If you are new to Judo, you probably have a lot of questions.
First, what to expect?
Well, Judo is a Japanese martial art. It is also an Olympic sport. It based on grappling, and features mostly throwing, pinning and submission techniques. From a self defense perspective, the goal of Judo is throw your assailant to the ground, with the aim of incapacitating him/her and escaping. Plan B is to throw your opponent to the ground, following closely upon him/her to effect a dominant or controlling position on the ground (a pin). From there to retain control until a comrade can rescue you or to incapacitate the opponent either by way of choke or joint lock.
In the sporting sense, these same concepts are conveyed by the way in which certain techniques are scored. To throw someone flat on their back with speed, force and control is to win immediately by 'Ippon'. To do anything less is to score a lesser score and continue on with the match, either by attacking one another on the ground, or returning to your feet to attempt another 'Ippon' throw. On the ground, there are several opportunities to win; more and more points are scored the longer that you hold someone in a pin (until 25 seconds, at which point you will have won), or Ippon can be declared upon your opponent's 'tapping out' or submitting to your shime (choke) or kansetsu (joint lock) waza (technique).
What set Judo apart from other Japanese martial arts in the late 19th century was the inclusion of the concept of 'Randori'. Randori essentially means 'free practice'. Jigoro Kano (founder of Judo) went about narrowing the breadth of techniques available under the umbrella of various Ju Jitsu schools he had studied in his youth. He chose to retain only that which he felt were both mechanically efficient and relatively safe to perform on a resisting opponent. This meant that a smaller weaker person must be able to do them against a larger person, and that a throw must place the victim flat on his back, or the submission hold must allow time for the victim to 'submit' or 'tap out'. Due to these criteria, the early practitioners were able to hone their skills against one another at full force, with full speed and resistance. In short time, it was clear which techniques were most effective, and who was most effective at applying them.
This is the paradox of Judo, and all martial arts that include full sparring and or sporting elements; the exclusion of the 'deadly' techniques (eye gouging, kicking the groin etc) allows for intensive and regular sparring, such that those who practice become highly skilled against resisting, combative opponents. I say paradox, because as you can see, by making Judo 'safe', Jigoro Kano allowed his students to become very good fighters. This was born out at an early defining moment for the fledgling art. In 1886, four years after the 'founding' of his art and school, Kano's students soundly defeated other rival Ju Jitsu schools at a tournament in Tokyo, proving the efficacy of his training methods.
It is a preparation that no other method offers. Those experienced in these arts; Judo, Wrestling, Muay Thai, Boxing, Sambo or Brazilian Jiu Jitsu will be glad to tell you that they know exactly what they can and can't do, in the ring, on the mat etc. No one who has trained both ways (via sparring and the traditional asian martial art method of 'form' or 'kata' practice) would ever argue that the non-resistive non-combative methods are remotely effective for the development of applicable skills in these scenarios.
When practicing judo at VCU Judo, you will be instructed on the methods of breaking a fall, throwing techniques, applying and escaping from pins and submission techniques, and finally you can elect to join in Randori. A typical practice session might look like this;
6:45pm - Individual warm up and mopping mats
7:00pm - Practice begins- Warm Up drills
7:15pm - Introduce Throwing techniques, with partner practice
8:00pm - Randori; approximately 10 3 minute rounds
8:30pm - instruction on ground techniques
8:45pm - Randori on the ground
9:00pm - Conclusion of practice, mat care/breakdown
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