Ninja-Rolls: Forward-Rolling, Zenpo Ukemi

Ninja-Rolls: Forward-Rolling, Zenpo Ukemi Who doesn’t know them? The ninja warriors who jump silently over walls at night and roll just as silently and cat-like. For a martial artist it is important to be able to fall and roll. In a fight one can be thrown, stumble, fall down. A roll allows you to create distance from your opponent or to take cover quickly. It is one of the most practical things you can learn in a martial art! As I often say to my students: I don’t know or hope that you will ever have to fight, but everyone will fall and tumble in life. Once you have learned falling and rolling, you are less likely to injure yourself in a fall. There are three forward rolls in our training: The two-handed forward roll: Zenpo Kaiten Riote! It is the mother of all rolls! A beginner learns it to lose the fear of falling. The new student learns correct hand position, how to bring the shoulder to the floor and how to roll correctly. The one-handed forward roll: Zenpo Kaiten K