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Tori: Kate J. Bentley
Uke: Kimberly E. Burnett
Tori's comments: I prefer this defense to a double lapel grab over the others I’ve learned so far. Initially, I strike the uki/attacker in the stomach loosening their grip and changing their focus from me to themselves. From there, I do the elbow-turn and take them down. This technique happens quickly and if executed properly gets your attacker on the ground, face down in a very vulnerable position.
While a Hiji Waza
(page 98) can be effective when
the attacker’s arms are straight, it is ideal when the attacker bending
their arms to pull the defender into them. When the attacker’s arm is
bent, the defender can use the bent elbow as a lever to amplify their power
in rotating the attacker’s humerus (upper arm) medially (in towards
their chest; in effect, turning the arm such that the hand goes from palm
up to palm down). The primary resistance to this rotation are two relatively
small rotator cuff muscles: infraspinatus and teres minor.
Properly applied, even the smallest defender can overcome these two muscles
when using the attacker’s bent elbow as a lever. The attacker bends
over not from being forced down by the defender but by their own body’s
instinctive protection of their shoulder from over rotation.
