Five Judo Drills that Teach Movement

Five Judo Drills: That Teach Movement

Judo drills can help us improve our judo throws. Here are five exercises that teach movement, timing, speed and entry. They are also a lot of fun to do.

Making your judo lessons fun and memorable is the first part to motivating your judoka and to grow your dojo membership.

For more inspiration take a look these 32 judo games for juniors, and here is the Ultimate Guide to Every Judo Technique.

5 Exercises to Improve your Judo

1: KAKARI GEIKO

Our number one judo drill for creating movement is Kakari-Geiko. Here’s how to do this drill:

1. Move with your partner in all directions, all over the mat.
2. Turn in for an uchi-komi of a judo technique, then turn out and continue moving and attacking.
3. Repeat, either focusing on one technique, or a combination of throws.

Tori should help uke providing situations and allowing uke to turn in.

2: FAST FEET

Aim to move from one ashi-waza to the next. Make uke react to each attack, but without throwing.

Try this circle.

1. Start with an ouchi-gari, allow uke to step off
2. Follow up into kouchi-gari, let uke evade
3. Chase back into an osoto-gari, force uke to block with their hips
4. Follow up into a de-ashi-barai
5. Repeat the circle as many times as you can.

How many times can you do the full circle in one minute?

3: JUDO-NASTICS

Judo drills can be used to speed up the entry and improve timing. Try this exercise.

1. Uke does a forward roll.
2. Tori, anticipates the movement, and allows uke to stand up
3. As uke stands up, tori turns in for a forward throw like morote-seoi-nage.

Try with other forward judo techniques like ippon seoi-nage.

4: CARTWHEEL HARAI

This is a harder version of the previous exercise. Use with harai-goshi.

1. This time uke does a cartwheel.
2. Tori should keep their distance, and anticipate the movement.
3. Once the cartwheel is finished, tori can move closer, take a grip and attack with harai-goshi.

The cartwheel creates the circular movement needed for throws like harai-goshi and osoto-gari.

5: SUMI ROLL

Want to get more confident at falling and rolling? This drill will help you do that and to build up towards sutemi-waza like sumi-gaeshi and tomoe-nage.

1. Uke and tori hold each other ankles
2. Tori makes a small jump forward into a forward roll.
3. As both judoka rolls, uke will naturally stand up.
4. Keep rolling!

More drills in these judo books for kids who love judo:

Learn Breakfalls & 10 Agility Drills

10 Holds Downs & 10 Challenges