Breaking Down the Throw and Making It Work

Easier said than done. Before you can complete a throw, with some amount of good form and technical skill, you must first study and understand the components or parts of the throw you are attempting. Its not enough to know that all throws require off-balance, entry and execution. We must go beyond that general statement and understand what makes each of those three parts of a throw work. This is where the "Mechanical Fundamentals of Judo" comes into play. Mechanical refers to how something moves or is made to work. Many things must occur for completion of a successful throw. Here are a few to give thought to with each throw you study and practice: Off balancing your Uke requires movement - pushing (with your "power" hand), pulling (with your "locking hand"), and , for example in the case of Ouchi Gari (major inside reaping throw) - attacking with one leg and creating an "angle of attack" to generate power with the other. Entry requires positioning - head facing the direction of the throw, correct positioning of the hands, hips, legs and feet. Execution - requires off balance and entry to occur at the same time. Know the 8 directions of off balance. Study these basic fundamentals from the beginning and utilize them throughout your Judo training.