Aikido is the martial art that focuses primarily on redirection and control of ones opponent (uke. Pronounced OO-kay). This consists of a set of throws and holds which are intended to subdue and control an uke without permanently harming them. On a spiritual level, Aikido is focused on bringing harmony of the body into harmony of others. Roughly translated Aikido means "The Way of Harmony of the Spirit" which holds true today, though different schools place different emphasis on the spiritual aspect.
Aikido was first created approximatly 80 years ago by Morihei Ueshiba, and took a great many techniques from Jujitsu, Judo and Kenjutsu and modified them. Ueshiba focused on forming a martial art that placed a great emphasis on moral and spiritual values as well as a system of techniques that would integrate with the philosophy of Aikido.
What about the physics?
On a practical level, Aikido is not a martial art of strength and power. It does not focus on throwing punches and kicks to directly oppose an uke's attack. Instead, the focus on redirection means that the physical aspect of Aikido is primarily a dancelike type of motion that is very smooth and flowing. This allows the Aikidoist to harmonize with an uke. This harmonizing allows the Aikidoist to redirect an ukes energy and manipulate the forces that are acting on that person. From a physics standpoint, this means manipulating the location of an uke's center of mass to destabilize and ultimatly bring the uke to the ground. Make sure to swing by the Nifty Section to see some really in-depth and interesting history of Aikido.
Basic Physics
Big vs. Small
Aikido is as much about basic physics as it is about the spiritual aspect. Aikido seeks to make the weak eq...
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.... A good source since Aikido and Judo are closely related.
"The Physics Of Forces In Aikido:
Making The Weak Equal To The Strong"
http://www.fightingarts.com/reading/article.php?id=284
Chock full of highly informative bits of information. Originally ran in Scientific American, reprinted on this website.
"The Aikido FAQ"
http://www.aikidofaq.com/
Best. Site. Ever. Everything and anything you ever want to know about Aikido.
"Tenchi Nage"
http://www.aikido.waw.pl/pol/techniki/tenchi_nage_technika.htm
Gathered collection of images and illustrative information.
"Physics in Hand-to-Hand Combat"
http://www.physicspost.com/articles.php?articleId=80
An article similar in content to the Scientific American reprint above. Very useful for basic understanding of relationship between physics and martial arts.
martial arts masters of the 20th century. He assembled his own system of karate, Shuri-ryu,
To begin, it is generally difficult to pinpoint a consensus date for the commencement of a martial arts tradition in Japan because the learning of these arts was mostly done orally and through practice. It is by and large agreed upon that all of the Oriental martial arts have their roots in China, from the founder of Zen Buddhism, the Indian monk Bodhidarma (Daruma for the Japanese), in the 6th century. The principles of Zen Buddhism would later be reflected in most of the ph...
Board breaking is often exhibited as an incredible talent performed by martial artists at demonstrations or tournaments in order to show off strength. This isn’t true, however, as breaking is an illustrated example of a perfected technique as one would use in a real situation. The accuracy, strength, and power of these techniques is demonstrated through the break. Many people are amazed by breaking, but don’t fully understand how truly easy it is. Breaking can be explained by both the physics behind the act and the mental aspects of the preparation of the break.
“At about age 14 the trainees officially became samurai in a ceremony called genpuku.” (Adapted from the PBS series “Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire”, Document C). Samurai training began at childhood, and like many of the students now, it all began with them being in school. At the time school was a unique combination of the young warriors’ physical training, poetry, and their discipline. Kendo was their moral code of the samurai, and Zen Buddhism. In support of this, the document entitled, “Warrior Challenge” (Document C), states, “ The young warriors studied Kendo (the art of fencing with bamboo sticks), the moral code of the samurai and Zen Buddhism.” In addition to this, it was asserted that the young trainees officially became samurai. As a result of this, samurai were expected to live according to their strict ethical code influenced by Confucianism that stressed the importance of one’s master, and respect for superiors, and self-discipline. This code was named Bushido and apart from Kendo, it taught the samurai about the importance of their current occupations, and how their lives will change in their master's’ hands. With reference to, female samurai, girls also received martial arts training, even though they did not fight on the battlefield they played an important role in defending their homes as well as others against invaders. On the contrary, knights however did not abide by the
It is the most appropriate yoga for those who are more intellectually or philosophically inclined. This yoga can be broken into three distinct steps. The first step is to learn, this means seeking out teachers and gurus who can pass their knowledge unto you. The second step is to think; this step requires you to separate your true Self from the self you are currently occupying. The final step is to change, that is, to change your self-identification to your true Self. This step can often include referring to yourself in the third person to further drive a wedge between Self and self.
What the Bleep Do We Know!? Dir. William Arntz, Betsy Chasse, and Mark Vicente. Perf.
Today, most modern styles of Tai Chi Chuan trace their development to at least one of the four traditional schools: Chen, Yang, Wu, or Sun.3 The most common style of Tai Chi currently practiced in the states is Tai Chi Chuan.4 This type of Tai Chi comes from the definitions: Tai Chi- meaning infinity, the absolute. It contains dynamic and static movement: it is the mother of Yin and Yang, of everything male and female. It is the root of motion, which is division, and of stillness, which is union.5 Chuan- or fist, is the symbol of unity between body and mind.4 Tai Chi Chuan must neither be overdone nor underdone: it must be exact. Comprehension comes from growing an understanding, plus effort and this leads one gradually to full enlightenment.4
Kempo teaches self-defense. Self-defense is the defense of one's person or interests through the use of physical force. The art of Kempo is a process of learning a skill through repetition. As stated in the article written by Pamela Knudson, she states “Aug. 05--Watch Casey Mihalek lead the white-clad, barefoot members of his karate class at ATA Martial Arts in Grand Forks and you'll see a well-orchestrated training regimen with a purpose: self-defense infused with discipline and respect”(Knudson). When you learn techniques such as the kicks and blocks from an instructor you will need practice to build these skills and the more you practice Kempo the more it seem like second nature. As stated in the article written by Kristin E. Holmes, she states “Genell, 46, a safety director for a demolition company, operated a karate studio for seven years, but decided to focus on teaching adaptive martial arts after being inspired during a stint at a camp for children with disabilities”(Holmes). Once you have acquired these skills you no longer have to think about the techniques you will automatically react with self-defenses moves.
Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) is a battle with a wide variety of skills and fighting techniques that is used in competitions. Jiu Jitsu is the main skill sets used when MMA fighters are in competition. Some of the fighting techniques in MMA range from kicking, grappling to striking. MMA also have some forms of karate, boxing, kick boxing, Taekwondo, and Judo. MMA even have they own set of rules which was adopted on July 30, 2009, called the "Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts"(URMMA).
To a person not conversant with this art, Jujitsu may be considered as a foul or derogatory term in Japanese. However, Jujitsu us one of the most effective and deadly forms of martial arts taught today. Unique among other forms of combat, Jujitsu holds the position of a “parent art”, of from which other forms of martial arts such as Aikido, Judo and several Karate styles were extracted. Jujitsu is a combination of all levels of combat. It incorporates chokes, striking, grappling, nerve and pressure point attacks, joint locks, redirection of momentum and throws.
Tae Kwon Do is a Korean, unarmed martial art and is best known for its kicks (Park, 2001). The roundhouse kick is a turning kick and happens to be the most commonly used kick during competition (Lee, 1996). For this reason, the roundhouse kick will be analyzed in reference to sparring competition.
Gymnasts use physics everyday. As a gymnast I never realized how much physics went into every motion, every back handspring, every mistake on the bars. If gymnasts were physicists (or at least knew more about physics) they would be better equipped to handle the difficult aspects of gymnastics. As a gymnast I learned the motions that were necessary to complete the tricks that I was working on, and as a coach I taught others the same. I never truly understood why a particular angle gave me a better back handspring or why the angle that I hit a springboard at really mattered when completing a vault. We are going to explore some of the different apparatuses in gymnastics and a few of the physics laws that are involved in them. We will not even barely scratch the surface of the different ways that physics can explain gymnastics.
"Tae" means foot (to kick), "kwon" means hand (to punch), and "do" represents way of life. Karate literally means "open hand" and signifies a heart devoid of corrupt intentions. Both martial arts strive to unify the mind, body, and spirit into "one entity", while aiming at the ultimate goal of helping to build a better and more peaceful world.
Martial arts classes and training consist of lessons and drills to improve strength, speed, cardio, footwork, and flexibility. The first martial art I ever learned was Taekwondo. Taekwondo strikes primarily include kicks, but also contain punches and chops. Learning Taekwondo increases speed, cardio, footwork and flexibility. Taekwondo is considered one of the more brutal mixed martial arts, it...
It was drilled into me that karate was for self-defense only. In fact, if a karate instructor heard that I used karate for anything else they would kick me out of class. I learned a lot of self-defense techniques that could save my life. Some of the thing I learned were how to get out of different kinds of choke holds, knife disarms, stick disarms and much more. I am lucky enough that I have never had to use any of these techniques; no one had better mess with me.