about breakfalks

[Brian R. VanCise]

There really is nothing more important that we do in the Martial Sciences than learning how to breakfall. You may never be in a fight for your life but I can almost guarantee you that you will fall at some point. If you know how to breakfall or roll properly you have a better chance of not taking any significant damage.

Here are a couple of posts I wrote on my blog regarding breakfalls:

The Instinctive Edge

The Instinctive Edge

If you are learning a good martial way they will also show you how to do your sweeps, takedowns and throws where you negate someone's ability to breakfall and or not suffer damage!

 

[Buka]

Always was taught the slapping of the arm to the ground was part of breakfall training, along with everything else. To me, leaving it out is kind of like learning to punch but not learning to bring the arm back to position afterwards.

Didn't know it at the time, but breakfalls are the most practical and frequently used thing I've ever learned from Martial Arts.

 

[wingchun100]

I think the basic idea is that energy spread over a larger area causes less damage than energy concentrated in a small area, or on a vulnerable area like a spine, hip, or shoulder. I would hate to break my arm, but I'd rather break an arm than my back.

Think about a bullet-proof vest. It does not work by being invulnerable to bullets. It works by being able to spread the impact of the bullet over a much larger area. Therefore, a person shot in the chest with a bullet that does not penetrate the vest gets a big painful bruise. But they don't get ventilated by the bullet.

I also think you don't really understand breakfalls if you think they only involve slapping the mat with one's arms. One learns how to fall, which includes rolling the spine, falling on one's side, and spreading impact over time and space.

This was just published the other day in the NY Times, you might enjoy reading it:

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/24/well/move/the-right-way-to-fall.html

It's really a big deal and you should learn how to fall.

And of course tucking the chin. You would not believe how many people I have seen fall who let their head whip backward. I'm thinking to myself, "Wow, you really do need training to know how to fall right!" It seems silly when you ask, "Do you know how to fall?" But then you show it, and they realize that there is a right and wrong way.

 

[thanson02]

I don't know all the terminology. To me, breakfall was high fiveing the mat; The slap thing.

All right. I think we have our point of confusion here.

A break fall is a specifically designed position that someone being thrown lands in so it minimizes the amount of damage that they receive when they're slammed on the ground. It is meant to distribute the force that is being applied evenly across the surface to decrease the amount of potential injury that that person will receive.

That is why people find it important in their training with throws and takedowns, especially Judo and Judo influenced systems. Some people will naturally figure out how to fall in a way that doesn't hurt them but other people have difficulty with that. So teaching specific methods and techniques that people can practice and condition will help with their overall training. Does that make sense?

Sent from my XT1096 using Tapatalk

 

[frank raud]

Can someone describe to me a few good reasons why I might want to introduce breakfalks into my Judo work? I do alot of basic judo throws in a self defense program and in Krav Maga. I've never taught it. Didn't learn it in my training. My instructors viewed it as unnecessary, useless, and dangerous on anything other than crash mats.
Personally,I think my arms are quite fragile compared to my back, so why would I want them involved? especially sprawled out in an immediately useless position?

Are you being taught by someone who has relevant experience in judo? Most throws I have seen in Krav are "Judo-inspired", but it is obvious to a judoka that the instructor has no experience in the art.

 

[crazydiamond]

[QUOTE="Bill Mattocks, post: 1815022, member: 19169"

A big part of breakfalls is also learning not to let your head bounce off the pavement and not biting off your tongue. Just sayin'.[/QUOTE]

Agreed.

We are not taught to "slap the mat" - but the curve of the back, tuck chin, and arm spread out bracing the fall - is to make sure you dont crack your head.

From there I was taught - its kicking and then tactical stand ups as shown below.

 

[frank raud]

that is our number two throw. One arm shoulder throw being number one. Depending on the direction of the throw: if thrown in a vertical, up/ down fashion over the hip; land flat on the back. If possible, try to "scoop up" with the back like a glancing blow. Going more or less around the hip, a bit more horizontal usualy results in a skidding roll.

If you were thrown by a judoka via ippon seoi nage (one arm shoulder throw), you would have trouble landing on your back, as the direction of the throw will put you on your side, and they will still control one arm.

 

[oftheherd1]

My main concern with using the arms is that it leaves you wide open and temporarily defenseless.

From my point of view and my training, better to keep yourself from being injured by the throw than be incapacitated as a result of injury from improperly landing. Depending on the type of throw you may need to roll in to it or simply put down as many arms and legs as you can before your main body hits. I was not taught to have my arms or legs hit at the same time as my body (if I wasn't rolling), but preferably before the core of my body hits, to absorb part of the blow, as in the article linked by Bill Mattocks above.

So as you can see, there are different types of breakfalls, and different preferred applications of breakfalls. My first suggestion would be to follow what your teacher tells you, then to look for other ways and learn them too, as long as they aren't contradictory. If they contradict, then you have a decision to make, but you should probably go with how your style teaches, practicing them often and well until they become second nature.

 

[jks9199]

Learning how to fall properly is vital -- and a skill (as noted) that you're more likely to use than almost anything else you might learn in a martial arts class. We wander around this world teetering between two feet; there are many things can disrupt that precarious balancing act and lead us to a tumble, and learning how to handle that without getting hurt is pretty darn useful.

So... there's a Japanese word, ukemi, that's all about receiving throws and trips and sweeps and other methods of making you hit the ground. You can roll, taking the energy of the fall and converting it into motion. Ideally -- that motion prevents you from getting hurt and lets you go into a position to continue the fight. You can "break the fall" -- do something to kill that energy and stop it dead. One way to do that is the slapping hand -- it's really instinctive once you've done it a few times. In fact, it often happens without intent because of the energy involved. This includes things like landing in a way falling forward or backward that doesn't lead to broken wrists -- because the reality is that lots of people reach for the ground as they fall, and break their wrists.

Then there's a whole 'nother game where you use rolls to inflict damage or cover ground and attack. Imagine, say, trapping a kick, stepping over and through it into a forward roll -- while you hold onto that leg you trapped... Or doing an intentional diving roll into an opponent's hip... or rolling forward and rising into a punch... Lots of possibilities once you get comfortable with rolling...

And -- just for fun -- the wildest "breakfall" I've ever seen was on a mountain bike. A guy I was riding with lost it, went down, and held onto his bike. The trail and the fall worked just right that he actually was able to roll back up onto the tires and keep going!

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

I just never "slapped the mat"....

I can understand your concern. In fighting (not in sport), when you do that, you have just open yourself up and give your opponent a chance to drop his elbow, or knee on you.

IMO, you should protect your head

- from hitting on the ground, In order to do so, you will need to put one arm between your head and the ground.
- so your opponent won't attack your head, in order to do so, you will need to put one arm between your head and your opponent.

If you use both arms to protect your head behind and in front, you don't have extra arm to "slap the mat".

In "sport" you want to have a "comfortable" falling. In fighting, Your concern is to protect your head as much as you can.

 

[MI_martialist]

How come no one has talked about a break fall being an attack?

 

[Gerry Seymour]

Can someone describe to me a few good reasons why I might want to introduce breakfalks into my Judo work? I do alot of basic judo throws in a self defense program and in Krav Maga. I've never taught it. Didn't learn it in my training. My instructors viewed it as unnecessary, useless, and dangerous on anything other than crash mats.
Personally,I think my arms are quite fragile compared to my back, so why would I want them involved? especially sprawled out in an immediately useless position?

I'm not sure what notions you have about breakfalls that make them seem dangerous. They are about distributing the impact across more of your body to preserve yourself for more training. There's a reason they exist in every throw-heavy art I have ever seen or studied.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

How come no one has talked about a break fall being an attack?

Because it isn't. You can't attack someone by falling on the ground.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

that's interesting. I do believe I know how to fall. I was taught to roll out of it, unless you can't, in that case we took it flat across the back and shoulders. I can fall fine, I just never "slapped the mat". It's the slapping part that I have doubts on. I have trouble seeing how skinnny arms have enough surface area to make a noticeable difference on something as large as a back.

Your back and shoulders are a smaller area than your back, shoulders, and arm. Learn to fall with the arm, then try falling without it. You'll understand then.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

I was taught to roll, or fall flat on the back with knees in/feet up, chin tucked, elbows pulled in tight and forearms/ hands ready for action.

Falling "flat on the back" is a bad idea on anything except a mat. Not really all that good even then.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

Whatever your choice, remember that falling on irregular/unknown ground (self-defence scenario) is not the same as landing on soft, clean and flat mats (Judo scenario).
(I hate the hand slap and prefer to protect my neck/head, instead).

Just a note, there's no reason protecting the head/neck can't go along with the slap. We do both at the same time.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

My main concern with using the arms is that it leaves you wide open and temporarily defenseless.

Not an issue. The slap happens at the moment of impact, at which point, you cannot effectively counter anything, anyway. Immediately thereafter, you can use your arms for an appropriate defense.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

Just a note, there's no reason protecting the head/neck can't go along with the slap. We do both at the same time.

You only have 2 arms. If you use one arm to slap the ground, you will only have one arm left to protect your head.

If you protect your head from

- hitting the ground, your head will be exposed for your opponent's dropping elbow.
- your opponent's dropping elbow, you head may hit on the ground.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

You only have 2 arms. If you use one arm to slap the ground, you will only have one arm left to protect your head.

If you protect your head from

- hitting the ground, your head will be exposed for your opponent's dropping elbow.
- your opponent's dropping elbow, you head may hit on the ground.

The arm slapping the ground is near the ground. The other can protect your head. It's what we do. The other is only away from the head for a tiny bit of a second - a time when you are danged hard to hit, because you're moving away from the person who may wish to hit you. As soon as it slaps, it moves back up to protect the head.

 

[marques]

Just a note, there's no reason protecting the head/neck can't go along with the slap. We do both at the same time.

Yes, we can do both. Just the slap is not helpful if there is something sharp in the (way to the) ground (self-defence scenario). Painfull on concrete. Instead, I use one hand to soften the impact, in fact, but no slap. Anyway my priority is protecting the neck/head and curling the back.