So, last night’s work-out was all about tai otoshi. It was as well-thought-out as any judo class I’ve ever attended, I think.
We started with working on tsugi ashi. Initially, we did the forward and backward (en arrière) movements of nage no kata. Then we worked on going in different directions–sidewards, diagonally, and even around in semi-circles, which mystified me somewhat. Next we worked on doing a little circle with our foot while moving…sideways? Forward? Not sure how to describe it. This mystified me even more.
From there, we moved on to tai otoshi. We started with the typical things–weight on the foot that you want to throw the guy over, etc. Then we moved on to timing–the senseis showed how it was much easier to throw your partner if he’s walking and you attack the rear foot, which I think is different from anything I’ve seen before. They’re right–it works well. Finally, we worked on what to do if the guy steps around it, and that’s where the mysterious semicircles came in–you use them to go with your partner’s sideways movement.
Finally, we moved on to countering tai otoshi. Here’s where the mystifying circle with your foot comes in–you use it esquiver (that mysterious word again–in this sense, to evade, the central meaning of the word) the throw and step around in front of your partner. Then we learned three counter-throws, depending on how well your partner is pushing with his lapel grip–slip in for o goshi if he doesn’t have a good push there, turn all the way in for seoi nage if he has a strong push (really nice–you totally use his push against him), and ko soto gake if you can’t get in at all.
As always, Zipf’s Law brought some new words my way last night:
- chuter: To fall.
- esquiver: To evade, avoid, dodge. I talked about this one a couple of posts ago. Last night, the sensei used it in the most basic sense (in a judo context)–evading an attack.
- en dessous: Beneath. When you do tai otoshi, you need to attack beneath your opponent’s knee.
- pêcher: To fish. The sensei used this as Hideki Sensei does the English word–to describe the motion of the tsurite.
- un enchaînement: In the judo sense, we would call this a combination. It’s a chain, series, succession, sequence, linkage.
- en arrière: Backwards.
Oh–the beautiful woman in her 50s showed up again, this time in civvies. Incredibly elegant–like a movie star. The old-fashioned kind, not the new kind. I’m smitten.
Zipf's Law 