I have spent decades studying Daito Ryu Aikijujutsu under my teacher Kiyama Hayao Shihan, and the Kodokai Menkyo Kaiden Inoue Yusuke. Regardless of rank, I continue to be a student, constantly studying and training, looking for new ways to understand and improve my aiki.
One of the main reasons I do seminars all over the world, is to meet fellow seekers that I can share with. Training is a collaboration. A true shugyo mindset recognizes others who have the same passion and drive to uncover aiki’s secrets. When I met Adam Hosie, I instantly recognized his dedication and his ability. Despite his age, he has touched several of the top practitioners in Daito Ryu, and their reaction was similar to mine. It isn’t about rank or lineage, it is about what you can do and how you train.
The more I got to know Adam, the more I saw how his approach complemented many of the things I have been developing over a lifetime of training. We decided to share our research, encouraging each other to continue to become even better. As Kiyama Sensei always says, “Shugyo is everything.” If you have an opportunity to train with Hosie Sensei, I strongly recommend you do so.
Roy Goldberg Sensei
To appreciate Aiki you have to experience it.
If you’re going to experience Aiki then you could not find a better teacher than Adam Hosie of The Aiki Dojo.
Adam has so much talent and knowledge and yet is patient and friendly to all who are lucky enough to have trained with him.
Adam has developed something quite extraordinary with Aiki. It’s the true essence of martial arts that so many people can spend their life missing out on.
From beginners to the highest of grades in any martial art should add some experience with Adam Hosie to their list.
If you have interest in any martial art, then make sure you add this experience to yours.
Nigel Edwards
I recently attended my first full session with Adam. I watched Adam demonstrate his aiki in a way which didn't patronise the experienced martial artist nor seek to influence the practitioner to one art or another. Adam introduces his concepts to the benefit of all regardless of art, style, age, skill or experience.
Adam delivers his sessions in a really accessible way. He takes what can seem like baffling concepts and translates them into something everyone can relate to.
If you want to really consider how you move and maximise what you do Adam can certainly add significant value to your martial art. I trained with a variety of martial artists whilst with Adam and can report that everyone took something out of the day, in fact the day whizzed past almost too quickly such was the engaging nature of the content.
Adam talks about revitalising your martial arts life. I think that is spot on.
Richard M
This is a brief review with regards to online training classes with Adam Hosie of the Aiki Dojo.
I am an Aikido guy that has been training for many years now and have been recently searching for instruction in Aiki/I.P.
While searching for Daito Ryu Aiki jujutsu courses in the UK and further afield, I came across Adam’s website which was among the top searches. So, I had a look to check this out. I quickly noticed he had met many of the top Daito Ryu people. Also, on the website Roy Goldberg had left a review recommended training with Adam. So, I got in touch 27/11/2020 to ask if it was possible to arrange online lessons, it was possible, and I have not looked back.
Adam’s delivery and pace during the online lessons is excellent, he keeps you engaged but leaves room for discussion. I have practiced the exercises/methods taught for foundational Aiki training and have noticed changes within myself which have really surprised me as I was expecting this process to take many years (I am sure it will) but there have been substantial changes to my breathing and structure, also how these two are connected. This has all been online training and telephone conversations with Adam.
Although this has not being for me not been face to face learning (yet) the delivery has yielded concrete results for me personally. I strongly advise anyone who is interested in Aiki/I.P. to contact Adam and join the online classes. Due to COVID we all have had to adapt our training so for folks who want to supplement their training The Aiki Dojo Aiki solo practice and online lessons are perfect.
Gassho
Paul Docherty
I first got to know about Adam Hosie after reading Roy Goldberg Sensei’s testimonial about him. It was the first time I’ve seen Goldberg Sensei publicly acknowledging that somebody, not from within the Daito Ryu system and lineage, has achieved a mastery in Aiki. Goldberg Sensei is currently the highest ranking non-Japanese Daito Ryu instructor, so for him to vouch for Adam’s skill in Aiki is certainly no small matter. And even better still, Adam is now offering to teach the fundamentals of Aiki online!
I have always been interested in finding out what Aiki, or internal power, really is, as well as how to go about achieving it. My first experience with Aiki came from attending Dan Harden’s seminar. Those who have touched hands with Dan would all attest that he too, has achieved a mastery of Aiki, and he’s an amazing martial artist without doubt.
Initially I was a bit puzzled as to how it would be possible to transmit the teachings of Aiki through an online class, as my understanding then was that Aiki has to be taught through a physical class and be felt physically to understand. However, curiosity got the better of me, and I decided to contact Adam to find out more. Adam was very friendly and responded to all my questions promptly, and soon after I decided to arrange for my first online session with him.
I started my first session with an open mind, not knowing what to expect. Little did I realise that the main exercise that Adam taught during this first lesson was one of the most important exercise! In theory, doing Aiki requires a whole-body connection to work. However, how is a person able to honestly tell if they have managed to obtain a basic level of whole-body connection? Doing the exercises that Adam taught me on the first session has greatly helped me to bridge this gap and improve my overall whole-body connectedness.
I never looked back after the first lesson, and now after multiple online classes with Adam, I am really glad and fortunate to have him share and teach so much to me, in a step by step and easy to understand manner. Some of the principles that Adam have taught me, I could never have imagined were possible to be done, nor have I read about it anywhere else, and it still boggles my mind how he has managed to come up with these principles himself!
It has been a great privilege to have crossed paths with two masters of Aiki for sure, and some people have asked me, are there any big differences between what Adam and Dan teaches? While there are differences in principles between their teachings, there are a number of similarities as well, and what Adam has taught has only served to compliment what I have learnt from Dan.
The bottom line is, for anybody interested in learning more about Aiki, you owe it to yourself to reach out to Adam. It’s probably once in a blue moon that an amazing martial art genius like Adam is willing to teach so enthusiastically.
Ray C.
I guess the purpose of a review is to help others determine if they should avail themselves to an offer or service... so in this case, should you train with Adam?
Well the short answer is, if you want to learn aiki in a way that can be demonstrated and explained, then yes... you should train with Adam.
At this point you can take my word for it, and just train with him or you can continue on to read the long answer (and it's a really long answer).
OK... so you want the long answer... WHY should you train with Adam? Well I guess the answer to THAT question is... what makes for good training?
1. Someone who can prove they've got the goods.
2. Someone who is able to teach what they have.
3. Someone willing to teach what they have.
If you find someone who has all 3, then I think you should jump on that opportunity.
1. Does Adam have the goods?
I met Adam about 4 years ago. After a series of conversations, it sounded like he had the goods... so I eventually decided that there was only one way to find out.
Taking a huge risk, I arranged to train with Adam over a 4 day period. An intensive session, with just him and me. He said we could train as much as I could take, and I was intent on keeping him to his word. (And to his credit, he delivered.)
But that's not the point. Did he have the goods?
From the get go, Adam was open with demonstrating what he had. He never asked me to comply or "be a good uke", but simply presented different scenarios that he invited me to "resist as much as I wanted". These initial "ice breaker" demonstrations began to show that Adam could actually do what he said he could do.
The more we trained, the more he gave me opportunities to actively resist what he was doing. And trust me, I tried to stop him - but I couldn't do it. It reached a point where it literally seemed like he had no openings.
Late into the 2nd day, I felt we got to know each other well enough that he wouldn't be (too) offended if I tested him - when he WASN'T expecting it!
I mean it's one thing resist a technique when he knew it was coming, but what if he didn't?
Well I had to know.
Needless to say, it didn't go well - for me. I tried to resist a technique he was applying - while he was explaining it - and amazingly it had no affect! In fact he didn't even realise that I was trying to thwart him.
He didn't change the technique or even readjust what he was doing. At the time I couldn't understand why I wasn't able to to affect him at all - but now I can see that he already had my structure compromised so that that I could not generate any power against him. And amazingly this is what he accomplishes - on contact, and what he was trying to teach me all along.
2. Is he able to teach?
Adam has a very analytical mind when it comes to aiki. In addition to that he has a very one tracked mind when it comes to aiki, as he's continually looking for better ways to do it, and to explain it.
My experience with him, is that he first works on getting you to experience what aiki is, this is the first step. When he manages that, he then breaks the process down to its component parts, explaining each component in detail. Finally he attempts to convey how it all fits together.
So this is a big deal. It is one thing to be able to do it, it is something totally different to be able to convey it. But this is what Adam does.
3. Is he willing to teach?
Adam is extremely generous in sharing what he has. At no point did he hold anything back. In fact, I'm sure he would have taught me even more had it not been for the fact that my brain had already melted and oozed out of my ear!
It is safe to say in our 4 days, he gave me over 2 years of things to work on and explore. To this day I am still digesting the material (and yes, that could be because I'm a slow learner)
So there you have it, the long version of why you should train with Adam.
Adam is a great guy, who is open with his knowledge, who genuinely is trying to share what he knows, and is passionate about aiki.
Raymond Chong
I met Sensei Adam Hosie for the first time at his recent full day smeinar, Initially what had caught my eye regarding this was his Aiki Jutsu approach and I thought this might help me in improving my own martial arts practice.
My own background is Aikido and Kyukoshinkai Karate, a couple of years in the army, and with some basic observations into Jutsu. As I'm nearly in my mid-50s, I have several decades of physical injuries and arthritis to contend with, and I was hoping I might learn to execute my techniques with more effectiveness and less effort.
I learnt - and left - with a great deal more than that!!
In my opinion I gained a big part of the missing puzzle bit which I had been looking for over many many years. I had seen internal aspects of both Aiki and Karate in the past but could never gotten a fully satisfying explanation for how this worked. Adam Hosie broke it down into logical parts and steps that I could understand , and more importantly, blend into my own training and practice moving ahead no matter what age. "Feeling is believing" as the old saying goes and until a person has experienced his approach on themselves, it is difficult to fully appreciate it! But I am already looking forward to the next workshop !!
Alexander Moghal
I have been studying internal stuff for awhile and have trained with Vladimir Vasiliev, Akuzawa Minoru, and Daito Ryu Roppokai people. With all of these approaches and other approaches other than these ones, I try to look for the shared overlap between all of them in order to find the essence of internal martial arts. I believe it all boils down to alignment and connection. How Vladimir, Akuzawa, or perhaps a Chinese stylist might use this essential alignment will differ. Adam Hosie also does an art which I believe is based on this common essence but uses it in order to connect with the opponent, create leverage between oneself and the opponent, and uses the mind/imagination to configure the body in such a way that it creates relaxed, effortless internal Kuzushi in which you create disequilibrium within the opponent’s structure with very slight movement. I have bought into his system because of its focus on sensitivity of one’s internal structure, the connection one makes with the opponent, and the Kuzushi that occurs when we configure the body (using the different Aiki levels that Adam works with). Other systems I believe do not focus on this sensitivity—at least not to the degree that Adam has. I also have bought into it because of Adam’s current research into making this work against people with solid internal structure. I recommend for anybody who is interested in doing effective, relaxed internal work.
Lorel Latorilla
I had never really been a believer of the internal arts; I now understand what I've been missing. Sensei Adam Hosie's methodology appeals to me, as I am an engineer and like to analyse things scientifically. His techniques blend in and enhance everything that I've done for 30 years. As Ju Jitsu under Sensei Leonard Davies forced me to deconstruct what I had learned of Aikido and Karate in order to make the techniques actually work, Adam's techniques are forcing me to deconstruct Ju Jitsu to make it work even better. What he does is so obvious and easy once you understand the principles, which are 'hidden' in principles learned across the martial arts spectrum, that it's frustratingly hard. So, I keep plodding on to learn to apply the basics, and then turn the science into an art.
Tamal Islam