Are Grappling Dummies Good For Judo

Are grappling dummies good for judo? How useful are they for this martial art? Find out what you need to know about grappling and Judo with Maxx Pro Boxing.

Are grappling dummies good for judo? Are they worth getting if you want to specialise in judo? There are a lot of questions that you might be asking yourself if you are just picking up judo for the first time.

If you have any kind of experience in the sport, you will know that grappling is important in judo as well and many other martial arts. However, how do you learn grappling, and should you invest in grappling dummies to improve your skills?

We will go through what you need to know.

Grappling Dummies: A Breakdown

Grappling dummies are useful aids that will help you improve your skills alone or even at home. Since grappling is part of all kinds of sports including Judo, BJJ, and wrestling, knowing how to train with these dummies is crucial. They are worth the money if you have a genuine interest in learning how to grapple and perfect the moves that are often used in a variety of martial arts.

Different types of grappling dummies will serve different purposes, so make sure you know what you want before buying one yourself. With the right dummy, you can practise all kinds of moves and techniques, takedowns, including ground transitions, and more – making them handy aids and ones that you shouldn’t overlook.

Depending on the grappling dummy and your own personal choices, these dummies can be filled with sand, cloth, foam, plastic pellets, or a combination of materials to suit you. The filling will determine the weight of the dummy, so you should find out how heavy your grappling dummy should be based on your age, weight, height, and skill level.

Grappling Dummy Uses

Just like a speedball platform, a grappling dummy will be useful in enhancing your abilities whatever you choose to train. You can even practise your striking with these dummies alongside takedowns and transitions.

Grappling dummies are also useful tools for workouts, so they are more versatile than you might initially think. Popular workouts with dummies include side stepping drills, alternate push-ups, shoulder presses, zercher squats, and much more. Pair these workouts with warm-up drills, and your judo skills are going to be next level before you know it.

What do Grappling Dummies Look Like?

Grappling dummies come in all shapes and sizes to suit your personal and professional needs. There are two main categories when it comes to grappling dummies: human shaped and limbless.

Human-shaped grappling dummies resemble the human figure, with arms and legs and something like a head, while limbless dummies look more like a bag.

Depending on what you intend to practice, you may want to opt for one type of grappling dummy over another. In Judo, if you want to practise your chokes or leg locks, or other techniques that rely on different body parts, training with a human-shaped grappling dummy is essential. Without the limbs on the dummy, you can’t carry out the moves, and the dummy is useless to you.

There are different sizes and shapes of human dummies, too. Some have shorter limbs and others have longer limbs, and their dimensions will vary. So, make sure that you find out what will shut you best and pick out the perfect grappling dummy for you.

However, if you want to use your grappling dummy for something like conditioning or other moves that don’t rely on fine points, a limbless one will do the trick. You can practise transitions from the ground, takedowns, and all kinds of other things. Since these dummies are much easier to move around, you can have fun slamming them to the ground, picking them up, and repeating the process to help you train.

What Can You do With Grappling Dummies?

You can do a lot with grappling dummies, so don’t try and limit yourself. Feel free to experiment with different moves and techniques, and watch lots of tutorials to learn more.

Here are just a few things that you can do with grappling dummies that you should try out:

• Throws (e.g. harai Goshi, Osoto gari, or Ippon Seoi nage)
• Single and double leg takedowns (e.g. Kuchiki taoshi)
• Practise transition positions (e.g. scarf hold or jujitsu Gatame arm lock)
• Various drills (e.g. far side arm bar drilling)
• Lots of workouts (e.g. shoulder presses, side stepping drills, zercher squats, alternate push-ups, and much, much more)

Just remember that grappling dummies aren’t real people. So, while you can use as much force as you like with them, you will need to alter how much strength you put into your moves when you are training with another person.

Are Grappling Dummies Good for Judo?

Any sport that involves grappling will benefit from training with a grappling dummy. So, yes, grappling dummies are great for judo.

These aids allow you to perfect skills and techniques whenever you like, since you can train on your own. This fact alone makes grappling dummies excellent choices, as you won’t always be able to rely on training with others – we all have our own lives and obligations, after all.

Is Grappling Important in Judo?

Yes, grappling is a very important part of judo. However, there is not as much emphasis on grappling in this sport as there is in BJJ, which shares almost all the same moves. Groundwork is more important in BJJ, but even so, the art of grappling is not something that should be overlooked in judo, as it still plays a crucial role in the sport.

Are Judo Dummies Different to Other Grappling Dummies?

You don’t need a specific ‘judo’ or ‘BJJ’, because grappling dummies are grappling dummies. While you get different shapes and sizes, which we went over earlier, you just need to find the dummy that suits your needs.

Whether you practise BJJ, judo, taekwondo, or something else, you will use the same grappling dummy.

The Best Way to Learn Grappling for Judo

There’s no quick solution to learning grappling for judo, unfortunately. You are going to have to put in the time and effort to learn, just like you would for any other sport.

However, with that being said, there are some useful tips and tricks that you will benefit from if you want to learn grappling – no matter the sport you are training in.

Here are some useful tips for learning to grapple:

• Have one-on-one training with instructors
• Make use of your training partner’s strengths
• Focus training sessions on learning, not winning
• Teach others
• Never forget about the core basics
• Don’t be afraid of being manhandled
• Compete when you can
• Train consistently and frequently
• Try new things (especially on beginners)
• Train until you are exhausted
• Ask lost of questions
• Specialise in useful techniques
• Drill again and again and again
• Set goals for yourself
• Train in positions where you don’t have the advantage

Shop with Maxx Pro Boxing

At Maxx Pro Boxing, we want to give every athlete what they need to compete and win. From guides and blogs to high-quality equipment like punching bags and boxing gloves, our aim is to equip you for success.

From our own grappling dummies and martial arts selection, we have everything you need. All you need to do is put in the work and hone your skills to become the champion you want to be. So, if you have been wondering ‘are grappling dummies good for judo’ – the answer is a resounding yes.

Any sport that involves grappling will benefit from training with a grappling dummy, so why not get yours?