Aikido fake?

Question

I'm thinking about enrolling in Aikido classes but I went online to research it and watched about a dozen or so professionals on You Tube demonstrating the martial art and some of it appeared fake. I mean, some of the "attackers" appeared to just flip over or fall over when the defender simply touched their hand or wrist. One guy, an elderly Japanese fellow, tapped an attacker on the wrist and the attacker went flying head over heels. I don't want to waste my time and money learning to fake fight.

Answer 1

There's more to aikido than what you see. It may appear fake to an onlooker, but there's a lot of subtelty to those techniques.

Aikido also often depends on the attacker's strength to work. That's why it's mostly a defensive art. What a lot of these techniques do is redirect the energy of the attack against the attacker. It's done with minimal effort and that's why often, there are no big movements.

I've been training aikido for about two years. It's very real.

Answer 2

Check it, the philosophies in Aikido are about as accurate as any other martial art. And the system works as well as it should but the issue is that students expect to fall, they know they should fall, they understand when to fall and what makes them fall so when the time comes, they just fall. If the master is pushed the pusher will fall. Most don't like this aspect that exist in most all studios, so they avoid these studios. That is probably the best move.

Answer 3

if you find the right school than its great! ya a lot of people just fall :) i actualy have a pretty funny story for you

once in class my instructor was showing us wristlocks and the guy he asked to be the example refused to just "go down" so my instructor actualy did the move on him with full force and brought him crashing to the ground and really twisted his wrist. (ya i understand he should not have had such a temper) he ended up saying "sorry sorry, i understand, i wont go againts you" (it was areal laugh :P)

anyway point is, yes it can be veyr effective and some video is not enough to judge an art by

Answer 4

Actually Aikido is very effective if you know that it is a defensive art and not a offensive one,

Make sure u find a good dojo

Answer 5

Aikido split along at least two major lines when the Founder (Morihei Ueshiba) passed away.  The Ki Society went more on the path of the religion and philosophy the Founder taught.  The Aiki-kai is more oriented toward the technical aspects of the art.  From there, individual teachers have emphasized different aspects of Aikido, such as finding the perfect angle to move so as not to resist an attacker, but rather to blend with an attacker's force.  Other teachers seem to focus of ki power.  Other's yet on being light on one's feet.  Some schools, like those that follow the Iwama-Ryu focus on the power and technical skill of Aikido.  Some of the schools have abandoned weapon training which was originally part of what the Founder taught, and others have emphasized the relationship between weapon training and the empty-hand (taijutsu) techniques.

According to several black-belts I know who have been exposed to teaching from several teachers, some teachers have lost the effectiveness of Aikido in favor of the less practical aspects of Aikido on which they focus.

Some of what you see could be "fake."  Some of what you see could be an attempt by the person being thrown to avoid injury by leaping or rolling with the throw.  Skilled Aikido-ka (persons who practice Aikido) can make high falls (or break falls) look easy.

My advice is to talk with the instructor of any school you are thinking of joining.  Ask about what he or she thinks are the most important aspects of Aikido.  Any instructor who is honest and interested in you as a student will be happy to spend a few moments talking about his/her school and his/her personal approach to teaching.  You might ask him/her if he/she has used Aikido in a self-defense situation.  Ask lots of questions first, do some research, and then choose your school.

I haven't used Aikido in self-defense, yet.  I hope not to have to.  I have used it to get control of teens who were rough-housing and wouldn't stop when I asked them.  It was effective for me, and I think it could be very effective in a self-defense situation, if you train with the right school.  I can't tell you what is right for you.  I can only tell you how to figure it out for yourself.

Answer 6

go to a real Aikido dojo, to learn AIkido it takes many years. ou can also try different froms of jiu jitsu as well

Answer 7

The best way to find out is to take a few classes without any contract.  In the KI Society we deal with your mind and your body.  Since an observer can not see your mind, they only see 1/2 of what is going on in the move.  Height, weight, age, strength and s*x are not important in the KI Society.   The best teacher I worked with was 85 years old and half my height (6'3").  He dropped me and 2 other guys like me in seconds.  There is no attacking in true aikido, only self defense.  If it is fighting you want, join the Marines !  If it is self defense, join KI Society - only a few people can learn it right since it is not 10 easy lessons to black belt.

Answer 8

I know what you mean, some of those "flips" look planned because they are.  The Aikido is real and the flip is part demo, part protection.  The stress put on the joints in those techniques would destroy the wrists, elbows and shoulders of the attacker if they didn't give in at the end of the technique.  Also learning how to break-fall is important in Aikido and Judo.  Besides if you kill all your students at a demonstration, no one will want to join your school!

I watched my teacher wreck a guy in class onetime while drinking a cup of coffee.  It looked like the dude just dropped over like a house of cards, but it was all technique...,and he didn't spill a drop.  When you get that good, you look at people differently.  You can see when someone is off balance and take full advantage.  It takes time, but is possible

Answer 9

Island Boy, You will find fakes and charlatans in many of the martial arts. I am ashamed to have to say that. Akido is a good art for defense. It is strictly a defensive art. It relies solely on the attackers energy to work, with the exception that it does employ a lot of locks and holds that can be disabling if done for that purpose. I always recommend that you shop for a good school and honest instructors rather than a particular art. When you have some experience and knowledge than you may want to find an art that suits you  better.

For street self defence I always recomend a good stand up art.