I am concerned that I will slow the class down because of my skill Level.

Do not worry about slowing the class down because more than likely you will be paired with a senior student who will be more than glad to work out with you at your level.  Whenever a visitor or new student  work out with a senior student in our dojo, the senior will inevitably remember the time when they first visited or joined the dojo and the patience that was given to them and now it is their chance to repay the kindness.

Do you have an introduction class?

An intro class is a great way to determine if Aikido the right fit for you. However, we do not have intro classes because usually that class consist of a group of people with no Aikido experience practicing Aikido on each other.  At Aikido RVA visitors and new students will practice with all the members of the dojo. By doing so will allow you to experience the effectiveness of Aikido as well as afford you the opportunity to work with various levels of proficiency and body types.  As chief instructor I feel that by having new students practicing in this type of environment facilitates a greater understanding of Aikido.

I am not really in the best of shape, should I wait until I have had the chance to lose weight or start some sort of exercise prior to coming to an Aikido class?

First thing you should do is check  with your doctor if you have not worked out in a very long time to make sure that you do not have any hidden health risk.  Also please be advise that you will be constantly watched to make sure that you are not over doing it just because think you should be able to keep up with the rest of the class. The rule is do what you can do and continue to practice.   Although being physically active helps, there is one thing you should know and that is nothing gets you in shape for Aikido but Aikido.

You guys are thrown down quit often and it looks like it hurts?

It does, but part of the training is learning how to be thrown which lessens the pain of hitting mat greatly.  Actually some students are so proficient at being thrown that they enjoy taking a good fall.  If you every get a chance to watch Aikido you will notice that some people get up off the mat after being thrown laughing.  Dr. Oz even showed an Aikido roll as the proper way to fall in order to do very little damage to your body.

I would like to start to Aikido but I feel that I am too old.

Please, put that thought out of your mind.  You are never too young or too old to practice Aikido.  However, in order to practice at our dojo, we request that you be at least 14 years old.  You will find people younger than fourteen on the mat but please notice that their parents are practicing as well.  There has been special cases, such as a means to prevent bullying, when people younger than 14 have been allowed to practice with us  The average student age in this dojo is 39 and we have quit a few men and women over the age of 50.  Of course those in this dojo who are over age 50 strongly believe that over the age of 50 is not for wimps.

Can people with physical limitation practice Aikido?

Yes.  There are wonderful examples of people who have achieve their black belts with all sorts of physical limitations.  As chief instructor I personally welcome the opportunity to support students in challenging their physical limitations.  Aikido RVA is an equal opportunity organization, and does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, ethnic group, age, sexual orientation or physical abilities.