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Taking
ukemi - being on the receiving end of techniques
- is the best (some say the only) way of
learning aikido properly, so the first thing
you need to do is convince yourself it is
in your own interests to take part as enthusiastically
as possible. You are the one benefiting.
The student who only allows their partner
to practice while they merely wait for their
turn, is missing the point entirely, and
also missing out on some major learning.
The
reason you learn so much from receiving
techniques, is that you actually get to
feel how your balance is taken, and how
you are thrown or pinned, something that
cannot be learned entirely by just watching.
Admittedly, with some techniques, as you
are thrown or pinned you cannot see what
your partner is doing to you; smaller details
may well be lost - but the main, important
ones are not.
The
first thing to learn, especially with ukemi
(breakfalls), is confidence. This cannot
be taught or explained, it is merely up
to you to improve over time. As you develop,
your confidence grows. This growing confidence
replaces the fear of falling, and you find
yourself learning from whatever technique
is being applied to you.
The fear of falling you are overcoming is
built up through our lives, it is a survival
mechanism - and a very strong one at that!
It is overcome with experience but do not
rush this process by leaping into breakfalls!
Hurling yourself about without experience
is foolish. Train at your limits only with
people you trust. If you are aware that
the person throwing you is more concerned
with their technique than your safety, take
it slow, or avoid them altogether. With
a technique that is new to you, go through
it slowly, see how it works. Whatever their
experience, no one has 'seen it all' - the
one that catches you out will be the technique
that is taken from a new angle, the one
you are not familiar with.
Most
of our techniques come from an initial attack.
As uke, make your attack sincerely - no
technique will flow from a limp grip or
weedy strike, and come in at the speed you
think best suits both your partner and yourself.
It sounds obvious, but do not come in at
a force of 10, unless you can take a breakfall
at force 10 or indeed higher! Many techniques
end with uke falling faster than the speed
they attacked with, especially if their
momentum is used against them.
After
you have committed the attack sincerely,
it is best to 'turn off' your mind. Literally
let yourself become a rag doll - relax.
I remember when I first started training
in aikido, I was held in an uncomfortable
pin - in pain, on my tiptoes and I was about
to be dropped (I was still scared of breakfalls
and not familiar with the joy of Sankajo)
and the instructor was saying, "Relax".
Relax? Are you out of your mind? I now see
what he meant, but at the time, relaxing
was not high on my list of priorities! It
sounds stupid to 'relax'; dangerous even,
but when you resist a technique or stiffen
your body, you are far, far more likely
to get injured. By 'letting go' you are
better equipped for an unanticipated change
of direction - something that a rigid person
will have problems with.
After
a while, you forget all about being thrown
or losing your balance, etc. you merely
are thinking about how you are being made
to do so, and you'll find it to be less
of a chore and dare I say it, 'fun'. However,
if you are not being thrown - if your balance
is not taken - then do not go with it! This
is very important. This is not advising
you to resist; you are not being awkward,
as after all you should be in a state of
'no mind'. Your body does as your partner
moves it. However, if they have not projected
you, or applied enough to break your balance,
do not go!
There
are two reasons for this:
1.
By falling without being thrown, you are
deluding your partner into thinking their
technique is effective, where in fact, more
work may be needed. This is detrimental
to training and should be avoided.
2.
Your partner may not be throwing you! Many
Aikido techniques have a drastic directional
change. If you flip, and tori hangs on to
your limb, intending to pin, the potential
damage to uke is huge.
I
hope some of this will come in handy - all
of the above is learnt on the mat rather
than from books, and obviously the dojo
is the only place to learn. Words will never
explain details as well as first hand experience,
so these points made are not too technical.
To
conclude, the whole point of taking ukemi
is to help develop the skill of your partner.
It is essential that you do it to the best
of your ability - and in the process learn
a great deal more than you ever could from
just watching!
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