The importance of Ikkyo 

Very kind of you to say! I'm glad you're enjoying my approach!

Shout out to Josh and Maya.😎

❤

It is true.

Glad you enjoy the videos, thanks for the kind words!

Mike Tyson does side entry with peek-a-boo style boxing

Thank you!

Glad you're enjoying the videos! Sorry I haven't gotten back to you yet. There are really a bunch of answers to that question, I plan to make a whole video on it. In short I believe the biggest reasons are the popularity of unarmed martial arts over armed martial arts, and the post WWII atmosphere in Japan- the time and place where Aikido was developing. Thanks for watching!

@@ChuShinTani Yes but seeing as we see no prevalence of Aikido in the UFC for the past 30 odd years would you think it was fair to say that there are other martial arts that have a better approach to unarmed single combat? Why not double down on Aikido’s strengths and reforge an identity based around what the system is actually good at? You have already demonstrated that using grappling distance (Brazilian JuiJitsu) against a knife is actually worse for the good guy. So here you have a very clear niche. If you had your higher grades focus on the practical application of these weapon techniques for 20/30 minutes at the end of class in a kind of structured free sparing / free playing practice, (different to the compliant partner drills aikido is so good at) you would end up with guys who were able to apply these techniques in real time, against resisting opponents. This would then have the effect that if a passing higher grade from another martial art visited your school, your students would be better at this practical application of weapons technique than they would be, due to them being untrained in the particular skill set your school teaches. Bing able to show competence in the practical application of their martial skills against a non compliant partner would gain you legitimacy amongst the wider martial arts community. I appreciate for beginners you might not want weapons involved to keep things simple while they learn. But is does seem that Aikido is the time capsule that has preserved the weapons based techniques and principles of of Ancient Japan. Not to mention. With the increase of knife crime who’s to say that we shouldn’t also be training weapons, as the ancient once did.

That's exactly what I have been doing for the last 15 years or so.

Glad you liked it! The video's on other techniques like this might appear here eventually, but if you're in a hurry you can find them now on my patreon page patreon.com/christopherhein

That'd be nice too, but 'why is rokkyo one of the main techniques but way less important than the previous five' is a much less punchy theme for a video. :)

Thanks! The mic is a saramonic uwmic9, with a JK mic-j Lav.

Exactly!

Nice comparison! Martial convergent evolution in action. Also really underscores what a nice clear visual cue it is -- even someone as rusty-rookie as me can see 'ooo, there's an ikkyo!' when watching someone's form. Which I think is likely another part of why it's 'first'.

This is a great question. Personally I feel like suwari waza (seated techniques ) were a very useful tool for Ueshiba Morihei for several reasons: 1. The anachronistic quality of Suwari Waza tied what Ueshiba was doing to the old warrior class of Japan. He was known by his peers as one of the few old style Bushi. Suwari Waza was something that looked the part he was presenting. 2. It is a great way to control students. If the students are presented material from this very limited position, it keeps them from getting too rambunctious. I have heard many people repeat that when O-Sensei was not in the Dojo, only Suwari Waza was to be practiced- this kept everyone safer. It also puts a person who is very good at Suwari waza in a better position when dealing with younger stronger students who are not used to moving this way. 3. Suwari Waza is a useful tool for learning to use your upper body effectively. Because of the limited lower body use, it is a decent way to teach upper body coordination. My interpretation of Aikido is the one that makes the most sense overall to me personally. I'm not claiming in any way that it is what Ueshiba or any other teacher wanted Aikido to be. I am a person who has spent a considerable amount of time working with the system(s) of Aikido, and what I would call the "Aikido zeightgheist" (the mass feeling of what Aikido is). The way I "approach" this material to make the most sense to me is what I present- it very well may not be what Ueshiba Morihei had in mind, or what any other Aikidoka believe to be the essence of Aikido. For me- Suwari waza is something that I have studied quite a bit, but I seldom teach it these days, as it feels very vestigial. For me to move forward with my approach I am forced to leave many things behind- for better or worse. So, long story, short- I don't think Suwari waza is "woo-woo". To the contrary, I feel that there are many useful lessons learned from it. However, for me and my approach, it doesn't currently fit. Thanks for the great question!

@@ChuShinTani Thanks for your detailed answer! I was just about to edit my question after watching your philosophy video, because it seemed that kokyu ho would fall under the rationale for the nagewaza as you formulate them: the ways to get uke back out of your space when they do manage to get too close....

I'm not sure that I understand your question.

@@ChuShinTani Is there a similar Aikido technique which deals with the opponent's leg, by controlling it at the knee? I know Wingchun has something that checks the knee with the foot.

I'm no longer affiliated with any other Dojos.

Oh boy does he!