The Martial Artists' Training Log

[bushido_man96]

9/21/2024

Women's Self-Defense Seminar:  9:30 - 11:30 am.  We started by covering two of the choke defenses we didn't quite get to last week: choke from front and behind, against a wall.  They work the same way that the chokes with a push do, and overlap is good in self-defense.  Then we got into ground defense.  I think I recall everything we covered, but there was more we could have gotten to.

Attacker in guard:  pull them in/hug the tree, then wrap an arm, block the same side foot, and hip bump/bridge over, then strike and work to escape.  With the attacker trying to choke, we plucked and bucked them over, reverse and strike and escape.  With arms pinned, we would snow-angel the arms down and extend the hips, create distance, and get the heels into the hips, deliver kicks and escape.  If the defender reversed and was still in guard, it was deliver strikes to the groin, face, and wherever and then get away.

Attacker mounted:  choking, pluck and buck, then strike to face or groin if still connected, then escape.  With wrists pinned, snow angel arms down and buck to reverse, then strike to get away.

Getting dragged by the ankles:  extend one leg, draw one knee in, kick out, attack the legs, then stand up in base when safe and get away.

At the end of the session I answered some questions about use of force in a sexual assault situation.  Some of the girls were worried about if they could get into trouble for striking the groin.  I told them they had nothing to worry about, as a sexual assault like that would rise to the level of defending your life.  We also talked about some nuances in regards to use of force.

After most everyone had left, one of the gals hung out with some varying questions.  She asked good questions and was really into it.  She also mentioned that she wanted to learn how to punch.  So I started talking to her about it, and how we approach teaching it, and I got to geek out for a bit about technique, building a structure to generate power from, and that kind of stuff.  I think we might have gained a new student.

Overall, I think we had a good three-week course put together.  There are some things I'd approach differently, and I thought pacing could have been better in spots, but overall, I think we provided a pretty positive experience for the attendees.

[bushido_man96]

9/23/2024

Department DT Training:  8:00 am - 12:00 pm, 1:00 - 5:00 pm.  In these sessions, I covered out-of-holster weapon retention, both standing and on the ground, and then we covered defenses against threats with a handgun (all the way around, from front, to side, to behind).  Training went well, we had some good questions and some more awkward scenarios pop up that caused some variation in the techniques.  It was all good discussions and good reps.

[bushido_man96]

9/24/2024

Strength Training

Leg Press:  45x10, 135x10, 185x5, 225x3, 295x2, 325x5, 325x5, 325x5.

Press:  45x5x2, 75x5, 95x3, 115x1, 130x5, 130x5, 130x5.

Lat Pull-downs:  152.5x10, 152.5x10, 152.5x10.

I was feeling a little off today, and press was tough as it is.  No squats.

 

9/25/2024

TKD:  5:15 - 6:45 pm.  No one in class today, so it became a solo workout.  I went through all the colored belt one-steps twice and all the black belt three-steps twice.  The first run-through was pretty rough as I wasn't very warmed up.  The second time through I really popped 'em.  I then did three-steps one more time, with a partner, the other 4th dan.  After that, we did Do-Gon 5 and 6, which was draining.  Lots of kicking and lots of moving.  We finished the last 10 minutes practicing flying side kicks over obstacles.  It's a testing "requirement" board break..."requirement" in quotes because the GM has let others skip it due to physical limitations.  I thought I was going to be one of those people, but after getting some work in tonight, I feel confident that I can do the break at testing.  I focused on shortening my running distance and working on a good burst once I get to the obstacles (which will be people at the testing...hopefully no more than two...small children..., down on their knees and curled up in the fetal position).  Finished with a good floor stretch.

[bushido_man96]

9/26/2024

Strength Training

Leg Press:  45x10, 135x10, 185x5, 225x5, 295x3, 330x5, 330x5, 330x5.

Bench Press:  45x5x2, 75x5, 95x5, 115x3, 140x5, 140x5, 140x5.

Lat Pull-downs:  155x10, 155x10, 155x10.

Squats:  45x5, 135x5, 155x5.

 

BJJ:  7:00 - 8:30 pm.  Started standing again, and then did ground work from the front headlock position.

1.  Standing, working to get good hand position (2-on-1, collar ties, under/over hooks, etc) and then work to either the waist, or getting into an upright lock around the head, or head/arm.  Lots of scrambling here, trying to use my hands to illicit an action, and not just grabbing for the sake of grabbing.  I tried to work 2-on-1s, and then get to an angle.

6 min.  There were only 3 of us tonight, so we kind of worked in a round robin fashion.  I felt like I still got lots of work in.

2.  Same, but try to get a takedown.  I did get a few takedowns, but mostly got taken down.  I kept hand fighting and moving.

6 min.

3.  To the ground, front headlock position.  Bottom guy's job was to escape/reverse/guard.  Top guy just try to hold them down.  Bottom guy had to hand fight, and I tried to pin the hand down, move it around my head, and then stand or escape.

6 min.

Next, we spent time going over submissions from the front headlock position:  guillotine, head-and-arm guillotine, D'Arce, and anaconda.  I had trouble setting these, so I'll have to work them a lot to figure out how to get them set with my short arms.

4.  Same ground work, but now the top guy was working to get one of the submissions set.  There was a lot of hand fighting involved on bottom, and I was trying to plant one to get out.  I don't think I had a sub set in, but still, I didn't do great.

After all that, me and Kendall did a couple of 2-minute rounds.  I felt like I did better, but still not good, if that makes sense.  At one point I had an arm and did kind of a whizzer takedown on Kendall, but he wrapped a leg in on one of mine and stymied my efforts.  At one point he got to side control, and I tried to get back to guard, but just couldn't make the room to get the knee in.  Afterwards, the instructor worked with me on hip bumping towards him, and using my arm to pressure his head away as I did the bump.  He described it as moving a lot to make a little space, then doing it again if need be to get a little more.  It all made sense, so now I just have to apply it.

[bushido_man96]

9/30/2024

Aikido Class:  Weapons Class:  5:00 - 6:00 pm.  Warmed up with the jo, doing low-4 for a while, and then some hi-4.  The kid I was partnered with didn't know hi-4, so I got to go into teach mode a little bit.  For the meat of the class, we did jo disarms where the defender didn't have a weapon.  We did two defenses that went to the inside of the strike:

1.  Getting inside and getting a grip on the jo between the attacker's grips, then tenkan around and get the stick horizontal and drop the hips to get heavy on the stick.  From there, it was step and thrust/drive downward forward and kind of to the 45 degree directed to behind the attacker's outside foot.  I can't find a video of the technique.  I know I'm not explaining it well.

2.  Then a shio-nage disarm against a yokomenuchi strike.

We also did a defense moving to the outside of the strike by ducking low and moving behind.  This is not the optimal way to do a disarm and is really dangerous.  Sensei described it as an "oh crap" technique.  Once getting to the outside, grip between their grips, tenkan, then step and do kote-gashi.

Fun class, fun topic.

 

TKD Class:  Black Belt Class:  6:30 - 7:30 pm.  Three of us in the class tonight.  We went through Do-Gons, 1-6, but went at a much slower pace, maybe half-speed.  I focused on good hip twist and power on techniques, and foot placement/pivoting while kicking.  I made my movements deliberate.  Doing jumping and spinning kicks in 5 and 6 at half-speed was very tough.  After that, we did a round-robin format of the all the three-steps, so each of us got through them all.  Nitpicked a few things in them to get them right.  I took time to stretch after class in The Rack, getting up past 140 degrees.

[bushido_man96]

10/1/2024

Strength Training

Leg Press:  45x10, 135x10, 185x5, 225x5, 300x3, 335x5, 335x5, 335x5.

Press:  45x5x2, 75x5, 95x3, 115x2, 132.5x5, 132.5x5, 132.5x5.

Lat Pull-downs:  157.5x10, 157.5x10, 157.5x10.

[sensei8]

I'm in awe of your serious efforts across the board, Brian!! I've nothing but TONS of respect for you, my friend!! Keep up the great work!!

[DarthPenguin]

On 9/27/2024 at 4:25 AM, bushido_man96 said:

 

After all that, me and Kendall did a couple of 2-minute rounds.  I felt like I did better, but still not good, if that makes sense.  At one point I had an arm and did kind of a whizzer takedown on Kendall, but he wrapped a leg in on one of mine and stymied my efforts.  At one point he got to side control, and I tried to get back to guard, but just couldn't make the room to get the knee in.  Afterwards, the instructor worked with me on hip bumping towards him, and using my arm to pressure his head away as I did the bump.  He described it as moving a lot to make a little space, then doing it again if need be to get a little more.  It all made sense, so now I just have to apply it.

We have been doing a lot of work recently in my class on being hard to pin etc and what you said reminded me of that. My instructor basically made the point of get into as safe a position as  you can, don't let them into your knee / elbow space and if you managed that with arms tucked etc. then maybe you need to just wait sometimes for the opponent to move and try and work your escape then - if someone has pinned you well then you may end up just burning energy on a futile escape (you have said before about the level Kendall wrestles to so i assume once he has you pinned he is very hard to create the space to escape from)

[bushido_man96]

On 10/1/2024 at 10:49 PM, sensei8 said:

I'm in awe of your serious efforts across the board, Brian!! I've nothing but TONS of respect for you, my friend!! Keep up the great work!!

Thank you Bob!

10/3/2024

Strength Training

Leg Press:  45x10, 135x10, 185x5, 225x5, 295x3, 315x2, 340x5, 340x5, 340x5.

Bench Press:  45x5x2, 75x5, 95x3, 115x2, 145x5, 145x5, 145x5.

Lat Pull-downs:  160x10, 160x10, 160x10.

 

TKD Testing:  6:00 - 7:00 pm.  Small testing, only 4 total, three low-orange belts and a low green belt.  Overall, it went ok.  I saw some things that I thought should have been cleaned up prior to testing, but overall, as lower ranks, some things I expected.  I'll do another testing notes post over in Testing, Grading, and Promotions forum.  The CI did start out with some basics and a demo by three black belts, and I got to do a ridge hand board break.

BJJ:  7:15 - 8:15 pm.  Due to testing, I was about 15 minutes late to class, but the schools are close to each other (about a block away), so I stopped in and found three of them training, so I jumped in.  They were already doing ground work when I got there.

1.  One person seated, other standing.  Seated person's job was to try to get hooks in low, or get to a cross guard, grab an ankle, etc, and try to break their balance and get the hands to the ground or their butt on the ground (win).  Standing person's job was to manipulate the legs and try to get both feet around to the down person's hip (I think he called it a J-step?) (win).  They could do this by pushing one/pulling the other leg, shove the knees in do a leg-drag like you'd do an arm-drag, etc.

6 min.

This was very tough.  Made my abs tired!  When the instructor (he's a blue belt) would put his hooks in on me, it's like he was glued to me.  I did get a few takedowns, but man I had to work for them.  When I'd set hooks, he'd get out real easily.  I tried to stay active, but it was so hard, and he seems to move so effortlessly.

2.  Same setup, but the standing guy's job was to get to knee-on-belly for a win.

6 min.

More of the same, very hard for me.  Lots of work trying to keep hooks in and turning to avoid that J-step.

3.  This time, we started at knee-on-belly.  Bottom guy's job was obviously to get out/get to guard (win).  Top guy's job was isolate/lock arm/head or the far arm at the shoulder (win).

x2, 6 min then 3 min.

I had a hard time figuring out how to keep good pressure and balance in the top position.  One might think being as heavy as I am, staying heavy on someone wouldn't be a problem, but it really is a skill all it's own (one my boys know well).  Coach described it as a "floating pin" in which you need to be ready to move and react and keep that pressure down.  Also helpful is using the hand to pressure into the far hip to keep them from shrimping and turning easily.  There was a few times when I'd try to follow his movement and shove my outrigger out too far, and he'd scoop the heel and get to a win.  I got a little better at controlling that as we went on by staying more active with that leg when adjusting.  There was a few spots where he snuck out on bottom and I was able to scramble and re-establish the position, which was good progress I guess.  When on bottom, it just sucked.  He'd keep his hook tucked in right at my hip, making it hard to shrimp and make room.  Part of it is I just need to get into better "grappling shape" so I can move and scramble when I need to.  And work on shrimping out and moving back.

4.  Working in mount.  Bottom guy's job was to reverse/escape to guard (win).  Top guy's job was to hold position and work the arms up to isolate head/arm or both arms/head.

6 min.

I've actually done some static work from the mount and under the mount, so I had at least some idea of things to do, like reversals, sweeps, or elbow escape.  I did get one reversal, which felt really good for a change.  I tried to umpa and elbow escape, but he had a good base and a few times when I'd shrimp I'd end up caught on my side and lose.  There were times when my partner was working up higher when on top, and I did a decent job of pulling myself back up under him more square, where I could try to work.

I did the first few drills with the coach, then switched up.  The guy I worked with for the majority of class, we worked well together and talked a lot about what was happening as it was happening.  Kind of helped making some improvements.  Super respectful guy and loves the game.

5 hours ago, DarthPenguin said:

We have been doing a lot of work recently in my class on being hard to pin etc and what you said reminded me of that. My instructor basically made the point of get into as safe a position as  you can, don't let them into your knee / elbow space and if you managed that with arms tucked etc. then maybe you need to just wait sometimes for the opponent to move and try and work your escape then - if someone has pinned you well then you may end up just burning energy on a futile escape (you have said before about the level Kendall wrestles to so i assume once he has you pinned he is very hard to create the space to escape from)

This is kind of what this class was, too.  It was tough, spending a lot of time in disadvantageous positions and trying to improve position.  Wore me out, but a good class.

[DarthPenguin]

sounds like fun

 

Totally get you on the weight thing - takes quite a while to get used to it, for me i find the easiest thing is to either let myself relax down onto them so they are bearing my weight that way or when i go for a tight side control etc it adds a lot of pressure and helps put the weight on that way. Another way i like to look at it is if you are supporting your weight on your knees etc then you are keeping it off them! Once you get it though then you will get it

Are you guys mainly gi or nogi? Makes a difference to the escapes etc!

For me i find it so much easier to control someone from mount when i am in a gi; nogi i always end up feeling less stable etc. Personally i prefer a good side control most of the time as i feel i can be much tighter that way. Everyone has their own preference. Loads of good stuff on YouTube / instagram etc that can be quickly digested. Find an instructor that you like who is a similar build / similar style and see if you can pick up something ready to use