4th kyu and 2nd kyu Test Prep

Well, I met R.(5th kyu) yesterday before class and went over his test techniques. Mostly just details in needs to work on. D.(5th kyu) showed up and he helped out, too. D. will not be testing this time around, but he his going ahead and learning his techniques.

S.(1st dan) filled in for Sensei for the first class. He saw me working with R. and D. and also saw that D.(3rd kyu) was in class. So, he reviewed the 4th kyu and 2nd kyu techniques as well.

Not much to say, today. Just that the Olympic Opening ceremonies are tonight and I'm really excited about it. I can't wait to get home after class tonight to watch them! Go Team USA!!!!

Ryotetori and 4th kyu

Hey all! I'm back.

I went to class tonight and finally worked off that upset stomach feeling. My neck feels about 95% better, too.

H. (5th dan) taught tonight. We practiced the following techniques from ryotetori:

• kokyunage (hitoe iriminage)
• kokyunage (zemponage version): I practiced this one with E.(2nd kyu). E. is getting ready for his 1st kyu test and will be testing not this weekend but next. E. is a liver transplant recipient so he has some medical challenges. I think I mentioned before that he's one of those people on the mat that I look up to. He really grasps the concepts of aikido especially the mental/spiritual and aiki-extensions aspects.
• shihonage: I practiced with my friend K. (4th kyu), I'm so glad that she is back on the mat training! Go K.!
• nikkyo: I practiced with S.(1st dan). I asked S. about Summer Camp and he said N.B. tested for 3rd dan. I asked him about the new testing requirements and he said that Y.Sensei was really bored and took overe the testing. Uh, this new standardization thing doesn't sound like it will last.
• kotegaeshi: I practiced with R.(5th kyu)--kokyu forward arm and cut with rear arm as you enter irimi...that's all I'm going to say.

Next class, I taught. I had four people in class (J.(no kyu), C.(no kyu), D.(5th kyu) and R.(5th kyu). I divided the class up between the no kyu and 5th kyu. R. is testing in a couple weeks for 4th kyu so I wanted to make certain he would be ready. I taught Shomenuchi ikkyo to the no kyus and Shomenuchi Nikkyo to the 5th kyus. At the end of class, I ran R. through the test techniques to see what he need to brush up on and told him so.

Overall, it was a couple of nice classes. I was a little tired due to my upset stomach. I looked today on the new juice I tried and noticed it had sucralose in it. If I remember correctly that gave me a really bad upset stomach once. Hopefully, it's not the case, because I didn't notice that until after my third glass tonight. If I wake up at 5:00 am again, I'll know what it was...ugh.

Gonna Try and Make It Tonight

Well, as an update from Saturday, my neck was pretty sore on Sunday and it was still a little sore yesterday. Today, it feels okay, but now I still feel a little sick. I don't know what's wrong with me. Is it real or is it Memorex? I'll let you know how tonight goes.

LawKi and Aiki!

LawKi: A lesson in the application of Aiki in mediation and negotiations!

Well, on Friday at my Legal Seminar I got an aikido lesson! Actually, it was Gung Ngo (a Vietnamese Martial Art that incorporates Karate, Aikido, and Judo). The topic of the seminar was Mediations and Negotiations. One of the lecturers talk about how mediations (not meditation!) was a lot like martial arts. Some martial arts are hard like karate or boxing where you go on a frontal direct attack with lots of blocks and kicks and others are soft where you just evade an attack. He said you want to be more spherical in your mediation or negotiation stategy where you redirect their attack while still maintaining control of your opponent. He even used kotegaeshi and iriminage as demonstrations! w00t!

Aiki: Lessons in reversals and variations

Today, I took the first class which was taught by R. (3rd dan) and taught the 2nd class. R. taught reversals from koshinage (aiki koshi and judo koshi). Fun, except when I banged my head on the mat really hard when my parter was trying to do a sutemi (sacrifice throw). Instead of letting me go out he pulled me straight down and my head jerked back really hard when I hit the mat. Actually, from what R. said, my head may have hit the mat first. I think my arm hit then my head. It freaked me out a bit, but class was almost over at that point.

I taught the second class, and I had a lot of people in class, too! Well, 7 folks, but that's a lot for 2nd class. R. (2nd dan), E. (2nd kyu), D. (2nd Kyu), J. (2nd kyu), L. (4th kyu), G. (5th kyu) and C. (no kyu). Since E. (2nd kyu) is going to test for 1st kyu in about three weeks, it taught techniques from katamenuchi. I emphasized how you can do techniques both on the striking hand and the grabbing hand. I did a couple of techniques each. For the stricking hand, I did kokyunage, kotegaeshi and shihonage from a tenkan opening demonstrating that when you tenkan that these are some of the techniques that you have available. On the grabbing hand, I did nikkyo and shihonage. I also told E. (2nd kyu) that when he is doing the test to demonstrate 4 basic techniques first then at least 1 advanced technique. The same with pinning, do the kneeling pin first then standing.

No Aiki Just LawKi

Hey all!

No aikido today. I went to a CLE (Continuing Legal Education) seminar today and will tomorrow, too. I got to learn all about Family Law and tomorrow I will learn all about arbitration and contract writing.

I will try to make it to class tomorrow though. Sensei finally gave one of our 2nd kyus (E.) the go ahead and test. You see this particular 2nd kyu is a liver transplant recipient and he started aikido 6 weeks after his transplant. He is one of those people who really embodies the spirit of aikido. He trains to the best and fullest of his ability and still does pretty well. Anyhow, he will be taking the Friday night class to get ready as our Friday night class instructor always helps us get ready for our next level. I promise to let you all know how it goes.

Oh, and after he passes his next test, 1st kyu, his next test after that will be shodan. Now, that is not a test I will miss.

Deja Vu

H. (5th dan) filled in for Sensei tonight. Hmmmm.....he did the same thing last Wednesday....One note, I got a little ornery with F. (4th kyu) he was not being very supple in his ukemi and I was really struggling with it. H. said what I was doing looked good, but I just wasn't feeling right. Well, here's the ornery part, I started resisting F. with all my might so that he couldn't do the tech at all. I was trying to make a point -- that's what he was feeling like. H. came over and had uke hold the forefinger of nage. Voila! F. became responsive as he couldn't pull down hard on me holding just my finger. I did the same thing with F. -- if you don't go you hurt your finger.

My Class -- one person C. (no kyu) I worked him through ukemi and refined his back rolls and back falls and showed him a couple of exercise to practice breakfalling. He still needs to get his positioning down for breakfalls. I did a.h. katatetori kotegaeshi, g.h. katatetori sumi otoshi and iriminage (as prelude to ryotetori tenchinage). I also taught the 9 Count Jo Kata both right and left sides.

Wells' Back

Well, one of our old timers is back taking classes on Monday nights. It's good to see him again. He has been teaching classes in South Beach and is in the Fort Lauderdale area on Mondays. The last we trained together I think I was getting ready for 3rd kyu or had just passed my 3rd kyu test. It's nice to see how much my ukemi has changed. When I trained with him in the past, I was usually too slow or just held back too much, and he would always correct my ukemi for not following enough. Now, it's nice to see I was able to follow except for crashing down on iriminage. I still need to work on that ukemi. Ugh.

Tonight in class Sensei taught techniques from g.h. katatetori we did the following techniques:

• suwari waza g.h. katateori sote tekubinage (reverse kotegaeshi): Make certain when you turn over uke for the pin that you change grip and then hold uke's arm against your leg so that you can switch into the kneeling pin.
• g.h. katatetori sote tekubinage (reverse kotegaeshi): I did a couple of breakfalls for this one just for practice even though the throw didn't really require it. Here, the pin you turn uke over one foot will be by the head and the other will be on the other side of uke. It is on the "other" leg where your place uke's palm against your knee. You hold uke's hand in place and then Press against uke's elbow turning away from uke's head.
• g.h. katatetori kaitennage: Here we only did a kaiten opening. You curl your hand and lead uke in front of you, when uke takes a step you drop your hand down and then go into kaitennage. Sensei emphasized that whether the attack is static or more dynamic, that the goal is to get uke to take a step forward. The lead will happen in the static by threating uke's grip and in the dynamic you are redirecting uke's momentum.
• hanmi handachi g.h. katatetori shihonage ura: Sensei emphasized again the drop motion like in kaitennage. You drop you hand down in front of your center and then draw uke around. Ukemi wise make certain you protect your center, attack should stay off the line, and uke needs to move and tenkan and go around nage.
• g.h. katatetori hijikinage: Woo Hooo! A great breakfalling technique! Sensei emphasized that time is key in this technique that as soon as uke comes into to grap you will step forward changing hanmi taking uke's center back.
• g.h. katatetori iriminage: Here, you're staying in the same hanmi. As uke attacks you kokyu and step slightly to your side to let uke go by. In ukemi, sensei emphasized to make certain you go by and to step so that you protect your center. Don't just stand there to get kicked in the groin.

We also did jiyuwaza and randori (ryokatatori kokyunage): Sensei broke us into two groups and put the 2nd kyu and up together. That would be me, N. (2nd kyu), W. (2nd Dan) and R. (3rd Dan). I did pretty well in following but didn't do to well when W. did a strong iriminage on me. I just left my but behind and didn't my feet. My bad. Other than that I did a good job following and taking good ukemi.

In randori, Sensei emphasized to make certain that we enter and not pull uke around. It's in the entering where there is power in the technique not the pull.

Henkawaza!

Boy, I could really use a nap right now. I took the basics class last night and sensei did some techniques from g.h. katatetori. We did some shihonage, iriminage, and a couple of henka waza. Last night I was nervous about my job interview scheduled for today so I ended up staying up late. So...I'm not going to write much this time. Just enough to say that I think the job interview went well and that I hope I get a call from the temp agency. They told me that they have other interviews to do so I don't know if I got the job. Talk with y'all later.

I Remember Love

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Another Good Class!

Harry taught tonight. He did another great class. (He was filling in for sensei who has been pretty exhausted from the kids camp this year. He's doing 9 weeks of kid's camp. I was exhausted helping out for one day of camp. I don't know how he does it.)

Harry taught techniques from ai hanmi katatetori. We did:

• iriminage
• ikkyo omote & ura
• nikkyo omote & ura
• sankyo omote & ura
• shihonage omote & ura
• iriminage (another variation)

Then I taught -- yippee!!!

I had four people in class again: C. (no kyu); S. (5th kyu); J. (5th kyu) and D. (5th kyu). We did warm ups, footwork exercises, and some ukemi. Since all the people in class tonight could do rolls fairly well I introduced them to breakfalls, but kept it simple. I set them up like in kotegaeshi, but took their hand down to the mat but held it so they could roll over then slap out. Then depending on the person I would hold their hand a little higher each time. They all did fine. Next, I taught ushiro tekubitori sankyo. Ushiro techniques can be a bit complicated so I just broke it down some. After that, I taught the first 12 steps to the 31 jo kata. I broke it down to step by step which helped a lot and everyonoe was able to pick the first 12 steps up pretty well, too.

A New Beginning

Well, it's about 8 months since I tested and passed my shodan test. I thought sensei was never going to let me test. I had my ups and downs and lot of challenges in getting to class and training regular enough to get ready. I also lost about 25 pounds for the test, which helped with my stamina. I was so frustrated I almost did not test, but I'm so glad that I did.

This picture was taken right after my sensei gave me the black belt. I guess he knew I was going to pass. I was so worried about doing a good job. I guess I did since everyone told me that I did a good job. I watch it now and see a few things that I would like to change. I wish I could increase my pace some more, which also means increasing my stamina. I wish my techniques would look more dynamic. I need to incorporate more koshiwaza into my training. The one koshi I did was not the best -- I need to drop my center more. Although I felt centered and strong during the test, on viewing the video of my test, I looked like I was going slow especially on my randori. I kept trying to move on my randori and to approach my attackers and not let them come to me, but my randori seemed "off" some how. Maybe because I was tired at that point. Overall, I do feel good about my test and that I did not majorly mess anything up. I did provide a good variety of techniques. My techniques were clean and my knowledge of the details were demonstrated. I had a couple minor flubs, but nothing that would fail me. I think I would have given myself a B on my test. I wasn't an "A" which is "super-wow and totally amazing!" and I wasn't a "C" which is just getting by.

The testing committee on the left and I bow in to my uke Emmanuel.

Suwariwaza ikkyo and iriminage.

Ude Garuma and Tsuki Iriminage:

My randori on the left and Joe's randori on the right:

Here are a couple of video clips from my test:

Part One of my Shodan Test: Emmanuel Herzog is my uke. The other test takers are Joe Marmol with Sachin Mayi as his uke. And Evelyn from Gold Coast Aikikai. I'm the person closest to you.

Part Two of my Shodan Test:

The celebration afterwards...

Jonathon from North Carolina says congrats:

Andy and I pose with our new black belts:

Sushi lunch after wards lunch with Jack, Tabi's friend from Peru, Tabi, Roger, Gini, Me, Stephan, Mina, Isabel and Jack's friend from Texas. Emmanuel is taking the photo.

At the spaghetti dinner later that night. Isabel and I are pretending to be passed out, although we were both pretty exhausted from classes and testing.

Since testing, I've started teaching my first official class - Wednesday nights from 7:15 - 8:15. Tonight, will be my second class.

Wednesday, July 16, 2008:

Last week, week I had four people show up -- Cory (newbie), Randy (5th), David (5th) and Dean (4th). I could tell that both David and Dean were out of practice, but they usually only come once a week. I wish I could talk them into coming at least twice a week. They are father and son and I know they are on David's work schedule and Dean's school schedule, but they could progress a little bit more if they came at least twice a week. I don't see why they can't work in a Saturday. I'll have to ask sensei about how best to address this. Randy came and he did great. He wants to start getting ready for 4th kyu and Cory did good, too.

I was having a hard time teaching Dean, David and Cory nikkyo. Maybe, I will break it down more tonight from ai hanmi instead of just shomenuchi. I could do Ai Hanmi ikkyo, nikkyo and kotegaesi. If Randy sticks around I can help him with a 4th kyu technique for his test. Tonight I will probably have the new couple that just joined, too and ai hanmi would be a good place for them to start. Hopefully, John and Sarah will come tonight if they are not too busy with their photography training. They came to class last night. Oh, I hope Kim comes, too. She really needs to get back into the swing of things and working with people who are newer than her will help give her the confidence she needs.

Tuesday, July 22, 1008

First Class:

I also took the basics class last night -- and as Silvia always told me -- basics are advanced. Sensei taught kokyunage (hitoe iriminage) from different openings. We did about five different versions:

• irimi -- (suwari waza version): curl your pinky first as you draw your hand in front of your center then circl your arms up around and throw.
• irimi-- (tachi waza version): same as above - you slide in irimi, and as you irimi you pivot your hips and curl your pinky down in front of your center then circle your arms up and step back behind uke and throw.
• tenkan -- you tenkan (with a small irimi step) and as in irimi you will curl your pinky down in front of your center then circle your arms up and around as you step back to throw.
• tenshin -- as with the above versions, you will step back tenshin drawing your hand down towards your center, and as uke comes in you rotate your hips the opposite direction then back again while at the same time you are circling your arm around and down.
• tenkan -- (breaking hand away version) as you tenkan you break uke's hand away while keeping your and uke's hand infront of your center, you then circle your arm then throw
• tenkan zempo nage -- tenkan throw -- enter tenkan raise arm up high and then drop down low
• seated kokyuho

Second Class:

I stayed to take Luis' class, but we had a new woman join up along with her husband who just joined the other day. They were both there. So instead of practicing with Luis, Sensei ask me to teach a brief intro class with them both while Luis taught. Diana and Lissandro are their names. I can tell Diana will have hard time learing to roll, but if she takes it slow and gradual she will get it in no time. I taught them the basic foot work - irimi (ayumi ashi), tenkan and tenshin. Then I showed them a basic backfall (just the one where you roll back and stand up not the double slap version) and we then did the irimi throw and ikkyo omote. They both did very well and the husband bought a book. They asked about the kids classes and camp and I think that they might sign their two girls up for camp or the classes.