Hi, I'm thinking of taking Judo, and like the thread states, I'm tall and skinny. I know its good to be short and stocky in judo, just curious how much of a disadvantage my body type will be. Also is there anything in judo where being tall will be an advantageous? I'll probably take it anyway if only to avoid being taken down, I was just curious what I was in for. Thanks.
basically, being tall doesn't help. there are a few throws like tai otoshi (my favourite- im kinda skinny, not too tall though) but most of the hip throws work by getting under your opponent and the taller you are the harder that is.
Yeah, that's what I figured. It's down to Judo or Muay Thai. I think Muay Thai will be way more suited to my body type than Judo, but I want something I can go all out at and spar with as much power as possible at an early stage. So far judo seems like one of the few martial arts that lets you do this right away. Decisions, decisions...
If you are fairly strong being able to get over the top of your opponent can be an advantage as it lets you get a strong grip. Also tall people have a longer reach so they can control their opponent a bit more keeping them at distance. Being skinny also implies to me that you might be fairly flexible or gymnastic which is always useful for twisting out of throws, this may not be the case though however. In general however it is better to be short and powerfully built, though this does not mean you could not become a skilled Judoka with practice. K
I'm with Captain Coward on this one, although it helps to have a short stocky build it doesn't mean that taller thinner people can't get good. There were some really good lanky guys at my old club. Skill is more important than having an advantageous build IMO.
I'm no expert on Judo, but as a tall person I did find that many of the throws were much harder for me to perform - especially the hip throws. However I didn't find groundwork to be that much of a problem, in fact having longer legs can be an asset.
I'm in agreement with everybody else here. There are, indeed, pros & cons to being tall & skinny in judo. However, there are pros & cons to just about everything in life. I've always followed the belief that, regardless of the differences in height when facing off initially while standing, once you & your opponent are on the ground, you are just as tall as each other. The taller judoka no longer has to worry about getting his hips low. Some cons, as had been mentioned already, include nage-waza (throwing techniques) which involve getting your hips low and under your opponent's. This falls under koshi-waza (throws involving hip techniques) and perhaps some te-waza (throws involving hand techniques). Still, on the pros-side of things, there are still some over-50 nage-waza that you can use that involve sutemi-waza (sacrifice technniques), ashi-waza (foot, sweeping techniques) & te-waza. So, there's not much to be disadvantaged about; you may just have to detour and set-up a technique that doesn't involve the hips primarily. Having longer arms gives the opponent more of a handle to work with when trying to use arm submissions, as opposed to working against a shorter, smaller arm that can possibly slip-out of an attempted submission. At the same time, a shorter opponent may have a more difficult time when attempting to work arm submissions because they usually involve controlling the wrist which, due to its length, may be out of reach. Longer legs can be an advantage when utilizing katame-waza (grappling techniques). An obvious example would be the sankaku-jime (a.k.a. the triangle choke). Shorter legs have a harder time going around the opponent's neck and arm, whereas longer legs lock it easily. You can see this is at MMA events when BJJ exponents execute this judo technique. Judoka & BJJ players who perform this technique successfully tend to have longer, lankier legs. The long arms also help to control the opponents head down, thus increasing the effectiveness of the choke. There are other pros & cons, but I hope that this & the other posts show you that you're not necessarily at a disadvantage. It all depends on how skilled you become because the techniques are there for your custom-tailored use. The best of luck to you... Osu
yup forgot completely about the extra reach for ashi-waza you have with longer legs, your taller body also gives you more ability to off-balance your opponent i.e. when applying o-kuri-ashi-barai, a taller person as more ability to rotate the opponents body maximising the effect of the footsweep. K good post juego
ok, thanks for all the quick replies, they're very encouraging. I just wanted to be sure I wouldn't be completely useless due to my build. Instead I will be completely useless due to my skill level! (just kidding)
In judo you have to be close to perform a throw. Also you generally have to have your center of mass lower than the none you're throwing to have more power with the throw. I can understand that being taller will be a problem but look at it this way if he already can't get close to you he'll have a problem right? With this in mind, sweep him off his feet. You may get a wazari max but hey a point is apoint right?
I'm not tall, and personally I find I'm more intimidated by taller opponents than even very heavy opponents. I love ne-waza because during tachi-waza I'm often out gripped (namely overhand grip) and my arms, although not short, still have a hard time fending off a taller person's grips. And maybe I'm a different case but I find it easier to throw opponents my height or less, but not taller - I like seoi-nage (shoulder throw) and I find on tall people there is too much room for them to step out, versus the shorter people. But that's just me. I do agree with the other posts as well, but that's not they way it works for me. Same in ne-waza, my short legs can' always hook up well enough to lock someone in.
you can be any body type, some throws may not be right for you in most cases (hip and arm throws mainly), but in judo there is a throw for everyone being tall will give you an advantage in most leg throws.
I agree totaly with the Captain and Timmy Boy except when they say that it may be an advantage to be short and stocky. Tall people can usually pull of throws like Uchi Mata (left foot on the outside of Uke's left foot type) and Ashi Guruma and O Guruma where you don´t have to get your hips so low; I´ve been doing this for years ('cos I´m too lazy to get down for anything else ). O Soto Gari and Ni Dan Ko Uchi Gari are a couple of others that spring to mind. Foot sweeps should always be a question of doing the technique at the right time and never a question of power; power may help but it's really the correct moment that counts above all, (as it should be for all techniques, power comimg into play when the skill level is the same between the two fighters, but that's just an old idiots opinion ). So in the end it comes down to this it's not the build of the person, it's the person doing it themselves. How good they are depends on the effort that they've put in into their training. Of course finding a good instructor is very important too. And ok, so it's going back some what, but Anton Geesink became World Champion and Olympic Champion and he towered above everyone else, beating shorter and stockier Japanese Judoka to do so. Also, if you enjoy it, just go and do it.
Having done some of both arts+ being of smilar build (although I am more athletic than skinny now) I agree Muay Thai might be more suited to your body type- obviously kicks, and in the clinch for knees etc. But it will be invaluable to be able to keep your balance, or throw your opponant in a real fight and its all a matter of carefully selecting the techniques for you. You might need to bring up your strength via weight training. Weapons: Being tall is perfect for uchimata (often the top scoring throw), harai goshi - another powerful throw. + Ashi waza of osoto, kosoto, hiza guruma. Defence: Learn counters for people getting under you- eg. ura nage, how to spawl. Learn combinations cos people are gonna expect you to uchimata.
