Tag: Judo

Qualified Area Referee

I took my Area Referee Practical Exam at the Hampshire Closed Trials last week. As I now live and (mostly) train in Surrey I wasn’t eligible to compete in this one.

It was certainly stressful and pressured to begin with, but by the afternoon I was into my stride, and to be honest, would have fancied doing a lot more!

It was great to see the other side of the fence, so to speak, and all the Referees were very welcoming, patient and helpful.

Saw plenty of Judo, including some great sportsmanship, but due to having to concentrate on the whole Refereeing part, I didn’t pick up as many Judo tips as I originally thought I might have been able to 🙂

My nerves meant I made a few mistakes – hence being glad everyone was patient! Hurrah for the Majority of Three decision-making process…

I passed the exam (which was conducted by being observed and making sure nobody died on my watch), so just pending my fancy badge and so on to arrive!

Southern Kyu Grade Cup 2008: Silver!

So, the Southern Kyu and Dan Grade Cup 2008 has been and gone. This was hosted at K2, Crawley – a very impressive venue. It’s a shame I didn’t get to explore it all.

I was entered in the -90s Kyu category, although on arrival I was given the option of also entering the Masters. I just about qualify now I am 30! The disadvantage here is that the Masters was Kyu AND Dan! I entered anyway, as it was free, and I had the option of withdrawing later if I wanted to.

JP and family were in attendance, so I was not too lonely! He was particularly brave as they combined his category (-100) with the +100s – and there were some very big men there! Oh, and they were Dan grades too.

I had better luck with the category. I was one of four and a good mix of grades. 2nd Kyu, 3rd Kyu (me!), 4th Kyu and 8th Kyu.

So, on with the fights…

First was against the 2nd Kyu. Young (transitioned junior?). This was tough. Evenly managed and although I was constantly putting attacks in, primarily sacrifice oriented, I was not getting the scores I needed. His Newaza was very strong, and although several times I defended well eventually he passed my guard and caught me with a hold for Ippon.

After this I realised that my fitness was not all it should be. I was tiring quickly, hence my Judo became exceptionally defensive and I wasn’t creating movement, looking for dynamic opportunities and so on. Recent throws I have learned and loved such as Uchimata and Osoto Gari just were not featuring.

The second fight was against the 4th Kyu, also a younger guy. Exceptionally tough fight. Again, my stamina was rubbish, and although I was getting scores so was he! His gripping was excellent and several times he caught both my sleeves before I got any grip at all – very unnerving. This fight went the distance. With just 10 seconds left, the scores were level, and I managed a final score (Koka? Yuko? No idea). The buzzer went and I had won.

I was exhausted. Totally. I just about managed to bow, let alone celebrate the win. Did I mention I need to work on my stamina yet? 😉

The full five-minute fights were in use, and I’ve never had a grading or competition which used that length. JP was kind enough to make sure the table gave me the full five-minute rest period. I needed it!

Final fight was against the 8th Kyu, who was also an old guy like me. I could tell from the grip this would be okay, but I was still tired and to be honest I didn’t care any more about trying to do elegant Judo. I just wanted to win. Two sacrifices for Wazari each. Win in 16 seconds. The tiredness also meant I just did not capitalise on any Newaza advantage on the first throw. Stamina is so key.

Now, as my second fight had not been won out-right, there was still the risk I would be knocked into Bronze if the 4th Kyu won his final fight (againt the 2nd Kyu). The 2nd Kyu won though (by a fantastic strangle), so Silver was mine.

As I was so tired, and happy with my achievement, I withdrew from the Masters. Part of me wishes I had gone through with it, but I still ache today, so I think I made the right decision.

A great day, and I know what I need to work on (Stamina!). It let me down so much. Most of the stuff I routinely use in training just didn’t factor as a result…. On the positive note, I kept up the attacks (even if not as varied as I would have liked) and defended well. I didn’t receive any penalties from the day.

Grading and Competing – The Future

It’s strange. After my last grading (where I went from 5th to 3rd Kyu) I decided I should really wait around a year before trying again. I’ve promoted pretty fast in my view, and as that is mostly contest oriented, it would be a good idea for my “general” Judo skills to also come up to the right level.

But it’s always the same. I get anxious after six months or so, and start to go against my original intentions.

Some of those I train with have had great successes recently. Two new Dan grades (one by line-up, always awesome). A new brown belt. A new fellow blue belt. Some new-to-Judo players starting to climb the ranks. And various others heading along to gradings to demonstrate their skills within the week.

My own Judo has developed, although in a way it has changed (Becoming left-handed is a huge shift). I have a new favourite technique or two, but still enjoy the old ones.

So… I don’t know. I really don’t. One advantage of staying Blue involves the Blue Belt And Under competitions, which are fun.

Short-term, I have a competition coming up, and the Referee Practical examination. Should I follow those up with a grading?

Another factor has now come into play: The BJA are changing the grading structure. The current rumour would indicate this would include Senior Kyu grades, making anything up to 2nd Kyu theory only. It would be nice to get up there before this so I don’t need to worry about the new system.

Worry is perhaps too strong a word: I’m not afraid of the theory, but I would like the option of the competing element, and it would seem it may not be available once the changes come in.

Time will tell…

Judo Refereeing – The Beginning

Now that I am a high enough grade to qualify for an Area Referee (3rd Kyu), I went along to Bexhill Judo Club where they were hosting an introductory refereeing course.

It was an excellent day (We’ll forget the nightmare of parts of the A27 being closed!). It was a perfect mix of theory, demonstration and practical (Everyone got to try their refereeing skills at the end, and indulge in “fake” contests to give the referees something to work with).

It was nice to have new concepts explained (the new Contest and Safety area system on the mat, for example). And I recognised most of the teaching referees present from previous gradings and competitions!

I’m happy in that I came out of it with a 95% pass in the Theory paper. I just need to do the Practical examination now, and if that goes well, I will qualify! That should be within the month.

The Practical exam is actual refereeing at a Senior event (although obviously under heavy supervision). And it is a full day as part of the team (You don’t know which matches you will be assessed on).

Judo with TWO shoulders

The good news is that it looks like my AC joint injury was just a Grade 1.

I rested it over the weekend, and went along to a session on Tuesday. I strapped it up but in contrast to Thursday (where it just did not want to go in some directions at all!) it was excellent. In fact, no noticable problems whatsoever. I think there may have been a small amount of weakness but no pain.

The bruising has come through: Several inches away from the injury site!

The joint itself is still a little popped up, but the swelling may not have completely gone down yet. That said, reading around on the subject would indicate that even though the injury may completely heal, the bump may remain.

The session itself was good. Upset at myself for falling back to some “old favourites” in Randori (Hello, Hikikom Gaeshi), but at least I tried a few other things. I just need to try those other things MORE.

Made up for that in Newaza, even though if I did get pinned due to experimental chokes going a bit awry 😉 This is the one in question:

I need some advice on the correct spinning (turning?) motion once the hands are in place as that is where I am getting stuck.

Weight training continues, with the numbers going up. Unfortunately, due to stubborness I now have a slight pulled muscle in my back. I dropped a weight when doing deadlifts due to losing my grip, and should really have called it a day then, but retried it. Stupid.

Judo with one shoulder

Against perhaps my better judgement (I am rubbish at self-control when it comes to injuries), I went to Judo last night.

My left shoulder, due to the dodgy AC joint, is tender. However, what is frustrating is that it becomes painful with certain movements only. As an example, I can raise my arm to the sides, swing it in circles and so on. But having to push it outwards against resistance hurts.

This effectively makes the arm useless in Judo, and nullifies a lot of core strength. Fear of that pain reduces speed. Sometimes I found myself being attacked where normally I could post with the arm to easily block it, but I just had to let the attack happen and find another route. Really frustrating.

Still it did open up a few opportunities. I got caught in an arm lock during Newaza (I would have easily avoided this with a working arm!) and did not have the strength to pull it out due to the injury. I’m not saying to always use pure grunt to work against things, but I couldn’t use the arm as a lever in an effective way due to the shoulder. I was forced instead to use my other arm to help move around the body, and then blocking the technique with the rest of my body. That worked. Even got a pin!

Another issue is that I would see an opening, but my instincts would say, “Hmm, if I do that, but then they pull against me, it will HURT” – so I don’t go for it.

Standing work was better, but again I was slow due to “the fear”. So I concentrated on gripping strategies and the like instead.

However, I am setting myself up for secondary injuries. By having such a fear of landing on the shoulder again, it would negatively impact my breakfalls… so I could do more damage.

Ronda Rousey has a recent entry on this sort of thing:

What sucks about injuries though is you really have to humble yourself. Instead of trying to twist and turn and funk your way out of attacks, you have to take a lot of falls you wouldn’t normally have to. You see openings for throws or in ne-waza that you have to for yourself not to do because it will strain the injury.

Yup, that’s it 🙁

I really need to rest it properly.

Sprained AC joint – The curse of crash mats

A good Judo session tonight. It’s a competition club so the pace is high and it really highlights my fitness. Sorry… unfitness. The local Army guys visit so it puts things a little in perspective!

Crash mats are more trouble than they are worth sometimes. In my first year of Judo, my Iliotibial Band Syndrome was as a result of taking a knee to the leg doing crash mat work. The swelling from the impact moved down the leg until it aggravated the Iliotibial Band, and it took a while to sort itself out!

Tonight I was thrown, but my head and shoulder missed the crash mat. Thus the majority of the impact was absorbed by them (as opposed to it being shared by the rest of my body on a totally flat surface).

Immediate pain in my shoulder (specifically, the Acromioclavicular joint). Thankfully in the, “Hmm, this hurts, I had better take a break and stretch it” sort, as opposed to “OMG THE PAIN GIVE ME MORPHINE” style.

It’s still tender now. I have full range of motion, but it is slightly painful when the arm is working in certain ways. The best example is if I grasp my hands together in front of me, then try and pull them apart.

Definite swelling there. At first I thought a part of bone had been dislodged, but pressing it highlights it is just swelling. And no evil crunching noises!

So, careful monitoring and sweet, sweet Ibuprofen. RICE is a way of life for me nowadays…

In terms of the Judo, some nice advice, but essentially revolving around attacking as soon as I have a grip I want.. no hanging about! This ties in nicely with movement etc… Also, I keep letting myself be crunched down, even by shorter players. It’s a stupid instinctive reaction I have when a hand comes over my shoulder!

1st Kyu! Well, in theory…

I graded up to 1st Kyu today… albeit only in the Theory components. So nothing changes until I complete the contest examination at a future grading. And I’m in no rush to do that right now, as I feel I have a long way to go. Some details on the required theory here.

Also, in order to experience life “on the other side”, I’ll be going on a Referee training course next month! With my current grade I’m eligible to become an Area Referee (provided I pass the course) which would be interesting.

Training in general was a bit “meh”. Groundwork was nice as I got some nice strangles and turnovers to work (although I need some more ideas when facing someone on the knees… aside from pulling guard and working from there, of course). Standing… not enough movement and attacking spirit on my part. Some gripping “tricks” have started to work but MUCH more practice needed there.

So…. hmm, basically 🙂

Jimmy Pedro clinic clip

The Judo Podcast has an upcoming interview with Jimmy Pedro. Visit their site in order to suggest any questions.

The announcement has a clip from a recent clinic (Takes a while to load). It’s an interesting demo of an alternative grip entry for Tai Otoshi, and it is nice to see the emphasis placed on remembering to keep rotating!

I’ve ordered Jimmy’s Grip Like A World Champion DVD, so expect a review soon. He also plays left-handed (although note he is demonstrating right-handed in the video clip).

First week of Judo and Starting Strength

This has been the first week that I have been combining Judo with my new weight training routine.

I have already covered Monday’s Judo session so here are some crib notes from the rest of the Judo:

Tachiwaza:

  • I’m continuing my left-handed approach, with further success with Osoto Gari. My version is more of the “hook and drive” style and I really do need to watch the Kuzushi on this. It’s something you can get away with against smaller players, but an extremely hard counter will result if Tori is not careful.
  • The above throw against opponents with extreme right-sided stances makes it difficult to gain the entry. So probably not the best throw to use then. Ouchi Gari would perhaps be a better option, or of course a forward throw instead. And consider the usual sacrifice possibilities, and Ura Nage.
  • One of my favourite throws is Hikkomi Gaeshi (sometimes referred to as Obi Tori Gaeshi). Works well when working as a left-hander against a right-handed opponent as it is easier to get the over-the-top belt grip. Now working on throwing when getting the LEFT hand over the shoulder. First attempt was amusing… I got the grip, then threw myself onto my back as I forgot to go in the opposite direction 😉
  • At one club, there are more people either my size or bigger! This is great, as it means I will have to adapt a lot. Really means I have to play for movement and not try and beat strength vs strength when I am weaker… it does not end well!
  • MUCH more work on Ouchi Gari needed. Feels all over the place.
  • Hiza Guruma is working MUCH better now I am stepping closer. When successful it really does FEEL like Uke is being wheeled over! The closeness also means that the standard Osoto Gari to Hiza Guruma combination feels more natural in my head now.
  • When gripping the collar, back etc, BEND THE ELBOW. Or that arm is very vunerable to being locked. Reminded me to go for the Whizzer grip myself when someone makes the same mistake… it’s very strong and useful to proceed into Ouchi Gari with.

Newaza:

  • Speed over strength. Newaza can quickly turn into a bit of a tug of war in some positions. Far better to use speed to gain positional advantages, and to switch between different techniques.
  • Turnover: Grab Uke’s right wrist with right hand (IMPORTANT: Thumb on TOP so your own grip doesn’t prevent movement). Rotate around Uke’s body anti-clockwise. Be on your feet for power and balance. Once on opposite side, use both arms to pull Uke onto their back. Need to practice this further. Note there is a Sangaku entry from here when half-way round.
  • Don’t be taken by surprise. If “rushed” by an opponent, balance should at least be as such so they can be pulled into guard. Should NEVER be forced to turtle. Keep one leg up?

And the weight training?

I went Wednesday and Friday (remember I only started on Wednesday). Ouch. Sore. The good kind though, as opposed to things going a bit awry. Certainly means I have less strength available for use in Judo when in recovery, but hey, if that helps with my technique then that can only be a good thing…