Ju Jutsu and a sporting Element.

[Twinkle]

The question of whether Ju Jutsu should have a sporting element in it is one that will not go away quickly.

=============== PRESSURE TESTED ===============

Ju Jutsu competition adds that vital component into a practitioners training that can make the difference in a real situation.

That component?

PRESSURE!

If you cannot make any of your techniques work against non-compliance then this will obviously be an issue if you ever get into a predicament where it looks like you might have to physically defend yourself.

Ju Jutsu competition helps the student to develop an arsenal of pressure-tested techniques that he or she can rely upon under pressure. Sure, this might mean that would only be three or four techniques, but this is much better than knowing one hundred techniques NONE of which have really been put under duress.

?One technique mastered is worth more than a thousand sampled?

================ ISSHIN AND MA-AI ================

Ju Jutsu competition is an awesome way to develop these traditional attributes.

Isshin (meaning one heart or mind) can be developed under the stress of a competitive environment. This can be demonstrated when a competitor throws him or herself into attack mode fearless of any counter-attack.

The benefit of having this attribute in a real self-defence situation is quite obvious!

Ma-ai (being able to evaluate distance) is another great attribute that can be improved while competing. This is especially true in Ju Jutsu competition as they can involve ALL ranges of combat.

Again, the benefits of having good awareness of distance are clear. It is vital in self-defence, and might mean the difference between being able to attack first and run and ending up in an actual fight.

Both the above attributes are often very visible in seasoned Ju Jutsu competitors as they have the experience of REAL TIME combat and have learnt to react accordingly, knowing when to commit to an all out attack, and when to use their feel for distance to stay out of harms way or to initiate an attack themselves.

============ FEELING PAIN ============

This is quite an important one!

In a real situation you must expect to take a few knocks or at least be accepting that it might occur. While competing in Ju Jutsu competition you learn to control your adrenaline (eventually) and, even if you get knocked, you learn to fight on.

In real terms, this might be the difference between surviving a real attack or not, so it cannot be underestimated. In Ju Jutsu competition you learn to grapple with total commitment and learn to fight through taking the odd bump or knock.

What are your thoughts everyone?

[KarateKid]

how do the skills of Ma-ai get developed?

is it a physical thing, or more a mental process?

[Tonic]

being able to evaluate distance

Yes, sounds like a mental skill for sure.
It has a physical aspect to it, but it really comes down to how you peceive things.

[jackg]

you dont have to make it a sport to add pain + pressure thier are many ways you can add these aspects witout needed it to be a sport - I hate that word when said with jitsu . I will post some vids on here on pressure + pain exercises we do that definty are sport like.

[Shirindo]

I have competed in Tang Soo Do competition and personally dont feel that it pressure tested my skills properly as everyone was fighting under the same rules.

I have been lucky(?) enough to put my ju-jutsu skills to a more realistic test by working as venue security for 5 years. When you have to throw out a drunk, who's a lot bigger than you, on your own you have to use a variety of techniques.

First you have the power of speech; try and talk them into leaving - it is possible.
Then you have all the C&R moves to escort someone out. These people do not respong well to pressure points (they're drunk), and they are certainly not playing to any set of rules. All this and with the ever present threat that they could have a knife (last time I checked, hidden weapons weren't allowed in competition )

Happy days but I'm glad I'm out now.

[Gray Wolf]

Originally Posted by Shirindo

I have competed in Tang Soo Do competition and personally dont feel that it pressure tested my skills properly as everyone was fighting under the same rules.

I have been lucky(?) enough to put my ju-jutsu skills to a more realistic test by working as venue security for 5 years. When you have to throw out a drunk, who's a lot bigger than you, on your own you have to use a variety of techniques.

First you have the power of speech; try and talk them into leaving - it is possible.
Then you have all the C&R moves to escort someone out. These people do not respong well to pressure points (they're drunk), and they are certainly not playing to any set of rules. All this and with the ever present threat that they could have a knife (last time I checked, hidden weapons weren't allowed in competition )

Happy days but I'm glad I'm out now.

Hello All - In my Humble Opinion, there are to many Sport Martial Arts out there now - They promote False Security(because there are Rules in sport Karate) - They Promote an Ego(winning a Trophy), to name a few

[disgruntled]

i do agree that winning a trophy is not the best thing to have in martial arts, but i do think that competitions are necessary. it is one of the few times you get to show off your skills or go full force (i do not get randomly attack nearly enough ). it helps to point out flaws that you need to improve. but you are totally right about building a sense of false security! it is like those people that go on and on about how MMA is the best MA, i just reply, every martial art is the best martial art to use when fighting with their rules. but personally i think it is just amatures that get a false sense of security. i would hope that any devote MAist would see the bigger picture.

[Gray Wolf]

Originally Posted by disgruntled

i do agree that winning a trophy is not the best thing to have in martial arts, but i do think that competitions are necessary. it is one of the few times you get to show off your skills or go full force (i do not get randomly attack nearly enough ). it helps to point out flaws that you need to improve. but you are totally right about building a sense of false security! it is like those people that go on and on about how MMA is the best MA, i just reply, every martial art is the best martial art to use when fighting with their rules. but personally i think it is just amatures that get a false sense of security. i would hope that any devote MAist would see the bigger picture.

I understand what your saying about compentitions, except there seems to be a lacking of reality involved, because there are Rules + Point sparring doesn't help much when it comes to operate conditioning! but, your correct, a devote MAist would see the big picture. Like Most techniques will work in a Dojo setting, but will not work in the street sort of thing

[disgruntled]

in fairness, how can you practice more realistically? there are flaws with every system.

[SteveO]

I would say that you should be able to make any technique work no matter what situation you are in i have worked on the door with ( shirindo ) and have worked in the security business and here in the uk we can not carry any form of weapons only a radio and i have made alot of techniques work in the street so to say that some people for some reason cant even get to work in the dojo its always done to the application of the technique if its right then it will work its just a matter of control something which i call pain compliance you cause them pain they comply.