Judo questions for Bobo...

[CrazyThai]

So I had a few Judo training related questions for Bobo. Nothing technical, just a few training questions.

So, I've been doing BJJ for about 5-6 years now, and we do a decent amount of Judo/wrestling drilling, but don't do too much live sparring from our feet. We do a lot of grip fighting into fit-ins, which helps, but doesn't really give you the full experience. So I'm really good at getting set up right, but mediocre at actually finishing a throw/trip correctly.

I HATE Judo days. I love judo, but hate getting thrown. We'll drill some throws over and over, and I know how to break-fall pretty well, but the next day I'm hurting from being dropped on my back 100 reps. When we do full live sparring from the feet, I see a lot of people getting hurt (rarely injured) due to people trying to not get taken down and legs getting tangled up. When we're drilling, everyone is a good partner and commits to being thrown, so legs don't get tangled up, but when we're live and people are trying not to get put on their backs **** gets dangerous.

So my questions:

-How much do you guys drill throws?
-How much do you guys spar live?
-How does your body hold up from being picked up and thrown over and over?
-Any advice on drilling?
-Any advice on improving?

We've got a guy from the 2012 US Olympic Judo Team coming to our school Saturday for a seminar, but I don't even know if it's worth attending because some of the high level throws are like trying to learn dance moves, and I've got two left feet.

[boboplata2.0]

So I had a few Judo training related questions for Bobo. Nothing technical, just a few training questions.

So, I've been doing BJJ for about 5-6 years now, and we do a decent amount of Judo/wrestling drilling, but don't do too much live sparring from our feet. We do a lot of grip fighting into fit-ins, which helps, but doesn't really give you the full experience. So I'm really good at getting set up right, but mediocre at actually finishing a throw/trip correctly.

I HATE Judo days. I love judo, but hate getting thrown. We'll drill some throws over and over, and I know how to break-fall pretty well, but the next day I'm hurting from being dropped on my back 100 reps. When we do full live sparring from the feet, I see a lot of people getting hurt (rarely injured) due to people trying to not get taken down and legs getting tangled up. When we're drilling, everyone is a good partner and commits to being thrown, so legs don't get tangled up, but when we're live and people are trying not to get put on their backs **** gets dangerous.

HAH! like you, i'm pretty awesome during form practice but i struggle getting a clean throw. chain your throws. it is a bitch. you commit to a throw then your partner swerves a little then you follow up with another & another going 100%. ****!

-How much do you guys drill throws?

after warm-ups. every training session.

-How much do you guys spar live?

after every form practice every training session.

-How does your body hold up from being picked up and thrown over and over?

you'll get used to it i guess. most of my judo related pains are self-inflicted. just don't stretch your arms out when you're about to fall.

-Any advice on drilling?

i've noticed some blackbelts doing the 1st 5 reps really slow & technical then picking up speed from 6th to 10th where you almost throw your partner like having him hanging on your back on the 10th or last rep. i guess they're trying to get a certain rhythm.

-Any advice on improving?

just master seoinage & most other throws will open itself up for you. also, train your weak side as much as your dominant side. when i started, people told me to drill tai otoshi all the time because i'm lanky. i realized the movements of a basic shoulder or hip throw is all you need. even if you couldn't get the throw you could follow up from there with another or set it up as an entry for a different throw. they're like jabs in a striking context.

We've got a guy from the 2012 US Olympic Judo Team coming to our school Saturday for a seminar, but I don't even know if it's worth attending because some of the high level throws are like trying to learn dance moves, and I've got two left feet.

dude. the thing with high level judokas they know many throws but have like 2-3 bread & butter money throws. they have certain details missing from the common instructions that they discovered to adapt to their game or physique. who knows, he might tweak his seminar to be bjj oriented throws/trip to cater to you guys. go! i'd rather attend a seminar with emphasis on 2-3 moves instead of giving the class 7 moves that nobody could remember.

good luck!

[CrazyThai]

^Thanks a lot man!

I guess I'll check out that seminar. I'll work on trying to chain my throws, and not being such a *****.

[CrazyThai]

One more question... do you use different, throws/techniques based on your opponent's height? I know the throws where you have to get your hips lower than your opponents don't really physically work out for me when the other guy is a lot shorter than me.

[boboplata2.0]

One more question... do you use different, throws/techniques based on your opponent's height?

don't forget angles & footwork. where he's gonna step. anticipate. do you guys do movement drills? like doing the cha-cha then a throw.

I know the throws where you have to get your hips lower than your opponents don't really physically work out for me when the other guy is a lot shorter than me.

true, but i recommend drilling throws which are difficult to apply to certain physiques. like doing hip throws against shorter opponents.

[CrazyThai]

We've got a guy from the 2012 US Olympic Judo Team coming to our school Saturday for a seminar...

This is the guy who taught the seminar:


He took 7th at his weight (73kg) in London.

[boboplata2.0]

This is the guy who taught the seminar:


He took 7th at his weight (73kg) in London.

sweet tomoe nage. awesome balance & dexterity by the guy in white though. what did the judo guy teach in your seminar? i assume he's the guy wearing the blue gi in the gif.

[JudoBoy]

Just throwing my opinion into the mix:

The pain of being thrown does eventually (mostly) go. You really need to be comfortable in your breakfalls so that you land correctly - if you try to twist out of throws (no matter how cool it may look) or put your arm out to stop yourself (think Shogun/Coleman 1) that's when you get hurt. It's a bit of a vicious circle - if you're nervous you won't land probably, you'll get hurt and be more nervous for the next throw. Break the circle and start falling correctly and you'll be fine. Of course this is all easier said than done and a good tori makes a world of difference - I'd much rather be thrown by another black belt than a white belt!

My one comment on improving would be to keep an open mind. For years I wanted a good seoi nage or uchi mata - you know what I'm talking about - a really good throw that I could break out in competitions and impress the crowd. Didn't happen - I can teach them, I can demonstate them and, in nagekomi or crash mat, I can nail them every time. In randori or competition however I just can't pull the trigger on them, even though I can see the opportunities staring me in the face. Maybe it's my body type, maybe it's a mental thing. Once I accepted that my best throws were yoko otoshi, tani otoshi and a ouchi/kouchi combination (along with a healthy dose of being good on the ground) I started winning and got my black belt. Eventually you'll find what works for you (whether it's the throw you want or not) and you'll develop your own game. This keeps developing by the way as I've started hitting the odd harai goshi and koshi guruma in randori when I wasn't even looking for it - maybe there's hope for me yet!

edited to add the word "and" between goshi and koshi