Playstation Theory and Throwing Technique

Sensei Ryan Nicholls here, owner of, and head instructor at RKD Martial Arts, welcome to my Blog, Martial Arts Perth.

I wanted to look at a somewhat playful, yet informative, way of explaining the process of executing a throw that I have called “Playstation Theory”.

Despite what my students hope, Playstation theory does not involve choosing your favourite character from a Playstation game and modelling your entire fighting style after theirs. Despite the fact I wear a red gi, I have not modelled my fighting style after Ken from Street Fighter (I don't have the blonde hair to pull off that look and I can't hadoken no matter how many times I've tried). You will not find any Heihachi, Nina, Jin, or Kazuya (Tekken) clones vying for power on my mats. There are no Kasumi, Ryu or Ayame (Dead or Alive) wannabes being all ninjery and disappearing in bursts of cherry-blossom petals. And thankfully, there are no Mitsurugi, Taki or Maxi (Soul Calibur) weapon's masters searching for the ultimate weapon. No - “Playstation Theory” is a theory I use to describe the process by which a person's body will go through when executing any throwing technique within the syllabus at my school, RKD Martial Arts. Why is it called “Playstation Theory”? There are four major stages I emphasise in any throwing technique and these four stages are represented by the four face buttons on a Playstation controller – Triangle, Circle, Square, 'X' which is how I derived the name.

First, a clarification. A lot of people in martial arts use the terms 'throw' and 'take down' interchangeably and make no distinction between the two. I like to differentiate between the two as the theory of executing a throw can become muddied when a take down that is labelled as a throw doesn't seem to follow the same theory application. The difference between how I define each one is in the method of bringing an opponent to the ground. I define a throw as requiring an application of force that moves through a circular motion around a central point (usually the opponent's centre of gravity) to break an opponent's structure and balance. I define a take down as an application of pain to break an opponent's structure and balance, for example, a locking technique that forces an opponent to the ground. As a result some techniques that are often referred to as take downs I refer to as throws (double leg take down for example), and some techniques that are often referred to as throws I refer to as a take down (many Aikido throws for example).

The definitions I subscribe to of a throw and a take down can get a little confusing when it contains elements of both. This can be the case when looking at combination techniques that combine locks into throws – generally, I find with these techniques that the lock is assisting the throwing technique but it is not the pain of the lock that brings the opponent to the ground, it is the motion of the throw. I find if you look at what ultimately broke an opponent's balance and caused them to hit the ground you will be able to identify whether it was a throw or take down. It should also be noted that with minor adjustments, some throws can have a take down version, and some take downs can have a throw version.

Now back to Playstation Theory. As I said above, the throws that I teach all have four major stages, each represented by one of the buttons on the face of a Playstation controller. The buttons and their associated stage are:

• Triangle – entering/receiving
• Circle – application/redirection of force
• Square – balanced and stable finish
• 'X' – follow-up technique

The face buttons on a PS control pad

Entering/receiving is represented by the Playstation's Triangle button. The triangle itself represents directed movement – an arrow indicating a direction we must move or a position we must get to. Regardless of which one we use (direction or position) the underlying message is the same – we must move to get to a certain position in order to execute our throw. Even techniques where it appears we receive an opponent directly have subtle receiving movements (stance changes, positional shifts, weight distribution etc) that are necessary for the throw to work.

Considering that all throws are position related, entering or receiving is often the most difficult aspect of applying a throw. Certainly, once you take throws out of the static application stage where you are first learning the throw (a static attacker providing very little resistance) entering or receiving becomes the most crucial skill in executing any throwing technique. In shiai, a form of free practice where students start in grips and vie to throw each other (like in Judo), we are able to look at the difficulties of trying to enter a position for executing a throw while an opponent is trying to counter what we are doing and throw us. This is generally how Judo throws are mostly trained, though in training in Judo this is referred to as randori and is not limited to throws. At my dojo we use the term shiai (shi meaning 'to test' and ai meaning 'gather' or 'meet', so taken together shiai is 'a meeting or gathering to test one another') which Judoka's use for competition, simply because we use the term randori in regards to a different form of practice. The next stage, moving from shiai to free sparring where an opponent may also strike and kick to prevent being thrown, the difficulties in entering and receiving become quite apparent. At this stage, particularly against a similarly skilled opponent, the importance of good entering or receiving technique becomes paramount to the execution of even the most basic throw.

Application or redirection of force is represented by the Playstation's Circle button. The circle represents the circular motion created by the application of opposing forces on the body. All throws must have these two opposing forces for the circular motion to be created. For a basic example look at tai otoshi (body drop), a throw where the leg creates a tripping point but does not move through a sweeping motion. The upper body generates a force to carry the opponent over the tripping point, and when their leg makes contact with the tripping leg, a force is generated in the opposite direction. These two opposing forces create circular rotation.

The red arrows show the opposing forces that create circular rotation in tai otoshi

In an apparent contradiction to the above rule, there are some throws that only appear to have one application of force. This is because the second force is not being generated by the person executing the throw, but one of two other sources. The first source is given momentum. All throws must have some momentum which is either produced by the person executing the throw or the person being thrown. For example, an opponent charging at you has given momentum and may only require a tripping point in order to execute a throw, whereas an opponent standing still requires impetus (a force to generate momentum) in order to be thrown.

The second of the two sources is gravity itself, especially in a fairly static situation where there is relatively little momentum (either given or induced). Where it appears that a person's balance has been broken and the person has hit the ground with application of a single force and without the use of a pain compliance technique, gravity will usually be providing the second source. Going back to year 8 science, gravity is accelerating you towards the ground at 9.8 metres per second – as soon as a force starts to remove your base, gravity starts to accelerate you towards the ground. Think of it this way: the act of walking is a series of controlled falls. As you lift your foot and start to take a forward step your body unbalances and starts to 'fall' towards the ground. It is stopped by you planting your base (your foot) and rebalancing, before you lift your other foot and start the process again. When a force acts upon your leg in some way and prevents you re-establishing your base, you fall to the ground. So a single force acting upon the right location, at the right time, can use gravity as the secondary force in order to create circular rotation.

A strong and balanced finishing stance is represented by the Playstation's Square button. Although it is a fairly basic concept, it is often the one that I find people fail to do most often. As a result of failing to establish a strong and balanced finishing stance many people are unable to take advantage of their throw, or worse, sometimes end up throwing themselves as well! Most common though, they end up in a position that is vulnerable to a counter attack by their downed opponent. There are a number of reasons for this:

1. Too much strength – people will often try and compensate bad throwing technique by using more strength. A well executed throw shouldn't require an exceptional amount of strength, it is the reason throws work for smaller people. Bad technique coupled with excessive strength usually has the thrower trying to avoid tripping over their opponent or worse, on the floor with their opponent.
2. Bad positioning – sometimes a thrower will try and execute a throw when they aren't quite in the right position for that throw. Throws are fairly position specific and it is quite difficult to execute a good throw when you are out of position. For example, someone trying for an ogoshi (hip throw) may not have moved in close enough leaving a gap between their body and their opponent's body. Bad positioning is the major reason why someone with otherwise good technique will try and compensate with strength.
3. Bad posture – this can apply to a number of different aspects that usually affect a person's structure and therefore, their capacity to execute a throw. Things like position of the feet (too narrow, too wide, too linear), or having the centre of gravity move outside the base (leaning into a throw for example) all come within this area.

Apart from the damage a throw can cause it usually provides a major positional advantage from which a fight can be quickly ended. The most important function that a strong and stable finishing stance provides is a stable platform from which to execute a follow-up technique. As such it is imperative that when performing a sacrifice throw technique (any throw where you go to ground to take your opponent down) that you immediately move to a strong and stable position from which to execute your follow-up technique. Too many times I see people execute a fantastic sacrifice throw only to remain laying on the ground next to their opponent!

The follow-up technique is represented by the Playstation's 'X' button. This is probably the easiest of the four major steps as all the hard work has been done prior to this step. Never-the-less, it is imperative that students are reminded to press their advantage and finish the fight – this is self defence after all! The follow-up technique can be anything appropriate to the position and situation at hand – a striking technique, a kick, a lock, kneeling on an opponent's throat – whatever works!

So there it is, the Playstation Theory of throwing – Triangle, Circle, Square and 'X'.

Thanks for reading – until next week make sure you subscribe to the blog, and if you have any subjects you would like to see covered, post them in the comments section below.