ABC of judo

Over the years of judo practice and teaching, I have come to realise that:The need to observe, to understand and experiment with different scenarios is the hallmark to the process of learning new judo skills that will last. As we participate into various training sessions, there is a need to develop our abilities for observing, assimilating and properly defining what is voluntarily or involuntarily presented and accepted by us as it is conveyed by our teachers and peers and then transformed them as means of skills acquisitions and enhancements.

It is by our continued interests in, the exposures to, and the experiences gained from trying different techniques that we expand our possibilities of retention and thereby diminish the amount of efforts or energy needed to reproduce those same movements in the future even when associated with different circumstances.

By the hundred and thousand repetitions performed under different scenarios, with diverse partners or when embracing altered angles of displacement, we get to practice our reasoning and enhance our senses of sight, hearing, smell and touch who will continuously feed us the necessary impulses from which we can build different action-reaction patterns. As we move along the judo path, we soon realize that we need to form reliable habits that incorporate all the new findings and enhance our automatic-reflexes.

Miyamoto Mushashi once said:“We have to seek to understand everything, from the global picture to the minute details and work our way up from the smallest to the biggest element”.
It is well recognized that individual will power, strength, skills and techniques are parts of the general training schedule followed by the majority.
These attributes will carry most judoka towards the attainment of some degree of efficiency. I am of the opinion that mastery on the other hand, will come only to those judoka who are able to control a given situation from the best vantage point and who are able to synchronize their actions-reactions with and make use of the opponent’s power and strength. This is the essence of judo: To overcome with flexibility. This latter path is often referred to as: “JU NO RI”, or responding with suppleness and in harmony.
Components of a throw
In order to demonstrate true mastery of judo technique, one must understand the correlation and the complementarity of the following ten elements:
1. Shisei-Posture or the ways the whole body is held and emphasis is placed on the natural stand.
2. Shintai- Displacement of the human body when walking (Ayumi-Tsugi Ashi).
3. Debana- Opportunity or the moment an object or person starts to move, act or interact.
4. Kumi Kata-Form associate with the preliminary holding for the engagement at the collar lapel or sleeve.
5. Kuzushi- Action of breaking balance of the opponent in one or eight directions as a preparation for a throw or a hold.
6. Ma-ai- is associated with distance management of the space between two combatants.
7. Tai-Sabaki -Body positions shifting and changing directions.
8. Tsukuri- The action to set up a technique following the braking of balance.
9. Kake- the swift execution of the technique including the momentum of movement.
10. Ukemi- the resultant action of breaking the fall as a mean of protection and safety.

Other members on this forum may wish to offer a different opinion, augment or complement the above. all comments are welcomed.

Agreed!

My particular interest is in framing those hundred thousand iterations into some kind of cohesive picture (both for myself and others). People seem to learn both by direct instruction and osmosis. Perhaps osmosis is the default pattern and it's the curious few who do the brain work / thinking.

I think the concept of framing learning scenarios is pretty interesting, as it *should* enable you (by almost Darwinian selection pressures) to select for certain outcomes. I think everyone develops an internal sense / preference of what a 'good' throw (by osmosis, instruction and experience) should feel like ('chase the dragon'); I think success might come from getting hooked on that feeling and then grading / internally steering towards likewise outcomes.

It's pretty amazing at how deep all this stuff is (learning conditions), if you start to really delve into it.

Thanks for kicking off a great topic!

I would tend to agree that osmosis learning is perhaps present for the majority, yet, if one wants to excel, he or she needs to go beyond, to personalize the technique. I was once told by a senior Europeen trainer that we, the Canadians are good and strong judoka yet we all do the same thing in competition. I think mastery goes beyond the copy cat. When one achieve mastery, it is like performing an art object or a kami-waza, the feeling is so great and exhilarating. Hope many judoka get to feel that sensation in their life time on the tatami.

One master put it thus: learn the basics, individualise the basics, cast off the basics.

DougNZ wrote:One master put it thus: learn the basics, individualise the basics, cast off the basics.

Shu Ha Ri...kind of...

Ben Reinhardt wrote:

DougNZ wrote:One master put it thus: learn the basics, individualise the basics, cast off the basics.

Shu Ha Ri...kind of...

Precisely ... kind of ...

DougNZ wrote:

Ben Reinhardt wrote:

DougNZ wrote:One master put it thus: learn the basics, individualise the basics, cast off the basics.

Shu Ha Ri...kind of...

Precisely ... kind of ...

On a quantum level, it's all fuzzy.

Skillful judo technique must reflect the intelligent use of energy and employ flexibility as a mean of response.

forgeron judo wrote:Skillful judo technique must reflect the intelligent use of energy and employ flexibility as a mean of response.

If it doesn't, does it mean it's not skillful judo technique? In any case, I agree.

The struggle for me at least is how to instill those qualities, or at least facilitate that in myself and those whom I teach.

Of course, successful techniques prove the diligent use of most of the principal elements. Such effectiveness can score in competition and can most likely be repeated many times over during other circumstances. Obtaining the score of Ippon is a good reward, it is somewhat a recognition by others that the key elements have been rendered. Only the judoka as Tori can really determine in his or her mind if they mastered all the elements and prove the real efficiency or was it a combination of skills and chance at that moment.

For the coach or teacher, such an occasion must present an opportunity to observe and comment positively. There must be an immediate moment or a soon after moment for consultation and communication with the athlete to get the FIRST impressions as to what was felt and done that made that technique so special. Encouragements to pursue excellence before an immediate triumph is too often discarded for the joy and exaltation of the moment. Such moment of reflection can be practice in the dojo when the sensei if watchful over his students and take the time to challenge the realisation of all the composites to be found and coordinated in each technique. Not an easy task for both the teacher and the students, as the successful technique has already proven that it worked previously. Aspiring to do better can be viewed as an almost impossible task...but that is what perfection and uniqueness are all about.

forgeron judo wrote:Of course, successful techniques prove the diligent use of most of the principal elements. Such effectiveness can score in competition and can most likely be repeated many times over during other circumstances. Obtaining the score of Ippon is a good reward, it is somewhat a recognition by others that the key elements have been rendered. Only the judoka as Tori can really determine in his or her mind if they mastered all the elements and prove the real efficiency or was it a combination of skills and chance at that moment.

For the coach or teacher, such an occasion must present an opportunity to observe and comment positively. There must be an immediate moment or a soon after moment for consultation and communication with the athlete to get the FIRST impressions as to what was felt and done that made that technique so special. Encouragements to pursue excellence before an immediate triumph is too often discarded for the joy and exaltation of the moment. Such moment of reflection can be practice in the dojo when the sensei if watchful over his students and take the time to challenge the realization of all the composites to be found and coordinated in each technique. Not an easy task for both the teacher and the students, as the successful technique has already proven that it worked previously. Aspiring to do better can be viewed as an almost impossible task...but that is what perfection and uniqueness are all about.

Well, I know from personnel experience how fleeting those special moments can be. When I see my students perform that way, I usually just compliment them. I have not found a really good way to try to get them to somehow remember elements that led to it. I emphasize their own efforts to that point, because, the performance is the sum of their diligent efforts and training.

In fact, thinking too much about it can make it more difficult to repeat. Often I will use the phrase "that's how it's supposed to feel", or "that is the shape you make with uke" when something is finally "gotten".

I shy away from encouraging perfection. The effort of training is what is really the most important aspect of doing Judo, in my opinion. I can usually tell when a student has begun to or has internalized some aspect of what I present to them. That is really what I like to see, not necessarily that they can be perfect at what they are doing. I see progress of the individual and I am glad, benchmarked mostly against themselves, but in the framework of learning Judo.

That's one reason I dislike standardized technique lists as a method of evaluation for rank promotion. It's not so much how many techniques you "know", but how you do the techniques you do know, representative of the various throwing/grappling techniques of judo.

I concur with your observations. We must be pleased with the fact that the students have tried their best to internalize the techniques when ever they are performed. Seeking to attain perfection is relative to each one of us and as such, as a teacher or coach we should not push the envelope when the students are not ready to do so. We should rejoice before their progress and when appropriate, entertain having a potential discussion about what technical goals they seek in the future. We are all master of our faith and the only real judge as to what constitute the optimal realisation of our goals. Judo skills achievement is part of a long training process and sometime, the road ahead will take many bifurcations during which the judoka will have to make critical choices to pursue his goals. Coaches and teachers as well as peers advices or recommendations are part of the factors to be taken into consideration yet, they should not be considered as the ultimate command.  .