Kevin Leavitt

Randori is a wide birth or interpretation actually I think. It could be designed to do all of those things. It all depends on how you define the endstate of what you are expecting out of your randori and the controls/limits you place on the situation for safety and or teaching points.

I am conducting a workshop on teaching ne waza in our dojo. I allowed a few minutes of randori today. It was not about submitting your opponent or winning, My objective was simply to allow those in the class to get a feel for the ground as it is new for many.

We talked about how fast things go and the importance of efficiency of motion, expending energy relaxation and balance.

My purpose of Randori was very simple this morning...other days it could be for other parts of the equation.

One thing is for certain, I will always include a form of it in my training...always....even if only for a few minutes. It is important!