Off-Centered
2009 June 1
It’s both interesting and frustrating that practice at another aikido dojo helped me realize that I’m not moving from my center as much as I thought. But isn’t that how it always is! I was shocked at how I hadn’t been focusing on centered-movement in terms of one particular technique. I wonder how many other techniques I need to re-evaluate. Probably all of them! There goes my free time.
What was the technique? What was the difference in training that made for your discovery?
e.
Hi Eric, ikkyo was the technique believe it or not. At my dojo we don’t practice ikkyo from an overhead strike, but from a grasped wrist so it’s very different. My technique worked against everyone except one guy. He’s super muscularly strong and I thought that was all, but it seems it’s a combo. When he demonstrated on me he just about wrenched my arm out of its socket(And I believe damaged an old injury.). He said I was only using my arms instead of moving from my center. When he said it, it floored me that I had never thought about it. Afterall, it’s ikkyo. So I did it again moving from my center and I took him so powerfully backward that it threw him into a forward breakfall to the rear. I tried it at my dojo the next day with another super strong guy who doesn’t quite have a handle on centered movement and he hasn’t let go of his muscle yet. Same result. From the expression on his face I could tell he couldn’t wrap his head around it. Cool. I explained it, but he still muscled his way through it. It was a great reality check for me. I’ve been thinking on aikido more lately because of it. And that’s always a good thing!