Martial Arts Revolution

Fundamental Principles of Judo
Judo as Physical Training

It is a fundamental principle of sports to carry on exercises in proportion to the bodily strength. Judo as a game belongs to the fighting games and so often assumes all the aspects of an intensive feat of strength requiring strenuous exertions. In the practice of Judo, however, this evil can be averted by means of Kata (forms). That is, the kata enables the Judo student to adjust the amount of exercise according to his bodily strength and age, and yet is fully effectual both in respect to interest and benefit.
Judo includes the following three points in its objective on the physical side:
1.     Toughness (giving steadiness, elasticity and staying power to the muscles)
2.     Flexibility (giving mobility to the spinal column and other joints together with full elasticity of the muscles)
3.     Adroitness (quickening the function of the motor nerves and making movements both nimble and steady)
From the standpoint of athletic physiology these qualities are correlated with one another, and the bodily activities in Judo exercises are best adapted to those requirements.
Shizentai

The shizentai, or natural posture, is the posture of a person standing quietly with his head and upper body kept upright, arms hanging without constraint and legs not so firm and widely apart. This is the description of the proper posture as regards its form, but it has a deeper, wider significance. When this posture is maintained, it may be considered that 1) the body keeps stability and does not fall and 2)as the limbs are kept soft they can shift to any action at any moment.
The natural posture is explained as a standing posture. However if outward form or posture is out of consideration, and the natural posture is an attitude of the body which is capable of repelling the opponent's attack, and moreover of assuming the offensive whenever there is an opening in the opponent's guard, the natural posture may be said to be possible not only when standing, but also when sitting or lying. In fact, in a Judo contest, the contestant who has fallen is not nedessarily beaten. On the contrary, he may make an attack against his opponent while lying on the mats. In fact, the natural posture is an attitude of the body which is always capable of taking the lead.
There is an old expression, "Motion in rest." It means that rest is pregnant with motion as infinite activity, so it indicates the principle of natural posture. Functioning like this, the natural posture must necessarily be studied from a mental point of view, and from olden times the ultimate secrets of jujutsu have lain here.

Courtesy
Courtesy is the formal manifestation of the spirit of respect. With the spirit of respect we recognize the dignity of another's personality. In other words, it is the spirit of living inharmony with one another in social life. In a Judo contest the contestants should face each other in the proper posture, looking properly at each other and using moderation in their actions. Thus they are in harmony in which they never set each other at defiance, and maintain the dignity of personality. Hence it is taught that exercises in Judo should begin with courtesy and end with courtesy.

That is all about Judo for now. I sure hope that after reading all 5 posts that I have compiled, you have learned much more about this amazing form of martial art. Thank you all for your kind dedications, comments and contributions.
-Wan Qi