Introduction course
Five Tuesday evenings to find out what aikido does for you. Start with a free open class.
You do not learn aikido from a book. You learn it by moving, by falling, by getting back up, and by noticing what happens when you meet someone without force. This course is for adults who have never stood on a mat. No experience needed, no fitness required, and no obligations afterwards.
Free open class — Tuesday 29 September
Come and see by joining in. From 20:00 to 21:30 at the dojo on the Schaapsdrift. Nothing special to bring: comfortable clothes with long sleeves, and slippers for off the mat. We train barefoot. If you would like an aikido suit later on, you can order one at a reduced price through the teacher.
The course — five Tuesday evenings
6, 13 and 27 October, 3 and 10 November, each from 20:00 to 21:30. There is no class on 20 October. The course costs €25, payable at the first class.
Over those five evenings we cover:
- Moving and stepping. Where you stand, where you are going, and how to get there without losing your balance. Almost everything in aikido begins with a footstep.
- Making contact without force. Taking hold of someone, or being taken hold of, need not be a contest of strength. You learn to feel what the other person is doing instead of pushing back against it.
- Rolling and break-falling. Falling is a skill, not an accident. We build it up quietly, starting from the floor, until you get up without thinking about it.
- Standing firm and staying supple. Firmness without stiffness. That is what aikido is about — on the mat, and just as much off it.
- A few basic techniques. A handful of basic techniques come up during the classes. Not so that you master them in five evenings, but so that you get a good sense of what aikido could mean for you.
After five evenings you will know whether aikido suits you. If it does, you move on to the regular classes. If not, you have spent five evenings doing something new.