Keep Weight Underside

In Aikido we aim to embody a number of principles to develop mind and body co-ordination.

“Keep Weight Underside” is one of those principles.

This sounds simple but it can be hard to grasp.

Simply put, any object in it’s natural state will have its weight at the lowest position possible.  This is what we mean by weight underside.

Applying this to our body, when standing up, this is a position in which we are not unnecessarily holding up any muscles in a state of tension.  This can often occur due to our mind being disturbed or unrelaxed as the body often follows the mind.

Many people are holding tension without realising it.  They hold their shoulders up for so long in a tensed state that it becomes natural for them to do this all the time without realising it.  At the same people will use their arms in such a way that the elbows and shoulders rise more than necessary when performing simple movements.

Being in a weight topside position means we are unco-ordinated and therefore in a weakened state.  It is also hard to be truly relaxed in such a position.

Through Aikido training we learn, through testing, to always have our weight underside in each movement and technique.

We find that when the body is relaxed and co-ordinated it becomes much heavier and an AIkido practitioner can become hard to lift or move.

Within our techniques, we often want to use our natural weight underside to our advantage rather than trying to use physical strength. 

We can only use our physical strength for so long when holding someone in a pin for example, but we can hold someone for hours with out weight while being relaxed.