Ki Aikido Singapore - Ki No Kenkyukai Singapore

KI-AIKIDO SINGAPORE
Affiliated to Ki no Kenkyukai & Ki Society World Headquarters, Japan

Aikido Screensavers

ROLLING
To some people, this might sound easy. Especially for those who are more energetic and agile, rolling* [*CI's Comments - 251101] isn't a problem. But for those who have not been doing "stunts" like this especially the last time they did a somersault or roll was in their childhood times, doing a simple roll would probably take them five minutes.

Sounds exaggerating? Not for those who tried to do it on Thursday (27 Sep 2001). It is not the roll that puts them off but rather it is the picking up of courage to make the first roll that scares them.

I was one of them and it took me quite some time before I convinced myself to do the first roll. I'm not really of age but still it does scare me to do something that was "not a problem" to me when I was a kid. I could even do a somersault with no hands to support me then. But now, it would probably take me three to five minutes before I convince myself to do either a front or back roll. Especially when I have not been practicing for a while, I would still hesitate for a moment before I pick up the courage to do it.

It's not difficult to do a roll but to do a "correct" roll with ki and control, that is not easy and it takes a lot of practice. Most of the time, I have this tendency of slamming myself whenever I do a roll. My problem? I probably did not curve up enough and the other problem is I'm afraid. What am I afraid of? Pain of course and also I'm worried about looking like a bear when I roll. Then again, I think a bear can roll well than me. If you've seen a bear doing a roll, you'll notice that it does curve up while rolling. And don't think that once you are able to do a proper roll, you'll be able to it all the time. Chances are you might not be able to do the right one again without constant practice.

A word of caution here - for those who have problems doing a roll (like me), please do not try to do it at home - one of the reasons is we might injure ourselves during the practice and the other, we might do the wrong thing and eventually the wrong way of rolling becomes a habit which will be difficult to change.

If you need to practice your rolling (for those who have just joined us), do come to the dojo earlier. Our instructors and seniors will be there to guide us along but the most important thing to do now is to break through the barrier of fear first. Once you get yourself to make the first move, the rest will come much easier. And who knows, one day our ability to roll might even save our life.

Dated 25th Nov'01 - Alice Chng, 3rd Kyu

Back to Main Menu

MEMBER'S ARTICLE

# 09

Articles

	Interview with Master Tohei at Ki Society HQ in Toyko
	Interview with Master Tohei & Waka Sensei
	Interview with Master Tohei
	Review on Ki-Aikido Singapore
	13 Rules of an Instructor
	Ethics of Self Defence

MPEGs

	Singapore 2002
	Tokyo 1986
	Master Tohei Younger Days
	O'Sensei Before WW2 and His Final Years

	For a Complete List

We are not affiliated to Ki No Kenkyukai Malaysia or Ki No Kenkyukai Association Internationale