She is very good. Nice form, clean lines, very relaxed. A little too much emphasis on big showy throws, but generally solid technique.

Her uke (partner) is also very good.

And to forestall the inevitable “that would never work in real life”, this is a demonstration, not a fight.

Yeah, @ChaosEngine that's true, but it still doesn't work in real life.

Nobody uses Akido in MMA.

Akido is moderately effective when teaching a weak person to fend off stronger, untrained individuals. It's shit if your opponents have been trained.

Also, if I need more proof Akido is shit: Steven Seagal.

I rest my case.

So cards on the table: I am a 4th Dan student of Aikido.

I had initially written a long response explaining why I disagree with you, but I realised I don't really care and you're unlikely to change your opinion.

Each martial art (traditional, modern, boxing, HEMA, whatever) offers something different to its practitioners. If you enjoy it, keep doing it.

I'd probably get destroyed by a competent MMA fighter, but I don't do Aikido to win MMA matches.

Can I defend myself on the street? Dunno... haven't been in a fight in decades, and don't intend to either.

Do I still enjoy Aikido? Fuck yeah.

Gliders are stupid, jet fighters are the only real way to fly.

Aikido requires the same body/mind training as any other martial art, with as much physical intensity as you want to put into it. Yes...it's not focused on agression. I don't need to train to react agressively. I need the opposite.

Motorcycles are faster than tractors. That's not going to help me plough a field. If I want to compete in MMA I'll study a martial art that's suited to it. Aikido is suited to my life and my goals.

I would never try to argue that my martial art is superior for your purposes. It's superior for my purposes.

All that aside, the video is a really enjoyable demonstration of mastery by someone who has dedicated more time and effort to her art than most martial artists, regardless of what they study or why.

https://yourlogicalfallacyis.com/composition-division

Steven Seagal sucks like a black hole.

Physics and logic do not apply.

lol We're in agreement.

Seagal's generally not popular in the aikido community.

I just wish the topic of aikido could come up without someone popping up to proclaim that it wouldn't work in the MMA.

I'd like to see something like this done to a person who doesn't know Aikido.
I'm not saying it's not real or anything like that. But wondering if the guy is flying all over the place partly to make it look better because he knows "what's coming". Where as if these moves were to be performed on an untrained person would not look as spectacular.

It wouldn’t look much like that. The guy DOES know what’s coming and he’s moving like that to avoid serious injury.

In general, when training with a beginner, much less force is applied to avoid harming them.

It’s kinda hard to demo this stuff with people who can’t “receive” the technique safely.

Yeah, he isn't resisting much and it does make her look stronger and the throws look cleaner than they really would in reality... there is an element of choreography, but in most cases it's for practical purposes, to avoid unnecessary injury, not for aesthetics.

But then i quite like the aesthetics too. It's dancing. I think I always enjoyed Ju Jitsu more for the workout, history and artistry of it than for actual self defence.

Most martial arts are simply too specific for MMA (Teakwondo for example), and Aikido is certainly one of them. That's why many MMA fighters train in Jiu-Jitsu, it's a grabbag of techniques.
Aikido is great with throws, joint-locks and evasive moves but that's mostly it. There's no emphasis on kicking, punching or holding techniques. An Aikido-practitioner won't choke you out, he or she will break your shit. Bend your joints in ways they shouldn't or straight up break your arm. You can't unleash that in a ring where people go to earn money. No matter how many punches you can take, how many throws you can recover from, a broken wrist will end your fight. And then you're out of a job and training until it's healed for a couple of weeks.
Aikido is not flexible enough to be effective and too damaging once it can be used for full effect.
And it does work in real life, it's just the conditions for success are far narrower than with other, more versatile martial arts. That's why Krav Maga works so well in real life, it just goes to what causes the most effect. So a lot of ballskicking. And punching. And Kneeing. All the balls, all the time.

*timeshift *music

Adding video to channels (Music, Timeshift) - requested by ant.

Fighting on the street isn't even comparable to MMA. Not to take away from the hardness of any MMA fighter, but MMA is a sport. There are rules, and it's a safe environment (as safe as can be considering what happens in the octagon). You don't have to worry about the other guy poking your eye out or biting you, you probably won't die, etc.

The best thing for self defense is to be able to identify a dangerous situation, and get away from it using any means necessary, before it escalates. Getting into your car and driving away is the best thing you can do.

The other part of it is not looking like a victim, it's a body language thing.

And in these cases, Aikido is as good as any other martial art.


Having said that I'd still love to see someone use Aikido in an MMA match just for entertainment, because the only videos I've ever seen are ones like this, where the partner is going with the flow to avoid injury.


Actually now that I think about it, are you allowed to dislocate/break joints in MMA? Because the damage is likely to be permanent.

I was the crash test dummy for a demonstration when I was at University. It was my second time at the dojo. I was told "just stand there and give me your hand" The "opponent" was 5'2" and weighed maybe 100lbs soaking wet. She had me on my ass so fast I'm still not sure what happened. Used properly, especially when your attacker is moving toward you, it is remarkably effective.

Beginners are the best partners because they don't know what's coming or which way to go. They react naturally to pressure or losing balance. Your technique either works or it doesn't.

An experienced partner can make bad technique look good. A beginner will reveal every flaw in your movement.