There are some that see Judo as merely a sport. With no real emphasise on strikes, it is seen as impractical for the streets. My personal opinion is that every art has something to offer. The stand up grappling that is learnt in Judo is very practical. Throws are quick, strong and can successfully defend oneself if needed. Also the strength that is built through Judo training is second to none.
Critics of Judo may have valid points though, that should be considered by every Judoka. Firstly the point that strikes need to be learnt. Just basic strikes and defense of strikes. (A good article for self defence striking techniques for Judoka and other grapplers is http://markschat.blogspot.com/2007/09/close-quarter-strikes-for-grapplers.html). By learning these, Judoka will be more confident when striking and when getting struck. Secondly, the fact that a Gi will not always be worn. Nearly all Judo fighters pull there opponents very strong Gi sleeve or lapel when throwing. Practice throws while holding the arm instead of the sleeve, to help get used to it so as if a throw has to be performed on someone without strong clothing, there will be no problem. Lastly and probably the most important is the landing after the throw. In Judo and nearly all grappling competitions, when a throw or takedown is carried out, the person doing it nearly always follows there opponent to the floor, and this is mainly because they loose there balance or follow through towards the floor to fully bring there opponent down. In a street fight if you are on the floor, chances are the person you are fighting shall have his friends stomping on your body or head. Practice your throws with one thought in mind, TO NOT FALL TO THE FLOOR. This is not always possible but it should always be aim. This way hopefully you will not find yourself in an awkward and dangerous situation.
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1 comments:
My main problem with judo is that judo throws are easily countered through the use of either strength/bodyweight or dirty tactics. Dropping low nearly always works against judoka and throws that require two arms to be used against his one or rely on grabbing the belt are a big no no in self defence: your face is totally exposed and unless you're very quick he'll claw your eyes and take you down. Another problem I see with judoka is the tendency to go for holds on the ground (as you noted) or they just throw somebody but don't follow up with some kind of finishing technique: if he's down and out that's fine but if he still has any fight in him he'll roll towards you or grab your leg or clothing and pull you down and you'll have to start all over again. The absence of striking and strike defence in groundfighting is another weakness, as well as the general preference for holds over submissions. Judo holds are fine but they're just the base to work from: if he's bigger than you you won't be able to hold him down for very long and sooner or later he'll muscle out. Not to mention the dangers of staying on the ground for too long but that's pretty much common knowledge these days.
I did manage to defend myself with judo though: one time a guy grabbed my lapel and instinctively I threw him using o-soto-gari. However he was just some idiot with too much booze in him, against an experienced streetfighter or kickboxer this will not be effective and that's why I sought out other ways of defending myself. My judo-background has helped me though but to me judo is something that should be taught to kids to lay a good foundation before other, more street-orientated skills are learned. In itself judo is too narrow, both in terms of competition (for stand-up wrestlers are dangerous opponents and on the ground BJJ-practioners reign supreme) and self defence.
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