Back to basics

Tonight, we'll be going back to basics and looking at fundamental elements such as stance, gripping and concepts. We won't do any work on techniques per se. Focus will be on the core principles that make it possible for your judo to work.

Stance
Kenka-Yotsu
Ai-Yotsu

Grip Strategies:
4-Step Principle

Grip Types
Sleeve Lapel
Double Lapel
Double Sleeve
Cross Grip
High Grip/Belt Grip
Sumi-Gaeshi-Grip
Triceps Grip

Grip Breaks
Lapel
Sleeve

Concepts
Action-Reaction (feint/combination)
Judo Chop
Tension-Relaxation
Movement (3-step/circular)

Wednesday's Program

Transitions1. Tai-Otoshi into Sumi-Gaeshi/Uchimata/Osoto-Gari
2. Tai-Otoshi into Arm Roll
3. Seoi-Nage into Arm Roll
4. Tomoe-Nage into Arm Roll (Pin/Armlock)

Situational Drills
1. Behind on scores
2. Golden Score

Tuesday's program

Warm Up
1. Camberley HIIT
2. Alligator Roll
3. Knee Roll

Transition I: Newaza
1. Seoi into Knee Roll
2. Seoi into Arm Roll
3. Tomoe into Fletcher Roll
4. Tomoe into Arm Roll

Transitions II: Tachi-Waza
1. Tai-Otoshi into Sumi-Gaeshi
2. Tai-Otoshi into Uchimata
3. Tai-Otoshi into Osoto-Gari

Situational Drills
1. Ahead on scores
2. Behind on scores
3. Golden Score

How to enjoy the judo (player's perspective)

I've seen many judo players get frustrated and quit judo even before they get their yellow belt. Usually this is due to frustration and their lack of progress. Most of the time it's not that they are not progressing but they are just too impatient and expect to be able to throw more experienced players after just a few lessons.

Then there are the ones who hold colored belts or perhaps are even black belts but who don't seem to enjoy judo very much. That's because they are stuck in a rut and don't know how to get out of it.

If you're a recreational judo player who has no competition ambitions -- you just want to enjoy judo -- what you need to do is approach every judo lesson as an opportunity to learn new things that your body can do that you never realized was even possible.

Whether it's executing a perfectly-timed throw or evading a throw, whether it's applying a slick groundwork move or escaping from a tough groundwork situation, your body will be doing things that non-judokas would never do. That sense of wonder at what's possible is deeply satisfying. It's what made me enjoy judo so much when I was starting out in judo.

These days whenever I see some new technique from an international competition, I get the same feeling I had when I was a white belt learning new and wondrous things at every session. Even after all these years, I still marvel at what judo players can do with their bodies.

If you're a competitor, your techniques are more or less fully formed, so it's less about learning new techniques as it is about continually perfecting your technique and learning new tactics and strategies for winning.

Competition judo always throws up new challenges to you. No matter how good you become there will always be someone new who comes along and defeats you. No one goes on undefeated. So, there will always be new skills you will have to develop. When you lose, don't treat it as a failure. Rather treat is as an opportunity and impetus to further improve yourself.

Whether you are a recreational player or a competitor, if you adopt the right mindset, you will find judo immensely fulfilling. If, however, you adopt the wrong mindset you will find judo frustrating and eventually want to give it up. So go into training with the right frame of mind and you will really get to enjoy the judo.

How to enjoy judo (coach's perspective)

One of the biggest ironies of life is when pursuing something you love causes you so much grief. Over the years, I've seen many people involved in judo get so disillusioned by what's happening around them that they literally give up on judo. They wash their hands of it and don't want anything to do with the sport. There are also those who stay on but allow themselves to get mired in the grief that comes with judo politics.

I took up judo because I found it to be a fun sport. I stayed on in judo because I enjoy the sport so much. And I'm still pushing on, continuing to build my club and coaching players because the sport brings joy and fulfillment to me.

What I don't enjoy is the intense politicking that goes on among some people involved in judo. Apparently, this is a blight that afflicts judo people wherever they are. I speak to my judo friends in Singapore and they say there's judo politics there. I speak to my friends in Indonesia and they say the same. But it's true in faraway places too. There's judo politics in the USA, in the UK, in France, in Japan. Everywhere.

If you're not careful, it can eat you up and really ruin everything that good and enjoyable about judo. When that happens, it's really not worth it. I don't ever want that to happen to me, which is why I stay away from judo politics. I have zero interest in jockeying for positions of power or anything like that. I just want to focus on playing judo, coaching judo and building up my club. That's my interest.

Besides the politics there's also another thing that can ruin a coach's enjoyment of judo and that's when you lose sight of what made you set up a judo club in the first place. I set up a judo club for one key purpose, which is to create a place for people (including myself) to enjoy doing judo. That's it. It's as simple as that.

Of course to achieve that is not simple at all. There are many barriers and roadblocks including the cost of running such a club, the challenges of recruiting members, and many other administrative things that make it quite tough thing to do. But the goal is simple: to have a nice place to train.

When you lose sight of that and start pursuing other goals -- like trying to make a lot of money from judo -- you end up taking actions that you might not enjoy or find meaningless (but you do it cos it makes you money).

The temptation is there because money makes the world go round and you need money to run the club and make ends meet. So, yes, the temptation to go where the money is, is always there. But if doing those things don't align with what you really want to do and achieve with your club, it's not worth it.

If the only reason I'm running a judo club is to make money, I might as well hang up my judogi and do something else. Judo is one of the worst ways to make money because it's such a niche sport that's not popular at all (especially in this part of the world).

Don't get me wrong, I run my judo club as a commercial entity and it has to make money to survive and to thrive. But making money cannot and must not be the core reason for doing it. If it is, it's just not worth it.

So, I constantly remind myself by asking: Why did you set up this club in the first place? It's something you have to always bear in mind to stay true to your original goals. Then you can enjoy the judo and find great fulfillment in it.

The joy of a big mat

As a judoka you love a big space to play on. When the mat area is big, you can move around freely and have a more enjoyable time doing randori. But there are many barriers to having a big mat area.

In KL, it's very hard to find a suitable space for judo. Most gyms don't have big mat areas and even if they do have a substantial area, the mats are usually not very thick (3cm is common, 4cm is very rare and 5cm is unheard of). That's because their mats are not meant for judo but more for grappling, MMA, BJJ etc. For judo we need thicker mats. At least 4cm but ideally 5cm.

Since going to an existing gym is not feasible the solution would have to be to rent a place of your own and putting in your own mats. Renting a big place is usually expensive and proper judo mats are pretty expensive too.

Pretty spacious mat area. It's great to train on.

We were lucky to have come across a suitable location that's affordable and the club has enough members to justify getting some decent mats. The result is what you see above.

Whenever I look at it, I marvel and delight at the thought that we've finally gotten the dojo we want. Not only is the mat area sizeable with the right type of thickness, we don't have to share the mat with anyone.

Tuesday's Program

All of these except the "side takedown" roll are not new to the players. So, most of this is revision:

*Knee Roll
*Alligator Roll
*Armtrap Roll
*Belgian Arm Roll
*Oshima Roll
*Fletcher Roll
*Side Takedown Roll
*Bischof Roll