Drilling is repeating a technique on a cooperative partner until the movement is automatic; in judo it is uchi-komi, entering without throwing. In judo this is uchi-komi: judoinfo.com defines it as repeated practice without completion, meaning you enter the throw again and again without finishing it.
- Japanese name: uchi-komi (uchikomi), "repeated practice without completion".
- In judo: uchi-komi drills the entry (tsukuri) of a throw; nagekomi is the version where you finish and throw.
- In BJJ: drilling covers any repetition, from a guard pass to a submission finish, and usually stays at a cooperative pace.
What does drilling train?
A throw or a pass has a sequence: break the balance, fit your body in, finish. Live rounds give you one or two chances per round to run that sequence. Drilling gives you a hundred. The point is to make the first two steps fast and identical every time, so that in a live round you only have to think about timing.
Judoinfo.com lists uchi-komi and nagekomi as separate words for a reason. Uchi-komi is high volume and low cost: your partner stays on their feet, so you can do sets of ten with no rest. Nagekomi costs your partner a fall each rep, so the numbers are lower and the breakfalls matter.
How do you do uchi-komi?
- Set your grips exactly as you would in a live round. Sloppy grips in drilling become sloppy grips in competition.
- Pull first. The hands break the balance before the feet move. Each rep should visibly move your partner onto their toes.
- Enter fully. Feet, hips and back end up where they would be at the moment of the throw, with your partner loaded.
- Step out cleanly and reset. Walk back to the starting distance instead of shuffling.
- Count sets, and rest between them. Ten clean reps beat thirty tired ones.
- Add movement once the static version is clean: your partner steps, and you enter on the step.
The most common mistake is rushing the entry and skipping the pull. If your partner's weight stays on their heels through the rep, you are drilling a throw that will never work live.
Solo uchi-komi with a resistance band tied to a post keeps the pulling action honest on days without a partner. Our judo training gear is rash guards made for people who train; wear one under the gi on drilling days.
What does the IJF call drilling?
The IJF Sport and Organisation Rules list uchikomi in their official terminology and translate it as "repetition training". Its partner word, nagekomi, is repetitive throwing practice, where the throw is completed.
Sources
- Judoinfo.com defines it, JudoInfo
- IJF Sport and Organisation Rules, International Judo Federation
Related terms
Nagekomi (throwing practice), Entry and execution (tsukuri / kake), Off-balancing (kuzushi), Rolling / sparring (randori), Training journal.