Curious about Judo

[PiedmontChun]

Background: I have no grappling experience, I have just a couple years of Wing Chun Kung Fu under my belt, which is predominantly efficient striking and touch reflex / sensitivity only, with a lot of clinch range work but minimal sweep, throws, and locks. Judo intrigues me and I think it could complement a striking art very well, even just for self-defense. I found a school that is only minutes from my house, led by a 2nd Dan Sensei and part of the American Traditional Jujutsu Association. They do very affordable per-class pricing and have class times that seem like they'd work pretty well for me, so I feel like I could give it a go and see how I like it, and take a break from my Wing Tsun which from a money, time, and travel standpoint actually has been challenging (there is growing pressure from the wife and I might need to take a break when our next child comes soon).

Since my fight training so far is pretty limited to being upright and striking, I think I like how Judo could maybe stretch me in terms of learning to fall, use different stances, footwork, make me more rounded.

I'm a big guy, 6' and 240 pounds (though I would like to lose 20-30). Is being a big a problem in Judo, making it harder on training partners or anything?

Is taking a 1.5 hour class once a week more of just a fun outlet, or can it build actual skill even if pretty gradually?

Is there anything I should be concerned about in terms of what to look for or avoid?

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

So to answer the three questions at the bottom:

Being big isn't an issue - you won't be able to grapple in certain ways as effectively, but you'll find other techniques that are more effective. Won't hinder your ability to do well with Judo. Also, assuming your opponents know how to fall properly, the only issue they'll have is it'll be tougher to take you down with some throws. Some people (myself included) will try to partner with you because of that!

You won't learn as fast as you would if you went 3 times a week, but you will still learn. You'll also learn how to fall early on which will be incredibly useful outside of the dojo as well.

Unfortunately, there aren't too many give-aways that a judo dojo is a mcdojo. The good thing is tht it's very tough to teach judo without knowing what you're doing, because it will be immediately apparent if a technique doesn't work. Best bet is to go and if something feels off try to figure out why.

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

Phone double posted my post

 

[Buka]

My brother, go sign up. Close to your home, a convenient schedule - win/win all around. If it sucks you leave, no big deal.

Oh, you are going to have so much fun!

 

[MAfreak]

as a big heavy guy, judo is one of the best martial arts you can do!

 

[zzj]

Just go for it, judo is a good complement to any striking art.

 

[Chris Parker]

Background: I have no grappling experience, I have just a couple years of Wing Chun Kung Fu under my belt, which is predominantly efficient striking and touch reflex / sensitivity only, with a lot of clinch range work but minimal sweep, throws, and locks. Judo intrigues me and I think it could complement a striking art very well, even just for self-defense. I found a school that is only minutes from my house, led by a 2nd Dan Sensei and part of the American Traditional Jujutsu Association. They do very affordable per-class pricing and have class times that seem like they'd work pretty well for me, so I feel like I could give it a go and see how I like it, and take a break from my Wing Tsun which from a money, time, and travel standpoint actually has been challenging (there is growing pressure from the wife and I might need to take a break when our next child comes soon).

Since my fight training so far is pretty limited to being upright and striking, I think I like how Judo could maybe stretch me in terms of learning to fall, use different stances, footwork, make me more rounded.

I'm a big guy, 6' and 240 pounds (though I would like to lose 20-30). Is being a big a problem in Judo, making it harder on training partners or anything?

Is taking a 1.5 hour class once a week more of just a fun outlet, or can it build actual skill even if pretty gradually?

Is there anything I should be concerned about in terms of what to look for or avoid?

In terms of studying Judo, I'm pretty much all for it… however, I will say that the site you linked gives me a large number of red flags. The articles are pretty much universally incorrect, in everything from translation to understanding to simple grasp of concepts, the site talks about being the "future of traditional Jujutsu", while never once listing anything that is taught other than Judo, and so on. I don't know how good their Judo teaching is… but I'd ignore pretty much anything else they talk about. They don't have a clue what they're saying.

 

[PiedmontChun]

In terms of studying Judo, I'm pretty much all for it… however, I will say that the site you linked gives me a large number of red flags. The articles are pretty much universally incorrect, in everything from translation to understanding to simple grasp of concepts, the site talks about being the "future of traditional Jujutsu", while never once listing anything that is taught other than Judo, and so on. I don't know how good their Judo teaching is… but I'd ignore pretty much anything else they talk about. They don't have a clue what they're saying.

Interesting, thanks. I believe I typed in the name of the organization and it prepopulated that link to their site in my post. I know nothing of them or what governing bodies there even are for Judo, and hadn't even read anything over there.

On that note though, is there a universally recognized organization that does mean sort of a "stamp of approval" for a teacher? Or are there just organizations to govern the sport / competition arena of Judo? I know with BJJ, a direct connection to the Gracie family is invaluable, and in my Wing Tsun, lineage and teacher you are under can be both important and divisive.

I am greatly encouraged by what one poster said above; that basically Judo is hard to teach without knowing what you are doing, since it is apparent when techniques don't work.

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

The articles are pretty much universally incorrect, in everything from translation to understanding to simple grasp of concepts, the site talks about being the "future of traditional Jujutsu", while never once listing anything that is taught other than Judo, and so on.

I have not had time to read their articles yet, will get around to that tonight most likely, but a couple of their articles appear to revolve around training Jujitsu (They appear to use Jujitsu and Jujutsu interchangeably), and they don't give much information on the actual class types; but that may be just because this is the organization rather than the individual clubs.. The only outwardly alarming thing to me, before reading the articles, is the need to include 'Ph. D' (and not specifying what it is in) after the author's name on some of the articles.

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

I am greatly encouraged by what one poster said above; that basically Judo is hard to teach without knowing what you are doing, since it is apparent when techniques don't work.

I was the one who said this, and want to include one caveat: If you don't resist, this is not true. It is very easy to pull of a throw if someone goes along with it, much tougher during randori or if the person is actively resisting.

 

[Steve]

Interesting, thanks. I believe I typed in the name of the organization and it prepopulated that link to their site in my post. I know nothing of them or what governing bodies there even are for Judo, and hadn't even read anything over there.

On that note though, is there a universally recognized organization that does mean sort of a "stamp of approval" for a teacher? Or are there just organizations to govern the sport / competition arena of Judo? I know with BJJ, a direct connection to the Gracie family is invaluable, and in my Wing Tsun, lineage and teacher you are under can be both important and divisive.

I am greatly encouraged by what one poster said above; that basically Judo is hard to teach without knowing what you are doing, since it is apparent when techniques don't work.

Word of caution. A direct connection to the Gracie family CAN be a good indicator, but the Gracie family is VERY, VERY large, and a "direct connection" could be as simple as paying for affiliation. For example, there are now tiers of affiliation with Gracie Barra, and the brand is proliferating like crazy.

Conversely, there are many legit, very high level instructors out there who have no direct connection to the Gracies.

Point is, there is no universal "stamp of approval," even in BJJ.

 

[Langenschwert]

You can't go wrong with Judo. It's a great ego check. There is always someone in the dojo who can beat the seven bells out of you. Judo really makes it hit home that there's no "magic", only hard work. Don't worry if you can't throw people in randori at first. It can take up to two years to make that happen. Took me one and a half. It's really, really challenging.

You will hurt in places you didn't know you had. By the gods, Judoka are tough. I wanna be like them when I grow up.

 

[wingchun100]

Judo will definitely compliment Wing Chun. I say this having practiced both, although I have studied WC much longer. The reason I say this is because the sensitivity developed in Chi Sao will help you know which way your opponent is leaning, which of course will make it easier for you to throw them successfully.

 

[Hanshi]

Background: I have no grappling experience, I have just a couple years of Wing Chun Kung Fu under my belt, which is predominantly efficient striking and touch reflex / sensitivity only, with a lot of clinch range work but minimal sweep, throws, and locks. Judo intrigues me and I think it could complement a striking art very well, even just for self-defense. I found a school that is only minutes from my house, led by a 2nd Dan Sensei and part of the American Traditional Jujutsu Association. They do very affordable per-class pricing and have class times that seem like they'd work pretty well for me, so I feel like I could give it a go and see how I like it, and take a break from my Wing Tsun which from a money, time, and travel standpoint actually has been challenging (there is growing pressure from the wife and I might need to take a break when our next child comes soon).

Since my fight training so far is pretty limited to being upright and striking, I think I like how Judo could maybe stretch me in terms of learning to fall, use different stances, footwork, make me more rounded.

I'm a big guy, 6' and 240 pounds (though I would like to lose 20-30). Is being a big a problem in Judo, making it harder on training partners or anything?

Is taking a 1.5 hour class once a week more of just a fun outlet, or can it build actual skill even if pretty gradually?

Is there anything I should be concerned about in terms of what to look for or avoid?

Judo does compliment most any martial art. I highly recommend judo training as an adjunct to whatever else you train in. You will (should) be spending a LOT of time learning how to take a fall from any position; throws come later. Progress will be slow with only one class per week. If the instructor is sanctioned by the American Judo Association or one of the other qualifying national bodies, you should have no problems.