The latest edition of the Drunken Daoist podcast had Joel Gerson:
http://thedrunkentaoist.com/episodes/bonus-episode-3-joel-gerson-about-fighting-and-phi
I knew nothing of him and his story is fascinating. Well worth a listen.
Here is a list of the topics covered:
Rumina Sato, god of grappling
Daniele's shady quasi-legal deals in the Japanese enclave on Sawtelle
Had texting existed back then, Joel's life would have turned out different
"I was trying to convince myself that I could win, and I knew that I was bullshitting myself"
Joel's university professor father "My son is a bruiser"
"Anybody can learn how to give a beating, it's learning how to take a beating that is the tricky part"
The appeal of combat sports
Being honest with oneself is the antidote to ending up like Ted Haggard
Dogma and ideologies
The fear of facing the universe without certainties
Ideology is a disease
Lessening the hold of fear
Inspiration as fuel for heroism
The quest for self-perfection is something that any human being who is not an ass should be on
Sakuraba epic 2000 Grand Prix
MMA work ethic
Carlos Newton
The joys of the internet
And here is the video of Joel fighting Sato. I particularly enjoyed him talking about 'checking' (taking) leg kicks in the podcast.
This is his fight
Showing posts with label grappling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label grappling. Show all posts
Tuesday, 30 September 2014
Sunday, 10 August 2014
Learning from the stories and experiences of others.
I am a big fan of podcasts and my most recent discovery is that of Graplearts radio hosted by Stephan Kesting.
The latest 2 I recommend are the Tony Blauer interview and the Erik Paulson interview.
Blauer gives his interesting opinions about such aspects as coaching and fitness, of particular interest to me was when he talked in length about how competition fighting and sparring can prepare you better for the street. This was also echoed in an interview with Burton Richardson who is a very well established JKD trainer out of Hawaii.
I found his honesty fascinating about how all his years of training did not work in the competitive environment. It was as if he had a false sense of what he could do because it had never been tested. Please listen as it is a fascinating interview.
Skipping back to the Blauer interview, he also talked a lot about fear and the two acronyms he uses to help understand it. Check it out.
Finally is the Erik Paulson interview. He is just an encyclopaedia of information and worth a listen, he created CSW, Combat Submission Wrestling. Again, listen to the path he took, the influences on his systems and the path he is now on.
Wednesday, 30 July 2014
Class notes: be aware of your wrist
30 mins of 3 drill with a look at
- defending wide on the chop forward so they to practise the inside gate lap and hit
- the roll over backfist
Pummeling
- lots of rolling the technique, low arms, turn with the long arm
- DWL hunting
- arm drag being tighter and smaller and turning on a dime
Wrist awareness: Do not let them have it. Be aware so when you feel the rev or twist going on, get it back to a strong centre. Same for the arms and shoulders. Pull the shoulder back into its socket.
DWL counter - the hand grip into arm drag
Defence against double underhooks
Compress their elbows in and this should lever to loosen the underhook attempt. This will work best before they close the grip so be aware of their hands. Once the grip is closed you are likely to be going for a painful ride.
Thai clinch counter counter - going for the elbow not the wrist. We discovered that Jack has arms that it does not work on meaning no move is 100%. The point I believe is to see if it does then move to something else if it does not. One position is not worth fighting and battling for.
Grapple sparring
- defending wide on the chop forward so they to practise the inside gate lap and hit
- the roll over backfist
Pummeling
- lots of rolling the technique, low arms, turn with the long arm
- DWL hunting
- arm drag being tighter and smaller and turning on a dime
Wrist awareness: Do not let them have it. Be aware so when you feel the rev or twist going on, get it back to a strong centre. Same for the arms and shoulders. Pull the shoulder back into its socket.
DWL counter - the hand grip into arm drag
Defence against double underhooks
Compress their elbows in and this should lever to loosen the underhook attempt. This will work best before they close the grip so be aware of their hands. Once the grip is closed you are likely to be going for a painful ride.
Thai clinch counter counter - going for the elbow not the wrist. We discovered that Jack has arms that it does not work on meaning no move is 100%. The point I believe is to see if it does then move to something else if it does not. One position is not worth fighting and battling for.
Grapple sparring
Wednesday, 16 July 2014
Class notes: fighting from the clinch
The standing grappling part of the class was a refresher and then some from the learning of last week.
Arm drag from fixed positions:
Right hand on same side shoulder: arm drag
Right hand on opposite side shoulder: head and arm choke
Right hand on same side hip: DWL
Right hand on opposite side hip: Double lap
As well as working the variants with the left arm, mixing it up, incorporating fast twitch speed and reaction. Ensure the motions are tight and small. With speed comes erratic movement patterns so we tried to train to our perfect ideal of tight and small.
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
10 minutes of 3 drill practise. Trying to look for arm drags.
Off the backfist, hit to the balls, same arm rising elbow to the jaw followed by a hook or elbow with the other hand.
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.
Boxing sparring drills:
A Jab and B jab counter
A jab and B jab, left hook counter
A jab and B jab, left hook, left uppercut counter
A jab and B jab counter. Initial jab attacker has to shoot in for the clinch or wrist control then go again.
Fighting from the clinch: start with equal position wrist control and look to strike and control. Several rounds of this led to lots and lots of sweat. This aspect of training, sparring, is my favourite part of training at this moment of time.
Arm drag from fixed positions:
Right hand on same side shoulder: arm drag
Right hand on opposite side shoulder: head and arm choke
Right hand on same side hip: DWL
Right hand on opposite side hip: Double lap
As well as working the variants with the left arm, mixing it up, incorporating fast twitch speed and reaction. Ensure the motions are tight and small. With speed comes erratic movement patterns so we tried to train to our perfect ideal of tight and small.
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
10 minutes of 3 drill practise. Trying to look for arm drags.
Off the backfist, hit to the balls, same arm rising elbow to the jaw followed by a hook or elbow with the other hand.
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.
Boxing sparring drills:
A Jab and B jab counter
A jab and B jab, left hook counter
A jab and B jab, left hook, left uppercut counter
A jab and B jab counter. Initial jab attacker has to shoot in for the clinch or wrist control then go again.
Fighting from the clinch: start with equal position wrist control and look to strike and control. Several rounds of this led to lots and lots of sweat. This aspect of training, sparring, is my favourite part of training at this moment of time.
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/
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
No head shots in fight camp
http://mmajunkie.com/2014/03/video-ufc-171s-johny-hendricks-on-why-he-doesnt-take-head-shots-in-camp/
A really quick and interesting insight into why he does not do head shots in training. Maybe he has a point? I have also read recently that Robbie Lawler has a similar training camp philosophy.
A really quick and interesting insight into why he does not do head shots in training. Maybe he has a point? I have also read recently that Robbie Lawler has a similar training camp philosophy.
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.
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.
Wednesday, 26 February 2014
Arm drags
Billy Robinson Catch Wrestling legend teaching arm drags
Arm drag from everywhere!!
Arm drags in action in competition. Apologies for the funky tunes...
Arm drag from everywhere!!
Arm drags in action in competition. Apologies for the funky tunes...
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
Boxing home workouts
In the spirit of open mindedness and developing sound movement as well as having sounder hand, foot and eye co-ordination here are some workout videos from a boxing coach. I have started to integrate these into my own training at home and using them on days when I am not doing body weight training.
Workout 1: 25 minutes
Workout 2: 13 minutes
Workout 2 part 2: 6 minute conditioning blast
Workout 3: 16 minutes
Workout 1: 25 minutes
Workout 2: 13 minutes
Workout 2 part 2: 6 minute conditioning blast
Workout 3: 16 minutes
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.
Tuesday, 4 February 2014
Class notes: peripheral vision
Footwork basics:
Get the distance between feet and stance length correct plus balancing. Good old fashioned drilling of the footwork. From observation my weight is too much over the front leg so I need to shift it back. The usual refinements in front of a mirror and camera need to be employed for this and the rest of the training from the night. I want to be able to do it all well, fluidly and naturally and this won’t come by writing and thinking about it. Last Sunday morning, whist watching UFC 169 I worked on visualization and repping the lessons from last week.
Off lining foot work:
Remember that going back in a straight line is a no no so this helps to create vital time and space. For me, the best way to interanalise this is little step, big step, pivot, side step. We did this for a few rounds in the air then against a moving partner. The key is pulling the far side hip back as this will cause the rest of the body to follow. Again my weight was too much over the front leg. Need to get the feeling of 60% on the back whilst being on the heels, tight defence, chin tucked, flexed knees, lifted yet relaxed shoulders. In addition, move off line and out of danger and don’t be too quick to square up afterwards.
Peripheral vision drill:
Foot, foot, elbow, elbow, chin. First facing your partner then being perpendicular. This led into applying the right cross as when it lands you are not looking at the target as you are protecting your chin from counter shots.
Jab and counter:
Building on the reps from last week and refining the motions. Tonight more subtle details were added – be cognisent of the range, don’t be step into that danger zone, tucked chin, make sure you move the head and hand half distance, not just one.
Pak scoop jab defence followed by a right cross:
Rear pak guides the punch along its powerline down and away just giving you enough space to counter with the right cross.
This was full of little details for me hence the following list. This will enable me to practice the mechanics of it much easier.
Twist and extend, not lean and over extend. The finishing position, if photographed, sees the body balanced, head tucked into the shoulder chin arm, eyes looking down as the chin is tucked.
At first this was very bizarre as I am so used, wrongly, to having eyes on the target. This is where the peripheral vision comes in, also feeling his arm under yours can only mean that his head is more than likely at the end of his arm. It was nice to be called on my errors and refine the mechanics tonight. Now I know what it should feel like I can get on. A shade over 20 years in martial arts and tonight I learned how to throw a correct right cross. Better late than never.
Shoulder roll against the right cross:
Pull the far side shoulder back as you lean into the turn away. This is one of the passive defence techniques and makes more sense than biting down and swinging for the fences no matter what is coming your way. I think it also encourages constant movement and something else Martin talked about was using the body in ways that it is is always looking for ways to attack and set up attacks.
Jab counter with movement and freedom:
On with the 4oz gloves and more aliveness was brought into the drill. It was so rewarding to put the gloves back on after 9 months of no contact. What was interesting working with Darren tonight was seeing the tightness of his defence and movement. Nothing exaggerated or wasted, good balance, precision of movement, never still, presenting very small if any targets, confidence in movement. It is these refinements that I am enjoying learning.
Give and take a shot drill:
This drill teaches defending big shots but borrowing the energy and direction of the attack and loading it into yours and attacking from it. No good is it being hit and giving no response as the end will come quickly. This drill teaches tight and precise mechanics, efficiency in defence and attack,
Left hook attack, head hug defence – left hook counter, then from the right hook. Left body shot – meet it – uppercut, then the same from the right hand. This was most intruiging as well because the defence to a body shot traditionally is to fold slightly from the hip to minimize the target area, the problem is that this leaves you with few attacking options and outs your in a more vulnerable position. Meet it and stay tight, you can then fire the uppercut as your counter.
Double wrist-lock against grab from the rear:
As last week.
High on the chest taking of the back:
Turn the hips out, step back and behind them with nearside leg. From here you can lift, takedown.
Bringing the class to a close Martin talked about there being no concrete definition of what the class is. The journey is individual to us all. Hence the new blog URL. It is still about growth and learning from mistakes but it is also about becoming that complete martial artist. For many years it was about fear: of being attacked, of fear itself, of violence, of not being to deal with a violent encounter, of pain.
To a massive degree, BJJ and MMA taught me a lot about my fears. I still have them as part of what makes me me and my motivations to train. But I also am enjoying the journey a lot more. No longer am I concerned with some imagined destination where I become a ninja with B-movie style superpowers leaving all in my wake. It is now about refining movement, physical chess, learning to use my body and skills efficiently, not collecting forms, techniques and books (which I did for far too many years). I guess it is about being a martial artist and not someone who does martial arts.
Get the distance between feet and stance length correct plus balancing. Good old fashioned drilling of the footwork. From observation my weight is too much over the front leg so I need to shift it back. The usual refinements in front of a mirror and camera need to be employed for this and the rest of the training from the night. I want to be able to do it all well, fluidly and naturally and this won’t come by writing and thinking about it. Last Sunday morning, whist watching UFC 169 I worked on visualization and repping the lessons from last week.
Off lining foot work:
Remember that going back in a straight line is a no no so this helps to create vital time and space. For me, the best way to interanalise this is little step, big step, pivot, side step. We did this for a few rounds in the air then against a moving partner. The key is pulling the far side hip back as this will cause the rest of the body to follow. Again my weight was too much over the front leg. Need to get the feeling of 60% on the back whilst being on the heels, tight defence, chin tucked, flexed knees, lifted yet relaxed shoulders. In addition, move off line and out of danger and don’t be too quick to square up afterwards.
Peripheral vision drill:
Foot, foot, elbow, elbow, chin. First facing your partner then being perpendicular. This led into applying the right cross as when it lands you are not looking at the target as you are protecting your chin from counter shots.
Jab and counter:
Building on the reps from last week and refining the motions. Tonight more subtle details were added – be cognisent of the range, don’t be step into that danger zone, tucked chin, make sure you move the head and hand half distance, not just one.
Pak scoop jab defence followed by a right cross:
Rear pak guides the punch along its powerline down and away just giving you enough space to counter with the right cross.
This was full of little details for me hence the following list. This will enable me to practice the mechanics of it much easier.
Twist and extend, not lean and over extend. The finishing position, if photographed, sees the body balanced, head tucked into the shoulder chin arm, eyes looking down as the chin is tucked.
At first this was very bizarre as I am so used, wrongly, to having eyes on the target. This is where the peripheral vision comes in, also feeling his arm under yours can only mean that his head is more than likely at the end of his arm. It was nice to be called on my errors and refine the mechanics tonight. Now I know what it should feel like I can get on. A shade over 20 years in martial arts and tonight I learned how to throw a correct right cross. Better late than never.
Shoulder roll against the right cross:
Pull the far side shoulder back as you lean into the turn away. This is one of the passive defence techniques and makes more sense than biting down and swinging for the fences no matter what is coming your way. I think it also encourages constant movement and something else Martin talked about was using the body in ways that it is is always looking for ways to attack and set up attacks.
Jab counter with movement and freedom:
On with the 4oz gloves and more aliveness was brought into the drill. It was so rewarding to put the gloves back on after 9 months of no contact. What was interesting working with Darren tonight was seeing the tightness of his defence and movement. Nothing exaggerated or wasted, good balance, precision of movement, never still, presenting very small if any targets, confidence in movement. It is these refinements that I am enjoying learning.
Give and take a shot drill:
This drill teaches defending big shots but borrowing the energy and direction of the attack and loading it into yours and attacking from it. No good is it being hit and giving no response as the end will come quickly. This drill teaches tight and precise mechanics, efficiency in defence and attack,
Left hook attack, head hug defence – left hook counter, then from the right hook. Left body shot – meet it – uppercut, then the same from the right hand. This was most intruiging as well because the defence to a body shot traditionally is to fold slightly from the hip to minimize the target area, the problem is that this leaves you with few attacking options and outs your in a more vulnerable position. Meet it and stay tight, you can then fire the uppercut as your counter.
Double wrist-lock against grab from the rear:
As last week.
High on the chest taking of the back:
Turn the hips out, step back and behind them with nearside leg. From here you can lift, takedown.
Bringing the class to a close Martin talked about there being no concrete definition of what the class is. The journey is individual to us all. Hence the new blog URL. It is still about growth and learning from mistakes but it is also about becoming that complete martial artist. For many years it was about fear: of being attacked, of fear itself, of violence, of not being to deal with a violent encounter, of pain.
To a massive degree, BJJ and MMA taught me a lot about my fears. I still have them as part of what makes me me and my motivations to train. But I also am enjoying the journey a lot more. No longer am I concerned with some imagined destination where I become a ninja with B-movie style superpowers leaving all in my wake. It is now about refining movement, physical chess, learning to use my body and skills efficiently, not collecting forms, techniques and books (which I did for far too many years). I guess it is about being a martial artist and not someone who does martial arts.
Friday, 8 April 2011
Week 46
Pad training:
Focussing only on the numbers 1-2-3-4 and any combo of each. In addition the feeder was crashing the range meaning this also became great off-lining footwork development. The feeder was also stepping back for number 1 and 2 so you have to have strong and explosive forward footwork to close the distance, in balance with power.
The training then evolved into the corkscrew body mechanics when employing the hook attacks. When seen in its entirety the whole body is moving. The descending corkscrew is amassing the energy and momentum for the attack. We worked these of the 1-2, the feeder then simulates the punch attack, you corkscrew and attack with a 3-2. The other technique started with 1-2-1, then corkscrew finishing with 3-2-3.
Eye gouge against double under hooks:
You have seized the gold medal pre-suplex position of double underhooks, as he goes to gouge the eye ball, shrug off and forward and attack with a 2-3-2.
This training and use of body mechanics is very modern and un-wing chun in that it looks more like Western Boxing. But in terms of concepts, the body mechanics are very compact and efficient and for me these are always at the forefront of my own martial development.
Standing grappling:
The gis were donned to enable is to work against 3 primary standing grappling attacks; the pull forward, pull to the side and push back whilst being grabbed at the shoulder. The problem this presents for us as Wing Chunners is we are relying on control and the range (of our punches). When being violently ragged around these internal safety nets disappear. So we must modify and adapt rather than being too small minded to think pure Wing Chun solves all problems. Only those who have never tested their concepts and techniques will say this. We know we need to adapt because being KO’d is what will happen and we need to go to work tomorrow looking handsome and respectful. Firstly, we need to be sensitive to the energy being given to us. Go with the pushes and pulls. Do this by moving the feet. Avoid moving the body then the feet as this will rapidly result in you swaying like a palm tree in a hurricane. Good positive posture and structure and if the range is too far for us, throw a long cross punch. This will close the distance and give him something else to think about.
Instead of being mucked up by this chaos, let it happen, when based, throw the punches. For the hard push away, you need to shrug under the grab to give you decent range. A final point worth noting is that through experience (Martin’s), if you are being held very tight, it is likely that his punches will not have the same energy and power as the grab. There must be some trade off for it to work for him. Doing both should not happen.
3 drill:
Lap, lap and practise the lap. Getting straighter, getting tighter but increasing in tension. Must find a happy medium of speed, technique and relaxation. Perhaps in 15 years. The journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step a wise man from ancient China once said. Well for me, a few steps have been taken and glancing over my shoulder I can see where I started. Long, long way to go but the path is hard, challenging but always learning and getting better.
Focussing only on the numbers 1-2-3-4 and any combo of each. In addition the feeder was crashing the range meaning this also became great off-lining footwork development. The feeder was also stepping back for number 1 and 2 so you have to have strong and explosive forward footwork to close the distance, in balance with power.
The training then evolved into the corkscrew body mechanics when employing the hook attacks. When seen in its entirety the whole body is moving. The descending corkscrew is amassing the energy and momentum for the attack. We worked these of the 1-2, the feeder then simulates the punch attack, you corkscrew and attack with a 3-2. The other technique started with 1-2-1, then corkscrew finishing with 3-2-3.
Eye gouge against double under hooks:
You have seized the gold medal pre-suplex position of double underhooks, as he goes to gouge the eye ball, shrug off and forward and attack with a 2-3-2.
This training and use of body mechanics is very modern and un-wing chun in that it looks more like Western Boxing. But in terms of concepts, the body mechanics are very compact and efficient and for me these are always at the forefront of my own martial development.
Standing grappling:
The gis were donned to enable is to work against 3 primary standing grappling attacks; the pull forward, pull to the side and push back whilst being grabbed at the shoulder. The problem this presents for us as Wing Chunners is we are relying on control and the range (of our punches). When being violently ragged around these internal safety nets disappear. So we must modify and adapt rather than being too small minded to think pure Wing Chun solves all problems. Only those who have never tested their concepts and techniques will say this. We know we need to adapt because being KO’d is what will happen and we need to go to work tomorrow looking handsome and respectful. Firstly, we need to be sensitive to the energy being given to us. Go with the pushes and pulls. Do this by moving the feet. Avoid moving the body then the feet as this will rapidly result in you swaying like a palm tree in a hurricane. Good positive posture and structure and if the range is too far for us, throw a long cross punch. This will close the distance and give him something else to think about.
Instead of being mucked up by this chaos, let it happen, when based, throw the punches. For the hard push away, you need to shrug under the grab to give you decent range. A final point worth noting is that through experience (Martin’s), if you are being held very tight, it is likely that his punches will not have the same energy and power as the grab. There must be some trade off for it to work for him. Doing both should not happen.
3 drill:
Lap, lap and practise the lap. Getting straighter, getting tighter but increasing in tension. Must find a happy medium of speed, technique and relaxation. Perhaps in 15 years. The journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step a wise man from ancient China once said. Well for me, a few steps have been taken and glancing over my shoulder I can see where I started. Long, long way to go but the path is hard, challenging but always learning and getting better.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)