Injuries Are A Pain
by Meaty
You’ve all probably heard about Tom’s injury last night. If you haven’t: Atsushi went for a basic foot sweep, Tom’s foot for some inexplicable reason stayed planted on the mat. Something had to give; unfortunately it was the bone(s) in Tom’s foot.
We all try to avoid injuries as much as we can but they are always a possibility whenever you step onto the mat. It’s a risk we all gladly take in our pursuit of Jiu-Jitsu and Judo proficiency. Some injuries are caused by inexperience; others like Tom’s are just freak accidents. In either case they both suck because you are sidelined for what will feel like an eternity. We can all minimize these dangers by elevating our awareness and expanding our experience on the mat which one can only achieve with more training.
I definitely suffered more injuries when I first started training Jiu-Jitsu, and primarily it was because I didn’t know what I was doing, didn’t realize what situations were dangerous, or was just too stupid and/or stubborn to tap. I definitely feel that I roll “safer” now with more experience under my belt. I also feel that rolling with beginners is a more dangerous endeavor than rolling with experienced individuals.
But no matter how “safe” you roll, some things just happen and all you can do is heal up and get back on the mat. You can also catch up on all the video games and movies you’ve neglected because of training.
Tom, take care of that foot. We’ll all be here waiting for you to get back on the mat.
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“Tonight I hurt one of my students on accident. I’ve never felt so bad. I haven’t been teaching long, but since I started, I’ve always put safety first when teaching techniques; mostly because the safety and effectiveness of a throw go hand in hand. I’m not going to lie about Judo and say that it is a completely safe sport/art. Although it is designed to subdue an opponent without harming them, it is very dynamic and in my opinion, it has the highest potential for injury of almost any sport/art, especially if it isn’t taught right. It most definitely is not for the faint of heart. Since I started teaching at One World I think I’ve done a fairly good job of enforcing the safety of Judo, but things happen as in anything else. I pride myself on being a safe and effective technician, and if you ask anyone who I’ve trained with/under, they will agree. But I still feel incredibly guilty and responsible for my student’s injury. I’m just writing this partially to vent, but to also let my other students (or others that are interested in starting) that I hope they aren’t discouraged from continuing/starting Judo at One World. I think Judo is a beautiful sport/martial art and I’d like to continue sharing it with other people, because the past year has been very rewarding. “– Atsushi Yoshinaga
“Hey Bro, we all know the dangers of training and we as teachers do the best we can to do it safely! You and the whole Judo crew are awesome! We’ve all been hurt, are hurting or are going to get hurt again! I say it’s better to have an incidental injury from a training partner than some random person! And you can’t help that your big ass Flinstone Feet are lethal weapons!”– Mike Imperial
“Atsushi, you’re a big part of the One World family not just as the head judo sensei but as a Jiu-Jitsu student and CrossFit athlete. You have a great work ethic, are good spirited and humble… the makings of a master. Tom’s in good spirits and I think he’s already planning how he is going to train while his foot heals.”– Mike Prudencio
