Pre-Aikido Training

You will have fun in Aikido class espeially if you already know how to do a forward and backward roll.
If you have never done rolls then use a mat or as thick of a carpet as available and get started.

One good exercise is to lay on your back and pull your knees up to your chest, then start rolling back and forth.
If this comes easy try rolling forward forcefully enough to stand up.
If you can do that then try stepping back a little with one leg, then bend that back leg at the knee and collapse back down to the floor into the rolling manouver.
Try now to roll back once then roll forward and stand up, switch back steps and do it again. Keep it up until after falling backward is effortless to stand back up.
Breathe out on the way down and in on the way up.

Then if you can do that exercise, try rolling back and continueing to a back roll.
Do this by extending one arm out over your head as you roll back, at the same time kick the same side foot back to try to touch the hand that is extended back. This should propel you over that shoulder to a backward roll. From there stand up again.
This stuff is hard to do by reading it printed out but if you already know how to roll you will have a great time in class.
Aikido teaches you not to be afraid of hitting the ground.

I would say, do alot of cardio. Such as jogging, sprinting, and jump rope. Of course you would need to do alot of stretching so your legs don't crutch up which will also help alot with Aikido.

The reason I say cardio is because you'll find your self in class going over and over and over the same technique which will require stamina. Also, there are alot of sempai who will want to go fast...and being uke with them is sooooo damned tiring.

I my self practise Aikido every day, weight training every 3 days, and runing every other day (unless shin splits stop me from doing so)

If you have already undertaken some training, I would keep practicing your tenkan, kaiten, irimi tenkan etc. This will help improve your balance and you can do it on your own. If you have used bokken and jo, practice some of the suburi as these are what the open hand techniques stem from. I'd also recommend working on your cardio and flexibility.

Hope this helps!

Chanters

Koinu,

Let me try. To prepare for aikido if you have never done MA before... prepare for cardio as the falling down and getting up aspect is the most tiring part of training. And as a side note... learn to enjoy pain.

As aikido is not a muscular strength based art, weight training is not essentiale but rather optional. My guess is to focus on the lower part of the body as strong hips and legs are essentiale to generate the power necessary to execute kokyu (focused power) power should you decide to embark on gymnasium based training.

Boon.

Do these in the order of importance:
1) Learn proper techniques of stretching. We stretch before each session but you can improve your flexibility and lessen your injuries by learning how to stretch.
2) Work on cardiovascular exercises. You will find that using another person's momentum against them does not require much strength but rolling back and forth (ukemi) and continuous hipthrows (koshinage) do!
3) Work on breathing correctly. Breathing should be done by taking in air through the nose and expelling it out through the mouth. Once that is practiced mentally by you then start learning how to quickly and slowly breathe in and out on an intentional basis.
4) Lastly - and I can't believe that no one has mentioned this yet - do sit-ups. Sit-ups strengthen your entire upper and lower torso so that they work more cohesively and can take more stress and punishment. I can personally testify that my ability to withstand many of the falls and rolls has greatly increased since I went back to the regimen of sit-ups. Do them continuously and you will gain an immediate edge on your physical training.
5) Learn how to clear your mind quickly. Many discussions of Aikido regard the ability to "empty the cup" so that you may achieve a feeling of emptiness and thus fill yourself with the thought, feelings, and movements of the moment at hand. A properly cleared mind is essential to good Aikido practice and you could go far if you can master this technique.

Sorry Koinu - I lost my train of thought when I put "Lastly" in for the second to last item in the above post!