Judo: Heart & Soul

Rating:
Summary: Great book
Review: I had the great pleasure of getting the snot kicked out of me by Dr. Nishioka at a judo seminar some 20 years ago. He is not only one of the best practitioners ever to compete in the sport but an excellent instructor and lecturer as well. I learned more during those few hours than I did in many of the preceding months.

This excellent book reads very much like meeting him in person. His stories are interesting and inspirational. His training tips are solid and well illustrated. The first chapter is a collection of short vignettes. The second provides excellent technical advice, mostly about throws. The third chapter is strategic, focusing on competition and how to better your chances of becoming a champion. The final chapter is more vignettes and philosophy from this outstanding martial artist. You don't have to be a judoka to enjoy it but you'll find a greater depth of appreciate for this book if you are.

Lawrence Kane
Author of Martial Arts Instruction: Applying Educational Theory and Communication Techniques in the Dojo


Rating:
Summary: Good Advice for the Intermediate Judo Player!
Review: JUDO HEART & SOUL (c2000) by Mr. Hayward Nishioka is not an instructive manual to improve your Judo technique (read his book: 'The Judo Text Book in Practical Application' (c1979) for that) but is a 255 page collection of advice and viewpoints on Judo by one of America's very accomplished and influential Judo players complete with a compilation of historic photographs; and is valuable in one can acquire a sense of tournament Judo over the past four decades. Any American Judo player would be proud to be half as accomplished as this author!

Now, the first annoying flaw in this book is Mr. Nishioka's advocacy of the evolution in Judo, away from the traditional Japanese view, while at the same time quoting Japanese advice, wisdom, philosophy, adages, training tips, and his own Japanese training in Japan to validate his knowledge on the subject. His endorsement of Judo reform had already appeared prior to this book as early as January 1970 in his Black Belt magazine article entitled: 'Judo vs. Wrestling' in which Hayward Nishioka made it perfectly clear that he approved of wrestling technique, or anything that worked, being introduced into Judo, euphemistically calling it "enrichment". Yet the undermining futuristic observation included in his own article was a Judo competitor's prophetic observation that a third type of sport may be born from the combination of wrestling and Judo; as all the while spectators were screaming: "Boo, that's not Judo!" to a shiai they paid to see.

I feel the Japanese and the Kodokan are aware of this potential Judo hybrid disaster waiting to happen, and are taking steps to preserve the integrity of the art. Evolution is a natural process which contains both mutation and extinction. A small amount of mutation has already been observed in Judo from the introduction of wrestling and S.A.M.B.O. techniques into Olympic Judo of the 1980s and 90s and Mr. Nishioka should understand why the Japanese do not want Judo to evolve into extinction.

The second major flaw in this book still revolves around the author's advocacy of change in Judo (p.110) while insisting that Judo rules remain fixed, for example his assertion "Like it or not, koka is here to stay" (p. 114). There is an inherent contradiction to promote change then invoke an absolute! If there is going to be evolution in Judo than both the koka rule and the inclusion of non-Judo technique (or hopefully, the baby blue gi) are subject to change; specifically: be removed! Again, compounding this fallacy is the author's promotion of koka Judo (p.114) while advocating "Isho Kemei" - Do the very best you can (p.31) which is quite the opposite of accepting and practicing koka Judo. Just as affirmative action programs have lowered standards in business and education within American society, koka Judo has similarly lowered standards in the international society of tournament Judo.

The Japanese still have the best Judo in the world, and Mr. Hayward Nishioka of all people, having studied in Japan, should promote and not hinder this Japanese gift to the world.

All-in-all, JUDO HEART & SOUL is a good read for the intermediate Judo player because of its insight into what lies down the road for anyone who devotes himself to just winning Judo trophies and medals.

Rating:
Summary: Good Advice for the Intermediate Judo Player!
Review: JUDO HEART & SOUL (c2000) by Mr. Hayward Nishioka is not an instructive manual to improve your Judo technique (read his book: 'The Judo Text Book in Practical Application' (c1979) for that) but is a 255 page collection of advice and viewpoints on Judo by one of America's very accomplished and influential Judo players complete with a compilation of historic photographs; and is valuable in one can acquire a sense of tournament Judo over the past four decades. Any American Judo player would be proud to be half as accomplished as this author!

Now, the first annoying flaw in this book is Mr. Nishioka's advocacy of the evolution in Judo, away from the traditional Japanese view, while at the same time quoting Japanese advice, wisdom, philosophy, adages, training tips, and his own Japanese training in Japan to validate his knowledge on the subject. His endorsement of Judo reform had already appeared prior to this book as early as January 1970 in his Black Belt magazine article entitled: 'Judo vs. Wrestling' in which Hayward Nishioka made it perfectly clear that he approved of wrestling technique, or anything that worked, being introduced into Judo, euphemistically calling it "enrichment". Yet the undermining futuristic observation included in his own article was a Judo competitor's prophetic observation that a third type of sport may be born from the combination of wrestling and Judo; as all the while spectators were screaming: "Boo, that's not Judo!" to a shiai they paid to see.

I feel the Japanese and the Kodokan are aware of this potential Judo hybrid disaster waiting to happen, and are taking steps to preserve the integrity of the art. Evolution is a natural process which contains both mutation and extinction. A small amount of mutation has already been observed in Judo from the introduction of wrestling and S.A.M.B.O. techniques into Olympic Judo of the 1980s and 90s and Mr. Nishioka should understand why the Japanese do not want Judo to evolve into extinction.

The second major flaw in this book still revolves around the author's advocacy of change in Judo (p.110) while insisting that Judo rules remain fixed, for example his assertion "Like it or not, koka is here to stay" (p. 114). There is an inherent contradiction to promote change then invoke an absolute! If there is going to be evolution in Judo than both the koka rule and the inclusion of non-Judo technique (or hopefully, the baby blue gi) are subject to change; specifically: be removed! Again, compounding this fallacy is the author's promotion of koka Judo (p.114) while advocating "Isho Kemei" - Do the very best you can (p.31) which is quite the opposite of accepting and practicing koka Judo. Just as affirmative action programs have lowered standards in business and education within American society, koka Judo has similarly lowered standards in the international society of tournament Judo.

The Japanese still have the best Judo in the world, and Mr. Hayward Nishioka of all people, having studied in Japan, should promote and not hinder this Japanese gift to the world.

All-in-all, JUDO HEART & SOUL is a good read for the intermediate Judo player because of its insight into what lies down the road for anyone who devotes himself to just winning Judo trophies and medals.

Rating:
Summary: Fills the void
Review: Judo: Heart & Soul is such a good book.
It is not technical in nature so you will not learn new techniques from it.

What you will get from this book is the set of small wisdoms, tips and stories about Judo that we all live through, or that we will be going through.


What I like about this book is that it fills the void
in what Judo books usually cover. Most of the books out there (and many of them are great) are Judo technical or reference books. That is all great, but what I always wanted was
this kind of a practice and competition guide - full of wisdoms, tips, and mental guides. This book is exactly that
- it is a group of essays that talk about common experiences in Judo that keep you going.
What was the most helpful to me was the set of confirmations that I found in the book about how I approach Judo, how I practice it,
what I do and think in competition ...
In other words, I realize now that I am not crazy - we all (Judoka) are.

Rating:
Summary: Not just for judokas
Review: The title of the book may not do it justice. .
Regardless of martial art, or style, the chapters in this book contain bits and pieces of valuable information for competitors. Mr. Nishioka compiled a myriad of short lessons that are well worth reading.

A. Bustillo

Rating:
Summary: Judo: Heart & Soul
Review: This is a great book. i recommend it to any judoka. It is a very inspirational book, and has lots of practical suggestions for learning judo. It also has a lot of good history of the author's experiences and some of the judo greats he has met with.

Rating:
Summary: Judo: Heart & Soul
Review: This is a great book. i recommend it to any judoka. It is a very inspirational book, and has lots of practical suggestions for learning judo. It also has a lot of good history of the author's experiences and some of the judo greats he has met with.

Rating:
Summary: Inspirational
Review: This is not a technical manual, but a motovational speech put to paper. I found it inspirational and motivating. It is a very quick read. I found that it is best read one or two topics at a time.