from cover

'I wish I'd had a book like this one avaible to me when I started teaching 25 years ago! A valuable resource for beginners, senior students, and teachers of the art.'-George Simcox, Virginia Ki Society

The exercises contained in this book are based on hitori-waza, the simple building blocks that underlie the most spectacular Aikido throws. These are augmented with testing techniques, class demonstrations, and underlying basics of physics, anatomy, and psychology.

Includes:
Introduction for Beginners
Common questions and observations
Relationships between exercises and throws
An approach for safe mastery of rolling and ukemi skills
Anatomy of wristlocks
Useful tools, toys, and equipment
Verbal Self-Defense
Exercises for individual off-mat practice
Books, videos, references, and Internet resources
Forward by George Simcox, Chief Instructor Virginia Ki Society
with commentary, anecdotes, and exercises from teachers and students of Aikikai, Yoshinkan, Judo, and other styles of the Internet Aikido-L world-wide cyberdojo.

Contents

Foreword
Preface
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1 Introducing Aikido
Some Common Questions and Observations
Chapter 2 Getting Started
Clothing-Gi; Belt; Hakama
Equipment
Dojo Etiquette
Some Basic Skills-Words and Phrases; Seiza; Bowing; Standing, Stepping and stance; Practice for Stance and Standing (Basic, Weapons, Internal Stance); On Training (Dignity vs. Learning, Natural and Unnatural); On Teaching (Some Basic Teaching skills, Traditional and modern Teaching styles, The Dark Side of the Course)
Chapter 3 A Brief Ki Class
Mind-Ki Testing and Exercises; On Truth-Testing: Aikipitching
Body--The Concept of One-Point; 'Just Leverage' (Levers and Leverage, Wild Card-Tension and relaxation, Rotation and Its Center, Vectors-Deflection and redirection, Aiki Traffic: Physics Off the Mat
Mind-Body Coordination
On Aikido and Music
On Zen and the Art of Motorcycles
Chapter 4 Aikido Exercises
Warming and Stretching-The Three-Minute Exercise
Hitori Waza and Other Exercises --Tekubi-Kosa Undo; Funekogi-Undo; Udemawashi-Undo; Udefuri-Undo; Udefuri-Choyaku Undo; Sayu-Undo; tenkan-Undo; Ushiro-Tori Undo; Ushiro Tekubi-Tori-Undo; Ushiro Koshin-Zanshin; Ikkyo-Undo; Zengo-Undo; Happo-Undo; Shikkyo
Wrist Exercises--Ikkyo-Undo; Nikyuo-Undo; Sankyo-Undo; Kote-Gaeishi
Leg Exercises--Limbering Knees and Legs; Sitting Cross-Legged and Bouncing Knees; Bending Back in Seiza
Supplemental Exercises--Back Stretches; Chest and stomach Stretches (Paired Chest and Hip Stretch)
Chapter 5 Rolling, Falling and Flying
The Physices of Ukemi
On Learning to roll-A Course of Action --Rolling Exercises and Games, Equipment
Back Rolls--Backwards and forwards; Backwards and frowards to a Kneel; Small Full Back Rolls; Back and Stand
Forward Rolls--Beaachball Rolls; Horse Rolls; Upside-Down Rolls; Jo Rolls; Small Individual Foreward Rolls; The 6-Count Rolling Exercise; Cross-Rolls
Standing Rolls--Standing Backward Rolls; Slow Standing Forward Rolls; Diving Rolls; Rolling in the Air
Roling Games and Exercises-Rolling Tag; Minimum/Maximum; 50 Rolls; Forward Roling Nonstop; Rolling in Pairs; Rolling With a sword (Yokomen); Obstacle Course; Parking Lot Rolls
Breakfalls--Roling Side to Side; Arm-Pull; Rollout; Breakfall Over Partner; Breakfall with Jo; Ukemi from Ikkyo
On Ukemi-What is Ukemi?; On Individual Ukemi Practice
Chapter 6 Grabs and strikes-Basic Practice
Front Grabs--Katate-Tori; Katate Kosa-Tori; Katate-Tori Ryote-Mochi; Katate-tori Ryote-Tori; Kata-Tori/Kata-Mune-Tori; Ryo-Kata-Tori/Ryo-Munetori
Ushiro attacks--Ushiro-Tekubi-Tori; Ushiro-Hiji-Tori; Ushiro Kata-tori; Ushiro Kubi-Shime; Ushiro-Tori
Strikes--Shomen-Uchi; Yokomen-Uchi; Mune-Tsuke
Other Techniques--Kicks; Atemi; Breathing; Ki-Ai
Nage and Uke-Partners in the dance--How to Be Nage; How to Be Uke
Chapter 7 Locks & Throws
Teaching by the numbers...
Movements--Ma-ai, Tenkan and Irimi--Ma-ai (The Ma-ai of Space, The Ma-ai of Time, The Ma-ai of Balance); Tenkan; Irimi
Clotheslining and Tripping
Katame-Waza--On Osae-Waza and Katame-Waza; The Cycle of Katame-Waza (Wrist Locks); Ikkyo; Nikyo (Nikyo 1 & 2); Sankyo; Yonkyo; Shiho-Nage; Kote-Gaeshi (Kote-Gaeshi 1,2, & 3)
Aikido Throws (Nage-Waza)--Kokyu-Nage (Katate-Kosa-Tori Kokyu-Nage Irimi Tobikome); Shiho-Nage (Yokomen-Uchi Shiho-Nage Irimi, Yokomen-Uchi Shiho-Nage Tenkan); Ikkyo (Shomen-Uchi Ikkyo Irimi, Shomen-Uchi Ikkyo Tenkan); KoteGaeshi (Mune-Tsuki Kote-Gaeshi Tenkan); Ude-Oroshi (Katate-Tori Kokyu-Nage Tenkan Ude-Oroshi); Zempo-Nage (Ryote-Mochi Kokyu-Nage Zempo-Nage Tenkan); Ushiro-Nage (Ushiro-Tori Tekubi-Tori Ura-Gaeshi); Tenchi-Nage (Katate-Tori Tekubi-Tori Ura-Gaeshi); Zagi Kokyu-dosa; Taigi #5
Chapter 8 Weapons, Tools, and Toys
Weapons--Bokken; Wooden Staff (Jo)
Tools and Toys
Chapter 9 Off the Mat, in Real Life
Practicing Alone
Gardens
Verbal Self-Defense--The Martial Art of Verbal Self-Defense; The Interview Language of Physical attack
LIfe Etiquette--The Timeframe of Violence
Chapter 10 Resources
Aikido Magazines
Books, Websites, Organizations
Movies and Videos
Supplies
Chapter 11 Glossary
Appendix A Aikido-Life--Karate vs. Aikido in Haiku; It's in Your Hips; Climate & Geographic Superiority in Budo; Aikido Food for the Soul (Donuts, Breakfast Waza: Correct Buttering of Toast); The Teacher and the Cowherd
Appendix B Is Your Radar On?
Appendix C On Learning--Motor Planning and Learning; Slow Learning

This book is filled with many illustrations to aid in its many techniques and demonstrations. It includes an introduction for beginners and many excises for rolling, ukemi and technical discussions on wristlocks. This is a good guide for beginners and for refreshing your memory as time passes. ( )