Level 1 syllabus work:
Knee wrap takedown
Hand trip takedown
From the wrestling perspective
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cupxfAoNhwA
And from the MMA perspective
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5waObMhn9-E
Cycle between the 2
I sat out the above due to a right knee made from honey.
Side control arm manipulation.
Side control battle.
Inver back control submission; inner forearm and bicep suppression, forearm choke, elbow
Extension:
Hands only sparring
Hands v feet sparring
Knock down ground and pound with Darren. Amazing how quick fatigue starts to set in.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTP1WQickPo
After the above drill on this video is some freeform ground fighting.
Conditioning drills interspersed between drills tonight were all done for as many reps as possible inside the 2 minutes.
Back support ups – back support into table
Boat to butterfly pulses – sitting leaning back, straight back with legs extended tat a 45 degree angle. Pull the knees to the chest then extend the legs straight again.
Superman pulses – lying on the front, knees off the floor and legs extended, arms out to the side and pulse up and down without touching the floor until the time is up.
For me this was my last session at Feltham Community College. Next week we move to the new facility. Exciting times ahead.
Sunday, 28 April 2013
Sunday, 21 April 2013
Week 79: Tabata protocol
No grip stand up clinch fighting.
Tabata round 1 = press ups
2 minute rounds of 4 takedown set ups without breaking contact; single and double hip, single and double leg. At this point I was very tired from the Tabata and only a consistent pace and keeping the breath under control did I manage not only to survive but to keep up a good pace and receive some positive noises from Joe.
Tabate round 2 = body weight squats
2 minute rounds of getting to the knee when as an escape from top control. Again I was working with Joe and we had a very good pace going.
Tabate round 3 = lateral straight leg window wipers
Tabate round 4 = mountain climbers
Rear hand defensive drill. Joe gave me some good tips but I was proper knackered so ineffectively made improvements. But for the historical record they were:
stay out of range and move in on the end of his attack
evasive lateral motion
punch with the elbow in line with the wrist so the elbow is driving behind the punch.
Tabate round 5 = elbow plank to high plank
Hunting for the clinch against a skilled striker. I was working with
Tabate round 6 = sprawls
MMA rounds. I worked with Will and then Darren for double rounds. My knee gave out at the end of the grapple; a simple compression of the lower leg and bang.
A great video of Charlie and Ptas in action
http://youtu.be/vH6Xp6t1tKA
More info about Tabata with a few video examples
http://tabatatraining.org
Tabata round 1 = press ups
2 minute rounds of 4 takedown set ups without breaking contact; single and double hip, single and double leg. At this point I was very tired from the Tabata and only a consistent pace and keeping the breath under control did I manage not only to survive but to keep up a good pace and receive some positive noises from Joe.
Tabate round 2 = body weight squats
2 minute rounds of getting to the knee when as an escape from top control. Again I was working with Joe and we had a very good pace going.
Tabate round 3 = lateral straight leg window wipers
Tabate round 4 = mountain climbers
Rear hand defensive drill. Joe gave me some good tips but I was proper knackered so ineffectively made improvements. But for the historical record they were:
stay out of range and move in on the end of his attack
evasive lateral motion
punch with the elbow in line with the wrist so the elbow is driving behind the punch.
Tabate round 5 = elbow plank to high plank
Hunting for the clinch against a skilled striker. I was working with
Tabate round 6 = sprawls
MMA rounds. I worked with Will and then Darren for double rounds. My knee gave out at the end of the grapple; a simple compression of the lower leg and bang.
A great video of Charlie and Ptas in action
http://youtu.be/vH6Xp6t1tKA
More info about Tabata with a few video examples
http://tabatatraining.org
Week 78: MMA basics
Primary grip clinch fighting
Takedown from knee to back pin
Side control escape and reversal
Hand position defence against slaps and using counters
Striking tactics:
Stare down in striking
Grappling freeform
Takedown from knee to back pin
Side control escape and reversal
Hand position defence against slaps and using counters
Striking tactics:
Stare down in striking
Grappling freeform
Thursday, 4 April 2013
Week77: throws
Week 77: throws
Front hip lift: as with the naming convention it simply refers to the part of the body being used and on occasion a direction. Start in standard shoulder control clinch and the secondary grip on the tricep. Transfer to side body clinch with head on shoulder blade, squeeze the elbow together, thrust with the hips as you look up and lift onto your arching chest. To complete the throw relax the shoulder and dump him on the floor with you in a dominant position to continue.
Back hip throw: first looking at using shoulder control and tricep grip then and underhook and overhook clinch grip as this secures their shoulders. Anyway the first one we looked at was concerning the feet. Initial step is in front of his foot, not past, get your hips lower than his then attack with your chasing foot. That one steps a little deeper between his legs and triggers a fast insert of your hips into his hip space. Lift and throw.
Double leg takedown into calf trip: starting front body clinch, drop and change the level to go for the double leg takedown. Importantly shift the stance back a little to enable you to get the front knee to the floor. From here wrap the outside leg around their front calf and drive forward, keep the calf wrapped and thus controlled when they are on their back, you then move into your next positional transition.
Sitting takedown from side body clinch: step behind his knee so that you are square in your stance. Simply, sit your arse down whilst maintaining your body clinch grip. He should go down with you. Do not turn or rotate him as you go down, trust the motion.
Here is a great video of Rhonda Rousey in an open workout. She pulls off a few of the moves we trained tonight plus some we could never imagine!!!
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jCZ9oUfI568
How to beat Rhonda Rousey? Lee talked about how fighters try to work on escapes from her lethal and Olympic level arm extension, the truth is, as Lee stated that the focus should be before she can get you into this position. Out wrestling her in the clinch appears to be the key. Time will tell. She is technically so superior it might be a while before we see her bested.
Headhunting in big gloves v tactical small gloves: the fighter in small gloves uses smart footwork and tactical striking against wild aggression. Interestingly smart footwork enables a calmer and more focused mind and thus more effective use of the strikes.
Free form striking: as it says on the tin.
Wes' injury: Wes suffered a horrible injury tonight to his knee. I did not see what happened but only heard him in pain and prone on the floor. I did see the effect of the injury which was a patella west of where it should be. I only hope he heals quick and gets back to training soon. Accidents happen in sport and our despite the chaotic nature is relatively bereft of bad injuries. Rugby and football is far more frequently seeing nasty injuries.
The rest of went to the new facility for a Crossfit taster session. Below is what we did 2 rounds of. Matt, the owner of Crossfit Ivy kindly guided us through.
Crossfit: bad day at the fight
Burpee get ups
Kettlebell double hand swings
Dumbbell push-ups
Box jumps
Medicine ball throws
Slam ball
Plank
Thrusters
If I was 20 years younger...
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ElHq13QiNA0
The new space upstairs is going to be the home of Pro Mai. Looks great and the future is very exciting.
Front hip lift: as with the naming convention it simply refers to the part of the body being used and on occasion a direction. Start in standard shoulder control clinch and the secondary grip on the tricep. Transfer to side body clinch with head on shoulder blade, squeeze the elbow together, thrust with the hips as you look up and lift onto your arching chest. To complete the throw relax the shoulder and dump him on the floor with you in a dominant position to continue.
Back hip throw: first looking at using shoulder control and tricep grip then and underhook and overhook clinch grip as this secures their shoulders. Anyway the first one we looked at was concerning the feet. Initial step is in front of his foot, not past, get your hips lower than his then attack with your chasing foot. That one steps a little deeper between his legs and triggers a fast insert of your hips into his hip space. Lift and throw.
Double leg takedown into calf trip: starting front body clinch, drop and change the level to go for the double leg takedown. Importantly shift the stance back a little to enable you to get the front knee to the floor. From here wrap the outside leg around their front calf and drive forward, keep the calf wrapped and thus controlled when they are on their back, you then move into your next positional transition.
Sitting takedown from side body clinch: step behind his knee so that you are square in your stance. Simply, sit your arse down whilst maintaining your body clinch grip. He should go down with you. Do not turn or rotate him as you go down, trust the motion.
Here is a great video of Rhonda Rousey in an open workout. She pulls off a few of the moves we trained tonight plus some we could never imagine!!!
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jCZ9oUfI568
How to beat Rhonda Rousey? Lee talked about how fighters try to work on escapes from her lethal and Olympic level arm extension, the truth is, as Lee stated that the focus should be before she can get you into this position. Out wrestling her in the clinch appears to be the key. Time will tell. She is technically so superior it might be a while before we see her bested.
Headhunting in big gloves v tactical small gloves: the fighter in small gloves uses smart footwork and tactical striking against wild aggression. Interestingly smart footwork enables a calmer and more focused mind and thus more effective use of the strikes.
Free form striking: as it says on the tin.
Wes' injury: Wes suffered a horrible injury tonight to his knee. I did not see what happened but only heard him in pain and prone on the floor. I did see the effect of the injury which was a patella west of where it should be. I only hope he heals quick and gets back to training soon. Accidents happen in sport and our despite the chaotic nature is relatively bereft of bad injuries. Rugby and football is far more frequently seeing nasty injuries.
The rest of went to the new facility for a Crossfit taster session. Below is what we did 2 rounds of. Matt, the owner of Crossfit Ivy kindly guided us through.
Crossfit: bad day at the fight
Burpee get ups
Kettlebell double hand swings
Dumbbell push-ups
Box jumps
Medicine ball throws
Slam ball
Plank
Thrusters
If I was 20 years younger...
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ElHq13QiNA0
The new space upstairs is going to be the home of Pro Mai. Looks great and the future is very exciting.
Monday, 1 April 2013
Week 76: muscle compression submissions
Week 76: muscle compressions
Nice heat inducing warm up: cycling through the 4 main takedowns in a free form constant pressure format.
6 submissions: these are all high risk and low success rate submissions.
1: bicep compression from pre elbow extension in sitting side control: top arm under (through his elbow crease) and same leg crossing over into what looks like a triangle or figure four position. This is because you are better balanced here as we'll as the arm and leg tie up works better from here. Small part of the forearm near the wrist bone will be digging in nicely to the bicep.
2: bicep compression when opponent is in turtle position. Side back control and wrist control on his outer arm. Feed the other through as you dive over and elegantly face plant. Squeeze the knees together ( your shins will now be on his torso and neck respectively) making sure his arm angle is straight from the shoulder to the wrist (whilst folded) to complete the compression.
3: side control to leg attack, as if hunting for the knee extension. They cross their legs to prevent to submission so you manipulate the heel, lever the forearms. This causes his lower shin to be compress his lower calf, if fails then the knee extension is there.
4: calf choke from back control: pass the lower leg around the neck and secure with the other hand, fold the foot onto his shoulder to secure the position. Lean forward as if rolling over his head. This will cause tremendous strain on the front and back of the neck and when released coughing and gagging might occur. This for me was the grimmest of all the submissions this session. The most pain and panic. Horrible.
5: shin choke from centre control: pass the shin onto his neck, weight towards the foot or you will get rolled. This one finishes quickly. It looks like a simplified gogoplata from mount.
6: centre back control, ankles crossed into lower calf compression. This requires some manipulation of his legs to get them in the right position. Crossing the ankles is a no no anyway so hopefully of he is doing this then he won't be too aware of the attack coming his way. I made this very foolish mistake early on training in BJJ and the guy I was fighting with, in class and 4 days before a big competition, took advantage of my position and chose to put his leg over my top ankle. This resulted in my knee being messed up very badly after an audible crack followed by an involuntary howl from me. Point is be careful with the knees. They can go quick without any pain warnings.
For the drills part of the class we did the following rounds:
Stare down into striking sparring rounds - 10 second stare downs whilst going through our key words then 30 seconds of sparring applying our words. We did about 12 rounds.
Greco clinch to takedown. No lower body attacks allowed.
Clinch and takedown using legs such as trips and sweeps.
Clinch to full takedown into submission
Nice heat inducing warm up: cycling through the 4 main takedowns in a free form constant pressure format.
6 submissions: these are all high risk and low success rate submissions.
1: bicep compression from pre elbow extension in sitting side control: top arm under (through his elbow crease) and same leg crossing over into what looks like a triangle or figure four position. This is because you are better balanced here as we'll as the arm and leg tie up works better from here. Small part of the forearm near the wrist bone will be digging in nicely to the bicep.
2: bicep compression when opponent is in turtle position. Side back control and wrist control on his outer arm. Feed the other through as you dive over and elegantly face plant. Squeeze the knees together ( your shins will now be on his torso and neck respectively) making sure his arm angle is straight from the shoulder to the wrist (whilst folded) to complete the compression.
3: side control to leg attack, as if hunting for the knee extension. They cross their legs to prevent to submission so you manipulate the heel, lever the forearms. This causes his lower shin to be compress his lower calf, if fails then the knee extension is there.
4: calf choke from back control: pass the lower leg around the neck and secure with the other hand, fold the foot onto his shoulder to secure the position. Lean forward as if rolling over his head. This will cause tremendous strain on the front and back of the neck and when released coughing and gagging might occur. This for me was the grimmest of all the submissions this session. The most pain and panic. Horrible.
5: shin choke from centre control: pass the shin onto his neck, weight towards the foot or you will get rolled. This one finishes quickly. It looks like a simplified gogoplata from mount.
6: centre back control, ankles crossed into lower calf compression. This requires some manipulation of his legs to get them in the right position. Crossing the ankles is a no no anyway so hopefully of he is doing this then he won't be too aware of the attack coming his way. I made this very foolish mistake early on training in BJJ and the guy I was fighting with, in class and 4 days before a big competition, took advantage of my position and chose to put his leg over my top ankle. This resulted in my knee being messed up very badly after an audible crack followed by an involuntary howl from me. Point is be careful with the knees. They can go quick without any pain warnings.
For the drills part of the class we did the following rounds:
Stare down into striking sparring rounds - 10 second stare downs whilst going through our key words then 30 seconds of sparring applying our words. We did about 12 rounds.
Greco clinch to takedown. No lower body attacks allowed.
Clinch and takedown using legs such as trips and sweeps.
Clinch to full takedown into submission
Saturday, 23 March 2013
Week 75: boxing progress
Speed grappling: constant movement and flow, looking for positions, sweeps, reversals, escapes and submissions but none being applied.
Single leg takedown clasping from shoulder control: level one work so basics being empathised through repetition. I was speaking to my father in law this morning about how skills are learned in terms of time. He has been coaching gymnastics most of his life as is up to date in terms of sports science research. Latests research suggests that you need to perform an action about 300 times before the neural pathways make the action automatic. In my experience that does not mean perfect or non spasmodic.
Lewis Smith, the Olympic silver medalist on pommel, in his training history it has been calculated that he has done 800,000 double circles on the horse. My point is that for me going through the basics repeatedly is key. It is no good having a poor foundation. So to practise clinch into single leg is something I can't do enough. Getting the knee hassle, the proper grip in primary and secondary right, head control then chest pressure when changing level, correct hand placement followed by correct lift technique is crucial. Just as in most physical endeavours, MMA requires complex motions. Unlike most other sports we have to learn then apply techniques under considerable pressure with another not wanting us to. I used to hate takedown training when I was doing BJJ as it was not broken down into component parts. Now I like it as I feel like I am learning and not bumbling through whilst getting smashed to bits.
Knee trip from shoulder control: sat this out as lateral knee pressure would cause me pain. Nice to watch though. They then worked this into knee trip nudge into bowling out.
Boxing with Lee: Lee was attacking with a range of strategies such as aggressive, regular (whatever we call it...), straight arm robot style, waving arms no structure style and all with lots of pressure. I tried to keep circling as learnt last week, range of attacks and not get knackered. Hard mentally and physically, violently nurturing.
Side control sweeping from underneath, working the arm in by turning both ways. The drill for the person caught in side control was looking at the different ways of moving to create space, to work an arm through for an undertook, to then either sweep, escape or take the back. As this was a continual rolling drill, when the undertook was achieved the top position player applied forward chest pressure giving the player underneath the chance to feel when to sweep.
Side control arm manipulation and wear out: using strikes and submission attempts to get the arm tired. 1 minute on each arm then swap over.
Moving and circling: in the standup phase we need to get used to circling away from the power hand, then deciding when to attack. It can be when the aggressor steps square and across and the combinations attacks can be done.
Lead hand only, rear hand only, rear leg only, front leg only. Using single tools or sides of the body in insolation to reduce the telegraphing. Feedback was given by the person on the end of the strikes. The strikes were thrown from movement and not in static stances.
Toe to toe with Craig: working in incremental percentages, not blocking too much as getting used to getting hit is an important part of the training as is throwing attacks when strikes are coming in.
Free form standing with Phil: technical and 20%. It was nice to have an opportunity to work lots of movement, timing and striking creativity.
Tonight was a fabulous session and I only wish that I videoed it. I would like to watch back the tear up that was Joe and Mischel and we only heard it.
Single leg takedown clasping from shoulder control: level one work so basics being empathised through repetition. I was speaking to my father in law this morning about how skills are learned in terms of time. He has been coaching gymnastics most of his life as is up to date in terms of sports science research. Latests research suggests that you need to perform an action about 300 times before the neural pathways make the action automatic. In my experience that does not mean perfect or non spasmodic.
Lewis Smith, the Olympic silver medalist on pommel, in his training history it has been calculated that he has done 800,000 double circles on the horse. My point is that for me going through the basics repeatedly is key. It is no good having a poor foundation. So to practise clinch into single leg is something I can't do enough. Getting the knee hassle, the proper grip in primary and secondary right, head control then chest pressure when changing level, correct hand placement followed by correct lift technique is crucial. Just as in most physical endeavours, MMA requires complex motions. Unlike most other sports we have to learn then apply techniques under considerable pressure with another not wanting us to. I used to hate takedown training when I was doing BJJ as it was not broken down into component parts. Now I like it as I feel like I am learning and not bumbling through whilst getting smashed to bits.
Knee trip from shoulder control: sat this out as lateral knee pressure would cause me pain. Nice to watch though. They then worked this into knee trip nudge into bowling out.
Boxing with Lee: Lee was attacking with a range of strategies such as aggressive, regular (whatever we call it...), straight arm robot style, waving arms no structure style and all with lots of pressure. I tried to keep circling as learnt last week, range of attacks and not get knackered. Hard mentally and physically, violently nurturing.
Side control sweeping from underneath, working the arm in by turning both ways. The drill for the person caught in side control was looking at the different ways of moving to create space, to work an arm through for an undertook, to then either sweep, escape or take the back. As this was a continual rolling drill, when the undertook was achieved the top position player applied forward chest pressure giving the player underneath the chance to feel when to sweep.
Side control arm manipulation and wear out: using strikes and submission attempts to get the arm tired. 1 minute on each arm then swap over.
Moving and circling: in the standup phase we need to get used to circling away from the power hand, then deciding when to attack. It can be when the aggressor steps square and across and the combinations attacks can be done.
Lead hand only, rear hand only, rear leg only, front leg only. Using single tools or sides of the body in insolation to reduce the telegraphing. Feedback was given by the person on the end of the strikes. The strikes were thrown from movement and not in static stances.
Toe to toe with Craig: working in incremental percentages, not blocking too much as getting used to getting hit is an important part of the training as is throwing attacks when strikes are coming in.
Free form standing with Phil: technical and 20%. It was nice to have an opportunity to work lots of movement, timing and striking creativity.
Tonight was a fabulous session and I only wish that I videoed it. I would like to watch back the tear up that was Joe and Mischel and we only heard it.
Week 74
Circling footwork against being walked down and using single shots, step across and
Lift from lower back, double hip and the side
Striking to clinch to takedown to ground with Neil
Single leg takedown: defend by putting the leg on the outside , step around and drag down
Above but the leg goes on the inside, drive backwards and then change direction by pulling down as he tries to straighten his leg.
Double leg shoot and lift in to a slam
Striking to clinch to takedown to grapple with Mishael
Takedown fighting into grappling with Joe
Lift from lower back, double hip and the side
Striking to clinch to takedown to ground with Neil
Single leg takedown: defend by putting the leg on the outside , step around and drag down
Above but the leg goes on the inside, drive backwards and then change direction by pulling down as he tries to straighten his leg.
Double leg shoot and lift in to a slam
Striking to clinch to takedown to grapple with Mishael
Takedown fighting into grappling with Joe
Sunday, 10 March 2013
Week 73: Outward arm action
Clinch grappling warm up with Phil then Milzy. This is one of the best ways to warmed up quickly, especially if you do it with someone who has a major size and strength advantage. It is a great way to build some resilience and tenacity.
Takedown from shoulder control: You are deep in their space, your knee is behind theirs, your torso pressure is on them so there are no gaps when you bump the knee and pull the shoulder down to collapse their structure. This works when you have opposite legs forward.
Knee trip and shoulder take down: I sat out of this one as my knee is still sensitive to the slightest lateral pressure but sometimes it is good to watch and see how other people move and apply themselves. The trip is simply a barring action (the hand on the side of the knee) so that the leg has nowhere to go. The arm in shoulder control straightens from the bicep and the ‘bowls’ as the trip happens acting as a fulcrum. This technique works when you have the same leg forward as the partner.
The two above techniques can then be used in combination when pressuring the opponent and can be chained or switched between each other meaning if he changes legs then either can be attacked.
Boxing rounds with Milzy and my Josh Barnett nose.: Whilst the above was happening I was doing boxing rounds with Milzy and realised my nose is like that of Josh Barnett. If you hit it, it bleeds. It is still sore 3 days on! Either my nose is made is brittle china or Milzy does not know his own strength. On a deeper level and if looking at it from an out of body experience this highlighted my still reluctance to firstly be an attacking fighter as I primarily rely on counter attacking. Secondly is the double jeopardy habit of going backwards when under attack and covering up. Going back and watching the videos of the higher level lads in the class they all do what I know I should do; circling and footwork to evade.
Outward arm manipulation from side control: Worked on securing the arm by wrapping as well as looking for it without losing control of his base and simply fighting to gain control of his arm.
Upward shoulder rotation from side control: From control we can start to look for submissions. The worst case scenario is that you don’t get the sub but his arm is now depleted and thus a less effective tool for him. Best case is a submission. If you have control of his arm then take your time with this, rushing will create gaps and errors. When you have wrist control, use the head high knee against his head and same side elbow
This image shows the correct arm position but he appears to be in top control. Now you drag the back of his hand along the mat towards his hip which will put considerable pressure on the elbow and the shoulder. No need to rip it off as he could escape, keep it tight, controlled and precise.
Elbow extension from side control: As he fights to escape by straightening the arm you can now look at the elbow extension. Make sure his elbow is off the floor as this adds to the pressure and the sub will come on a lot quicker.
Switching between the two above: Similarly to the takedowns at the start of the class, these two submissions depend on the energy he is giving you, plus you can switch between the two. Again if they don’t come off, he has a very tired arm.
Striking whilst controlling in side control: To compound his misery you can attack the arm with elbow strikes to do nothing other than cause pain and frustration to him. You can dig the tip of the elbow into the head of the deltoid muscle which will be tense and thus cause lots of pain. Joe and I endeavoured to take the pain but it felt like a reflex reaction to it. Horrible.
Clinch grappling with no grip and eyes closed with Seb and Charlie: Apart from being rag dolled around at will by both Seb and Charlie it showed me the potential of what can be and how devastating the clinch position is when you are in control. Mostly I was defending and defending and trying to keep to their tempo. Both are excellent at changing levels, consistent pressure and constant movement making you second guess and not take the lead.
3 for 3 then 2 for 2 striking with Ivan: Trading movements and strikes, making sure the strikes were linked mechanically and not in isolation susch as 3 jabes.
Free form grappling with Chris: All others did freeform from standing but don’t trust my knee to hold out against the takedowns so started on the ground with Chris.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIGzEs3Mfuw
As you will see there is lots of great stand up going on plus ground work. High quality work from all.
Takedown from shoulder control: You are deep in their space, your knee is behind theirs, your torso pressure is on them so there are no gaps when you bump the knee and pull the shoulder down to collapse their structure. This works when you have opposite legs forward.
Knee trip and shoulder take down: I sat out of this one as my knee is still sensitive to the slightest lateral pressure but sometimes it is good to watch and see how other people move and apply themselves. The trip is simply a barring action (the hand on the side of the knee) so that the leg has nowhere to go. The arm in shoulder control straightens from the bicep and the ‘bowls’ as the trip happens acting as a fulcrum. This technique works when you have the same leg forward as the partner.
The two above techniques can then be used in combination when pressuring the opponent and can be chained or switched between each other meaning if he changes legs then either can be attacked.
Boxing rounds with Milzy and my Josh Barnett nose.: Whilst the above was happening I was doing boxing rounds with Milzy and realised my nose is like that of Josh Barnett. If you hit it, it bleeds. It is still sore 3 days on! Either my nose is made is brittle china or Milzy does not know his own strength. On a deeper level and if looking at it from an out of body experience this highlighted my still reluctance to firstly be an attacking fighter as I primarily rely on counter attacking. Secondly is the double jeopardy habit of going backwards when under attack and covering up. Going back and watching the videos of the higher level lads in the class they all do what I know I should do; circling and footwork to evade.
Outward arm manipulation from side control: Worked on securing the arm by wrapping as well as looking for it without losing control of his base and simply fighting to gain control of his arm.
Upward shoulder rotation from side control: From control we can start to look for submissions. The worst case scenario is that you don’t get the sub but his arm is now depleted and thus a less effective tool for him. Best case is a submission. If you have control of his arm then take your time with this, rushing will create gaps and errors. When you have wrist control, use the head high knee against his head and same side elbow
This image shows the correct arm position but he appears to be in top control. Now you drag the back of his hand along the mat towards his hip which will put considerable pressure on the elbow and the shoulder. No need to rip it off as he could escape, keep it tight, controlled and precise.
Elbow extension from side control: As he fights to escape by straightening the arm you can now look at the elbow extension. Make sure his elbow is off the floor as this adds to the pressure and the sub will come on a lot quicker.
Switching between the two above: Similarly to the takedowns at the start of the class, these two submissions depend on the energy he is giving you, plus you can switch between the two. Again if they don’t come off, he has a very tired arm.
Striking whilst controlling in side control: To compound his misery you can attack the arm with elbow strikes to do nothing other than cause pain and frustration to him. You can dig the tip of the elbow into the head of the deltoid muscle which will be tense and thus cause lots of pain. Joe and I endeavoured to take the pain but it felt like a reflex reaction to it. Horrible.
Clinch grappling with no grip and eyes closed with Seb and Charlie: Apart from being rag dolled around at will by both Seb and Charlie it showed me the potential of what can be and how devastating the clinch position is when you are in control. Mostly I was defending and defending and trying to keep to their tempo. Both are excellent at changing levels, consistent pressure and constant movement making you second guess and not take the lead.
3 for 3 then 2 for 2 striking with Ivan: Trading movements and strikes, making sure the strikes were linked mechanically and not in isolation susch as 3 jabes.
Free form grappling with Chris: All others did freeform from standing but don’t trust my knee to hold out against the takedowns so started on the ground with Chris.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIGzEs3Mfuw
As you will see there is lots of great stand up going on plus ground work. High quality work from all.
Saturday, 2 March 2013
Week 72: One small step for man, one giant leap for me...
4 basic takedown drilling: the single hip capture, double hip capture, single and double leg. When drilling it is important to keep the pressure always on them so they are being controlled by you. Pressure does not mean always forward.
Forearm and bicep suppression (the lion killer)details. We spent a few minutes getting the mechanics down on a kneeling partner:
at least the wrapping arm to get the elbow under the chin by driving the shoulder forward,
arms are relaxed,
other arm with back of hand on the head,
head to head,
turn the muscles on from relaxed and this should enable to technique to finish.
Circling footwork. This was a very specific drill to practise attacking when the partner stops circling away from your rear hand and almost squares up, you can then attack with a crisp flurry.
Freeform grappling: A good hard couple of rounds with Craig and a big fella who likes competitive shooting (sorry for not remembering your name). Worked with Craig on how to transition from bottom and half bottom control to the knees. We also looked at how to not slide over the head when in back control with the person the floor in the turtle position.
Big glove striking: Standing and on the ground. This is the giant leap for me where my fear of receiving and giving head shots began to diminish. Seems like such an odd fear or hang up to have in this sport but it is something that has been lingering deep inside for many years. As I trust Craig I thought I could be brave and perhaps a little bit stupid and not defend all of the head shots, to see them coming and to allow them to come. It was horrible but my mindset was simply what is the worst that could happen? A broken nose? A KO? And if they do happen then what? Well I simply carry on with life, maybe with a few less brain cells but stronger psychologically for overcoming some hardship.
I must thank my caring instructor for not allowing me to nurse my bleeding nose in lieu of the conditioning end to the class. "I don't care if you are bleeding Paul, get yourself over here!" So with my little red Hitler moustache I dragged myself through some proper tough conditioning whilst leaking DNA on the mats.
Forearm and bicep suppression (the lion killer)details. We spent a few minutes getting the mechanics down on a kneeling partner:
at least the wrapping arm to get the elbow under the chin by driving the shoulder forward,
arms are relaxed,
other arm with back of hand on the head,
head to head,
turn the muscles on from relaxed and this should enable to technique to finish.
Circling footwork. This was a very specific drill to practise attacking when the partner stops circling away from your rear hand and almost squares up, you can then attack with a crisp flurry.
Freeform grappling: A good hard couple of rounds with Craig and a big fella who likes competitive shooting (sorry for not remembering your name). Worked with Craig on how to transition from bottom and half bottom control to the knees. We also looked at how to not slide over the head when in back control with the person the floor in the turtle position.
Big glove striking: Standing and on the ground. This is the giant leap for me where my fear of receiving and giving head shots began to diminish. Seems like such an odd fear or hang up to have in this sport but it is something that has been lingering deep inside for many years. As I trust Craig I thought I could be brave and perhaps a little bit stupid and not defend all of the head shots, to see them coming and to allow them to come. It was horrible but my mindset was simply what is the worst that could happen? A broken nose? A KO? And if they do happen then what? Well I simply carry on with life, maybe with a few less brain cells but stronger psychologically for overcoming some hardship.
I must thank my caring instructor for not allowing me to nurse my bleeding nose in lieu of the conditioning end to the class. "I don't care if you are bleeding Paul, get yourself over here!" So with my little red Hitler moustache I dragged myself through some proper tough conditioning whilst leaking DNA on the mats.
Tuesday, 19 February 2013
Week 71: Shoulder control from the ground
Single leg, single hip, double hip and double leg takedown chain grappling. Keep the pressure on be that movement in any direction, just make sure that the head stays in contact with the torso then the chest pressure on his legs. Gaps equal opportunities to escape so give him none. As this was the first session of the class it is surprisingly tough on the legs as the quads are always turned on. When the quads are working so is the heart.
Shoulder control takedown from knees: Secondary grip on tricep and pinch down with your elbow, step your knee in front of his knee to create a barrier and pull him over that as you follow into a high angle side control.
Shoulder control in side control: Use the shoulder to pin his shoulder or face to the mat, use the head to keep the gaps tiny so there is no room for him to work an arm in for underhooks.
Escaping side control by getting to the knees using lat control: Firstly you need to create space as if his side control tight there will be none. Push the head or angle your body away to create a gap between his shoulder pressing down and yours. When the gap appears work the arm in and through for the underhook and most importantly is to turn to your knees as quickly as you can. From here wrap the arm around and grab a hold of his lat muscle. This will enable you to pull on it for 2 effects.
Number 1, if he braces against the pull then you have a solid structure to work against to get the legs out from under him. Number 2 is that he pushes back into to you so you simply roll him back over you. Your forearm will be against his hip so you are pretty much effortlessly using his structure to sweep him. Very little power is needed, just his applying his momentum against him. Morihei Ueshiba would be very proud of his concepts being applied in the real world.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98yRuBkUBGQ
Put this link in for no other reason than historical purposes
Bottom control escape with shoulder control: I think (cant quite remember) it being similar to the side control escape...
Bottom control super grip shoulder control: Over the trips so the shoulder is forced down and the elbow pins the head to prevent movement. Lee referred to the rubber guard and the relation to this movement in that you can isolate and pin the shoulder here and look for transitions and submissions too. This is something I am going to explore as I do enjoy the work of Mr Bravo but my hips struggle to fully express his ideas. Having the same concept but using different tools is a great eye opener for me.
Submission hunting grappling: I worked with Ivan and the drill was to get a submission in 2 minutes. One person looking for the subs and the other simply defending. Lovely drill
Shoulder control takedown from knees: Secondary grip on tricep and pinch down with your elbow, step your knee in front of his knee to create a barrier and pull him over that as you follow into a high angle side control.
Shoulder control in side control: Use the shoulder to pin his shoulder or face to the mat, use the head to keep the gaps tiny so there is no room for him to work an arm in for underhooks.
Escaping side control by getting to the knees using lat control: Firstly you need to create space as if his side control tight there will be none. Push the head or angle your body away to create a gap between his shoulder pressing down and yours. When the gap appears work the arm in and through for the underhook and most importantly is to turn to your knees as quickly as you can. From here wrap the arm around and grab a hold of his lat muscle. This will enable you to pull on it for 2 effects.
Number 1, if he braces against the pull then you have a solid structure to work against to get the legs out from under him. Number 2 is that he pushes back into to you so you simply roll him back over you. Your forearm will be against his hip so you are pretty much effortlessly using his structure to sweep him. Very little power is needed, just his applying his momentum against him. Morihei Ueshiba would be very proud of his concepts being applied in the real world.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98yRuBkUBGQ
Put this link in for no other reason than historical purposes
Bottom control escape with shoulder control: I think (cant quite remember) it being similar to the side control escape...
Bottom control super grip shoulder control: Over the trips so the shoulder is forced down and the elbow pins the head to prevent movement. Lee referred to the rubber guard and the relation to this movement in that you can isolate and pin the shoulder here and look for transitions and submissions too. This is something I am going to explore as I do enjoy the work of Mr Bravo but my hips struggle to fully express his ideas. Having the same concept but using different tools is a great eye opener for me.
Submission hunting grappling: I worked with Ivan and the drill was to get a submission in 2 minutes. One person looking for the subs and the other simply defending. Lovely drill
Thursday, 14 February 2013
Week 70: shoulder control
This session was the first split session in that part 1 is syllabus work and part 2 is drills and sparring.
The syllabus section was focussed on shoulder control from the clinch and on the ground.
We started by simply practising the correct positional mechanics for shoulder control: eyes to the centre of his head driving with the forehead, shoulder clamped tight with same arm elbow tight and down, take a secondary grip with the other arm and strong base so your legs and knee position are disrupting his.
Shoulder control with pummel escape and elbow strike: As he attempts to pummel out if provides you with an excellent opportunity, if timed well to elbow strike at close range. Elbows for one reason or another are something I am to keen on practising with, probably because of their simply destructive nature but perhaps I need to start thinking about when they can be used as a striking tool.
Shoulder control with leg trip and takedown: This works as you move him around and his stance goes long and skinny. As you sweep the leg from under his hip, pull down on the shoulder, as if you are pulling the shoulder down to his hip. Having no base or balance means he should go to the floor with you following him closely into side control.
Shoulder control with single leg capture: Change the level and literally slide your face down his torso as the eyes need to stay up to promote a positive and strong posture. Reach through and around both of his legs as your chest should now be pressing into his hip and thigh, both palms facing down as you grip hand to wrist with your elbow crease behind his knee. Lift high.
Shoulder control with bicep cricket bowl escape: Thrust your bicep into his tricep which will cause his shoulder bones to lift then bowl the arm straight. It feels like you are using your skeleton and not muscle to perform the action whilst disrupting his skeleton. Similar to the leg trip takedown talked about before, you are affecting his structure which is a much harder thing to defend as muscles don’t do anything to stop the motion is done correctly.
Side control outward arm manipulation: For me this was simply horrendous. My shoulders were ready to tap out even before the tiring of the arm happened. When in side control and working on the outward arm it is important to control it. By wrapping your arm under it so that the point of your elbow is on the ground this elevates his arm so that only the hand is on the floor. As previously stated, in itself this was not a good place for me. Lee had us simply making the arm tired, swapping our arms over to feel the wrapping on different sides. The sooner this was over the better for me. I guess the point is other people have similar shoulder tension so time to hunt for this position more in side control!
Rear heel lifted against striking and attacking on the counter:
Stance change against the leg kick and counter with strikes:
Knee attack against the double leg shoot: Can’t get my feet to move properly as I was so aware that me knee was going for a skull. It was only Craig so no worries but I can’t deform him too much…
Free form grappling with Craig
Side control striking to standing escape with Craig, Joe, Simon and Seb
The syllabus section was focussed on shoulder control from the clinch and on the ground.
We started by simply practising the correct positional mechanics for shoulder control: eyes to the centre of his head driving with the forehead, shoulder clamped tight with same arm elbow tight and down, take a secondary grip with the other arm and strong base so your legs and knee position are disrupting his.
Shoulder control with pummel escape and elbow strike: As he attempts to pummel out if provides you with an excellent opportunity, if timed well to elbow strike at close range. Elbows for one reason or another are something I am to keen on practising with, probably because of their simply destructive nature but perhaps I need to start thinking about when they can be used as a striking tool.
Shoulder control with leg trip and takedown: This works as you move him around and his stance goes long and skinny. As you sweep the leg from under his hip, pull down on the shoulder, as if you are pulling the shoulder down to his hip. Having no base or balance means he should go to the floor with you following him closely into side control.
Shoulder control with single leg capture: Change the level and literally slide your face down his torso as the eyes need to stay up to promote a positive and strong posture. Reach through and around both of his legs as your chest should now be pressing into his hip and thigh, both palms facing down as you grip hand to wrist with your elbow crease behind his knee. Lift high.
Shoulder control with bicep cricket bowl escape: Thrust your bicep into his tricep which will cause his shoulder bones to lift then bowl the arm straight. It feels like you are using your skeleton and not muscle to perform the action whilst disrupting his skeleton. Similar to the leg trip takedown talked about before, you are affecting his structure which is a much harder thing to defend as muscles don’t do anything to stop the motion is done correctly.
Side control outward arm manipulation: For me this was simply horrendous. My shoulders were ready to tap out even before the tiring of the arm happened. When in side control and working on the outward arm it is important to control it. By wrapping your arm under it so that the point of your elbow is on the ground this elevates his arm so that only the hand is on the floor. As previously stated, in itself this was not a good place for me. Lee had us simply making the arm tired, swapping our arms over to feel the wrapping on different sides. The sooner this was over the better for me. I guess the point is other people have similar shoulder tension so time to hunt for this position more in side control!
Rear heel lifted against striking and attacking on the counter:
Stance change against the leg kick and counter with strikes:
Knee attack against the double leg shoot: Can’t get my feet to move properly as I was so aware that me knee was going for a skull. It was only Craig so no worries but I can’t deform him too much…
Free form grappling with Craig
Side control striking to standing escape with Craig, Joe, Simon and Seb
Sunday, 3 February 2013
Week Bill an Ted's favourite number: front body clinch
Boxing rounds. Rocked up 10 mins late and my karmic gift was a messed up nose care of a feisty Simon. This was a good pain and panic lesson for me and timely as on the way to training I was talking to Craig about fears and the worries of stand up, that of being hit in the nose. Took a heavy one tonight and over the last few days wearing glasses has disguised the mess but slowed the healing process down. I am not saying I enjoyed the experience but it was not as bad as feared. My problem is of course work and the appearance of facial markings at some point is not going to go down too well
Boxing and looking for the knee tap from squatting (as in changing levels)
Takedown from knees which evolved into takedown and pin from knees.
Lee talked about never wanting to wilfully give up your back and when it hits the floor there is a second when you can bounce back up to the knees and then standing. See UFC 156 and this was used by firstly Benevidez and then Fitch. Obviously this always goes on but only now are my eyes open to it and seeing how an effective defence it can be rather than the temptation to pull guard (bottom control). Whilst Fitch ultimately lost the fight he sustained very little damage have his back taken for the majority of the fight. Primarily as he is a master at defending from that position but also the attacks are limited. Yes he was taken down and controlled easily, in the relative sense that you have Maia on the back, but he was not on his back for long and looked to pop up to his knees quickly.
Front body clinch: elbows pressure into the sides as if squeezing the lats. Having this done turned you more into a rag doll as your posture is controlled with greater ease. So how do you get out of the double underhooked front body clinch? One way is to get the pummel in when double undercooked by stepping back and turning the shoulder into the opponent. This should create a gap for the arm to swim through, then swap sides to repeat to establish your own under hooks. The key point here was the turning or driving of the shoulder into the opponent as this disrupts their base and grip to a greater extent.
Front body clinch fighting. Simply fighting for position. It still amazes me that watching the UFC how few fighters use the head as a controlling limb in clinch and grappling. Being a smaller man I find it an invaluable asset when in close as it has the added bonus of aligning the spine in the correct way too.
Front body clinch lift from double hip capture. God damn horrid. Rag them around and when the hips get close change the level and drop down for the double hip capture and lift, looking up to the ceiling.
As above with knee sweep to avoid the inner forearm choke or some kind of monkey style guard play.
As above into double leg, head on same side as leg forward for square symmetry
Small glove free form double leg shooting practise x 2 rounds
Boxing and looking for the knee tap from squatting (as in changing levels)
Takedown from knees which evolved into takedown and pin from knees.
Lee talked about never wanting to wilfully give up your back and when it hits the floor there is a second when you can bounce back up to the knees and then standing. See UFC 156 and this was used by firstly Benevidez and then Fitch. Obviously this always goes on but only now are my eyes open to it and seeing how an effective defence it can be rather than the temptation to pull guard (bottom control). Whilst Fitch ultimately lost the fight he sustained very little damage have his back taken for the majority of the fight. Primarily as he is a master at defending from that position but also the attacks are limited. Yes he was taken down and controlled easily, in the relative sense that you have Maia on the back, but he was not on his back for long and looked to pop up to his knees quickly.
Front body clinch: elbows pressure into the sides as if squeezing the lats. Having this done turned you more into a rag doll as your posture is controlled with greater ease. So how do you get out of the double underhooked front body clinch? One way is to get the pummel in when double undercooked by stepping back and turning the shoulder into the opponent. This should create a gap for the arm to swim through, then swap sides to repeat to establish your own under hooks. The key point here was the turning or driving of the shoulder into the opponent as this disrupts their base and grip to a greater extent.
Front body clinch fighting. Simply fighting for position. It still amazes me that watching the UFC how few fighters use the head as a controlling limb in clinch and grappling. Being a smaller man I find it an invaluable asset when in close as it has the added bonus of aligning the spine in the correct way too.
Front body clinch lift from double hip capture. God damn horrid. Rag them around and when the hips get close change the level and drop down for the double hip capture and lift, looking up to the ceiling.
As above with knee sweep to avoid the inner forearm choke or some kind of monkey style guard play.
As above into double leg, head on same side as leg forward for square symmetry
Small glove free form double leg shooting practise x 2 rounds
Thursday, 24 January 2013
Week 68: body swaying
Thankfully with a purpose and not in some drug induced metronome fashion. After a warm up from Milzy on a bloody cold night with got down to some clinch drills to increase body temperature in preparation for work to follow.
No grip clinch fighting.
Grip clinch fighting.
Fighting for the single leg. Seb was his usual relentless and effective. I got very tired very quick and managed bugger all. One day Seb, one day...
Fighting for the takedown from the clinch.
Main part of class was looking at using the body sway in striking range as a defensive manoeuvre to trigger an attack from it.
Sway (without moving the feet) out of the way of the head shot and use the returning body motion to attack with. The attacker uses any type of attack to the head.
This drill developed into the sway followed by:
3 hand strikes
Kick off the front leg then 3 strikes. Kick off the front leg as the weight is transferred to the rear leg as the sway happens meaning the leg can be lifted and used to strike with.
Movement now allowed but same idea: defend with body motion and minimal footwork then attack with a combination of up to 5 strikes using any of the 8 limbs.
Aggressive attack posture (always moving forward throwing constant attacks) v standard attack posture (lateral footwork and counter strikes). Did this for several long rounds which really taxed the stamina. Key points are stay relaxed in all motions be they defensive or attacking, control the breathing. First round I worked with Will and second round with Chris where the pressure and pace was more intense. This was the first time that I could move constantly forward and throw attacks. Chris was really good at moving and countering which meant visually my eyes kept squinting so it was good to get used to going forward and into a stream of punches
Ground and pound in bottom control: 2 very tough rounds with both fighters striking, constantly. No holding or submissions allowed.
The main. Class ended with a mad Milzy ab workout which was tremendous.
Post class I grappled with Mishel who is strong, has an excellent base and very aggressive. Then I grappled with Ptas which was nice and to and fro until something in the back of my right knee made a horrible loud pop. Thankfully not too much damage has been done. In addition it was nice to work with and old new face in Phil.
Tonight was a step forward for me to exercise some of the demons from last week. I needed to face some hardship tonight and gladly came out the other side feeling a sense of accomplishment.
Finally some exciting news on the future of promai was talked to us tonight by Lee. More to follow in a few weeks when the all gears are in motion.
PS. Thank you to all the training partners for their patience, guidance and pain
No grip clinch fighting.
Grip clinch fighting.
Fighting for the single leg. Seb was his usual relentless and effective. I got very tired very quick and managed bugger all. One day Seb, one day...
Fighting for the takedown from the clinch.
Main part of class was looking at using the body sway in striking range as a defensive manoeuvre to trigger an attack from it.
Sway (without moving the feet) out of the way of the head shot and use the returning body motion to attack with. The attacker uses any type of attack to the head.
This drill developed into the sway followed by:
3 hand strikes
Kick off the front leg then 3 strikes. Kick off the front leg as the weight is transferred to the rear leg as the sway happens meaning the leg can be lifted and used to strike with.
Movement now allowed but same idea: defend with body motion and minimal footwork then attack with a combination of up to 5 strikes using any of the 8 limbs.
Aggressive attack posture (always moving forward throwing constant attacks) v standard attack posture (lateral footwork and counter strikes). Did this for several long rounds which really taxed the stamina. Key points are stay relaxed in all motions be they defensive or attacking, control the breathing. First round I worked with Will and second round with Chris where the pressure and pace was more intense. This was the first time that I could move constantly forward and throw attacks. Chris was really good at moving and countering which meant visually my eyes kept squinting so it was good to get used to going forward and into a stream of punches
Ground and pound in bottom control: 2 very tough rounds with both fighters striking, constantly. No holding or submissions allowed.
The main. Class ended with a mad Milzy ab workout which was tremendous.
Post class I grappled with Mishel who is strong, has an excellent base and very aggressive. Then I grappled with Ptas which was nice and to and fro until something in the back of my right knee made a horrible loud pop. Thankfully not too much damage has been done. In addition it was nice to work with and old new face in Phil.
Tonight was a step forward for me to exercise some of the demons from last week. I needed to face some hardship tonight and gladly came out the other side feeling a sense of accomplishment.
Finally some exciting news on the future of promai was talked to us tonight by Lee. More to follow in a few weeks when the all gears are in motion.
PS. Thank you to all the training partners for their patience, guidance and pain
Week 67: inverted side control
Lazily I made these notes last week after training and have not made the time to add the details to the sub headings. Below is what was covered in the main class plus from my perspective as usual.
Transition from side to inverted
Downward shoulder rotation with the leg
Own leg grab with head control
Elbow extension with pushing the shoulder down
Arm trap with leg for striking opportunities
Free form grappling with Craig. Big moment for Criag as he pulled off his first sub against me; a swift and nasty inner forearm choke that I defended poorly and he deserved to get.
Free form grappling with Will plus strikes
Standing free form
Boxing only
Body shots only
Kicks only
Clinch in to takedown
Freeform grappling with Mishel
Charlie's invented submission from a triangle defence.
The main point for me tonight was that this was the first striking class since the break and I have nicely gathered up all my old fears about striking (being loose with the attacks, being tense and defensive and fearful of punches to the face) so was quite disheartened. I felt that towards the end of 2012 I was doing well to conquer my demons but how quickly self doubt can creep back. Hopefully next week I get a chance to grow through hardship.
Transition from side to inverted
Downward shoulder rotation with the leg
Own leg grab with head control
Elbow extension with pushing the shoulder down
Arm trap with leg for striking opportunities
Free form grappling with Craig. Big moment for Criag as he pulled off his first sub against me; a swift and nasty inner forearm choke that I defended poorly and he deserved to get.
Free form grappling with Will plus strikes
Standing free form
Boxing only
Body shots only
Kicks only
Clinch in to takedown
Freeform grappling with Mishel
Charlie's invented submission from a triangle defence.
The main point for me tonight was that this was the first striking class since the break and I have nicely gathered up all my old fears about striking (being loose with the attacks, being tense and defensive and fearful of punches to the face) so was quite disheartened. I felt that towards the end of 2012 I was doing well to conquer my demons but how quickly self doubt can creep back. Hopefully next week I get a chance to grow through hardship.
Thursday, 10 January 2013
Week 66: session 1 of 2013
Tonight was a mix of drills primarily focussed on the ground. After a good strong warm up from Joe we moved into a 4 station carousel of partner drills.
1: using the wall to escape a ground position. Start in side control and fight to get to the wall and attempt to do what Bisping does best; wall climb and escape. I personally found this incredibly tough from a technical perspective as I had never done it before. I tried to remember and visualise what I have seen happen in the cage with varying degrees of terribleness. Thankfully I enjoyed the challenge.
2: prone heavy bag striking working from all the grounded positions possible.
3: eyes closed free form grappling with no striking but submissions. I really love the eyes closed grappling as it works on feel and helps me to relax more as one stimulus is taken away from me.
4: big gloves free form grappling, no submissions and striking only. Nice to hit in the face again after such a long break.
It was nice to spend lots of time working through these drills.
There was a brief interlude when Seb, who celebrates his birthday this weekend, got a group beating. Happy birthday mate!!
The next part of the session was free form grappling with only one person attempting submissions. When the sub is on we had to tap, the sub was then slightly loosened thus giving us a chance to work out an escape with pressure. I started off with Joe with was great as I had not yet had the pleasure of grappling with him and this is week 66!! Joe was nurturing yet tough so lots to take away from him. Secondly I got Milzy which is another great way to start the new year. Typically tough task master as usual but no so much that I needed to use the Farsi swear word he taught me last year. Finally I got Charlie but we only managed 10 seconds before time was called.
The class was then split. The main group work on stand up into knock down simulation into free form (I think). Me and a few others were asked to work with 4 new lads on takedowns from the knees. The aim being to get anywhere from arse to shoulder on the mat. I began with Pete who I believe has a background in Judo. Nice strong base, aggressive in the clinch and decent balance. Kept working hard too. Next we moved into free form grappling with submissions so I partnered with Dan who has a good centre of gravity and is strong. We rolled well, he had good positional awareness, used his weight well and was tenacious. Hopefully they will continue to come to class.
The final drill was stand up free form. When Lee called ground we then used striking from the knees. This was a fast paced drill in that the length of each round was short. I teamed up with Ivan who is efficient, precise and aggressive.
After class was finished did a few rounds of extra grappling free form with Craig. He is coming on really well. His base, control, positioning, defence and attack. I can no longer take it easy as he nearly caught me several time. Very proud of my mate indeed.
Great session tonight after what feels like the proverbial eternity. My ears are burning hot, my back is sore and my face feels like I have been in the sun all day. No sporting activity can compare.
1: using the wall to escape a ground position. Start in side control and fight to get to the wall and attempt to do what Bisping does best; wall climb and escape. I personally found this incredibly tough from a technical perspective as I had never done it before. I tried to remember and visualise what I have seen happen in the cage with varying degrees of terribleness. Thankfully I enjoyed the challenge.
2: prone heavy bag striking working from all the grounded positions possible.
3: eyes closed free form grappling with no striking but submissions. I really love the eyes closed grappling as it works on feel and helps me to relax more as one stimulus is taken away from me.
4: big gloves free form grappling, no submissions and striking only. Nice to hit in the face again after such a long break.
It was nice to spend lots of time working through these drills.
There was a brief interlude when Seb, who celebrates his birthday this weekend, got a group beating. Happy birthday mate!!
The next part of the session was free form grappling with only one person attempting submissions. When the sub is on we had to tap, the sub was then slightly loosened thus giving us a chance to work out an escape with pressure. I started off with Joe with was great as I had not yet had the pleasure of grappling with him and this is week 66!! Joe was nurturing yet tough so lots to take away from him. Secondly I got Milzy which is another great way to start the new year. Typically tough task master as usual but no so much that I needed to use the Farsi swear word he taught me last year. Finally I got Charlie but we only managed 10 seconds before time was called.
The class was then split. The main group work on stand up into knock down simulation into free form (I think). Me and a few others were asked to work with 4 new lads on takedowns from the knees. The aim being to get anywhere from arse to shoulder on the mat. I began with Pete who I believe has a background in Judo. Nice strong base, aggressive in the clinch and decent balance. Kept working hard too. Next we moved into free form grappling with submissions so I partnered with Dan who has a good centre of gravity and is strong. We rolled well, he had good positional awareness, used his weight well and was tenacious. Hopefully they will continue to come to class.
The final drill was stand up free form. When Lee called ground we then used striking from the knees. This was a fast paced drill in that the length of each round was short. I teamed up with Ivan who is efficient, precise and aggressive.
After class was finished did a few rounds of extra grappling free form with Craig. He is coming on really well. His base, control, positioning, defence and attack. I can no longer take it easy as he nearly caught me several time. Very proud of my mate indeed.
Great session tonight after what feels like the proverbial eternity. My ears are burning hot, my back is sore and my face feels like I have been in the sun all day. No sporting activity can compare.
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