This post has been inspired by the last peice of learning from our most recent class: the Fedor entry from out of striking range.
For many Fedor is the best heavyweight in MMA's young history. Whilst we never fortunate to see him fight in West apart from a few flings at the end of his powers, the internet can reveal the man behind the legend.
I enjoy watching Fedor for many reasons:
He was never physically imposing in height, mean mug ability or physique. His skills and movement were fantastic. His mastery of Sombo was second to none. He had a never say die attitude. He threw hands (and soccer kicks) with violent intent yet he seemed to be one of the most humble fighters ever. This might because he was a Russian making his trade in Japan where their thrill for MMA was the freak show type fights. Just watch how many 'specimens' he was up against. His resilience was a plenty. Watch the slam by Kevin Randleman that almost sent him through the Earth's crust. He still won that fight.
A killer on the feet, tremendous takedowns and slight ground work. He even pulls of a wrenching DWL finish.
This is Sombo; essentially MMA with a gi jacket. He fight just as he does in MMA - powerful and crisp stand up to set up the takedown into ground domination.
Showing posts with label bruce lee. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bruce lee. Show all posts
Wednesday, 9 July 2014
Class notes: a maximum of 2 moves
3 drill warm up: It still amazes me how 4 humans feel so different when doing this. The type of energy, the direction and the little nuances each person has. It was a chance to both warm up and revise the material from last week.
Heavy back fist from the elbow pulling back. Don't flick and roll or snap it over. Should have depth, length and forward pressure.
Change pressure: pull the lap and send the fist to his face, you should move him to enable your bastard change (the undefendable chop/right cross).
His centreline and punch pressure
Lap directions: vary it for different relations and gaps in his defence.
Forward pressure: all attacks and defences
Hunting for the revved wrist in the 3 drill: This was a new addition to the drill where instead of applying the lap to the wrist or forearm, you hunt for the base of the hand and apply more torque to the arm. This will better enable the DWL entry.
Defend the centre on the outside so he can lap and punch and then go for the arm drag.
4 variants of the arm drag from the inside and outside wrist control (with punch down the centre)
Arm drag to back shoulder and hip control:
When done to you this feels most unpleasant, firstly because you are spinning around with your head below heart height, secondly, they are not applying much force and so are riding your attempts to escape. Below are the 4 variants of the arm drag entry to get to their back and hip.
lap right and punch left starting position: arm drag - pull the hook, shoulder drives through their shoulder to where they are not, just in front of their foot. Break the footwork rule of feet together, ride the bull, torque the wrist.
- buh the arm, and slip the left hand to hook the upper arm for the AD and reach around and grab the hip with the right.
- roll over and pull the elbow back if the pressure is going across the centre
- pressure being pressed into you and he is not letting you have the arm, go over for the DWL
- same side arm drag
These can be applied on the inside and the outside of the arm from the initial position as well as left and right handed.
Arm drag to arm shear head control - extended arm, if they stand then go into the shoulder clinch with the underhook. You remain in a dominant position throughout.
Uppercut from wrist control and punch to his centre. He blocks the punch. Keep the pressure on with the punch and lean the shoulder slightly into him. Turn the hip and the shoulder for the uppercut (hand on his wrist) and go back to wrist control. It looks like a rotation of the spine, nothing is extended. Tight small movements are the key. Continue to hit off until you get the chance to uppercut under his forearm. From here your hand will appear trapped between his arm and his chest. However, this is the perfect set up for the DWL>
DWL out of MT clinch defence.
Boxing drills:
jab and jab counter
jab and jab, left hook counter
jab and jab, right cross counter
the Fedor entry - long range entry with the overhand right to get wrist control against a good striker who is making your day miserable
This is a great way to help you close the gap in a relatively safe fashion. Strikers seeing the big overhand right will want to defend, block or cover up. You are not trying to land, just trick their eyes and brain into that. The split second they cover them you are on them like a drunk on a kebab.
Heavy back fist from the elbow pulling back. Don't flick and roll or snap it over. Should have depth, length and forward pressure.
Change pressure: pull the lap and send the fist to his face, you should move him to enable your bastard change (the undefendable chop/right cross).
His centreline and punch pressure
Lap directions: vary it for different relations and gaps in his defence.
Forward pressure: all attacks and defences
Hunting for the revved wrist in the 3 drill: This was a new addition to the drill where instead of applying the lap to the wrist or forearm, you hunt for the base of the hand and apply more torque to the arm. This will better enable the DWL entry.
Defend the centre on the outside so he can lap and punch and then go for the arm drag.
4 variants of the arm drag from the inside and outside wrist control (with punch down the centre)
Arm drag to back shoulder and hip control:
When done to you this feels most unpleasant, firstly because you are spinning around with your head below heart height, secondly, they are not applying much force and so are riding your attempts to escape. Below are the 4 variants of the arm drag entry to get to their back and hip.
lap right and punch left starting position: arm drag - pull the hook, shoulder drives through their shoulder to where they are not, just in front of their foot. Break the footwork rule of feet together, ride the bull, torque the wrist.
- buh the arm, and slip the left hand to hook the upper arm for the AD and reach around and grab the hip with the right.
- roll over and pull the elbow back if the pressure is going across the centre
- pressure being pressed into you and he is not letting you have the arm, go over for the DWL
- same side arm drag
These can be applied on the inside and the outside of the arm from the initial position as well as left and right handed.
Arm drag to arm shear head control - extended arm, if they stand then go into the shoulder clinch with the underhook. You remain in a dominant position throughout.
Uppercut from wrist control and punch to his centre. He blocks the punch. Keep the pressure on with the punch and lean the shoulder slightly into him. Turn the hip and the shoulder for the uppercut (hand on his wrist) and go back to wrist control. It looks like a rotation of the spine, nothing is extended. Tight small movements are the key. Continue to hit off until you get the chance to uppercut under his forearm. From here your hand will appear trapped between his arm and his chest. However, this is the perfect set up for the DWL>
DWL out of MT clinch defence.
Boxing drills:
jab and jab counter
jab and jab, left hook counter
jab and jab, right cross counter
the Fedor entry - long range entry with the overhand right to get wrist control against a good striker who is making your day miserable
This is a great way to help you close the gap in a relatively safe fashion. Strikers seeing the big overhand right will want to defend, block or cover up. You are not trying to land, just trick their eyes and brain into that. The split second they cover them you are on them like a drunk on a kebab.
Wednesday, 25 June 2014
Class notes: be calm in the chaos
3 drill
chin down on the chop
alter the change to be a lap and right cross and roll with it
grab the punch to get wrist control, elbow down as you cross his wrists to break his grip, then strike. can also turn into a mini lap (2 hands to 1)
or
turn the hips and throw the right hand
attacking with the attacks from the 3 drill - he leads with a jab, inside gate lap against his lead hand and chop in - lap and backfist, lap and right cross
grip breaks revision - grab the grabber
inside gate pak sau against the lead hand in guard or jab. it must be out of range because you are then protected against the right hand. if you muck up you just have the hand and you are out of range. Then come in with a jab or chop
Boxing drills with the gloves on
jab, evade, jab, cross,
jab, cross, protective shell, cross
sparring
jab to the body
both sides jabbing to the head
all strikes v defending
striking vs grappling
Lack of application of pak sau and strike, inside gate inquisition
chin down on the chop
alter the change to be a lap and right cross and roll with it
grab the punch to get wrist control, elbow down as you cross his wrists to break his grip, then strike. can also turn into a mini lap (2 hands to 1)
or
turn the hips and throw the right hand
attacking with the attacks from the 3 drill - he leads with a jab, inside gate lap against his lead hand and chop in - lap and backfist, lap and right cross
grip breaks revision - grab the grabber
inside gate pak sau against the lead hand in guard or jab. it must be out of range because you are then protected against the right hand. if you muck up you just have the hand and you are out of range. Then come in with a jab or chop
Boxing drills with the gloves on
jab, evade, jab, cross,
jab, cross, protective shell, cross
sparring
jab to the body
both sides jabbing to the head
all strikes v defending
striking vs grappling
Lack of application of pak sau and strike, inside gate inquisition
Saturday, 14 June 2014
UFC submission sucess rate article
My old MMA coach has been doing some analysis of submission over the past 5 years.
If my maths is correct then we have studied about 30% of successful ones (kimura - DWL, arm triangle - head and arm, Guillotine - grovit plus other 2 variations). Stands us at Workman Martial arts in a good position in terms of our submssion game. The next phase I assume is to apply them in all phases - standing, clinch and ground.
http://www.mma121.com/submission-statistics-data-from-ufc-mma-events/
If my maths is correct then we have studied about 30% of successful ones (kimura - DWL, arm triangle - head and arm, Guillotine - grovit plus other 2 variations). Stands us at Workman Martial arts in a good position in terms of our submssion game. The next phase I assume is to apply them in all phases - standing, clinch and ground.
http://www.mma121.com/submission-statistics-data-from-ufc-mma-events/
Wednesday, 30 April 2014
Class notes: Catch wrestling on your feet
Warmed up with the pummel; just rolling and looking for the different attacks out of this such as the DWL, arm drags, full and half Thai clinch.
Class was split again in two tonight; standing grappling and striking sparring (standing).
DWL defence against a big guy:
It is unlikely that sinking down and doing the palm to palm hip capture will work against Big Ron and others of a similar build we looked at the grip break. When they have the DWL the arm is isolated and disconnected from the body and thus much easier to manipulate. To even this out and take it back you need to integrate the whole body. Clasp the palms and get your hip behind your grip, you will need to step into him to get behind your hands. Now the hand and arms are in a more powerful and structurally string position. You are no longer fighting arm against arm. To break it, punch the hips through and turn. I started to lift but got corrected. Keeping the hands sort of central to you as you punch the hips will make it very hard for him to maintain his dominant position.
Defending the standing head and arm:
Briefly looked at this - fist to neck or speak on the telephone. This will jam your elbow into his neck or shoulder giving you space to breath. A cheeky attack from here is as you turn towards him you can hit your own elbow which will hit him in the head. CI like this as clearly it will not KO him but it will give him something to think about. I have found when your stuff is being messed with it is hard to ignore that, instead most people want to deal with that and then return to a dominant position.
Blossoming flower of oblivion:
This choke can be likened to a very deep bicep guilotene. It might just be the worst cranking choke out there. From the clinch grapple his head goes down and here is the chance for the choke. Punch the arm around the neck deeply. So that you are trying to get the bicep under his chin. We investigated having the forearm across the jaw bone and under the chin, both horrendously effective. For me the absolute key and unashamedly worth repeating is the initial motion to punch the arm around the neck to get deep on him. If I punch my right arm around the neck, my left hand braces against his left shoulder. The very fact that you have gone deep with the choking arm might by itself be enough. There is no space in there for the head so any motion has big effects. To get the right hand on to the left wrist you do not need to crab walk the hand to the wrist. Your right closed fist will blossom open and simply park at the wrist. If he has not tapped yet he soon will. The full completion of the movement is either: get the elbows close as your put all your weight on the back of the neck driving him to the ground to close off on the floor. the second, and more violent option is to suplex him...
Punching entry for head crank:
This is the neck crank Martin showed in the old class many years ago and has stuck with me and one I often think about. To set it up throw a left jab then left hook causing him to cover up, keep your left hand on his cover as you throw the right. Blocking with his left you elbow around his forearm to enter head lock range. If the punching was too complicated a set up, Martin did give us the opportunity to work from wrist control and forearm contact. To get the elbow in range for the headlock, use his forearm as the fulcrum and go around it, it looked like the elbow strike from the powerlines drill a few weeks ago. Arm that is closed to him slides under the chin and the hand goes to the top of his head, rear hand meets at the top of the head with a deep grip. The forearm will be grinding into the temple. To finish the crank lever the hands away and close the elbow together. This will cause the neck and jaw line to move along lines they were not designed to. And if any of the three standing neck crank/chokes we have done (grovit, thumb guillotene, blossoming flower of oblivion) does not work because he stands up out of them then they can stand into the neck crank just outlined.
Sparring:
Tonight we started to spar in incremental and developmental steps: `loose fists, learning pace, all about learning
1. Jabs to the body.
2. Jabs to the body whilst holding the right glove between your jaw and your neck. This was to enhance the feel for the shell. The glove should not fall off when you move, attack or defend. Clearly it did but it really focussed you on keeping that shell tight.
3. One attacks and one defends - defender can't move feet and only uses head, body movement and hands and covering to defend the shots coming to the head and body.
4. As above but now the defender can use movement and the left jab. Also his was to the head and body.
Bloody loved it. It was great to work the protective shell in real time. Jamie's first night sparring too so very proud of him. We chatted lots on the way home in the car and he really loved the sparring too. So looking forward to many more session like this.
Grip sparring:
I feel bad in retrospect when I analyse what I was doing. It was supposed to be grip sparring but I turned into clinch range and was using my head as an additional tool for control. So I apologise to Ron, Trist and Ayyaz for grinding my forehead into you. Tonight was not the night for that and if I messed up your learning time by doing something out of the drill or range I apologise. I guess I just got excited to be in clinching range. I did not listen to the full instructions and heard sparring and grip so went for what I wanted to get in terms of control instead of practising all the grips and controls. So lads I am sorry.
Some other points worth mentioning from Martin's teaching tonight was:
Brief insight into the scarf hold catch version from side control - grabbing your own thigh and cranking on the neck.
Catch wrestling is catching - they move and you catch them in their motion, no need to hunt for limbs as they will come your way. Controlling the pace - only you are in control of you o set your pace so that you can do all day. 80/20 rule - goes above your 80% of effort 20% of the time. Fight in different paces but fight smart, to work well you need to preserve you. Being gassed will have a dramatic effect on your ability to breath, think and act well.
Breathing - when it is getting tough exhale all of your air from the lungs through the mouth. Let the Co2 out and get good air back in.
Control the range - with bones as these do not move. For example in the half Thai clinch. Use your structure to dictate and control the range.
Uppercut detail - brief words about dipping the opposite shoulder to load the uppercut, use the whole body and not isolated arms. When Martin demo'ed it looked like small tight motions, as if the spine is rotating and the punches just happen to be part of the core rotation.
Uppercuts from the clinch - his head is on your shoulder then as you uppercut you will leave a space where you were and now where your punch can go.
Finally, being present. If there is a practise out there that puts you in the moment better than martial arts I would like to know. Nothing else matters, just the moment. Martin rightly said that a lot of what we fear is in the future and is essentially all in our minds. We can't control the future as it is not yet happening. The past has been and gone as we can't affect our past only learn from it. We can only act in the now. Sparring is all about the now. It is both an intensely physical and mental challenge.
Martin is away on a work gig next week so it is guest instructor time again.
Class was split again in two tonight; standing grappling and striking sparring (standing).
DWL defence against a big guy:
It is unlikely that sinking down and doing the palm to palm hip capture will work against Big Ron and others of a similar build we looked at the grip break. When they have the DWL the arm is isolated and disconnected from the body and thus much easier to manipulate. To even this out and take it back you need to integrate the whole body. Clasp the palms and get your hip behind your grip, you will need to step into him to get behind your hands. Now the hand and arms are in a more powerful and structurally string position. You are no longer fighting arm against arm. To break it, punch the hips through and turn. I started to lift but got corrected. Keeping the hands sort of central to you as you punch the hips will make it very hard for him to maintain his dominant position.
Defending the standing head and arm:
Briefly looked at this - fist to neck or speak on the telephone. This will jam your elbow into his neck or shoulder giving you space to breath. A cheeky attack from here is as you turn towards him you can hit your own elbow which will hit him in the head. CI like this as clearly it will not KO him but it will give him something to think about. I have found when your stuff is being messed with it is hard to ignore that, instead most people want to deal with that and then return to a dominant position.
Blossoming flower of oblivion:
This choke can be likened to a very deep bicep guilotene. It might just be the worst cranking choke out there. From the clinch grapple his head goes down and here is the chance for the choke. Punch the arm around the neck deeply. So that you are trying to get the bicep under his chin. We investigated having the forearm across the jaw bone and under the chin, both horrendously effective. For me the absolute key and unashamedly worth repeating is the initial motion to punch the arm around the neck to get deep on him. If I punch my right arm around the neck, my left hand braces against his left shoulder. The very fact that you have gone deep with the choking arm might by itself be enough. There is no space in there for the head so any motion has big effects. To get the right hand on to the left wrist you do not need to crab walk the hand to the wrist. Your right closed fist will blossom open and simply park at the wrist. If he has not tapped yet he soon will. The full completion of the movement is either: get the elbows close as your put all your weight on the back of the neck driving him to the ground to close off on the floor. the second, and more violent option is to suplex him...
Punching entry for head crank:
This is the neck crank Martin showed in the old class many years ago and has stuck with me and one I often think about. To set it up throw a left jab then left hook causing him to cover up, keep your left hand on his cover as you throw the right. Blocking with his left you elbow around his forearm to enter head lock range. If the punching was too complicated a set up, Martin did give us the opportunity to work from wrist control and forearm contact. To get the elbow in range for the headlock, use his forearm as the fulcrum and go around it, it looked like the elbow strike from the powerlines drill a few weeks ago. Arm that is closed to him slides under the chin and the hand goes to the top of his head, rear hand meets at the top of the head with a deep grip. The forearm will be grinding into the temple. To finish the crank lever the hands away and close the elbow together. This will cause the neck and jaw line to move along lines they were not designed to. And if any of the three standing neck crank/chokes we have done (grovit, thumb guillotene, blossoming flower of oblivion) does not work because he stands up out of them then they can stand into the neck crank just outlined.
Sparring:
Tonight we started to spar in incremental and developmental steps: `loose fists, learning pace, all about learning
1. Jabs to the body.
2. Jabs to the body whilst holding the right glove between your jaw and your neck. This was to enhance the feel for the shell. The glove should not fall off when you move, attack or defend. Clearly it did but it really focussed you on keeping that shell tight.
3. One attacks and one defends - defender can't move feet and only uses head, body movement and hands and covering to defend the shots coming to the head and body.
4. As above but now the defender can use movement and the left jab. Also his was to the head and body.
Bloody loved it. It was great to work the protective shell in real time. Jamie's first night sparring too so very proud of him. We chatted lots on the way home in the car and he really loved the sparring too. So looking forward to many more session like this.
Grip sparring:
I feel bad in retrospect when I analyse what I was doing. It was supposed to be grip sparring but I turned into clinch range and was using my head as an additional tool for control. So I apologise to Ron, Trist and Ayyaz for grinding my forehead into you. Tonight was not the night for that and if I messed up your learning time by doing something out of the drill or range I apologise. I guess I just got excited to be in clinching range. I did not listen to the full instructions and heard sparring and grip so went for what I wanted to get in terms of control instead of practising all the grips and controls. So lads I am sorry.
Some other points worth mentioning from Martin's teaching tonight was:
Brief insight into the scarf hold catch version from side control - grabbing your own thigh and cranking on the neck.
Catch wrestling is catching - they move and you catch them in their motion, no need to hunt for limbs as they will come your way. Controlling the pace - only you are in control of you o set your pace so that you can do all day. 80/20 rule - goes above your 80% of effort 20% of the time. Fight in different paces but fight smart, to work well you need to preserve you. Being gassed will have a dramatic effect on your ability to breath, think and act well.
Breathing - when it is getting tough exhale all of your air from the lungs through the mouth. Let the Co2 out and get good air back in.
Control the range - with bones as these do not move. For example in the half Thai clinch. Use your structure to dictate and control the range.
Uppercut detail - brief words about dipping the opposite shoulder to load the uppercut, use the whole body and not isolated arms. When Martin demo'ed it looked like small tight motions, as if the spine is rotating and the punches just happen to be part of the core rotation.
Uppercuts from the clinch - his head is on your shoulder then as you uppercut you will leave a space where you were and now where your punch can go.
Finally, being present. If there is a practise out there that puts you in the moment better than martial arts I would like to know. Nothing else matters, just the moment. Martin rightly said that a lot of what we fear is in the future and is essentially all in our minds. We can't control the future as it is not yet happening. The past has been and gone as we can't affect our past only learn from it. We can only act in the now. Sparring is all about the now. It is both an intensely physical and mental challenge.
Martin is away on a work gig next week so it is guest instructor time again.
Tuesday, 1 April 2014
Class notes: DWL, arm drags and jabs
Technical
3 drill and range. Initially we quickly looked at the chin position and where it should be. Depending on the range is important and range was the general theme for all aspects of training tonight.
Using the feet to keep the range. Ayyaz is very good at getting the hit through the centre and Martin showed how using the feet will keep you out of range of this strike. Of course you need the presence of mind to feel the energy from the attack as well.
Pressure from the back fist and deciding where the pressure is; throw the hands down and use the hook with the holding hand. We then considered how to use inside or outside gate lap against the pressure being given.
Using the backfist as a way to get deep to look for some head and arm control. this was the first time that I had seen the 3 drill in context and application. So often you will find yourself fighting for hand positions in the clinch and grappling so now it is time to look for those opportunities to apply this learning.
Grappling
Hand on hip - DWL
Hand on same side shoulder - arm drag
Hand on opposite shoulder - head and arm
Thai clinch defence - head pull and shoulder butt to break their grip. 3 attacks from this grip break - head and arm choke, DWL, arm hug to DWL
Ground fighting - the head and arm using the forearm bones attacking the defensive turtle.
Striking
Range for the jab: Step in to deep and you will get Dugan'd
Jab and counter jab drill
Just out of range and in range jabs to get you used to feeling the difference in a few centimetres.
Out of range punches against the counter puncher. Martin gave a quick demo showing how that punches that land just out of range still need to moved against as you can't predict if the next one or combo is going to land. This keeps you moving and not mentally or physically getting a chance to settle into your own rhythm.
Jab x 3 they respond with jab and cross, this gives a chance to practise getting behind the wall with your roll. On your third jab use a pak sau to draw the punch (their right cross) in along the power line, then chop and follow up immediately with the right cross
Jab x3 then right hand but moving away from the right hand so that when he has to throw it he is punching across himself. I always used to think that fighters were doing this to get away from the power punch. Now I know that this is setting them up for your attacks. When he throws the right across himself you can simultaneous slip left parry and uppercut. You are then in range to blast with you punches.
Homework:
3 drill visualisation
Shoulders back in the sockets in all you do
5 mins footwork a day
3 drill and range. Initially we quickly looked at the chin position and where it should be. Depending on the range is important and range was the general theme for all aspects of training tonight.
Using the feet to keep the range. Ayyaz is very good at getting the hit through the centre and Martin showed how using the feet will keep you out of range of this strike. Of course you need the presence of mind to feel the energy from the attack as well.
Pressure from the back fist and deciding where the pressure is; throw the hands down and use the hook with the holding hand. We then considered how to use inside or outside gate lap against the pressure being given.
Using the backfist as a way to get deep to look for some head and arm control. this was the first time that I had seen the 3 drill in context and application. So often you will find yourself fighting for hand positions in the clinch and grappling so now it is time to look for those opportunities to apply this learning.
Grappling
Hand on hip - DWL
Hand on same side shoulder - arm drag
Hand on opposite shoulder - head and arm
Thai clinch defence - head pull and shoulder butt to break their grip. 3 attacks from this grip break - head and arm choke, DWL, arm hug to DWL
Ground fighting - the head and arm using the forearm bones attacking the defensive turtle.
Striking
Range for the jab: Step in to deep and you will get Dugan'd
Jab and counter jab drill
Just out of range and in range jabs to get you used to feeling the difference in a few centimetres.
Out of range punches against the counter puncher. Martin gave a quick demo showing how that punches that land just out of range still need to moved against as you can't predict if the next one or combo is going to land. This keeps you moving and not mentally or physically getting a chance to settle into your own rhythm.
Jab x 3 they respond with jab and cross, this gives a chance to practise getting behind the wall with your roll. On your third jab use a pak sau to draw the punch (their right cross) in along the power line, then chop and follow up immediately with the right cross
Jab x3 then right hand but moving away from the right hand so that when he has to throw it he is punching across himself. I always used to think that fighters were doing this to get away from the power punch. Now I know that this is setting them up for your attacks. When he throws the right across himself you can simultaneous slip left parry and uppercut. You are then in range to blast with you punches.
Homework:
3 drill visualisation
Shoulders back in the sockets in all you do
5 mins footwork a day
Tuesday, 25 March 2014
Class notes: standing neck crank plus give and take a shot
Firstly it was great to see more newer faces tonight and old ones. The class felt busier and had a real energetic buzz to it. I will also apologise to the newer members of the class for not blogging about what you guys did. Hopefully the stuff below will become relevant to you very soon and not seem that new as you have already ready about it...
The pummel: addition of detail from previous blog entries, when turning the shoulders for the underhook there is a slight pushing motion with the upper arm and shoulder. This subtle motion adds to moving the partner and affecting his balance. The rear arm is also activated so that the lat muscle is helping to secure his underhook and give it no space to move around.
Half Thai clinch: This was covered a few sessions ago but new details worth mentioning is that as he goes for his underhook you take the back of the head. You still have the underhook on the other side so clasping the shoulder and pivoting with help to to control him. I think we only looked at pivoting one way and that was towards half Thai clinch side.
Full Thai clinch: don't let go of the contact to get it. Steps of the ladder. Swim your underhook out to get full clinch.
Arm drag: Trace the arm back, punch the hips and no matter what his size grab around at the hip bone. Any further and he can look for the DWL.
DWL: Trace the arm back, rev the wrist and reach over his arm, maybe catching a naughty elbow on his nose on the way over...
This is what can happen to the elbow on the ground if you chose not to tap when in a deep DWL:
Standing neck crank and the magic bones. If he goes low with the Thai clinch or head control you can look for this which at first glance is a guillotine. In fact it is a bloody horrendous neck crank.
His head needs to be at your ribs just under the pec muscle and you want the hairline at the forehead to be on you. Slide your forearm along his jaw bone using the key bones of the arm, the 3-4 inches of ulnar and radius bone from the wrist crease, then go palm to palm. This driving of the forearm will cause the head to turn, as if he is looking across the front of your torso. As you push your hips forward pull the radius bone towards you causing both big pain in the jam but tremendous pressure on the neck.
This is a nice technique to use if you have gone for the choke and he has worked his head out. Even though we were not doing it hard, my neck is still not 'right' almost 3 hours later. If this was done in the heat of combat it really would mess up someone's neck for a long time.
3 Drill with a low and deep stance using any attacks that we remembered. I worked with Dave, Ayyaz and Trist. All felt very different in their feel and attacks. Ayyaz kept nailing me with the throat attack through the centre off the back fist. Trist kept getting deep chops in and Dave was most excellent at controlling my elbows. I found it hard to stay low and deep and my tendency was to raise up with the attacks which straightened the legs, plus it is more taxing on the legs to stay low.
Give and take a shot drill with 2 extra attacks and being balanced in all points of the punching phases.
As last week, left head hook, right head hook, left body shot, right body shot. Notes on these, specifically the body shots - keep the hands up when turning into them to prep the uppercut counter. Keep the hands up.
The extra 2 shots and counters were after the right body shot and he has countered with an uppercut, drop the right shoulder and attack with a left uppercut. He blocks (catching the ball left) and throws a right cross. You roll the shot and drop the left shoulder and attack with a right uppercut. He blocks with his right hand (catching) and attacks with a left hook to the head. You duck under and come up on the outside of his left arm.
Footwork - the 3 basic motions with punches and looking to get fluid and balanced in our motions. 1: Step out and pivot away. 2: step out turn the hips and move perpendicular, 3: retreating in a curve with feet that in my mind were making the noise da-da-da-da-da
Jab and counter jab drill. Range, range, range. Do not step into range and have a jab that lands with a bent arm and you in range for him to attack and not needing to step forward. Tonight the next phase of the jab was throwing with forward footwork but then getting back out of range when you bring the arm back to the protective shell. Don't stay there.
The catch them every time right hand. Jab, jab and regular right hand then every so often step out to the left and commit to what looks like a left hook. Circling under extend the right hand to land. Even though I knew what was coming, it vexed me every time. This was one of those one time only tricks so hopefully no one will read and remember this...
The slight edge and the percentage of messy and working. It is better to train well and with precision so that when we actually spar and fight it will be messy. However if we have trained the techniques well then when it gets messy we have a higher percentage of being successful than if we learn poorly. Poor learning will always equal poor execution.
Inside and outside gate pak sau against the jabs. An elusive boxing drill. I did not get a chance to do this other than in the air. The partner throw jabs and you stay alive with footwork. Martin analogised by saying his glove has dog shit on it and you do not want that glove to touch you. So using alive footwork and the inside and outside gate pak sau you can practise being out of the shitty glove range.
The pummel: addition of detail from previous blog entries, when turning the shoulders for the underhook there is a slight pushing motion with the upper arm and shoulder. This subtle motion adds to moving the partner and affecting his balance. The rear arm is also activated so that the lat muscle is helping to secure his underhook and give it no space to move around.
Half Thai clinch: This was covered a few sessions ago but new details worth mentioning is that as he goes for his underhook you take the back of the head. You still have the underhook on the other side so clasping the shoulder and pivoting with help to to control him. I think we only looked at pivoting one way and that was towards half Thai clinch side.
Full Thai clinch: don't let go of the contact to get it. Steps of the ladder. Swim your underhook out to get full clinch.
Arm drag: Trace the arm back, punch the hips and no matter what his size grab around at the hip bone. Any further and he can look for the DWL.
DWL: Trace the arm back, rev the wrist and reach over his arm, maybe catching a naughty elbow on his nose on the way over...
This is what can happen to the elbow on the ground if you chose not to tap when in a deep DWL:
Standing neck crank and the magic bones. If he goes low with the Thai clinch or head control you can look for this which at first glance is a guillotine. In fact it is a bloody horrendous neck crank.
His head needs to be at your ribs just under the pec muscle and you want the hairline at the forehead to be on you. Slide your forearm along his jaw bone using the key bones of the arm, the 3-4 inches of ulnar and radius bone from the wrist crease, then go palm to palm. This driving of the forearm will cause the head to turn, as if he is looking across the front of your torso. As you push your hips forward pull the radius bone towards you causing both big pain in the jam but tremendous pressure on the neck.
This is a nice technique to use if you have gone for the choke and he has worked his head out. Even though we were not doing it hard, my neck is still not 'right' almost 3 hours later. If this was done in the heat of combat it really would mess up someone's neck for a long time.
3 Drill with a low and deep stance using any attacks that we remembered. I worked with Dave, Ayyaz and Trist. All felt very different in their feel and attacks. Ayyaz kept nailing me with the throat attack through the centre off the back fist. Trist kept getting deep chops in and Dave was most excellent at controlling my elbows. I found it hard to stay low and deep and my tendency was to raise up with the attacks which straightened the legs, plus it is more taxing on the legs to stay low.
Give and take a shot drill with 2 extra attacks and being balanced in all points of the punching phases.
As last week, left head hook, right head hook, left body shot, right body shot. Notes on these, specifically the body shots - keep the hands up when turning into them to prep the uppercut counter. Keep the hands up.
The extra 2 shots and counters were after the right body shot and he has countered with an uppercut, drop the right shoulder and attack with a left uppercut. He blocks (catching the ball left) and throws a right cross. You roll the shot and drop the left shoulder and attack with a right uppercut. He blocks with his right hand (catching) and attacks with a left hook to the head. You duck under and come up on the outside of his left arm.
Footwork - the 3 basic motions with punches and looking to get fluid and balanced in our motions. 1: Step out and pivot away. 2: step out turn the hips and move perpendicular, 3: retreating in a curve with feet that in my mind were making the noise da-da-da-da-da
Jab and counter jab drill. Range, range, range. Do not step into range and have a jab that lands with a bent arm and you in range for him to attack and not needing to step forward. Tonight the next phase of the jab was throwing with forward footwork but then getting back out of range when you bring the arm back to the protective shell. Don't stay there.
The catch them every time right hand. Jab, jab and regular right hand then every so often step out to the left and commit to what looks like a left hook. Circling under extend the right hand to land. Even though I knew what was coming, it vexed me every time. This was one of those one time only tricks so hopefully no one will read and remember this...
The slight edge and the percentage of messy and working. It is better to train well and with precision so that when we actually spar and fight it will be messy. However if we have trained the techniques well then when it gets messy we have a higher percentage of being successful than if we learn poorly. Poor learning will always equal poor execution.
Inside and outside gate pak sau against the jabs. An elusive boxing drill. I did not get a chance to do this other than in the air. The partner throw jabs and you stay alive with footwork. Martin analogised by saying his glove has dog shit on it and you do not want that glove to touch you. So using alive footwork and the inside and outside gate pak sau you can practise being out of the shitty glove range.
Saturday, 22 March 2014
Hands up
http://mmashare.mma44.com/2014/03/oropeza-vs-souza.html?m=1
If you keep you hands down then bad things can happen. Frustratingly the Brazilian is not even tired. Sam Oropreza has much better hand discipline and made the other pay.
Tuesday, 18 March 2014
Class notes: DWL, sparrring and the slightest edge
The pummel. Doing the roll and on occasion looking clasp your hands to get his hips close to yours. You can test his hip distance by simply hugging. Technically one overhook and one underhook. To get the hips away is a two part motions; hips down then back.
Pushing them from the legs into their void. It was during this drill you might find your hips sneaking towards his. Push from the back leg to where his base is weak and not backwards.
Arm drags from the pummel, to get the ¾ position, the DWL (double wrist lock) see the entry from last week. Additions and refinements are when you trace the arm and lead with the underhook there is no need to grab the tricep. It felt like the elbow is against their rib with your bicep up tight to their tricep. Then grab, pass the arm and take the back.
Punch the hips, punch the hips, punch the hips…. (as in the explosive movement and not foolishly and actually punching the hip)
If they resist the DWL, go with their energy and circle it. This feels very tough to explain because as I type I am throwing my head in the direction of the move. Kind of like looking back over your own head. Having this done to you is very disruptive as you think there is an exit only to find yourself in an equal or worse position.
For me, the big thing with the DWL is revving the wrist as part of the initial action. This apparently small motion seems to have a significant impact on the quality of your final technique.
Against an arm drag resister. For the sake of this explanation, my arm drag is taken with my right hand at his left wrist and I am aiming to get around the left hand side of his body for control. If I am trying to arm drag him by taking the inside of his arm he might not let me. In this situation we have linked hands on the same side. Climb to take steps up the ladder. When climbing the ladder there must be no gaps, no chances for him to feel an escape is on the cards. Maintaining press with my right hand, I pass his arm into my left hand and pull him down. The right arm comes under his left upper arm and hugs tight as if you are holding your own left shoulder. Release the wrist (keeping control with the right arm) and wrap his arm with your left by coming over your own arm. This looks like you are hugging his arm with two. Release your right arm and reach around for his far side hip. It does look and flow much smoother than my explanation.
Tristan's arm drags seem to be ok...
3 drill: 5 minutes to look for the arm drag. Then from the outside we looked at a head and arm control. Coming under his arm with what looks like a vertical uppercut, the hand snakes to the back of the head, push the head and lift the elbow causing a lovely head and arm restraint. Make sure the arm you have snaked under is still in control of your other hand.
Gloves on:
Jab and counter jab drill. Points to note were keeping the rear hand up when throwing the counter jab to protect the face. Secondly; head movement, head movement, head movement. Catch that ball.
Give an answer drill. Go to week 2 (64) for the detail in the drill. I labeled it give a shot take a shot in said blog post.
Sparring with Ayyaz: Hands only.
Trying to put the learning into practice: the protective shell, chin to chest, staying protected when attacking, foot work, head movement, range, rolling, discipline in the hands being where they should be.
Whilst I did not land many punches to Ayyaz’s lots I felt like defence was tighter, head movement was happening, trying to relax and let the hands flow. Really good learning experience and look forward to more as our time goes on.
Martin ended the class by talking about the concept of the slightest edge. Essentially make sound choices and good habits. Don’t just turn up and train once a week, but reflect on it, put some practice in at home. Small and almost insignificant habits will have big benefits in time. In my life I am trying to be much more disciplined with my diet. For near on 40 years I thought I could exercise and eat whatever I wanted. But the will be biological payback, nothing is for free. Hopefully I half of my life left, the best half, to have a higher and longer quality of life based on choices I am making now. Things like trying to cut out gluten and switch to brown rice and pasta, changing from your typical ‘man’ protein powder to a plant based one.
An old friend once told me something that stays with me to this day. He always tried really hard to get to training because he said if you miss it, yes you can go again next week but you can’t get that time back. The slightest edge.
Pushing them from the legs into their void. It was during this drill you might find your hips sneaking towards his. Push from the back leg to where his base is weak and not backwards.
Arm drags from the pummel, to get the ¾ position, the DWL (double wrist lock) see the entry from last week. Additions and refinements are when you trace the arm and lead with the underhook there is no need to grab the tricep. It felt like the elbow is against their rib with your bicep up tight to their tricep. Then grab, pass the arm and take the back.
Punch the hips, punch the hips, punch the hips…. (as in the explosive movement and not foolishly and actually punching the hip)
If they resist the DWL, go with their energy and circle it. This feels very tough to explain because as I type I am throwing my head in the direction of the move. Kind of like looking back over your own head. Having this done to you is very disruptive as you think there is an exit only to find yourself in an equal or worse position.
For me, the big thing with the DWL is revving the wrist as part of the initial action. This apparently small motion seems to have a significant impact on the quality of your final technique.
Against an arm drag resister. For the sake of this explanation, my arm drag is taken with my right hand at his left wrist and I am aiming to get around the left hand side of his body for control. If I am trying to arm drag him by taking the inside of his arm he might not let me. In this situation we have linked hands on the same side. Climb to take steps up the ladder. When climbing the ladder there must be no gaps, no chances for him to feel an escape is on the cards. Maintaining press with my right hand, I pass his arm into my left hand and pull him down. The right arm comes under his left upper arm and hugs tight as if you are holding your own left shoulder. Release the wrist (keeping control with the right arm) and wrap his arm with your left by coming over your own arm. This looks like you are hugging his arm with two. Release your right arm and reach around for his far side hip. It does look and flow much smoother than my explanation.
Tristan's arm drags seem to be ok...
3 drill: 5 minutes to look for the arm drag. Then from the outside we looked at a head and arm control. Coming under his arm with what looks like a vertical uppercut, the hand snakes to the back of the head, push the head and lift the elbow causing a lovely head and arm restraint. Make sure the arm you have snaked under is still in control of your other hand.
Gloves on:
Jab and counter jab drill. Points to note were keeping the rear hand up when throwing the counter jab to protect the face. Secondly; head movement, head movement, head movement. Catch that ball.
Give an answer drill. Go to week 2 (64) for the detail in the drill. I labeled it give a shot take a shot in said blog post.
Sparring with Ayyaz: Hands only.
Trying to put the learning into practice: the protective shell, chin to chest, staying protected when attacking, foot work, head movement, range, rolling, discipline in the hands being where they should be.
Whilst I did not land many punches to Ayyaz’s lots I felt like defence was tighter, head movement was happening, trying to relax and let the hands flow. Really good learning experience and look forward to more as our time goes on.
Martin ended the class by talking about the concept of the slightest edge. Essentially make sound choices and good habits. Don’t just turn up and train once a week, but reflect on it, put some practice in at home. Small and almost insignificant habits will have big benefits in time. In my life I am trying to be much more disciplined with my diet. For near on 40 years I thought I could exercise and eat whatever I wanted. But the will be biological payback, nothing is for free. Hopefully I half of my life left, the best half, to have a higher and longer quality of life based on choices I am making now. Things like trying to cut out gluten and switch to brown rice and pasta, changing from your typical ‘man’ protein powder to a plant based one.
An old friend once told me something that stays with me to this day. He always tried really hard to get to training because he said if you miss it, yes you can go again next week but you can’t get that time back. The slightest edge.
Saturday, 15 March 2014
Boxing body shot only sparring
Craig and I put the gloves on this morning and went at it in between gymnastics lessons. Helping him get ready for his Amateur MMA bouts in April. In addition I fancied the contact. Not had heavy hands thrown my way for a year now.
With 12oz gloves
With 7oz gloves At about
At the mid 3 minute point he drops me with a lovely liver shot. We need to get hit so we know how out body will react.
With 12oz gloves
With 7oz gloves At about
At the mid 3 minute point he drops me with a lovely liver shot. We need to get hit so we know how out body will react.
Wednesday, 12 March 2014
Yin and Yang
My own path through martial arts and wellness maintenance has taken me down many avenues. Currently I do several things to stay healthy and develop character. The first is and has always been martial arts since 1993 coupled with my interst in sports and fitness. 21 years on I still have a range of things I do that is right for me now.
http://www.marklauren.com
This is the body weight training regime I follow. Presently I am am working my through his first class program which is his intermediate one, tomorrow I start week 7. I love body weight training as it is honest and great for self motivation as I can't ever rely on anyone else to maintain my health, only me. There are no short cuts and secrets as the women's' mags would have us believe. Only hard work and effort. Oh and it is free and I can use the kids climbing frame for my pull ups!!
http://sadienardini.com
Her style of power yoga is tough and bullshit free. 30 minutes of her YouTube videos will challenge most people
There is also the boxing workouts that I have posted on here which are great for cardio and having a focus if shadow fighting is not something you can easily spend time doing. He loves burpees so be prepared for some taxing work.
Perhaps the most yin aspect is I still do the tai chi form I learned many moons ago. Now I do it upon waking in the garden because it gets the body ready for the day and the movement is nice. I used to do lots of standing and sitting meditation but my preference has been moving meditation. I am going to put up some videos soon of me doing the form not because I am some kind of wizard but just to illustrate what it is. The style is called old Yang style and is said to pre date Yang style which is the most widely spread form of tai chi. It differs as it has several faster and jumping/leaping attacks. And I love it because it is my movement. Contrary to belief, no one owns movement, no one owns martial arts, so my form might look shite or different, but who cares?
Finally there is our style practise which generally includes me ponsing around in front of some reflective surface throwing slow punches to check my stance, structure, the chin to the shoulder, the weight, the extension, the rotation. I even try slow visualisation of the techniques and drills. I find this very mentally challenging.
I am really interested in what other people at the club do so be sure to add your comments to this. Indeed add your comments to any of the blog posts. It would be great to get some type of discussion going on any of the topics covered in class or even things outside of class, how people are getting on, what they enjoy, find tough etc. train hard, train safe.
Tuesday, 11 March 2014
Class notes: arms drags and clinching
Once again a session jam packed with information, repetition of previous material and of course new steps on the ladder. In addition it is late in the day when I write this and some of the learning might merge in my words when in reality it was in a different drill.
Arm drags out of the pummel to get the back.
Arm drag to double wrist lock. A new detail I picked up tonight was the 90 degree angle of your arm against his. This means going longer on your forearm as if you do go tight to the wrist the your forearms might be more parallel leading to less control, pain and effectiveness.
Secondly for me was being square. Make sure when you have leaned back with the DWL you turn your hips towards him to complete the move. Turn inside him and not around him.
One hand in the half Thai clinch and one underhook. If your elbow gets caught on his shoulder, don't fight for the full Thai clinch. Pull him in tight with the shoulder control. From here you can turn him away by controlling the head to a lovely restraint which can lead to knee strikes to the face. This control also needs you to move the hips which will ultimately move your feet. It is like a mini version of the boxing footwork whereby we move off line by pivoting away.
Arm drags to get head and arm trap.
[EDIT] WHEN CLOSING THE HEAD AND ARM TRAP, TURN THE INNER FOREARM AGAINST THE BACK OF THE HEAD, THIS WILL HELP MAKE THE MOVE TIGHTER AS YOU ARE ALSO USING A FLEXED BICEP TO CLOSE IT OFFHead and arm resisting the arm drag. Same as last week in terms of detail.
Thai clinch defence counter - reach and cross the centre to take his arm above the elbow for the head and arm control. Again this was covered last week. The extra detail this week was the escape. Martin demo'd on Big Ron who is a big and powerful unit. The key to escape is to relax and circle away from his energy and stand with a straight spine. His energy can only go in one direction so do not fight it. Even when the tension (physically) is up, don't fight it. Use, it, go around, it, let to show you the direction. how to escape - relax, to stop him getting out you must pull him in and not away. Interestingly, these concepts were some of the core ones in Systema which I studied for several years.
Sensitivity drill - the reverse chain punch, using a receiving pak sau, high on the forearm and guide along the powerline just past the chin. Ultimately going to slips but we were just at the first stages of the drill tonight. 2 attacks from this drill.
1: Follow the punch by snaking your arm along the top of his, sort of clasp the upper arm as you step in and take his back from the 3/4
2: Double lap - leave a hand there, move it forward slightly to take the double lop. Grab at the wrist and the elbow, both are natural handles. Hand at the wrist is palm down, hand at the elbow is palm up. Martin talked about tips on when and how to hold/control the arm at the elbow. if the arm is high thumb is up and as the arm lowers the hand rotates. For example, the rear hand which passes the elbow in the head and arm trap, fingers are pointing up as this is the naturally strong position for the hand to be in. You could not perform this technique with the fingers down. Get the missus to throw some slow punches your way and you will see what I mean.
3. Elbow from the outside over the incoming arm
Gloves on:
Jab and jab counter drill. Be at the end of your punches so you are fully protected. remember about the six inches. Be at a safe range when he jabs to avoid eating it and his combinations that would follow.
Jab, counter is a jab and cross, you roll. 3D movement. Struggling to feel the correct motions. My mind knows what to do but somewhere the message to the body is getting jammed...
Jab, jab and left hook counter, he covers by tightly hugging the head and responds with a hook of his own.
Even though the punches we soft fisted, it reaffirms the need for a protective shell, good head movement and footwork and keeping that chin tucked into those shoulders.
Break up the timing to stop him getting used to a rhythm or pattern of movement. This will not keep your training partner sharp. I also think the good thing about the gloves os that punches are thrown to the face as we need to practise hitting!! It was nice to get in the head again after almost a year of no sparring. There is a certain aliveness and being in the moment when sparring. I have always found it to be the highest form of being in the now. Nothing literally does not matter and in not in your head. It is just you and him. More of that please!
Tuesday, 4 March 2014
Class notes: Pummeling and torquing the shoulders
Tonight we essentially covered arm drags and the left hook. If only it was that simple. There was an incredible amount of detail and subtleties and I will undoubtedly make some glaring errors in recalling the learning from tonight. But that is one of my goals: to go back through this blog and make corrections. Don’t treat it as a type and forget tool but an on-going an organic document of our martial journey.
Pummelling
Started the session by getting both warmed up and re-familiarised with this drill from wrestling. Some tips were:
Keep the weight forward through the torso. It looked as if a drunk was walking forward, that kind of very heavy ponderous step. In reality you are on the balls of the feet, straight spine, hips away from theirs to avoid your partner clasping his hands. Slightly extend the arm to create space for your other hand to find the underhook.
From the pummel we looked at the following attack variations:
- Thai clinch
Taking control of the head out of the pummel plus the two restraint style manipulations – the one with the hand on the back of the head and the one where you lift the underhook and grab your own forearm. These two definitely need to be filmed. Both of these manipulations came out of taking the head in the clinch and it ending up against one of your shoulders and not in the centre. More time needs to be spent drilling these.
- Arm drags to get to the ¾ hug from the pummel
- Double wristlock, if they are low driving the elbow into their shoulder to continue the push down
Arm drags to get the head and arm trap
Two variations based off of his resistance or defence which is a push to the chin. Shoot the shoulder through. Pull him into your bicep. Key point for the head and arm are holding his head, do not let go when transitioning from his defence to passing the arm. Keep control of him, don’t let him go. Martin talked about being constrictor like. There is no rush if you have control of him, work for the right position and let it settle into place. Don’t try and dive in head first, shoot your load then he escapes. This is something that grappling in MMA taught me. When you have position take your time if you are controlling him. Let him fight you and in fighting against you he will give a gap or over extend giving you the chance for the finish. Grappling in BJJ and MMA also taught me about not panicing. If the move is not working don’t use more force. Transition to another rather than being fixed mindset about a move. For me being a smaller man I had to use position, technique and levers as I could not out strength someone. However I did enjoy outworking someone and being very tenacious. I also enjoyed putting myself in bad spots to work on defence and see how they attack. And I enjoyed learning to relax, move, breath and give him no space. I enjoyed tapping and then going right back at it.
Moving forward I am looking forward to trying my own go to move on the ground, people solving it and coming up with new ways to apply it. But also working around an on-going injury and developing a new and evolved skill set on the ground and integrating it all together. Especially the nastiness of catch. I will only respect you my training partners if you try to be nasty…
Left hook:
Mechanics of the action, weighting, direction of the power and the follow through.
Slow punching the hand with a two and then a three to further embed the mechanics of the punches.
Punching the numbers on the hands
1, 1-2, 1-2-3, 1-2-3-2 tight hands always protecting the head with the non punching hand.
You jab, he jabs back, you lean back but loaded and protected, then throw the right hand followed by the hook.
Time went way too quick tonight. Next session can’t come around quick enough. Lots to go and visualize, practice in a reflection and on camera. Gloves next week, woohoo. Not so long ago putting gloves on scared the shit out of me, now that once fear has become an opportunity for some physical chess, creativity and a chance to put the learning into practise.
Pummelling
Started the session by getting both warmed up and re-familiarised with this drill from wrestling. Some tips were:
Keep the weight forward through the torso. It looked as if a drunk was walking forward, that kind of very heavy ponderous step. In reality you are on the balls of the feet, straight spine, hips away from theirs to avoid your partner clasping his hands. Slightly extend the arm to create space for your other hand to find the underhook.
From the pummel we looked at the following attack variations:
- Thai clinch
Taking control of the head out of the pummel plus the two restraint style manipulations – the one with the hand on the back of the head and the one where you lift the underhook and grab your own forearm. These two definitely need to be filmed. Both of these manipulations came out of taking the head in the clinch and it ending up against one of your shoulders and not in the centre. More time needs to be spent drilling these.
- Arm drags to get to the ¾ hug from the pummel
- Double wristlock, if they are low driving the elbow into their shoulder to continue the push down
Arm drags to get the head and arm trap
Two variations based off of his resistance or defence which is a push to the chin. Shoot the shoulder through. Pull him into your bicep. Key point for the head and arm are holding his head, do not let go when transitioning from his defence to passing the arm. Keep control of him, don’t let him go. Martin talked about being constrictor like. There is no rush if you have control of him, work for the right position and let it settle into place. Don’t try and dive in head first, shoot your load then he escapes. This is something that grappling in MMA taught me. When you have position take your time if you are controlling him. Let him fight you and in fighting against you he will give a gap or over extend giving you the chance for the finish. Grappling in BJJ and MMA also taught me about not panicing. If the move is not working don’t use more force. Transition to another rather than being fixed mindset about a move. For me being a smaller man I had to use position, technique and levers as I could not out strength someone. However I did enjoy outworking someone and being very tenacious. I also enjoyed putting myself in bad spots to work on defence and see how they attack. And I enjoyed learning to relax, move, breath and give him no space. I enjoyed tapping and then going right back at it.
Moving forward I am looking forward to trying my own go to move on the ground, people solving it and coming up with new ways to apply it. But also working around an on-going injury and developing a new and evolved skill set on the ground and integrating it all together. Especially the nastiness of catch. I will only respect you my training partners if you try to be nasty…
Left hook:
Mechanics of the action, weighting, direction of the power and the follow through.
Slow punching the hand with a two and then a three to further embed the mechanics of the punches.
Punching the numbers on the hands
1, 1-2, 1-2-3, 1-2-3-2 tight hands always protecting the head with the non punching hand.
You jab, he jabs back, you lean back but loaded and protected, then throw the right hand followed by the hook.
Time went way too quick tonight. Next session can’t come around quick enough. Lots to go and visualize, practice in a reflection and on camera. Gloves next week, woohoo. Not so long ago putting gloves on scared the shit out of me, now that once fear has become an opportunity for some physical chess, creativity and a chance to put the learning into practise.
Tuesday, 25 February 2014
Class notes: footwork and hands
Footwork
Getting warmed up in the stance, light on the balls of the feet and deep leg bend. Moving forward and back on the count but making sure the protective shell is up and engaged.
Still finding this shell a tough position to get used to and comfortable in. I can turn the shoulders so that the chin is tucked but then my lead arm feels rather spasmodic. I guess I need to just put more time in being in the position, check it in window reflections.
The solo footwork then led into looking at using the lead leg to take a mini side step to get the motion going for the pivot away and the perpendicular (or 90 degree) evasion. In my own shadow work and visualization work I feel more fluid with perpendicular (my own label idea, not Martin’s) evasion, the pivot is still an immature motion. In order to help best understand my position and that of my invisible training partner I need to use the lines on the floor (or those in the paving stones in the garden). From here I have a reference point of the angle they are moving in from, I can then make sure my feet and then body move off those attacking power lines. I remember seeing videos of Silat and Filipino martial arts and them having all these geometric patterns on the floor of their gyms as a tool for teaching actual foot placement and evasion lines. I think I now see a purpose for people like me who need both a visual along with the verbal and kinesthetic input. Martin also talked about using the head to get the motion going for the perpendicular evasion. By dropping and turning the head slightly this forces the hips to follow allowing the body to now move in the direction it is facing.
This led into leading the partner by trying to get square on them to land the right hand. In addition we had to enter their space by coming forward at given intervals to which they then applied the 3 varieties of the off lining footwork: pivot away, perpendicular rush, going backwards. Going backwards but with balance and poise and not raising up.
Jab and counter jab drill.
Jab weight distribution analogy was butting forward with the lead shoulder, a slight turn in the hips and the weight more front than back foot. In defending the jab use the head movement along with catch the ball. This will hopefully prevent over reaching in the defence and showing the other person huge gaps in your motions.
Shoulder roll against the right hand
Left hook counter against the right hand
This was off the shoulder roll motion – not looking but feeling at where it lands and keep it flowing over his arm. Knuckles in and connecting with the jaw line.
Left uppercut counter to the right hand.
When they start to defend the hook by having a tight chin to shoulder the uppercut catches them nicely as they are expecting the counter looping left hook.
Both need bigger movements to the left and head movement as this is where they will throw the punch with the right hand. The uppercut felt slightly more technical as there was a slight side step with the lead foot, use a cross tan sau to cover the right hand as your drive the left punch from where is sits after your left jab counter. Bing.
Both of the counters are something I am looking forward to exploring in sparring as well as finding solutions to them also. I do feel as if the motion and aliveness of sparring will make these techniques settle into natural options.
Slipping the right hand in an anticipatory motion to set up the left hook.
This needs lots of work as head and body movement is something I am happily struggling with more than my understanding of it. This is one of the reasons why I am loving the new evolution of the system. Small precise alterations and details from previous learning actually make a massive difference. I am getting better at making mistakes and not expecting to be smooth at the motions first, second or third time.
Standing grappling work:
Drilling counters to hands on shoulders and hips plus the Thai clinch. Counters were arm drags (Make sure the elbow lifts and the path of the arm drag is circular. This makes the motion more efficient), head and arm trap, Thai clinch defence, double wristlock.
Extra arm drag detail: clinch from the side or three quarters never the back, inner wrist bone of top hand against their ribs. I did this with Ayyaz and was not getting it right until we had this extra detail and I could feel the difference in tissue and bone with my wrist. Also his head and arm trap is a cougher so don’t get caught in it.
Resisting the arm drag with a shoulder manipulation.
He is pulling his arm back so think about moving yourself and not moving around him. Punch the hips to get a quick and friggin painful control of his upper arm. This will flatten his feet as the pressure on there is all your brain want to go with. In fact this was bloody horrible for me as in the direction of this type of pressure, my shoulder are tremendously weak and have a poor range of motion. Then reach around and get hold of whatever you can, keep the pressure on the arm and pull it away to keep the weight on his front leg and limit of movement potential, then you can reach for a better handle on him for control.
Getting warmed up in the stance, light on the balls of the feet and deep leg bend. Moving forward and back on the count but making sure the protective shell is up and engaged.
Still finding this shell a tough position to get used to and comfortable in. I can turn the shoulders so that the chin is tucked but then my lead arm feels rather spasmodic. I guess I need to just put more time in being in the position, check it in window reflections.
The solo footwork then led into looking at using the lead leg to take a mini side step to get the motion going for the pivot away and the perpendicular (or 90 degree) evasion. In my own shadow work and visualization work I feel more fluid with perpendicular (my own label idea, not Martin’s) evasion, the pivot is still an immature motion. In order to help best understand my position and that of my invisible training partner I need to use the lines on the floor (or those in the paving stones in the garden). From here I have a reference point of the angle they are moving in from, I can then make sure my feet and then body move off those attacking power lines. I remember seeing videos of Silat and Filipino martial arts and them having all these geometric patterns on the floor of their gyms as a tool for teaching actual foot placement and evasion lines. I think I now see a purpose for people like me who need both a visual along with the verbal and kinesthetic input. Martin also talked about using the head to get the motion going for the perpendicular evasion. By dropping and turning the head slightly this forces the hips to follow allowing the body to now move in the direction it is facing.
This led into leading the partner by trying to get square on them to land the right hand. In addition we had to enter their space by coming forward at given intervals to which they then applied the 3 varieties of the off lining footwork: pivot away, perpendicular rush, going backwards. Going backwards but with balance and poise and not raising up.
Jab and counter jab drill.
Jab weight distribution analogy was butting forward with the lead shoulder, a slight turn in the hips and the weight more front than back foot. In defending the jab use the head movement along with catch the ball. This will hopefully prevent over reaching in the defence and showing the other person huge gaps in your motions.
Shoulder roll against the right hand
Left hook counter against the right hand
This was off the shoulder roll motion – not looking but feeling at where it lands and keep it flowing over his arm. Knuckles in and connecting with the jaw line.
Left uppercut counter to the right hand.
When they start to defend the hook by having a tight chin to shoulder the uppercut catches them nicely as they are expecting the counter looping left hook.
Both need bigger movements to the left and head movement as this is where they will throw the punch with the right hand. The uppercut felt slightly more technical as there was a slight side step with the lead foot, use a cross tan sau to cover the right hand as your drive the left punch from where is sits after your left jab counter. Bing.
Both of the counters are something I am looking forward to exploring in sparring as well as finding solutions to them also. I do feel as if the motion and aliveness of sparring will make these techniques settle into natural options.
Slipping the right hand in an anticipatory motion to set up the left hook.
This needs lots of work as head and body movement is something I am happily struggling with more than my understanding of it. This is one of the reasons why I am loving the new evolution of the system. Small precise alterations and details from previous learning actually make a massive difference. I am getting better at making mistakes and not expecting to be smooth at the motions first, second or third time.
Standing grappling work:
Drilling counters to hands on shoulders and hips plus the Thai clinch. Counters were arm drags (Make sure the elbow lifts and the path of the arm drag is circular. This makes the motion more efficient), head and arm trap, Thai clinch defence, double wristlock.
Extra arm drag detail: clinch from the side or three quarters never the back, inner wrist bone of top hand against their ribs. I did this with Ayyaz and was not getting it right until we had this extra detail and I could feel the difference in tissue and bone with my wrist. Also his head and arm trap is a cougher so don’t get caught in it.
Resisting the arm drag with a shoulder manipulation.
He is pulling his arm back so think about moving yourself and not moving around him. Punch the hips to get a quick and friggin painful control of his upper arm. This will flatten his feet as the pressure on there is all your brain want to go with. In fact this was bloody horrible for me as in the direction of this type of pressure, my shoulder are tremendously weak and have a poor range of motion. Then reach around and get hold of whatever you can, keep the pressure on the arm and pull it away to keep the weight on his front leg and limit of movement potential, then you can reach for a better handle on him for control.
Friday, 21 February 2014
MMA training videos
Here is the link to all the MMA footage I made when training with PROMAI MMA in Feltham, it is a martial arts playlist I have created on my YouTube channel.
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDbTeCppoNu5lAIFPnJOhnHM5W3-g5Rg_
There is a mega almost 7 hour compilation of all the videos
There is also lots of other videos ranging from stand up, clinch, grappling drills as well as free form sparring in all the ranges.
This is training not teaching footage.
Teaching of some specifics can be watched here:
http://www.youtube.com/user/promaiXman?feature=watch
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDbTeCppoNu5lAIFPnJOhnHM5W3-g5Rg_
There is a mega almost 7 hour compilation of all the videos
There is also lots of other videos ranging from stand up, clinch, grappling drills as well as free form sparring in all the ranges.
This is training not teaching footage.
Teaching of some specifics can be watched here:
http://www.youtube.com/user/promaiXman?feature=watch
Wednesday, 19 February 2014
Class notes: boxing basics
Tonight was the first time that I am starting to see something of a master plan in action. Martin is dropping in subtle details each week to build on those of the last week. He is also ensuring we get lots of time to deepen the learning experience in lessons. There is no rush to get through material and as I said new learning builds on previous learning. I am loving the quality over quantity approach. This is what a good teacher does. Not just regurgitates a syllabus or curriculum.
Footwork – bounce bounce.
Keeping the stance deep and flexed. The bounce bounce is much more horizontal than vertical or arching. I think it was about having a poised aliveness in the legs, ready to move and strike. This was a step on from last week as we were moving from a static position, this felt a lot more real. Especially combining this with the new protective shell
180 turns with backfist lead.
Use the rear arm to whip around to ensure full motion in rotation. This then evolved into a drill Footwork shadowing using 180 after partner encroaches into your space and range.
Getting off the rear hand powerline.
This was a most interesting footwork drill with lots f continuous movement. On leads the drill and it is their job to get the follower square on so that they have the chance to throw the right hand. I was working in this drill with Darren who have tight hands and constant motion; he has really good lateral motion so it was incredibly hard to get him square. This meant I had to be very active in my footwork to get the dominant position. When the roles were reversed it really started getting me thinking and observing the powerlines and where I need to be and not need to be.
Footwork against the southpaw:
This was about leg dominance and being outside their lead foot. When the jab comes in from the lefty you defend and attack with the same hand. Against orthodox you use the rear hand for the jab defence.
Again errors from us students was having the correct range. Martin keeps emphasizing the range for our jabs and what it isn’t. This is something we need to develop a better feel for: keeping the distance and the importance of the range and where it is and isn’t. It looks like a very subtle difference and one that most of us are at the moment too close with.
Footwork jab and counter jab
More practice working the range, footwork and jab.
Counter to right cross powerline –throw the shoulder forward.
As the left jab comes forward, do the usual small pak/head move counter, and this will start the motion for his right cross. To get off the powerline of this shot throw the right shoulder forward with some body rotation as this will then set up counter shots for you from a balanced and covered position. A mistake I was making was I was trying to go around the punch then in, I should have simply gone along the outside of the powerline. Have the confidence in the motion but make sure that the hands are protecting the shell and the chin is tucked.
Right hand pressure test, right cross roll defence.
To feel where the power is delivered to and from we did a little drill of pushing with the punch. The partner holds out a palm and we simply punch by pushing his palm. This will teach the correct lines of power as if you get it wrong you will come off balance. This drill taught me the correct feeling I need to have in my body for the right position and alignment for my right cross.
3 drill forward pressure (grip conditioning)
Slow pace but tight and purposeful motions. Controlling the centre and getting them moving with our attacks was the name of the game. We rotated through several partners, each time I had someone bigger and stronger than me so it was a real hard drill. I found though that taking the pace out it made having the centre an easier task despite the physical pressure.
Thai plum defence counter.
Keep the shoulder back!!!
Standing clinch against the wall reversal
Move the feet out and move him back against the wall. Simple body mechanics and motion.
HOMEWORK: keeping the shoulders back in all that we do.
Footwork – bounce bounce.
Keeping the stance deep and flexed. The bounce bounce is much more horizontal than vertical or arching. I think it was about having a poised aliveness in the legs, ready to move and strike. This was a step on from last week as we were moving from a static position, this felt a lot more real. Especially combining this with the new protective shell
180 turns with backfist lead.
Use the rear arm to whip around to ensure full motion in rotation. This then evolved into a drill Footwork shadowing using 180 after partner encroaches into your space and range.
Getting off the rear hand powerline.
This was a most interesting footwork drill with lots f continuous movement. On leads the drill and it is their job to get the follower square on so that they have the chance to throw the right hand. I was working in this drill with Darren who have tight hands and constant motion; he has really good lateral motion so it was incredibly hard to get him square. This meant I had to be very active in my footwork to get the dominant position. When the roles were reversed it really started getting me thinking and observing the powerlines and where I need to be and not need to be.
Footwork against the southpaw:
This was about leg dominance and being outside their lead foot. When the jab comes in from the lefty you defend and attack with the same hand. Against orthodox you use the rear hand for the jab defence.
Again errors from us students was having the correct range. Martin keeps emphasizing the range for our jabs and what it isn’t. This is something we need to develop a better feel for: keeping the distance and the importance of the range and where it is and isn’t. It looks like a very subtle difference and one that most of us are at the moment too close with.
Footwork jab and counter jab
More practice working the range, footwork and jab.
Counter to right cross powerline –throw the shoulder forward.
As the left jab comes forward, do the usual small pak/head move counter, and this will start the motion for his right cross. To get off the powerline of this shot throw the right shoulder forward with some body rotation as this will then set up counter shots for you from a balanced and covered position. A mistake I was making was I was trying to go around the punch then in, I should have simply gone along the outside of the powerline. Have the confidence in the motion but make sure that the hands are protecting the shell and the chin is tucked.
Right hand pressure test, right cross roll defence.
To feel where the power is delivered to and from we did a little drill of pushing with the punch. The partner holds out a palm and we simply punch by pushing his palm. This will teach the correct lines of power as if you get it wrong you will come off balance. This drill taught me the correct feeling I need to have in my body for the right position and alignment for my right cross.
3 drill forward pressure (grip conditioning)
Slow pace but tight and purposeful motions. Controlling the centre and getting them moving with our attacks was the name of the game. We rotated through several partners, each time I had someone bigger and stronger than me so it was a real hard drill. I found though that taking the pace out it made having the centre an easier task despite the physical pressure.
Thai plum defence counter.
Keep the shoulder back!!!
Standing clinch against the wall reversal
Move the feet out and move him back against the wall. Simple body mechanics and motion.
HOMEWORK: keeping the shoulders back in all that we do.
Wednesday, 12 February 2014
Chin, punching and footwork refinement video analysis
I have been doing a lot of thinking recently about the refinements Martin has brought to the news system, particularly the tucking of the chin. It makes obvious sense the reasons for and I bet there are a million videos of people getting knocked out on YouTube. But I want to investigate it from a different perspective; that of what we are doing different and spotting this small difference in other martial arts. Tightly linked to the tucked chin observations is how other people/systems/styles throw their punches. As you will see, chins are not tucked and for me this presents a new target of opportunity to aim for in training as well as ensuring my own chin is tucked and I am protected behind my punches in my fighting shell.
I know that each of these arts have a different purpose and focus. I will avoid saying who is better or not, but I want to point out what is different about the system we train in.
Wing Chun Boxing – A case study of timing
This is an interesting clip as the man clearly has good hands and movement. That chin is just sitting there. In addition, the person ‘boxing’ and feeding the punches is always punching off target with his right cross!!
Tae Kwon Do world championships
Yes they are fast as crap of a shovel with their feet and are waiting to be KO’d by a foot or shin yet the chin is sitting pretty
Black belt level Karate sparring
Kung Fu ‘Masters’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQFuX7WpdkE&list=PLB3D58ADC958E8780
Grainy but frighteningly amateur skills from supposed masters of martial arts. I know it was a different time but the chin is still woefully exposed and as for the striking…
MMA
I even think my own chin was too high in this clip from my MMA training.
MMA part 2:
In this one my footwork needs fixing, too much going back and not near enough off lining.
However I am looking forward to applying the new footwork, chin, protective shell and punching refinements to this new system. I do find this type of self-analysis through video an incredibly powerful learning tool, hopefully this is something we can begin to use in our classes.
I know that each of these arts have a different purpose and focus. I will avoid saying who is better or not, but I want to point out what is different about the system we train in.
Wing Chun Boxing – A case study of timing
This is an interesting clip as the man clearly has good hands and movement. That chin is just sitting there. In addition, the person ‘boxing’ and feeding the punches is always punching off target with his right cross!!
Tae Kwon Do world championships
Yes they are fast as crap of a shovel with their feet and are waiting to be KO’d by a foot or shin yet the chin is sitting pretty
Black belt level Karate sparring
Kung Fu ‘Masters’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQFuX7WpdkE&list=PLB3D58ADC958E8780
Grainy but frighteningly amateur skills from supposed masters of martial arts. I know it was a different time but the chin is still woefully exposed and as for the striking…
MMA
I even think my own chin was too high in this clip from my MMA training.
MMA part 2:
In this one my footwork needs fixing, too much going back and not near enough off lining.
However I am looking forward to applying the new footwork, chin, protective shell and punching refinements to this new system. I do find this type of self-analysis through video an incredibly powerful learning tool, hopefully this is something we can begin to use in our classes.
Wednesday, 5 February 2014
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