Big issue in JUdo?

Question

I am an orange belt in judo now but I have a big issue with me.

Most of my wins are cuz of luck and silly mistakes by my opponents.I had only one perfect victory for me out of millions or rendori matches.My favourite moves Is Kataguruma Ochimata and osotogari.

When I play against an opponent and I see a an opportunity to throw him I hesitate and I feel that my legs are heavy and I cant move it...and I become badly stressed too...and then I end up in competitions taking warnings for not attacking.

This is a big issue for me and If there is an expert in judo somewhere in this Galaxy PLZZZZZZ ADVICE ME WHAT TO DOOOOO.

Answer 1

your additude is normal for your belt....most white belts spend there time wishing they were colored belts and for your first colored belts you might pay attention to detail and ability more and feel you don't deserve it....but you do...thats why you won't be demoted...your still learning...and have a ways to black belt

as for hesitation I'm going to suggest your feet are in the wrong place so you feel frozen for a moment and feel like you can't or don't want to move...work on your footwork drills (tandori? I'm not judo) and especially your approach to each throw.....and get a senior judoka to make sure your not doing any studer stepping.....and start taking chance in randori...finding out what doesn't work is just as important as doing what does...

not only does getting thrown on your back show you what not to do..but it also shows you what to do when your oppenent messes up to....make sense?

and don't keep practing only your favorite throws...especially in randori

Answer 2

Doesn't Judo have Kata?

Just run through all the Kata about 10 times each as I hear they are brief, and have your opponent also run them on you.

Then take turns applying Newaza stuff while actively resisting.  In Japan, they spend more time on Kata and Randori than in "free sparring" part of the reason they win more at the Olympics and why their technique tends to be more polished.  I find it hilarious how Americans insist in saying that Katas are worthless, and yet, against Europeans, in Karate or Judo, they get constantly served up.

In European martial arts circles Americans are generally seen as a joke outside MMA.

The only difference in the way they train, is that in America people don't do Kata, whereas in Europe they do, because they have more respect for anything "traditional."  Japanese Judoka are beasts; they will drill a Kata up to 100 times (their champs) and tolerate being powerslammed on the mat 100 times, all for the sake of polishing their form.

Sounds to me like your instructor trains you Japanese style; most Judo schools don't do that, so I wouldn't attribute your success so much to luck, as maybe your instructor knows what he or she is doing.  If you still feel insecure you can always test yourself against a Japanese Judoka if you get the opportunity you know, as ultimately they remain the standard of Judo.

good luck.

Answer 3

be aggressive then

Answer 4

First off relax... realize you are an orange belt and this kind of think is natural. I also highly doubt you have had millions of randori matches.. maybe hundreds, but still that is part of learning, is to get quicker and quicker reaction times.

I can tell you most people's hesitation occurs because they are afraid of getting countered or making a mistake. But that is what Randori is for, to learn and make mistakes. Even tournaments at your level are learning tools, you should just attack and if you get countered, the worst that happens is you lose a match in a Novice division, which isn't a big deal.

My advice would be to not take yourself so seriously, or worrying about if you are winning or losing, but to focus on learning. If you feel you have two or three good throws, then attack them all the time. Find out when they work, and when they don't. Don't be hard on yourself or let your ego get in the way, you still have time to get work things out and you are still learning.

The path to learning is mistakes period. You play against people better than you, you try all the things you can, and you find out what works for you. When you get to a point that you can throw most people with your throw, stop throwing it all the time and work on a new throw. Work on a left handed throw or a throw that works in a predicament you find yourself in a lot.

Always improve, and the way to do that is by just trying out techniques in randori, and not being afraid if you will lose, or win. Randori isn't about that, it is about helping your partner and yourself get better.

So first get rid of your fear of losing, in randori, in competetion, in anything. You will find out that by attacking more, you will find yourself throwing people more, and your confidence and fear of committing yourself to a throw will dissapate.

Judo is like golf... you are going to hit a million bad shots, but it when you hit that one good shot that keeps you going. All your life and career of playing Judo, the mistakes, and wins by luck and all that will far outnumber the solid beautiful ippons that took no effort. But the only way you land that solid beautiful throw is by throwing all the time until you find your groove.

I hope that is of some help, feel free to message me if I can be of any further help.

Answer 5

Well I'm no expert but as a friend I would tell you that if you think you got where you are because of other peoples silly mistakes then you should not of let your self been promoted to orange belt from getting those wins if what you say is true and you do not feel you belong at that level. Either way though thats in the past. With training you can still work on where you are at and better your self with each day that you train. if you feel your not ready for orange belt level competition then don't enter until you feel you are ready. Or do enter and take the losses and learn from them. The goal here is for you to get better, not to increase you win to loss ratio as best as possible. As you get better that should happen anyway. As for your stress you should see a psychologist and work on relaxation techniques such as breathing methods and visualization techniques. I wish you luck