Sawtelle Judo Dojo

Sawtelle dojo is one of the oldest dojo’s in Southern California. If you stop by any Monday, Wednesday or Friday night you will see a room full of kids and adults having a great time. I trained there for over 30 years and know first hand it is more than just a judo school.

It’s changing me for the better. Tremendous workout, technique, friendships, Japanese and international vibe, and mental strength for life outside the dojo. See for yourself.

Very welcoming environment and overall very good place to learn Judo.

We joined Sawtelle Judo about 4 month ago, and I m very happy with my experience. My son never did Judo before, he was doing Krav Maga for 2 years. Now he really likes Judo and looking forward to getting a black belt. Kids and parents are very friendly. Sansei teaches kids discipline, respect, and commitment, to work hard and do well in school. My son already has a yellow belt. He is very excited to participate in different competitions, and now he is also teaching all his friends at his school Judo techniques. Sawtelle Judo is amazing and I’m very happy to be part of this family. This is the best Judo in LA!!!

I have read the negative review of this dojo and it does not represent the reality that I see when I train there. What follows is part review and part ethnography.
First things first, I have some college judo experience (2 – 3 years in college but I didn’t get promoted very highly, mainly because I had a promotion-​shy Nidan teaching the class) as well as some minor BJJ experience (same deal — took it in college).
Sawtelle asked me to wear a white belt, and at the time I was a little miffed about that (but I think it reflected more on me than them), but I soon realized that my 2 – 3 years of training v.s. everyone else at Sawtelle (even the novices) didn’t really matter because they were mopping the floor with me, so I accepted my white belt status quick enough and resumed my judo training.
The class flow here is different than a lot of dojos I’ve been to. At first, I found it frustrating because I didn’t feel like was «learning.» Although that was just an unfounded feeling. Objectively speaking, my judo had never been better! EVENTUALLY, during randori I noticed that I was able to hit a higher percentage of throws than I’ve ever been able to hit in the past. When you fully understand a throw from Sawtelle, it’s ALWAYS going to work for you. In the 8 months I’ve been training at Sawtelle, I’ve only ever done standing compliance-​based nage komi about 3 times. There seems to be a myth floating around that Sawtelle «throws too much.» I don’t know where that came from but it’s most certainly not true. Sawtelle does NOT TEACH JUDO FROM A STANDING COMPLIANT NAGE KOMI. Maybe sometimes they do, but it’s definitely a rarity. A lot of other dojos and judoka believe that they aren’t teaching/​learning unless they can do a «step 1, step 2, step 3» standing compliant nage komi. I disagree. The only thing that you learn from that is how to do a good standing compliant nage komi — it won’t translate over to randori successes. Eventually, when I was frustrated, I asked another sensei «Don’t we ever do (standing compliant) nage komi?» and he told me very calmly that they don’t, because it doesn’t work. They work on their technique in randori. Moving Uchi komis and randori are how you refine your technique at judo. Would you want a false sense of security (like I had) accompanied by quick gratification by doing nage komis all day and hit a throw very rarely in randori? Personally, I’ve been on both sides of that and I can’t say I want to learn from compliant nage komi anymore. Moving Uchi Komis and randori are the best way to teach and learn. Being thrown and having newaza techniques applied on you (even repeatedly) is also great way to learn, because we naturally copy what works.
So here’s the basic class breakdown: 15 – 40 minutes of warmups (these can be brutal), some instruction (usually newaza techniques) about 5 – 20 minutes, some moving Uchi Komis (ALWAYS MOVING!), and then finally, the last hour of class is randori (with frequent interjections/​teachings by Osugi Sensei of what he sees going wrong). Osugi Sensei (the head sensei) makes it very clear the (moving) uchi komi is your «dress rehearsal» (this is how you develop your technique) and that randori is where you perfect your technique. I think some people miss the point and half-​ass their Uchi Komis or fight to win in randori (which isn’t the point) and end up not getting a full education and stay stuck in their plateaus.
Some unique things to know about Sawtelle:
1) They are sticklers for the (IJF) rules.
2) Don’t do Tani Otoshi in this club! In the very least, you will get yelled at. If you do it too much, you may be asked to leave. Osugi Sensei claims that eliminating this throw as eliminated ambulance-​based injuries for 8 years or more. Besides, why are you so busy doing sacrifice techniques?
3) Osugi Sensei probably won’t bother to learn your name unless you’re a brown belt (or higher), a screw-​up, or a dangerous/​bull-​headed person. He seems to be a great guy with a good sense of humor, unless of course you’re not being safe, then he may bark at you, but you have to remember this is for safety reasons.
4) As a beginner, you can only start at the first Monday of the month.
5) Check out their recent tournament performance. They are usually bringing home medals and in top positions across nearly all ranks.
6) They will teach katas (doesn’t seem to be mandatory) to various high-​ranked brown belts.
7) It’s cool that they are active on Facebook and social media. I really like to see the updates posted there and the pictures and videos.
Anyway, that’s my review. I think this is a phenomenal dojo and you will get good judo from it. I’ve lost almost 25 lbs. since I started and I’m a green belt now.

I brought my 7 year old son Jacob to Sawtelle Judo Dojo about 4 mounth ago. His soccer coach in his team advised us to take Jacob to any martial arts to «rough him up». I am glad I took Jacob to Sawtelle judo Dojo. Everyone is great and friendly here. It feels like one big family. Besides judo being a great sport my son is teached most important values as respect, discipline and committment. My son does much better in school. Jacob likes judo and always asks me to take him to dojo.

I joined the Sawtelle Judo Dojo in July 2009.
I was a brand new white belt, with only a 3 – 4 months of training from SFV Judo dojo.
Judo, from my very personal point of view, is different from many other martial arts, especially for those that have BJJ background.
Many of Judo Dojos are run by volunteers. All dojos I have visited and learned from are non-​profit. This means a several things.
1. No one makes money, especially the instructors. They are there for the love of Judo. They love teaching Judo, and want to continue the spirit of Judo by giving away their time and effort.
2. The tuition is almost naught. Where could you possible learn martial arts, let alone work out, and only expect to pay $ 25-​$ 30 a month? Many BJJ schools easily charge $ 150 or more a month.
I learned a great deal of many things, and am still learning, about Judo, and a life in general.
Things I learned.
1. Get rid of ego.
Sensei teaches us to leave the ego out of door, and come in to dojo in humble mind. Judo is not a sport of equality and democracy. It’s a hierarchical martial art, in which you expect the Senseis and Senpais (instructors and seniors) to guide you, and students to follow their steps. You always respect your partners and everyone around you. They are there to help you grow as a judo person. Age does not matter. If they are senseis and senpais, you are expected to listen to their instructions. They do so to make sure people engage in sport in safe and proper manner.
2. Be consistent.
Judo is not an easy sport or martial art. It takes many years of hard work, just to get a simple shoulder throw right. This also relates to the ‘get rid of ego’ statement. I learned a great deal from many different senseis and senpais, from Sawtelle Dojo, LA Tenri Dojo, SFV Dojo, and San Jose State University Dojo. They respect not the great competitors, but consistent and hard working people. Be consistent, and contribute to the success of your judo, and overall well-​beings of your Dojo. You will reap the benefit greatly.
3. Be polite.
No one is there to hurt you. Judo is one of the safest contact sports. However, there is always a chance for injury if things do not go properly.
This means you really have to focus and do Judo as properly as your senseis and senpais teach. Being too aggressive and too competitive will only hurt you both mentally and physically. Of course, in the end, people are people, and there will be some big-​headed people that want to show off. However, I can say from the bottom of my heart that 99% of judo people are humble that are polite and respectful. But, if you are not a polite and respectable student, the senseis and senpais will make sure you become one, or you will not be welcome at the dojo.
4. Again, be consistent.
I have seen many injuries for the past 6 years of training Judo.
I myself have broken a few fingers and toes. I had shoulder injury requiring surgery. And just two months ago, my ACL was torn, and I am currently recovering from the surgery.
But, I do not intend to stop my training. No one is perfect, and injuries do happen. Your training partners, and even your senseis/​senpais MIGHT cause injury to you, but no one does that on purpose. Please remember that.
I have seen others getting broken knees and also lose some teeth too, due to a very aggressive sparring session. I actually saw TEETH flying around.
But, at the end of the training, people are always respectful, and apologetic if injuries do occur.
Even with injuries, people DO come back to Judo training year after year. There is a reason why Dojos like Sawtelle have been around for almost 100 years, and people are constantly coming in, and stay for many years.
5. Be a part of the family.
Judo community is a family community. I mean it. This is so very true. Unlike other martial arts, you can take your judogi, and visit any Judo dojos, in the US and around the world, and they will welcome you with open arms, as long as you show your respect to the dojo and people there. We all learn the same techniques, and we all suffer from the same mistakes. Even if the languages might be different, all teachings are taught in the same terminologies (Japanese), and at the end of the workout, you truly feel that Judo is just one family after all.
Since most of Judo dojos are run by non-​profit volunteers, that means the students need to give back. Dojo cleaning, fund raising, and any other events that require man-​power DO NEED students’ participation. The more you participate in your dojo’s activities, the closer and tighter family you become, to your dojo and to Judo in general.
One of my Senpais from San Jose State University Judo once told me.
«Judo does not owe you anything. You owe everything to Judo.»
That statement really hits me. I really owe lots to Judo, and it all started from my humble and small beginning as a white belt at Sawtelle Judo dojo.
Interested in Judo? Sawtelle is a great place to start!

Came here twice in 2009. First in January and then August. There was no structure and a good number of students had bad attitudes. The Japanese Americans here at very attitudes and were not very welcoming. First, when I started there in January of 2009 there was no structure. They had no beginner class and I was thrown in the mix. I wasn’t thrilled about that, but I played along. They didn’t even have the time to teach you how to roll or breakfall, which is fundamental to judo. Why they would overlook this is beyond me. They had me working with higher belts, brown and black. I wrestled in high school, did a bit of juijitsu 20 years ago so I could hold my own if I have to. The students at Sawtelle were MMA wannabes. I lost a tooth because one guy sucker punched me out of anger because he couldn’t submit me. The main instructors said nothing. But, the instructors got angry when I scissored a brown belts neck. They took me aside and scolded me as if I was a child. (note to sawtelle, I think a student punching another student and knocking out his tooth is far more scold worthy and worth removal from dojo). Second, the money issue. When I returned during the last week of August there were three days left until September. They tried to charge me for the whole month of August and refused to prorate it. When I pointed out that there were three days left in the month their response was «So what, you want to train here you pay.» I left and never returned. I have a muslim friend who tried to enroll here within the past year and he was treated in a very discourteous and discriminatory manner. He told me he also just walked out. Sawtelle judo club needs to clean up its act.