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Common mistake 1
One-sided roll. Rolling backwards from shoulder to same side hip. Uneasy, unstable roll which comes from the fact that projection of the centre of gravity to the mat is not where the body touches the mat (in other words, you may throw yourself off balance to one side, instead of rolling forward.
Common mistake 2
Head stays in the middle, not tilted when rolling over the shoulder. The result of this is that the head stops or slows down the roll when bumping into the mat. The neck muscles can easily be pulled and injured when the roll is dynamic. Not tilting the head may also result in a roll that is alongside the spine: it will be a standard (not aikido) back roll.
Common mistake 3
In the starting position, the legs are not placed properly. If they are not in the position they are supposed to be at the beginning, it will not be easy to determine the line of the roll (i.e. the diagonal line, see our ushiro ukemi instructions) as the starting position is not straightforward to find out from which shoulder to which hip to roll. Improper leg positions often result in standard back rolls and not tilted head, or one sided rolls.
Common mistake 4
After positioning the head correctly at the beginning, beginners often bring their head back to a straight position when starting the roll. Also, the head sometimes comes back and it is tilted to the opposite side. The result of this is a roll on the head, one-sided roll, and if the head is tilted back at the wrong time, pulling the neck muscles is almost guaranteed.
Common mistake 5
When starting the roll, students sometimes try to look back. With this, instead of your back taking on a convex shape it will be concave or simply straight. It is not painful if the roll is done slowly on tatami but it is reasonably unpleasant if the roll is a dynamic one. Joke aside, it is not possible to roll smoothly with a straight or concave spine. Without rolling smoothly it won’t be possible to us the energy of the roll to stand up and get back to a stable position, as you will need to use your own energy this way in order to finish the roll in a proper position.
It should be noted (and remembered) that combinations of the above mistakes also appear. Obviously, there are other kinds of common mistakes as well. If you happen to have produced similar mistakes, possibly have a video about them, and you are not too shy to share these with us, please send us the comment or video (or its link)
In case you want to see a positive and step-by-step approach to learning ushiro ukemi, please visit our Instructional videos section.
Please note my analysis is not based on aikido practice, but on personal experience (having done a half-twist followed by half back roll, launched from a fast-moving bicycle because I hit something on the road during a race... !), and my study of kinesiology and biomechanics instead. (But I do have a bit of experience in aikido & hapkido)
Unmentionned in the video is the importance of proper arm positionning. This mistake is repeated throughout the whole clip. It is not too bad during the first repetition of supposedly "proper technique", but it worsens during last repetition. The worst case is at position 0:45 in the clip.
To date, I have observed this problem during back rolls on martial artists, and during double symmetric half-rolls for two dancers.
The issue is not really that the arm is abducted (on the side), the real problem is the combination of abduction and internal rotation, which is then followed by sudden external rotation, and further attempt to horizontally abduct the arm to help in recovery. This creates 4 problems:
1. Additionnal ground pressure on shoulder. (esp. acromion)
2. Possible impigement syndrome at the shoulder
3. Slight unbalancing (before complete arm contact with the ground, either the body inclines toward the arm (worsening common mistake #1), or it is compensated for and this slightly transform the roll into a side roll.
4. Too much reliance on cuff rotator & deltoid (particularilty posterior fibers) strength during recovering. Rhomboids, trapezius and scapula cannot perform their function properly since scapula movement is impeded by ground (this is normal, therefore arm horizontal abduction should be avoided for optimal biomechanical efficiency).
I think the arm on the side of the hip making contact with the ground should be in neutral position. Forearm extended, a slight push is possible to help the transition between end of execution and start of recovery phases. Then forearm is rapidly flexed (no noticeable side-effects), hand will make contact with the ground and, if necessary to aid in recovery, push as if throwing a basketball. Force is obtained by anterior deltoid and triceps contraction.
I might put a video on youtube someday...
Patrick Roy-V., B.Sc. Kin
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