Kuzushi: The "Lost" Method of Throwing

[@GWGuitarStudio]

Good presentation. I might add this. I’m a 64 year-old 3rd Dan in the US. At my age, the only way I can throw younger, faster, and stronger judoka is with good kuzushi. When Judo became a “sport,” winning medals and trophies became the focus. As a system of self-defense, “winning” means survival. It is one thing to train up a person to be a fantastic athlete, then teach them some Judo. It is another thing entirely to teach an average person to survive a physical attack from a bigger, stronger adversary. This is where the old ways of Judo maintain their value.

[@MrMZaccone]

Exceptionally well said. I think it worth also noting, that the original adherence of Gracie Jiu-jitsu to reality-based training needs appreciated as a sincere attempt to maintain what was valued in these "old ways" and regain some of what had already been lost by too much of the Judo community. Labels are only useful for maintaining documentation. Not for deciding what does and doesn't fit reality. "The map is not the territory." - Alfred Korzybski.

[@yakovdavidovich7943]

I appreciate your perspective, and thank you for this comment. I am a mere sankyu in Judo, but have found myself gravitating to less sport-focused Judo resources. I'm working through the kata, and reading guys like Mifune and Kawaishi, trying to understand what Judo *was* before sport overtook everything.

[@MrMZaccone]

Why limit yourself to "Judo resources" when gravitating toward the "less sport-focused"? There's that label, getting in the way again. Why not just gravitate to "less sport-focused resources". The major element necessary to become "less sport-focused" is your training methodology. Start by working to defend against strikes in your training. Put yourself on the bottom and figure out how not to get hit from those positions. Get a training partner you trust and practice that. @@yakovdavidovich7943

[@u45.-]

Well said sir oss..

[@lambosnicko]

⁠@@MrMZacconecorrect. This was Helio Gracies goal in teaching Jujitsu. Unfortunately most people associate BJJ and the sport as it is today with what he taught. This is further made confusing with the fact that half the family, carlos’ side, also train for the sport rather than self defence.

[@Chadi]

Great video The world Kuzushi means literally to break down, collapse. Saying “unbalancing“ doesn’t do it justice.

[@SoldierDrew]

Thank you for this comment Chadi

[@gregragin7639]

I'm so happy I found your video, its a great dive - I run Shintaro Higashi's youtube channel and have a first Dan under him + teach Judo at his dojo in NYC. I've found Kuzushi, technique and Strength all elevate as a group. When someone starts in judo, everything is forced and stiff because they're scared of the takedown and sloppy on the forms. They cant "feel" opponents but they get stronger through resistance - then they start to notice where force has to be placed for proper kuzushi. Technique training gets them into these shapes to apply proper force. Then, as technique and kuzushi gets better, you stagnate in strength because it becomes "all form". To reach the next level of proficiency you have to maintain muscle and weight training is a great solution. From the western perspective I came to this sport after becoming proficient at golf. The amount of people cursing at themselves out on the course after doing little to no practice and watching the pros on tv was staggering. They fundamentally didnt understand the true timeline of dedication to become good at seemingly simple tasks. It's a direct mental parallel to Judo, I am always encouraging even the most granular progress to reframe the rate of change.

[@osofhia]

You described me. I used to beat myself up after a poor golf shot. Then I read that Tiger Woods hit 1000 balls a day practice. I didn’t to that in a year. Changing approach improved my golf. I’m applying the same approach to judo. Repetition is the breakfast of champions.

[@catocall7323]

I pulled off a seoi-nage against taller and heavier than me one of my first times doing stand up sparring in class. I noticed that when I pushed him he would just charge push me back a few steps. So, I pushed him again and I did a clean seoi nage on this dude as he charged forward with his arms extended. He must have been 6 inches taller than me and about 40lbs heavier. It was VERY satisfying. Beginner Kuzushi vs a beginner oaf. Love it.

[@defaultset]

Throwing beginner oafs dopamine secretion supremacy

[@JapaneseDog1]

Well said! It's expected in this world where people won't devote their time too far other than showing off a display of throws. It bites them because that's all it ends up being for them... a display. Then go around saying it doesn't work in real life. Kyuzo Mifune is the only example in all of Judo that shows perfect Kuzushi. He trained for 60+ years and hasn't missed a day! That goes to show how dedicated you have to be for such a consistency of technique to be executed. He said it himself, "There are no shortcuts because there is no end."

[@darkythecrazyninja5228]

y peps qet head damaged

[@MrMZaccone]

Well, he actually did start missing some days back around 1965.

[@dannyVulture]

It us truly special to hear someone in the youtube martial arts community call out the very common mindset of modern practitioners not wanting to invest in martial arts. instead, they require full functionality of the techniques in an unrealistic time frame. Great video,

[@MaxSluiman]

As a professional martial arts teacher I say that this is a video of a quality one seldomly sees.

[@yakovdavidovich7943]

I like your point at 3:43 -- I, too, have noticed that the old books don't talk about the now-popular triad of kuzushi, tsukuri, and kake, but rather just the last two. Nice video, and very thought provoking.

[@andrewhageman1817]

Excellent! Due to great instruction, i have learned that kuzushi is the most important thing in all of grappling, even after the takedown.

[@sorearm]

Training in 'traditional' japanese ju-jitus, we learn kazushi, it is the essential element of jitsu, avoid the attack, defend, atemi, take the balance and apply the technique - be it a throw / lock / takedown. Atemi and kazushi are essential against a resisting uke and for working with larger uke. Oss!

[@ConveyApp]

I very much liked this video. I’m a 43 yr old, 5’5”, 170lb BJJ no-gi purple belt. The kuzushi concept makes sense to me. Now I did take Judo for 2 yes from 40-42. It was very harsh on my body at the time. This kuzushi concept seems to be important in BJJ. When I roll, I can control and maneuver to do something similar to what you described. I mean with reversals or sweep not throws. I did stop training judo because I injured my right wrist and couldn’t throw with holding a gi. Plus my priority was no-gi BJJ. I learned a lot in my 2 years of judo and have definitely modified my favorite throws to no-gi and can chain 3-5 in combinations. With some basic wrestling takedowns. Still not my forte. Also your so right with everyone wanting a high level skill, right now. Particularly this tic-tok generation. I train between 15-20 hours per week for like 18 months. I literally am still just a basic purple belt in BJJ. I have about 8 yr total in BJJ. I have definitely learned to love the process and just let it happen. My brown belt will be on its way in due time. Rushing it does nothing to help you.

[@hugom2418]

Long awaited and well worth it! Great to see another video from you, especially one I can relate to. As a Judoka myself I’ve always valued Kuzushi and other skills that are time intensive but highly valuable. Maybe it’s my love for history but reading up on classical sources of Judo has always fascinated me and push me more towards that style of practice. Til this day I’m still developing a good sense of kuzushi but I enjoy the technical aspect and understanding of the art that comes with it. Being able to pull off techniques effortlessly (even though I have the strength to force it through weight training) makes it all worth it, it feels earned. Thank you again for your time in making a new video and I eagerly await the next one. Be it more history or martial arts intensive, I’m all for it!

[@TenguMartialArts]

Thank you so much for your continued (and exceptionally patient!) support. Things have been a little whacky in life, but I am doing my best to get back into the groove. I'm also glad you enjoyed the content. I won't lie, this video was almost more for me just to get something posted. An interesting topic, but not up to my personal editing snuff--something I hope to improve on in the next video. As for kuzushi, yeah, its a life long struggle. It absolutely one of those things that seems like it ought to be simple on paper, but it isn't. It is especially obvious when you actually pull off a throw with great kuzushi and it is so effortless that you question what is you've been up to this whole time. As a smaller guy, I tend towards this style of practice as well. Even if I were hitting the gym 3-4 times a week and measuring out calories and proteins, there is just no way I'm going to out muscle 95% of my training partners. I do pay attention to my physical fitness, but to me focusing on the details of kuzushi is just a more optimal use of my time. Thanks again for your patience. New video much, much sooner than the previous 10 month video gap.

[@hugom2418]

@@TenguMartialArts I’ll be looking forward to the next video then! Please don’t rush the process just to get someone posted though, take your time and make it great! And yeah kuzushi to me is the foundation of the art and learning/exploring it gives honor and proper knowledge to the techniques/judo itself. Though am also a pretty small guy (Samurai size, as I like to call it), I focus on my physical preparedness a lot (since I’m a strength coach), but despite that I don’t find forcing throws to be very efficient or even counter intuitive to learning judo if I’m just gonna use pure strength. Enough of my ramblings. Thank you again and good luck with all the chaos with life you’re going through and I’ll see you in the next one. じゃね

[@azlaroc12]

Great analysis and explanation. Bracing, well stated and much needed.

[@barrettkeller9855]

Wonderfully said. Thank you. Strength is a possessed quantity, power can be generated.

[@AL_YZ]

崩し/Kuzushi as described by Dr. Jigoro Kano is a momentary state in which ``you can't fall down even if you want to, and you can't get up even if you want to.''

[@munkhtulgabattogtokh1602]

Great point about Kuzushi vs. Strength. There are points in one's development where adding muscles is far easier than mastering kuzushi, which is counterintuitive but true. However, kuzushi always becomes easier eventually and allows longevity, which is lacking in people who retire as soon as they get their first major injury or the moment they become a minute older than 25.

[@yakovdavidovich7943]

I feel like there's a classic tradeoff here, and people make short-sighted decisions. You can double your strength once... maybe twice. But not much more! But you can double your technique, timing, and craft over and over, seemingly without limit.

[@torrinmaag5331]

An interesting followup video would be one which goes more into how to actually train kuzushi

[@draperw86]

A lot of the grappling arts and even several other martial arts styles that are all encompassing meaning stand up and ground work use this same way of thinking. I just found out about shaui jaio , pretty sure I spelled that wrong lol but if you look it up it’s one of the Chinese arts of wrestling and grappling and a lot of the throws are the same and they also have a sport and self defense version. It’s pretty cool when you start to study and learn different martial arts styles and you get to the point where you can recognize patterns, movements and techniques but maybe the philosophy or thought process is different. You learn to apply or possibly not apply them because it doesn’t really suit your body or the way you think. All of it makes me just really wonder how much time did Bruce Lee spend training and practicing. I’m still impressed with his statement basically he said to sum it up “ learn as much as you can but take what is not useful for you and throw it away “. Pretty cool, sorry for the small novel in the comments lol

[@ThomasToPC]

Thanks for the video and many good points raised! Here's an exercise to train kuzushi: randori where both people stand on only one leg, and they may grip the partner's gi only with their little fingers.

[@TonyPacenski]

This video was excellent thank you for putting it together.

[@TonyPacenski]

this video was excellent and thank you for putting it together.

[@dougfowler6898]

Very well said and excellent post. Yes, Japanese terms definitely still matter. Love the history that you provide.

[@vasa2681]

You are speaking my mind.

[@michaelrenney2472]

You are putting out awesome content! Leaving a comment because you deserve more engagement.

[@annabananainthe9045]

Kuzuchi is primarily what I depend on these days 😂 Thank you for this video ❤️

[@EyeOfTheVeda]

I really liked this video and your comments about hobbyists in the martial arts world overall. Very true

[@user-ju7dx8mu6d]

I feel kuzushi is the magic of judo but I am not good enough to be any kind of authority. In inexperienced wrestlers an attack tends to be met with a resistance or counterattack in the same plane. Kuzushi applies a force in one plane which initiates a likely response that opens up an instability in another plane. By instability I mean that the opponents body is positioned in such a way that they cannot bring their strength to bear to resist a force in the unstable plane. Knowing ahead of time where the weak plane is likely to appear allows the judoka to rapidly transition from an apparent plane of attack to the different one and so complete the throw before the defender can adjust their body to bring their strength into play. Kuzushi develops in stages. Initially you apply a force expecting a predictable response. Defenders learn relatively quickly to anticipate the change in direction that your force portends and then they correct their position before the attack can be initiated (though if you are really fast, the same attack can seem invincible). After that you may do multiple attacks and/or feints until you get ahead of the defender's positional corrections. As you become attuned to your opponents body position you begin to feel the plane of weakness in your opponent even as you are simply moving with them. Practice allows you to swiftly apply a suitable attack to the weak plane with barely any set up force. Thinking of the eight directions is important because initially we are linear and when we add in right angles we feel we are really rocking. As combatants become more proficient they are prepared to attack the subtlest lack of support in any direction.

[@pauldwalker]

good kuzushi is the difference between a good player and a great player. it is also essential to being able to throw people well past your 60s when once is not as strong as they were in their 20s good kuzushi makes throws seem effortless.

[@balintccc12]

Wow. Great video. A lot of your points apply to BJJ too. The success of most techniques hinges on a set of "invisible" micro-adjustments that are hard to explain verbally, let alone package into an instructional. The practitioner has to develop a certain feel for the technique. But you can't sell instructional videos with subtle cues like "shift your weight here" or "maintain good connection" or "develop better timing". So people tend to describe techniques as bullet points to go through step-by-step.

[@geneshin7031]

Nice video essay on kuzushi and the evolution of its emphasis over time.

[@Rosary-Crusader]

I enjoyed this video, I am just a humble orange belt, and been using more strength at times to beat people, but feel I lack kuzushi. Soon as I go against someone who has a lot of this, find myself in trouble.. be good to see videos in future how to grow in Kuzushi.

[@ryanhouk3560]

I've heard the term just be defined as "tipping point" If you brought them to kuzushi, and just stopped all momentum, the opponent would have a 50/50 chance of still falling but also just resetting. The goal is to move through and going past that before actually pulling the throw, sweep or takedown. Simple Example. A single leg sweep. If you just put a your leg behind his, and put your hand on his wrist and shoulder, you've not set up good kuzushi and can be sweeped just as easily as he can sweep you. But if you upset his momentum and then push his upper torso back and pull on his wrist before setting up the leg, you now have good kuzushi and he needs to step back and regain stability before countering. I've also heard it described to something like the Judo equivalent to Chi. Like it's the spirit of the warrior within the judoka. So... I don't have a great understanding of the term.

[@r2d277]

Well man.. I really wish I'd heard that some years ago... Thank you for the great video!

[@acehomi]

I wonder if the diminishing attention spans have anything to do with the decline in perceived usefulness of Kuzushi? As you mentioned Kuzushi is something that takes a long time to master and IMO our world is ever tending towards instant gratification and belt farms. I kind of think similar to styles like BJJ, but in the opposite direction. Really easy to get in and start using thus has increased in popularity in recent years. Also watching these guys fall on essentially paper towels really makes me feel the saying "our generation has gotten soft"

[@TenguMartialArts]

I actually saw an interesting video the other day that disputes the declining attention span. It is a view I've also held, but I guess the research for it is very flimsy. I don't think that necessarily means people aren't chasing instant gratification more these days, especially in martial arts. Very few people would go to a music or art class and expect to be producing collegiate level material after a session or three. Yet, that is often the reality in martial arts. People want to come in, learn stuff, and find success (at least against people their level) almost instantly. I think with throwing techniques this is particularly difficult... humans have a built-in instinct to stay standing for obvious, practical evolutionary reasons. To throw someone, in a way, is to fight against human nature. Toppling over just feels heretical to our instincts in a way that ground grappling and pugilism just... aren't. And, yeah, mat quality back in the day almost seems like a placebo effect lol

[@johnlloyddy7016]

I've always thought Judo Kuzushi and Aikido irimi basically followed the same principles, but the difference is that Aikido practitioners emphasized irimi in training throws more while modern Judo has not emphasized kuzushi as much during training but focus more on power and explosiveness to overwhelm the uke. Hence the difference in training styles and levels of resistance during practice. An instructor once put it in more simple terms, a Judoka uses force to throw an Uke, while an Aikidoka forces an Uke to throw himself.

[@farkas266]

My subjective opinion is that it is due to 2 things: lackluster teaching and lack of patience from youngsters. I've seen a lot of Judo gyms, and sadly most of the instructors suck. There is no clear curricula, no clear view on how you will improve. 'Just show up' today is not enough, for youngsters. So i feel dojos have not upgraded to modern times, and they will be left in the dust. Bjj has a newer way of teaching (sometimes good, sometimes shit) and we can see it's popularity rising, while other arts who stick with the old ways get ignored. I also disagree that kuzushi takes a lot of time to teach/learn. If that would be true, we would see the same in wrestling, yet there, people learn timing pretty effectively and in a couple of years. A beginner can stall an intermediate judoka, but a beginner will be eaten alive by an intermediate wrestler. Wrestling has updated their teaching techniques and are churning out new generational talents. Judo is still stuck with the mentality of old school Japanese Dojo and Sensei mentality, not to mention competition rules and lost techniques (leg grabs). Once Judo wakes up and they update their teaching strategies, we will see a surge again....if not, well Judo will just become a fringe sport.

[@davidmartinez9804]

Great video! A big part of any good Chinese Martial Art is throwing somebodies balance off first aka destroying their root. The diagram with the feet reminds me of Bagua ☯

[@KeithNoland2211]

Excellent video! So many good points & observations. I've noticed the need for "instant gratification" or the need to "immediately be good" effects many Martial Arts styles in this modern age. A lot of people will deem something as "useless" just because THEY cannot do it. 🙄 Meanwhile the master can apply it regularly in real situations with an opponent who is resisting. Higher level skills based more on sensitivity & mastery of subtle techniques may take longer to become a part of you but to me that makes an individual much more difficult to beat than if they just improved via strength training. In addition I would just like to point out something most if not all Judo practitioners know -- "JUDO" translates as "Soft Way" ... so to me, having techniques based more in Kuzushi than in power & strength training seems more in line with what the style is by name.

[@Pendraeg]

As an older Judoka without the time or inclination to do weight training, I can say that Kuzushi is absolutely the aspect of Judo that I most struggle with and strive to perfect.

[@FSMTaua]

This principle is alive within the shizen kamae of Ninjutsu. Think of a sphere. Think of a movement in one direction followed by an abrupt reversal in an opposite direction. Kuzushi can be taken from infinite angles from one central point. The final movement can involve an arm or neck throw and break. Hold your open hand in front of you palm down fingers straightened. Follow the path of the nail of your little finger. Turn your hand over. This is kuzushi. Hold a hanbo in the centre and spin it. Kuzushi in motion. When your body absorbs the feeling of the spinning centre point of the stick you become kuzushi. It is a feeling to be absorbed as the body becomes a gyroscope and responds to a force applied to the input axis by a reaction force to the output axis. So it needs no setup other than an attack. It can be applied to an attacker who punches at force and no grip on the attacker's body is needed only a momentary locking of their body with your body.

[@CANADAFIRST-4-TRUMP]

i like watching the Original Styles & seeing what we are missing in the sport adapted modern versions

[@mgmartialartssportcenter1203]

I am a practitioner of martial arts, my sensei Hoshu Ikeda defined the term kuzuchi using the term cutting the opponent's spirit by replacing the sword with the mind, soul and body, to reach its maximum expression.

[@Momsspaghetti777]

I would say that my definition of Kuzushi is the manipulation of weight distribution so that someone cannot properly catch themselves from the technique being applied. If you perform only the Kuzushi without actually finishing the throw for say” osoto gari, your opponent is still standing, they therefore still have balance If you attempt osoto gari with no Kuzushi and sweep their leg out, only for them to remain perfectly balanced on the opposite leg you may try again and perform osoto gari on the leg where their weight is loaded, and be unable to move their leg at all, they’ll simply eat the sweep attempt but if you moved their weight off the leg for just long enough for you to reapply that weight where the leg previously was, they fall. Or allow them to have just enough weight that the leg can move but the leg is detrimental for their ability to balance If Kuzushi had anything to do with balance than the only Kuzushi would be the throw itself. Kuzushi is not balance. The person stance is the imaginary table legs supporting a person, Kuzushi is creating the three legged table. Their balance isn’t quite broken but it’s no longer a stable platform capable of supporting weight in any direction. The throw is to put a cup on the table right where the leg is missing, causing the whole table to collapse

[@mikehunt9884]

1:08 wow, that is awesome.

[@dorjedriftwood2731]

I love your writing style

[@clarkme8952]

Dang, already smashing on us Jiu-Jitsu guys. I know our Grandmaster Osvaldo Alves, who passed not long ago, was one of the few Jiu-Jitsu men that taught at the Judo academy (don't ask the name of the school because i don't remember) in Japan. If im not mistaken it was the top Judo academy. Anyhow Osvaldo added 30 or so new sweeps to Jiu-Jitsu. If this happened because of him going to Japan or not I don't know. We use Japanese names for certain moves too. So blah✌🏼

[@Master-AGN]

Well if you want to learn Kuzushi go and aiki-flow or aikikai or park-taichi. They both have been denuded of all marital aspects till only catching the persons centre of gravity has been retained.

[@oxiosophy]

kuzush sounds like some forbidden japanese zaza

[@Joel-xt5yz]

the jumping is actually a good way to get your back into opponents' chest if you know how to land quickly and properly before they caught you in the air. I have seen some Korean judo club taught this style of maneuver for certain throws

[@moonlightnake]

Sorry in traditional Japanese Jujitsu we are learning and practising that way but I did not know it was named that way. I have been even using it when I am doing MMA. It is not lost. However when I spar with judo practionners I can feel there are much more on the defensive really stiff on their foot. Compare with Jujitsu practitionners we like practising body drop technic

[@teovu5557]

What system of traditional Japanese jujutsu are you learning? Kuz jujutsu is a very generic term in Japan for dozens of unrelated styles.....lol

[@Tovish1988]

I would define it something like "removing the opponents ability to apply or resist applied force by disconnecting their center from the ground".

[@rko2016]

i can see why people wouldnt want to just "trust the process", personally i could've wasted years doing just kata in shotokan karate classes. Felt 0 improvement on my footwork and every question about why and hows of the kata was met with that sentiment.

[@maggifatai4497]

Would this idea of kuzushi be similar to what I see tai chi practitioners use when they spar?

[@randomdds]

Do you mean push hands? Push hands was developed as a "safe" way to develop subtlety without injuring students...but I think Shao Jiao is more like it.

[@MrJusone]

Great video great explanation

[@sanholo2776]

we just translate it as balance breaking which does it pretty well

[@rowanblithe71]

One that I see/hear A LOT is that if you're not a "medalist" or champion you CAN'T teach ... man, MANY champions in any field are really bad at training others; or people who are very adept at observing, and learning how someone else fights (or performs any sport) is not necessarily the best at performing that sport, but have the "clinical eye" to go "oh, this is a better way to do that / if that guy had done this other move, he would've won"

[@brianfoley4328]

Well done Sir, well done indeed.

[@Ryan21888]

Excellent.

[@bluetiger5064]

Really enjoyed your video. You're better than chadi, another judo KZbinr, he's gone extremely bias towards judo and at that a specific style of it

[@johndoeyedoe]

Weight lifting plus yoga. Judo, bit of boxing and kick boxing. Plus sparing as often as possible. Its a long game that takes years to just become proficient especially over 2-3 disciplines plus weight lifting and yoga.

[@SoldierDrew]

Kuzushi is the act of breaking their structural stability which results in their loss of balance in which throws, reaps, sweeps and take downs are facilitated without brute strength.

[@secretcircleofthefeather.3674]

TenguRyu tu es toujours actif et bien... tu fait toujours du Karaté Shotokan et de la musculation ?

[@dyonesios]

2:46 I don't think he's getting kazushi by jumping up and down so much as using his falling weight to generate momentum

[@tonytomahawk5160]

Back during my combat days as a Shuai Jiao guy my judoka monster friends said that BJJ would sully jujitsu. They didn't lie. Literally everything they said has come true. Imagine thinking they're special enough to dismiss the Japanese teachings or words. Real combat requires the ability to throw an enemy and deal with the next. There's a reason why all the throwing arts used in the military doesn't focus on ground fighting. The ground is where you or the enemy dies. Real combat isn't one vs one

[@Spiritof_76]

Real combat is weaponry. Self defense could be one vs one, or one vs more than one.

[@tonytomahawk5160]

@@Spiritof_76 Ever heard of close quarters combat? Hand to hand combat? Also in every state in America when it comes to self defense the criteria is the same. A one vs one can typically be avoided. Not so much with more than that. That's literally how they determine self defense across the board. I realize what you're doing but you're way off base and I'm someone who with a reputation on the subject. Lastly nothing you stated will change what I said nor make it wrong. BJJ proved those old judokas right. It's insane how BJJ fans think they can change the rules of engagement to suit them. For example your retarded narrative that combat is only weapons. Or that a 1v1 if a real self defense situation in an American court of law. What you're doing is partially why the judokas were proven right. BJJ isn't special enough to redefine ideas that were set in stone before either of us were born and no amount of semantics on your part will change that. That's what BJJ was rejected by Brazilian military and other jujitsu passed. Including Shuai Jiao Hapkido And even Aikido No military group worth a damn anywhere uses BJJ. Not an opinion or up for debate. Your comment proves you don't know what you're talking about. I bet you think sports fighting is real combat as well. SMH

[@krdietiker]

Would it be fair to equate Kuzushi to "Entry" in a Western context? With the subtleties of proper mechanics, structure, timing and method, of course.

[@Soaring_Hawk]

Breaking posture. Throwing off balance for a split second for your Judo or Jujutsu to be applied

[@scarred10]

Nope,entry is the footwork to get yourself in place to throw,it occurs either after or simultaneously with kuzushi.Kuzushi is usually done by pulling and pushing with grips.

[@Soaring_Hawk]

Entry fitting in is "Tsukuri". Throwing is "kake". 3 elements of a throw. Kuzushi, tsukuri, and kake.

[@krdietiker]

@scarred10 yeah no, I don't think you have a good understanding of "entry". Hands enter as a defense against an attack, for a parry or grab or to break structure, and footwork drives the hands, so they work together. An entry sets up not only a throw, but also a bind, a break, a strike, or even a disarm (if the opponent has a weapon). Footwork and handwork are tied together, you don't do one without the other inside reach/range. It's a basic martial principle everywhere, east or west.

[@scarred10]

@@krdietiker we are referring only to judo,and obviously entry is occurring at the same time or after balance breaking but entry refers specifically to feet in judo,different in striking arts like jkd or WC,the arts that a.so use the term entry.

[@dbuck1964]

It’s pronounced Kuzush-eee. I don’t know where you learned to clip off the last part.

[@jjs3890]

I’m n some Japanese dialects shi is usually silent. Same with jujitsu pronounced jujits… silent u.

[@OldJudoGuy]

I absolutely love this video! Although I will admit, it hurts my ears to hear Kuh-ZOOSH’😂

[@MrMZaccone]

A lot of Mifune in the video here. Good stuff.

[@TrayCaddyyy]

I like that Gracie Combatives 2.0 made kuzushi a fundamental principle for sweeps and takedowns. They don’t push much for strength training though.

[@simbabwe2907]

This about weight lifting is not true....Kimura and Usjijima did weightliftig.Mifune did Weightlifting...And Donn dreagor wrote an entire book about how he trained Inukuma in Weighlifting.The Person who was responsible for Geesink strenght was Haku Michigami. Who told Geesink he should lift weight.Also one of the 4 guardians was renown for his strenght exercises Yokoyama Sakujiro.Weightlifting was always a part of judo.

[@RadicalTrivia]

The obsession with outcomes in the US (and martial arts) is so true. See: the comments in /r/bjj. People are idiots.

[@valentino8629]

I think that Kuzushi I what really differentiates judo from other grappling or wrestling arts.

[@edgardocarrasquillo9]

Once read that Kano sensei watched a Daito ryu aikijujutsu demo and commented that it was real judo. If wrong correct me.

[@russmitchellmovement]

Moshe Feldenkrais commented extensively on this, including the 3d concept of kuzushi.

[@nickdavis5420]

I mean I see this in sword fighting everyone wants too get strong and fast not tactics and foot movement .

[@krdietiker]

Same issue in HEMA

[@MrMZaccone]

"Without judo, there would be no Gracie Jiu-jitsu." - Rorion Gracie. Whatever these "sections" of BJJ are that you refer to, they don't seem to include the individuals at its core. The Gracie representatives with whom I've trained tend to avoid ANY excess use of labels when teaching, regardless of what language they come from. There is a fairly well-founded belief that such labels can stifle the creative process and make the unlabeled variations between the labeled ones seem like a "no-man's land" within which there is no room for innovation. This same paradigm exists in a variety of arts even (or perhaps especially) outside the martial arts. This can be carried to the extreme, even placing in question whether there is any acceptable definition of the word "art" at all. Balance is the key, learning established pathways, and then building new ones in between those already established. Those who claim there is nothing new under the sun, saying things like "BJJ is just Judo", risk creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. This can result in an environment where potentially valuable innovation is denigrated as "improper" or "disrespectful" to the established order. Those who refuse to use any labels at all, risk losing these innovations for lack of documentation. "The map is not the territory" - Alfred Korzybski. Understand what is meant by this, and you're on your way to finding that balance.

[@carloseffio8754]

This is why it is important to learn the basics of Aikido and bring them to JUDO.

[@teovu5557]

There already in Judo.....it's taught in Itsutsu no kata one of the highest kata in Judo.....lol

[@ronin2167]

Bravo

[@skipskiperton4992]

so good…

[@captainsmirk5582]

The BEST and MOST BENEFICIAL thing about learning old school judo is that you learn and train to fall down and roll with motion. You might never get into a fight in your entire life these days but sooner or later you will fall down.

[@OldJudoGuy]

Hobbyists: we keep the lights on!!😂😂😂

[@SpodyOdy]

I’ve always thought we all should strive to be as strong as we can be without risking injury. But try to use the least amount of strength in application of technique as possible.

[@boholdeafacademy9444]

But when both know technique the proper use of strength to stymie techniques in crucial points is a technique in itself. And the more strength you have the more you can do to stifle someone else's technique. My deadlift is heavier than any of they guys at the dojo. So I can use Judo grappling to apply defense and get into position, and then if I choose to I can explosively go to a squat position and stand up, and in MMA rounds I can convert that into a powerslam.

[@JoeHeine]

Couldn't it simply be tranlsated as "tipping" as in "tipping over", like "cow tipping"?

[@JohnDoe-kh3hy]

I totally agreed (as soon as I read the title/thumbnail) I used to follow an mexican JiuJitsu grandmaster who used to tell that if kuzushi was well done, 99% of the thrown was achieved, you may not need to execute "kake" (finishing) to get an ippon

[@ΓραικοςΕλληνας]

Αctiall hirano was doing action reaction to set up a techinque

[@totallynotajay5443]

Action reaction is the basis of Kano's Judo. It's also the basis of Koshiki no kata. It is kuzushi applied to randori.

[@ΓραικοςΕλληνας]

@@totallynotajay5443 I was talking specific about the up and down of hirano tokyo's movement in the video.

[@asengeorgiev7848]

I'd ask instead, why does your definition only talk of throws? Kuzushi can facilitate any technique, I'd say. Granted, when we're speaking of throws, unbalancing can lead directly to a fall.

[@kentondragon9263]

Judo toss, judo chop🙂 edit reverse judo toss😱🤯 5:00

[@erikpaulson4929]

I was taught where the I wasn't silent at the end😮?

[@jjs3890]

Some Japanese dialects the I is silent.

[@DenshaOtoko2]

I learned kuzushi Judo in Japanese high school as an international student.

[@franckherrmannsen7903]

Well Judo is considered a sport, even by it´s founder, but it came from jutsu be it go or ju and so ultimately from weapon use, the 8 in the plane make the 64 in space plus time, this is the framework which one can call kuzushi, there is no difference between push and pull or thrust and slash or tsuki and hikkite. Balancing is just the use of the geometrie of space while using time. Sen no sen, go no sen, before, equal, behind timing, name it what you want.

[@arcturus0448]

lol i was the confused bjj guy in the back

[@Nebajin-y6k]

Ninpo Ikkan!!👺🖤🔥🔱

[@chriswilcox8977]

Demolish is the translation we are taught in Koryu JuJutsu. A much different concept than any of the directional/compass planes - for sure it’s 3D, for us it’s about the spine and again as you say, removing the structural ability of someone to continue being a threat. Judo is too far removed from the koryu mainly because koryu JuJutsu wasn’t taught anywhere near as much so the older stuff was missed or ‘forgotten’ or maybe more often shouted about ‘discovered’ as if it’s something new and better than anything older….

[@pedrobedoy9574]

Resistance training is Weight training 😢🎉😮

[@Toxicgamerdog]

"Kazoosh"

[@jjs3890]

Some Japanese dialects the I is silent.

[@MrMZaccone]

Sorry, pet peeve: It's "Et cetera", not "egg sedra". The original Latin would have been pronounced: "et ketera". The literal translation is "and others". This misunderstanding is also why you so often see it written incorrectly as "ect." instead of the correct "etc".

[@erlangga59]

Isn't kuzushi a principle?

[@geraldpascall-manswell5450]

No. The principle is Seiryoku Zenyo. Kuzushi is the means of achieving that principle.

[@frikanetwork]

So in short yt alogorithms telling me to Throw em Nigaas😂

[@stickgarrote8582]

Kuzushi, not kuzush. The ”i” is not silent.

[@jjs3890]

It is good n some Japanese dialects.

[@753studios6]

Hi power lifter who does judo Both are indeed important

[@montagistreel]

Literally everytime I hear the word, the ending "i" is pronounced

[@risingsunintl]

Kazush kazush NOT …. It is KuzuSHI !! Good points !