Butsukarigeiko without a human

[Kaikitsune Makoto 209]

Sumo is a dear sport to me and it triggers positive response in my nucleus accumbens whenever I get a good dose of sumoU. Hence it is also fun and divine to create simulations of various sumo training methods. Shiko is self explanatory and naturally can be done without any problems. It can also be done with the addition of extra weights in form of weigh vests for example. Suriashi follows similar logic and a New Yorker could easily go for suriashi on Manhattan and police wouldn't interfere. I have never been to New York by the way. It is very famous city. It has Statue of Liberty, Manhattan, Manhattan steaks, central park, N.Y.P.D. Blue, foreign cab drivers and white teeth ex-mayor Rudy-san and naturally it was the platform of the huge terrorist attack in 2001. But regardless, suriashi can be done anywhere with dignity, power and dynamic nature. BUT then we have butsukarigeiko...

Butsukarigeiko is form of traning where the attacker pushes the receiver with all his might exerting maximum power from thighs and hips. Shiroikuma was a famous amateur rikishi with passion, sumodou and overwhelming devotion to sumo at least couple of years ago still. He vanished from forum and deleted most of his messages on his way but he was a huge source of wonderful information and sumo training stuff. One of his equipments was butsukari-machine he had built. It was a big rack/sledge kind of thing with possibility to add weights and hence adjust the resistence. But if we exclude that, what would be the best butsukarigeiko in hitorizumo way? I don't know but am currently conducting experiments to find out.

My first scetch was leg press with very small movements and passive resistance. It is much more effective that it sounds. Admittedly it pretty much dismisses the use of hips but it targets the thighs tremendously well. The idea is not to do normal leg presses but to do 2-3 minute set of small movements combined with occasional negative set ie. resisting while lowering the heavy weight towards your chest like in true leg press. The key points to make the effect as close to butsukari as possible are the following:

1. It is essential that the weight is so heavy that it feels on your leg muscles already after 30 seconds.

2. You should do a negative set many times during the exercise so that the loweiring takes a lot of time and doesn't come too low (so that you can lift it up with the help of your hands pressing the knees). BEST would be if you can do bounce back moves in the middle of the lowering!!!! TOUGH!!!

3. Keep pumping the muscles when at almost upmost position so that the muscles get the resistance also with dynamic element.

4. Go all out. This is not a "90% is ok" exercise. You must go all out so that the final lowering is so difficult that the weight crushes you to death. Well use supporters on the leg press rack to save you from that. Also you can really feel the pain in this move, but you must always keep in mind that muscles don't develop well with only isometric tension. So pump well.

I don't know if this works at all with those not so convient horisontal leg presses.

In butsukarigeiko the bending of the knees is never very deep except at the beginning of the surge perhaps and when the receiver does that neck pressing thing. Bending the knees isn't vital to get good keiko also for the thighs. Admittedly hips are worked out at least as much as thighs in true butsukarigeiko but in this leg press experiment, the role of hips will not be big due to kinesiological facts. If done in the aforementioned way, leg press adaptation mimmicks many of the physiological moments in butsukarigeiko or at least that is my theory now. I have done such keiko twice now. Both times I have done regular heavy leg press sets, even 8 of them so my legs have been exhausted already at that time. But then I have followed it with 5 sets of "butsukarimimicry". It seems to really kill the thighs. I think one big benefit of doing it after heavy regular presses is that heavy regular press is so tough exercise that normally the other leg training exercises feel a bit clumsy or unsatisfying but the nature of this mimmicry exercise enables all-out training very well. Next time I will try to combine each set of mimmicry with immediate suriashi with 20-30kg weight in lap. That should really be tough. Of course in real butsukari also upper body works but that is not so important as this butsukarimimmicry is for lower body workout only.

Do you have ideas?

[Gusoyama 104]

1)Get in car

2)Drive car to flat area

3)Turn off car, but leave in neutral

4)get behind car or for a more upright position, behind an open car door

5)push push push!

This may seem like a joke, but I had to push a car half a mile the other day, and my legs, thighs, glutes, and lower back got quite the workout.

Option 2:

1)acquire some rope and a tire or cinder blocks

2)go to sandy beach

3)tie rope to tire/blocks and your waist

4)run back and forth along beach

This is more of a workout for the lower body, but just as useful as option 1.

I've brought up this point before, but I'll bring it up again. If I was running a heya, I'd have my guys on a rowing machine like those used by crew teams.(erg machine or ergometer) It builds upper and lower body strength, and would help with both tachiai(leg pushing part of motion) and belt work(arm pulling part of motion)

[Washuyama 641]

Or you could just get an American football blocking sled...

[Kuroyama 715]

Or you could just get an American football blocking sled...

Beat me to it. But that's not always entirely human-less, isn't it? I haven't seen the things regularly used since high school, but I seem to recall that the coach often added extra resistance by standing on it.

Although I'm sure any dead weight will do...

[sekihiryu 51]

blocking sled? that looks lightweight and flimsy ;) what you need is a real machine! a Rugby scrum machine!

and the best part about it you get to do it with your mates! at the same time without using a human!

also you get a pseudo-tachi at the beginning

Edited April 3, 2008 by sekihiryu

[Kaikitsune Makoto 209]

Car is a good tool but not so convenient. Scrum thing doesn't move right? So it is kind of weird, only teaches how to hit hard but when it comes to pushing, you could as well push a wall or tree to get the same effect I would think as there is no giving in (more than the little flexibility to enable the collision). Or does it move actually? Maybe it does. Be Scrum!

[aderechelsea 125]

the "scrum thing" moves ... if you have the necessary power ;-)

i am sure though that nothing beats a real person "lending his chest".

Be well and find someone to do that. A much heavier guy would be the best choice.

[sekihiryu 51]

Scrum thing doesn't move right? So it is kind of weird, only teaches how to hit hard but when it comes to pushing, you could as well push a wall or tree to get the same effect I would think as there is no giving in (more than the little flexibility to enable the collision). Or does it move actually? Maybe it does. Be Scrum!

oh it moves! the photo at the bottom, the machine has a large roller drum, you end up rolling the grounds while training! there are many many different variations, the roller types, the sled types (that first photo is not actually a good example: it was the only photo of good size that showed a while machine without people on it!) sled types are on runners like Santa's sleigh.

You dont wont it moving too much, so they usually weigh several tonnes with large concrete blocks on them, but with great effort you can make them move quite a distance, its very tiring!

There are hydraulic ones now that you push and the hydraulics push back to simulate a real scrum.

pushing a car is great training!

[Sasanishiki 57]

The scrum machine would be too small a target, and your body would be impractically low. A blocking sled would be better as it looks like the impact point is wider and higher. From memmory, Shiroikuma's machine was a sled-like aparatus, but the torso area had springs or something so that it submitted slightly to your push. I like the idea of a car, as the weight is far greater and the impact zone is wider and higher, perhaps giving a more authentic body position for sumo. The problem of course is finding a suitable area on which to do that kind of practice. Any device that you use would need to have enough inertia at the beginning, and thereafter a little movement but still enough resistance to give you the proper workout to simulate butsugari.

[Mikiro 0]

1)Get in car

2)Drive car to flat area

3)Turn off car, but leave in neutral

4)get behind car or for a more upright position, behind an open car door

5)push push push!

This may seem like a joke, but I had to push a car half a mile the other day, and my legs, thighs, glutes, and lower back got quite the workout.

Whatever you decide to do for training, be wary of this as in 1980 while pushing my comatose 1969 Plymouth I ruptured myself, had to have surgery and I do not think my voice has ever been as deep as it was then.

Edited April 7, 2008 by Manekineko
quotes now fixed

[hidenohana 0]

My first scetch was leg press with very small movements and passive resistance. It is much more effective that it sounds. Admittedly it pretty much dismisses the use of hips but it targets the thighs tremendously well. The idea is not to do normal leg presses but to do 2-3 minute set of small movements combined with occasional negative set ie. resisting while lowering the heavy weight towards your chest like in true leg press.

How about sprinting backwards in an explosive manner on a gentle hill incline?

Not only does it affect the same muscle regions but removes the stress on the knee joints(if done on grass) and promotes awareness of bodily balance and centre of gravity. (Sign of approval...)

[Ossetian Yokozuna 1]

Ok.

Ossetian butsugari machine.

Clic PLAY and watch this at 2 min 40 sec.

Edited April 6, 2008 by Ossetian Yokozuna

[kaiguma 0]

Ok.

Ossetian butsugari machine.

Clic PLAY and watch this at 2 min 40 sec.

This was not so easy, but I eventually was able to get to the video. I believe this is the more direct link.

You also need to click on the thumbnail (top right) to activate the control panel for the play button. Very fun news short that does not require any understanding of Russian language. Cheers!

[Petr 0]

Alan was saying that this butsukari machine was his main training "partner". Shiroikuma constructed his own which is not on rails but slides around dohyou. He can adjust the weights he pushes. I sometimes use the rugby "scrum thing". Of course, it's not as close to sumo as human butsukari but appropriate humans are not always available and I like this more than weight training. I was officially allowed to use this machine during Futeno's visit to our university rugby club. I push it alone without any added weights.

[Kaikitsune Makoto 209]

My first scetch was leg press with very small movements and passive resistance

Not so efficient actually. Tried it few times now. Maybe good for final exhaustive process for legs after hard training but otherwise doesn't feel that extraordinary.

[hidenohana 0]

My first scetch was leg press with very small movements and passive resistance

Not so efficient actually. Tried it few times now. Maybe good for final exhaustive process for legs after hard training but otherwise doesn't feel that extraordinary.

If you want an alternative to shiko and sonkyo.,I don't think leg press with small leg press movements will exhaust the necessary sumo muscles properly.

Try this.

a)My first exercise is what I call a overhead squat side lunge!

1)Press a barbell overhead land squat down like this:

2)Stand up and take a deep lunge to your left and return to standing position.

3)Repeat for your other side.

b)My second exercise is what I call the overhead squat side step up

1)Take an block or similar elevation next to your left .Not a bench-you will want this surface to be very stable.

2)Press the barbell overhead and squat down like in (a)1

3)Stand up and step up left to the block next to you.

4)Once your left foot is on the block, pivot -backwards or forwards(you can alternate)- on this foot and spin round so that both your feet are on the block.

5)Then pivoting your other foot take a step down from the block on the other side.

6)Repeat for the other leg

c)My third exercise are front lunges holding the barbell in overhead squat position.

d)Fourth exercise are overhead squat front step ups.

e)Fifth exercise are Zercher squats from a wide sumo stance

f)Sixth exercise are backsquat from a wide sumo stance

g)Lastly sumo deadlifts.

That's it! :-) (Yusho winner...)

A weightlifting regime for the lower body,that can substitute for shiko and sonkyo and butsukarigeiko in general!

[Petr 0]

Sonkyo?

Btw. butsukari-keiko, and particularly shiko is not just a strenght training. The form that needs to be practiced cannot be practiced with weights.

[hidenohana 0]

Sonkyo?

Btw. butsukari-keiko, and particularly shiko is not just a strenght training. The form that needs to be practiced cannot be practiced with weights.

Well in the absence of a training partner or proper supervision what would you recommend?

BTW my first two exercises ,I thought, promoted balance,flexibility and strengthened the same muscles.

Omit sonkyo. :-) ...just been surfing the Daily Telegraph website:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/main.jht.../14/hsumo14.xml

Edited April 15, 2008 by hidenohana