Welcome to Harrisburg Judo Kai’s Mixed Martial Arts/Submission Fighting. Mixed Martial Arts or MMA is one of the fastest growing sports in the United States. Professional MMA fighting, made popular by the Ultimate Fighting Championship consists of matches won typically by knockout or tap out. Fighters are allowed to use a variety of martial arts techniques including striking, throwing, pinning, and joint locks to win the fights.

The techniques used in MMA come from a variety of traditional martial arts but rely heavily on jujitsu, judo, wrestling, boxing, and Muay Thai kickboxing. The MMA fight is often though of as two phases: a standing phase where the fighters use kickboxing to knock out an opponent or set up a transition to the next phase, the ground phase. The ground phase begins with a takedown or throw executed to take the fighters to the ground. Once on the ground, the fighters attempt to pin and control their opponent to either knock out the opponent or apply a joint lock known as a submission.

MMA is not just a spectator sport. With the growing popularity of the sport, many MMA facilities have opened up across the country. The Harrisburg Judo Kai, which has been teaching Judo at the East Short YMCA for forty years, has an excellent submission-fighting program. YMCA policies preclude striking so the Harrisburg Judo Kai focuses on the grappling aspects of MMA. Many professional MMA fighters have a background in Judo or jujitsu.

This is an excellent place to try out one of the hottest sports in America. Classes begin on Thursday nights at 7 pm. Classes are informal compared to many traditional martial arts. The classes begin with a warm up period. After that, the class time is spent on teaching throws, takedowns, pins, reversals, and joint locks. Most importantly, about half the class time is spent grappling against other students. This is a hands on martial art and the best way to learn it is to do it.

Submission fighting is a great way to try out MMA. One advantage of grappling is that participants can go at nearly 100% intensity with very little risk of injury. This is not possible with striking arts. Submission fighting is an excellent form of self-defense. A student has attempted to apply these techniques against a live, resisting opponent who also knows the techniques. This is not the case with many “reality based” self defense systems where the techniques are too debilitating to be practiced on real opponents. This is also an excellent form of exercise. Anybody who has ever wrestled knows how physical this sport can be. There is also opportunity for competition. No-gi grappling and jujitsu tournaments are held regularly in the mid-Atlantic region. Finally, this is good training to supplement other martial arts. Judo players can use this as an opportunity to train in different manner and kickboxers, karateka, and TKD participants can add a different form of fighting to their arsenal.

All levels of experience and fitness are welcome. Not everybody that participates will become a professional fighter, but every professional fighter was once a beginner. Comfortable, durable workout clothes should be worn. There are no specific uniforms. Wrestling shoes are optional and there are pro’s and con’s to wearing them. A beginner should participate in a few classes before purchasing any equipment. Compared to many sports, this is a low-cost, low equipment activity. Bare feet and work out clothes are all that is needed. Other equipment such as a mouth guard, wrestling shoes, rash guards, or headgear is optional, as the participant deems necessary. And keep in mind; this is not USMC boot camp. A new participant will be taught the basics within their physical abilities. Conditioning is specific to this activity and will be improved with participation so a new participant should not be discouraged by their current fitness level.

Classes are held Thursdays at 7 pm at the East Shore YMCA and end at approximately 9 pm. For more information contact Mike Stone at stoneman02@verizon.net or apply at the front desk of the Harrisburg YMCA. We offer two methods of payment. One is to purchase a $20 punch card, which allows for 4 passes. The second is to get a Y membership. This allows you to participate in all the martial arts classes as well as all YMCA sponsored classes. See the front desk at the Y for more information on this.