01 / AT A GLANCE
Crossed arms, thumbs inside, palms down
Nami-juji-jime is the first of the twelve shime-waza (strangling techniques) in the Kodokan list of technique names, written 並十字絞. Nami means ordinary or normal, juji means the shape of the character 十, a cross, and jime means strangle. The common English translation is “normal cross strangle”; the IJF labels it “normal cross-handed strangle.” The IJF definition describes the technique facing the opponent: you grip the collar with crossed hands, “thumbs inside the collar so that your palms are down,” and apply pressure to both sides of the neck with the outer edges of both hands.
That sentence contains everything that separates nami-juji-jime from its two Kodokan neighbours. In gyaku-juji-jime the fingers go inside the collar and both palms face up. In kata-juji-jime one hand goes in with the thumb inside and the other with the fingers inside. Nami-juji-jime is the version where both thumbs are inside and both palms face down, so the backs of your hands face towards you and the little-finger edges of your hands and wrists are what meet the sides of the neck.
Who this guide is for: judoka who already practise supervised ne-waza and have been shown by a coach how strangles are applied and released. Text cannot replace that lesson. In every repetition uke can tap or say “stop” and tori opens both hands at once; practice is never taken towards unconsciousness. Strangle rules differ by age group, grade and event, and this page does not state them for you.
02 / WATCH THE TECHNIQUE
The Kodokan form and a dojo’s cross-strangle class
Open this video on YouTube if the player is unavailable.
The official clip has no narration. We sampled still frames from it rather than reviewing it continuously, so we give no timestamps. In the frames we looked at, the pair begin sitting and facing each other while tori places the hands at uke’s collar; a later phase shows tori sitting with uke kneeling between tori’s legs; and the clip ends with uke on the back and tori kneeling over uke’s trunk with both hands at the collar. In other words, the same grip is shown from a seated teaching position, from underneath and from on top.
When you watch, follow one hand at a time. Where does the first hand finish on the collar: beside the throat, or round towards the back of the neck? How long does the second hand take to arrive? Where are tori’s elbows at the end: close together in front of tori’s chest, or spread outwards? What does uke’s head do? Anything you cannot see from the camera angle, write down as “not visible.”
Open this video on YouTube. Independent coaching reference, separate from the official demonstration.
We have not reviewed this class by playback, so we attribute no particular instruction to it. Its publisher chapter list includes: shime-waza means closing, not choking (0:00); closing the blood flow, not the air flow (0:18); doesn’t matter which hand is on top (0:32); the target (0:39); how to practice (0:44); keep your elbows bent (2:02); fast is fine, but accuracy is final (2:23); fusegi practice (3:02); four escapes (3:16 to 5:24); people generally attack with one arm at a time (5:50); doing kata-juji-jime as fusegi from the bottom (6:21); a solution to stalling (7:05); these are generally done from the bottom (7:34); and roll, roll, roll (8:01). These are the publisher’s cues, not timestamps we checked.
Three of those titles shape this guide. “Closing the blood flow, not the air flow” is why section 4 aims the pressure at the sides of the neck rather than the throat. “Doesn’t matter which hand is on top” is why our convention leaves the top forearm to your coach. “People generally attack with one arm at a time” describes the weak moment of every cross strangle, the gap between the first and second hand, which sections 5 to 7 return to.
03 / WHEN TO APPLY IT
Facing uke, with a collar you can enter
Nami-juji-jime is applied facing uke. That alone separates it from okuri-eri-jime and hadaka-jime, which are applied from behind. Before you reach, check three things: uke’s collar is open enough for your thumb to enter, uke’s hands are not already guarding the neck, and your position will still be stable once both of your hands are on the collar instead of on the mat.
Kneeling astride uke (mount)
With uke on the back and your knees on either side of uke’s trunk, gravity helps you and uke’s collar faces you. The cost is that both of your hands will be on the collar, so nothing posts on the mat; if your knees are loose, uke can bridge and roll you. Settle your weight before the first hand goes in, not after.
Underneath, with uke between your legs
The official clip includes a phase where tori sits with uke kneeling between tori’s legs, and the coaching class’s chapter list says “these are generally done from the bottom.” From here your legs can draw uke’s upper body down towards you, which brings the collar into reach and bends uke’s posture. The weakness is the opposite of the mount: if uke sits up tall with straight arms, the collar moves out of range.
Uke kneeling or sitting in front of you
This is the teaching position used at the start of the official clip. It lets both partners see the grips and is the right place to learn the hand order, but it is not a position where the strangle is usually finished against resistance.
When it is not available
If uke has turned onto the side or front, the collar is facing the mat and the crossed grip no longer makes sense; switch to a back strangle or a hold. If uke’s chin is clamped down and both hands guard the collar, forcing the thumb in drags the cloth across the face. If uke’s jacket is pulled out of the belt and loose, a palm-down grip slides rather than tightens. And if your event or age group does not allow strangles, train the position only.
04 / HOW IT WORKS
A deep first hand, a crossing second hand, pressure from the hand edges
The steps below follow the IJF description in order. Each one has a job and a check that a partner or coach can confirm.
Settle the position first
On top, your knees are close to uke’s hips and your weight is on uke’s trunk rather than on your hands. Underneath, your legs are wrapped round uke’s waist and pull uke’s upper body down towards your chest. Neither hand reaches for the collar until this is done. Check: before any grip, uke tries one slow bridge (on top) or one slow sit-up (underneath). If it succeeds without you using your hands, the position is not ready.
Right hand: thumb inside uke’s right collar, deep
Your right hand crosses in front of uke’s throat to uke’s right side. Open the collar with your fingers, slip the thumb inside, and turn the palm down so your fingers are outside the jacket. Then slide the grip round the collar towards the back of uke’s neck, behind the ear, rather than stopping beside the throat. This depth is what lets the edge of your right hand reach the side of the neck later. Check: ask uke where your thumb is. “Beside my windpipe” is too shallow; “near the back of my neck” is the target.
Left hand: cross to uke’s left collar, thumb inside
Your left arm crosses your right forearm and takes uke’s left collar, again thumb inside and palm down, as deep as the cloth allows. Your forearms now form an X in front of uke’s throat. The coaching class’s chapter title says it does not matter which hand is on top; this guide puts the left forearm over the right, but follow your coach. Check: the coach looks at both thumbs. If either thumb is outside the collar, or a palm faces up, you are no longer practising nami-juji-jime.
Pressure from the outer edges of both hands
The IJF definition puts the pressure on both sides of the neck through the outer edges of both hands. Because both palms face down, those edges are the little-finger sides of your hands and wrists. Bring the elbows towards your own body and keep them bent, as the chapter title “keep your elbows bent” suggests, so the two hand edges close on the sides of the neck together. On top, ask your coach whether your chest should lower as the hands close; underneath, your legs keep drawing uke in. We do not prescribe an angle or a force; build the pressure slowly so uke has time to tap. Check: uke reports pressure on both sides of the neck, equally, and nothing on the front of the throat or the jaw.
Release is part of the technique
On a tap or “stop,” open both hands and take your thumbs out of the collar. Relaxing the arms while the thumbs stay buried still leaves the cloth tight round the neck. On top, sit up so your forearms leave the neck; underneath, open your legs so uke can lift away. If uke stops responding at any point, release completely, call the coach and stop the drill. Check: after the release, uke’s collar hangs loose on both sides.
Control points and the escape each one closes: knees and weight on top stop the bridge-and-roll; legs round the waist underneath stop uke sitting up out of range; the deep first hand stops uke peeling the grip off before the second hand arrives; the crossed second hand completes the X so the pressure comes from both sides at once. Losing any one of these opens a specific escape, and section 6 is organised around which one failed.
05 / KEY POINTS
Five checks for a controlled nami-juji-jime
Section 4 checks each step on a cooperative partner. These cues are for rounds where uke defends. Choose one per round and record what you saw.
The first hand gets deep before the second hand moves
Check: after each attempt, uke says where the first thumb ended. Count the attempts where the second hand moved while the first was still beside the throat.
Both thumbs inside, both palms down
Check: the coach calls out the grip at the end of each attempt. Under pressure, the second hand often goes in fingers-first because it is easier; that turns the technique into kata-juji-jime. Count how often it happens.
Pressure on the sides, never on the windpipe
Check: if uke coughs, swallows hard or reports pressure on the front of the throat, release. That repetition does not count, and the cause is usually grip depth (problem 2 below).
Elbows bent and close to your body
Check: film from the side. At the moment of pressure, are your elbows bent and drawn in, or have your arms straightened as you push away from uke?
Base before grips
Check: on top, count how often uke’s first bridge moves you before the second hand is in. Underneath, count how often uke sits up out of range before the second hand is in.
06 / PROBLEMS & ADJUSTMENTS
Why does your nami-juji-jime stall?
Most stalls trace back to the first hand: not deep enough, peeled off too early, or set while the position was still loose. Identify which step went wrong first.
“My second hand can’t make the cross.”
Possible causes: the first hand stopped beside the throat, so its forearm blocks the space the second arm needs; uke’s left hand is guarding the left collar; or you are too far away and your second arm is short. How to tell: pause when the second hand stops. Is it blocked by your own forearm, by uke’s hand, or by distance? Adjustment: if it is your own forearm, slide the first hand further round the collar before moving the second; if it is distance, close the position first (lower your chest on top, pull with the legs underneath). Assess: in the same drill, count completed crosses out of ten.
“Uke feels it on the throat, not the sides.”
Possible causes: both hands are shallow, so the crossing point of your wrists sits on the front of the throat; your palms have turned up, so the knuckles rather than the hand edges are pointing in; or you are pushing down on the neck instead of closing the hand edges. How to tell: ask uke to point to where the pressure is, and look at where your wrists cross. Adjustment: release, re-grip both thumbs deeper towards the back of the neck so the crossing point moves away from the throat, and check that both palms face down. The publisher’s cue “closing the blood flow, not the air flow” is the target to discuss with your coach. Assess: uke reports side pressure, not throat pressure, on each of the next five slow repetitions.
“Uke strips my first hand before the second arrives.”
Possible causes: the first hand is shallow and easy to peel; there is a long pause between the hands; or uke’s hands were free to reach your wrist because the position did not occupy them. The coaching class’s chapter “people generally attack with one arm at a time” names this gap. How to tell: film and count the time, in beats, between the first grip and the second, and note which of uke’s hands did the stripping. Adjustment: practise the second hand following straight after the first once the first is deep, with no adjustment in between. Assess: how often the first grip survives the same agreed stripping attempt.
“I get rolled as soon as both hands are on the collar.”
Possible causes: on top, your knees are high on uke’s chest and your weight is forward over your hands; uke bridges to the side where nothing is posted. How to tell: the coach watches your knees and hips at the moment the second hand goes in. Adjustment: keep your knees low and your hips heavy on uke’s trunk; do not lean so far forward that your weight depends on the grip. If uke bridges anyway, let go and post rather than holding on (see section 8). Assess: rolls per ten attempts with the same agreed bridge.
“From underneath, uke sits up and nothing happens.”
Possible causes: your legs are not drawing uke down; your arms have straightened as uke posts; or your grips are good but uke’s head is now out of range. How to tell: look at your elbows. If they are straight, uke’s posture has beaten your arms. Adjustment: use the legs to bring uke’s chest back down before trying to close the hands, keeping the elbows bent as the chapter title suggests. If you cannot bring uke down, keep the grips as control and work on the position. Assess: how often you can return uke to range from the same agreed posture.
“My grips slide and the collar loosens.”
Possible causes: uke’s jacket is out of the belt; your thumb is only just inside the collar; or you are pulling outward along the cloth instead of closing the hands. How to tell: watch the collar while pressure builds. If the lapels slide through your hands, the cloth is the problem; if your thumbs pop out, depth is. Adjustment: deepen the thumb, and focus on closing the hand edges rather than pulling the cloth. Assess: uke reports whether the pressure holds steady or fades during a slow five-count.
07 / SETUPS & STRANGLE SWITCHES
Use uke’s defence to choose the next action
Each branch names the starting position, what tori does, what uke actually does and what that makes possible. If the condition for the next action is missing, release and reset.
CROSS STRANGLE → ARMLOCK
Uke pushes on your chest with straight arms
Start: kneeling astride uke, right hand deep in uke’s right collar. First action: left hand moves to cross. Response: uke straightens both arms against your chest or shoulders to push you away. Next action: a straightened arm is the condition for ude-hishigi-juji-gatame; release the collar grip before you move, so you are not twisting the neck while you change position, and follow the transition your coach teaches. Stop: if uke bends the arm back in, abandon the armlock and return to the mount; do not force a straightening arm.
SECOND HAND BLOCKED → KATA-JUJI-JIME
Uke closes the left collar against your thumb
Start: right hand deep, thumb in. First action: left hand reaches for uke’s left collar thumb-first. Response: uke’s left hand or chin closes that side so the thumb cannot enter. Next action: if the coach has taught it, the left hand can enter fingers-first, palm up, which is the grip of kata-juji-jime. Name the switch when you record it; it is a different technique, not a sloppy nami-juji-jime. Stop: if neither entry fits without dragging cloth over uke’s face, keep the position and change plan.
STRANGLE THREAT → HOLD
Uke defends the collar with both hands
Start: on top, first hand in. First action: second hand moves. Response: uke uses both hands on your wrists and stops bridging. Next action: uke’s hands are now busy with your arms and not with escaping; release the collar and settle a hold such as tate-shiho-gatame from the mount, or move to the side towards kesa-gatame. Stop: if you release the collar and uke bridges at the same moment, prioritise base over the hold.
STRANGLE THREAT → BACK STRANGLE
Uke turns onto the side to protect the neck
Start: mount, grips set or partly set. Response: uke turns away onto one side, taking the collar towards the mat. Next action: let go of the collar, follow onto uke’s back, and start a back strangle from its own first grip: the IJF order for okuri-eri-jime begins with the left hand under uke’s left armpit, and hadaka-jime needs no jacket. Stop: do not keep the crossed grip while uke turns; it twists the collar round the neck.
Record which branch you meet most often. If most partners defend with both hands early, the hold branch deserves more practice than the strangle itself.
08 / DEFENCES & ESCAPES
Stop the first hand, deny the cross, recover position
Separate prevention (no deep first hand), defence (no cross once the first hand is in) and escape (out of the position that made the strangle possible). The coaching class’s chapter list includes “fusegi practice” and four escapes, which your coach can demonstrate; we describe the decisions, not the movements.
Prevention: keep the collar closed and the first thumb out
Under the mount or in tori’s guard, keep the chin down and the elbows close so the collar is hard to open. The first hand is the one to fight. A thumb that only reaches the side of the throat can usually be removed; one that has slid behind the ear is much harder to move.
Defence: block the second hand
Once one hand is deep, uke’s job is to stop the X. Uke can keep a hand or forearm on the side where the second hand must enter. The coaching chapter “doing kata-juji-jime as fusegi from the bottom” suggests that uke can also use a cross grip of their own as a defence; ask your coach how.
Escape: attack tori’s base
On top, tori has both hands on the collar and none on the mat. That makes a bridge and roll the natural escape; the direction depends on which side tori cannot post, and the chapter “roll, roll, roll” suggests the class works on it. Underneath, uke’s escape is posture: sit up and move the head out of range before the second hand arrives. Once real pressure is on the neck, the escape is over: tap.
Counters and exposure
If uke bridges and rolls tori, tori lands underneath with the grips still on the collar; tori should let go rather than be dragged through the roll by the neck. From underneath, if tori opens the legs to chase the grip, uke may pass the legs and reach a hold. Never escape by bending tori’s fingers or twisting the thumb out of the collar; strip at the wrist.
09 / TRANSITIONS FROM HOLDS & TURNOVERS
Arriving facing uke with the collar available
Nami-juji-jime usually follows something else: a hold, a turnover or a throw that left uke on the back. Practise the arrival as well as the grip.
From a hold to the mount
From a side hold such as yoko-shiho-gatame or kesa-gatame, uke often pushes to make space. If you move to the mount, settle the knees before the first hand goes in. Your first hand can enter while uke is still adjusting to the new position.
From the mount into tate-shiho-gatame and back
The mount and tate-shiho-gatame share uke’s position. If the collar is closed, hold; if uke opens the collar by pushing, the first hand has a way in. Switching between threat and hold keeps uke defending two things.
From underneath after a throw or a roll
If you land on your back with uke between your legs, wrap the legs and draw uke down before reaching. A grip taken while uke is still upright pulls you towards uke rather than uke towards you.
When uke escapes to the side or the back
The cross strangle is over. Release the collar, then follow to the back or to a hold. See the ne-waza drills guide and the ne-waza training plan for session structure.
10 / POSITIONAL ROUNDS
From a seated grip drill to a live mount round
Change one variable per stage. Round lengths and counts are editorial suggestions to adapt with your coach.
Grip order, seated and facing
As at the start of the official clip: right thumb deep in uke’s right collar, left thumb in uke’s left collar, no pressure. Uke reports where each thumb is. Progress when uke reports both thumbs towards the back of the neck on most repetitions.
Light pressure and immediate release
Tori closes the hand edges slowly; uke taps early; tori opens both hands and removes the thumbs. The coach calls random taps. Do not progress until every release is immediate and uke never reports throat pressure.
The second hand against one strip
Uke is allowed one attempt to peel the first hand. Tori’s task is to get the first hand deep enough to survive it and bring the second hand in straight after.
Mount round with a bridge
Uke starts under the mount and may bridge at agreed effort. Record outcomes separately: grips completed, rolled, uke defended, uke tapped.
Guard round with posture
Tori starts underneath with uke between the legs; uke may sit up. Tori must bring uke into range before gripping. This tests the bottom use the coaching chapter titles mention.
Supervision: any stage with pressure on the neck needs a coach who can see both partners. Without one, keep to stage 1 and positional rounds without strangles.
11 / COMPETITION REPLAYS
One IJF replay lead and its limits
On October 14, 2026 the IJF nami-juji-jime page showed a single competition video under the technique tag, and its “most used by judoka” panel showed no videos. That scarcity is itself information: in the IJF library this tag is rare compared with back strangles. We did not search other databases for further examples.
Tbilisi Grand Prix 2018: Margiev vs Ahmadov
The IJF nami-juji-jime listing for the Tbilisi Grand Prix 2018 names Merab Margiev and Sanan Ahmadov. The listing shows the pairing and the tag only. We have not verified who applied the technique, whether it scored, when it happened or how the position arose, and we have not watched the replay.
Viewing questions for the replay
- Position: is the attacker on top, underneath, or somewhere in between?
- The first hand: can you see a thumb-inside grip, and how far round the collar does it reach?
- The second hand: does it go in thumb-first (nami-juji-jime) or fingers-first (which would be kata-juji-jime)? Tags can be wrong, so check.
- Uke’s defence: does the defender attack the first hand, block the second, or attack the attacker’s base?
- The ending: a tap, referee intervention or break? Record only what you can see and mark the rest unknown.
Senior contest footage reflects senior rules at that event. It does not tell you what is permitted in your age group or competition.
12 / VARIATIONS & COMPARISONS
Nami-juji-jime beside the other cross strangles
| Technique | Hand orientation (IJF) | What changes for you |
|---|---|---|
| Nami-juji-jime | Both thumbs inside, both palms down; pressure from the outer edges of both hands. | The little-finger edges are the pressure surface; the elbows draw in towards your body. |
| Gyaku-juji-jime | Both hands fingers inside, both palms up. | The palms face you and the knuckles sit inside the collar; the grip feels different on entry and the pressure surface changes. |
| Kata-juji-jime | Arms crossed; left hand fingers inside the left lapel, right hand thumb inside the right lapel. | One hand of each type. If your second hand goes in fingers-first, you have switched to this technique. |
| Okuri-eri-jime | From behind; three lapel grips with a hand change. | Back control instead of facing; not a cross strangle. |
| Hadaka-jime | From behind; no judogi grip. | No collar needed; useful when the jacket is open. |
Official versus informal: nami-, gyaku- and kata-juji-jime are three separate Kodokan names, not three styles of one technique. Informal names such as “cross choke” or “collar choke” often cover all three, so ask which hand orientation a coach or a video means before copying it.
Functional variations within nami-juji-jime: which forearm is on top, how far round the collar each thumb reaches, and whether you apply it from on top or underneath are coaching choices that keep the technique the same. Practise and record each one separately, because they change where the strangle stalls: on top it usually stalls on base, underneath on distance.
13 / YOUR NEXT PRACTICE
One focus: depth of the first hand
If your cross strangles stall before the second hand arrives, the first hand is the likely cause. Use this record for one session.
- Situation
- Mount; uke allowed one attempt to peel the first hand.
- My focus
- Right thumb inside uke’s right collar, slid towards the back of the neck before my left hand moves.
- What I noticed
- Where did uke say my first thumb was? Did the second hand cross? Did uke report throat pressure? Were all releases immediate?
- Coach question
- “Is my first hand deep enough, and which forearm should be on top for me?”
- Next decision
- Stay on the grip drill, add the bridge, or practise the hold branch.
Illustrative example, not measured data: “Ten mount starts. First thumb reached behind the ear in four. Of the six shallow ones, uke stripped five. Next time: seated grip drill for depth, then mount with one strip allowed.”
Log it in the practice-log template or in Judo AI, and note whether the second hand went in thumb-first or fingers-first.
14 / SOURCES & REVIEW
Sources, authorship and review
- Kodokan: Names of Judo Techniques (list dated April 1, 2017) — name, kanji and position as the first shime-waza.
- IJF: Nami-juji-jime definition and technique library — hand orientation and pressure surface quoted in section 1; competition listing count; checked October 14, 2026.
- IJF: Gyaku-juji-jime and IJF: Kata-juji-jime — hand orientations used in the comparison table.
- KODOKAN: 並十字絞 / Nami-juji-jime — identity, publisher and length verified; still frames sampled, not reviewed continuously.
- Riki Judo Dojo: Nami-Juji-Jime, Kata-Juji-Jime, And Gyaku-Juji-Jime Tips — identity and publisher chapter list only; not reviewed by playback.
- IJF replay listing: Tbilisi Grand Prix 2018 — event, pairing and tag only.
By Judo AI · Editorial review: October 14, 2026. Diagnoses, branches and drills are editorial proposals for supervised practice, not a validated programme. No named coach has reviewed this page.
Rules: this page does not state current competition rules for strangles. Rules differ between IJF events and national or youth competitions; before a strangle is used in any contest, a coach or referee should confirm the rules for that event, age category and grade.
Not verified: the exact direction of the elbows and chest in the Kodokan demonstration, the instructions given in the coaching class, and anything about the listed contest beyond its listing.