As I progress with my judo and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu trials and tribulations, I am becoming proficient enough to understand what I'm doing wrong. I'll take this as a sign of wisdom and experience, rather than incompetence. Hopefully, sharing my mistakes will help others avoid those mistakes, and speed them along the proper path.
The latest throw I've attempted to learn, uchi mata, is one of the flashiest throws in the sport of Judo. Uchi mata is a Japanese phrase meaning "inner thigh". It is a hip throw, using your leg to help drive your opponent over, used primarily when they are aggressively coming forward. When done correctly, your opponent is lifted high in the air, and it is fairly easy for you to follow through with enough control to earn an ippon ruling and win your match. When done poorly, it's easy for your opponent to counter, and you'll probably hurt yourself in the process.
Here's a list of three mistakes I consistently make as I'm learning proper execution of the uchi mata throw:
1) I step in too far on first approach
This habit is VERY difficult to break, because most Judo throws and other grappling techniques rely on a deep first step. With uchi mata, however, the closer you get to your opponent, the shorter of a lever you'll have when your leg comes in to catch their inner thigh to lift and complete the throw. If you step in closer than about 12 inches, you'll make contact with your thigh instead of your knee or lower, and the throw will be very difficult to complete.
2) I fail to get my opponent off-balance
Nearly every good Judo throw requires putting your opponent off-balance in one direction or another. Many times, however, good technique on the follow-through can overcome an opponent's strong base. When I do an osotogari back trip, for example, if I step in strong and have good body position, it doesn't matter that they're leaning too far backward.
With uchi mata, however, having your opponent leaning forward and off-balance is everything to successfully executing the throw. If my opponent has his weight back over his feet, I will never be able to generate enough momentum no matter how good of a lever I have. My leg may be strong...but it's not that strong.
3) I fail to get my leg up high enough
Let's say I get a good first step, so my lever is long when my leg shoots in and catches their inner thigh. And I initiate the throw with my opponent leaning far enough forward so they are off-balance. I can (and usually do) still fail to execute the throw, however, if my leverage leg doesn't come up high enough. I have to get my leg higher than my hip to insure that my opponent comes off the ground, so I can throw them over. Since I'm not a gymnast, the best way for me to do that is to use my head and torso as a counterbalance, lowering the top half of my body down so that the leg comes up.
The uchi mata throw has a lot of moving parts going on, and from my experience, is harder to learn properly than most other basic Judo techniques. However, if you can avoid my mistakes, it can be a devastatingly effective technique. There's a reason you see it often at all levels of competition. Not only does it look cool; it works.
Paul Herzog and his son Christopher have been taking judo and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu instruction at Petushin Martial Arts since the new Rosemount, Minnesota facility opened in 2010. In addition to receiving some of the best grappling instruction in the Midwest, Paul has lost 30 pounds, and Chris has gained strength and self-confidence. If either of those sounds appealing, please contact the academy at 612-991-9116 or go to http://www.petushinmartialarts.com/ to arrange your first visit!
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