Whether you are an Orthodox/right hand or South Paw/Left hand fighter, you have a dominant hand you prefer to orient yourself from. There are some instances that the hand you write with is not the side you will train in.
I have decided one of my micro goals is to train in my off stance/ off hand. Why you might ask?
Speed and Flow
When sparring or fighting it is not uncommon to land in your off stance. If you do and you feel awkward, or unable to throw strikes it can slow down your speed, and response time to have to change back to your prefered stance. Being a switch fighter means you can fight in either stance. At the longest we are talking seconds to switch back. But in that time your opponent can take advantage and land a strike. If you land in what is your off stance you can increase your speed and flow by being able to take advantage of the situation.
Take advantage of openings and keep opponent guessing.
If you can fight in your off stance, then you can take advantage of other openings. When you face off orthodox to orthodox fighter certain openings are available to take advantage off. Typically an orthodox fighters right hand side is the strongest. That is their dominant hand. A south paw fighters left hand side is typically the stronger side for them. So if you can position yourself to strike at their weaker side than all the better. Being able to switch is very valuable, and can keep your opponent guessing.
What does it feel like to train in your off side/off stance?
Try writing with you off hand. If you are right handed try writing with your left hand. Try eating with your off hand. How much do you spill on yourself? You have been training one side. Your brain knows the drills. Your brain knows how to tell your body to do a round house kick. You have developed a brain body connection for that side of your body. Now trying to do it on your off hand/stance, you feel unbalanced, it takes a perceptible amount of time for your brain to tell your leg to do a cut step to round house. Your brain body connection for that side is not there yet. That is what it feels like.
Your brain knows how to hold a spoon in the right hand. Knows how to make your muscles balance the spoon so you don’t spill that soup all over you. Now switching to the left hand to eat that soup. Your brain did not forget how to eat with a spoon, just has not set up the connections between the feedback on that side of your body.
I feel awkward and frustrated that I made a simple mistake when training on the left hand side for me. I can do the drill and that strike no problem on the right hand side. But on the left hand side I am a little clumsier. But it is getting better, my balance is getting better, my flow is getting better, and I am able to do the drills much better than before. I can see the progress each training session.
Why would you do it?
- Training your off stance will make your dominant stance better. It makes you more cognisant of your body flow.
- Speed up your fighting sparring game. You will be able to fight in any stance, and not have to take the second, fraction of the second to change your stance.
- Take advantage of your opponents openings, and you can keep your opponent guessing.
- Brain body connection increases.
- Prevent injury by training both sides and increasing strength on weaker side.
- There are are many articles that say it may help avoid or help stave off brain maladies like Alzheimer’s. However, there is not enough evidence out yet to confirm.
Does it help?
Yes so far it is helping me. I am able to land in off stance during sparring and it does not feel so awkward any more. I sometimes don’t notice. My partner is an switch fighter as well and he changes as needed. It can be frustrating trying to find an opening, when he keeps changing stances.
So yes I find it does help, but I will revisit a few months from now. I will see how well I am getting along. I am already noticing that my flow is better and I am less off balanced now. Just in this short time of training.
Monday 12/07/2020: 1 hour – 1 mile run, weight lifting, and core
Another great day! I got up got dressed found out it was only 30 degrees outside and got dressed mor. Went out to do my run and finished up my workout.
Now there was a little familial hiccup between my weight lifting and my core workout today but I got it done.
Sometimes life throws you curve balls and you can stop and just give up, or get through the wrinkle in your day and get the workout done when you can.
Today’s workout was focused on a modified German Volume Training. 5 rounds of as many reps as you can do. I intend to work up to 10 sets of 10.
Towards the last set my muscles were dying in a good way.
Training:
1 mile run
Arm, shoulder warm up
Weight lifting:
15 seconds rest between each set, 1 minute rest between exercise
1) Front Raise to Lateral Raise – 5x sets of 15 reps
2) Shoulder Press to Chest Press- 5x sets of 15 reps
3) Seated Snow Angels – 5x sets of 10 reps
4) Resistance band Bicep Curls- 5x sets of 20
5) Tricep bench Dips- 3x sets of 10
6) Overhead Tricep extensions – 3x sets of 20
Core– 6 minutes Dana Lynn Bailey’s (she kicked my butt/abs again)
3x sets of 30 seconds
1) Banded Lat Pull with Bent Knee Reverse Curl
2) Weighted toe touch crunch
3) Bicycles
4) Superman with Flutter Kicks
Tuesday 12/08/2020: 1 hour of Muay Thai
Progress feels like this… when you are less off balance in your off stance. For me this is my South Paw stance. Today I felt like I was more balanced. Progress is also when you feel you are getting better extensions on your cross.
I am going to celebrate the small things. South paw for me is like trying to eat your cereal with the off hand. Trying my best to not make a mess, and learning a heck of a lot.
Also getting better at clench game.
Also I was walking out of the gym, and caught a glimpse of my reflection today. Instead of disgust I thought hey I have some powerful freaking looking thighs now. Yesss!!!
Thank you Khun Kru Krysta for a great class.
Training:
Muay Thai- 25 skip knee 1, and 2’s, and jab cross flurries for active recovery between rounds
Jump rope for warm up
1) Jab, Cross, Lead Knee, Jab, Cross, Rear Knee
2) held pads for H
3) Jab, Cross, Rear Long Knee, Rear Kick
4) held pads for H
5) Fake The Jab, Cross, Rear Upward Knee, Lead Elbow, Rear Elbow, Rear Knee
6) held pads for H
7) Fake Jab, Fake Cross, Lead Elbow, Rear Elbow, tie up, 6 skip knees, push off or spin opponent out, double kick
8 ) held pads for H
9 Jab, Cross, Rear Elbow, tie up (full plumb, half, single wing) 6 skip knees, sin off double kick
10) I held pads for H
Wednesday 12/09/2020: 43 mins- HIIT, kettlebell leg day, core
It is super cold outside. 28 degrees F and chance of snow. So I decided to do all of my workout inside. I chose not to run today. But….I kicked my own butt today.
My workout was fantastic. I am going to be sore tomorrow. It was a leg day and all of my weight lifting workout equipment is outside in the garage that is not heated. I did not even think about not doing my workout I just altered my plans. Because brrr cold.
So I decided a HIIT workout for cardio, a kettlebell leg day to destroy my legs, and core to get my core training in.
Towards the end of kettlebell Leg Day I could not keep up the 15 reps, went down to 13, then 10. I did all 5 sets though! Yay!
I added a picture of all my bumps and sweat, look… I am never going to look like those ladies that look great after giving birth, doing a workout, or anything like that. But I am strong. I have bumps, fat, sweat, wild hairs, all the above. My body is strong and I am lucky to be able to do what I can. Yay!
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HIIT: 12 minutes
[6 exercises done in sets of two, 15 seconds for each exercise done in a set, 30 seconds rest after each two]
1) 15 seconds high knees
2) 15 seconds jump lunges
30 seconds rest
3) 15 seconds high knees
4)15 seconds jump lunges
30 seconds rest
5) 15 seconds mountain climbers
6) 15 seconds crab toe touches
30 seconds rest
7) 15 seconds mountain climbers
8 )15 seconds crab toe touches
30 seconds rest
9) 15 seconds push and up side planks
10) 15 plank hip rolls
30 seconds rest
11) 15 seconds push and up side planks
12) 15 plank hip rolls
30 seconds rest
Repeat the whole set above
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Kettlebell: 25 minutes
Do exercise x 5
1) 1 minute of goblet squats [do 20 if you can do more, up the weight. Do not put kb down]
1 min rest
Do these exercise sets 3 to 5 times
2) staggered stance squat 8-15 reps
3) squat rockers 8-15 reps
4) figure 8’s 8-15 reps
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Core: 6 minutes Dana Lynn Bailey’s (she kicked my butt/abs again)
3x sets of 30 seconds
1) Banded Lat Pull with Bent Knee Reverse Curl
2) Weighted toe touch crunch
3) Bicycles
4) Superman with Flutter Kicks
Thursday 12/10/2020: 1 hour of Muay Thai
Training was great today. I was working south paw again, and working the fence clench. I am getting better at clench and working on keeping everything tight and controlling H’s head in in any of the clenches. I also need to work on selling my fein/fake jab.
With the fence clench I was working in having my elbow in the collar bone, or my elbow in it opponents jaw. Jay my friend and fellow training team mate suggested I put my elbow into his jaw when in the fence clench.
Thank you Khun Kru Krysta, for a great class.
D.O.M.S. Set in today, and my quads and hip flexors are so sore from yesterday. It was hard to work today due to muscle pain but I pushed through. Leg day though, man that workout tore my legs up.
So after training, snack, and shower, I have hypervolted my legs (read H did it for me), now I am ready to pass out.
Training:
jab cross blitzes, elbow blitzes, and skip knees in between rounds for active recovery
Jump rope to warm up
1) shadow box – jab, cross, lead kick
2) shadow box – jab, cross, rear kick
3) Jab, Cross, Lead Long Knee, Lead Kick
4) held pads for H
5) fein Jab, Cross, lead Upward Knee, Rear Elbow, Lead Elbow, Lead Long Knee, Lead Kick
6) held pads for H
7) fein low, fein high, Lead Kick, Cross, Hook chain elbow, tie up, 6x skip knee, spin off double kick
8 )held pads for H
9) Jab, Cross, rear elbow # 6, tie up, 6x skip knees, spin off, double kick
10) Held pads for H
Saturday 12/12/2020: 2 hours and 30 minutes Kali/Staff, and Muay Thai
Ok this is a red faced pic of me right after 7x 3 minute rounds of sparring.
I did the first round of sparring/pop the leather on left hand side or South Paw. They say when you enter the ring adrenaline hits and you forget your training so you have to rely on muscle memory. Guess what I don’t normally do?
Spare in south paw. Lol, my body felt stupid, like my brain was telling it to move, butt it was not listening.
The rest of the rounds I went back to Orthodox fighting. Felt better, but I did not notice when I landed in South Paw. I did not feel out of place. So I see progresssss!!!!! Yess!
I also was able to mimic what my Khun Kru Krysta was able to do and land a good hit. I scooped a jab, and returned a jab right away. Yay! She was genuinely happy I landed the hit.
Kali/Staff:
1) equise drill with low backhand and high back hand
High, high, high, backhand low, high
High, low, high, backhand low, high
Low, low, low, backhand low, high
High, high, low, backhand low, high
Low, low, high, backhand low, high
High, low, low, backhand low, high
Low, high, high, backhand low, high
2) Then we did the above with redondo
Muay Thai: jumping jacks and kicks for active recovery
Jump rope to warm up.
1) Jab, Cross, Teep, Jab, Cross, Hop/slide Teep
2) held pads for H
3) Hanuman Climbing the Mountain Lead Teep (fake rear Teep, lead Teep), hop rear kick
4) held pads for H
5) Hanuman Climbing the Mountain Rear Teep (fake lead Teep, rear Teep), Hop Lead Kick, Rear Cross, Lead Hook, Rear Kick
6) held pads for H
7) Lead Teep, Hanuman Climbing the Mountain Lead Teep (fake rear Teep, lead Teep), hop rear kick, low body hook, head hook, cross, lead kick
8 ) held pads for H
9) Rear Teep, Hanuman Climbing the Mountain Rear Teep (fake lead Teep, rear Teep), overhand, uppercut, rear knee, rear kick
10) held pans for H
Extra curricular
Sparring for 7 x 3 minute rounds. Yay!
So that was it for my week of training. I had a great time. I am still feeling good after that rest I took. I am pretty happy. I was frustrated during training on the left hand side for me. But that is normal, as it is my off hand. I will keep training this way, so one day it will hopefully feel normal for me.
Let me know what you think. Have you trained on your off side? Do you like it?
Thank you for reading. If you liked this post let me know and hit the like button, if you want to see more subscribe and please feel free to comment. I post day to day on my #sharpcupcake instagram account. And post videos there as well.
Remember, you gotta keep trying and Don’t photo edit, just go get it!
Thinks with Spinks 