Does Aikido Really Work?

Deep drive into the world of Aikido

[@jb6368]

I trained aikido over years. Worked doors for 13yrs and then into corrections for 20 yrs and aikido was always my go to. Its not fighting,,its literally back engineering conflict i find. It halts conflicts it does not add to it.

[@americanosbadassius9292]

Well, if you're Seagal you're definitely bringing the conflict and the pain to the fight with your Aikido. There's the way of The Virtuous Warrior and then there's the way of the Badass!

[@michaelgolden8255]

48 years of Aikido training in my case. Trained with Saotome Sensei when he first came to the US. Still have friends in those Florida dojos.

[@jtilton5]

You might remember my Sensei, Anthony Tartaglia.

[@johnnynewt9498]

So being honest, what's your opinion on it's effectiveness?

[@michaelgolden8255]

@@johnnynewt9498 For me it was complimentary to my background in wrestling and boxing. As I matured in Aikido I also cross trained in Chinese,Korean and other Japanese systems. I worked in situations where a non injurious discipline was ideal to comply with the legal system. Aikido never failed me in those situations. It was, eventually, my core practice.

[@johnnynewt9498]

@@michaelgolden8255 interesting, with my experience in Togakure Ryo ninpo, I've never been a big fan of wrestling or less aggressive techniques, so to speak, but after taking the precepts and practicing Zen , I have always been curious about Aikido, and it's practice. It's seems, a much more benign and mindful martial art.

[@neotenylv09]

I agree with a lot of what Ken said, there's so much bs regarding Aikido that is unfair. Btw, I hope you're having a quick and succesful recovery from your bicep injury Viking!! Keep up the great content! 🍻🔥

[@wadoryujujutsukempo6289]

Daito ryu was meant to be used in law enforcement, thats why takeda taught at police stations, at the time usheba was an assitant instructer and was having to use strenth to make things work. This was written about by takeda son in a group of newsletters he wrote about his fathers life when he would go with him around the country. I used aikido a few times when i was a uk police officer, and it worked fine. I trained aikido 1991 - 2000 , i look at shodan gradings now, and they are far more technicle than what i learned, it was more simple back then

[@justinwallace269]

In regards to Rokus, Ken is 💯 on the money, but I feel he needs to watch more Lenny Sly videos because he got him all wrong. That one video clip of him sparring was meant to be an MMA style grappling pressure test, not his usual Aikido. Lenny is always going on about constant movement and blending with the attack. He's frequently demonstrated a practical understanding of this against everyday attacks like shoves, haymakers, and boxing style punches. His understanding of hand deflections and switching locks on the fly is flawless. Lenny does every Ken talks about, plus real work application and having to get rough. It's a lot more practical and realistic than Ken is giving him credit for. I wish Lenny were here to discuss it.

[@LouisianaStateSovereignty]

It’s good to see people explain and flesh out their martial arts. Especially the ones that have taken so much heat as being “ineffective”

[@alcottdevalte7440]

I think Seagal type of level of Aikido is extremely rare these days and he is just at another different level with it. Would like to see someone else doing it like such poetry.

[@Carson-pv4hr]

😂😂

[@mikem6280]

11 years of Aikido and the hardest thing I had to do was un-learn the TKD/TSD I learned prior. To "un-learn" the concept of when pushed push back was difficult. Yielding to force as opposed to colliding with it. That said, once that concept is grasped and the practice is implemented you begin to understand the art. With that, for the majority of my training my sensei was a 6th dan bb in Aikido and a 3rd dan bb in Shotokan Karate. When he would teach a technique and his direction was "punch me, face" he was wanting a 100% power punch. The next thing you knew you were flopped or turned into a pretzel and it was legit like fighting air. Then it would be slowed down to show movements to the class. The longer you trained the better you got. It is not an easy art and if you find a practical school or instructor it can be life changing and very useful if need be. The pre-war style of Aikijutsu is much different than the post war concept of modern Aikido. Another interesting concept is how you can dictate what kind of techniques to do right off the break in a physical application. For example, moving to the aggressor in a non-violent manner and sticking out your arm or hand in a manner that the aggressor would reach for it or otherwise move counter to it, thus opening them up for what you want to do. Fast forward and I'll easily tell you that Aikido is complementary to many other arts. It fit perfectly when I picked up Wado-Ryu. Lastly, I think Aikido gets a lot of heat from people based on what I call the Rokus factor, he was a black belt in a dance form. Many Aikido schools offer the dance forms of the art. Secondly, the time commitment. You can black belt in TKD, Karate, whatever, in 2-4 years. Plus, by that point the muscle memory is engrained and natural. That does not happen in Aikido! It takes several years just to get to a senior level understanding. It takes 5+ years to obtain a useful grasp of Aikido in concept and techniques. Thus, because you arent learning something overnight, there is a turn off.

[@AikidoEducation]

This is a good post. Something that is hard to explain and non-Aikido students can’t understand from a video is the quality of touch. The things that are going on inside. Moving in such a way that doesn’t make the attacker realize what is happening or try to stop it. Being soft but not too soft.

[@sandracarvalho6140]

I haven't been able to catch these live but they are really good : ) I always make sure to catch up to them later!

[@TheZanshen]

Sensi William Coyle was some instructor and trained constantly for over 50yrs with the best ie saito,Chiba and was graded by them . Was very proud to have been taught /trained under him

[@TonyPacenski]

Technically, the Aikido movement comes from Daito ryu jujutsu; however, philosophically, there is differentiation, where, in Daito ryu, you are cutting the opponent down, and in Aikido, you are providing an opening for the person to live. Today, different branches of Aikido have developed; if a person says that Aikido does not work, they need to gain more perspective on a conflict in Martial Arts and Budo training.

[@stuhuggens9297]

If all you ever do is fight in the gym or dojo ‘ there are rules, in a street fight a good street fighter might open you up to a whole new world.

[@bmcarpetcleaningandfloorca4410]

Good video, Viking. You and Brian did a good job fielding questions and explaining Ken’s responses. Unfortunately, Ken was a little vague, and I’m more confused about Aikido now than before. Still entertaining though 👍 I saw Dale Richardson on your last show. It would be terrific if you could have Don Roley as a guest! I’m not sure if you ever asked, but this Would be the ultimate show, imo Viking.

[@americanosbadassius9292]

That's how you know when a martial art is inundated with a lot of smoke and mirrors charlatanism, it's not clear in it's messaging or concepts. You won't find that in martial arts like Boxing or Catch Wrestling. They're very straightforward, clean and concise. Easy to pick up and utilize for the most part and building one technique on top of another doesn't require that you have a degree in horseshit to understand and implement it. And, what do you know, they don't have any black belts or traditional ranking system in them, either, go figure!

[@jb6368]

I remember watching terry o neill weekly martial arts programme on itv in uk in 90's and episode on aikido just fascinated me.

[@JamesStray]

I think an interesting interview or study would be about/with Mick Gould. His method is called Nagasu Do, which was used in the Taken films.

[@technotronicboy]

I believe that all martial arts has it’s advantage, what it is important is how the technique is applied in a defense situation. Great interview 👍

[@americanosbadassius9292]

The thing is though, is that it seems that there are only 1 in 10,000 people that can apply it to actually work in a real world situation. So effectively, it's only useful as part of an exercise regime that teaches you to run like a girl and figure out the best ponytail style for your face shape. 😁 😂 🤣

[@johndough8115]

@@americanosbadassius9292 There are Awful fighters in Every artform. Look at Pro Boxers, for example. They each get hit... like over 50 times, in a single round. If there were no gloves, these fights would last less than 10 seconds... just like as seen in countless barefist fights, seen on Security Camera footage. Higher level combat arts, require even more Training time and Mastery... than lower sport art methods, like Boxing / Kickboxing. The issue isnt the art itself.. but the laziness of the Modern Practitioners... whom never fully master ANYTHING that they have learned. Talking Crap about a certain Artform, is like talking crap about "Cookbooks". Just because there are countless people that cant cook for Sh*T... doesnt make the cookbook Recipes "bad". It just means, a lot of cooks cant follow directions well... and or didnt fully Master these Recipes... so they cant perform well in a real "Chef Level" Kitchen environment.

[@wadoryujujutsukempo6289]

With regards to rokus, in his own story, he had a student who had trained a little with bjj, he grappled with rokus, rokus lost, and was then bitten by the bjj bug, so rather than approach everything with its going to work, he approached it with it is not going to work, and he already decided that bjj is better.

[@kevionrogers2605]

My first introduction to Aikido was through Judo that taught Tomiki Ryu as part of the self-defense Kata curriculum. SEIRYOKU ZEN`YO KOKUMIN TAIIKU, Ju No Kata, Judo Taiso, Kime no Kata, Goshin no Jutsu, San Kata Goshinho-no-kata, Koshiki no Kata, Itsutsu no Kata. It was good training, but I got better at Aikido by training at a dedicated Aikikai USAF dojo from the Akira Tohei lineage. I did my Shodan & Nidan as part of the grading board Yoshimitsu Yamada. The strikes of Aikido at least in the white belt curriculum of United States Aikido Federation are based on Kendo, Tankendo techniques such as Shomen Uchi, Yokomen Uchi, Do Tsuki, Nodo Tsuki, Kote Uchi, Shomen Ate, Aigamae Ate, Gyaku Gamae Ate, Gedan Ate, Ushiro Ate.

[@danielelolli3386]

We should all respect all arts it takes a lifetime and diligence to learn it well from well respected old school Teachers .. Much respect

[@danielelolli3386]

I studied Karate for 20 yrs and now Wingchun over thirty years. I have always said that it doesn't matter the art ..its the man using it ..

[@danielelolli3386]

Much respect to you guys

[@acquiesce100]

Great discussion, Viking. Well done brother. It sure got some heat and quite rightly so. I absolutely despise what Ken said. He is the quintessential manifestation of everything that is wrong with Aikido. Deluded and brainwashed by all the esoteric mumbo jumbo, synonymous of most Aikidoka, unfortunately. They went out of their way to destroy the art. I said 15 years ago it was dying and I was absolutely spot on. Judging by a lot of the comments here, it just shows how clueless people involved with the art really are and totally miss the point, but was equally astonishing was the people who have a lot to say who have never even trained in it or taken the dan test. Rokas is a good guy, he hit a nerve. He disrupted a cult with a lot of insecure people involved in it and they don't quite know what to do or where to go with this other than insult Rokas, who in my opinion, after my 25 years of Aikido and training in Japan, training at Seagal's school and the school of Seagal's teacher, in Ibaraki, does Aikido very well. Of course, the Aikido slaves will say he is rubbish etc, blah, blah. That's all they can say in defence. They've got nothing else. It's the "easy" excuse to attack him and belittle him. Nobody has really scrutinized or called out the Aikido community on such a grand scale like Rokas has done and its caused major embarrassment and hurt alot of ego's. Think about it, there has never been the platforms like there is today to reach so many people all over the world at one time and with such ease. The Aikido community have been cocooned in their own little safety bubbles for so long, secluded and left on their own, in their own little cult, protected from outsiders or disruptors. Now there is accountability, the mask has slipped and they hate it. People all over the world can watch countless hours of their skills on KZbin and judge themselves. Rokas was right and his Aikido is nice. Technically, it's good. He is doing what his instructors taught him. Most Aikidoka talk trash because there is no accountability on their side. They strut around on the mat in their dan grade wearing their hakama, never having to worry about being properly tested. Their ego gets so out of wack they revel when "clueless" newbies walk in the dojo because they enjoy exerting their over-inflated ego's and opinions of themselves, telling them how tough they are, teaching the majority of stuff which is 99% unrealistic BS. Those videos Ken was showing was hideous. I was laughing on chat asking "What time do the attacks start". Nobody told me and I was waiting right til the end. I could have gone so hard on him. Ask him what Aikido is, and like most Aikidoka, they will give you a bunch of long winded word spaghetti because even they don't know what it is.

[@AikidoEducation]

This is Rokas demonstrating his understanding of Randori: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eJC2aWiOpJ2tadE really speaks for itself. If you think Rokas has good Aikido it demonstrates both your lack of understanding as well as your lack of logic. Rokas says his no Aikido is good including his. Here is Rokas on his Sandan test: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aITZpI2Cmbh5gtE You think Rokas is good and he learned good Aikido from this instructor: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pHmqaKV6gZ6BqKs Evereyone should watch thee videos before they are confused by these deluded statements. This person is a troll.

[@Durante_di_Alighiero]

There are a couple of issues here that need to be addressed: 1. Takemusu Aiki as understood today is basically considered the spontaneous execution of techniques for any given situation. However for O'Sensei it wasn't just about a religious thing. It was also about an internal training thing (there was also the political aspect about Takemusu but that's another story) as can be seen in his writings. 上にア下にオ声と対照で気を結び、そこに引力が発生するのである。 “Above the sound “A” and below the sound “O” - opposites connected with Ki, there Attractive Force (“Inryoku”) is created.” 武産とは引力の錬磨であります。 “Takemusu is the training of Attractive Force.” 2. Dojo yaburi wasn't a lightly ordeal. One would not simply have to join another Dojo. That wasn't even the case for such ordeals. The party that losses would have to close the dojo if it would have been disgraced in such a way. 3. People wouldn't make "pilgrimages" to the Kobukan, it wasn't a temple and Ueshiba wasn't a deity or a saint for that matter. He was becoming known as a martial arts expert of exceptional talent. That's why people would come to him. 4. Aikido wasn't "the first martial art that was allowed to be practiced" because there was no "Budo ban" in Japan. The whole point was to ban remnants of the Japanese militaristic apparatus that was present in institutions. Because of that the Ministry of education in Japan banned martial arts from the school curriculum because from 1942. to 1945. they were heavily changed to contain military training elements. At one point even bayonet practice and grenade throwing was part of the physical education program in schools in that period. 5. What Ueshiba taught as a martial art was essentially his version of Daito ryu Aikijujutsu(adding a bunch of other stuff) which he latter named AikiBudo, Kobudo etc ending with Aikido. 6. In the 1935. Asahi Shimbun video titled Aikibudo , that you can actually find on youtube, the other person in the black Keigogi is Takuma Hisa the director of the Asahi newspaper and a student of Ueshiba, and latter Sokaku Takeda, not Jigoro Kano the founder of Judo. 7. As for the sparring practice I disagree. There are techniques in Aikido that can be used at short distance aka arm-length like hijikime-osae for instance. Shodokan aka Tomiki Aikido people use them (or at least did use them) in their competitions. 8. Kotegaeshi isn't a wristlock. Kote is the mitten-style gauntlet worn in Kendo that protects the forearm. Gaeshi would be twisting or turning in some other translations meaning kotegaeshi would be forearm twisting or turning. Shout out to the Viking Samurai. If you get Ken and @acquiesce100 in a video I want a part of that as well. 😀

[@ropongi1008]

I totally agree with what you said about Rokus. Rokus speaks as though he is an authority on MMA training or like he is some kind of fighter now. Not every one will be good at fighting, even with a lot of training. Rokus has had a lot of training, and appears to have had a lot of private lessons, and perhaps even special treatment, and yet he is terrible, he has shown very little progress. However, some types of training are better than others.

[@Katzenhase]

Against a fighter it doesn't work. When you fight in a cage against MMA legends like Mark Coleman, Fedor, Don Frye, Ken Shamrock or Royce Gracie it wouldn't have worked but as self-defense against an untrained guy it would. Imagine Aikido without Steven Seagal. It would nearly be unknown. When you hear the word Aikido, then everybody spill out the name Seagal. The impact that Seagal had on the martial arts is underappreciated because his personal life, increasing weight etc. overshadows how important Seagal was for the martial arts. Before Seagal everything was "feet orientated". When Seagal came along, he introduced a violent style of Aikido and Aikijiujitsu. Many people think Seagal is only Aikido but watch the bar scene in "Above the Law" where Seagal introduced elbow strikes. This technique is a street fighting technique. It has nothing to do with Aikido. It's sad what Seagal had become but I will always be a big fan of his first five movies. After that it went down. He gained weight and his ego etc. went out of control.

[@fivelittlestones8602]

THe Men really Do give Credit were due , Without Segal we would not be having THe conversation.

[@QuickmixProductions]

100%, it’s TenShin Aikido by Steven Seagal.

[@josephmalone253]

Honestly wasn't a fan of his movies preferred Vam Damme and honestly didn't know he did aikido until my senses told me. I imagine most aikidoka are the same.

[@johndough8115]

Against a Fighter?! What do you think a Martial Artist is?! You really dont know what you are talking about, at all. Ive had all sorts of MMA fanboys say that Wing Chun, is Worthless garbage... and that it would never work against an MMA / Muay Thai fighter. Yet, I was sparring against these types of fighters on a regular basis.. and they were not able to get a single hit on me... while I was Lighting them up for the entire Round. That said, I also cross trained in other arts methods... so I knew best, how they functioned (as well as for the mere fun and challenge of it). This included boxing strikes, Muay Thai and TKD kicks, as well as hardcore Shaolin style Iron Body Conditioning, some Tai Chi, and a some other stuff too. Of course, when I spar, I pretty much Only use Wing Chun. Techniques are Purely Mechanical. Either they work, or do not work. Its pure Physics, and Human Anatomy. And since these arts developed these Combat methods for hundreds to thousands of years... you would have to be a fool, to think that they do not work as Invented, and Tested. Properly performed Wing Chun is similar to Aikido... in that you typically are not "Chasing" the OP down. WC's main principle, is "Safety First". As such, you tend to wait for the attacker to Enter... and then Intercept + Counter, at that same exact moment. Even in sport based sparring events... where fighters tend to try to stay just out of range... EVENTUALLY they will have to step in with an Attack. These fighters often try to do a few feints and light jabs... before throwing a fully Committed strike. Eventually, they always get tired of not Scoring on you, due to you parrying their attacks with ease... and then, they WILL step in with a fully committed attack. Its at that moment, when you have the best Opportunity, to Disable them. Of course, there are Exceptions to everything. You can force an interaction... by stepping in with a False-Punch, that isnt intended to be able to reach them... but causes them to DEFEND with their arms. This basically causes an Interception, where your limbs are touching theirs... and you can then Break down their Defenses, and Pummel away. The thing you have to understand, is that the Traditional Martial arts practitioners, USED to train much Longer, and much more Intensely. This is the Main difference, between a Sport fighter, and a Casual Martial Artist. The Casual artist, might get out of breath... after only walking up a few flights of stairs, as they are not properly "Combat Fit". Where as the Hardcore Traditional Martial Artist, has Insane Core strength, long term stamina, etc. As for the mention of all of those MMA fighters... you do realize, that most of them.. have likely never hit a person with their Bare fists, right?! And few of them have ever fought and landed On the Street / Pavement... Right?! I met an MMA fighter, whom tried the Ground and Pound, when he was jumped by a few dudes. He managed to Drive his own middle knuckle, about 1cm deep into his own fist... as a result of this Sh*T training. Why did this happen? Because the dudes head was on solid Pavement... Not soft Rubberized flooring mats, that absorb forces. Because he wasnt wearing Shock absorbing MMA Gloves. Because his weak wrist, were not braced like a Medical CAST. Because his Baby soft NON CONDITIONED FIST... was not prepared for Solid Barehand Impacts. I can hit someone in the head, without ANY such issues, because of many years of hitting a wall mounted Sandbag. Its VERY different, from hitting a soft heavy bag, with soft Mittens on. The sand just conforms to the shape of the fist.. but then immediately becomes hard as a rock. Its very similar to hitting a REAL fighter, that is charging full bore at you. Your whole body is challenged internally... from your Fist, to your Feet. Anyway... Aikido COULD be used well in a sparring match "IF" they were skilled enough to be able to apply it Correctly... and had the Patience to wait for the OP to fully commit. The Main issue, is a lack of Quality Practitioners... that are not even close to having that level of Skill. Of course, +40 different techniques, are not allowed in MMA... which severely limits combat level responses... which makes things even more Challenging.

[@Aaron_17]

Agreed, his first 5 are classics! I also love Exit Wounds and especially The Glimmer Man, have you seen that one?

[@wadoryujujutsukempo6289]

The other thing i would say is, 50% of people do not practice half of the art, what i mean is, if the attacks are not practiced, on there own and on a bag, this would enhance the practice between attacker and defence

[@dangkoen]

Mister McGrew gave great insight into Aikido and made me regain respect for using the momentum of the attacker. And yeah, it is rather ignorant of Rokas and all these MMA or BJJ guys thinking they have to "improve" Aikido.

[@tarvisponsdebeaumont794]

Rokas is either an opportunistic fake or a fool. Aikido is effective (not for every situation, like everything else): if he wants it proved, he has to find employment as a bouncer, a law enforcer or a correctional officer where they use aikido every day: Tokio police used to spend lot of money having officers participating to aikido full time training for 6 months. No other BS needed.

[@antimediaman9354]

Of course Rokas says bad things about Aikido. He's justifying his failure. He can't stand that others can possibly do it in a fight and he cant. He can't deal with this.

[@americanosbadassius9292]

I don't think you can deal with the fact that Rokas is now a competent fighter and he had to go train in a real martial art to get there. 😂 It's really easy to look competent when you're fighting the handicapped, but we're still not fooled by your Aikido.

[@Carson-pv4hr]

​@@americanosbadassius9292Rokas now with years of pressure testing having real grappling matches also striking has had actual mma fights he would fuck this guy up.. that's facts he's now had years of training and fought mma now he knows what to do in a fight.. I think this guy would get a shock if he tried to use his aikido on rokas he would get fucked up.. and that guy who rokas first met wasn't a elite pro level mma fighter.. he's not known he was just a guy that trained mma had a few fights he's not in the ufc or any big promotion he was just a guy that trained mma was smaller the lot

[@Carson-pv4hr]

3 average guys go fight Jon jones go jump him he grew up wrestling but learned how to fight kick punch submission wrestling.. guys a animal they 3 guys go jump Jon or izzy or Alex parrera shaun strickland.. go try take his wallet 🫣😅😅 use would all be lying out cold they can keep there distance they fight spar every other day against killers .. they fight trained killers they no distance try stopping Jon jones with your aikido 😂😂 this guys never sparred a legit mma fighter your aikido won't do a thing trust me .. iv only sparred a few guys one was in the ufc isn't now .. ones still fights in bellator I grew up training Thai boxing as a kid then became national champion stopped training for a few years thought I can do that 🫣 😮 no I got fucked up I fought a French guy got smashed submitted after a broken nose found out the guy was an elite black belt in judo had been to the jr Olympics and a brown belt in bjj .. I stuck to grappling after that but because of Thai boxing background I'd spar but it get heated and I relized I'm not a killer I don't enjoy getting hit and hurting people I like training.. these guys it was there life I'd land a hard leg kick see there face change 🫣 yeah it's different it's real fighting

[@ropongi1008]

I think this video might put you at odds with Rokus..This may lead to a rivalry and even a friendly exhibition with you and Rokus.

[@Love-Within]

Aikido is great. One of the deepest Japanese martial arts. It’s an honor to train and learn from the masters.

[@Martialarts1on1]

Martial arts should be formless! Whatever works for whatever situation along with heart and spirit! The “what ifs” can continue forever, weapons, ground, multiple attackers, bullets flying . Some people are pussy regardless what they do in life! Most People are also NPCs, direct products of small societies, these people will never be able to think independently or with an internal awerness. Just a replicate of whatever they see. Very important to find good instructors that teaches this to students to be individuals. No copies or robots and to think and use it for what they need it for.

[@YellowFellow86]

Respectfully to Sensei Ken in regards to weapons defense and multiple attacker's, what about Filipino Martial Arts/Escrikma?

[@danielelolli3386]

Wingchun and aikido have the same understanding yin and yang

[@AK-jb9pb]

If you attack the legs (morote gari) with your arms the aikido move with the sidestep totally works. Tryed it more times because i couldnt believe it too.

[@jonmacist]

Well Segal is combining Karate Kicks, punches as you see, plus kung fu with the trapping hands blocks he also uses nice knife hand blocks.

[@AlphonsoFrett-xz6pi]

Can you please send the link to the 2 guest speakers please

[@AlphonsoFrett-xz6pi]

42 inch long combat cane in place of a bokken 😅

[@Dan.50]

Who would you want backing you up in a barfight, Jack Dempsey or O'Sensei??? There's your answer.

[@alcottdevalte7440]

Dempsey also had a wrestling background and knew several submissions very well.

[@bryce4228]

It would come down to who has the heavier coffin.

[@wadoryujujutsukempo6289]

Rokus always tells his story about how he was mugged, and how he couldn't do anything, finally hits the guy and runs off. I have asked him lots of times, did he try to do any aikido on the guy, he has never answered, the other thing is, by punching the guy, his aiki did work, what was wrong was his thinking that he would be like seagal in an early movie

[@alexrusinko2446]

O Sensei's first book states that strikes are used with aikido. I was shown striking and blending aikido to the strike. I include strikes and kicks at my dojo. I was told how are you going to make your aikido strong if you attack weak? That was asked by Tohei Shihan when I was his otomo deshi. Ken is correct some techniques were not shown to people. The elbow example he used is correct. I can speak on that with sixty years teaching experience. Rokas is anything but a master. Look at his first video stepped into a ring and threw out the hammi and forgot all his training and tried to box the guy. Twelve - fifteen years does not make a master. In my sixty years in the art I always looked at myself as a good beginner. Hope to see you if you visit Phila.

[@VikingSamurai]

Will be out there later this month and will need to meet up with you!

[@martinlepisto2926]

Some introspection meditation could be good practise for the Aikido McDojoka who wrote that email dissing Rokas. They come of like a cult leader who is bitter their cult follower developed critical thinking skills and went his own way, and finally started learning how to fight.

[@victormeyer4116]

In order for the style to work you have to study your opponent's fighting style(s)(not eveything just the essential )and add some muscle mass and if your lucky to be taller than your opponent(s).

[@josephmalone253]

Why be taller? Isn't it true if you are shorter you can apply more leverage on techniques like shihonage?

[@victormeyer4116]

@@josephmalone253 In theory yes but in real life no!

[@fivelittlestones8602]

Marshal arts Are subjective to the attacker & Their style or lack their of in every case.

[@Byzantios1]

The BJJ trained fighter who got beaten up was Maiquel Falcão. I saw the CCTV of the gas station brawl. He and his friend were outnumbered and got the crap beaten out of them. Flacao instigated the whole thing.

[@Scorch1028]

I've seen several skilled BJJ fighters get completely owned by multiple attackers. I saw one BJJ guy initially winning a fight, then some other guy ran up and kicked him in the face, creating a gash over his eye.

[@Byzantios1]

@@Scorch1028 Goes to show, BJJ doesn't make you bulletproof like some guys tend to think. A streetfight is not the same as in a dojo or the octagon. Many learn that lesson the hard way.

[@BRUCEJJ66]

Which martial art does make you bulletproof?@@Byzantios1

[@michaelscott466]

​@@BRUCEJJ66On the street, boxing.

[@guts7958]

@BRUCEJJ66 gun-fu huh 😏

[@jtilton5]

You should check out Nishio Sensei's version of Aikido.

[@AlphonsoFrett-xz6pi]

Why not cross train with Judo? Also with the game of chess to force things is a sing of weakness.

[@RadicalTrivia]

7:12 - And the practical application is "connection" - this is how you can "predict" what your partner or opponent is doing: kzbin.info/www/bejne/foDId39nYsuqeqs

[@dwainfox3513]

Do you think the same thing would happen to Steven Segal as rocas in that situation lol

[@bryce4228]

I don't really have an opinion on aikido since I've never trained in it. But the thing about Rokus is that he never tried to make himself the face of it. And the backlash he got for questioning thing was pretty wild. There's obviously issues in some of the aikido world. Maybe he was good at it, maybe he was bad, but if he was bad at it why was he given a black belt and allowed to open his own school? At the end of the day it seems to me that aikido is just another style that, like all others, had strengths and weaknesses. No one style is perfect. People on both sides (aikido is the worst/ultimate martial art) need to get over themselves.

[@americanosbadassius9292]

It's not really about getting over oneself, as much as it is about just recognizing the facts and truth about Aikido. Most of it sucks and won't help you defend yourself against anybody but a drug addled bum. You can paint this middle of the road, zen, tell people what they want to hear picture of it all you want, but it won't change the fact that only one in 10,000 people can make that silly schitt work. Go take some Boxing and some Catch Wrestling and you'll be much better off!

[@bryce4228]

@@americanosbadassius9292 yeah, I did wrestling and BJJ before a back injury put a temporary end to training. 12 years later I'm finally able to do stuff again, now I'm doing karate and looking to start grappling again. If I had the opportunity I'd definitely try out aikido, but more for the experience than an expectation to learn useful self defense.

[@AikidoEducation]

Statements like this are so out of touch with reality. In this discussion thread alone you have former prison guards telling you they have used Aikido. I have trained with many people in law enforcement and prison staff over 30 years. Who have used Aikido. Lots of bouncers use Aikido. It's taught in the official curriculum for some of the police in Japan. I have known many people who have been forced to defend themselves with Aikido. And your advice is to study boxing and wrestling. When a smaller woman is attacked by a large and tall man, your advice is that she should try to box him? Wrestle him? And his two accomplices? Nothing wrong with wrestling or boxing but they are not the best art for every situation nor every person. In Aikido at advanced levels in the better dojos the attacks are committed and people defend against them every day. Moreover there is much cross over with boxing. In boxing you duck the punch and counter. In much of Aikido you slip or duck the punch and counter. Anyone who trains anything should be able to see this.@@americanosbadassius9292

[@keithkelly4091]

I like to learn aikido

[@East_TN_Explorer]

Rokus is just the worst! I'll say it. And everything Ken was saying is absolutely true. The Irimi Nage for example is devastating if done correctly, and especially if you want to get nasty with it and use the elbow instead.

[@georgehenley6966]

I have seen a lot of martial Arts films I don't like when people on social media pitt past martial and present agenst each other martial arts is not about that it's about self defense only if needed

[@jonmacist]

The point is it has to work on the street for real to save your life, and familys life who cares about the octagon its a sport with rules.

[@jonmacist]

Besides Seagal does the street fighting real akidio not modern day watered down version.

[@jonmacist]

So Seagal can also fight on the ground kick, low and high and has fast hands so i am sure he would do fine in a real fight.

[@antimediaman9354]

I isolated a photo that I captured when your arm was fully extended and did not see any scar at all, even when I zoomed in. Also, as I have watched you for the past four weeks, at times you extended your arm fully without any problem. This made me cringe in pain, knowing you just had surgery, and I do not think I'm alone here. So, how is it that you were able to extend your arm like that and go on to gesture and talk using it? You leaned on it and put weight on it while it was extended, while you were sitting there at your desk. Now, this doesn't look or sound like anyone that just had their bicep peeled back.

[@VikingSamurai]

I had the surgery a while ago now and am hoping to get the clear from the Dr tomorrow to actually start working out the left arm again.

[@antimediaman9354]

@@VikingSamurai It was 4 weeks ago

[@antimediaman9354]

@@VikingSamurai "get the clear from the Dr tomorrow" Take a picture of you and the doctor tomorrow of both of you flexing.🤣

[@antimediaman9354]

@@VikingSamurai What's the name of the facility where you got the surgery at?

[@VikingSamurai]

Hancock surgery center

[@ropongi1008]

BTW, what a great interview

[@georgehenley6966]

A viking sam do you ever come to nyc

[@lusitanus6504]

Trying to make aikido work in an mma match is stupid. I thought so from the beggining. Its like trying to make boxing work in a judo match.

[@Carson-pv4hr]

They done that in the 60s judo vs boxing.. wrestling vs boxing judo jene labell fought a boxer and like now boxer got taken down and submitted like in ufc 1 in the 90s .. my first judo coach started with aikido in Japan then went to a judo school kosen judo and got a wake up call he fell in love with judo also boxed in the army was a tuff guy didn't Diss aikido but said if he was in a fight his judo and boxing is what he would use and train someone if they were to be a fighter.. I started training bjj along with judo and he laughed and said that's just judo with no tachi waza.. I thought I new better and his nea waza ground work was high level kosen judo he was playing spider guard x guard.. tie me up in knots 😮 that's not judo .. yes it is I was getting taught this in the 70s in Japan 🙄🤨 ok was thinking 🤔 how can that be then he gave me a old kosen judo book from like 19.13 and there it was guys doing stuff more advanced than royce was in the 90s in 80 years earlier 😮 then I done my own research and yeah kosen judo was basically bjj guys pulling guard.. or going for throws but just to get the fight to the ground and it was advanced stuff but aikido he said only problem is you don't have guys going 100% trying to throw and submit you great art but he got a shock when he was a westerner went to judo and was getting bounced of the matt aikido it was uke let himself get thrown.. he tried that in judo just break his grips sweep him and you had to tap or your going to sleep you don't tap your arm might get snapped.. plus wee fought for our belts two guys going at it .. aikido its a demonstration of your skills with partners letting you throw them but he never dissed it

[@jonmacist]

So Akidio works on 95 percent of the people then because only 5 percent are trained fighters, or now stuff.

[@antimediaman9354]

Ok, Brian, you seem to be inviting trolling or challenges. However, you're not out there spouting nonsense or making outrageous claims about yourself. You come across as humble and down to earth. First, let's define what a troll is. A troll is someone who causes chaos without a point, or who makes irrelevant points in a discussion. It's not someone who simply challenges your views. Let's be clear about that. I agree with most of what you said. However, I believe the importance of styles in martial arts is overstated. They matter more from a business perspective. You can make money by claiming your style is superior to others. But in reality, your performance in any style depends on your skill. A great fighter can excel in any style. Conversely, a poor fighter will struggle in any style, including boxing. Boxing techniques also fail if you telegraph your moves or use exaggerated movements, similar to karate. So, it's not about the style; it's about the fighter's attributes. Take the Philly shell, for example. It's effective only for skilled competitors. It offers a slight defensive advantage. But without proper timing, reactions, and the tendency to telegraph, no technique or style name will be of any help. If you disagree with my views, I'm open to a challenge.

[@enoch5016]

Ok I would like address something you said. I have spent countless hours with Tim Witherspoon one of the greatest Philly Shell masters in history long with numerous other Philly Shell masters. Sadly some of those Philly Shell masters have been long forgotten. The Philly Shell is not a defensive. It is a concept that includes both defensive and offensive. It is a concept which encourages adaptation. I always think about Bruce Lee saying “Be water my friend”. When Tim and I explain that the Philly Shell isn’t just a defensive but a whole concept, it leaves people perplexed. We have used it to improve Karate, Kung Fu and other martial arts techniques. Believe it or not grapplers agree the Philly Shell concept is used in grappling when we explain it

[@AlaskaHaikuWarrior]

I respectfully disagree with sensei ken. Cooperative practice and lack of teeth is exactly the problem with Aikido. Aikido actually teaches excellent joint locks and throws, the transmission and practice is the problem. Theories need to be put into actual practice and application. And Rokas brandishing himself as a "Master" is comedy and the audience drinking his koolaid are even worse.

[@bligh1156]

"...so. Aikido is historically a defensive art..." "Can I ask you something here? Are you saying that Aikido is offensive, like boxing?" " No, I didn't say anything remotely like that..." "Well, can I ask you, did you mean that Aikido was invented by Austalian Aboriginals?" "No, I don't know what you mean..."

[@jonmacist]

But Seagal in the movies was breaking bones, of really bad guys that desreved it, they tried to kill him and his family so its justified.

[@antimediaman9354]

Significant surgeries usually involve pain and limited mobility, especially in the early stages of recovery. If you had recently undergone such a procedure, it would be expected that any involuntary flexing or movement of the injured arm would be quite painful. This should be noticeable in a video of you working out.

[@antimediaman9354]

After a significant arm surgery, such as one involving peeling back the bicep, there is swelling and bruising. This can make the arm appear enlarged or misshapen, especially soon after the surgery. You were right away working out with your other arm, any bandage or wrap on the injured arm should have indeed show signs of swelling or deformation. Your's did not and when you flxed it under that thin wrap you could see your bicep distinctly flex. That should have caused a great deal of pain.

[@antimediaman9354]

Getting hurt the very first day at Tims to where you had to have surgery that cost 10 grand hmm. Luckily you guys are friends cause that sounds like a law suit. I'm sure he'd rather hear that you hurt yourself anywhere else, but his gym and under his instruction because these days ya can so for anything and win or lose lawyering up is costly. The guys gotta be thinking "man I wish that happened somewhere else and he didn't publicize that it was with me". I know I would..

[@VikingSamurai]

I did not get hurt the first day and I'm not a litigious individual.

[@antimediaman9354]

@@VikingSamurai According to Brian on your show he said you were there one day. You did not correct him at all. Why would he lie?

[@VikingSamurai]

I don't remember him saying that and even if he did for whatever reason it's incorrect.

[@antimediaman9354]

@@VikingSamurai So you sparred many more days than just one? How mant days did you spar?

[@antimediaman9354]

@@VikingSamurai "I did not get hurt the first day and I'm not a litigious individual." and even if you were the counter argument would be that you had a pre-existing injury either from stunts in a movie or weightlifting and only exasperated it due to your behavior at the boxing gym.

[@antimediaman9354]

Did you previously ask your subscribers for financial support in relation to a fight you were supposed to have, either by raising money or selling tickets? And then you get injured after spending just one day training/sparring at Tim Witherspoons?

[@michaelscott466]

I have a feeling that Steven Seagal can probably handle himself in a real fight using his aikido techniques. That said, I think he is a rare exception and in most cases it is a mostly useless martial art if self-defense is the goal. This is pretty evident by the fact that you can find no actual examples of it working on the street or in the ring. The best you can find is blurry videos of a throw that loosely looks like an aikido move but absolutely nothing substantial. Even so there is probably a lot of positive aspects to aikido that could be incorporated into MMA/ overall fitness and movement.. Let's say you take 100% of aikido knowledge, my estimate would be about 5-10% of it could actually be implemented into real fighting.

[@castle6660]

You need to look up Remy and Dan The wolfman... They have the "substantial" video evidence you are looking for.

[@justinwallace269]

Ken is 100% on the money when it comes to Rokus, but i feel he should watch nore of Lenny's videos before saying things like this. Lenny is constantly going on about footwork, blending, and transition technique. That one sparring demonstration wasn't his usual Aikido. Most videos he responds to more realistic attacks with the exact same Aikido philosophy that Ken describes here, albeit more violent and realistic in Lenny's case. I wish Lenny could reapond here because he's more qualified

[@AikidoEducation]

I have seen all of Lenny’s videos and have studied them carefully. There can be no doubt that Lenny and Rokas are in agreement about everything because they said so. Lenny is not showing blending. He might use the same words. But look at what he is doing, that he argues is better. He is trying to force techniques. He tries to capitalize on being an indirect student of Seagal Sensei, but neither Seagal nor his students ever taught the garbage Lenny is showing in his videos. When he shows better Aikido, it is just regular Aikido. He tries to convince a non-Aikido audience that it's unique, different, even something he came up with, but an entering Irimi Nage is not something he or even Seagal Sensei invent. And when he does what he says is better, which is forcing techniques on someone who is trying to stop them, it’s terrible. If you don’t train Aikido you really won’t see all that is going on. Compare his dan test to what he is showing now: kzbin.info/www/bejne/e6S8mYlmqp6MkNE He went in entirely the wrong direction since then. This is just terrible and it's not Aikido: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bnSsipekpZyfZ9k If you want to understand how to deal with resistance in an Aikido way study the Oyo Henka video by Saotome: kzbin.info/www/bejne/l6HNeneIjKala6s You can’t try to force the technique. It's myopic. Aikido is the opposite of this. As O Sensei said it is the art of absolute non-resistance. Even if this it works, meaning the person eventually falls down, it's not Aikido and 1) it’s too slow and their accomplices will get you and 2) they will just get up quickly and attack you again. Being forced down doesn’t disable the attacker. Being thrown with their own momentum does.

[@justinwallace269]

@AikidoEducation You're showing the same clip they showed here, which was the worst content Lenny ever put out, and a total outlier. Part of learning is adaptation, and Lenny seems to have taken the core concepts of blending and adapted them well here. kzbin.info/www/bejne/b2WppJuMirl2Y9Esi=mzQJXvPzwLKmAtsE Are you sure you watched them all? 🤔 Just because it's not a carbon copy of classical kata doesn't mean it's bad. It means he took what he learned and applied it creatively. There is no better compliment. Aikido, like any martial art, has a different purpose in every person's life. In Lenny's case, he chose to make it practical for self-defense instead of reenacting Ushiba's choreographed kata over and over. The clips you're showing are good teaching tools but not viable self-defence. If someone came out swinging, none of these guys would know what to do - that's the only thing Rokas and Lenny agree on. Outside of that, they're polar opposites. Rokas completely abandoned Aikido without even understanding the core concepts, while Lenny chose to adapt off of what he learned. True learning isn't blind adherence. The footage of Lenny's test was only the beginning.

[@AikidoEducation]

You are calling the resistance struggle Aikido Sly showed an outlier when he himself says it’s his best Aikido. He sent it to Rokas as proof his Aikido works. And yet you seem to agree it’s garbage. The video you showed above of the kokyu variation he is showing is just regular Aikido. There are so many variations of every technique. I’ve trained in hundreds of dojos. The fact that he modified something a little is not any fundamental change. Except that he foolishly does not get off line or lead. He just stands there against an opponent who is not really coming in with any energy. So he fools himself into thinking he can just use his arms rather than body positioning. He apparently fooled you too. Let me be clear. Not moving as he showed would not work. It’s a kokyu. If you knew Aikdio you would understand what that means. It’s the same kokyu that Seagal favors. It’s uses theirs committed attack energy to lead them past. You shape them as they go past. This not getting off the line or really blending or training with real energy is the result of this focus on resistance they adopted. It’s garbage. @@justinwallace269

[@AikidoEducation]

To be clear, the video clips I submitted are very good examples by Seagal, Saotome, the Yamada student in NYC. And you are saying they don’t know how to defend themselves but sly does. It’s really absurd. @@justinwallace269

[@justinwallace269]

@@AikidoEducation - "You are calling the resistance struggle Aikido Sly showed an outlier when he himself says it’s his best Aikido. " He patted himself on the back for being able to pull off at least some moves under such crap conditions - conditions anyone can find themselves in no matter good their Aikido is. He also pointed out the low success rate in that vid, which means he's not delusional like most Aikidoka. And yes it is an outlier because most of his videos are compliant Aikido demonstrations. - "He sent it to Rokas as proof his Aikido works" No he did not. He sent it to prove that Rokas and Nathaniel were too compliant when submitting to the Aikido attempts in their video. - "And yet you seem to agree it’s garbage. " Yes, it's not good chorography... That doesn't mean it's not valuable learning. You've got your priorities wrong. As for the rest of that nonsense, apparently you bought into performative dance kata as a viable fighting method, so I wouldn't go down that rabbit hole. Did you even watch the clip I linked? Did you not see the tenkan? He uses trimmed down movements to make it faster and more direct - very much like Seagal. He explained that it was meant for tighter spaces where you can't move around as much. Again, you seem to think this is a dance routine. And hundreds of dojos?? Really? If you have to go to that many dojos then you're really bad at picking out a dojo. I did this Tenshi Age on a junkie shoplifter two years ago. Worked great.

[@Carson-pv4hr]

The guy that started aikido had ptsd and invited a martial art that was spiritual and not about hurting people him and kano the founder of judo had a relationship but judo was about pressure testing and going 100% not letting someone throw you how to snap limbs choke someone unconscious and you won thats why its in mma today throws armbars chokes ect .. aikido not so much and Olympic level judoka would destroy an aikido master in a street fight.. look at sambo ect today off shoot of judo in mma.. theres no guys you say put him in a cage anything goes fight to the death no1 is picking the aikido guy

[@martinlepisto2926]

Stop lying Ken. In the Rokas video thumbnail there was picture of Seagal doing iriminage in coreographed video i.e. fake and a picture of Rokas actually sparring in BJJ i.e. real. Rokas video was good also and Ken clearly didnt even watch it LOL. By the way Rokas actually pulled off a successful iriminage in the end. Way to play the victim Ken...

[@jb6368]

Wrist locks not allowed in ufc. Oh locks dont work lol yet arm bars get taps ffs. Aikido is not fighting,,it halts conflict.

[@DanTheWolfman]

the Fk they aren't...try learning before speaking

[@pausetapest.v8302]

Rokas is a not a very good aikido I trained in Kokika Ryu Aikido we Trained in Fighting

[@antimediaman9354]

Boxing doesn't work like it does in the ring in a real fight. People win those matches in the ring based on who is in better shape as an athlete.

[@bernardwilliams4071]

True

[@bernardwilliams4071]

Just like MMA its works in a cage a real fight is still very different

[@bligh1156]

While it's true that it doesn't work like it does in a ring, it certainly still works. Knowing how to punch and move is the absolute basics of fighting and most people don't know how to do either... nothing teaches that better than boxing.

[@jonmacist]

What are you talking about lol Boxing punches wprk in a real fight as well you can ko a guy with one punch I seen ot happen.

[@cezaryswitek6269]

I was once fascinated with Seagal and his movies. I thought that he is an honourable man who never gets embarrassed and humiliated for money. His movies were interesting and exciting for me, because he was beating his opponent in movie and he did it without opponent punching or touching him. I thought to myself finally somebody who doesn't get outclassed, disarmed, battered, smashed and doesn't allowe to massacre himself in movies like: Schwarzenegger, Stallone, Van Damme, Willis, Lundgren, Adkins and Statham. Then I have found out that in 1991 on 20th of April Seagal has appeared in episode of Saturday Night Live and he got slapped by Phil Hartman, Kevin Nealon and Tom Davis. I was watching this episode with Seagal and couldn't believe that they were slapping Seagal and he wasn't even reacting. He reacted, but the next day when he finally defeated Hartman, Nealon and Davis by using Aikido, but watching them slapping and pushing Seagal while laughing at him has made me absolutely furious and nervous. Now I understand that Seagal is a loser and life failure who for money and to be more precise for 20 millions dollars has accepted a very embarrassing and humiliating scenario of him getting bitch slapped when he played in episode of Saturday Night Live. Those people who don't believe me can watch this episode with Seagal in internet archive or either on youtube where 1 guy is showing highlights from episode with Seagal and it's called Seagal's failures from Saturday Night Live. I was disappointed, because Seagal was my favorite actor and he lost my respect. Now I have 5 favorite actors and it's a satisfaction for me. 1 of them is Matt Schulze who: completely demolished Kristoffer Kristofferson in Blade 2, defeated Seagal when they were fighting with each other by elbowing Seagal in his stomach in Out of Reach and also he was knocking out actors like: Jason Statham in Transporter, Dane Cook in Torque and Jason Batman in Extract. In my opinion Matt Schulze is so tremendous and great movie fighter that he should be called white Mike Tyson. Michael Jai White is also one of my favorite actors, because is martial artist who has been winning martial arts tournaments and he knows multiple martial arts. I have been informed that he never got defeated in those tournaments and his record was: 26-0 and also that he is trained in: Shotokan, Okinawan Kobudo, Tang Soo Do, Goju-Ryu, Chinese martial arts, Kyokushin, Jujitsu and Tae Kwon Do. I would also like to mention that Jai White defeated Seagal in Exit Wounds by kicking Seagal in his face and knocking Seagal down. Chuck Norris is another one of my favorite actors, because he defeats his opponent by punching and kicking him in movies and Walker, Texas Ranger. He is teriffic and amazing martial artist, because he knows martial arts like: Karate, Tae Kwon Do, Jiu-Jitsu, Judo, Tang Soo Do and Chun Kuk Do. He was too world professional Karate middleweight champion 6 times and that´s glorious. 4th one of them is Don "The Dragon" Wilson who was Kickboxing champion 11 times which is sensational and outstanding achievement. He also knows Pai Lum White Dragon Kung-Fu and Gōjū-Ryū Karate and that makes him even more splendid. The last of my favorite actors who really does impress me in every movie and is my most favorite actor is Ajgie Kirkland. He never got defeated in movie fight and is undefeated actor who is fabulous. He has only 10 movies, but watching him is astonishing and for me he is magnificent. I also have favorite Boxers and there are 3 of them. Ricardo Lopez who never got defeated in his Boxing career even as an amateur which is spectacular and incredible achievement, Mike Tyson who had stunning Boxing career and awesome knockout percentage of 88%, let's also remember that he knocked out and defeated Seagal in movie called China Salesman and Andrzej Gołota who is my favorite Polish Boxer. I have favorite MMA fighters too and there are 2 of them. Tomasz Narkun who is my favorite Polish MMA fighter and Michael Chandler. When it comes to Seagal I completely don't respect and trust him anymore after this slapping which he has received. He is disgusting in my opinion, because I have found out that he still supports and defends Putin even after Russia attacked Ukraine. I was even more furious with him when i have been reading that there are so many women who are accusing him that he molested and raped them. He is claiming that they are defaming him, but they answered to him that he knows exactly what happened and they would prove it already if it wasn't for him being friends with Putin which is why every evidence against him has been questioned and every charge has been dropped. Just like he was abusing his ex-wife Kelly LeBrock with domestic and verbal violence and they got divorced, because he was too violent. He should have suffered consequences, but he threatened her with his connections with mafia and she was too intimidated to speak against him in court. For me he is terrible and horrible man, because what he has been doing to those women who have been playing with him in movies likewise what he has been doing to his wife is really ruthless.

[@antimediaman9354]

I am a degreed professional, and I have never seen anyone's arm maintain the same muscle tone and size after being isolated in a cast, brace, or wrap for a month without training. This includes UFC fighters and bodybuilders who have undergone surgery for torn tendons. We have seen what their arms looked like after just one month or less.. There was significant atrophy. Additionally, I have never observed anyone maintaining their tan under these circumstances. Since what you have can be removed, cleaned, and washed, you have never showed the aftermath of the surgical procedure to us. It's very common for people to post these things and you regulary take pics of yourself.

[@VikingSamurai]

Not sure what you're getting at but I have pics of my torn bicep and obviously a quite large scar from the surgery. As far as atrophy goes, considering I have not worked the upper part of my left body for a good month, it's surprisingly maintaining quite well. I still work the right side. I'd say there's only minor degradation on the left side.

[@antimediaman9354]

@@VikingSamurai I looked around and didn't see any pics.

[@antimediaman9354]

@@VikingSamurai So a rapid recovery from a significant injury like a torn bicep or tendon with the injured arm maintaining the same size and tan as the uninjured arm, is unusual. Typically, a torn bicep requiring surgery would lead to noticeable muscle atrophy and skin changes due to immobilization and lack of exposure (affecting the tan).

[@antimediaman9354]

There is skepticism amongst Nam phans people. Skepticism often remains unless clear evidence is provided. This could include medical records, detailed images of the injury and recovery process, or consistent accounts from credible sources.

[@VikingSamurai]

Tell them I'm more than happy to have them pay my surgery bill detailing the operation if they think I'm lying, and if I don't supply them with the surgery bill as proof I had the operation in my name at the time in late 2023 that I'll pay them 10 grand. See if there are any takers.

[@KungFuTweety1]

I have lost all respect for rokus... I unsubscribed ages ago... he has no honor!

[@americanosbadassius9292]

🤤

[@antimediaman9354]

What you guys are missing with the Lennny dude is so much stronger and can effortlessly move him so what? If you are stronger and better the small guy has no chance . Look at the weak little guy he's locking up lol Have him do that against a stronger opponent.

[@johndough8115]

Size and Strength, can be Trumped with Superior Leverage /Techniques. I used to spar against fighters that were almost, if not actually, Double my own mass and strength. I severely Outclassed them. I easily parried everything they tried to throw at me... and counter Struck them over and over again. Ive also sparred against Grapplers. I Knocked out three Blackbelt level Jujitsu fighters, at their Open House sparring event... due to them being openly Disrespectful towards me (and others). Of course, my main art, is Wing Chun... which is far more advanced... than what most fighters were trying to use against me. I was also Masterclass level at Wing Chun... not some Average / Poor quality practitioner. Anyway... the point is, that when the OP fully commits, and you use the proper Technique... the OPs strength and size, doesnt really matter. In fact, it often makes the counters Much worse / more damaging... due to that extra mass energy.

[@antimediaman9354]

@@johndough8115" Size and Strength, can be Trumped with Superior Leverage /Techniques. " Of coure we should all know that, but that's not what's happening here with that Lenny dude. Anyone could do what he's doing to that dude. He's just pushing his arms around because he's bigger and stronger. You can't tell?

[@johndough8115]

@@antimediaman9354 I studied Internal Arts methods. One day I was messing around with a Karate practitioner... showing him some things... and he was like "Hey dude, take it easy". He felt I was pushing him around with too much Muscular force. I said: "Look at my hand. They are flopped over, completely relaxed"... I then had to explain, that while it FELT like heavy muscle force to HIM... that I was using a very Soft and Relaxed method... that Easily Uprooted him. I then showed him the basics of how to do the same thing. He was shocked and impressed... and told me I should be teaching this stuff. (Ive taught a few private students in the past). The point being... is that its hard to Tell what is going on... as far as "Power" goes... as power is not SEEN visibly. It has to be felt Physically, to know what level of potentials that are actually being expressed. Another example, is something like Bruce Lee's Explosive Push Demo (which is basically a copy of Tai Chi push demos, but performed with a Fist, rather than a palm). One dude that took Lees inch demo... Said that he had to call in sick from work the next day, because he was suffering from unbearable chest pains. But to the outside observer... it just looks like a mere Push. I will say, that it helps if a Soft Arts practitioner does their Demo's against a much larger and stronger OP... because otherwise, it makes it much harder for people to Accept as being "Real". A lot of times, the Sifu uses a smaller OP... because the effects are much greater. For example... pushing the smaller dude like 15 feet away... vs pushing the much larger dude... only 8 ft backwards.

[@johndough8115]

@@antimediaman9354 Part 3: This is a video clip of Internal Arts methods, being applied in a Grappling situation.. kzbin.info/www/bejne/moWzYml-hauAo9U Once you understand the previous Video Clip... you will now understand how this much smaller dude, is able to throw this much larger dude around like a Rag Doll. And how as hard and strong as the large dude tries to push his way through the smaller dude... it doesnt really effect him much at all.

[@antimediaman9354]

@@johndough8115 You don't have to convince me.I sa that video before and others like it so I know. I also had internal teachers.… But that has nothing to do with that muscle steroid head Lenny in that clip he played.

[@americanosbadassius9292]

Here's the truth ... Aikido sucks and very few people can make it work. One reason is that most Aikido schools teaching it, teach a watered-down version of it and when pressure tested, has proven to be very ineffective at helping one to defend themself. Tenshin Aikido seems to have retained some of the skills and focus that can help to make it effective and it seems to have always had pressure testing in it. Steven Seagal is one of the few people that seems to be able to utilize Aikido effectively, but he's also 6'4 and is possessed by a demon that makes him run like a girl. Regardless, he did back down to Van Damme in a street fight challenge at Stallone's, which really makes it seem like Aikido is more about appearances today and ultimately turns you into a non-fighting beeitch! If you're someone that's looking to use Aikido to improve your ability for self-defense and fight IQ then run from it quickly. However, if you're just looking to enjoy a martial art that emphasizes the ART part and to get some overall fitness, then like Tai Chi, it can probably fill a role in a comprehensive fitness program. I haven't seen a lot of actual real world verifiable truth that Aikido works for real. And, there you have it, the proof is in the pudding - Aikido is mostly fluff and puff, no real stuff!

[@neotenylv09]

"Here's the truth" *then proceeds to give his personal opinion without very little knowledge of the art*

[@americanosbadassius9292]

@@neotenylv09 Aww, did I trigger your sensibilities, fanboy? You assume I have very little experience with Aikido and you know what assuming does - it makes an azzhol out of you 🤤 When I studied Aikido, I was also studying at this conglomerate of martial arts fighters from all different styles, where we would come together every week and test different techniques. It had a few moves that worked on the street, but most of it didn't. Everything I said is true - it seems like you're adverse to the truth and can't handle it, like a snowflake. I think the biggest thing that makes my assessment true is that it will take most Aikido practitioner years to make the martial art effective, which stands as a testament to its ineffectiveness in real time - MOST PEOPLE CAN'T MAKE IT WORK - and why would anybody want to do that when you can just take Boxing, Kickboxing, Judo or Jiu-jitsu and become fairly effective in just 6 months? Besides, why would anybody want to study something so ineffective, who's most prolific figure is one that runs like a girl and has a ponytail, thus presenting as a masculin-ish woman? Aikido is a Paper Tiger - just like the brittle thin emotions possessed by it's fanboy base. Studying it might help you survive an encounter with a skinny street urchin, but in all verifiable fairness, for the most part, it'll just give you a new way to get your head smashed in, causing you to need a Safe Space 😂. Aikido is all show and no go!

[@johndough8115]

Tai Chi has like +10 different Bladed Weapons. It also has one of the highest level Striking methods, called "Fajin" (Fahh Jinn)... which translates into "Explosive Power". A master of Fajin expression, can produce LETHAL level strikes (internal ruptures), from less than 2 inches of runway / space. Meaning... you dont want to be within an Arms reach, of a Proper Tai Chi Master. The issue with Modern Tai Chi, is that the West was mostly "ONLY" teaching the Exercise based Format. Not including the combat drills, and combat applications. Tai Chi is a very deep art, that contains all ranges and methods of combat.... from long distances, to short ranges... as well as Grappling Locks and Throws. And as mentioned, also has a very in depth Weapons training program, too. As for Aikido, Tai Chi, and other "Internal" or "SOFT ARTS"... They are some of the most challenging to fully Master. Strength based Linear movements, are a lot easier for a person to understand, and perform... than Softer "Yielding" based interception methods. One might liken it to Throwing a Ball, vs, Catching one. Its much easier to be a Marksman with your throwing skills... rather than to be a professional level "Juggler". Of course, the Juggler will have far superior coordination + skillsets... and if he spent time to develop that same Marksman level speed ball accuracy... His abilities would FAR outclass the mere Marksman "thrower". Seagal was set up on a Talk Show, challenging him to the question about Aikido vs Kickboxing. Aikido is infinitely more skilled than a standard Kickboxer like JCVD... and as such, and coupled with Seagal's Narcissism... he rightly proclaimed his skills to be FAR superior to someone like JCVD. He should have been more "Tactful", to prevent JC's feeling from getting injured... as JCVD also has EGO issues. That said, the choice to walk away, or even RUN away from real barefist fights... isnt proof of a bad fighter, or a con / liar. Nothing good would have came of it. He likely would have gotten Sued, stripping most of his wealth away. He might have even gotten blacklisted out of Hollywood over it. The Public fanboys of these other fighters... would have been Screeching in hate and anger, towards Seagal... for seriously harming their Hero(s). Street fights are not like Sport fights (Over-Glorified Sparring). The resulting Injuries from real street fights, are a LOT worse... and often, create Lifelong pain + damages... and or, someone is carted off in an actual Body Bag. If you dont believe so... find enough uncensored Security footage. You will see just how many of these NON PRO fights, end with someone being "Terminated". But a Masterclass level fighter... is FAR more destructive than ANY of these Street Thugs. When you reach Masterclass level as a combat fighter... it becomes extremely EASY for KOs, and just as easy, to END a mans life. The reason for Seagal's effective level of skills in Aikido, is partially due to his Variant in it... HOWEVER... the rest of it, was due to his Hardcore level of Training. Most people in the Soft Arts, never trained long enough, nor Intense enough. Most of that have no sparring experience against other arts. Most of them have no barefist conditioning (Seagal does). Seagals height and mass, are not what make him an issue. Its his multi-thousands of hours of training, on each of his Limbs / Techs... that makes his a Masterclass level fighter... that nobody dares to try to openly Attack (despite showing up at the UFC, among many skilled sport fighters). And finally... Sport fighting isnt how Real fighters fight on the streets / bars. A sport fighter hops around like a bunny rabbit, just outside of range... being fairly careful of being tagged. They typically only fire a single attack, or a three hit combination, then quickly back away. Where as a dude at a bar, that thinks you touched his Wife behind... is charging you like a Bull, and wont stop swinging his arms... until either he is downed... or your face has been turned into hamburger meat. Most sport fighters are not used to fighting against someone like this... because they never train for that level of combat Realism. As such, you see PRO level fighters, getting Dropped by low level Street Thugs, or Jacked Bar Brawlers... despite all of their MMA / Sport training.

[@americanosbadassius9292]

@@johndough8115 I agree with you on the street fighting and sport fighting, that seems like an accurate depiction of the real world, in my experience. I also agree that Steven Seagal has a high level of mastery due to his practice in the art, with the caveat that his size also makes a difference. Someone of his size, even if he does run like a girl and has a feminine ponytail, is not to be taken lightly, whether they're drunk or not. I've witnessed that many times in bar fights that I have personally interceded in, to save fellow soldiers from, by dragging them out of scenarios where it was a shoe in they were going to get used like a mop on a floor or table of the other guy's choosing. Sustained a few minor injuries myself by doing so. I don't drink, but as a leader it's important to look out for your men and I certainly don't mind the company of a nice woman. When it comes to JCVD, Seagal would have been the poster child for exposing Aikido for what it can't do, and witnessed to the world just exactly how effective, arts like kickboxing and Muay Thai are on the street. Jean Claude would have kickboxed his ears into tomorrow, causing serious Van Dammage. With his flexibility, he's whipping those kicks out at least around 75 mph. Kickboxers can turn into street fighters real quick and it's highly likely that you'll see a form of brutality displayed on the streets that's rarely displayed in the sport, with most fights lasting less than 20 seconds. JCVDs kicks and punches would be like hammers landing against Seagal's neanderthal dome. 😂 I have a lot of experience with Muay Thai and Jiu-Jitsu and I understand the lemming-like devotion from people such as yourself, but it absolutely DOES NOT prove out in the REAL WORLD, AT ALL! I can't emphasize that enough!!! Anyone who's had the guts and integrity to try and face off against modern iterations of the martial arts, like MMA, has been shamed like The Village Idiot when they did, and were sent home like a dog with their tail between their legs! The same goes for Tai Chi. Even China's own real world fighters have embarrassed their traditional Arts masters. There's a catch wrestler that was interviewed by Ramsey Dewey that told it like it was and he relayed to the rest of the martial arts world what a joke Chinese Kung Fu practitioners are - THEY CAN'T FIGHT. PERIOD. But hey, we're still kind of a free country, so if you want to waste your time with martial arts wizardry and put your faith in things that are mostly smoking mirrors, go right ahead, just don't complain when you get your face caved in during a real fight! So, despite your assertions to the contrary, I think it's only obvious to those really following the martial arts that your aspersions are nothing more than the hubris of the delusional. Sorry man, if you're a practitioner of Aikido and presented the same challenge to a fighter in an MMA gym, you too will be beat like a dirty mongrel! FACTS!

[@johndough8115]

@@americanosbadassius9292 Part 1: Someone of his size, even if he does run like a girl and has a feminine ponytail, is not to be taken lightly - Height give superior Mechanical Advantages. Greater Mass can be an advantage, if the OP knows how to use it well. Too much mass, however, can slow movements down too much. Bruce Lee himself noticed that his movements were becoming too slow... due to his increased bulk muscle mass. After he noticed it, he stopped bulk training, and trimmed down quite a bit, to regain his speed and acceleration advantages. - As for Running like a woman.. Sadly, I used to walk like one. I attribute this to being raised by a single mother, and picking it up subconsciously. One day in the mall, some dudes made fun of me for it... bringing it to my attention. I was then able to realize the issue, and make the change. I suspect Seagal may have had a similar upbringing issue. He likely also didnt have many/any friends, to care to Tell him. I have personally interceded in, to save fellow soldiers from, by dragging them out - Very kind of you. That said, even if you thought they could win... preventing a physical fight from happening, is always the best option. Especially since a dude could always pull out a hidden weapon / razor..etc. And or, multiple people could end up attacking at the same time. When it comes to JCVD, Seagal would have been the poster child for exposing Aikido for what it can't do, and witnessed to the world just exactly how effective, arts like kickboxing and Muay Thai are - You do realize that Seagal also studied some other arts, like Wing Chun.. right? Hes used rapidfire Low kicks in the Glimmer Man, and Ive seen him use them in other demos / films. All it takes to drop a Sport fighter like JC, is a good kick to his Kneecap. Its Jab Fast, and you can land it LONG before their round kicks are even Close to Landing. - In fact, One day after sparring a sport fighter (I always held back, because I never wanted to harm him), he said that Wing Chun, and I, were Sh*T. This was long after telling him that I was holding back... and him refusing to "Respect" the techniques.. that I was throwing lightly. Well, after that I decided to give him a Tiny Taste of what I typically was holding back. He took one step towards me, and started to throw a Cross. However, as his lead legs foot planted firmly on the floor... its Kneecap was met by my Short range, LEAD leg, Oblique Kick. I only put in about 10 to 15% on that Kick. (I have more power in my short range lead leg kicks, than many fighters have from their Rear leg kicks) Dude dropped to the floor like a bag of Rocks, and started SCREAMING at the top of his lungs, and was crying a River of tears, as he grasped his knee, rocking back and forth, in utter Agony. Now, despite his former Disrespect... I was not exactly happy about this result... as I never wanted to cause that level of pain and injury. I apologized.. but wasnt sure he even heard me. - It would take about 5 minutes of this, before two dudes were able to lift him up, and hop on one leg, back to his car. He later told me, that when he got home, his knee swelled up like a Melon... and he needed tons of painkillers, to be able to deal with the unbearable pains. For some time, he had to actually Crawl up his stairs... because he couldnt put any weight on his leg. He said that it took an Entire MONTH, for him to fully recover from that Injury. And again, that was less than 20% of what I was capable of Delivering. - Mind you... this dude was almost DOUBLE my own mass and strength. You could fit 2 to 3 of my own limbs, into one of his limbs. He used to compete in Full contact competitions, all over the US... and he had a room full of 1st and 2nd place trophies, that he showed me. He lived close to me, so we used to spar each other quite often. After getting a small taste of what I was capable of... he never sparred against me the same way. He became extremely cautious of getting anywhere NEAR me... to the point where he wasnt even close enough to Land anything, even if he tried. - Now, I know that Seagal has other kicks, as well as has done extensive barefist conditioning. His fist would be like Balls Of Iron.. and JCVDs non gloved fists? They would have broke, the moment of even Partial impact, to anyones head. That said, I doubt JC would have been able to get such a hit in... because Seagal has superior Defensive skills. - Also, as far as Kicks goes... While JC has excellent "Ballerina" like Strength and Precision Control... His kicks are pretty darn SLOW. They are also extremely "Telegraphed", making them fairly easy to predict, and react to, well before they are even close to landing.

[@jonmacist]

That is what happens when you train for sport and fight for sport your not prepared fro more than 1 guy or weapons or even bigger guys there is no weight class in real life.

[@mikemaidment1936]

Dude, the mispronunciation is criminal.

[@josephmalone253]

Watched all 2 hours. Many discrepancies. Ken makes the mistake of thinking his aikido is everyone's aikido. He didn't clarify anything but added more confusion. Aikido is the art of entering. You do not want to have space between you and the opponent. The video where Seagal says " if you are too close he becomes dangerous" and then proceeds to close the gap and says "here is safe" was total gaslighting. Seagal stepped to sankaku or the " third point" which is opponent's blindspot. You stand here and stab him in neck or choke him out. Ken tells half truths. His videos show him doing iriminage and shihonage against furizuki, an outdated knife attack. Back in the day when samurai wore laquered bamboo armor you would need to lunge to pentrate the armor. You would never need so much forward momentum to stab an unarmored opponent. What in his videos is applicable to a realistic self defense scenario? It is not clear to tell. He says it is because people do not understand aikido. That sounds like code for his aikido is bunk. Yes Rokas is a fraud. It seems you replaced one fraud for another. He explained aikido poorly. It is not hard to learn or understand. If you want truth ask me specific pointed questions because over the past 10 years I have seen many falsehoods perpetrated by people, sometimes unknowingly by aikidoka themselves. Ken says you can use aikido offensively if you are very good. Well then according to him I am very good. Any first year white belt in aikido can spazz out and break an arm or shoulder. I wouldn't consider them good. Ken gets some things right but has messed up priorities. The goal is to win regardless of what Osensei or anybody else says. Every aikido technique has four very mechnical stages: 1. Enter 2. Intercept 3. Blend 4. Complete the technique All aikido moves follow this algorithm. There are different ways to enter. There are different ways to intercept, blend, do techniques. Discretion and fight iq is required to know how to respond given a certain attack. Realistically a beginner will be more brutal as they have less confidence in their skill. They think they need to brutalize their opponent to defeat them. As they gain skill and confidence they find themselves using less damaging techniques with not hurting the person at all at the highest level. In all Japanese martial arts not hurting the person yet defeating them is considered the highest level not just aikido. People just pin that on aikido because the founder was more interested in forming a religion than a martial art. Kens comparison's to boxing were way off. Nothing he does is remotely like boxing. In fact he has it backwards. Most early aikido texts list uchi shotei (palm up knifehand strike) as similar to a boxers hook punch because they are both circular in nature. This is very funny because how you deal with a hook punch and a shuto require different approaches. The argument is dubious. Moreover the point that was to be made is that the aikidoka is training to defend against hook punches using shuto as a safe substitute. It is not for tori to deliver a hook punch but defend against it. Kens bias weakens his understanding of aikido. When he said "why would you spar aikido" that sent me. Sparring is part of training. It is the entire point of randori. Randori is sparring. It was a clown statement. It sounds like his aikido is fake and he doesnt want to compare styles. Also he is teaching in Philippines which has the nicest knife arts around. Silat/arnis take the opposite approach to Japanese martial arts and start with weapons first then degrade down to bare hands mirroring what would happen in a real fight and is just more practical. In a fight it is practical to use weapons. I cant see training aikido in Philippines when silat is availible. Thats like training aikido instead of Muay Thai in Thailand. Doesn't make sense. Ken claims to be frustrated by people misunderstanding aikido and then furthers misconceptions himself. He idealizes aikido too much and misses the point. He was too generous to Dan the wolfman. That guys aikido is worse than Rokas. In fact Rokas actual aikido is quite good he just sold out for views. If you watch his early videos he teaches aikido and all the technical aspects the same way as most teachers do, probably the same as Ken. No aikido doesnt teach elbows or kicks. Ken straight high capped on that one. Then some bs about it does but people dont know because it is a secret. Thats not credible. Ken has many things fundamentally wrong about the mechanics of a fight. It is like he is just copying what someone else has said. In small circles I have heard some of the things he said repeated but it was never popular. Like if distance is close you must strike. Thats not true. Things I dont like about him are that he says he doesn't care about winning a fight which makes me think he can't win a fight. That his aikido is dysfunctional. I worked really hard to make aikido work in every situtation imaginable. Against every martial art, weapons, and multiple attackers. Kens aikido is not up to snuff. He claimed he did not care if a person was a good fighter and that aikidoka just evade and run away. Get real. Thats a joke. I cant take that serious. That is not realistic to me. I trained to stand my ground and fear no man. He teaches the opposite. I wouldnt train with him. Not what Im looking for. I want you guys to win and be the strongest. Others claim to have the best aikido or whatever but they lie. He said in mma it would be the aikidoka running away and being points deducted. That wouldnt happen. If it did then it would just be another Lyoto Machida. Im not convinced by his weak arguments. Aikido could win in mma with just aikido alone. People who do not understand this do not understand aikido. Not my job to defend japanese arts but wish someone would ask me so i could enlighten them and not have to hear frauds running around saying crazy shit. Im saying most of the negatives said about aikido are complete lies. Except cults. 50% are fight gyms, 25% mcdojo, 25% cults or dating clubs.

[@jonmacist]

Yeah since Seagals attitude which he said many times the goal is to win the fight and go home safe even kill or be killed, so to say you dont want to win the fight then why are you doing it.

[@AikidoEducation]

Try to follow along. A fight is two people trying to hurt each other in some way. If you get in a fight you can’t claim self defense. Being attacked and defending yourself is a very different thing. Aikido uses the attackers momentum. It’s even in the name. @@jonmacist

[@AikidoEducation]

Watch the videos of this poster and judge for yourself: m.kzbin.infoTeduCvULiaM Anyoone can believe they have self trained themselves to the point of perfection beyond those who have trained extensively with direct students of the founder of Aikido. Or, apparently, beyond any other Aikido practioner in the world. I’m sure he’ll have students flocking to his driveway in the near future. These ramblings are incoherent and really hard to follow much less respond to. He tries to use what he thinks are big words but can’t write a coherent paragraph. He throws around Japanese words and concepts, misapplied in most cases, to try to lend airs of legitimacy to his incoherent logic. There are a number of claims that are clearly misinformation. Randori is not sparring. He would have us believe that Seagal was deliberately gaslighting about the importance of controlling the distance. Any time anyone says something he doesn’t agree with they apparently were being dishonest about what they in fact believe. There have always been hidden applications in Aikido as Seagal stated in this interview: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qYWUmXRrfamboNU O Sensei showed strikes. It’s in photos and on video. Seagal and Saotome Sensei have taught elbow strikes in Aikido since the 1970s. it’s on video. Look it up. Atemi is used in most styles of Aikiido. More importantly, many of the throws in Aikido are strikes. They just dont’ look like the strikes people are used to seeing. Saying that Aikido is not defensive and based on concepts like blending is bizarre given any demonstration of proper Aikido, like in the video with Seagal Sensei, and in the fact that the name Ai Ki Do translates as blending and joining with energy. It’s really bizarre that he says Rokas’ Aikido is quite good. Compare Rokas: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rpnQh32lfsdlrqs with a student of Yamada: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gZrLmomvZc6haqc who is showing a rather standard version. Judge for yourselves. We can’t compare his Irimi Nage at speed because Rokas has never shown or probably trained Irimi Nage at speed. The fact that this poster can’t see the difference means he is not an experienced Aikido practitioner. The poster claims that he can stand his ground against multiple attackers. He has obviously never trained randori: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eofWXmCrfctnqac With his amazing abilities it’s surprising Joseph doesn’t have any students who are not invisible. There will always be people who don’t know what they are talking about but need to find affirmation in making posts like the one above. The problem is the ways that all this misinformation hurts the art. Don’t just trust what any annonimous person says on the internet. Look at the actual videos. Scrutinize the claims. It can be hard to understand some of what you see in Aikido when you have never trained at a good school. Then when people with very legitimate backgrounds try to explain things for a general audience there are these charlatans who will claim the legitimate teachers should not be listened to. How is the non-martial artist or non-Aikidoist to know who to believe. Use your eyes and your critical thinking skills.

[@jonmacist]

@@AikidoEducation you just said defending yourself from attacker is self defence, and that is true that is what the real essence of martial arts was meant to be for, not for sport or for money, unless teaching, but you can still be fighting for life, and it is still a fight you are trying to go home not hurt and are gonna have to hurt your attacker in doing so.

[@jonmacist]

@@AikidoEducation must not train lol if your sucker punched, then your in a fight because you likely have to defend your self, a fight by defintion is 2 people exchanging blows get a webster dictionary.