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The
Club The
Though
Scott no longer teaches regularly in Nottingham, we have maintained a strong
link (and friendly rivalry) with the By
joining the club, members also join a growing national network of Shodokan
Aikido clubs and can meet people from all over the world, train with national
squad members and make lifelong friendships. We welcome complete beginners as
well as those with previous experience of different styles, and a high level
of fitness is not required (though it can quickly be developed). The club is
indebted to the members and instructors who have kept it running successfully
all this time. Below are
some comments by current members regarding their experiences of Aikido and
the club. ---------------- Aikido is
a new experience for me as I've been practising it not for a very long time.
Nevertheless I am fully absorbed by it. Every session is a chance for
learning something more about techniques that might seem straightforward but
require years for getting fully aware of. I do dig the fact that sheer
strength is not necessary. It's the other way around. The more the strength
the less effective the techniques are. That's the challenge: not cheating.
Aiming for a "true" result, in line with the principle that
technique prevails over force. Either the opponent's and my own. And this
realization brings along confidence. Confidence keeps fear away. Not fear of
a bunch of thugs who want to assault me but of an exam, a speech in public or
of some audience looking at me on the mat. Oh, should I mention that aikido
is a perfect way to keep fit, meeting new people and shutting all the
problems out of my head for a few hours? I guess so because that's what it
is. MT ---------------- Before I
started practicing Shodokan Aikido, I never had any other martial art experience.
The reason I joined was because I had heard some good comments about it and
the philosophy of his first founder, Morihei Ueshiba. What I find out after 4
months of practicing at the university club is that Aikido is a real and
original "martial art". And this is because all the techniques that
I have learned up to this point are based on body mechanics and
concentration, and not on strength or impulsiveness. Another thing that I
liked in Aikido techniques, is the fact that their purpose is not to injure
in any way or to "punish" the opponent, but only to neutralize him.
As for the club, its mentality is friendly but in the same way effective.
Certainly I will continue practicing Aikido, for the above reasons. I
recommend it to anyone that thinks to start practicing a martial art. GA ------------- I came to
uni. wanting to get involved in some kind of martial art but not really
knowing much about any of them. Aikido was the first stand I saw at freshers
fair and the people manning the stall seemed nice so I joined. Right from the
first week I saw that maybe there was something different from other martial
arts As I
carried on going along to training I realised that it was a system of
training. It relies on a method of building on things that you have already
learnt, meaning that there is always a logical progression from one level to
the next. A year
and half after starting I am enjoying it more than ever, the opportunity to
train with so many different types of people from all over the country has
really helped and I've made some great friends. I know that there is still a
long way to go but that is a challenge to be overcome and not a barrier to
progression. BR ------------- For me,
the main attraction of Aikido is its subtlety and depth; every technique has
layers and layers of depth and it feels as if every session I have to
completely revise my understanding of some aspect of training - including the
most basic. Plus, I have always found the participants to be incredibly
friendly and welcoming! I have studied Aikido in a few different clubs, but
had never practiced Shodokan before. I was initially wary about the
competition aspect, but over time I have found that Randori relies on an
understanding of all of the aspects at the heart of Aikido: balance, posture,
timing and responsiveness. Successful Randori requires a thorough grasp of
the Aikido basics practiced at the start of every session and so requires
that you keep working on all areas of your training from top to bottom,
instead of thinking, "I know that, It's easy." If you forget this,
you will soon be reminded! DR |
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