Additional Kettlebell and Other Drills and Exercises for Wrestling and Judo

Thomas Connolly, MD

Pavel Tsatsouline and Steve Maxwell have produced a marvelous set of exercises for strength, fitness, weight loss, and grappling sports. However, leave it to me and my sons to invent some more. Some of these were designed to push my adult students in the judo club, and some are for wrestling specifically. I outright stole some of these from other people, and I'll try to give credit where it's due. However, some I invented myself.and they are challenging. One class drill actually is similar to the Mike Mahler "roadwork" drill, except there is no track required, and a group can participate. This is called: The Circle of Pain- this drill is a warm-down drill for the last 20 minutes of judo class. Get the group in a circle, give every other guy a 2 pood Kettlebell. The leader calls the "begin" command, and each guy with a Kettlebell does 10 squat pulls, snatches, or swings. Squat pulls are preferred. These were "stolen" from Coach Davies directly. Hold the kettlebell with 2 hands and squat DEEP with a wide-based stance, explode up, and pull it to you chest with elbows up to shoulder height, and spread wide. The guys without Kettlebells run in place. When you are finished your 10 reps, pass the bell to your right. The idea is to finish your 10 reps as quickly as possible, with good form. If you dawdle on these, you won't get your rest break, which is the running in place. Continue for 20 minutes nonstop. Runners can coach (or goad) the lifters as necessary. We jokingly nicknamed this drill based on how some in the class felt the next morning. Since then, subsequent "mornings after" have been less painful. 2 Pood Pushup rows -This was modified from an exercise that Steve Maxwell showed me with dumbbells. One puts two 2 Poods down on firm ground, then does a pushup on the handles. When you come up to full lockout on your arms, row up the right Kettlebell, placing all your weight on the left arm. Lower the right Kettlebell to the ground, and repeat on the other side. Try to explode up quickly and row at the same time. The feeling is one of drawing a bow.and it is not easy to do. The feet must spread a bit. This is a very difficult exercise, and one should not put it in the circuit next to another difficult one. It should not be done with smaller kettlebells because the bases are not large enough to be stable. It should not be done on a mat or a soft floor due to the stability required. EBI Drill with Balls- This is a judo exercise done on your back, moving across a mat. We added a kettlebell by having the person hold one in his

hands during the drill for increased difficulty. It is done by "shrimping" from right to left side, arcing the bell over your head and chest, pushing with your feet, and keeping your butt off the mat the entire time.The idea is to go fully across the mat, 30 feet or more. This drill duplicates the escape drill for judo matwork. It's called EBI for the Japanese word for shrimpbecause that's what you look like while doing it (a swimming shrimp)! It may also be done with a medicine ball, depending on the size of the person. Next time you order shrimp at a sushi bar, check out the ebi! 2 Pood Squat Pulls (Center and Sidewinder) -I like the squat pull drills for wrestling, and for judo, to be used instead of Hindu Squats. It gives my hands something constructive to do. The Center Squat-Pulls are, as I said before, stolen from Coach Davies workouts on renegadetraining.com, but using a kettlebell. I bought some plastic ramps at the auto store (oil-change ramps) to stand on, instead of high benchesbut any stable platform will do. Place platforms 3ft wide apart, stand on them, squat DEEP, and pull the 2 Pood up to your chest with elbows wide, and shoulder height. I generally like to do 20reps X five sets. My son Jim, the judo player evolving into a wrestler, created a modified version, the Sidewinder type, by visualizing a double leg takedown. As he pulls up, he pulls the bell up, but finishes with a sideways swing, as if he's trying to put the bell into his armpit. First right, then left on the next rep. Wrestling Drill with Kettlebells-the 2 pood Side Shuffle- My son developed this drill with the 2 pood for wrestling. He takes the Kettlebell and gets inTO the wrestler's stance, then shuffles sideways to the right 3 steps as quickly as possible, then 3 steps to the left as quickly as possible. Each shuffle-step, he touches the bell to the mat, and pulls it up to his chest. Try to keep this going for 3 minutes. After 2 minutes, your form may decay a bit, but keep going! Hot music makes this drill rock! Uchimata Exercise with Kettlebell (JUDO DRILL)- Uchimata is one of the highest scoring judo throws there is, consisting of lifting a leg in the inner thigh, which, when performed by a large person, may require a hopping action on the support leg to throw his opponent. The opponent's head is pushed down to complete the rotation of the body. It is a spectacular throw when performed correctly. Some players are know to do this throw, and even so, are unstoppable. For a right-sided uchimata, clean the bell to the right shoulder, and lean forward, touch your left fingers to the mat, and lift your right leg up towards the ceiling. Begin hopping on your left leg, touching the mat each time as you go. Try to maintain a straight line. Alternatively, you may hop around a circle 2 meters in diameter, similar to "figures" competition for figure skaters. For the right-sided uchimata, hop counterclockwise. For the left-sided uchimata, hop clockwise. Do 3 times around the circle, or for the straight line drill, do twice down and back across the average mat. This drill will not teach you uchimata, but it will improve your

performance in this throw. Also suggested with this drill are repetition throwing of a partner using a crash mat. Go to this link for a picture of uchimata. Frog Hop Kettlebell Drill. -Hold the kettlebell with 2 hands in front of you, squat deep, and explode up and out, like a big bullfrog. Use just your legs. Keep your back erect throughout. Hop across the mat, and back once. Not for those with bad knees! Wrestler's Drill/Kettlebell Penetration Steps -Hold a kettlebell in your hands while performing penetration steps across the mat, down and back. This may be done holding a medicine ball also. Medicine Ball Drill/URANAGE-(judo throw) -This drill is done on a crash mat, using a medicine ball of 8kgs for adults and 5kgs for little kids. The players line up on one side of a crash mat. The coach stands on the far side of the crash mat, and tosses the ball to the first player in line. The player catches the ball, turns quickly and spreads his feet wide, lowers his center of gravity, and places the ball on his left pec area, holding it firmly with 2 hands. Then, the player arches backwards, and throws his left shoulder blade into the mat. The ball represents the opponent, and is driven into the mat as hard as possible .The coach picks up the ball, and the player rolls off the mat, getting at the end of the line. This could be done on the right side as well, with everything reversed. This is a great drill for Greco-Roman Wrestling throws as well. For a photo of uranage, see this link: Wrestling Big Bag Game -Similar to the Afghani game with the dead goat carcass, played on horseback. This game uses large canvas bags filled with gravel. Large wrestlers may use a 150lb bag, and small wrestlers use a 100lb bag. Place the bag in the middle of the wrestling mat. Two guys stand on the outside opposite ends of the circle. At the signal, both guys head for the bag. The goal is for them to use ANY means possible, (within the rules of wrestling), to get the bag to the opposite end of the circle from which they started. They will therefore need to wrestle the other guy WHILE dragging the bag. It is an extremely challenging game. More than two may play also! Teams of four or six players may square off at once. It should be cautioned not to allow players with too much weight difference on the mat, as a safety measure. This game is a lot of fun to watch, and often more fun than watching the wrestling match itself! Alaskan Passengers Drill- This is a tough judo drill I came up with at Anchorage Dojo, my old club in Alaska. We would come into a cold dojo, and need to warm up quicklyand this does just that! One player lays belly down on one side of the mat, and crawls across the mat using only his arms. The "passenger" lays on top of him and tries to strangle him before he gets to

the other side. The goal is to make it to the other side. This toughens up the neck against chokes, and mentally prepares you for just about any attack from the rear. This may be done without the strangling part, if so desired. When the other side is reached, the partners switch for the return trip. Footsweep Ball Drill- I created a foot sweep ball using a length of stocking (large orthopedic stockinette, actually) and a soft leather medicine ball. The ball is placed inside the stocking, and the ends are tied, leaving a length of 34 feet on both sides of the ball. Hold these knots, and sweep the ball with your foot. This may be used in motion, or in static forms. It makes a terrific way to practice sweeps without a partner, and really gets the power and technique going great! Be sure to check with your coach or judo instructor before trying these drills, as they are fairly rigorous, and some are downright dangerous. They are meant to augment, not replace the fine exercises seen on Steve Maxwell's tape, or on Pavel's tapes. Throwing tires outside, as suggested by Coach Davies is another fine drill for wrestling or judo. Pullups with a towel are great for wrestling as suggested by Coach Ethan Reeve, and Steve Maxwell. The RKC drills are staple exercises that should be done regularly. Cleans, snatches, swings, presses, seesaws, standing rows, and all the rest are in my little black record book.

Tom Connolly, M.D. is a 4th degree Black Belt in Kodokan Judo, a Judo National Masters Medallist (Gold, Silver, and Bronze in different years), a Certified Athletic Coach via the current Olympic governing body, U.S. Judo Inc., and the author of two instructional judo videos -shimewaza and seoinage. He is a co-sensei at The Golden Dragon Judo Club in Williamsport, Pa. Dr. Connolly was the physician to the Pan Am Games US Judo team and the physician -and a competitor (95kg) -for the US Military Team at CISM Games, Rome, Italy. Dr. Connolly is a Board Certified Orthopedic Surgeon specializing in arthroscopy of the knee, elbow and wrist, hand surgery, trauma, general orthopedic surgery, total joint replacement, as well as a specialist in aquatic rehab therapy. He practices at the Williamsport Orthopedic Associates, Ltd. In Williamsport, PA, www.woaortho.com.