D'OHjo

Brought to you by me when I took my first judo classes three years ago. Talk about putting the D'OH in the dojo . . .

originally posted: 02/07/02

On Monday, I took my first judo class. I’ve long been interested in investigating judo as a supplement to T’ai Chi. Judo revolves around throwing and grappling techniques, and while we have a few of those in T’ai Chi, we don’t practice them all the way through. For instance, we’ll get into position to throw a partner and maybe get the person off balance, but not follow through and send them to the ground. We seem to have enough to keep us busy without learning safe falling techniques, too, so we don’t dwell on the throwing parts. I’m curious, though, so I decided to sign up for an 8-week introductory course.

Judo is an admittedly rough sport, but if you’re really looking for a challenge, try getting dressed to play. The gi, the traditional white jacket and pants worn for many Japanese martial arts, is at least as complicated as what you do while you’re wearing it. I had to ask a 7-year-old in the dressing room for help operating my pants; I couldn’t figure out whether the drawstring was meant to be pulled through the little loopy thing or not. The girl set me straight, though, and thoughtfully checked whether I knew how to tie a bow before leaving me alone with the pants. She probably had her doubts.

Next came the jacket and obi (belt), under which women usually wear a T-shirt or shirt-bra and men usually wear nothing. I’d been warned by friends that you have to take care to wrap the right-hand flap in first and the left over top; the other way around is the way a Japanese undertaker would wrap it on a dead person. So I got that part right, but I didn’t know how to tie the obi to hold the jacket closed. One of the senseis had to tie it for me the first time. It’s hard to be cocky about your martial arts skills while someone else is dressing you, but learning the “obi kata,” or belt sequence, is sort of an initiation rite among new students. Having been a Girl Scout ever so long ago, I was able to master the knot-tying fairly quickly. I managed to get through class without it falling off, at any rate.

Once dressed, I was ready to work out. Having observed a class at the dojo a few weeks previous, I was prepared for the vigorous warm-ups. I managed to complete the exercises without keeling over from fatigue.

Then Sensei Gary took me and the other beginner to a far corner to teach us how to fall on the padded floor without getting hurt. We started by flopping onto our backs from a sitting position, then from a squat, then from standing upright. When you hit, you’re supposed to slap the mat with your hand to absorb some of the impact. Also, always tuck your chin down so you don’t whack the back of your head.

We did numerous repetitions of the falling drills, and while the falling-down part proved easy enough — gravity does most of the work, after all — the getting-up part was another story. Experienced judoka (judo students) know how to govern their momentum so that they can rise to their feet easily after a fall. Beginners like me, however, tend to do it a lot more slowly. This, it turned out, was the most strenuous part of the workout for me. While my legs are strongly conditioned for T’ai Chi activities, which involve standing and moving about, sometimes for hours at a time, all that rising from the floor really worked my quadriceps, the muscles on the front of the thigh. I was feeling the strain for the next three days.

Sensei next introduced us to the shoulder roll, which is a lot like a somersault. Again we started low, first tumbling from a squat, then from a bent-over position, and finally from an upright stance. I had had a friend teach me some rolls over the summer, so this technique was not new to me. However, I had eaten a heavy burger and greasy fries for lunch, and a few series of dizzying inversions were enough to leave me a bit queasy by the end. Next week I’ll eat a lighter lunch.

For the final portion of our lesson, it was time to get up close and personal. Sensei showed us how to square off with a partner and get a proper grip on his or her gi. This involves clutching the lapel, the material of which is heavily reinforced, in one hand and the sleeve in the other. We learned the footwork for a basic throw but did not complete the throw. Maybe next week, when our falls are a little more coordinated. We learned a simple wrestling hold. I could tell my male partner was a little uncertain about having a woman he’d just met reach through his legs to grab the back of his belt, but it’s all part of the sport and there’s certainly nothing sexy about it.

By the end of the class I was tired but happy. Judo is definitely different from T’ai Chi, but I think they’ll complement each other nicely. If nothing else, I’ll develop really, really strong legs.

Also posted today: He's OK

Today around the world: March 3 is National Unity Day in Sudan.