Kuzushi: The Most Important Judo Concept
The Key to Judo Tachiwaza is the Principle of Happo No Kuzushi
Feb 17, 2009
What is Kuzushi?
Judo throws involve three parts: kuzushi (breaking balance), tsukuri (entry), and kake (applying the technique). Of the three elements, kake is the most spectacular, but kuzushi is the most important. Kuzushi involves breaking an opponent’s balance so that they become unstable and easier to throw. Every judoka has experienced being pushed or pulled in a way that momentarily threw off their balance and left them unable to defend against a throw. Their opponent was using kuzushi.
Happo No Kuzushi
Happo no kuzushi roughly translates to “eight directions of off-balance”. These eight directions are:
- Front
- Back
- Left
- Right
- Front right corner
- Back left corner
- Front left corner
- Back right corner
Judo experts have a deep understanding of how to use these directions of off-balance to gain the upper hand over an opponent while using a minimal amount of energy.
Why is Kuzushi Important?
When standing evenly balanced, such as in jigotai (judo defensive posture), a person is very hard to throw. If they’re way off balance, however, they could be tipped over with a tiny push. This is the key to judo - the principle that enables a smaller person to throw a larger and stronger opponent. Highly skilled judo practitioners are masters of kuzushi - moving, pulling, and pushing in ways that leave their opponents constantly destabilized, fighting for balance, and unable to attack or defend.
Effective Throwing Techniques Require Strong Kuzushi
While it’s the kake portion of a throw that makes judo so exciting to watch, it’s the subtle element of kuzushi that really makes a throw happen. In fact, effective kuzushi on its own can be enough make the opponent fall. Osoto gari is a perfect example. When one effectively loads their opponent’s weight onto their leg while off-balancing them backwards, the osoto gari can be finished with very little effort. Sometimes the leg reap isn’t even needed.
Kuzushi is the Key to a Lifetime of Learning in Judo
Strong, beginning judoka are often able to throw opponents through speed and brute force with minimal use of kuzushi. This can be effective in the short term but is quite counterproductive in the long term. The reason for this is that strength and speed always diminish with age. Clean technique and effective kuzushi, on the other hand, are long-term objectives that will improve with practice. Many a strong, fast, young wrestler has been caught off-guard and left flat on their back by an aged black belt’s perfectly timed foot sweep.
Methods of Kuzushi
Kuzushi involves instigating a reaction and then working with that reaction. This can be accomplished in a number of ways, a few examples are:
- Push/Pull - When pushed against, an opponent will generally push back. If one were to give them a sudden, sharp pull at that same instant, then that pulling force would work with the opponent’s own pushing force to propel them forwards and off balance, creating the perfect opening for a forward throw like tai otoshi, ippon seoinage, or hiza guruma.
- Feints and Combinations - The opportunity to attack arises every time an opponent moves or shifts their balance. If one were to know their opponent’s moves in advance, they could use that movement against them. This is where feints and multiple-attack combinations come in because an opponent will usually react in a predictable way for a given throw. For example, when attacked with ouchigari, an opponent will generally move their weight forwards to counter the throw, which leaves them vulnerable to tai otoshi.
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