MAKING AIKIDO EFFECTIVE | Featuring LENNY SLY and ROGUE WARRIORS • Modernize Aikido

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This is the preview episode for upcoming KZbin show "Modernize Aikido" where I will be connecting with various combat experts, pro fighters and experienced martial artists to look at flaws of Aikido and to elevate it on a practical combat level to modern times.
This episode features The Rogue Warriors compound and it's founder Lenny Sly Sensei.
Check Lenny's KZbin channel:
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Check Aikido vs MMA real sparring video:
► • Aikido vs MMA - REAL ...
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[@Aikidoflow]

Love the connection between you and Lenny, its been well over due..this represents 'East and West starting to talk, this is the start of some great things...Fantastic Video.Jason.

[@alexandrefrancisco5369]

first one question...what is the experience of lenny in Mma? or in other combat sports? second....lenny said to you in this video to enter.... to go inside the atack... i told you this so many times in my comments ... in your mma fight video you never entered.... butt you just respond to comments that do not criticize you

[@alexcorsair9339]

Alexandre Francisco Lenny was a bouncer for many years before opening his own dojo together with Dominic Izzo. They both seperated after that and he open his own which what you saw on this vid.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Alexandre, I do respond to comments that criticize me. Trust me, I receive about 30 comments each day and many times I hear the same things. If you say something that somebody said to me 10 times, do you feel I will feel an importance to respond? I know about irmi, yet sparring is so much more than just that. I am working on it, you can trust me

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thanks Jason! Yes I think so too. Well over due and boundaries getting taken away :)

[@alexandrefrancisco5369]

AikidoSiauliai thanks for your answer.

[@davidperry8518]

Rokas, I lost faith in you at first. But you are proving me wrong. I am looking forward to seeing more of your work. Thank you for putting yourself out there. You have a lot of humility, in a good way.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thank you David. I am happy to read your words.

[@kennethroche230]

This is exactly what we needed in the Aikido world! Hopefully this is the beginning of the evolution of Aikido! Thank You gentlemen for the collaboration.👍🏼

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thank you

[@PauloAbreu]

Spectacular video! Thank you!

[@Popcorn_Assassin]

Awsome. I dont know if it was my fist of my previous comment on your summery video that let you to Lenny Sly or if you knew about him before that. Either way this is like a dream coming true where masters share their knowledge and improve together on it :D. Instead of competing or point fingers at how bad someone is in comparison to themselfes or other styles like BJJ or MMA ect. There is always more than 1 potential solution to 1 problem so why not explore that :D? I look forward to see more of you and Lenny Sly training if you share more of this. Many times thanks you.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thanks! This was an idea for a while now, but of course every comment puts more weight into doing it. I really enjoyed the positive nature and potential of this video as well! We are looking and making more videos together :)

[@MartialArtsJourney]

And yes, if all is OK I will release a full version of this video too

[@Popcorn_Assassin]

Awesome cant wait :P.

[@Popcorn_Assassin]

Good idea. Maybe you can create and demonstrate Aikido counter tactic against gap-closers and takedowns from BJJ fx. Those are the greatest threats against all striking or standing arts out there. The art of staying on your feet against a skilled BJJ opponent. Solve that and change the world of Aikido. Good luck :D.

[@qjz123]

The thing is you need to compete to find out what works and what doesn't. The easiest way to be ready for a real fight is to really fight. This is what professional MMA guys do. It isn't just about ego, or about my technique being better than yours. It's about testing to see what works and throwing everything else away. The most efficent path to sucess= the best path.

[@alexanderdeleon4242]

Awesome!! Keep seeking knowledge!! Those who seek shall find.

[@aliasvectoraliasvector246]

Fantastic.

[@takeshinharmony552]

That first deflection is called hiki te in our system, not new but certainly valuable. If you check real kenjutsu, these deflections are there. Use limb destructs and low line ballistic knees and kicks to destroy the teki's base. At least you are really trying to examine things.Looks like you will do well with Lenny .

[@takeshinharmony552]

much of these discussions are happening within sections of the aikijujutsu world. You may wanna check there too.

[@jacobmartin2010]

#1 problem with Aikido (imo): attempting to grapple in the boxing range.

[@driver3899]

6:43 Here we see the reason traditional martial arts dont work in the ring, and often not on the street. The "attacker" leaves his arm extended while the sensai does a long fancy technique. Boxing punches do not work like this people. Almost anyone trained to throw a punch will be able to bring it back by the time that first block has happened. On the street, punches are usually not as straight in and out as a boxers but are thrown so fast and so often that the flurry would just shut this long winded technique down before it even got going. This is not even considering that boxing teaches to step right after throwing a right punch so this would never work anyway. And if you try this hand deflection stuff on a left jab then a double jab or a faint and then a jab would destroy you as you tried to move rapidly forwards (into the next punch) to get into position for a throw. Its painfully obvious this sensei has not been in many full contact situations because his head is always straight up without protection. I would have prefered to see this instructor doing these against punches in an actual sparring situation and preferably against someone who was a trained striker to prove that yes they do work against someone actually trying to punch you in the head. Otherwise what are we even seeing here? Its just another guy doing a "punch" when given the go ahead, then pausing at the right time and falling over for his instructor. It's just another fantasy.

[@dejohnnelacy254]

If lenny thinks this shit well work in a street fight hr should try this on a boxer. But I hope he has good health insurance.

[@ricksterdrummer2170]

@@dejohnnelacy254 It’s a demo of a technique. People punch with even more straighter arms and more stationary in Karate, yet I don’t think anyone doubts a guy like Lyota Machidas fighting skills. Think outside of the box...

[@dejohnnelacy254]

@@ricksterdrummer2170 most of that of that shit in self defense type martial arts like karate kung fu tea kwon doo an especially Akido would never work on a trained killer. Must of that shit only works in people who dont know how to fight

[@dielain]

What about nishio? Seems You forgot him?

[@ricardoislas5508]

Isn’t this a boxing technique?

[@enlightenone4284]

This is amazing, I'm so happy this happened. This is really good for Aikido

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thanks! I believe so too

[@Momsspaghetti777]

A lot of what I've seen was the discussion of "how to make aikido effective" and very little training All I know is that you can't argue against the fact that if the MMA guy wanted to he would have defeated you in real. You accept this. Now how does that MMA guy train? SPARRING. Simply get your buddies, start at a neutral position, maybe you both have hands down, both have hands up, hands touching I don't care. Then try to go for a joint lock, choke, or take down by any means possible that doesn't involve striking. It's real simple. Later on you can include scoring systems and keep track of who wins, maybe you can use this take on aikido in some MMA sparring sessions, so on. The main problem is there is no pressure fighting. So give pressure

[@Momsspaghetti777]

00RIPTOR thank you!

[@mikebarkerstudio]

Reverting aikido back to jujitsu

[@thebigbadwolf904]

Wrong aikido and jujitsu derive techniques from judo it would be aikido deriving back to judo

[@mikebarkerstudio]

@@thebigbadwolf904 jujitsu came first. Judo and aikido are derived from japanese jujitsu. Kano and Ueshiba both came from jujitsu backgrounds. Both removed the more brutal and dangerous techniques in order to modernize it and make it safer to practice.

[@vilimikkola2545]

I absolutely love (as an mma/grappling guy) that you're actively searching for new ways to train and expand your knowledge on martial arts! But I still see a fundamental flaw in your method: starting from a standing position (no movement) and basically with a partner without much experience on striking, which admittedly is only a minor flaw. Standing instead of moving around removes most possible angles that the attack can come from, apart from that one you're standing in. Keep working your art, I believe the mma community has a lot to learn from you :)

[@jasoncarter5103]

So happy to see other people working with Lenny! I love seeing how effective he can apply Aikido to real scenarios!

[@corionestrickland6229]

This is a really dope collab. Its always good to see two different aikido schools showing people that aikido can work on the streets. I've been watching Kenny's videos for a while and gave me a different perspective on Aikido. I was training aikido for 5 years under Haruo Matsuoka Sensei. So now I see both the traditional aspect and the street aspect of Aikido.

[@sivinrosado2307]

This is a great mesh of two different perspectives meeting in the middle. I've been following both you and Lenny for a long time, implementing both of your teachings to compliment my own movements, body type, etc. Kudos Sensei Rokas!

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thank you!

[@hattorihaso2579]

the problem imo is your partber isnt really trying to punch you he is pumching mext to your face thst way you will never learn

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Actually my partner was going for it. Specially one of them. It's just the same strike, which makes it easier to work with

[@wadoryujujutsukempo6289]

I agree ,It looks like he punching to one side of your head, and beginning to move more to one side the more practice went on. Once your used to it, put the attacker in boxing gloves, and you wear a head guard, that way both od you will benefit. At the end of the day none of us want to hurt our partners.

[@TechTVusa]

It is still a dog and pony show since when confronted on the streets you have multiple angles of attack to worry about. I think you are going backwards instead of forwards with your videos in the this episode.

[@SLYSCOMBATIVECONCEPTS13]

adobePC Actually I think you have no idea what is being taught here. So how about you shut the fuck up and make your own video and put it on KZbin for the whole world to criticize. I bet you don't have the balls to do it do you. There's this saying.... Don't let anyone tell you what to do especially when their doing nothing. So make a video or keep your bullshit inexperienced comments off of this post.

[@TechTVusa]

I could start by making video of myself kicking the crap out of you. How does that sound?

[@johnnyvarila821]

Why not just train Krav Maga, defendo, kajukenbo, hapkido etc. when looking for a harder style? It confuses me why there is this need to keep the “street stuff” under the aikido umbrella when aikido is very much established as a soft art. If you make it harder don’t you end back up with aikijujutsu?

[@warriormanhasdied6479]

Johnny Varila Breaking a joint is more devastating than getting punched.

[@TheChadavis33]

This is fucking AWESOME

[@Seadiver-]

Great collaboration. Between Aikidoflow in the UK, Roguewarriors in the US, your channel, Roy Dean, and so many others, you all show Aikido can evolve without loosing its martial principles. So thank you, great project, glad you finally connected with Lenny. Cannot wait to see more. Bravo.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thanks!

[@jordanpeakofficial]

How to make aikido effective - go and take wrestling, judo, sambo or jiu jitsu classes and then go back to your aikido class and forget everything you have learned from aikido lessons and just use all the stuff you learned, drilled and sparred in the useful grappling disciplines. Now aikido is actually useful!!

[@funnyfatrat1167]

Love your journey Rokas! Been watching Lenny Sly for a while. Hope you have more collaborations with Lenny.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thanks. We are planning to have more!

[@agcb8969]

Hi, nice video. Before all, best regards. Now, my humble opinion is, that there is no silver bullet to solve all the challenges the life presents to all of us. I think that martial arts are like tools, you need to implement the right one, at the right time, on the right problem. You do not use a scalpel to cut the grass at your front yard. Aikido es great for solving minor issues in a kind of pacific way. It is a preemptive tool. Every big fire starts with a spark, a match, a cigarette, you only need to step on it to finish the matter. On the same way you do not finish a fly with a bazooka. That been said, nor MMA, UFC techniques, etc., is 100% effective at real life street situations, where there is no cage, rules, referee, 1 on 1, or clock. Confronting Aikido vs MMA is pointless, normal people walking out there on the streets, are not MMA fighters, boxers, krav maga experts. Instead Real bad people use weapons, not their hands or feet, it is a matter of a few seconds and everything goes south at 200 mph. So I would suggest studying lots of real life confrontation incidents recorded by security cameras, looking to understand how our preferred Martial Art fits in to prevent or prevail on those situations, and then adapt, evolve and practice a lot. Peace and respect.

[@hizzlemobizzle]

I love to see Aikido evolve, but I don't feel that the philosophy or what you call "love peace and harmony shit" needs to be removed from Aikido to make it effective. I trained striking arts for many years before I began Aikido and my philosophy was always peaceful. I see no conflict with training hard and believing in the founders principles. As your training progresses you should become more confident and less aggressive toward the outside world.

[@rokkvi1]

Seems to me this is still pretty much just compliant training or at most just repetitive drills. To show that this works it would need to be done in a live sparring session.

[@TheWildBuckOutdoors]

Im pretty sure he will do it later.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Valentin is right. This is just one step, looking at Aikido from a developed, yet different angle. There will be much more than just this video

[@rokkvi1]

I hope so. Otherwise it doesn´t really mean anything.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Trust me :) I'm already doing much more than the videos show. I'll share it in videos as well in future

[@rokkvi1]

Good. I think you should do some Judo too because in many ways it is more similar to Aikido than BJJ is, since Judo is mostly about throws and pins and short groundwork, while BJJ is more about longer fights on the ground.

[@craigbolton5949]

Lenny Sly the best in the business we're working on getting him into a Roadhouse movie he'd be great in it Roadhouse 2 starring Lenny Sly and company hey Lenny since I'm pushing for this Roadhouse 2 don't forget to give me a part of the movie Lenny I'm smart talented animated quick-witted tough good sense of humor and I like the camera something very important in show business and boy what a show this would be a box office hit

[@H4I2I2EE]

Good job man. You picked it up quick cuz you already understand Aikido principles/techniques since you've been training for while. I am the same way if I go to a different dojo; I open my mind and assume someone is going to teach me something new.You can tell Lenny actually fights or does boxing cuz he has a broken nose. hehe

[@jodywarrender2849]

Been watching both your channels for a long time, I’m suck in the same predicament, Looking to expand my skill set to become more effective when required! Excited to share the journey. Got a lot of love for Lenny, pity he is state side! ( im in the uk). Many thanks to you both for sharing.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Well, I am in Europe as well, yet our circle here is expanding. I am sure we will have something good going in our part of the world soon enough

[@alexcorsair9339]

This is a great Vid. I will share this to others. No worries. Let us all help bringing Aikido to the next level.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thank you! Yes, let us do it everyone together

[@yusufuddin2988]

Fantastic video. Good job guys. Very educational and informative.

[@afiqsince86]

theres gonna be more collabs with lenny? im giddy~

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Yes, more will be made!

[@cerotidinon]

And the guy you are training with... he doesn't aim to hit you at all. You really need to work on that.

[@xzbit34]

Awesome video Rokus. I’ve been following Lenny for a while now and he is definitely the truth. Keep putting out these quality videos buddy.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thanks. I'm happy you enjoy Lenny's videos. He is very great!

[@Boyetto-san]

Seeing this vs. seeing your recent development by 2018, one thing you may have forgotten from this experience is really the difference between ringsport and self-defense. Surely, Aikido can benefit to be modified to work in a realistic self-defense situation. But when you tried and failed to adapt it to a ringsport setting, maybe you took it too far as a sign that Aikido failed you when in fact it just wasn't the right context to make Aikido workable. Like Lenny said, you're not in a situation where your facing someone in a sporting contest where you're protecting yourself at all times. The difference between MMA and self-defense can't be stressed enough, even when many enthusiasts tend to simplify that being good at one means being good at the other. Unfortunately, self-defense isn't something you can isolate into a competitive environment like an sparring session. The very moment you turn it into a contest where the objective is to win under a set of rules, it is no longer self-defense. I think it's important that you make this distinction as you move away from Aikido to learn the basics in other more sporting forms of martial arts.

[@Lazerecho]

Love peace and harmony sh*t. Love it.

[@Devontaye]

Oh yea, here we go. :D:D:D

[@alrey1538]

Wow, Lenny almost made it through this video without cursing! I do like his videos for they are very insightful, but can’t show them to our younger students and my instructor doesn’t like his over-the-top vulgar attitude...but he definitely cleaned up his act for this one...for the most part, any way! Keep up the great work Rokas, this is great stuff you are doing!

[@baldieman64]

Totally agree about accessibility for younger students but swearing and aggressive posturing are part and parcel of street confrontations. It's used to instil fear. If you can't cope with that, you will neither be able to explore de-escalation options or manage an actual physical confrontation.

[@AZTigerMMA]

That’s was cool.i do appreciate him as well but please continue MMA and Bjj this will also improve . I can see its benefit but get that Mma Bjj bro

[@JutassicPark]

Thanks so much for this video. This really means a lot

[@arjaysales7083]

we're all one in aikido... my respect to all of you!

[@claredin]

I love this collaboration! I've always been impressed by the Rogue Warriors people.

[@SLYSCOMBATIVECONCEPTS13]

Clare Din Thank you Clair.

[@a1b2c3d4e5f6g7h8i93]

Awesome Rokas. Next try those in mma gym. I look forward it... we all do

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thanks. Exactly, that is what I am planning to do :) Hopefully this weekend

[@rpesik]

Like your spirit to modernize aikido. Something that me myself am trying to modernize my karate. Oss!

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thanks! All the best in your journey

[@mako2534]

As always, really excited for these. Do you think you could collab with fighttips? Also, PhilUp has a wing chun channel, a collab with him would be awesome.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Hi Makoto! I will look into collaborating with them :)

[@СергейП-к7х]

Cool video, keep going. BUT: what we have learned? Dont trust to authority: Leny give somthg? Go and check it "in fight". You have great background so i think you will learn all new stuff very very fast but dont waste time on bullshit. To this training i think that the first few movements was realy cool (but what about different angles?) but lasts (about elbow)... i think those wouldn't work. So be not afraid to said: Thx for all, but this is good & this is crap. And keep going, this is great deal.

[@stanleyjohnson3219]

This is great! no flowery techniques just honest practical stuff absolutely love Lenny Sly The Rogue Warrior

[@optimusmaximus9646]

Great video. My comments may not be relevant any more as this is an older video, however the only (but necessarily bad) thing I have to say is that Rokas - who is an exceptionally kind person - is not aggressive enough. I know he gave up Aikido for a while to go get some experience with live training in other martial arts, e.g. BJJ, to pressure test his aikido skills, so I hope when he returns to Aikdio (if he hasn't already) he will be more assertive and forceful in his approach to training. One thing I love about the "hard styles" of Aikido such as Tenshin is the dynamic and vigorous, almost brutal, way the techniques are executed. The soft approach to self-defence and fighting just doesn't work. Being too nice and passive, which seems to be encouraged in the softer styles of aikido, can get you killed.

[@Artahe]

I like that. Modernizing aikido by making it viable in real life situations. I hope you get more publicity because you deserve it.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thanks

[@Aikibiker1]

Nice concept. You should also work with Aikidoflow and Dan from Catchjitsu. Dan has some video of him competing in MMA and using Aikido techniques as well as similar drills to what Lenny was showing you. And Aikidoflow has some great stuff and they really put in the work to test against resistance.

[@RiggadonDan]

I love where this is going. Nice job!

[@TomBentsen]

I feel like i'm witnessing something new and important happening here and i'm very excited to see how this develops! More of this and i'm moving to join you guys ;) Thanks!

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Yes, I feel it is something important growing too :) Thanks

[@kristallpirat749]

I also welcome the coop with Lenny. Internet is such a great connector ... (so yes, I want to see more like this please)

[@SRVGH34]

Great experience. keep going. However i think that the power of the "modern" martial arts reside more in their training methods than in their techniques by themself. In this (again very positive exchange) you experiment new techniques, but i'm afraid that the training method used is too similar to the classical training method in Aïkido to really make a difference. You must add a kind of pressure test in the mix, a kind of drills training to automate certain kinds of movements in your body. I regret i didn't see this kind of things in your video. But again a big up for your work and your spirit.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

I agree with what you say, that is also where I look at the more I am studying this subject

[@SRVGH34]

I would add that the very fact that you seem to learn very quickly what Lenny teaches you proves that you use the same neuronal connections that you use in your régular aikido training though you experiment new techniques. You are not getting out of your confort zone, you are not creating new connections in your brain. Maybe you should try to see the techniques you usually use with modified training methods. Techniques learning represents maybe 1/3 of a BJJ course. The other parts are drilling and applying on a live resisting partner.

[@TheShinobiMushroom]

This video is all i was hoping for. Thank you both for doing this for all of us.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

Thanks. I'm very happy this happened too

[@Maxime_L91]

Love both channel, never thought they would collaborate. That was awesome.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

This was a good surprise :)

[@reginaldscot165]

I'm disappointed you decided to turn your back on Aikido rather than leaning how to do real martial Aikido/Aiki-Jujitsu. You spent 13 years on doing an Aiki dance and not an effective style.

[@jsngill]

The fundamental flaw in all Aikido technique is the lack of a sincere attack. No intent in strike = No proper technique.... too many Uke's punching like they are half asleep, then giving away their centers. Then, if you don't give away yours, inevitabely, someone will say you're "fighting" and you need to "relax". WTF???? Relax when I am TRYING TO KILL YOU??? If you want to modernize Aikido, throw out every Uke who does not punch with the mindset as though he wants to break the other person's nose (please not - I did not say to ACTUALLY break the nose, but at least punch like you intend that!!!)

[@davidwayne9982]

I LOVE THIS-- FINALLY- Aikido is FREED from the BULLSHIT of " peace and harmony" meaning you don't HURT the guy.. it DOESN"T.

[@multipass613]

But I wanted to note. Lennys philosophy on real combat is spot on and I commend his efforts to create as effective a system as possible.

[@davidwayne9982]

THANK YOU-- finally some TRUTH in Aikido.. and how to make it WORK-- this man KNOWS>. and can TEACH it-- Not many can do both well.

[@VenturaIT]

Interesting that so few seem to know... these drills come down the Tohei lineage... we also learned them from an old-time Japanese-American Aikido teacher. Yes, he was in Seagal Sensei's first movie, too, but he was senior to Seagal Sensei. But few people seem to know that the Aikido official lineage was given to Tohei, not to the founder's son which is traditional... so the modern Aikikai is not the official lineage from the founder of Aikido, Sly Sensei comes down the Tohei line through Seagal Sensei, that's why his Aikido actually works and most Aikikai Aikido simply does not work. The Aikikai started with the founders son who wasn't that into Aikido, he spent more time with the books and the marketing. This is why Aikido is getting such a bad name in current days. These historical facts needs to be well known. One extra thing with this technique is the more things you do with your hands the more the entire attack slows down allowing you to be calmer (in the mind of the nage.) If the water is in the wrong river it can't reach the same destination.

[@TheENoel8]

This is great. You two are the future of aikido My recommendation is get someone who can punch with better form to add to the validity of the technique. More videos please!

[@mattjennings5864]

you should learn about boxing and mma techniques and find their weaknesses! I suggest you watch this SSBD Guru's videos kzbin.infovideos and this is SSBD against a boxer's jab kzbin.info/www/bejne/j3-mnWVnrbZojac.

[@multipass613]

I am loving all your videos and commend your journey. I can tell you without any hesitation that all these techniques will fail horrendously. They fall apart as soon as your opponent punches kicks or grapples in any unanticipated speed, angle or feints. Continue your learning my friend!

[@marcusstoica]

Dude, this channel and what you're doing here is history in the making.

[@deadlypalms]

Great stuff and a bold quest. Very well done. Aikido is brilliant, but it would be wrong to think it can compete with other arts in competition when it is so specialised i.e. perfect for pre-fight situations where you're in a grabbing scenario. Rogue guy seems to be adapting it to more scenarios with good results and I'd look to the BJJ template for establishing a new way of training it i.e. building resistance and use 'position before submission' principle, working from an aikido 'clinch', perhaps borrowing from Judo to establish types of clinch/grabs. Of course, work a hypothesis developed as you're doing now, test against a variety of fighting types, then back to the drawing board...theory>test>modify theory loop.

[@moneymagnetismnetwork]

Unfortunately the person the asked for advice gave up on learning to practice more aggressive Aikido and joined MMA claiming Aikido is not effective. I hate to say it but he does not exhibit someone with a warrior spirit he's too um... delicate? (For lack of a better word) He needed to learn to fight and not be so Traditionally Akido. Mr. Rogue has that the "eye of the tiger" lol. Big difference. I don't think the other guy that asked for advice is a badd person or fighter I just thinking he didn't seem willing to truly adapt to the alternative rather than just giving up the school and saying I'm going to MMA. MMA isn't everything but people act like it is.

[@BloodofPatriots]

Making Aikido Effecive. Step #1: Wear street clothes. Step #2. Remove the mats. Step #3. Loser pays for the tacos. HAJIME!

[@chriswilcox8977]

Our Soke, who is Japanese and has trained in Koryu JJ for about 60 years, has always said that the lower hand position 'in defence' rather than raising them like boxing etc. is because traditionally they were then close to your weapons, being the katana/wakazashi etc. - it does stand true though, that as RW say, nobody walks around the 'street' with their hands up all the time either :) Never come across the RAM concept directly but from the perspective of how your arms and hands move from around waist height up to the incoming punch etc., you can intercept timing better.

[@MrMrbrianbechtel]

I feel like this is going to end up being BJJ, with a perhaps more gentle philosophy... In fact why don't you guys just go get your black belt in BJJ then adjust the philosophy, take out the killing maiming techniques (not that there are really any) and call it a day... trying to learn a martial art via Skype and create a new one seems like it's gonna take 1000 years and you will end up looking exactly like BJJ...

[@bridinwitu897]

In the book "The Art of Peace" translated by John Stevens. On page 49 (depending on your version) Morihei Ueshiba says: "Even though our path is completely different from the warrior arts of the past, it is not necessary to abandon totally the old ways. Absorb venerable traditions into this new Art by clothing them with fresh garments, and build on the classic styles to create better forms." I believe he was a true master of human mechanics and understood more than most, that a fighters ability isn't limited to just their knowledge of techniques but also their ability to adapt these techniques and blend them with new ones to meet an ever changing environment / world. In my opinion the true nature of Aikido can be found on page 95, speaking on never attacking... The meaning being that in Aikido we respond or defend / deflect and do not initiate attacking others. Not that we do not fight back, or that we shouldn't. I think what you and your fellow Aikido / MMA practitioners are doing is great and I look forward to seeing you recognized in the future as one of the founders of a modernized competitive form of Aikido in the fighting / martial world.

[@M1984FA]

I call BS on it. Just more souped up Aikido like the Serbian "Real Aikido" nonsense. Why not leave Aikido alone for what it is.... a nice conceptual and health exercise like Taichi. Wanna fight? Train MMA.

[@falco.pellegrino]

I always thought these were “normal” Aikido techniques. My Sensei has always been for practical Aikido and so I always assumed that these types of techniques were taught in most dojos and I didn’t really understand why so many people say that Aikido is useless or ineffective. Just curious about how everybody else sees these and what they think about them. Let’s not forget too that O Sensei had some very effective and powerful techniques, so Aikido can still be about peace, unification and love even with powerful and strong techniques. Also, in my opinion removing meditation from Aikido and minimizing the importance of ceremonies like the tea ceremonies eliminates the entire spiritual side of what O Sensei intended the Art to be. Granted, O Sensei was not a god and even he could be wrong, but if one was to study his works and his life they would surely see the importance of the spiritual dimension in Aikido alongside the very powerful and even painful techniques.

[@AbdulRashidCovers]

Question to Lenny Sly. Speaking from my limited training in full contact karate, don't you think you should post some sparring videos ? From my experience, doing drills like this and then trying to apply them in sparring takes a lot of time. From what i have seen so far in your videos, especially techniques that deal with unarmed attacks, you have just posted drills. No sparring at all. In my opinion, just doing drills alone without any sparring is quite inapplicable.

[@dielain]

What about nishio? Seems you forgot him? ?????????

[@dielain]

Plz reply

[@JaDe-eh1wp]

I agree. My Sensei Stephen believes Aikido should evolve and O Sensei believe that as long as we continue the circular movement, it remains Aikido...I'm down with the modernization of Aikido. sign me up...

[@IndianaNaturalDog]

If I could change anything in this video, I would have your uke's actually punch at your face, instead of aiming off-center. I am guilty of this too when I train: its easy to direct the punch offline instead of actually at the target (i.e. your face). We are in danger of training with unrealistic attacks. However, if uke sends a real punch at the target, then your practice of deflection becomes a bit more real and applicable. Just my two cents. Otherwise, a great lesson for all of us aikidoka!

[@Arcangelthe1]

This..this is the aikido that is needed, in order to actually call aikido self defense. Been training aikido for almost 9 years now, and the style os just flooded with to much basic and fluff, that really has no place in a dojo, that claims it is teaching self defense. My dojo is all about the teachings of Saito sensei, and I am sure he was very skilled, but has a way to big focus on doing basic techniques and techniques that obviously would never work, mostly because the attack is either completely ridiculous or the techniques itself is just flawed. The problem is that this is almost a taboo, and not just in my dojo, but in the aikido world in general. Aikido can be so much more, but it needs to start moving forward. The work you guys are doing, is just what is needed, so keep it up :-).

[@FrancisMaxino]

I have used a Chin-Na Shaolin defence against an obviously advanced Aikido guy trying to wrap my arm behind my back and it spun him upside down onto his back without knowing what had happened, he sprang back onto his feet and said Oregato. Aikido does not have the monopoly on wrist grabs and arm joint manipulations.

[@martialartsclub2032]

"Train with your hands down." That's the worst advice I've ever heard.

[@kotodama56]

I'm happy to see a young man such as you and Lenny so deeply involved in the art. I'm an old fart; I've been doing Aikido for over thirty years. In that time, I've seen a once proud martial art gradually devolve into a metaphysical thought exercise. This is wrong. I hope you guys can turn it around!

[@scottespinoza6576]

Hello. Not sure how soon this comment will be read if read at all but I want to take the time to respond to this subject of modernizing aikido. I have been practicing techniques for fighting that have derived from the founding principles of aikido for 15 years. I have developed training drills that have helped several students understand how to understand what I call subtractive defense of moving out of harms way just enough to establish dominance over an opponent's unbalance and then understanding the different levels of exploitation of that unbalance. How can I share these techniques with you sir?

[@werolljudo8401]

I'm a judo teacher, once I had a student from aikido he is black belt quite good, when free sparring I always saw him using some kind of hand locks( it's illegal in judo but we let students be more free in our gym out of the comp rules), those hand locks always come on the beginning of the kumi kata, so I think one thing aikido might can merge with bjj or judo is how to block and intercept grips with some hand locks，I really think the aikido community should merge with bjj and judo making this whole thing rich.

[@WolfKenneth]

From what i saw Lenny didn't want to hit You his attacks were thrown in a way to not reach/hit. Its ok to see how your body has to move but its not preparing you to sparring or real fight. After you train yourself in reactions ask him to choose timing of attack and really hit you on full speed (maybe not full force) his intent is to hurt you. It can't be 1-2, 1-2, 1-2 because you are not chopping wood but fighting, there is no 1-2 rythm (sometimes when you both get perfect techniques it does look and feel like it tough) its more like "hey dude you got light?" bam jab in the face, other time it will be straight jab without intermission, sometimes there will be some hand moves or legs dance - in swordsmanship feints are essential part of fight pretend to go one way hit other side or just slight moves hinting that you are going to strike to provoke preemptive attack and hitting his undefended line. Thats why its essential for training partner to decide on time of attack even if he has to use one way he has to be able to deceive, change rythm, distance and so on.

[@jakubmike5657]

I have seen a lot of things on this channel after MMA "sparring" but still no sparrings...

[@XxTheMetalistxX]

Patience mate, learning takes time. No point in doing another sparring video before you have something new to show.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

TheMetalist is right Jakub. All of these videos are just side notes as I am developing my skills during that time and preparing to do public sparring once more. I am training BJJ and some MMA as my personal practice :)

[@bensmith9253]

+AikidoSiauliai I'm SUPER interested whether you continue to train aikido after you've tried BJJ seriously. It's insanely addictive - especially for a thinking person, like you, who will really buzz off the "body chess" aspects. I'm a big fan of aikido, I love the biomechanics of the joint locks but SO excited for you discovering BJJ which has the very same science of joint locks thing but you have to EARN them against a non-compliant partner - which makes them SO much more satisfying.

[@jacobleslie8056]

LOL... 14:30 "I'm not saying that what I do is better than everbody else's but I'm gonna say this, I have things that are WAY better than what everybody else is doing." - Rogue Warrior

[@AirAdventurer194]

(I was actually kind-of waiting for Rogue Warriors to enter the fray/discussion - I wasn't sure if I should suggest it and/or wasn't sure my voice would be heard if I did)

[@giuseppespina1064]

Aikido can be very effective.. but Aikido predictions don't understand You need to modify the style.. there is a reason why Steven Seagal create its own Aikido still . Come on people let's be real traditional aikido we all know it doesn't work in real life fighting... You need to mix aikido and blend in other still.. and created technique which they will be affected..

[@Andrii87]

If you make partner hit you in the forehead it would be safe for you and will give you a sense of distance and speed. We did some of exercises in this way when I practiced kickboxing. He could do this with open hand, so he wouldn't heart himself. :)

[@asingletear624]

i think aikido neccessarily needs to involve jujutsu and some striking discipline in order to be effective. i think that aikido teaches fundementals and advanced mechanics phenominally. but there is a sea of distance and depth between the fundementals of fighting and the advanced principles of fighting. to practically use aikido involves being consumed by aikido and training it constantly and choosing to spar with it (also a thing that is for some reason culturally denounced by aikidoka) where as most people want to learn how to fight without being able to afford devoting the time neccessary without seeing results immediately. with jujutsu and striking disciplines you can see results immediately in terms of practicality. aikido is kind of comparable to a low level programming language. someone learning aikido to become a good fighter without being entirely consumed by martial arts is like someone trying to design websites by using assembly code. if you are going to learn assembly code you better be trying to become an engineer And if you are going to learn aikido you better be trying to not just be able to defend your self in a fight or even compete in ufc, but to be a martial artist and to have complete mastery over your own body. its a life long journey. its nothing like a "self defense class" where you learn simple things like angling your body, keeping your hands up in front of your face, how to punch, and how to break someones arm. that being said, aikido isn't useless, just like low level coding languages aren't useless. but it takes a considerable more amount of skill to use low level coding languages or aikido then it does to use defendo or java script. theres practical and high level martial arts and coding languages which you would use for quickly learning how to accomplish simple tasks and then theres advanced and low level martial arts and coding languages which you would learn to accomplish complex tasks or invent whole new ways to accomplish tasks better.

[@JunebugPresents]

This is great guys. I would love to see you come together again for more videos.

[@MartialArtsJourney]

+Junebug Presents Thanks. We are looking into it

[@michealpuckett8856]

Finally someone on here that shows some knowledge of aiki principles. There is a lot of bad Aikido out there because of misconceptions. That doesn't mean it needs to be recreated. Just clean up the BS and get back to the martial part of it. There a still a few of O'senseis students alive. Why not try seeking out their views Rokas

[@eclipsewrecker]

Careful. This instructor has some decent techniques, some grasp on other styles, but slow motion sparing and “demo” training creates delusional understanding of what happens at speed.

[@ABCDEF-uz9fd]

Please become the pioneer of Modernized Aikido. It’s a good level up that will benefit the community.

[@ziqi6808]

Aikido it is what it is. Its not effective, its like training yoga. Im like you I was doing aikido and now I am doing bjj. Bjj is for sport fighting, Aikido is mostly spritual.

[@AirAdventurer194]

That's because Batman always puts on his Clark Kent disguise before he enters a room you're currently occupying #Bazinga

[@adamcorcoran7338]

Lenny teaches real effective Aikido. Nothing weak or passive like many Dojos.