trouble with keiza

[madeku]

Been in Aikido since about may.. and about a year or so ago i trained for a few months as well.. twice a week.. i would train more if i wasn't married, lol.

I'm just wondering, do most people have trouble being on live toes like for keiza posture? my toes just don't want to bend back that far. i can do it, but i'm certainly not mobile enough to do suwari waza or shikko for more than a few minutes... then i have to essentially get up, squat, bend forward and kneel to get back into position.. iv seen several people be able to essentially sit on their heels in keiza where i feel i'm stuck just hovering and putting more stress on my toes or knees. is it something that can sometimes be resolved with static stretching outside of class?

 

[Satori]

Keiza and seiza were agonizing for me when I first started. It just takes time and repition I think. After about a half year of doing it daily I finally felt comfortable doing it. However even to this day I can only do either for about 5minutes before I'm stiff in the knees, toes, and ankles. Patience and persaverance is the key I think...

 

[Takai]

Getting the flexibility in all of your joints and getting used to the pressure on your knees, ankles, etc just takes time. I would recommend just start by doing sieza for a couple of minutes every day. Over time it will get easier.

Enjoy the journey.

 

[Aiki Lee]

I can sit in seiza for about 10 minutes before I need to change, kieza I can only do for about 20 seconds as my toes are not very strong. Still I think imporvement will come the more you suffer through it.