Blending and ukemi

Aiki with Patrick M. and Kel.

• Warmup with particular emphasis on ukemi. We don't do a whole lot of ukemi during the winters but its about spring and it's time to get back into ukemi. It is very hard, if not impossible to develop superb aiki without throwing all the way into the ground and taking the falls yourself too. You simply have to feel both sides of the relationship all the way through the techniques.
• Tegatana emphasizing shizentai (natural upright posture) and closing the hands to protect the fingers.
• Shichihon no kuzushi with emphasis on getting rid of the discontinuities. In this exercise it is both partners' responsibility to blend intelligently throughout the thing. The ukemi on the end is a natural extension of the blend in the beginning.
• Nijusan hon kata #1-10 with more emphasis on uke blending into falls and tori throwing into the pins at the end. Gedanate was working particularly well tonight and we explored it from aiki, kime (karate), and ju perspectives. Kel was doing exceptionally well on the wakigatame that begins like shomenate.
• Release #1 into maeotoshi from Rokukata (pushing with the free hand on the body).