how to wrestle and box (or other somewhat similar skills). Of course if it's fun for a beginner then that's as good a reason as any to train. Also, disclaimer: I know nothing.
@@giancarloalessandroleonaba4205 I met a guy in Japan who was a black belt in Judo and Nippon Kempo as well as Aikido, he was an inspector in the Tokyo Met Police force who was a handful to spar with.
Thank you. I think that can also be said for things in general. It seems like we are in a time where facts or common sense is back seat to whoever is talking louder and longer.
I started aikido (I train for 6 months now) while doing historical fencing, and I have to say, it fits really well. In fencing we don't do a lot of the pugalistic side, that the people at the time would have from younger age, and I think that aikido fits well with that, we have really similar footwork, principles of movement and so on. The one difference is that in the historical pugalism we did, while using similar moves, they were to be done more violently, for instance not leading shionage to a fall, but geting to a position to break the oponents arm over the shoulder, or entering ikio with a strike to the elbow etc. I think that aikido is a great basis for armed martial arts, and I would recomend it for that.
It will change your life. There are a lot of schools and the lineage of the teachers. I recommend the Ki Federation of Great Britain if your in the uk. It’s saved my life more than once. Sensei Williams ❤
I don´t know what people mean when they say ¨aikido doesn't work¨, because usually there is no context. Do they mean it against other martial arts, against trained martial arts and which arts? Is it agains untrained people? Fortunately I never had to use aikido as much as I never had to use judo, in which I´m a black belt along with aikikai aikido and a blue belt in Tomiki aikido. I first learned aikido for 1 year when I first came to Japan in 1994 and practiced for about 1 year before I got back home and started it again 3 years ago to finally get my black belt. I have lots of fun practicing it, my balance got much better and I can break fall properly, which I think is a very useful thing. I also lost a lot of wright and got a lot of resistance for a guy in his 50s. I don´t know what might happen if I need to defend myself someday, but I am surely better prepared than someone who has never practiced a martial art and my aikido can be used alongside judo and my most recent martial art, which is gojuryu karate.
Couldn’t agree more. There is so much inauthentic stuff out there and it gives authentic aikido a bad wrap. I also teach BJJ and aikido and find they are just the same thing principally, just the context changes. All the concepts come from the same place. More people need to explore the sharing instead of looking for divisions across poor practitioners. Keep up the good work!
Aikido isn’t crap. It’s great. It just gets a lot of crap “masters” who give it a bad name. People also don’t understand the reason for the massive roles and say stuff like “in the street you wouldnmr throw someone like that” no you wouldn’t but in the street someone resisting would just have their hand pulled off, those roles are done for safety, no different to why boxers wear gloves, for safety.
Agreed, so now the question is why are some many aikido "masters" the crap ones. I know there are some in every art, yet it seems aikido has an abundance
Steven Seagal made it relevant and brought it to the big scene. Made me a believer, couldn't get enough. He also has found a way to drag it down. The movies themselves brought him respect and attention to Aikido! Now he himself has become unlikable, his movies have become unwatchable, and I think that has tarnished Aikido in general. My opinion.
In my town, there is a teacher of a newer style called "Jun Bao gung fu" or James Ibrao gung fu. Which is a mix of the arts James Ibrao learned, that being Seven Star Mantis, Hung Gar, Tai Chi, Shaolin, and Kenpo Karate. I have seen some critics dismiss the art based off of the fact it is a mix, it's not contemporary, and it is "not gung fu" however when I went to visit the class to check it out, I got to watch and what I saw was a quality instructor disciple teaching material that was in fact Kenpo and these gung fu styles. He was very open about his art he learned from James Ibrao, He even sparred at the end. It is ultimately not the art's efficiency, but the instructors efficiency that plays the role in how to learn, apply, and enjoy an art.
People hate on it (myself included) when they hear it being said its great to defend yourself if attacked "on the street" We see so many people saying different things to give it cred like "its actually for defending against a knife" or whatever but are just not facing the fact that they are training in a nice dry well lit dojo with flat ground and good footing and their "attacker" puts out a hand and waits for the counter with little to no resistance being offered because you do what the master wants you to do THAT is what gets people mad about it They dont train in a way to be able to pull off these things in a high stress high danger situation If you are constantly pressure testing it when you train then yes some of these moves (the core ones) are very effective, this can be backed up by the fact that a lot of other arts have the same or similar techniques. It can provide a good middle ground of defending yourself that isnt as full on as punching some one in the head (which may kill them if you K.O. them on concrete) or getting into a ground grappling situation where any bystander might run in thinking you are the attacker and stomp you in the back of the head But the sad truth is most people who want this skill set are not training in a way that will give it to them but have this illusion in their head that they would be epic in a fight, other people see that and rightly call BS on them for it
I think that first reason is going to be the one that needs the most emphasis for people who practice more typical combat-sport martial arts. I think you could say, with some assurance, that all combat sports martial arts (boxing, wrestling, BJJ, judo, TKD, etc., etc.) will be moderately useful if you have to defend yourself against an assailant (provided there aren't weapons or other people involved, and even then it's often better to know it than to not), but not all attacks start by squaring up. Your anecdote of the student in Texas who was grabbed by the wrist is an excellent example- aikido filled a whole that even something like BJJ or wrestling would have been a bit less suited for. To that effect, I can see aikido filling a role in self-defense scenario training the way capoeira could fill a role in combat sports training--not an essential piece of the puzzle, but it provides tools in some specific scenarios (for capoeira, positions like inversion or crab-crawl) that may or may not come up, but if you have reasonable means to invest in those tools for that scenario, you may as well. Especially if you get other forms of fulfilment out of it, like personal enjoyment, cultural enrichment, fitness, spirituality, and the like. Realistically, unless you're a combat sports athlete or purposely trying to get yourself in trouble, those latter reasons are more important to your everyday training and life.
I don’t concern myself with what others say I’ll train it myself, to find out for myself not listen to clowns. I took a class and came away loving it. Don’t listen to others train it. Aikido is effective essentially for people in law enforcement
Totally agree with you. And it depends so much on why someone takes up and continues doing a martial art. I had no interest in fighting or even self defence when I started aikido. I wanted to do something that would help other activities that I did. I quickly came to appreciate the flow, fun and feel of aikido sessions and the impact on me more broadly. I became increasingly interested in the philosophy of aikido and in the awareness and connection aspects. And going on to take up taiji and qigong, which so many people could benefit from for health, energy, awareness and integration.
I agree. I have learned to swallow much of my ignorance and my instinct to bark ignorantly at stuff others are also saying is a waste of time. There's things to be learned in the most unexpected places and only ignorance and a closed-up mind will prevent us from growing and acquiring greater wisdom.
Aikido, isn’t bullshit. Aikido, is indeed fun. I agree, many of the movements in aikido are similar to those in other martial arts. I don’t believe one should only train in a single martial art though out their life. This video made perfect sense. Thank you for sharing 👊🏾
i'm a healthy 63 y/o w male. i seem to always land on aikido videos. i'm looking at aikido as self defense to protect myself and family. spiritual, exercise and anything else sounds good to me. but self defense is what i'm looking for and i believe aikido will give me what i'm looking for. am i barking up the wrong tree??????????
Self-defense and fighting are different. I personally feel aikido can be good for Self-Defense, but a major factor will be how it is taught. I'd say go check out a class and see if it feels right for you.
I am interested in Aikido for its beauty and the complex methods of getting to a technique from various situations , these end up as visually pleasing dance like movements . I started by learning to box and training on punch bags and also sparring as well as the fitness training done in boxing clubs . Boxing has limitations as it does not prepare the exponent for grappling techniques . So I went on to learn Judo . Now Judo has different intensities of training and contests are an entire art form in themselves learning techniques as well as contest rules and increasing strength and endurance , as one contest can feel as if the metaphorical battery of the Judoka has been short circuited , then on to the next contest when it feels as if you have no energy to continue . Injuries happen in that sport and eventually many players can no longer continue to practice , as well as the clock ticking and the player becoming too old . Aikido in certain styles is more gentle and can be practiced by an older person , this enables a practitioner of harder arts to continue after they can no longer compete in other more challenging arts . So I believe that these different arts all have a place in people's activities , even Tai Chi which is more gentle than Aikido . The problem arises when people do not realise the limitations of each art and boast as well as try to compete against fighting styles which are specifically designed to overcome opponents quickly and efficiently , such as boxing and mixed martial arts . The practitioners of these gentle arts start to behave like cult members and believe their art is supreme and undefeatable , the results of this mind set can be seen on many videos on You Tube and are really tragic in my opinion .
I got my base in hockey fights, then TKD, then added Judo and Krav. Dropped aikido bc wd have to do a decade to get really proficient, BUT it DID quickly teach me FOOTWORK VS MULTIPLE ATTACKERS better than all of the other arts COMBINED. I plan to return to it when old bc easy on the body and will only be doing to stay active.
I'm 73. Younger, I practiced karate, aikido and a bit of ninjutsu. I came back to aikido few months ago after a 35 years brake. Ninjutsu seems to be the less known martial art. Ninjutsu combine technics similar to aikido + strong atemi technics. I would define ninjutsu as aikido for the battle field. Ninjutsu exists for centuries. There's a difference in meaning with -jutsu (aikijutsu, jujitsu, etc) and -do (karatedo, aikido, etc.). I agree that aikido is not for the ring. Some aikido thechnics are quite complicated and I doubt their efficiency in a real life or death situation. But I may be wrong. I read that in a club, a guy harassed a girl and her female friend put the guy down with a broken wrist. Aikido technic? Don't know. As said Gichin Funakoshi the "father of modern karate", if you have to defend your life. use simple and straightforward technics. That said, aikido is fun and suited for my age.
aikido is about the surprise response, I have a buddy i grew up with - he lives in phx az. I moved there and hadnt seen him in years. well he became a 3rd degree aikido BB in that time so when we started horse playing in the backyard he throew me all over the place and im a trained fighter just not aikido trained. Now that i know he is who he is I approach him differently now. only thing is now he wont spar anymore to let me get my revenge. lol
That is what I have trying to point out. It is a self-defense style, which I feel self-defense works based on that surprise. And it would make sense to not spar with you as that element of surprise is gone.
I haven't trained in literally decades and in my opinion, never got very good at applying the techniques. When I trained it was in Tenshin Aikido. A big issue is ,as you say, fraudulent or I would add deluded Aikidoka. A lot of Aikidoka train in an Aikido bubble without any knowledge of actual fighting. One has made a very successful channel claiming to represent Aikido Even after connecting with Aikido instructors that are very effective, still going to great lengths to make fun of and justify why it doesn't work just because he couldn't do or even grasp the techniques. So much so that the brown belt BJJ guys had/developed a better understanding of the principles after 1 demo then the former Aikido instructor. There's a huge disconnect between actually knowing the basic principles of Aikido, training against a realistic attack, realizing why what you're doing is or isn't working, going back to the basic principles, adjusting it to make it applicable and effective.
Aikido is the way of harmony meaning the way of harmonizing and or blending the movement of two or more people in motion relevant to each other like dancing or do I dear say making love like Brazilian jiu-jitsu on the ground the more you do it the more awareness you absorb mentally and sensitively wise or the more you dance with people the better and more comfortable you will become. Now in the art of Aikido it just so happens that during this practice of blending with your attacker their are nasty devastating potentially deadly throws joint dislocations muscle ripping and tearing techniques if someone was able to pull off one of these tricky moves to execute with a cruel and mean way, with the intention to cause injuries they could be injured for life I just say to myself when someone says a legitimate art is useless they're either in denial for some reason or their simply lacking information thanks for the video keep them coming 😁👍!!!!!!!
Some of the broader principles of aikido are part of other martial arts as you. Ideas of flow and using partners energy against them seem to be big part of grappling like bjj. My bjj instructor is alway talking about not meeting force with force
Aikido itself is just a very defensive form of Jujutsu and that comes from sumo wrestling. Japanese Jujutsu was designed for weapons combat not boxing. A lot of Aikido elements come from sumo, Judo, Jujutus and kenjutsu. The founder of Aikido had a very background and other martial arts. Aikido is a supplementary Art. Wing Chun and karate are bare knuckle boxing styles that focus on infighting and grappling on the feet, there a range of combat that needs to be supplemented with skills from other ranges.
I'm a bjj guy and I just don't see the point of training in aikido. Especially given that bjj and mma training has evolved to include some wristlocks (or leglocks which it had very little of). Static and passive drilling has also been shown to be an ineffective way to train martial arts.
I would say you have found the art that works for you. I had a lot of aikido students that didn't like grappling and aikido was the art they enjoyed. They said the sweat, smells, claustrophobia, etc. I think there is a martial art for everyone.
I've watched BJJ guys do a great take down and have the attacker at their mercy, then get kicked in the head by an unrelated bystander and almost killed (needing emergency treatment). Going to the ground in a street fight seems foolish to me.
I’m a former Aikido guy who’s now a BJJ guy. Competed recently and realized late that I missed all the takedown defense sessions at my academy. I blocked 4 of 5 takedown attempts during comp and I credit it to what I learned during my Aikido background. I’m still relatively young in my martial arts journey but the way that I interpret my experience. Aikido is PvE or player vs environment or everyone. BJJ is PvP or player vs player or skilled grapplers. I see myself going back to aikido when I’m older because of the light and fun training.
Brother you dont have to defend Aikido. Im a Kung-Fu then Kali man as well as a Sheriffs Deputy who has hands on experience applying these concepts / techniques. Aikido is real/ legit as any of them. In todays time if it aint MMA it aint real and is fake. It is a thought today that anyone who practices a traditional art cant fight.Let me tell you its tha man not the art.
I couldn't agree more. I think it was in the movie Fearless with Jet Li ,he said it's not if my style is better than your style, it is if I'm better than you.
Aikido came out of traditional Japanese Ju Jitsu, so there are of course many of the same locks and elements of throws. I started with JJ then moved to Aikido for a few years, before returning to JJ. The time spent on basic locks in aikido did offer me advantages in JJ over those who had not done the same. The biggest issue I have with aikido, and probably the main concern of others, is that almost all demos in video or while training is about attacking/reaching for the wrists, and therefore is not realistic. Fine some times, but everything! If the bad rap is to be lost, show some real life scenarios
Valid points but most of the people will not get it because they want to "test" it in the ring. The scenario with your student shows what it can be in a self defence situation. She sets up a clear stop sign without broken bones and blood all over the place.
Most of the BJJ community comes from the mindset that every attacker out there is skilled in fighting! They are not! How do I know this, because most skilled fighters spend there time training where as most attackers spend their time attacking, stealing, drugs, begging, etc! Therefore Aikido people don’t have to worry about encountering a skilled fighter just as they don’t have to worry about encountering a bear! This doesn’t mean that there aren’t scary people out there who can still do harm without being a martial artist! In this case, I believe it’s important for the Aikido community to learn what they can from other arts and do some practical training! The BJJ community could benefit from from other arts too!
So very true, I think a lot of people would do well to go and even watch one of those local tough man boxing contests. So many people think they can fight, then put their heads down and just swing for like 20 secs at best then are about to pass put from exhaustion. I also think Icy Mike from @hard2hurt has a good point that after blue belt in bjj is really just training for other bjj people and not really necessary for self defense.
I took a Chinese martial arts and there was a segments we did that looked like aikido it’s jaou dou quin na, dou low fin law and Kai wai song fong my Chinese pronunciation it’s just grabs, traps, pushing, wrist locks, trips and throws love grappling techniques
So basically Aikido only works on people who don't know how to fight at all. That means it doesn't work. I've seen people get who've spent years studying Aikido only to get their clocks cleaned by someone who's only been in less than a handful of street fights. If it can't stand up to the average street fighter than it's not effective. End of story.
I would disagree - I believe aikido is total bs. I wouldn't mind it if it was advertised as "recreation based on traditional martial arts", but it is almost useless for fighting. If you count on the element of surprise, you can only deal with single attacker, if you can at all. I know people who successfully used aikido in real combat, even vs 2 opponents, but those are by far exceptions. And always, those are people who trained other martial arts as well, never a "pure" aikidoka. The way aikido is taught is just fraudulent - you learn punch defense when not a single person in the room can punch. Sure, you learn some joint locks, fluid movement, some epic break falls. I would agree it adds something to your skills, except for the fact that time is limited. Of course you compare martial arts - you take your needs and limited time or money you have and you choose the best option. Dancing also improves coordination and strength, but you wouldn't choose it over boxing to learn self-defence. I did give aikido more than a fair chance. But these days I believe people who advertise it as a "martial art" or a "self defence" should be in jail, if world was a fair place 😉 It may be harsh, but a lot of people who don't know any better waste a lot on this.
Defense or fighting. Aikido is a defensive art, muay thai is a fighting art. Vastly different. Plus, all fighting/defense is going to be based on the environment in which they are going to be used.
They naysayers come from the videos of teaching many styles are guilty of the attacker never fights it , when I started studying jujitsu in the early 90s the teaching was taught how to fight the guy fighting back against the move we need to see more of that nowadays people don't turn into mannequins in real life when you grab the wrist or try to get out of this bear hug there are more techniques that follow that technique and the people do not see it
I helieve there is a progression that is supposed to be part of it all. We start static and then add movement, then resistance. Maybe some are getting stuck in a certain phase and then there students don't realize that, then they become teachers themselves and so on. Kinda like the old story where they prepare a meal a certain way and when the child asks the parent, they say that's what my parent did, they both ask the grandparent, and they respond with my oven was only so big so that's why I did that.
Tomiki Aikido is 100% legit because they spar. Aikikai Aikido is dogshit because they never spar. You will never know if it works against a resisting opponent if you don't spar.
I practiced under an Aikikai dojo in the Philippines and many of the instructions and senior students also has a background in FMA/kali and others in combat sports. We did light technical sparring and rolling every now and then as well as explored techniques that weren’t in the standard curriculum.
I mean, it depends on what you're trying to get out of your martial arts. If you're looking to compete in combat sports, you probably aren't going to get as much benefit out of Aikido as you will from other martial arts. Aikido can fill other roles though, like personal growth, spiritualism, and physical fitness. I also believe knowing more realistically combat oriented martial arts give more opportunities to use techniques from the more esoteric arts, as you demonstrated by using Jiu Jitsu to attain a wrist lock learned from Aikido. If all you know is Aikido, you're actually going to have a harder time using that Aikido, whereas if you know how to actually fight you can find a place for those techniques.
I would agree 100% Although I don't even think of aikido as a combat sport, to be honest. I see it as a traditional martial "art". There is a lot of art I don't like, hence why I don't buy it. It's the same for aikido, I didn't get into aikido for fighting, I started to add the joint locks to my current martial arts skill set.
Thanks for watching and for a great comment.
Wristlocks are legit 🤙
Oh yeah we know Eddie likes wrist locks.
@@martialartsunlimited01 I have a similar take, I would add Ueshiba spent a lot of time as a traveler, same with Tai Chi, it's designed to work in full winter dress, in ice and snow while wearing a backpack to defend against ambush by multiple robbers. No matter what you train, under those conditions, you must use something like Aikido or Tai Chi.
There's been a lot positive videos and comments about aikido lately. It is nice to see people starts to understand it's value
Same here.
While Aikido, Tai Chi and TKD tend to be the butt of MMA jokes, and undoubtedly for a number of reasons, I can attest that Aikido can help people survive bad situations if they know what they are doing. Like most martial arts, it mostly depends on the teacher you learned from and equally important, that you know and understand the limitations of your surroundings. Sadly, that covers only about a quarter (or less) of the Aikido practitioners that claim to have a "mastery" in the art.
I feel that the principles of the techniques are useful and transfer well to other combat situations. It's all just movement in the end.
Very true, I always try and tell people that often it is not the art, yet the instructor that is teaching that makes a style either good or bad. Not always, yet often.
Well said.
There's a reason OSensei made everyone wear white belts until they got their first black belt. Because he thought you wouldn't really start knowing Aikido until you became a black belt and then you could start learning properly.
@@N17C1 Lolz. The reason is: coloured belts were not common in martial arts. Only Judo had them. Then slowly other arts adopted them. Most Aikido styles still only use white and black.
I recall reading Aikido and the Dynamic Sphere and saw the section about how samurai trained in marksmanship, archery, spear fighting, sword fighting, horseback archery, and a long list of other warfare tactics.
Jiujitsu the way I understand it was an umbrella term that encompasses unarmed combat.
Judo narrowed its focus to throws.
BJJ narrowed its focus to ground fighting.
Aikdo narrowed its focus to joint locks and throws from standing grabs and basic strikes.
The kind of conflict people on the internet want to pit aikido against requires multiple skills instead of a single skill.
So true, that's what I have been trying to tell people. Plus as another commenter pointed out, the old school aikido was much more Combative and aggressive, it wasn't until later in his life did it become a more peaceful system.
I actually am reading that book right now
Aikido is so fun. Every day of training is learning something new and I have been practicing for six years. The variety keeps it fresh. I'm 41 and I don't feel like getting hit hard or having my shoulder taken out of the socket. I get to train with high intensity but lower risk of injury. Learning how to roll/fall is also highly practical irl. Tripped in a soccer game or fall on the ice? No problem.
I practice aikido because it's fun, safe and the people are nice, unlike what i can see in some sports, where some are jealous, contemptuous, incapable of benevolence.
Yeah I think by adding in competition, some of the arts that were about self improvement and the betterment of the individual, have gotten lost and the ugly side is what we end up with
I get everything I want out of Aikido, it's a beautiful and enjoyable art.
Ditto. On the practical side, it taught me footwork vs multiple opponents better than the other 3 arts I've trained in COMBINED.
I'm a sandan with USAF East. I have trained other martial arts as well and I think one of the main benefits of aikido for martial application is their footwork. If you are in a very martial dojo, that helps in regard understanding practical application application as well. If you are in an aikido dojo that emphasizes the soft, spiritual, conflict resolution aspects, you will probably get a bad surprise in a violent confrontation. And...aikido isn't bound by rules. I mean, one can practice it for whatever reasons they want. There are a lot of boxing and kick boxing training programs people go to for physical workouts, camaraderie and self development with no intentions of ever getting in a ring. One final thing. When people see the photo of O'sensei that is in most dojos he is old with a wispy beard and a calm and peaceful gaze. When he was young and 250lb and training very tough people, he was a freaking beast. He went through that process to become the other. Not the other way around.
He went through that process to become the other, not the other way around is SUCH an important quote that does not get around enough
In Japan a lot of aikido practitioners I encountered were also judoka one of them actually compared it to BJJ practitioners who also do Capoeira, functional movements that help with the "main art". The guy who said that was a black belt in Aikido, Judo and Nippon Kempo he was also a massive handful to spar with.
"We don't compare wrestlng to boxing". Such a simple statement but profoundly accurate. So why do people have such a hide time understanding this when it comes to aikido?
I started teaching actors a year ago. I have also thought them a little bit of Aikido every day. The semester is soon over and I just got some interesting data: this is the first semester ever when the students have not had any injuries that would need medical care while acting. They are also exceptionally good at cooperation. I think this could be achieved with some other martial arts too. My point is that martial arts can provide people so much more than just the ability to fight.
That is wicked cool. What a role to think you had a part in multiple projects that will impact countless people.
Aikido , Taijiquan, can work if you have an understanding of how to use them. Most people do not have that understanding when teaching. Also one important thing about these systems, the general public gets use to one or two things and they don't want something else to be good, because that means they would have to change what they do or make room for another. People these days are afraid to stand alone, wanting to be in a group, especially the group that is most popular. Peace
Interesting perspective. Although I don't think it is just these days, humans by nature are pack animals. So, while people want to be individuals, they are also always seeking a group to fit in.
When it comes to aikido, I believe it can and does work, when used as intended. The problem is we want to make it fit how we wanted it too, and not the other way around.
Thanks for the comment.
In my opinion Aikido would be best as an "advanced" class for people who already know how to wrestle and box (or other somewhat similar skills).
Of course if it's fun for a beginner then that's as good a reason as any to train.
Also, disclaimer: I know nothing.
You are not wrong though, o sensei (aikido's creator) only admitted students who were black belts in other martial arts
@@giancarloalessandroleonaba4205 I met a guy in Japan who was a black belt in Judo and Nippon Kempo as well as Aikido, he was an inspector in the Tokyo Met Police force who was a handful to spar with.
Aikido isn’t BS, but most of the present day training sure seems to be, unfortunately.
Oh so true, which saddens me as well
Great video. We need more mature perspectives like yours when discussing different arts.
Thank you. I think that can also be said for things in general. It seems like we are in a time where facts or common sense is back seat to whoever is talking louder and longer.
I started aikido (I train for 6 months now) while doing historical fencing, and I have to say, it fits really well. In fencing we don't do a lot of the pugalistic side, that the people at the time would have from younger age, and I think that aikido fits well with that, we have really similar footwork, principles of movement and so on.
The one difference is that in the historical pugalism we did, while using similar moves, they were to be done more violently, for instance not leading shionage to a fall, but geting to a position to break the oponents arm over the shoulder, or entering ikio with a strike to the elbow etc.
I think that aikido is a great basis for armed martial arts, and I would recomend it for that.
I would like to learn aikido, I think it's worth to learn like any other style of martial arts.
Thank you for sharing ☺️.
Thanks for watching. As I mentioned in the video I think aikido is a ton of fun to learn and train.
It will change your life. There are a lot of schools and the lineage of the teachers. I recommend the Ki Federation of Great Britain if your in the uk. It’s saved my life more than once. Sensei Williams ❤
I don´t know what people mean when they say ¨aikido doesn't work¨, because usually there is no context. Do they mean it against other martial arts, against trained martial arts and which arts? Is it agains untrained people? Fortunately I never had to use aikido as much as I never had to use judo, in which I´m a black belt along with aikikai aikido and a blue belt in Tomiki aikido. I first learned aikido for 1 year when I first came to Japan in 1994 and practiced for about 1 year before I got back home and started it again 3 years ago to finally get my black belt. I have lots of fun practicing it, my balance got much better and I can break fall properly, which I think is a very useful thing. I also lost a lot of wright and got a lot of resistance for a guy in his 50s. I don´t know what might happen if I need to defend myself someday, but I am surely better prepared than someone who has never practiced a martial art and my aikido can be used alongside judo and my most recent martial art, which is gojuryu karate.
Couldn’t agree more. There is so much inauthentic stuff out there and it gives authentic aikido a bad wrap. I also teach BJJ and aikido and find they are just the same thing principally, just the context changes. All the concepts come from the same place. More people need to explore the sharing instead of looking for divisions across poor practitioners. Keep up the good work!
So very true, although I think that is true for life as well. Not just within the arts
Aikido isn’t crap. It’s great. It just gets a lot of crap “masters” who give it a bad name. People also don’t understand the reason for the massive roles and say stuff like “in the street you wouldnmr throw someone like that” no you wouldn’t but in the street someone resisting would just have their hand pulled off, those roles are done for safety, no different to why boxers wear gloves, for safety.
Agreed, so now the question is why are some many aikido "masters" the crap ones. I know there are some in every art, yet it seems aikido has an abundance
The classes that I took were definitely lead by a crap master.
Steven Seagal made it relevant and brought it to the big scene. Made me a believer, couldn't get enough. He also has found a way to drag it down. The movies themselves brought him respect and attention to Aikido! Now he himself has become unlikable, his movies have become unwatchable, and I think that has tarnished Aikido in general. My opinion.
In my town, there is a teacher of a newer style called "Jun Bao gung fu" or James Ibrao gung fu. Which is a mix of the arts James Ibrao learned, that being Seven Star Mantis, Hung Gar, Tai Chi, Shaolin, and Kenpo Karate. I have seen some critics dismiss the art based off of the fact it is a mix, it's not contemporary, and it is "not gung fu" however when I went to visit the class to check it out, I got to watch and what I saw was a quality instructor disciple teaching material that was in fact Kenpo and these gung fu styles. He was very open about his art he learned from James Ibrao, He even sparred at the end.
It is ultimately not the art's efficiency, but the instructors efficiency that plays the role in how to learn, apply, and enjoy an art.
Also, I only have an Aikijujutsu school nearby and I long to try it one day, but probably won't get the chance.
Exactly, that's the thing I think a lot of people mistake. They choose a style versus an instructor
I would not expect my opponent to do a forward roll in a street fight.
That's true, they would likely faceplant
Good explaination.
Thanks, do you train aikido?
People hate on it (myself included) when they hear it being said its great to defend yourself if attacked "on the street"
We see so many people saying different things to give it cred like "its actually for defending against a knife" or whatever but are just not facing the fact that they are training in a nice dry well lit dojo with flat ground and good footing and their "attacker" puts out a hand and waits for the counter with little to no resistance being offered because you do what the master wants you to do THAT is what gets people mad about it
They dont train in a way to be able to pull off these things in a high stress high danger situation
If you are constantly pressure testing it when you train then yes some of these moves (the core ones) are very effective, this can be backed up by the fact that a lot of other arts have the same or similar techniques. It can provide a good middle ground of defending yourself that isnt as full on as punching some one in the head (which may kill them if you K.O. them on concrete) or getting into a ground grappling situation where any bystander might run in thinking you are the attacker and stomp you in the back of the head
But the sad truth is most people who want this skill set are not training in a way that will give it to them but have this illusion in their head that they would be epic in a fight, other people see that and rightly call BS on them for it
True, until sadly I think this fact can crossover to many other arts and artists too.
Thank you for watching and taking the time to write a great comment.
I think that first reason is going to be the one that needs the most emphasis for people who practice more typical combat-sport martial arts. I think you could say, with some assurance, that all combat sports martial arts (boxing, wrestling, BJJ, judo, TKD, etc., etc.) will be moderately useful if you have to defend yourself against an assailant (provided there aren't weapons or other people involved, and even then it's often better to know it than to not), but not all attacks start by squaring up. Your anecdote of the student in Texas who was grabbed by the wrist is an excellent example- aikido filled a whole that even something like BJJ or wrestling would have been a bit less suited for.
To that effect, I can see aikido filling a role in self-defense scenario training the way capoeira could fill a role in combat sports training--not an essential piece of the puzzle, but it provides tools in some specific scenarios (for capoeira, positions like inversion or crab-crawl) that may or may not come up, but if you have reasonable means to invest in those tools for that scenario, you may as well. Especially if you get other forms of fulfilment out of it, like personal enjoyment, cultural enrichment, fitness, spirituality, and the like. Realistically, unless you're a combat sports athlete or purposely trying to get yourself in trouble, those latter reasons are more important to your everyday training and life.
Thanks, and it was crazy how the guy grabbed her and bam! He was on the ground. As mentioned I think aikido fills in possible gaps in other arts.
I don’t concern myself with what others say I’ll train it myself, to find out for myself not listen to clowns. I took a class and came away loving it. Don’t listen to others train it. Aikido is effective essentially for people in law enforcement
Yeah, I also think there are some meh instructors though, which make the art look bad for all of us.
Totally agree with you.
And it depends so much on why someone takes up and continues doing a martial art.
I had no interest in fighting or even self defence when I started aikido. I wanted to do something that would help other activities that I did. I quickly came to appreciate the flow, fun and feel of aikido sessions and the impact on me more broadly. I became increasingly interested in the philosophy of aikido and in the awareness and connection aspects. And going on to take up taiji and qigong, which so many people could benefit from for health, energy, awareness and integration.
I agree. I have learned to swallow much of my ignorance and my instinct to bark ignorantly at stuff others are also saying is a waste of time. There's things to be learned in the most unexpected places and only ignorance and a closed-up mind will prevent us from growing and acquiring greater wisdom.
It's really good to hear someone else saying: ,,Don't compare Aikido to other martial arts" and ,,It is not meant for that". Thank you!
Aikido, isn’t bullshit. Aikido, is indeed fun. I agree, many of the movements in aikido are similar to those in other martial arts. I don’t believe one should only train in a single martial art though out their life. This video made perfect sense. Thank you for sharing 👊🏾
Thank you for both watching and for taking the time to comment.
i'm a healthy 63 y/o w male. i seem to always land on aikido videos. i'm looking at aikido as self defense to protect myself and family. spiritual, exercise and anything else sounds good to me. but self defense is what i'm looking for and i believe aikido will give me what i'm looking for. am i barking up the wrong tree??????????
Self-defense and fighting are different. I personally feel aikido can be good for Self-Defense, but a major factor will be how it is taught. I'd say go check out a class and see if it feels right for you.
Technique wise it's fine, the base philosophy is what holds it back. I instruct coju-jitsu and aikido technique is present
I am interested in Aikido for its beauty and the complex methods of getting to a technique from various situations , these end up as visually pleasing dance like movements .
I started by learning to box and training on punch bags and also sparring as well as the fitness training done in boxing clubs .
Boxing has limitations as it does not prepare the exponent for grappling techniques .
So I went on to learn Judo . Now Judo has different intensities of training and contests are an entire art form in themselves learning techniques as well as contest rules and increasing strength and endurance , as one contest can feel as if the metaphorical battery of the Judoka has been short circuited , then on to the next contest when it feels as if you have no energy to continue .
Injuries happen in that sport and eventually many players can no longer continue to practice , as well as the clock ticking and the player becoming too old .
Aikido in certain styles is more gentle and can be practiced by an older person , this enables a practitioner of harder arts to continue after they can no longer compete in other more challenging arts .
So I believe that these different arts all have a place in people's activities , even Tai Chi which is more gentle than Aikido .
The problem arises when people do not realise the limitations of each art and boast as well as try to compete against fighting styles which are specifically designed to overcome opponents quickly and efficiently , such as boxing and mixed martial arts .
The practitioners of these gentle arts start to behave like cult members and believe their art is supreme and undefeatable , the results of this mind set can be seen on many videos on You Tube and are really tragic in my opinion .
I got my base in hockey fights, then TKD, then added Judo and Krav. Dropped aikido bc wd have to do a decade to get really proficient, BUT it DID quickly teach me FOOTWORK VS MULTIPLE ATTACKERS better than all of the other arts COMBINED. I plan to return to it when old bc easy on the body and will only be doing to stay active.
I'm 73. Younger, I practiced karate, aikido and a bit of ninjutsu. I came back to aikido few months ago after a 35 years brake. Ninjutsu seems to be the less known martial art. Ninjutsu combine technics similar to aikido + strong atemi technics. I would define ninjutsu as aikido for the battle field. Ninjutsu exists for centuries. There's a difference in meaning with -jutsu (aikijutsu, jujitsu, etc) and -do (karatedo, aikido, etc.).
I agree that aikido is not for the ring. Some aikido thechnics are quite complicated and I doubt their efficiency in a real life or death situation. But I may be wrong.
I read that in a club, a guy harassed a girl and her female friend put the guy down with a broken wrist. Aikido technic? Don't know.
As said Gichin Funakoshi the "father of modern karate", if you have to defend your life. use simple and straightforward technics.
That said, aikido is fun and suited for my age.
aikido is about the surprise response, I have a buddy i grew up with - he lives in phx az. I moved there
and hadnt seen him in years. well he became a 3rd degree aikido BB in that time so when we started
horse playing in the backyard he throew me all over the place and im a trained fighter just not aikido
trained. Now that i know he is who he is I approach him differently now. only thing is now he wont
spar anymore to let me get my revenge. lol
That is what I have trying to point out. It is a self-defense style, which I feel self-defense works based on that surprise. And it would make sense to not spar with you as that element of surprise is gone.
I haven't trained in literally decades and in my opinion, never got very good at applying the techniques. When I trained it was in Tenshin Aikido. A big issue is ,as you say, fraudulent or I would add deluded Aikidoka. A lot of Aikidoka train in an Aikido bubble without any knowledge of actual fighting. One has made a very successful channel claiming to represent Aikido Even after connecting with Aikido instructors that are very effective, still going to great lengths to make fun of and justify why it doesn't work just because he couldn't do or even grasp the techniques. So much so that the brown belt BJJ guys had/developed a better understanding of the principles after 1 demo then the former Aikido instructor. There's a huge disconnect between actually knowing the basic principles of Aikido, training against a realistic attack, realizing why what you're doing is or isn't working, going back to the basic principles, adjusting it to make it applicable and effective.
I've studied several martial arts including aikido and have found elements in Aikido which fit it every and with every other martial art.
Me too, and it's fun and sneaky as so many people skip over aikido
Aikido is the way of harmony meaning the way of harmonizing and or blending the movement of two or more people in motion relevant to each other like dancing or do I dear say making love like Brazilian jiu-jitsu on the ground the more you do it the more awareness you absorb mentally and sensitively wise or the more you dance with people the better and more comfortable you will become. Now in the art of Aikido it just so happens that during this practice of blending with your attacker their are nasty devastating potentially deadly throws joint dislocations muscle ripping and tearing techniques if someone was able to pull off one of these tricky moves to execute with a cruel and mean way, with the intention to cause injuries they could be injured for life I just say to myself when someone says a legitimate art is useless they're either in denial for some reason or their simply lacking information thanks for the video keep them coming 😁👍!!!!!!!
Some of the broader principles of aikido are part of other martial arts as you. Ideas of flow and using partners energy against them seem to be big part of grappling like bjj. My bjj instructor is alway talking about not meeting force with force
Ultimately it's the individual, not the style (so everything, including Aikido, is actually JKD).
🤪
Oh man, alol, thanks. Yes I think the individual or the instructor makes the difference.
Yeah your right i think when you learn aikido you know how to use it in the right reason and apply it at the right way
Is there something called soft aikido and hard aikido? If yes, do you have a video that explains the difference?
I'm not sure about a soft or hard aikido. However, there is traditional and Combative. I would say it is basically the same thing.
@@martialartsunlimited01 combative includes being on the offense, strikes and kicks?
Aikido itself is just a very defensive form of Jujutsu and that comes from sumo wrestling. Japanese Jujutsu was designed for weapons combat not boxing. A lot of Aikido elements come from sumo, Judo, Jujutus and kenjutsu. The founder of Aikido had a very background and other martial arts. Aikido is a supplementary Art. Wing Chun and karate are bare knuckle boxing styles that focus on infighting and grappling on the feet, there a range of combat that needs to be supplemented with skills from other ranges.
Nothing to argue with here.
Cool, I like not arguing. Thanks for watching.
I'm a bjj guy and I just don't see the point of training in aikido. Especially given that bjj and mma training has evolved to include some wristlocks (or leglocks which it had very little of). Static and passive drilling has also been shown to be an ineffective way to train martial arts.
I would say you have found the art that works for you. I had a lot of aikido students that didn't like grappling and aikido was the art they enjoyed. They said the sweat, smells, claustrophobia, etc. I think there is a martial art for everyone.
I've watched BJJ guys do a great take down and have the attacker at their mercy, then get kicked in the head by an unrelated bystander and almost killed (needing emergency treatment). Going to the ground in a street fight seems foolish to me.
I’m a former Aikido guy who’s now a BJJ guy. Competed recently and realized late that I missed all the takedown defense sessions at my academy. I blocked 4 of 5 takedown attempts during comp and I credit it to what I learned during my Aikido background.
I’m still relatively young in my martial arts journey but the way that I interpret my experience.
Aikido is PvE or player vs environment or everyone.
BJJ is PvP or player vs player or skilled grapplers.
I see myself going back to aikido when I’m older because of the light and fun training.
AIKIDO WORKS BEST WHEN THE PRACTIONER HAS A PRIOR MARTIAL ARTS HISTORY...
Brother you dont have to defend Aikido. Im a Kung-Fu then Kali man as well as a Sheriffs Deputy who has hands on experience applying these concepts / techniques. Aikido is real/ legit as any of them. In todays time if it aint MMA it aint real and is fake. It is a thought today that anyone who practices a traditional art cant fight.Let me tell you its tha man not the art.
I couldn't agree more. I think it was in the movie Fearless with Jet Li ,he said it's not if my style is better than your style, it is if I'm better than you.
Aikido came out of traditional Japanese Ju Jitsu, so there are of course many of the same locks and elements of throws.
I started with JJ then moved to Aikido for a few years, before returning to JJ. The time spent on basic locks in aikido did offer me advantages in JJ over those who had not done the same.
The biggest issue I have with aikido, and probably the main concern of others, is that almost all demos in video or while training is about attacking/reaching for the wrists, and therefore is not realistic. Fine some times, but everything!
If the bad rap is to be lost, show some real life scenarios
There's a reason small joint manipulation is a foul in MMA.
Valid points but most of the people will not get it because they want to "test" it in the ring. The scenario with your student shows what it can be in a self defence situation. She sets up a clear stop sign without broken bones and blood all over the place.
Look ldo karate and you respect all arts people that have go at your art need grow up you respect every art 😊
Most of the BJJ community comes from the mindset that every attacker out there is skilled in fighting! They are not! How do I know this, because most skilled fighters spend there time training where as most attackers spend their time attacking, stealing, drugs, begging, etc!
Therefore Aikido people don’t have to worry about encountering a skilled fighter just as they don’t have to worry about encountering a bear!
This doesn’t mean that there aren’t scary people out there who can still do harm without being a martial artist! In this case, I believe it’s important for the Aikido community to learn what they can from other arts and do some practical training!
The BJJ community could benefit from from other arts too!
So very true, I think a lot of people would do well to go and even watch one of those local tough man boxing contests. So many people think they can fight, then put their heads down and just swing for like 20 secs at best then are about to pass put from exhaustion.
I also think Icy Mike from @hard2hurt has a good point that after blue belt in bjj is really just training for other bjj people and not really necessary for self defense.
But you do have to admit the bjj guy vs bear poster/meme is pretty funny
👍👍👍❤❤❤
Thanks
I took a Chinese martial arts and there was a segments we did that looked like aikido it’s jaou dou quin na, dou low fin law and Kai wai song fong my Chinese pronunciation it’s just grabs, traps, pushing, wrist locks, trips and throws love grappling techniques
So basically Aikido only works on people who don't know how to fight at all. That means it doesn't work. I've seen people get who've spent years studying Aikido only to get their clocks cleaned by someone who's only been in less than a handful of street fights. If it can't stand up to the average street fighter than it's not effective. End of story.
I wouldn't say it's for people who can't fight at all, it is more for people who aren't expecting it.
I agree aikido is no BS.
I personally still like training aikido.
I would disagree - I believe aikido is total bs. I wouldn't mind it if it was advertised as "recreation based on traditional martial arts", but it is almost useless for fighting.
If you count on the element of surprise, you can only deal with single attacker, if you can at all. I know people who successfully used aikido in real combat, even vs 2 opponents, but those are by far exceptions. And always, those are people who trained other martial arts as well, never a "pure" aikidoka. The way aikido is taught is just fraudulent - you learn punch defense when not a single person in the room can punch.
Sure, you learn some joint locks, fluid movement, some epic break falls. I would agree it adds something to your skills, except for the fact that time is limited. Of course you compare martial arts - you take your needs and limited time or money you have and you choose the best option. Dancing also improves coordination and strength, but you wouldn't choose it over boxing to learn self-defence.
I did give aikido more than a fair chance. But these days I believe people who advertise it as a "martial art" or a "self defence" should be in jail, if world was a fair place 😉 It may be harsh, but a lot of people who don't know any better waste a lot on this.
Seidokan Aikido 🥋☯️
all five of your reasons were Non Violent...MARTIAL Arts were made for fighting
Defense or fighting. Aikido is a defensive art, muay thai is a fighting art. Vastly different. Plus, all fighting/defense is going to be based on the environment in which they are going to be used.
@@martialartsunlimited01 I appreciate the Response
They naysayers come from the videos of teaching many styles are guilty of the attacker never fights it , when I started studying jujitsu in the early 90s the teaching was taught how to fight the guy fighting back against the move we need to see more of that nowadays people don't turn into mannequins in real life when you grab the wrist or try to get out of this bear hug there are more techniques that follow that technique and the people do not see it
I helieve there is a progression that is supposed to be part of it all. We start static and then add movement, then resistance. Maybe some are getting stuck in a certain phase and then there students don't realize that, then they become teachers themselves and so on.
Kinda like the old story where they prepare a meal a certain way and when the child asks the parent, they say that's what my parent did, they both ask the grandparent, and they respond with my oven was only so big so that's why I did that.
Tomiki Aikido is 100% legit because they spar. Aikikai Aikido is dogshit because they never spar. You will never know if it works against a resisting opponent if you don't spar.
Thanks for the comment, and I still think randori or sparring is the best part.
@@martialartsunlimited01 absolutely.
I practiced under an Aikikai dojo in the Philippines and many of the instructions and senior students also has a background in FMA/kali and others in combat sports. We did light technical sparring and rolling every now and then as well as explored techniques that weren’t in the standard curriculum.
What do you think about this? @KaratebyJesse
I'll need to see. I've seen a lot but don't always remember who all made what.