Jiu-jitsu observation
Sep. 11th, 2008 10:37 pmThis is chiefly for my own benefit, because writing things down helps you remember them (even if you don’t consult the notes).
Today I was practicing a new move with a guy…a bit taller than me, but skinnier, probably no vast weight difference. We’re fairly evenly matched, but I had a much easier time with this particular, new half-guard sweep, with which we were both unfamiliar.
It occurred to me that while it comes naturally to break a technique down into its constituent parts—break balance to one side with a fake scissor sweep; pass your opponent’s posting arm over to the other side; roll him onto your shins; roll backwards over your shoulder, sweeping him—and while there is some sense in thinking about it that way, and certainly teaching it that way—it doesn’t make sense to do it that way, even when practicing.
What has to be kept in mind is that this sweep (like all the throws and sweeps I’ve learned so far) really have two parts: First get your opponent off balance, or force him to load his weight precariously; then capitalise on the imbalance you’ve created to execute a technique. But this has to flow; it makes no sense to unbalance a person only to give him a moment to recover his balance (perhaps unconsciously) while you think about the next step!
Additionally, a lot of these techniques have a momentum that carries through if you perform them smoothly (in pace, not necessarily skill), and by breaking them up. Into. Discrete. Steps. That momentum is lost. My training parter failed (at first) to do the sweep because he took his time and thought about each step; I succeeded (at once) because I tried to do it slowly and methodically but continuously.
Some techniques can be broken up into discrete steps (though they tend to work a lot better when you do them smoothly!), but that requires you to control the opponent throughout—and if the technique relies on momentum or unbalancing, it makes no sense to try.