Stance solidity in Aikido vs. karate

[lit-arate]

This is not a "which style is better" question, so fear not.

A bit of background: I trained in American Kenpo consistently for twelve years, and as regularly as school breaks during college after those years.

Now, in graduate school, I have taken up aikido. I recently tested for 5th kyu after three months of training, which is a bit accelerated (due to my previous experience, apparently)--and from hence stems my question.

After the test, my partner (marital, not martial) commented that my stance compared to my testing partner was much more stationary. That is, in hindsight, where he tended to move with me when I was uke (attacker), I tended to move him around me, when I was nage (defender). I believe this comes from my relatively hardstyle karate background; the first rule of Kenpo is: "Create a base," or solid stance.

My question is: Is this alleged stability a positive, or negative characteristic from the perspective of aikido, or even other grappling arts? My Kenpo training tells me that if I want to throw someone, I need to remain stable, but part of my limited experience in aikido tells me that I should "move with my partner." Where does that line end, if it does? Ultimately, at my level, should I work on following the uke, or is it preferable to move the uke around one's self?

[Lupin1]

My friend is teaching me some Aikido and she's pointed out several times that I step too much. We concentrate a lot on stepping at my Isshinryu school and so for me stepping to move someone seems natural, whereas the move she wanted me to do at the time I wasn't supposed to step as much. But then I've noticed the same thing in TaekwonDo-- I want to step into attacks and to line up kicks and stuff whereas they just want to stand there and fire them off rapid fire. So idk. I guess it depends on the style.

[ps1]

In any martial art, the ability to create base is extremely important. However, in any martial art, the ability to move fluidly through many based positions is just as important. This is one of the purposes of kata...learning to move through many positions while keeping a balanced and based position throughout.

To be more concise, yes it is good. But only if you wield your position when it is proper and hold your ground when it is proper.

[sperki]

lit-arate, great question. I've got a Shotokan base but I've been eyeballin' an aikido class that's around the corner. It'll be interesting to see other feedback.

ps1, your comment makes perfect sense, but how about something more concrete? Do aikidoka typically move when they make throws?

[lit-arate]

Thank you for your responses thus far.

Do aikidoka typically move when they make throws?

This is an excellent restatement of my question. Obviously, to execute an aikido throw properly, one's hara (center) has to move, but does that abstract center tie directly to one's body? If I can, by stabilizing my center and moving it with the ground, so to speak--as in, "punch with the ground," given my hardstyle background that uses the whole body in a strike--is that proper, or should I be more fluid?

[Lupin1]

If I can, by stabilizing my center and moving it with the ground, so to speak--as in, "punch with the ground," given my hardstyle background that uses the whole body in a strike--is that proper, or should I be more fluid?

Well, at the aikido class I went to on Thursday (which was only my 3rd class) the teacher talked a lot about being fluid. It reminded me almost of water bending on Avatar: The Last Airbender. Pretty much when the person punched us, we used their energy to guide them forward more until they were off balance before pulling them back the other direction and taking them down. We we were doing this "forward/backward" thing we didn't step at all after the initial stepping to the side of the person-- we just sort of leaned our bodies with their momentum and then opposite of it until at the last second where we stepped backwards for the take down. So it was very fluid.

[sensei8]

Do aikidoka typically move when they make throws?

I thank you in advance, and please forgive my obvious dumb request of you...Please define "Move/moving". I can't see anything happening in the martial arts without moving. I've thrown my share of practitioners, but, I've moved something somewhere.

[ps1]

lit-arate, great question. I've got a Shotokan base but I've been eyeballin' an aikido class that's around the corner. It'll be interesting to see other feedback.

ps1, your comment makes perfect sense, but how about something more concrete? Do aikidoka typically move when they make throws?

Not having trained aikido, I can not speculate. However, in Judo and Aiki Jujitsu, you do. Throwing is a very dynamic art. Beginners tend to start more rigid however.

[lit-arate]

Throwing is a very dynamic art. Beginners tend to start more rigid however.

I would guess that Aikijutsu is probably pretty darned close to aikido, and this sounds like at least one possible way to look at what I'm doing. Perhaps I'll make sure that I've got things from a rather entrenched stance, and then work on maintaining stability with fluidity.

Thank you, all.

[sperki]

Sensei8, I guess my question is: after throwing somebody in Aikido will you be standing in a different place than you were prior to the throw. Clearly there will be some movement, probably change what direction you were facing, but will you occupy a different piece of land? Does that make any more sense? I'm starting to confuse myself...