Saturday, May 23, 2009

Heard around the dojo

In my previous post my mentioned that Goldilocks principle: "Not too little, not too much, just right".  Here are other memorable expressions that I have heard from my instructors (plus the occasional fellow student) that I like to pass on:
  1. The Fonzie principle: We like to do the first armlock (juji gatame) with uke's thumb pointing up (like Fonzie from the TV show Happy Days) because it makes it more difficult for uke to resist the lock by flexing his or her bicep.
    Fonzie or "The Fonz"
  2. "Elb-b-bow": Used to emphasize certain painful locks of the elbow.  Try saying it that way; it's fun.
  3. "It's the way it shatters that matters": Said immediately prior to slamming uke's elb-b-bow into the mat, during self-defence practice.
  4. "Hiza guruma - and he certainly is!": Said while performing -- you guessed it -- hiza guruma (our 3rd leg throw), pronounced "he's a guruma ...".
  5. "Funny leg": A reminder for the unusual first step that we practice for the fifth leg throw (o uchi gari) in tori steps forward and turns the left foot 90 degrees away from the center line, to allow the hips to pivot.
  6. "Death throw": Our "final" shoulder throw.   It is only practiced to the point-of-throw because -- if completed -- uke would land vertically head-first, with likely permanent consequences.
  7. "Who's buying the drinks?": A question to ask your partner while applying a painful joint-lock.
What are some of the catch-phrases from your place of training?

2 comments:

Littlefair said...

Ha! Cool!

We use:

1. 'Disco hands' as a reminder for a self defence move which ends up waving (sort of) hand in the air.

2. Chicken wing. (for technique involving an elbow strike)

and my favourite:
3. Guts, face, nuts for an elbow to the ...well I think you get that one...

4. For back kick with the kids they often get a bit confused so I say, show them your bum, then kick em for laughing at you!

Cheri said...

LOL :) . A couple from our school:

* 'One More!' Meaning it can go on indefinitely. From one of our masters who always says "One More!" before every repetition of a drill. It's not unheard of for us to get 30 "one mores" in a row.

* 'Making applesauce'. Means a really strong clean board break that sends wood (or anything else) flying. Comes from our demo team who always kicks apples off of butcher knives as part of their routine.

Cheri Arbuckle
On My Own Two Feet