Aikido teacher won't be thrown by illness
by jlowe - Daily Hampshire Gazette
NORTHAMPTON - Todd Martin has a movement disorder that makes walking across a room a chore. Yet when he dons his black-and-white gi and steps onto the mat at Aikido of Northampton, he can parry attacks and topple opponents with a skill few people match.
Martin, of Florence, began experiencing muscle twitches about six months ago. While his diagnosis is not definite, he said doctors call his condition generalized dystonia.
He's taking a medication most often used to treat Parkinson's disease, another neurological movement disorder. The medicine, he said, quiets the symptoms, though his arms sometimes make involuntary jerks, and he has to constantly watch the floor to keep balance.
While practicing aikido, though, these problems seem to melt away.
"People are amazed when I get on the mat - things totally change," he said. "I don't know if my brain is operating on a different level, or if it's just stored in a different area."
That may have something to do with his long history with aikido. Now 38, he has been studying the Japanese martial art since age 11. He said doctors often recommend "soft" martial arts like tai chi as good therapy for people with movement disorders. Aikido, he admits, isn't so soft.
Martin started out at Aikido of Northampton, and after years studying and teaching around the country, returned as its head instructor in 2001.
Saturday, more than 80 aikido students turned out to the dojo on North Maple Street in Florence. The occasion was a special seminar to benefit Martin, organized by several of Martin's friends and fellow instructors from around the Northeast. The event raised $6,000 to $7,000, Martin said.
"He's one of the best," said Philip Dowling, of Westhampton, a longtime member of Martin's dojo. "Not just one of the best practitioners, but teachers as well."
Yoshimitsu Yamada, 70, a disciple of aikido founder Morihei Ueshiba and one of the art's leading exponents in the U.S., led one of the lessons Saturday. Martin studied in New York with Yamada as uchi-deshi (a sort of apprentice) from 1989 to 1994.
"I consider him one of my sons ... my successors," Yamada said of Martin.
To the lay observer, aikido might look a bit like a ballroom dancing - except that one of the partners is typically placed in a joint lock or thrown to the floor after a few steps.
With graceful and fluid movements, experienced practitioners can toss around even the most burly of opponents as if they were weightless. A take-down can be as subtle as a twist of the wrist.
Yamada and other instructors demonstrated various techniques, then students practiced them in round-robin. One move involved grabbing hold of an incoming fist and pitching the attacker off balance. Another had defenders bending their opponents' arms back to an uncomfortable angle before pinning them to the ground.
Based on nonviolent principles, aikido's focus is on deflecting attacks rather than simply blocking them. Students spend considerable time learning how to fall without hurting themselves, and how to throw their opponents without hurting them, too.
Martin's particular emphasis on safety attracted Heath Atschley, of South Hadley, to the Florence dojo four years ago.
"People feel more confident," he said. "You're not afraid of getting hurt, so you learn better."
He and others who have trained with Martin over the years said it can be difficult to watch him struggle, but at the same time inspiring to see him maintain so much prowess.
Eric Hardendorff, of Cummington, another instructor at the dojo, said a fundamental lesson Martin taught him was adaptability. Learning how to change and temper your reactions on the aikido mat also gives insight into dealing with life's pressures.
"It's a lot about personal growth," Hardendorff said.
Julia Freedgood, an instructor at Valley Aikido in downtown Northampton, said Saturday's benefit seminar was an expression of community values inherent in aikido.
"It's about honor and generosity and spirit," she said. "When somebody has a hard time in their life, it's a great time for training."
Martin said he's grateful for the outpouring of good will.
"Without such a strong support group, it would be hard," he said. "If kindness and thoughtfulness could cure my disease, I would be."
“The divine is not something high above us. It is in heaven, it is in earth, it is inside us.”
- O Sensei