Re: Poll: How often do you actively slap the ground with your arms/hands when you fall during aikido training?
I voted always.
Since, when I break fall, I always slap. The exception to this rule is falling on stairs and similar things. Break-falling on pavement, road or non rocky ground is not part of this exception.
Since when I started practicing I was a total un-coordinated person, I had lots of opportunities to test these rules, and found them to be very efficient, I was never more then slightly bruised due to falling, including multiple falls on hard surfaces.
If one can roll, then slapping is normally avoided.
The most important thing about rules is understanding their origin and reasoning, and being cool enough to realize how you should react according to the circumstances rather then just following the rule