Newcastle Aikido

04/10/2026

The crew showed up for Eli’s 19th yesterday 🐺 watch till the end to see how we celebrate birthdays around here 😉

02/10/2026

MEET ELI

Today we’re celebrating Eli, who turns 19.

On 28 December last year, Eli left his very comfortable family home and moved into the dojo.

He became an uchideshi.

Since then, the dojo has been his home.

For the past nine months, he’s been learning what happens when you step away from what’s comfortable and put yourself somewhere that asks more of you.

Getting up.
Showing up.
Working.
Training.
Learning.
Helping.
Making mistakes.
Doing hard things.
Then getting up and doing it all again.

There’s something very old about this kind of experience.

A young person stepping away from home and into a period of responsibility, discipline, practice and growth. A kind of rite of passage.

And we’ve had the privilege of watching Eli grow through it.

He’s learning Aikido, of course. But he’s also learning how to live independently, how to contribute, how to deal with discomfort, how to keep going when things are hard, and how to become the person he wants to be.

And he is incredibly blessed to have a loving mum, dad and sister behind him, supporting him as he takes this step into adulthood.

And as a dojo community, we’re proud to have him as part of our family.

But this isn’t the end of the journey.

He’s only nine months in.

There is still plenty of work to do. Plenty to learn. Plenty of hard things ahead.

And that’s the beautiful part.

Today we celebrate 19.
And we keep watching Eli become.

Happy birthday, Eli.

We’re very proud of you. ❤️

29/09/2026

Meet John.

John found us shortly after moving to Newcastle, having overheard Sensei talking about martial arts at Suspension. He’d been practising judo and was looking for a new challenge.

What made him stay?

The energy. The challenge. The people.

These days, John describes the dojo as a constant. A place to return to, get anchored and practise finding stillness amongst the whirlwind.

Outside the dojo, he’s usually somewhere in nature, cooking, reading, listening to music or working on his house.

And when asked what he hopes for new members?

“I hope we’re still practising together in twenty years.”

We hope so too, John 🙏🏻

29/09/2026

28/09/2026

SESSHIN

A weekend of practice, stillness and presence.

9–11 October

A few times a year, we step away from the noise and give ourselves fully to practice.

Zazen.
Movement.
Silence.
Breath.
Work.
Community.

Sesshin can be challenging. We sit with the restlessness, the boredom, the discomfort and all the things we normally keep ourselves too busy to notice.

One of our students described his first Sesshin as being a bit like taking your car to the mechanic.

You go in, things get looked at, adjusted and tuned.

And you come back feeling a little more balanced, aligned and ready to go.

That’s why we do it.

Not to escape ordinary life, but to return to it with a little more clarity and presence.

And we don’t do it just for ourselves.

When we practice together, we strengthen the dojo. We build trust, connection and a community that supports each other.

And then we take that practice back into the world.

A little more present.
A little less reactive.
A little more capable of meeting whatever comes next.

You don’t need to have done Sesshin before.
You don’t need years of meditation experience.

You just need to be curious and willing to give it a go.

9–11 October

All students are recommended to join 🐺

25/09/2026

More rotation. More hip. Better Shihonage.

Working on getting as much rotation through the hips as we can.

As you step through, the hips need to turn enough to bring your body around with the movement, rather than reaching with the arms. That rotation creates the space and keeps the technique moving smoothly.

24/09/2026

This is Blue Zone dojo.

Getting stronger. Moving better. Building balance, mobility, coordination and confidence.

But it’s also this…

Laughing. Enjoying yourself. Trying new things. Getting a little sweaty and having fun along the way.

Because getting fit shouldn’t feel like punishment.

And this is only the beginning.

We’ve got some things coming to Blue Zone dojo that we’re pretty excited about.

Stay tuned.

22/09/2026

Meet Alison 👋

If you’ve spent any time around the dojo, you’ve probably noticed her love of weapons training. For Alison, it’s never really been a hobby. It’s always felt like a part of who she is.

When she’s not training, you’ll find her spending time with family and friends or creating something with her hands.

The advice she comes back to time and again is simple:

Breathe. Calm the mind. Be present 🙏🏻

And like all of us, she’s still practising. Right now, that means working towards a little more No Mind every time she steps onto the tatami🐺

21/09/2026

A few days ago this room and the whole dojo was… well… an absolute mess 😂

And now there’s a whole lot of painting, building, fixing and making happening behind the scenes.

How lucky we are to have such a huge amount of talent amongst our members. Builders, electricians, painters, people who can fix things, make things and just get stuck in when something needs doing 🙏🏻

We’ve had so many of our members lend a hand over the last few days and it’s making such a difference🐺

We’re creating something pretty special in this space and we are SO excited to show you what we’ve been up to.

We’re keeping the doors shut for now…

But trust me, you’re going to want to see what’s behind them. 👀

The reveal is coming.

19/09/2026

No excuses. Just community.

Jade gets her training in with Grace along for the ride.

Then Grace helps clean the dojo floor. Because around here, we all pitch in. Cleaning the mats, training together, looking after each other. It’s all part of being a dojo.

And apparently, if Mum is doing push-ups, kisses are mandatory. 🥰

Grace is one of our little Mini Wolves, growing up around the dojo, watching, joining in and learning that this is her community too.

You don’t need perfect conditions to show up.

Sometimes you just bring the baby or find a way to carve out some much needed time for yourself.

That’s dojo life 🐺