Aiki Connections seminar feedback just in courtesy of Phil Glover…..
Tl;dr: It was good, join us next time.
So, it’s been a couple of weeks since the 2018 Aiki Connections Seminar and I’ve been using the time to try and organise my thoughts to offer some feedback.
Before we start, a bit of history…
I’ve been training Aikido for about 10 years in total – five years back in college (early 2000’s) and five years more recently, up to now. I started out Birankai, under Chiba Sensei, have tried a spot of Aikikai, Tomiki and ‘Ki’ Aikido and, most recently, Yoshinkan.
A chance conversation with Phil Eyers led to me attending one day of the 2017 Aiki Connections Seminar, which I thoroughly enjoyed. So much so, that I booked my place on the 2018 Seminar almost as soon as it was announced!
As already alluded to in other testimonials, the tuition over the weekend was really most excellent. Good humoured and informative, Howard and Joe are both more than willing to share their knowledge and expertise, but also their personal experiences as well.
The exercises were subtle, the kind of subtle that looks like “bullshit!” but isn’t. Moreover, they were practical and replicable (with practice) – no mystical ‘Ki’ or ‘Chi’, just practical applications of body mechanics – minimum effort to achieve maximum effect.
Feeling really is believing.
What started out as an opportunity to learn some neat tricks and interesting titbits about the roots of Aikido has led me to completely re-evaluate my Kihon Waza and the way I train. It has made basics enjoyable again because I’m looking at everything with fresh eyes.
I can’t wait to learn more.
Phil Glover