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Training MMA in Japan II
by Hody Jae Huh, Moderator @ IronLife.com
 So you’ve decided to come to Japan. Here’s some additional information that you might find useful. Before you join a gym, I recommend you get your job, apartment, and schedule in order first. I know many of you are eager to train; after all, that’s why you came to Japan. However, you will more successful in your MMA pursuits once you have your affairs in order.
GYM ETIQUETTE
Unless you have trained under a traditional Japanese martial arts teacher, you’re probably in for a bit of a surprise. When I was training in the States, the atmosphere was much more relaxed than here in Japan. There are certain rules and etiquette you must follow.
In Japan people refer to each other using their last name rather than their first name. They also tack on the word ‘san’ at the end. It’s an honorific term similar to mister. As a general rule, you should refer to everyone, except children, by this manner, unless directly told otherwise. For example, John Smith is now called ‘Smith-san’. Different rules apply to foreigners; they are sometimes called simply by their first name, first name + ‘san’, or Mr. first name, Mr. last name, or classic Japanese style. IE ....John Smith might be called John-san, Mr. John, Mr. Smith, or Smith-san. Kind of like in Karate Kid.
Your coach and head of the gym should always be addressed by their family name and their title. In most cases this would be ‘sensei’. Sensei is used by doctors, teachers, coaches, experts in various fields, and etc. No matter how close you become with your coach, always remember he’s the coach.
I’m sure you have heard of the term ‘losing face’ - basically embarrassing someone or making them look bad. I’ve seen many fighters argue with judges when things didn’t go their way back in the States. Here in Japan, such things are not tolerated. Doing so, makes the gym, the coach, and all its members look bad and lose face. Basically you would be on a shit-list. Remember, you are representing the gym at all times.
Every gym has their own special rules and way they do things. You will have to discover these as you go along, but I will share some of the ones that are at my gym, as they might be at your gym too.
Always acknowledge the coaches and higher ranking members (pro fighters and top guys)  when you arrive and before you leave. A simple hello and good bye, preferably in Japanese, along with a slight bow. You don’t have to bow deeply like they do in the samurai movies, but a slight tilt of the head - as if your looking down to your feet is usually sufficient. When in doubt, follow everyone else’s lead.
If you’re running late to class, don’t mess around in the locker room. Hurry up and get dressed and stretched out. Before stepping onto the mat, bow to the coach. At my gym we also have to say a Japanese phrase which is basically translated as ‘sorry for being late and I am ready to join the class.’ (I asked my friends and teammates about this, and they told me that they never heard this before - so it might be a special phrase used only at my gym.) Never interrupt the coach during a lesson. This also applies to when you’re running late. If you have to say a special phrase, like I do, wait until the coach has stopped talking and then speak.
Back in the States we were encouraged to stop the coaches and ask questions at anytime; this is not the case in Japan. You should reserve all your questions until after class. During class don’t mess around, talk, and make jokes, as this is very disrespectful. Watch the demonstration carefully and while working with your partner, your coach will circulate and correct any mistakes, at this time you might be able to ask short questions to your coach and partner.
Japanese tend to be modest while Westerners are seen as boastful. When someone asks you if you’re good, you should be honest of your level but down-play how good you are. You will quickly find that you might not be as good as you think and then look stupid. If you are good, just tell them what you have trained in and let them discover how good you are.
Keep this modesty rule in mind when asking how good your partner is. I was told millions of times by my partner "I’m not strong" and "I’m a beginner". Only later to find out that he was a former ALL-JAPAN Karate Champ. and an Olympic Judo hopeful until he blew out his knee -- but is a beginner in Shooto. It’s not uncommon in Japan to see experienced Judo black belts compete in BJJ competitions as white belts. The question that you will be asked, "Are you strong?" is referring to your abilities - do you have skills to kick ass? In Japan this question is not only about physical strength but the fighter’s skill. So when someone says "Nakakura-san is the strongest in the gym", they mean he’s the best fighter and not his physical power-lifting strength.
At the very beginning and end of class, we line-up in rows and sit with our legs tucked under our ass. The coach will say something and then everyone bows deeply. The number of bows and what the coach says will vary from gym to gym.
At my gym the end of class is followed by open mat time. How you spend this time is up to you. This is also your chance to ask your coach questions. It took me a while to build-up a good relationship with my coach, but after I did, he’s helped me a lot and has given me way more attention than I deserve. My coach is old school. Meaning that he believes you have to prove your dedication to the gym and to the sport before he invests any quality time into you. Why put his heart into every student, since so many of them quit or never put their hearts into it? From that perspective, I completely agree. I have even followed suit. When new members arrive, I am friendly to them but I don’t try to correct their mistakes or give them too much advice, until they have been there for a certain period of time and have shown some kind of dedication.
In Japan, the members are responsible for cleaning the gym. I strongly recommend that you join in on the cleaning every time that you go to the gym. This is done when the gym closes for the night. At my gym 4 guys sweep the mat while the rest use small hand towels soaked in a mixture of alcohol and water to disinfect the mats. This is the old school approach -- they don’t use mops. This help to build-up your leg muscles and cardio. Basically you are on all fours with the small hand towel stretched in front of you while you slide to the end of mat, repeating this until your done.
Initially your work schedule may not allow you to train everyday (mine does). However, you should train constantly to show dedication to the gym. The more dedication you show, the faster you will become a part of the gym and be accepted by its members and coach(es). Conversely, if you join the gym before your working schedule and life is stable, you will appear unreliable and lazy, even though you are busy with work and other things. I highly recommend getting your affairs in order before joining a gym.
Remember that you represent the gym at all times. Going out and having fun is fine. But going out and getting into fights will quickly get you kicked out of the gym and possibly from the organization that you hope to fight for as well. Not to mention the fact that you could be deported or even worse, be put in jail. Japan is famous for their jails. American jails are supposed to be a luxury compared to Japanese jails, where being locked-up and having the key thrown away is the rule and not the exception.
The gym and organization are just trying to protect their image. They don’t want to have an image of a bunch of thugs going around getting into fights. Being a foreigner, you will obviously stand out more and your actions might be magnified.
FINDING A GYM
Tokyo, Yokohama, and Kansai area (Osaka) are the Mecca’s of MMA and BJJ in Japan. Tokyo and Yokohama are where most of the gyms  are located since the bigger events hold their fights there. With a bit of research you can find the address and phone number of the gym.
After selecting a gym, call and arrange a time when you can watch a class. This will give you a good idea of the membership, how hard-core the gym is, and etc. Some gyms may even allow you to participate in a free class, mine doesn’t.
Also take a good look at their class schedule and times. Most of the gyms have a web site and informational fliers (in Japanese of course). Some of the bigger gyms with a high foreigner membership might have information in English, but I wouldn’t expect or count on it.
My gym (Shooting Gym Osaka or STG Osaka for short) is open from 13:30 to 22:30 but classes don’t start until 18:45. My gym alternates daily between grappling and striking classes. These are subdivided into beginner and regular classes. You are automatically put into the beginner class, regardless of how good you think you are. You will advance to the regular class after attending an ‘X’ number of beginner classes or at the coach’s discretion. At my gym we also have a BJJ class taught one time a week by a visiting pro Shooto fighter and BJJ purple belt and another day taught by my coach. Twice a week after class we have a special training session for top amateurs and pros. Both classes are devoted to Shooto but with emphasis on striking and grappling respectively. Closer to tournaments we also have special Shooto classes geared for those that are going to compete. Those that are not competing are not allowed to join this Shooto class, unless one person competing lacks a partner. Each gym will differ in their classes and schedules.
JOINING A GYM
You have now decided on a gym. You’ll have to fill out some paperwork (in Japanese of course). I recommend that you get the paperwork at the time you are checking out gyms, if that particular gym impresses you, take the paperwork home to have someone help you with it. The paperwork is straight forward and probably similar to what you had to fill-out back home, but in Japanese. Having someone translate the questions and also write the answers in Japanese will make things easier.
GYM FEES
This will vary from gym to gym. However, most gyms have the basic set-up: a one time joining fee (No way to get around this. It’s common practice in Japan.), a yearly membership fee to the organization (in my case Shooto), a yearly insurance fee to cover the gym, and the monthly membership fee. These fees allow you unlimited lessons and gym access.
Here’s an example of what I had to pay for my first month. This is from memory and may be a bit off, but it will give you a rough idea. All numbers are in Japanese YEN. Refer to the current exchange rate in your home country to better understand how much money you will need.
Shooting Gym Osaka
One time joining fee 20,000 YEN
Yearly Shooto Commission fee 4,000 YEN
Yearly gym insurance fee 1,400 YEN
Monthly membership due 10,000 YEN
Total due the first month 35,400 YEN
After the first month you will only have to pay the monthly due, until the year is up and you have to pay the yearly fees. As you can see, it can get rather expensive when you consider you still have to find a job, apartment, and other living expenses.
Once you’re a member of an official Shooting gym or club (referred to as circles in Japan) and have paid the yearly Shooto Commission fee, you are allowed to drop-in and train at other gyms. In the case of my gym, a drop-in member pays 500 YEN per day. I’m not sure if there is a limit on how many days you can be a drop-in member. Basically, drop-in members are those that have a base gym and perhaps are going to another city for vacation and want to also get some training in. For example, I live in Osaka and I’m a member of STG Osaka. I decide that I want to go to Tokyo and while I’m there I want to train at K’Zs factory. I would simply call K’Zs in advance and make sure things were cool and pay whatever their drop-in fee was.
TRAINING EQUIPMENT
If possible, bring your gear with you, such as gloves, GI, and other pads. Japan is expensive but also the fact your first couple of months will be financially tight. At my gym we need standard boxing gloves, mouth piece, cup, knee pads, and shin guards. Personally, I have two style of shin guards, the one used in training Muay Thai (got my from Fairtex) and the ones that look like leg warmers (the kind used in Pancrease and amateur Shooto). Eventually you should invest in a pair of Shooto gloves or whatever gloves your organization uses. My gym has some public use gloves but I don’t like wearing those so I bought my own. You can find some good deals on the Internet. I bought Official Shooto gloves before other brands came out (some of them are cheaper and better quality). You can wear whatever you want, but in amateur tournaments, you must wear Official Shooto gloves - but those will be provided at the tournament.
Official Amateur Shooto Gloves
LAYOUT OF GYM
If your lucky, the gyms that you are interested in will have some pictures on their homepage. This will give you a better idea of how they are set-up, as this might be a factor in deciding which gym to join. All gyms are different, so do your research.
STG Osaka has two heavy bags, several racks to store your gloves and shin guards (but the racks are pretty full), 2 weight scales (one is public use - a standard digital scale, while the other is for pro’s only - this is more accurate and very expensive), a mirrored wall, a small weight room (you can do basic weight training/power lifting but if you want more equipment - join a gym like GOLDS), shower room, non-coin operated storage lockers (to store your stuff for the day and not long-term), and a padded matt for classes and sparring.
The padded matt is about 1-2 inches thick and has a blue cover. I’m not sure of the dimensions of the matt, but it will accommodate around 30 people for class lessons and about 12 people for sparring. STG Osaka does not have a ring, but some gyms do, like Purebred. You can wear wrestling shoes on the matt, but at my gym, just about everyone goes barefoot (since it’s easier to catch someone in an ankle lock, toe-hold, and etc. if they are wearing wrestling shoes, plus your not allowed to wear wrestling shoes in Shooto competitions).
Your membership fee entitles you to unlimited use of the facilities during working hours, including the weight room. As far as I know, we do not offer private lessons, only class lessons.
This ends Part II of Training MMA in Japan, next issue I’ll give you information on the process of becoming a Pro Shooto fighter in Japan, which will include information about competing in amateur tournaments.
* Article by Hody Jae Huh, Moderator @ IronLife.com
* Back to Issue #4 Frontpage
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