What makes judo unique

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But in Judo the second thing you learn is how to fall and how to get up from that fall. Knowing how to fall is an extremely valuable asset in life. If you know how to fall, not only do you know how to get up from being thrown on the mat but you need never be concerned about falling in your every day life. I don't know if you can imagine the difference it makes to your willingness to tackle many tasks, when you are not concerned about falling.

It is often a strange sight to none Judo players, to see students breaking out in laughter after a very hard fall. I've watched people fall and seriously hurt themselves, all because they do not know how to fall. Yet a Judo player does not shy away from it. For example, if the attacker was to push against his opponent he would find his opponent stepping to the side and allowing his momentum often with the aid of a foot to trip him up to throw him forwards the inverse being true for pulling.

Kano saw jujutsu as a disconnected bag of tricks, and sought to unify it according to a principle, which he found in the notion of "maximum efficiency". Jujutsu techniques that relied solely on superior strength were discarded or adapted in favour of those that involved redirecting the opponent's force, off-balancing the opponent, or making use of superior leverage.

The second characters of judo and jujutsu differ. Use of this word is a deliberate departure from ancient martial arts, whose sole purpose was for killing.

Kano saw judo as a means for governing and improving oneself physically, mentally, emotionally and morally. He even extended the physical principle of maximum efficiency into daily life, evolving it into "mutual prosperity".

In this respect, judo is seen as a holistic approach to life extending well beyond the confines of the dojo. A practitioner of judo is known as a judoka or 'judo player', though traditionally only those of 4th Dan or higher were called "judoka". The suffix -ka , when added to a noun, means a person with expertise or special knowledge on that subject. For example, Benkyo-ka means "scholar".

Other practitioners below the rank of 4th dan were called kenkyu-sei or "trainees". However, today the term judoka is used worldwide to refer to any practitioner of judo without any particular level of expertise being implied. A judo teacher is called sensei. The word sensei comes from sen or saki before and sei life — i.

In Western dojos it is common to call any instructor of dan grade sensei. Traditionally, that title was reserved for instructors of 4th dan and above. Sometimes the word is seen shortened simply to gi uniform. The belt is usually coloured to indicate rank.

The jacket is intended to withstand the stresses of grappling, and as a result, is much thicker than that of a karate uniform karategi. In Japan, both judoka still use a white judogi and the traditional red sash based on the colours of the Japanese flag is affixed to the belt of one competitor. While judo includes a variety of rolls, falls, throws, hold downs, chokes, joint-locks, and strikes, the primary focus is on throwing nage-waza , and groundwork ne-waza.

Throws are divided in two groups of techniques, standing techniques tachi-waza , and sacrifice techniques sutemi-waza. Standing techniques are further divided into hand techniques te-waza , hip techniques koshi-waza , and foot and leg techniques ashi-waza. Sacrifice techniques are divided into those in which the thrower falls directly backwards ma-sutemi-waza , and those in which he falls onto his side yoko-sutemi-waza.

The ground fighting techniques are divided into attacks against the joints or joint locks kansetsu-waza , strangleholds or chokeholds shime-waza , and holding or pinning techniques osaekomi-waza. A kind of sparring is practised in judo, known as randori randori , meaning "free practice".

In randori, two adversaries may attack each other with any judo throw or grappling technique. Striking techniques atemi-waza such as kicking and punching, along with knife and sword techniques are retained in the kata. This form of pedagogy is usually reserved for higher ranking practitioners for instance, in the kime-no-kata , but are forbidden in contest, and usually prohibited in randori for reasons of safety. Also for reasons of safety, chokeholds, joint locking, and the sacrifice techniques are subject to age or rank restrictions.

In randori and tournament shiai practice, when an opponent successfully executes a chokehold or joint lock, one submits, or "taps out", by tapping the mat or one's opponent at least twice in a manner that clearly indicates the submission.

When this occurs the match is over, the tapping player has lost, and the chokehold or joint lock ceases. Forms kata are pre-arranged patterns of attack and defence, which in judo are practised with a partner for the purpose of perfecting judo techniques.

More specifically, their purposes include illustrating the basic principles of judo, demonstrating the correct execution of a technique, teaching the philosophical tenets upon which judo is based, allowing for the practice of techniques that are not allowed in competition, and to preserve ancient techniques that are historically important but are no longer used in contemporary judo. There are also other kata that are not officially recognised by the Kodokan but that continue to be practised.

The most prominent example of these is the Go no sen no kata, a kata that focuses on counter-attacks to attempted throws. Judo emphasizes a free-style sparring, called randori , as one of its main forms of training.

Part of the combat time is spent sparring standing up, called tachi-waza , and the other part on the ground, called ne-waza. Sparring, even subject to safety rules, is much more practically effective than only practicing techniques on their own, which is what jujutsuka were used to doing. Using full strength develops the muscles and cardio-vascular system on the physical side of things, and it develops strategy and reaction time on the mental side of things, and helps the practitioner learn to use techniques against a resisting opponent.

A common saying among judoka is "The best training for judo is judo. There are several types of sparring exercises, such as ju renshu both judoka attack in a very gentle way where no resistance is applied ; and kakari geiko only one judoka attacks while the other one relies solely on defensive and evasive techniques, but without the use of sheer strength.

In judo, there are two main phases of combat: the standing tachi-waza and the ground ne-waza phase. Each phase requires its own mostly separate techniques, strategies, randori , conditioning and so on.

Special training is also devoted to "transitional" techniques to bridge the gap. Judo's balance between both the standing and ground phases of combat gives judoka the ability to take down opponents who are standing up and then pin and submit them on the ground.

This balanced theory of combat has made judo a popular choice of martial art or combat sport. In the standing phase, which has primacy according to the contest rules, the opponents attempt to throw each other. Strikes i. The main purpose of the throwing techniques nage waza is to take an opponent who is standing on his feet, mobile and dangerous, down onto his back where he cannot move as effectively.

Thus, the main reason for throwing the opponent is to control the opponent and to put oneself in a dominant position. In this way the practitioner has more potential to render a decisive outcome. Another reason to throw the opponent is to shock his body through smashing him forcefully onto the ground. If an opponent executes a powerful yet fully controlled throw, he can win a match outright by ippon on the basis that he has displayed sufficient superiority.

Judo develops self-discipline and respect for oneself and others. Judo provides the means for learning self-confidence, concentration, and leadership skills, as well as physical coordination, power, and flexibility. As a sport that has evolved from a fighting art, it develops complete body control, fine balance, and fast reflexive action. Above all, it develops a sharp reacting mind well-coordinated with the same kind of body.

Judo training gives a person an effective self-defense system if the need arises. Judo is often a part of the training done by athletes preparing for MMA matches. There are separate ranks for juniors under 17 and seniors.