Judo (Gentle Way) is the Japanese martial art of throwing, grappling, and control techniques. It was created by Dr. Jigoro Kano in the 1870's and 1880's from several ancient Ju-Jitsu styles. Ju-Jitsu was the unarmed combat art of the professional warrior class, the samurai. When Japan overthrew feudalism and dissolved the samurai class in 1877, these arts were in danger of dying out. In an effort to keep them alive, and provide a safe system whereby the "common man" could practice them, Dr. Kano studied and synthesized several Ju-Jitsu arts to create what he originally called Kano Ju-Jitsu. An educator of great intelligence, compassion, and foresight, Dr. Kano infused his art with the ethics and moral code of Bushido, the samurai code of honor, courage, loyalty, truth, justice, politeness, and benevolence. He felt that a martial art should not only strenghten the body and provide good self-defense skills, but it should stimulate the mind, and nourish the spirit. Martial arts must serve as a guiding force in the perfection of human character; otherwise it will only produce fighting experts with no conscience, unrestrained, and with no principles to lead them in proper behavior. He wanted his art to influence society, and help others to grow as human beings. To this end, he founded his school, the Kodokan, in 1882. By the turn of the century, Kodokan Judo was firmly established as the dominant martial art in Japan, its students defeating other Ju-Jitsu styles in much publicized tournaments.

   The two cardinal principles of Judo, Maximum Efficiency and Mutual Prosperity, sets it apart from other martial arts. Judo is the most scientific of the arts, using leverage, balance, angles of force, and transfer of power. Judo teaches the proponent to blend into the opponent's force, rather than directly opposing it, and throwing the opponent with his/her own strength and momentum. This is the most efficient way to defend yourself. If the attacker pushes, you pull. If the attacker pulls, you push. These reactions, coupled with an intensive study of leverage, angles of force, or "vectors", and balance, allows the judoka to apply varieties of throws with such ease that a smaller person can defeat a much larger and stronger opponent. By engaging in Judo, the players learn to sense each others movements, and try to turn the other player's strength to their advantage. Sometimes you throw and sometimes you get thrown, but both players benefit in the end. Even when you "lose", you learn what you did wrong, and what the other player did right. This can only make you better in Judo, and, applying it to life, make you more successful in the perfection of your own character. Thus, maximum efficiency and mutual prosperity can be the basis of improvement, not only in the art of Judo, but in living a life of working hard to attain personal goals.

   Judo is the most widely practiced martial art in the world, reaching the Olympics in 1964. Not only a martial art, Judo is also a sport. In fact, in terms of numbers of participants, Judo is the #2 ranked sport in the world. Only soccer has more players. Judo sends more competitors to the Olympics from the greatest variety of countries than any other sport. It has an excellent safety record, with the lowest injury rate of any combat martial art, and one of the lowest injury rates of any sport. According to the American College of Sports Medicine, Judo is the safest contact sport for children. It builds strong, well-balanced bodies, and emphasizes stamina,  agility, coordination, and flexibility. It has been often said that Judo builds "toughness", determination, and sportsmanship. Playing Judo will help an athlete in any other sport, due to faster reaction times, superior physical fitness, and a superb sense of timing. There are many local, regional, national, and international tournaments.

   Judo has been in the USA longer than any other Asian martial art. President Teddy Roosevelt achieved a brown belt in Judo by taking lessons in the White House! Even today, Judo throws show up in movies, and not just martial art movies. When someone gets thrown in a movie, or TV show, 95% of the time, it's a Judo throw. Captain Kirk of Star Trek was always tossing opponents. Mel Gibson used Judo grappling techniques in the famous wet ending of "Lethal Weapon". Judo has been around a long time in the USA. In the 1950's and 60's, virtually all of the martial art schools that were in existence were Judo schools. Well, what happened? Why don't we see more Judo schools? Why are Judo black belts the rarest in martial arts today? The answer is due to a number of factors.

   Judo was overshadowed by the growth of the striking arts (Bruce Lee and the TV show "Kung Fu"), the public's perception that a well-placed punch or kick is a much faster way to defend yourself, the American public's need for quick promotions as a sign of proficiency, and the modern martial art school owner's marketing skills. We only need to look at the growth of fast-food restaurants to see a parallel in martial art schools. Americans don't want to wait, they want it now. Speed seems to be more important than quality. If I can become a black belt in 2 or 3 years, why should I spend many years perfecting a traditional art? Moreover, the school must be good if it can produce promotions so quick. And children can be awarded black belts, even at age 7 or 8. The black belt was always the sign of an expert, legally a professional fighter. You mean children can now become a martial art expert? The modern school's approach is very demeaning to the traditional martial artist, as martial arts are more than just ways of fighting. And giving a black belt to children who are still developing their character is very foolish, as goal-setting is vitally important to growth. If these children can become an "expert" in a couple of years, what can they expect out of life?

   Judo is a traditional martial art that fosters self-discipline, confidence, integrity, sportsmanship, honor, respect, courage, benevolence, politeness, and patience to overcome adversity. These are qualities that human beings can use a little more of. Due to its emphasis on character development, one must be at least 17 years old to receive a black belt, and be tested on internationally established standards. It is assumed that children are learning to develop their character, so a child cannot wear the mark of an expert, the black belt. Also, there is only one style of Judo, and promotions are held to standards. There are no shortcuts to acheiving true expertise, but hard work and diligent practice will produce rewards in the end.

   Judo has spawned a couple of other martial arts in recent years. Sambo, a Russian blend of Judo and Ju-Jitsu, is a very good martial art, but is mostly practiced in Russia. It suffers as a sport because of its injury rate. However, it is showing up in the Ultimate Fighting, as its techniques are combat oriented. Another offshoot of Judo is Brazilian Ju-Jitsu, first publicized by the Gracie family. What is not generally known is that Sensei Maeda, a student of Dr. Kano, was sent to South America to spread Judo in an effort to get Judo in the Olympics. He was based in Brazil, and the Gracie family became Judo experts. It was decided that the grappling techniques of Judo become the basis for Brazilian Ju-Jitsu, and today, this art is known for its excellent ground-fighting ability. However, the many throws of Judo seem to have been discarded. Judo still employs all of the grappling techniques that Brazilian Ju-Jitsu utilizes, but Judo also has the throws. In a self-defense situation, it is not always wise to go to the ground, as a throw onto the pavement can quickly end the attacker's desire and ability to continue the attack. But if it ends up on the ground, the Judo player is just as efficient.

   If you are interested in learning a martial art, please call us to view a class in Judo. It is a beautiful, traditional, and effective martial art, and an art that you can practice your whole life. You will increase your fitness, learn efficient self-defense, and feel confident that you are learning a real martial art, and that when you get promoted, you have actually learned up to that level, and not just paid for it. You do not need any prior martial art experience, and classes are co-ed. Judo is not just learning how to fight; it is learning how to live.