Quote Originally Posted by YouKnowWho View Post
To turn your back into your opponent while his arm is free is always a bad idea, and should be avoided as much as possible. In the following clip, when he applies a "shoulder throw", his opponent's left arm are free.



- His free arm can wrap your waist, spin with you, and drag you all the way down to the ground.
- His free arm can hook punch on your head.
- He can even use his free hand to pull your head back.
Yes that judo throw execution isn't very good in that clip - he does nothing to his opponent's structure thru most of the throw entry. No kuzushi.

I had pointed this out in a Judo discussion and make many Judo guys unhappy about it. They all believe that if you spin fast, your opponent won't have time to do anything to you. The problem is what if your opponent is also fast.
That throw doesn't have much to do with spinning fast at all. It has to do with locking the arm to yours and driving as you turn. Now there is an effective kuzushi entry where you circle away from the throw with a grip then turn into it quickly. This may be what they were referring to spinning fast but in actuality it's not that but the hard setup.

However, when there is a problem, there is always a solution for it. If you use "under hook" to lift your opponent's shoulder when you turn your back into him, since his free arm will be lifted by your "under hook", he can't use his arm to wrap your waist. You will be quite safe even you turn you back into your opponent.
Yes better fundamentals shut down counters. I had done this throw for a couple years before I was introduced to some of the Sambo drilling they do with it, which kind of ingrains in locking the arm and driving quickly, much different than that clip.