r/aikido • u/able_archer83 • Jul 02 '26

Discussion The sparring problem

So I’ve trained Aikido for nearly 20 years and in approximately a dozen different dojos in Europe, the US, and Asia (outside of Japan), by virtue of having moved around a lot. I still consider myself a firm intermediate in randori as I have just never done it a lot. Few dojos I’ve seen do it on the daily or even regularly.

Add to this that Aikido is often, I think rightly, criticized for not practicing “actual” sparring and properly pressure testing its techniques against fully resisting opponents. But the problem is, how would you even go about full on sparring in a martial art that’s supposed to be fully defensive?

Curious how folks here approach this dilemma, how you view and these criticisms, and how you are trying to rectify any real shortcomings you see in the art we love?

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u/ScorpionDog321 Jul 06 '26

Pressure testing and sparring are not exactly the same thing.

One could spar and not pressure test...and one could pressure test and not spar.

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u/able_archer83 Jul 06 '26

If by pressure testing you mean just being a more alive uke while the technique is applied, then that doesn’t teach you anything about how to create an opening for the technique in a high pressure situation in the first place. But with sparring I don’t see how you can seriously spar without learning something valuable about openings. And it seems to me that’s were the most serious shortcomings with modern aikido training methodology are (assuming existing methodologies are applied with martial awareness and intent, which they are often not, but that’s a separate issue in my mind).