bushido_man96

This is great to hear, Bob. You've been hanging in there for so long, and you deserve this!

12/21/2023 Strength Training Squats: 45x5x2, 135x5, 165x5, 190x3, 210x1. Press: 45x5x2, 65x5, 85x3, 95x5, 95x5, 95x5. Deadlifts: 135x5, 185x3, 225x2, 275x2. Bench Press: 45x5, 65x5, 85x5, 100x5, 100x5, 100x5. I've really lost a lot on the deadlift. Grip strength needs to go back up. On the last set, I initially wanted to hit a triple, but I honestly thought if I pulled the third rep, the pressure in my head would have been to great, and it would have messed me up for the day. I may try doing multiple doubles and see how that works out to get a bit more volume. Bench press is still feeling ok. If I get it much heavier, I may start alternating the press and the bench each workout.

I'd love to see what a typical Hapkido class is like. I wonder if it's like the Aikido classes I attend, or if they're much different?

Sorry to hear this, Bob. That's a rough go. I hope you're able to get it under control, and that it doesn't affect your day-to-day life all that much.

Happy for you, Ken. The Lions have really gotten on track these last few years, and I think they do win that division this year. Maybe they can make some noise in the playoffs, too. It's always fun to see who jumps up and surprises everyone. The Chiefs are poised to win their 8th straight division title, if they can just keep it together for the next 3 weeks. Pacheco should be back for week 16. As an aside, me and the boys are going to the Christmas Day game against the Raiders in Arrowhead as a our Christmas presents this year. Really looking forward to it. It'll be the first regular season game I've ever been to.

12/19/2023 Strength Training Squats: 45x5x2, 135x5, 185x3, 205x2. Press: 45x5x2, 65x5, 85x5, 85x5, 85x5. Lat Pull-downs: 110x10, 110x10, 110x10. Bench Press: 45x5x2, 55x5, 95x5, 95x5, 95x5. I was able to bench without shoulder pain, albeit this is really light weight. I'm going to see how far I can drive it before any pain sets it. Hopefully, gradual progression will prevent that. Range Training: 6:00 pm. Night shoot, pistol (and backup), rifle, and shotgun.

For me, it was at 1st dan. You felt you were overcharged when testing for 1st dan? The prices got higher and higher each rank, and by the time I got to first dan, I thought it was just more than necessary. The cost to test for 5th dan is outrageous. The only way it's possible for me is because I set up an escrow with my school where they take an extra $10 per month on my automatic withdrawal and stack it towards that testing fee.

In my job, the distance I prefer (and have been taught to be more comfortable with) is different than what the social norm would be. Most people probably stand between 2-3 feet of each other when speaking (around here, anyway). Especially if they know each other. I think about it this way; the distance at which you would shake hands when introducing yourself to someone is probably the distance you will remain at during the course of an interaction. For work purposes, I'm more likely stand off a ways, more like 5-6 feet away, especially when outside and dealing with suspects. This helps to see any sudden, overt movements. Just generally keeping space tends to keep us a little safer.

For me, it was at 1st dan.

In this case, we are talking about two professional athletes and competitors with differing specializations. I don't think Lebron James has the advantage in this situation, due to the level of specialization in training (I don't know that Lebron James has done any kind of MA training, but many professional athletes have in the past). Now, put James in the lower rungs of MMA competition, and we have a more interesting discussion.

I don't think that it's so much that the spazzing white belts are going to make a black belt tap. However, white belts have little to no control and are just trying to get out there and prove themselves. My CI always says that when sparring you're far more likely to get injured when sparring a white belt than a black belt for that very reason. I've often been more comfortable sparring black belts than low ranks. They have much more control and don't need to prove how tough they are. Some white belts are about a half step above the drunk in the bar who throws wild haymakers. White belts only do what they know!! In time, the white belt begins to harness their control. I love to see a white belt get a technique in on a black belt due by their inexperience, and their lack of experience can be difficult to a black belt from time to time. I don't disagree that white belts, due to their inexperience, can be unpredictable when sparring or rolling. But I don't scared to spar with them. Sure, they might tag me, but that's on me. In all likelihood, I'm not going to have a major problem in sparring with a white belt.

I hope to keep attending Aikido classes throughout this new year. I am also tentatively hoping I can test for my 5th dan in TKD.

I was sick all last week, and didn't do any activities after that Monday morning Aikido class. Feeling much better now, and getting back to it. 12/18/2023 Aikido Class: 8:30 - 9:30 am. Weapons work today. We did some jo warmup exercises, and then did these with a partner. One was called "hi" and one was called "low," due to the level of attacks. They can also be paired together. We finished class with some bokken. We did some tai-sabaki exercises, and finished with bokken kata 2. Towards the end of the month, the club is holding it's winter camp, and they will be offering multiple sessions for a week, with a morning session each day. I am going to try to make as many of those morning sessions as I can.

It seems like with a lot of teams so far, we are still trying to figure out who they are. The Bills are not the 7-6 team their record shows; that team could explode and make a deep playoff run. Miami loses another tight one tonight. The previous Super Bowl reps lose big games this weekend that put their playoff seeding in jeopardy. Cowboys are surging ahead with that win.And still a month to play.

Not to mention insurance rates.

12/7/2023 Defensive Tactics Training: 8:00 am - 12:00 pm, 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm. Training for the department today. We did some early review on SPEAR, getting some new hires caught up to speed (and general review for the others), and my partner spent the second half of each session working on some restraint chair procedures. I love teaching the guys and gals in our department. 12/11/2023 Aikido Class: 8:30 - 9:30 am. After the stretching, wrist stretching, and aiki-taiso warmups, we did some forward breakfalls, forward roll, and backward breakfalls/rolls (I did a little of both there). I've been focusing on trying to get my rolls to feel better. I feel some impacts at times, and know I'm doing some things wrong. For the technical portion of the class, we did sankyo-nage. This was a strange throw to me; I felt like I was putting the footwork together ok, and the entry wasn't too bad, but on the finish I felt very disconnected. When I was uke, and getting thrown into my forward rolls, I had problems staying connected there, too, and the rolls felt chunky at times. I really tried to focus on rolling well. More time and practice. We had a different instructor this morning; a blue belt. I thought she did a good job explaining and breaking down everything. I kind of got frustrated when she would ask me to attack her; we were attacking with a step forward to a same-side wrist grab. Well, I'd go to step and grab where she started at, and as I came in she would step back and thus pull the hand back. She commented that she needed me to "really try to attack her," but it what was frustrating to me was that I was making an effort to grab her hand, she just kept moving it. I guess I'm supposed to anticipate the move, and thus step myself in deeper, or adjust and "re-attack" to get to that hand. At the end of class we did a very basic stepping in to attack/grab, and she stated I did a much better job of trying actually attack her. I anticipated her stepping back, so I stepped much deeper. The whole matter did kind of frustrate me, though. It seemed kind of counter-intuitive.

For sure, get well soon! Those testings will be coming soon enough.

Congratulations to all the winners! Well done, and well deserved!

They are still one of the top teams in the league and have the best player in the NFL right now. After hosting the AFCCG for the last five years in a row maybe they have to win one on the road this year, either way they still have as good a chance as anyone. Here is how tough it is to win in the NFL, there are only four players, all quarterbacks, who have won at least two Super Bowl rings and at least two NFL MVP awards. Tom Brady, Joe Montana, Peyton Manning, and Patrick Mahomes. That's it. Meanwhile there have been 12 people that have walked on the moon. That means, mathematically, that you are three times more likely to walk on the freaking moon than win two Super Bowls and two NFL MVP's. That is how tough it is to stay on top in the NFL! That's definitely a different way to look at it! I'm still hopeful that when they come down the stretch, KC will string it all together for another Super Bowl run. The rookie Rashee Rice is really starting to look good, and is getting more and more involved in the offense. I'm looking for good things from him over the next few weeks.KC has a tough matchup with a down but definitely not out Buffalo Bills team. A win against them is another important tie-breaker game, should the Bills get hot and make a playoff run.

I think I've only ever paid around $50 for a tournament fee.

12/4/2023 Aikido: 8:30 - 9:30 pm. Today's class was a little different, we worked on some exercises to focus on being centered in the core. Our sensei talked to us about his interest in trying to figure out what ki really is, and some of the people and places he's sought out to find some really good training, and he was trying to pass it along to us in class today. It wasn't a bunch of mystical stuff, but more along the lines of centering the body and focusing on that, through posture and structure, and things like that.

11/28/2023 Strength Training Squats: 45x5x2, 135x5, 165x5, 195x5, 205x3, 215x1. Press: 45x5x2, 65x5, 85x3, 105x5, 105x5, 105x5. Jerk: 105x2, 125x2, 145x1, 145x2, 145x2. Lat Pull-downs: 120x10, 120x10, 120x10. Jerk was ugly today. Couldn't recover on rep 2 of the first set, and the recovery on the third set was quite ugly. I may have to drop down and increase the number of sets, or just do it on a separate day from press. 12/1/2023 Strength Training Lat Pull-downs: 125x10, 125x10, 125x10. Triceps Push-downs: 50x12, 50x12, 50x12. Pec Flies: 60x12, 60x12, 60x12. My head was not feeling good today, but I didn't want to not do anything, so instead of compounds, I did some isolation work. It goes against my beliefs in the weight room, but I've got to find ways to keep getting work in and not skip workouts.

Another loss for KC tonight in Green Bay, and it's looking more and more like the playoffs won't run through KC this year.

How often do spazzing white belts tap out BJJ black belts??

11/27/2023 Aikido Class: 8:30 - 9:30 am. Finally, back to class! After stretching and warmup, we worked on first testing review material: kokyo nage, kote gashi, ikkyo, and nikkyo.