Judo
The common belief of the judo community is simply that the practice of Uchikomi (formerly called Butsukari) improves throwing skills. Only within the last several decades since sports psychologists clearly pointed out that judo being a dynamic motor skill,that to practice the skill(s) in part does not improve skill acquisition. This simply means in order to improve throwing skills that throws must be completed in practice in an environment which resembles as close as possible the environment encountered in the performance of randori and shiai! The practice of Uchikomi involves the application of throws to the culmination point, or what is commonly known as kake. Instructors will typically have students perform the Uchikomi for a specified number of times prior to executing the total technique.
If you as a judo instructor accept the fact that the practice of Uchikomi has no value for skill development then alternatives must be utilized. What then are these alternatives? The answer is DRILLS! This is an area sorely neglected by many instructors. As important as drills are, they do not take the place of Randori and Shiai. Randori is the major building block of judo. However, Randori and Shiai must be supplemented with properly designed drills. It is the consensus of Kodokan high ranking instructors and teachers that priority in training should be given to Randori. Controlled Randori is in itself a form of drill.
With the introduction of movement and the completion of the throw being practiced, the complexity of the drill is increased substantially. New variables in the moving drill are now present which do not exist for the static Uchikomi case when the throw is not completed. The significant new variables include tempo (how fast the players are moving), the position of Uke’s feet at the point of kake, timing and posture. One of the most important features of the drill is that no prescribed direction of movement should be a requirement of the drill. The coach may or may not ask for a particular throw to be attempted in the drill. Ultimately, the Uke must allow Tori to complete the throw.
The goal of the coach in utilizing the preceding approach is to have the students reach a level of judo expertise that is comparable to the environment encountered in randori and in particular the shiai. This goal is cant be attained by the practice of Uchikomi! The practice of Uchikomi will undoubtedly be a steadfast method of training used by most coaches for some time to come. This is somewhat unfortunate. Modern day thinking and method changes are up against traditional methods of practice which have very difficult to change indeed. Fortunately there are some individuals involved in judo today with an open mind who have abandoned the use of Uchikomi in their teaching syllabus. As time goes by we surely can expect the number of these individuals to increase in number. I have not made use of the practice of Uchikomi for nearly forty years.
