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Aikido Westchester NY: Martial Arts Training for Health/Fitness - Aikido vs.... Other Martial
Arts?
One may look to martial arts training to improve one's general health or even to address specific
concerns in addition to medical intervention. All martial arts do offer health benefits first in
that martial arts training is a form of exercise, and exercise is beneficial to the body. But
martial arts also focus on exercise in a relaxed state and moderating the energy flows in the body.
Even senior citizens can practice Aikido, for example, to improve their general health.
In particular, Aikido training tends to be aerobic in nature, although the exercise flow can be
intermittent at times. Practice tends to begin slowly as one learns the individual
techniques. After some time and proficiency, one begins to pick up the pace to achieve the
desired level of exertion, depending in part upon one’s partner’s abilities. In addition to
aerobic exercise, conditioning may be employed to increase strength in the legs and arms,
flexibility and
balance. As a general rule, however, one begins where they are and increases the intensity of
practice at a pace they desire and are equipped to handle. In Aikido we do not force people
to exceed their own capacity at all. In fact, the discipline of the art requires us to know
our own capacities well and only operate within our abilities to exercise safely.
In addition to simple exercise, martial arts in general and Aikido specifically teach one to
respond vigorously while in a relaxed state of mind. In this manner, only the part of the
body that absolutely needs to be employed is active, and excess tension is not present. While
the medical establishment probably has not performed studies to determine the health benefits of
this form of exercise versus ones employing excessive tension, chances are the benefits are
significant.
As for specific health concerns, Tai Chi as a martial art is well known for the ability to heal the
body using chi and the meridians of Chinese Medicine. Similar benefits are available with
Aikido, yet the emphasis in training is more for the self defense aspects with the health benefits
coming as an aside. For specific health concerns using Tai Chi, we recommend contacting Tai
Chi master Kwong at 914-512-4996.
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