Is Aikido an effective martial art?

Question

It looks cool, but can it work on the streets? I've never seen anyone use it in real life (just in the movies).

Answer 1

It can work on the streets, but only after spending many years in practice. When I use to train at the Hawaii Aikikai many many years ago (When I saw Steven Segal in "Above The Law") there were many Honolulu Police Officers who trained at the dojo. I would ask them if they ever used Aikido in a situation and they said "Yes, many times, but mostly to control a suspect and cuff them."

I switched to Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu after training Aikido for 8 years when a good friend who trained Jiu-Jitsu beat me in a sparring match 10 out of 10 times after training Jiu-Jitsu for just 6 months. I was never taught how to defend against leg kicks, defend against a double leg takedown slam, and once on the ground I was clueless to what was happening.

I would say 95% of all Aikido schools do not train realistically for the street. Most don't even practice defense against kicks. Look at the United States Aikido Federation Testing from 5th Kyu to Shodan (1st dan black belt) there is no testing for defense against kicks.

Randori (multiple attackers) is not trained realistically as well. Most of the time your attackers are taking turns one at a time and
only try and grab you half *** because they are more concerned about taking ukemi (falling).

Sorry I'm just pissed because I trained for 8 years religiously (5 days a week for 1-2 hours) and my Aikido failed me in a sparring match against a different style. What if it had been a real street fight?

Aikido is still beautiful to watch and practice. You do get a good workout running around taking ukemi, but I would choose something else more street effective.

Answer 2

Is Aikido effective? That's an odd question. Almost any form of martial arts training can make you a little better in a fight. Is aikido OPTIMAL? No. Is it the most effecient way to learn to fight? No. Even the most vehement support of Aikido would admit that it takes a certain philosophy - in this case, varing degrees of pacifism, depending on the aikido school - and uses only techniques that conform to that philosophy. So if by "an effective martial art" you mean, "Does it maximize fighting skill as quickly as possible," I would say no. You will get proficient, quicker, in other arts. I would only advise someone to train in aikido if they already knew a martial art and wanted to study an interesting varient, if they were a dedicated pacifist, or if their reason for wanting to study was excercise or culture first and personal defense second. With rare exceptions, aikido schools also have low or no participation in sports competition, either at the light contact 'sport karate' level or the harder contact MMA/Kickboxing type of competition, so if light or serious competition is something you expect from an art, aikido is not for you.

Short answer: I don't denigrate aikido totally, but it's not the straight line route to fighting skill, and it may not be the best first art for someone new to martial arts. As always, there are many branches of many martial arts, so YMMV based on the actual school and teacher in your area.

ALSO, IRT to Bard Noir, above, I don't believe there is any part of the world where you actually have to register with law enforcement on reaching a certain point in the martial arts. I could be wrong about the rest of the world, but I'm quite certain you don't have to anywhere in the US at least. Your friend might do well to consider his source.

Answer 3

Remember this...Just about all Martial Arts styles need to be modified for Hollywood. Aikido takes a life long dedication or in plain English, what you may be shown today may be what you'll be doing for a very long time before you learn something new. Please don't get me wrong, all Arts have there merits. I suggest you stop by your local Dojo and watch as many classes as possible and have some questions. In my area there is only one Aikido School. I hope you have more then that to compare and make the right choice. I have been in Martial Arts for more than thirty years and have studied more then one Art, I do hold dan rank in more then one system. If you are looking for a fast and very effective Art that works on the Street look into the Art of Kenpo, it is designed to defend ones self against multiple attackers from different angles. Check out any of the Jeff Speakman movies or even better yet, just go to his web-site for a video sample. Today many of the Kenpoest sites have technique samples. Enjoy and I wish you the very best.

Answer 4

Is Aikido Effective

Answer 5

talk about stirring up a hornet's nest. I'll try to be as diplomatic and polite as possible.

The problem with Aikido is that it has a reputation for not training with any resistance.

How can you learn without resistance against a fully resisting opponent? Simple you can't.

However, this doesn't mean there isn't a legitimate Aikido school out there that does eventually pressure-test it's techniques and train with full resistance. Most don't.

If you want more discussion about it ask at www.bullshido.net

Answer 6

Most of the MMA guys will say aikido doesn't work, but then again, MMA rules outlaw many standard aikido moves. If you want to fight in a cage, pick another art (although, to tell you the truth, these days most MMA bouts have degenerated into "who can get hit the most and still stand up" matches. Very little quality MA these days in "MMA".)

On the other hand, many police departments in Japan use aikido as their primary hand-to-hand skill, which should tell you about it's real-life effectiveness.

Yes, it takes time to learn, but most quality skills are not acheived overnight. Many of the answers I've seen so far have been from guys who trained in it for a few months and therefore their exposure to the art is extremely limited.

In short, yes, aikido is effective on the street.

Answer 7

Aikido is a legitamate martial art but i don't think it is very effective by itself. Aikido's techniques are meant to nuetralize the aggression of your attacker by redirecting their force, which is why its referred to as the Art of Peace. Many of the throws and holds are effective ways of temporarily immobilizing your opponent but they do not subdue them or take away their ability to continue their attack. I haven't been in many fights outside the ring but they usually consist of a few strikes, a clinch, and then leaning on a wall or going to the ground. This is where I'd imagine an Aikido practinoner would not fair so well.. Separation and distance are key in Aikido, like most traditional martial arts, and when youre in close quarters there are very few techniques at your disposal because you have no leverage. I believe the Aikido's 'finishes' are weak as well. There are a few stikes and similar versions of arm bars and chokes you see in Jui Jitsu but the emphasis is knocking your opponent out with the ground, which as cool as it sounds, doesn't happen that often. Aikido is a great art to learn redirection, throws and takedowns but you have to know where to take it from there because, 9 times out of 10, when you throw someone and just stand there, theyre going to get up and be a little more angry than they were a second ago. I trained with an Aikido master and it was a great asset to my overall game. Take a few classes, learn some jui jitsu and muay thai and you'll do just fine.

Answer 8

No, it is one of the sh1ttiest "martial art" (in my opinion it's not even a martial art anyway) ever. I'd rather do tae bo or cardio kickboxing or even ballroom dancing. At least it gets you in a good shape and has a nice work out, wich is something that is also non-existant in aikido.

Answer 9

Not saying it isn't effective, but I've seen a few fighters early in the MMA days around '93 or '94 before brazilian Ju jitsu and wrestling totally took over that were blackbelts in aikido. I didn't see anything in any of the fights that even resembled aikido. Just ended up them throwing a few punches being taken down and beaten into submission.

I've never practiced aikido, but I have watched some documentaries on it. The problem I see with it is it always seems like your opponent has to be running at you with his hands streched out like superman. Which I've never seen a fight go down like that. Maybe I'm wrong on aikido though.

Answer 10

It is a very effective Martial Art, but it's also a very technical art to learn. a lot of it is using your opponent's power against him and keeping him off balance.

it's a very non aggressive discipline, but many of it's techniques are effective if used or executed properly.