How to practise breaking balance?

[xo-karate]

I've been searching internet for drills and exercises for kuzushi.

1) I've found

where is a series of videos like paired walking.

2)In Tai Chi there is push hands http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XALpOmuQR88.

3) Maybe one hand balance wrestling?

4) Maybe over all balance exercises ( for keeping - not loosing balance

Any ideas?

[ps1]

I've been searching internet for drills and exercises for kuzushi.

1) I've found

where is a series of videos like paired walking.

2)In Tai Chi there is push hands http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XALpOmuQR88.

3) Maybe one hand balance wrestling?

4) Maybe over all balance exercises ( for keeping - not loosing balance

Any ideas?

Forget about the push hands stuff. I'm also not terribly impressed with your first option either, though they have more than one in there series. I'll try to get some options posted for you this week.

[xo-karate]

Hi ps1,

i tryed paired walking and when partner did not know what to do, breaking balance was nothing like the video in youtube. Ofcourse it can be that I just could not do it right.

I am very open for ideas:-)

[ps1]

Hi ps1,

i tryed paired walking and when partner did not know what to do, breaking balance was nothing like the video in youtube. Ofcourse it can be that I just could not do it right.

I am very open for ideas:-)

It's hard to explain some of these things. I'll post some drills in a video and make sure you have the link.

[xo-karate]

I started to learn Judo, but turned towards BJJ. (Still doing ukemis for Judo:-)

From Judo I learned that breaking balance is a very important skill and some players and teachers have made the same point about BJJ - it's so much easier to do your move, if your opponent has a bad balance. It's difficult to counter from a bad balance.

What about breaking balance in BJJ - in grappling - not standing?

How do you develop it? Practice it?

Just rolling or ...?

[ps1]

In all martial arts, breaking your opponent's balance (mentally or physically) is always the key. Learn to keep your opponent uncomfortable.

[tallgeese]

I agree with ps1. The key point he brings up is both physically and mentally. The second being often overlooked.

Specific to BJJ, you're really looking at breaking his posture (equatable to balance while standing). Using the guard position as an example, you have guard. You're partner will posture up, keeping good frame, to keep you from executing attacks from there. So, in order to throw effective attacks, you first need to think about breaking his posture so that you can do so.

As for getting used to it, first up, you have to intently drill the technique. Not skipping steps or hurrying thru any part, but instead hitting every nuance of the movement. This will help you understand, from the outset, the importance of posture control. A quick run thru grappling bouts on you tube will show that this basic fact is overlooked many a time. Finding a good BJJ school is so important to imparting these concepts.

Next, getting your head around the variety of ways to do this, again, come thru regular mat time and exposure to more tactics to do so. Then you'll start to mix and match based on the little intangible movements that happens during a match.

Then you'll move this into positional rolling. So now, armed with a few tactics for breaking posture (lets say a collar pull, arm drag, and an arm wrap) you'll work those against a posturing opponent for rounds. He'll be working to break your guard. If either succeeds, you'll restart and continue to work the concept and tactics.

After this, you'll utilize it more frequently in you free rolls. This is the ultimate "coming together" phase for all the tactics and techniques you learn during class. It's this training against restive opponents in open randori that makes BJJ so appealing. Then you'll start defeating posture by other, more complex ways as well. Moving into open guard and sweeping vs. posture for example.

Now, expand that out across all the positions in BJJ and you can see the nearly unlimited set of drilling that can come out of such a simple concept.

To build on what sp1 said, this also mentally dominates your opponent. If he is constantly fighting for position, he's not attacking you. You're ahead of him in the loop and therefore your odds of winning just increased.

[xo-karate]

I go to dojo with a very clear idea of listening to partners moves and "taking what they give me" - and when rolling, I am just trying to stay alife. I've learnd to recognize some positions while I am rolling but thinking ahead is not working.

Seriously - if I had more time, I just might get something done, but not yet.

(We have a nice group so I get 50% of submission and I have to tap about the same amount - maybe 25% of 2 - 4 minute spars don't end up in submissions - just rolling.)

So I'm not complaining that I suck - just that I cannot think ahead. ( Or think.)

[gatorgrasshopper]

When I think of kuzushi, I am still thinking of my opponent in an upright grappling mode vs ground work (where I am personally at in my development). For me, I look at my standing opponent in terms of a vertical and horizontal plane and my goal is to get them off of those planes and then maximize the outcome and sustain the movement if my move fails.

The only way I can personally learn kuzushi is via through sparring, judo throws and aikido. It is a feel thing for me supported with known techniques to initiate it or finish it.

When I think of ground work/grappling, as a noob, I go back to my wrestling days as a kid. I don't view the moves in a kuzushi method, I view each move as a "chess game" move: set up move, guard against the counter move and go for check mate. String together know series of moves to work toward pin or submission. I can't visualize ground work in the same terms as getting opponents off balance in a standing environment and that form of kuzushi.

I hope this is in line with what you are asking. My take being honest as a noob in JJJ.

[xo-karate]

I started from breaking balance and now it's more about controlling some part of partners body - and making them unconfortable - maybe by breaking their balance or restricting their movements.

I would love to use my partners motion to continue their movement - like judo principle. I am not educated enough, but it will come:-)