- The different stages of Judo. Plot your place!
Judo has a steep learning curve. Some take to it more quickly than others. These are my experiences and categorisations from the perspective of a recreational Judo player with a relatively recent ranking accomplishment of 1st degree black belt with the British Judo standard..
The “Getting Smashed” stage
You’re new to the game. You come along to a Judo club night to check it out. The white belt is the hardest belt to get since you’ve got to actually make that first step – so good on you for taking up the courage and signing up!
Pity must go to the martial artist coming from a striking background with no grappling experience. They discover quite quickly how realise how difficult it is to shift another non-compliant human being. The experience will be most humbling for them.
All moves in Judo are unnatural and need to be learned, so everything will be uncomfortable. This will also be the point when other players with
You have an advantage here if you’re big and/or athletically gifted. If you have a ton of weight to shift, the weight disparity will reduce the amount of throwing you’re subjected to. That said, a lighter and more experienced player will only be able to throw a heavier novice hard since controlling excessive weight is not straightforward to maneuver – author speaking from experience here.
If you are athletically gifted, and you can move nimbly with great athleticism you will pick up the movements easier but, and it must be said, you will still be smashed.
Avoid any players from green belt and below if you can. They have more to prove to themselves (from your suffering). If you’re in a competitive club where the coach is openly commenting on randori matches, there’ll be additional ego to contend with from the other players.
Testosterone/Aggression stage
This is the next stage on the Judo journey, and it’s where you’ve got a little bit more of a familiarity of the moves but not much. This is where the novice player incorporates both terrible technique alongside excessive physical exertion (aka muscling through).
You will be introduced to local competitions with others of a similar grade. The competitions will be very much a slug match and can often be painful to watch – it’s typically two brawling types effectively pulling each other’s clothes and not quite getting anywhere.
Again, if you’re big you will successfully muscle through your throws on smaller partners. You’ll typically favour taio toshi as that’s the easiest one to force through.
In summary, it’s survival mode part 2, but you’re no longer fighting like it’s the zombie apocalypse.
Blunt pen-knife stage
Your throws are sloppy but less sloppy than they were. You’re still muscling through.
Combination attacks? Pah! Leave that to the time-wasters – you’re going “hell for leather” with just one or two attacks.
You’re experiencing success with some techniques which you’re then using/over-using ad nauseam. This is the beginning of the development of your style.
Blunt sword stage
As above, but your throws are a little less sloppy. You’re getting a bit more predictable in your movements which is a good thing.
You’re developing more efficiency in your movement and your breathing is more even during randori rounds.
Your gripping is a lot more systematic. You’re also more conscious about what your preferred grip is and securing it in the first instance. You may even care a lot less about breaking the grip of a less experienced partner, just to see where it goes.
Your uchi komi is starting to look slick. In fact you’re generally moving like a Judoka (and yes, Judoka move a certain way).
You start to think that you’re fairly decent until you go to a few more competitions and realise you’re still doing a lot of sloppy movement.
Hopefully your club environment isn’t too toxic; provided that it’s a friendly and supportive environment you’ll start to not care about being launched by a lower graded player.
You will have developed an injury by this stage. A niggle perhaps or possibly full-on invasive surgery, but you will get damaged given you’re an older player and your body doesn’t adapt as quickly as your enthusiasm for the sport.
Game stage
You’re finally starting to see things that your inexperience held you back from seeing – sequences that you make, that others make. Stupid things that you used to do, that others will do.
You’re able to provoke predictable reactions in people. This means that you’re able to get your shots in and successfully land them with lower skilled players.
You can tell by the first grip whether the match is going to be an easy or a challenging one.
You see the sport for what it is: a game with many different variables, and finally some variables that are within your control to manipulate.
Creativity stage
Congrats if you’ve made it thus far! If you stuck with it, you’re effectively exhibiting survivorship bias.
Your body has either adapted to this punishing sport or you’ve broken something along the way. You’re finally at the point where your Judo begins to come into its own.
I’d like to call out that I am only imagining what this stage is at, given I’ve not yet reached this point!
Conclusion
I’ve been out of the sport for a little over a year now – first it was recovering from ACL/miniscus repair surgery and now from straining a tendon and acquiring golfer’s elbow!
I thought this might make others chuckle as it’s pretty much a history of my Judo experience. Write your thoughts in the comments below.
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