Should I Cross-Train My Aikido with another martial art?

Question

I am currently hold the rank of 4th kyu in Aikido. I have been doing Aikido for 18 months now, and Aikido is currently the only martial arts I know.

In my dojo, we don't practice much aggressive moves. Our atemis are simple punches or pushes to the face. Basically, my striking skills are poor, at least in my own opinion.

I was wondering if I should cross-train with another martial arts to complement Aikido. My city has karate, hapkido and TKD dojos.

Or should I just stick and focus on Aikido?

I currently only have time to train at most 3 times a week, due to work and family committments.

Answer 1

Stick to Aikido for a while and build a good foundation there. If you try to cross train so early you will advance slower and limit yourself. If you do it one by one and don't cram it in then you can build up faster. Learning everything immediately is like putting overdoing muscle training- you'll see results less quicker.

Most people will not believe this answer and say it's best to mix this up with blah blah blah and what not. But if you don't follow what the right people say, you'll go the different path. So stick to aikido, get good at joint locks, then start striking.

Answer 2

Hapkido and Aikido are very similar, so it wouldn't make very much sense to cross train in that. TKD has a very heavy focus on kicks and is VERY weak on the punches (which you're looking for). I personally don't have very much experience in Karate, but it sounds like that may be your best option to work on the striking. If you can't work something out with your sensei, then I would recommend Karate.

Unfortunately, the styles you mentioned aren't very highly thought of in the martial arts community. You will hardly see any fighters entering an MMA ring with a background in any of these. Not because there's anything inherently wrong with the styles themselves, but because it's rare to find a traditional school that teaches the arts for what they are: fighting. The styles have gotten so commercialized, that the majority of schools are "McDojos" just looking to make a buck.

Hopefully, you found the exception. Good luck with your training!

Answer 3

I agree with Prince

Stick with Aikido....don't fall into the trap of trying to cross-train when you've barely done Aikido. You would be learning bad habits for Aikido if you cross-trained. Maybe talk to your sensei about your concerns.