Ow, My Shoulder!

After struggling with whether I should continue with aikido or not, I decided that quitting would be kind of silly. Especially after only two classes. So I went to a third class today, and plan to go to a fourth on Wednesday.

Apparently, the Monday one-hour classes are notorious for going over one hour. Had the class only lasted the requisite one hour, I would have been fine. As it was, the class was probably 90 minutes, and I ended up sitting out the last ten minutes or so — “grounding” myself, Sensei called it.

I still have some sort of mental block with rolling — I just haven’t done it right yet, haven’t found the sweet spot so I can replicate that “correct” feeling. Like I told Andy-sempai and Sensei, it’s frustrating to have that feeling that I’m *almost* understanding it, and that it should be easy to understand, but that it’s just not clicking yet. I admitted to Sensei, during my “grounding” time, that one of the reasons I joined the dojo was that I want to get over my problem with feeling stupid. He assured me that I’d get over that, as that’s a big part of the learning process. Everyone gets that feeling, and everyone comes to accept the feeling of not-knowing. I told him that I look forward to getting to that point.

Today’s standard minor aikido injuries / afflictions include a mat burn on the top of my left foot (“the oozy kind,” as Amy-sempai called it); generally weak quads; and an uncomfortably twisted left shoulder, gotten from Roy-sempai from a slightly more complex move when my ukemi (i.e. my submittal to or receiving of his technique) was just a little off. I think it’s mainly true that the only major injuries in aikido are when one or the other partner has improper form, and the technique is done incorrectly. I’m hoping to keep my injuries to a minimum. 🙂

I’m glad I decided not to quit. I feel physically good after aikido — at this point in my training, it’s a cardio workout like I’ve rarely gotten before, even in drum corps. I’ve made it a point to eat well and healthily before aikido classes, and I don’t seem to have any interest in dinner afterward. (Which is too bad, since it sounds like the dojo informally goes to the Brew House for beers after Monday classes.)

Speaking of food, I’m going to make some homemade ice cream. I’d try custard, but I’d like to actually *have* some before I go to bed, and custard requires cooking and cooling time, while ice cream requires no such thing. Next time, though…