tegatana

In aikido we are supposed to be relaxed when training. It is much healthier if the muscles are not stiff and the body is flexible. Unfortunately, for some type of people, including me, to achieve relaxation can be very demanding. Sometimes I focus on relaxing so much that, as a result, I lose all my flexibility without noticing in time. If the body is not relaxed, it is much easier for the training partner to throw you (which can be uncomfortable when you are tori and not uke ). More importantly, if our muscles are not relaxed, the possibility of getting injured while a technique is applied on us is more real. As I felt that my muscles were becoming stiffer over months - due to stress not (always :)) related to aikido trainings - I decided to visit a massage therapist. A couple of things I learned are coming in the next paragraphs.

This post is inspired by the question of one of our users who has watched our instructional video about tegatana.

Find the question below, and also, what I answered. Now I'm attempting to explain my view about tegatana further.

The question: