Self Care Using Ki Aikido For The
Massage Therapist

This is the way I see it: Ki-Aikido is a self improvement system with martial arts and self-defense included.

If you are having a difficult time understanding how Ki-Aikido and Massage Therapist Personal Body Maintenance fit together, please scroll down this page and read my article entitled: Massage & Martial Arts.

Las Vegas Ki Aikido is my outlet physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually.

Although I do perform many other duties to ensure that my self care and personal body maintenance is complete, a specific task for a specific purpose, Las Vegas Ki Aikido is my core, my all encompassing foundation.

Take a quick read below to see if self care using Ki-Aikido interests you. If it does, please feel free to contact me so I can explain exactly what it is we do a bit further, and I can put you 'in-touch' with a dojo near you!

Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido or informally known as Ki Aikido

The standard English phrase to describe "shin shin toitsu aikido" is "aikido with mind and body coordinated." "Unified" is another word commonly used in place of "coordinated."

The first kanji (Chinese character used in Japanese) "shin" is body/person (another more common reading is "mi"), the second is heart/mind/spirit (another reading is "kokoro"), and the "toitsu," if you look it up in a dictionary, means "unification/united" (the "to" part usually means "series"; the "itsu" part is the kanji for "one").

What makes this style of aikido different from some other forms of aikido (and many forms of martial arts) is...

Literally, Aikido can be interpreted to mean "The path of harmonious energy." This is the keystone of Ki Aikido philosophy.

The Ki Society was established in 1971 by Koichi Tohei. Its purpose is to teach the principles of Ki, which are the foundation of Aikido Arts, and which show the way to coordinate and unify mind and body in daily life and activities.

There are many people, including the elderly, sick and the weak, who do not care to throw or be thrown by an opponent, and yet want to learn how to relax and how to unify their minds and bodies. The Ki Society offers these people the opportunity to do this.

THE PRINCIPLES OF THE UNIVERSE

• The Universe is a limitless sphere with a limitless radius.

• The Universe is an infinite gathering of infinitely small particles.

• The Universe is constantly moving and changing.

Koichi Tohei Sensei - Founder of Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido

If you would like to learn more about Massage Therapist Self Care using Las Vegas Ki Aikido please contact me. I have over twelve years experiences in Las Vegas Ki Aikido. Although I still see myself as a beginner, I have learned some tips and secrets along the way to assist you on your Path with Heart and self care! ;)

Please visit our Ki-Breathing and Ki-Meditation pages as well! Ki Breathing and Ki Meditation are both core foundations of Ki Aikido!

Massage & Martial Arts

It may seem paradoxical to include martial arts practice as an important aspect to being a massage therapist or even using it as self care. When we think of the martial arts, words such as, 'opponent' 'defeat', and 'against' often come to mind.

However, aikido differs from disciplines such as karate, tai chi, and even yoga because it emphasizes the importance of blending with your partner.

In aikido, as in massage therapy, it is necessary to read body language and understand the intention of the person or client with whom you are working.

The Founder of Aikido, its first sensei, or teacher, forbade competition. The relationship between massage therapist and client is unlike any other; it is important for the therapist to create a safe space for the client and to be aware of his or her own emotional state before the session starts.

Ki aikido helps bridge the body and the brain, just as massage therapist self care does. It gives me experience with the physical connection necessary in massage therapy, while teaching me to be grounded and centered. Aikido helps with knowing where the boundaries are, with containing and setting aside my own feelings and with knowing how and when to blend with the energy of my partner; whether on the mat or on the massage table.

With ki aikido, the partner shows where it is that we need to grow. The successful practice of Aikido requires the ability to shift, and when that shift cannot occur, a blockage is often the reason that the shift is prevented.

In massage therapy, as with virtually any therapeutic practice, it is important that I be able to modify my responsiveness to a client's behavior. If the client is projecting; that is, externalizing his or her own emotional state onto me the therapist, then I would need to have a different reaction to that situation than if the client had had a moment of insight and needed heartfelt, empathic connection.

The mind-body connection between aikido and massage therapy is an entertaining one for sure. Aikido teaches us to center ourselves and to deal with our own aggression and control of power. It is important to be comfortable with power, and aikido shows physical power in a concrete way, on the mat. It teaches how to control my own power in response to someone else's.

Aikido is gratifying because, due to its physical nature, it provides instant feedback. The same can be said of working with a massage client. It's physical in nature, and upon touching a body, there's instant feedback! (This is the same with your own self care program, correct?)

Students learn aikido practices that are focused on developing therapeutic presence, staying centered when challenged by people, and blending empathically with others. The competent massage therapist needs to deal effectively, powerfully, and caringly with his or her clients, often in potentially volatile and highly charged emotional situations or upon emotional release during a massage session.

Because aikido deals specifically with conflict and its peaceful resolution, the study of aikido, complete with its philosophy and practice methods, I've learned that it is helpful in keeping me grounded, centered, and connected within myself while simultaneously being more sensitive and aware of the client. Aikido practice powerfully affects my ability as a massage therapist to be present and effective in massage therapy.

The objective in aikido is to join one’s personal ki (energy) with universal ki to achieve ultimate harmony (ai). Aikido emphasizes working with a partner, rather than grappling or fighting against an opponent as in competitive tournaments.

The essence of the practice is the blending of movements and ki-breathing which physically creates harmony in conflictual encounters. Aikido is fundamentally a practice that develops mind-body-spirit connection.

It has been described as moving meditation. The essence of spirituality is experiencing a sense of connection to something larger, something that transcends our everyday mental chatter or egos. Aikido as a practice develops a connection to the sacred, to us, with other humans, and also to nature.

Aikido cultivates the development of my entire being as a therapist, not just the intellect. Mind and body must be coordinated in aikido. This trains the attention and brings about other changes in consciousness that is central to creating the healing presence so important in massage therapy.

A therapist who can maintain a calm state of mind, free from fears and illusions of the past or of an imagined future, can relate to others (especially massage clients) empathically. The ability to relax and blend in the face of conflict, and to enhance sensitivity to self and clients, are attributes the therapist cannot simply adopt as a philosophy.

End of original article. Now, can you also see how this can work with your own personal body maintenance and self care system?

Las Vegas Massage Therapist Kris Kelley