Sydney Aikikai

We are a friendly Aikido Club located on Sydney’s Northern Beaches. New members are always welcome and encouraged to join us. Beginners are introduced slowly to Aikido in a friendly manner with an instructor or other senior people on the mat spending time with basics. Students are then introduced to participating with others in training. A good foundation begins with attention to basics. A typical class consists of about 15 minutes of warm up exercises and then we move on to Ukemi (rolling and falling) practice and basic foot/body movements referred to as ‘Tai sabake’. Training should be enjoyable in a non-competitive environment, supporting each other and working together. This training transcends the ego and should manifest in daily life, developing an awareness of partners' capabilities. Aikido training is quite different from gym training, focusing on flexibility and toughness rather than just strength.