Yesterday I convinced my roommate, Brittney to try out judo. She said she needed to start working out again and needed to learn something new to distract her from events in her everyday life. I thought, "heyyyy, I have just the thing!" And so it took 2 weeks, but I finally convinced her (and she finally had a night off of work) to try this illusive thing called judo.
And So We Arrived At The Dojo...
All suited-up it one of my "fancy" judo gis (uniform), she stepped on the mat for the first time. The first test...Jason throws a football (a Nerf ball) at her. She catches it! Yes!! She has some athleticism and has some eye/hand coordination! We do our regular warm up of touch football and she does well--that's always a good sign.
Now, The Moment of Truth...
Jason (my coach) tells me and my teammate, Haley, to teach Brittney two throws--Osoto Gari (o-so-toe-gar-ee) and Ippon Seoi Nage (ee-pone say-o-ee naw-gee). So Haley and me get to work. We start to break down the first throw when I think..."hey, she doesn't know anything about judo...she probably should learn to fall first". (Yes, there is a proper way to fall) :) So, we start over and teach her a few break falls, so she doesn't get hurt on the first day! (Your welcome, Britt...) ;)
So we get back to teaching her the throw. I am monotonous, very technical, and detailed in the way I teach. (Perfect practice makes perfect...am I right?) I break down E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G. We start by showing her (in full speed) what the throw looks like. Then we slow it down a bit so she can actually see the movement. So, we scare her a bit to start...
Then the tedious, detail-oriented Ashley comes out. I show her the proper way to grip the gi, then exactly where her feet should go, step-by-step. I then test her to see if she's been paying attention--"Ok, Britt...your turn. Where do your hands go? Where do your feet go?" She's an excellent student and remembers! Next we show her the pull and lean her arms and body should be making at the same time. This was the tricky part--making sure she was collapsing her arms in and leaning/pulling the uke (person taking the throw) the right way. I demonstrated the pull and lean on her, so she could feel what it likes. Next...I tested her on it. Me: "Nope. Nope. Close. Back and to the right. Close. CORRECT!"
Lastly, we show her the sweeping motion for her foot/leg and the teeter-totter movement of her body. "Forehead to the left kneecap." We let her try it step-by-step a few times...then we tell her to throw. After a few repetitions, we get this...
So we get back to teaching her the throw. I am monotonous, very technical, and detailed in the way I teach. (Perfect practice makes perfect...am I right?) I break down E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G. We start by showing her (in full speed) what the throw looks like. Then we slow it down a bit so she can actually see the movement. So, we scare her a bit to start...
Then the tedious, detail-oriented Ashley comes out. I show her the proper way to grip the gi, then exactly where her feet should go, step-by-step. I then test her to see if she's been paying attention--"Ok, Britt...your turn. Where do your hands go? Where do your feet go?" She's an excellent student and remembers! Next we show her the pull and lean her arms and body should be making at the same time. This was the tricky part--making sure she was collapsing her arms in and leaning/pulling the uke (person taking the throw) the right way. I demonstrated the pull and lean on her, so she could feel what it likes. Next...I tested her on it. Me: "Nope. Nope. Close. Back and to the right. Close. CORRECT!"
Lastly, we show her the sweeping motion for her foot/leg and the teeter-totter movement of her body. "Forehead to the left kneecap." We let her try it step-by-step a few times...then we tell her to throw. After a few repetitions, we get this...
Holy-freaking-cow! If you don't know much about judo...that's REALLY good. My first day of judo I looked something like this:
In all seriousness, she did A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! Thanks to yours truly (yup, I'm patting myself on the back...) and my teammate Haley Meara. Like I said, ladies and gentlemen...I introduce to you, the next 2020 Olympic Hopeful, Brittney...my roomie! :)