my local aikido school doesnt hold class very often, will I be able to make up for that at home and progress..

Question

normally?

can aikido be practiced alone?

Answer 1

You may be able to progress but it may seem like you're working in small circles

Answer 2

No you can't.

You cannot train alone unless you are a senior grade with years of practice - and then all you can do is some of the exercises and katas. That's better than nothing, but not good enough to keep from sliding backwards in skill level.

To make progress in Aikido, you need to train regularly. At least twice a week. Three times a week or more is like overdrive. Once a week is barely treading water. It isn't enough to make decent progress.

Aikido takes many years to learn. It is subtle.

The only "martial art" you can learn fast is "baseball bat" or .357 magnum. That's why Sam Colt invented the his revolver and called it a "Peacemaker". Because any man or woman could use point and pull a trigger.

Answer 3

I'm not sure how often your Aikido classes are held? If it is once a week, then be sure to get there on time and try to get as much as possible out of class. If the instructor can stay after class, then use that time to answer any questions you have. If it is two times per week, then you should have an easier time. Consistency is important, multiple classes are good if possible. I see many of my students having two classes per week and making progress. It is very difficult to practice alone, aside from improving your posture, I would not attempt it.

If I were you, I'd talk to my instructor about perhaps having additional classes. If he or she cannot hold additional classes, maybe an upper level student could start a class under the instructor's direction. Definitely talk to your instructor about it and ask his/her advice about how to get more practice. Good luck!

Answer 4

The only way you can make up time when your school is not open is by practicing at home diligently. There is no real way to make class time up unless you are at the Dojo with your instructor. The next best thing is to keep practicing at home so that you may hone your skills and show your instructor that you are serious about your training and want to progress up the ranks.

Answer 5

You can only practice those footsteps and ukemi alone. You need to have partner to practice technique with.

Regular practice is very important for u to improve your aikido techniques.

Which aikido association your previous aikido dojo was with? Maybe you can continue practicing in other dojo nearby...

Answer 6

You can make progress alone but only after you have learned how to learn. By that I mean you have a good grasp of the basics, you have a good understanding of the internal concepts and you have learned how to watch, imitate, and develop your technique.

I achieved this after I became 2nd kyu and my progress has skyrocketed since. But without this skill you cannot learn anything on your own.

Answer 7

It depends on what your goal is and what your dojo's affiliation is. If you're affiliation is Ki-Aikido and you're more into Ki development, then there are exercises which can be done solo and with proper training will lead to progress even if you only practice at home. But if you're affiliation is Hombu, Yoshinkan or Tomiki, which puts more emphasis on physical techniques, then your options are limited at home. But from personal experience, in the long run, I'd have to say no, you can't really make up for it at home. You can work on physical conditioning and the solo forms at home, even the breakfalls and rolling exercises. But when it comes to proper application of techniques, you will need a live trained partner to train with for you to progress any further. Even I have that problem myself. I used to train 6 days a week 6 hrs max nonstop for three and a half years back in college and when I moved to another city to start working, I had a hard time finding a decent dojo who would train as hard and meet as many times a week as my old one. The only ones readily available were McDojo types and the ones that weren't only met twice a week for 2 hrs per session and worse of all, their fees cost somewhere around twice to as much as four times the amount compared to the fees in my old dojo. Needless to say, when I visit my old dojo while on vacation, my sensei would only allow me on the mat if I wore a belt one rank lower, because I could no longer keep up with his class. It's a standard procedure in his dojo for returning students, since he bases rank and skill level on your current performance regardless of previous rank and only allows you to wear your actual rank belt on the mat after you've gotten back to your old form, it's his way of motivating you to get back in shape and keep you from getting c0cky and set a bad example for the junior students. I even once joined a McDojo just to get time on the mat to practice, but that turned out to be a bad idea since their class' slower pace and diluted forms only ended up affecting my skills and slowing me down. My advice is for you to try and talk to a classmate or two from your class to meet at home during weekends so you can train together on your free time, you can pool your money to buy some mats or improvise with whatever equipment is available so you can practice throws in safety. If you have the determination, I'm sure you can find a way to train outside of the dojo.

Answer 8

you can only practice break falls,forward rolls,foot movements,shomen-uchi and yokomen-uchi strikes, breathing exercises,sword work, and the jo staff. But if I were you I would talk with some of the people that take class with you and see if they wanted to practice at each others homes when you do not have class.