Judo is a modern martial art and Olympic sport created by Professor Jigoro Kano in Japan in 1882. The word Judo translates as ‘The Gentle Way’ and is practised in a ‘Dojo’ which literally means ‘Place of the Way’. Those who practise Judo are known as ‘Judoka’. This form of Martial Art mainly consists of throwing, holding, armlock and choking techniques which follow the fundamental principles of Judo. These are below:
- Maximum efficiency, minimum effort
- Mutual welfare and benefit
- Gentleness controls hardness
Judo consists of three different types of techniques known as waza: throwing techniques, nage-waza: grappling techniques: katame-waza and striking techniques: atemi-waza. However, Judo in its competitive form is mostly known for nage-waza and katame waza. Each session usually consists of practising safe landings known as ukemi, which complement the nage-waza techniques to ensure all Judoka can be thrown without injury.
There are many benefits of learning this form of martial art and children as young as five can take learn the techniques involved. Many people choose to learn Judo as a form of self-defence as this form of martial art and helps you develop a toolkit with which you can defend yourself. You will learn how to build up the reflexes you need if you are ever in difficulty, giving you the confidence to fight back. As players become more skilful, confidence grows significantly. Whilst your Sensei will encourage you to achieve your goals, your confidence levels will extend far beyond the Dojo.
For many people they are also looking for a different way of getting fit and taking more exercise. Judo not only helps you build physical fitness but also helps exercise the mind. Classes consist of warmups, leaning how to land safely, practising moves and sparring. The workout you will get not only assists the natural development of your muscles but also helps to build stronger cardio-vascular systems. The disciplines you will learn from taking up a martial art is ‘practice makes perfect’. With constant repetition in drills and practices with an emphasis on details and rhythm, throws and hold downs are practised and repeated over and over. These practices teach players the benefits of frequent practice along with the patience to succeed.
As players progress, they earn belts, often resulting in people striving for even greater success. Belts and ranking may help build the player’s confidence as well as their desire to succeed. Most Martial Arts use a system of coloured belts to indicate the knowledge and skill level of their practitioners. Belts start with white for novices, progressing to red for 6th Kyu, yellow for 5th, orange for 4th, green for 3rd, blue for 2nd brown 1st Kyu before reaching the coveted black belt or 1st Dan. Achieving your black belt in Judo is the start of the real journey as grades extend from 1st Dan to 10th Dan which enable a Judoka to demonstrate their contest ability but also an ever-expanding knowledge. Grades from 6th - 10th Dan are honorary and are awarded to Judoka showing significant contribution to Judo.
The competitive nature of Judo is adapted to support players with differing needs. Not only is Judo an Olympic sport but there are separate adaptive competitions leading to the Paralympics and Special Olympics demonstrating that Judo really is a sport for all.
If you are interested in learning more about Judo for children or adults, the Abingdon Judo Club is based at White Horse Leisure & Tennis Centre, Audlett Drive, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, OX14 3PJ. Abingdon Judo Club will be offering TWO FREE TRY JUDO SESSIONS per person from Tuesday 5th September 2023. This is for anybody who is new to Judo or would like to return after a break. For more information about the benefits of Judo and to sign up please visit abingdonjudo.com/tryjudo or email us at abingdonjudoclub@hotmail.co.uk.
To see what a typical Judo session looks like check us out on Facebook @abingdonjudo. As you would expect, being part of the Abingdon Judo Club will enable you also to make new friends as you will come into contact with people from all over the world and all walks of life.
