Judo Practice in...
Larry Burrows
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Martial Arts - Judo

By Tian Xiangyu

Judo is a martial art that makes use of throws, strangles and
joint locks. It is one of the few sports accessible to almost
anyone, including children, adults, and senior citizens. Because
it emphasizes physical and mental development, its influence
extends to every area of a person's life.

More than a martial art, Judo is also a way of life, one that
stresses self-respect and respect for others. Physically, Judo
improves flexibility, coordination, balance and reflexes. It is
a means of self-defense that requires skill rather than just
size or strength. Mentally, it promotes concentration,
self-confidence and leadership. Because Judo requires a clear
and focused mind, it encourages participants to be fully present
in the moment. Judo participants benefit from practice, but just
as important, they learn respect for others. With its strict
moral and ethical principles, and its humanitarian approach to
life, Judo fosters a sense of respect and consideration.
Participants are taught to strive for physical, intellectual and
moral perfection, so they can not only improve their own life,
but also contribute to the greater good.

Judo is derived from the ancient martial art of jujitsu, the
hand-to-hand combat technique of ancient samurai warriors.
Unlike other techniques, Jujitsu emphasized skill over force:
the goal was to know how and when to strike an opponent in order
to throw him off balance. Samurai in Japan's feudal period
studied Jujitsu as part of their training, which also included
swordsmanship, horsemanship, archery and etiquette. During this
violent period, Jujitsu was used often on the battlefield, but
during the 300 years of peace following the Japanese civil wars,
heavy warfare was less frequent. Instead, Jujitsu found its
greatest use in unarmed combat among common citizens, and the
art was adapted for everyday life. In 1873 the Japanese
government banned the samurai from wearing their weapons in
public, and jujitsu became popular with the warrior class.
However, it soon began to lose popularity with the public, and
it was from here that the martial art of Judo - the gentle way -
was developed by Jigoro Kano. He developed judo at a time of
great modernization and industrialization when the Japanese
people were on guard against anything inefficient or antiquated.
In 1886 the Tokyo police department arranged a competition to
find out which was the best form of unarmed combat for its
officers. Fielding a team, judo defeated all other martial arts
without losing a single bout!

Judo has since spread rapidly around the world. As Judo spread
throughout the Western world it slowly gained the form of a
sport. Its eventual popularity in World and Regional Games and
in the 1964 Olympic Games led more and more to an emphasis on
the physical and competitive aspects of the art, sometimes at
the expense of its intellectual, moral and spiritual
underpinnings.

Achievement in Judo is recognized by a series of ranks. When
Kano developed Judo's ranking system, there was no official
system in the martial arts; student achievements were usually
acknowledged by the presentation of certificates or scrolls.
Today, Kano's system has been adopted for needs. Originally, the
Judo ranking system consisted only of white and black belt
ranking, until the 1930s when Kano created a belt to acknowledge
the achievements of high-ranking black belts. The red belt and
brown belts were also added. The more extensive system used
today was developed after Judo spread outside Japan. Judo
instructor Mikonosuke Kawaishi introduced a more complex ranking
system, featuring several more colored belts, when he began
teaching in Paris in 1935. He felt Westerners would have more
incentive to practice if they had a system in which achievement
was regularly recognized. He included white, yellow, orange,
green, blue and purple belts, awarded before the traditional
black and brown belts.

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The Benefits Of Martial Arts Training

By Clint Leung

As any martial arts practitioner will tell you, there are
multiple benefits in martial arts training. Of course, the most
obvious benefit is a knowledge of self defense which is one of
the major reasons why the martial arts were developed in the
first place. Knowing how to defend oneself and loved ones in a
potentially dangerous situation is an asset in today’s world
just as it was hundreds of years ago. Unlike often portrayed in
the movies, martial arts are not just about fighting. Many
people take up martial arts for the fitness benefits as well.
Training in martial arts such as karate, tae kwon do, kung fu
and other martial art styles will improve one’s cardiovascular
fitness as well as tone the muscular system. Strength will
increase from the calisthenics usually employed within martial
arts training but perhaps not to the same extent as working out
with weights. But overall power of one’s body will definitely
increase since martial arts techniques teach how to use strength
effectively.

Most people will also improve their flexibility significantly
while training in martial arts since entire ranges of motion
from the body are exercised. This is especially true with
martial art styles such as tae kwon do, Thai kickboxing as well
as some schools of karate and kung fu where high kicks are used.
All martial art styles will result in an improvement of one’s
coordination as well.

Unlike many other forms of physical activity, martial arts also
have a mental and sometimes spiritual element which not only
improves the mind’s focus but also helps in self control.
Emotions such as anger and fear are better controlled through
martial arts. Many martial artists can find an inner peace
through their training. In today’s hectic world, these
particular benefits translate into one of the most effective
stress management tools available. When training in a martial
arts session or in a group class, all the day to day troubles of
the world seem to be forgotten. People come out refreshed,
energized and ready to tackle the big world out there.

Training in martial arts usually involves many little steps and
progressions. As one advances in a martial art, the feeling of
accomplishment comes with added confidence. This is especially
beneficial for children who were not very confident in the first
place. An increase in self confidence for kids (as well as
adults) will have a cross over effect in other areas of life
such as in other sports and general self esteem. Other
challenges in life, both physical and mental, will be met with
much less fear. 

An important benefit of martial arts training for parents to
note is that children will generally become more disciplined
from the unique formalities of martial arts classes. This is one
benefit that is often lacking in other sports. Former ‘problem’
kids with bad attitudes could become well behaved and respectful
as a result of taking martial arts a few times per week. Respect
is something that all martial arts instructors place great
importance in during their classes. Martial arts kids are often
very well behaved children no matter what social economic
backgrounds they come from.

Martial arts training has so many great benefits covering
physical, mental and emotional aspects that it’s no wonder why
it has become one of the most popular activities for both adults
and children. However, it is important to point out that not all
martial arts programs will produce the range of benefits
discussed. Programs that teach just combat fighting techniques
may not result in the desired mental and spiritual benefits so
it is important to search around for the right martial arts
school that will offer the benefits one wishes to achieve.

About the Author: Clint Leung is a lifelong martial artist with
over 32 years of training experience in kung fu, tae kwon do,
karate, kickboxing and martial arts weaponry. He has won
Canadian and world championship titles (NBL and WSKF). He is
also owner of Free Spirit Activewear
(http://www.FreeSpiritActivewear.com) , an online retailer and
designer of premium martial arts activewear. Free Spirit
Activewear has martial arts info articles.

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Trainer Wrapping...
Paul Sutton
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Boxing For Fitness And Fun

By Bruce Swedal

Boxing is a great sport to get involved in, no matter what your
age or level of fitness. Boxing is a discipline that stays with
you for a long time. It can help you to get out of situations
that you might not want to be in with self defence and it
teaches you a mindset other than that of a bar room brawler.

The misconception with boxing is that it is all about
aggression, it isn't. Boxing is more about self control and
being disciplined than anything else, but will need a certain
amount of aggression and motivation to partake in any level of
boxing, whether it is just the training or if you want to get to
a level where you can spar or fight.

If you would like to get into boxing don't be put off by what
you'd imagine boxing gyms to be like. Boxing clubs in general
are pretty friendly places, not many of them are like the spit
and saw dust gyms that are so stereo-typically portrayed in the
movies. On top of this boxers are pretty genuine people, what
you see is what you get on the whole. Some of the nicest and
most genuine people I've ever met have been club level boxers.

Club level boxers can't afford to be brash and offensive as
there is generally someone better and bigger than them willing
to knock them down a peg or two. All you will need to start
boxing is a basic level of fitness, nothing too excessive but if
you haven't taken part in any form of training for any long
period of time it's always advisable to consult a doctor first.

Don't worry about having to spend lots of money to get started
with boxing, all you will really need are some wraps to support
your wrists and protect your hands and preferably your own pair
of gloves. Some boxing clubs do hire out gloves but in the
interests of hygiene I'd always recommend buying your own. If
you've ever smelt an old pair of boxing gloves you'll understand
why! Most fitness boxers train in nothing more fancy than a
loose t-shirt, trainers and a pair of shorts, you should be more
than comfortable training like this.

I'd always suggest making sure that you have a ready supply of
water or sports drink with you, boxing is very thirsty work and
you can lose a lot of fluid very quickly, especially in summer.
You can usually turn up and train at your local boxing club
without too much fuss although in the evenings they may hold
sessions purely for the amateur boxers from the gym.

Usually throughout the day the gym will be pretty empty so you
can train at your own pace, sometimes there will be a coach on
hand to give you a few pointers, if not you may be fortunate
enough to get some help from another boxer who knows more about
the sport than you. There are basics to learn in the sport but
you'll find that you pick them up pretty quickly the more you
train, and you'll find the more you train the more you'll learn
and the more you'll want to train.
Boxing is like that, it gets under your skin.

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