About our aikido club in London

I'd like to introduce my club, the London Shodokan Aikido dojo. We meet several times a week to train aikido at Albion College, a small college that overlooks historic Bloomsbury Square [map]. It's open to anyone, so if you're in the area, stop in during one of the training times shown on the club's website.

How did I find this place?

My selection of club was not, shall we say, the most scientific -- it was mainly based on "location, location, location". However, because I wasn't sure that aikido (or, for that matter, this club) was really for me, I first came to watch a class and learn about the members and the class structure.

What I found was a really fantastic group of people from all walks of life who were interested in fitness and self-improvement, but who were not, in any sense, trying to come across as the next Steven Segal or Jet Li. That was encouraging to me, because the mere thought of going to a martial arts class was a bit intimidating. I had many negative preconceptions about the kind of people I'd find at such a place, but they all turned out to be incorrect.

What kind of training do we do?

Our club devotes two days a week to basic aikido training, which focuses on a standard set of exercises that is common to all levels of aikido, plus kata training, which refers to prearranged sets of movements that are usually done with a training partner. Two other days each week are devoted to more advanced free-play, or randori, training. In addition, once a week we hold an hour-long weapons course, which concentrates mainly on the use of wooden Japanese training swords ("bokken") to emphasize the many principles of aikido that have their origin in sword arts, such as kendo.

Our club includes men and women of all ages, and we have separate kids sessions for youths from ages 5-9 and from 10-16. Whether you're interested in aikido for personal development, for self-defence, or as a way to simply increase your level of physical fitness, you're welcome at our club.

I want to try it, but what should I wear?

You can wear something long-legged like jogging bottoms on your first visit or two, to check it out and see if you like it. If you want to turn up regularly, you should buy a "dogi", which is clothing made especially for martial arts.

In shodokan aikido, we generally wear the same kind of uniform worn by people who play judo. Called a "judogi", this clothing consists of a top and bottom of bleached white cotton, slightly heavier in construction than that worn by people who practice karate. The trousers are padded and fully gusseted to give you the best possible range of motion.

Although you can buy dogi at many martial arts stores, it's best to first check with your instructor about whether your school can provide you with a uniform or, if not, what's most appropriate to buy.