心と気力

Since 1998, more than 100 boys have participated in AYD Judo, practicing two or more times a week, competing in eight or more tournaments each year and demonstrating remarkable improvement in school behavior and academic performance.  AYD judo athletes perform and behave better in school, with improved citizenship marks, fewer behavior referrals, increased classroom attendance and better grades.  Teachers, parents and the boys themselves note their greater self-control on standardized surveys.

AYD Judo is a collaborative project with our partner organization, South Hills Judo Club. 

AYD Judo Goals

• Master the basic judo skills and knowledge necessary to enjoy and compete in judo.

• Improve their physical fitness and develop healthier lifestyles.

• Learn specific, definable self-control skills that will improve their school performance.

• Develop a passion for judo and pursue it as a lifetime sport.

A Typical Beginners Class

It may be the most unusual classroom the students have ever experienced.  Classes are held entirely on a large mat.  Teachers and students all wear judogis, the traditional uniform of judo.  Everyone is barefoot.  And all the bowing:  You bow when you step onto the mat, you bow when you exit, you bow to your teacher, you bow to your opponents.

The nouns all seem like verbs.  O goshi means “major hip throw,” a noun of course, but it’s the action that’s important:  Pulling your opponent off balance, pivoting while wrapping your arm around his hip, making a complete turn while looking up at the ceiling.  Even mundane objects are associated with activity.  An obi is the belt you wear around your judogi, but tying it is an intricate trick that must be executed quickly.

Even as a sport, judo is completely different.  The word means “gentle way,” but you’re out there trying to throw your opponent to the mat hard, and that’s only the start of the paradoxes.  The harder you push, the harder you pull, the more likely you’ll be the one getting thrown.  In fact, getting thrown is a technique itself, the first thing you learn in judo: how to fall without getting hurt.