[Aikido Tutorial] Shiko Walking (Japanese Walking on Knees) 

does help to have flexible toes and strong mid section muscles

glad to hear it's helping

Thanks :)

Glad it helped!

Awesome! Glad to hear it

Thanks! There should be a video somewhere of me explaining standing and sitting from knees too. I think learning to walk on knees can have benefits from wrestling knee walking, but the bad side is that eventually such sitting puts stress on the knees,

It's probably just your big toe that is stiff. Mine is stiff too. Not sure what is the best way to improve that, but searching "big toe mobility" pointed to various resources.

Thanks

My pleasure :)

I agree. I also think it's terrible for the knees

I think looking at it from a historical sense, shikko was developed from the end of the warring states or Sengoku period and became more synonymous with the Edo period where if a "samurai" had to defend himself from a sitting position or a seiza position which was adopted when in the presence of a noble or aristocrat, they had to stay "low" while defending themselves from an "attack" This is very obvious from the Daito Ryu aiki jujutsu tradition and also followed on in aikido ... I have observed that many, but not all Japanese people who have done this all their lives end up with "bow" legs and have trouble in walking and/or climbing stairs later on in life... I find that climbing a staircase or flight of steps two at a time is far better for developing stronger legs and do it everywhere I go, or doing squats and western style training for legs and hip stability...Also, the sumo method of "shikko" is far better for developing strong legs & hips...When I took up aikido in 1975 I found that I picked it up really fast and even surpassed those who "taught" me as I've also practised isometric/isotonic exercise since my teens and found it to be an excellent way of strengthening the core and the muscles required to develop the spiral axis that Kenji Tomiki explains in his teaching of aikido & judo and how it makes one's aikido really effective, which has been lost in post war "aikido"... What many do not realise, is that Tomiki was also licensed in Daito Ryu and graded 8th dan by Morihei Ueshiba...What I find ironic is you rarely see this type of exercise utilized amongst modern martial artists so its no wonder aikido and TMA has generally become weak... My advice is only to do it for short periods and even then make sure you are thoroughly warm, but even then don't think its the be all and end all... It isn't...

This DEEESTROYED my knees! I can no longer walk without support! I could never defend myself now - I can barely stand!!

Probably yes

If you strengthen the legs through conditioning the deep squat alongside the hip flexors, this should actually strengthen the musculo-tendon structures of the lower trunk

use volleyball knee pads and make sure your quadriceps is relarively strong before starting shikko

Cry

I think it was my mid twenties 🤔

@@MartialArtsJourney figured you’d look like it after all the intense cosplaying