Tag: Kali

Martial Arts 09/23/2019: Hang On Like An Angry Sloth – BJJ, Muay Thai, Kali

Feeling good. My cold seems to be in the rear view mirror. So today I started my weeks training. With BJJ in the morning, followed by my run weight lifting workout. Yay for reaching daily goals.

Often times I cling on with all my strength mentally and physically to my training. Some times it takes just coming in and working through the training for that day. Some days you just don’t feel like you are making all that much progress. Sometimes you have to cling like an angry sloth. Sometimes you don’t feel like going in, and that is when you drag your tuchus into the gym. Because even if you are not feeling it having the tenacity to keep going and keep training will pay off in the end. Hours on the mat will start to add up.

Monday 9/23/2019 – 1 hour Brazilian Jui Jitsu

This is the second day of BJJ, and I am loving it. When you start a new martial art, or any kind of skill. It is hard to remember everything you did. I think it is partially cause a person does not have all the vocabulary. At least that is the case for me. I am trying to make sure I write it down right after class or I will forget. I call it a when if I can remember some of it. After a while I feel that just like my Muay Thai and Kali, I will retain more and more. I just need to build up my foundation.

Warmup:

  1. Rock to balance
  2. Teeter Totter to balance
  3. Cross sit
  4. Cross sit to lunge and stand, then reverse

Training:

  1. Standing Guilatine
    • Making sure to lean on the person, remove space around their neck by pulling your hand in, thumb up, grab with your other hand.
    • This is to remove oxygen to partners brain
  2. Standing Cross Collar choke
    • Palm up/Palm up 50/50
      1. Make sure to have thumbs behind ears, wrist on neck
      2. Move head up with inserted arm to get under and grab collar
      3. Turn wrists toward neck, as you squeeze
      4. Push forward with hips, and push chest out through arms
    • Palm up/Palm down 80/20
      • One arm is framed on neck
      • Lean over and put other arm over hand holding collar
      • Bottom arm is pulling
  3. From Guard Cross Collar choke
    • Same as above just you are on the ground
    • Break down partners posture
    • Grab collar, and perform cross collar choke
    • Keep hips up for closed guard
  4. Sit Up Sweep
    • When opponent posture up grab collar and ride up
    • But elbow or hand back on mat
    • Trap opponents arm
    • Sit in opponents lap
    • Point your toes so you don’t break your ankle or knee
    • Roll onto knee and shin
    • Put your leg in opponents armpit to push them over, and get high mount

Kru Kristen, described part of the sit up sweep move, “hanging on like an angry sloth.” That made me laugh and it seems not only does it work for this particular sweep, but it also to training.

Tuesday 9/24/2019 – 2 hours Muay Thai and Kali – Seeing openings and being fast enough to take them.

Back at into training and so happy to see my team mates. I love seeing their smiling faces and they all said they were glad to have me back. Today was a big day for training. When we were sparring I saw an opening and got a cross in. Furthermore my instructor was watching us while I did it and she said, “yesssss… Tanya! That is how you do it.” I was shocked and amazed, and I looked at her amazed I got a hit in. She imediately said, “Don’t look at me while I am coaching you.” I was just so surprised.

Not only am I seeing the entries, but today I was quick enough to get them in. Well at least this time. I am sure I will make more mistakes along the way. However for today I did good.

It seems to be the case so far in training. You get to the point where you can see an opening but aren’t fast enough to take that opening and get a strike in. Then you see an opening for a strike and you become fast enough to see it and execute. Here is hoping I am crossing in to that territory.

Kru Kristen said everyone is looking good and have learned so much. We are applying what we are learning so this makes her happy.

Thai Training:

Warm up –

  1. Jump rope 3 minutes
  2. Shadow Boxing 3 minutes

Boxing –

  1. Parry the incoming Jab
  2. Windshield wiper and shoulder check opponent
  3. Upper cut rear hand
  4. Lead hook
  5. Cross
  6. cut the corner, or get out
  7. upper cut burn out for 1 minute
  1. Parry or catch the jab
  2. Parry the cross
  3. Shuffle or lateral in and shoulder check
  4. Lead upper cut
  5. Cross
  6. Bob and weave out
  7. Upper cut burn out for one minute
  1. We then did 3 rounds of 3 minute sparring.
  2. This is where I got my hits in.
  1. 3 rounds on the heavy bag. I opted out of clench sparring to baby my shoulder a little bit.
  2. 1 round of flutter kicks
  3. 10 burpees

Kali Training-

We worked on stick grappling again. We covered the inside and outside disarm, using snake and vine technique.

My partner was trying to figure out a way to get up when the person they are fighting has their arm, they got up in such a way as to have their head down and then were on their knees. So I saw the guillotine and I took it. Kru Krysta said, “that is great! A sneak guillotine!”

  1. Eqquise, kumbiata switch, crash into the person with your shoulder, start walking stick down, pain compliance on pressure points on side of body, then to double leg and behind knee. Push with shoulder and dump person. Get out and hit knees and angles to shatter them then run away.
  2. Eqquise, kumbiata switche, tricep smash, stick assisted rear naked choke, and hold the arm with weapon to hip.
  3. Eqquise, inside deflect, paper cutter on the arm and breaking opponents posture.
  4. Eqquise, inside deflect, pull oppnents hand with weapon to third point in the triangle, insert stick between the legs of opponent, step on foot and then push and pull to take opponent down.
    • Alternately you can use the punio pull out their knee while standing on their foot and pulling them over to 3 rd point in triangle.

Today was a great day in training. I was seeing openings and at least attempting to get them. I got punched in the face many times today, so I am by no means an expert. But I am really happy with my performance today.

Wednesday 9/25/2019 – 2 hours BJJ and Muay Thai – spring on your toes

It’s official I am now officially a jitsu-Er. I took the plunge I did three classes, this was my third and I loved it.

BJJ training-
We worked on breaking posture of opponent.
Compromising opponents elbow to break posture
Using a hand lock and blade of wrists to remove opponent posting with one arm to break posture.
Sit up sweep

Thai training-
We worked on elbows, putting power into them- like honing a sword isolating movement. Kicks, to shields to elbow entries
I need to work on being springy on my feet

Sparring. I felt like wow. Just like I did not know what I was doing. Today I seemed to forget all that I learned, when punches and hits were coming at me. I got into my head, and I keep thinking that if I am getting hit I am doing something wrong or I did not block correctly. Sometimes I do miss a block, but sometimes it is just my opponent saw an opportunity and took it. Not that I was bad, but that they were even better. I need to keep this in mind so I can get out of my head space.

It is so much fun. If you are in the Reston/Herndon area you should visit the One Spirit Martial Arts Gym. http://virginiabjj.com/Thank you to my trainers Mike H, Kevin, JD for BJJ, and Tony in Thai.

P.S. I fit in a smaller sized gi than I thought I would. Woot!

Thursday 9/26/2019 – 2 hours Muay Thai, Kali – Blade Seeks Flesh, and Stick Seeks Bone

In Kali
“Blade seeks flesh, and Stick seeks bone”

Paul S. our resident ninja

What the heck does that mean? You may be wondering that. As my friend Paul S. put it. Use the stick to hit, or put pressure, make painful on your opponent/assailant. Stick on bone hurts a lot, and also can shatter bone. Blade seeks flesh is just that. A blade is meant to cut the flesh, to remove some or sever tendons to keep your assailant from running after you.

Wow class was amazing. I had a great time. I was complimented on my form. I was dropping my hand a little when I threw my cross. Gotta work on that.

Muay Thai Training –

  1. Warmup – jumping rope and stretching
  2. jab, cross, rear knee
  3. jab, cross, lead elbow, rear elbow, rear knee
  4. jab, cross, lead hook/lead elbow, rear knee, rear kick
  5. jab, cross, lead hook/lead elbow, lead knee, lead kick (I did a stutter step on this one)

Kali training –

  1. Inside deflect disarm/snake
  2. Inside deflect plus sign disarm/vine
  3. Outside deflect disarm/snake
  4. Outside deflect equal sign disarm/vine
  5. Eqquise, kumbiata switch, tricep smash, stick assisted rear naked choke, and hold the arm with weapon to hip.
  6. Eqquise, inside deflect, pull opponents hand with weapon to third point in the triangle, insert stick between the legs of opponent, step on foot and then push and pull to take opponent down. Alternately you can use the punio pull out their knee while standing on their foot and pulling them over to 3 rd point in triangle.
  7. Eqquise, inside deflect, pull opponents hand with weapon down toward their own body, insert stick between opponents body, and bicep, and using opponents back or hip, leaver them down while standing on their foot.

Below is a video of me doing the rear naked choke.

https://youtu.be/bP0dG4gituY

I really enjoyed the chokes, maybe a little to much. But they are fun. I am amazed that I could remember all of these drills. We worked on all of these. I had to work in the bakery early this morning. I got in at about 4:50 am, and did not get out till later almost 11 pm. To say I am tired is an understatement. But I did it, I clung in there, I came and I trained. Did I think about not going in, yup. But I am glad I came in.

Stick-to-itiveness… its a strange word, one I have heard since I was a child. It’s a informal word in U.S English. According to Merriam-Webster a (famous in the states) dictionary publisher it is:

stick-to-itiveness

nounstick-to-it·​ive·​ness | \ stik-ˈtü-ə-tiv-nəs  \

Definition of stick-to-itiveness

: dogged perseverance : TENACITY

US, informal: the quality that allows someone to continue trying to do something even though it is difficult or unpleasant

So yes this week has been about, stick-to-itiveness, perseverance, tenacity, or just hanging on like an angry sloth. I went into the gym to train even though I was tired, I went in even though I had a bad day, and I went in because I wanted to. However, when my body (read scoliosis) was telling me to take it easy I did just that. Friday night I listened to my body, and stayed home from my workout.

Today/Saturday I missed class due to my re-certification class for CPR, AED, and First Aid. I need this cert for work, and I am happy to be re-certified. Tenacity is a good quality to have, but don’t let it give you tunnel vision like I get. Like all things, take everything in moderation. To much of anything is not good for you. Listen to your body, do the things you need to do, and enjoy a day off if you need it.

Thanks for reading. I hope you are having a great weekend. My respect to you and your family. Keep working to be the best you can be.

Martial Arts 09/16/2019: Cross training – BJJ, Muay Thai, Kali Oh My

This week marks the start of my third martial arts I am going to train in. Brazilian Jui Jitsu is whats on the plate. I have some trepidation. I have scoliosis and moving my neck wrong, or wrenching my back can have unpleasant repercussions for weeks at a time. Repercussions like pain from misalignment and having to modify my movements. So its a big step. I just have to go slowly and listen to my body. With that said I am excited and looking forward to this.

Cross Training– cross training is a training technique that uses different kinds of muscles, and different parts of the body.

Cross training for instance is a swimmer training in swimming and then training in weight lifting 2 days a week. The athlete uses some of the same muscles and some separate different muscles in both training. If you just train one type of sport/muscle you run the risk of injury or lop sided muscle development.

So I will be adding another type of cross training. I will be adding grappling to my repertoire. Here is hoping it goes well.

Monday 9/16/2019 – Brazilian Jui Jitsu

First day of class for BJJ. I got to the gym, got my gi, and sat on the mat.

Let me say it was awesome. I am worried about my neck and back but I had a blast working with my friend in who I train with in Muay Thai.

I called myself a non belt, as this is my first day. So as a non belt I just listen and try to remember and execute every move as Kristen taught us.

We warmed up with active body movement that had us lifting our hips, rotating and stretching. Things I did not realize at the time we were going to do for the moves we were learning that day.

I learned the basics of triangles and thumbs up one hand lapel grab bent arm to hammer lock. I was even able to execute them.

The main thing I learned in BJJ is hips off the mat, and positioning is key to executing the moves correctly.

This martial art is different from any of the striking martial arts I do. While less energetic in the sense that nothing is coming at my head or my body, it is dynamic in the sense you feel your partners moves more than see them and react to them. You feel your partner shift weight and then you react.

In this class they focus on 1 training skill standing up and 1 training skill laying down each class. Afterwards they roll with each other to practice the things they learned.

Since I am brand new. I just worked on the drills we worked on.

It was a fantastic class and I intend on going every week at least once a week, maybe twice.

Tuesday 9/17/2019 – 2 hours of training Muay Thai and Kali

Muay Thai: Boxing and Elbows

Training: We worked on boxing with elbow entries and elbow entries after defense.

We warmed up with 100 jumping jacks, stretching, and then range management plus sign drilling.

Elbow entry after attack, or after you throw a jab and cross.

  1. Jab, cross, left horizontal elbow, to downward diagonal, boogie out, or bob and weave out

Elbow entry after attack, or after you throw a jab.

  1. Jab, slide in left Tach Malach elbow or spearing elbow, to right downward diagonal elbow, grab the neck and run the knees

Elbow entry after defense, or after you catch a jab, and scoop a cross.

  1. Parry incoming jab, scoop an incoming cross, pull opponent to you while scooping, left horizontal elbow, spinning back elbow, to reverse back elbow, to superman elbow. Then boogie out or bob and weave out.

Main points to remember when doing these:

  1. Range management – when punching you are using full extension, when elbowing slide step in, use your hip for torque to get power in. For the spinning back elbow, step to your oppoenents left hand or right hand side when throwing horizontal elbow but do not over rotate on horizontal elbow.
  2. Site your target before throwing the spinning back elbow. Like a dancer spins their head around and focuses on one area of the room.
  3. Stay all the way in, by bob and weave and cutting the corner, or stay all the way out, but booging out and getting out of the pocket.

Kali – Stick grappling

Kali we worked on stick grappling. Kumbiata switch into the crash. Then used the stick for pain compliance, to a double leg take down. We learned break knees and break ankles when you get out. Or knee separation, calf explosion, to ankle lock that breaks the ankle. Also how to leverage my shortness to break ankle. Yay!

Have you ever had a light bulb moment in your training? I have. Today was one of those days where I had that moment. We were covering one of the leg/ankle locks after you take you assailant down to the ground. This particular ankle lock/break I have a hard time when taller people, cause I am short. So no matter how much I stand up it does not work. I might get a pain compliance tap out of the person, but actually getting a break in the ankle I would not get. I just don’t have the leverage. Well I learned a ankle lock/ankle break that used leverage an a well placed foot on the assailants other leg while I stood up. This gives me great leverage.

Also I learned in a stick grappling situation, my height gives me an advantage in another area. When my opponent is trying to separate my knee, or explode my calf, or ankle lock me they are closer to me and I can hit them with my stick. Where when I do it to them, when I blade my body they can only get a small piece of my shoulder. So being short in this instance is the best.

Training:

  1. eqquise (being sure to hit with intent, or putting the stank on it ), low back hand, high back hand.
  2. Figure 8 (being sure to hit with intent), to low back hand, high back hand.
  3. eqquise, kumbiata switch, crash into the person with shoulder, grab them and control/compress arms with your body and stick. Make sure head is behind them.
  4. eqquise, kumbiata switch, crash into the person with your shoulder, start walking stick down, pain compliance on presure points on side of body, then to double leg and behind knee. Push with shoulder and dump person. Get out and hit knees and angles to shatter them then run away.
  5. Counter to the above take down, get double under hooks, square up and you can either:
    1. Snake bite the spine (pain compliance)
    2. break their poster with the stick in the middle of back. Lean forward with your head and shoulders on their chest, and just walk forward.
  6. We then played (taking time to explore what we learned and try to find the entry). We used soft sticks to kumbiata switch and tried to get your opponent on the floor. From there we we mounted and it end up in grappling.

Sometimes people get so caught up on the weapon, that it is not the answer. When grappling maybe the stick is not helping, don’t be afraid to get rid of it and refocus on opponent. Using their body to make them compliant.

What is the saying about best laid plans?

“the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry”

Scottish Proverb

So this week, I missed Wednesday – Saturday Class. My husband came home from a work trip and wanted to take Wednesday off. So we did. Little did I know I would come down with the plague that my kids brought home.

So I have been convalescing nursing a cold and a slight fever. I have missed 3 days of training and am a little miffed about it. But today/Saturday I feel… I may be feeling like I am on the upswing.

Yeah best laid plans and all that. I did not want to get the rest of my team mates sick. I really was feeling dizzy and icky for three days. So its far better for me to stay home. Even if my inner 5 year old is throwing a fit cause she cannot have what she wants (which is to train martial arts) when she wants it.

Thank you for reading this sadly short blog about my two days of training. I hope you have a great day.

Martial Arts 09/10/2019: Muscle Memory

Muscle memory… in general I don’t think I know much. I mean when it comes to martial arts. I have been training for nearly two years in Muay Thai and Kali, with a smattering of JKD, Silate, and very little BJJ. I am often looking toward the next little thing to tweak. The next skill to learn. So when my instructor says, we are doing X, and I know exactly what to do I am amazed. Further more when my instructor says we are doing Y, and I am hazy about the terminology but I have done it so many times, in so many different configurations, that I have muscle memory, and my body just does what I need it to do.

I googled Muscle Memory and this is the first response that came up:
“The ability to reproduce a particular movement without conscious thought, acquired as a result of frequent repetition of that movement.”typing relies heavily on muscle memory” “

Tuesday 9/10/2019 – 2 hours of training Muay Thai and Kali

Muay Thai – compliments on my movement, heck I am moving more.

The ability to reproduce a movement without thinking about it. Yup! This week I am noticing more muscle memory. Movement… I am moving more. By this I mean pivoting my feet correctly, getting in and out of the pocket, cutting corners, and in general just getting out and away from strikes.

I got a compliment on my movement. My instructor Kru Kristen is so happy to see me moving more. What I mean is my pivot is much better on my punches. My head movement is getting better. I am getting my head off the line. I am slipping the punches more. I am covering with windshield wiper more. I am in general upping my fight game. Yay!

Today we worked on: Countering jabs and returning strikes

  1. Parry jab down and returning a jab right away. (This is great for taller people, or people taller than their opponent. )
  2. Parry the jab slip and return a gut jab (This is better for the shorter people.
  3. Scoop the jab, pulling in your opponent, and then returning a over hand. (This is good for almost all people)
  4. We returned hook, or upper cut, cross, and then bob and weave a hook to head, then boogie out or step in and shoulder bump.

Kali – disarms and chokes

In Kali, today’s training muscle memory kicked in. Because when my instructor asked us if we remember the high box. My brain did not remember the term, but when we were working on the drills, my body kicked in. 15 strike, block strike incoming, strike 2 returned, block incoming strike.

  1. We worked on disarms, inside deflect which is plus sign disarm, and vine disarm.
  2. We worked on disarms, outside deflect which is equal sign disarm, and snake disarm.
  3. We worked on kumbiata switch to triangle chokes
  4. We worked on getting out of those chokes and returning a paper cutter choke.

Today was a great day of training.

Thrusday 9/12/2019 – 1.5 hours of training Muay Thai and Kali

Class was fantastic today. I love love love Muay Thai and Kali. I can’t put into words how much I love the martial arts styles. I will try here… I really believe it is because of my two great trainers/instructors, and because of the culture of the gym. Because of these two ladies their teaching style and encouragement, this is such a part of my life that I rearrange my other obligations and jobs so that I can continue and improve my skills with these ladies.

I am crazy enough that I am going to try to add in BJJ into the mix. I am going to try to see if I can at least attend one BJJ class a week, maybe two starting next week.

Muay Thai – Countering crosses and returning strikes

In Muay Thai now, I know how to do many things. I don’t know all the things mind you. I rely on my muscle memory to carry me through, and then I try to focus on the little tweaks I need to make. Like lifting my elbow to more horizontal to throw the hook correctly. Working on my foot work (meaning pivots, and getting in and out of the pocket). In general working on my form. I know the basic drills, now its time to tweak and improve my fight game.

  1. Parry jab, and parry cross down, returning a cross to head(This is great for taller people, or people taller than their opponent. )
    1. return hook, cross, then bob and weave to get out
  2. Parry the jab, then parry the cross slip and return a chest cross (This is better for the shorter people.)
    1. return hook, cross, then bob and weave to get out
  3. Parry the jab, then parry the cross slip and return a gut cross (This is better for the shorter people.)
    1. return body hook, head hook, cross, then bob and weave to get out
  4. Then we worked on pop the leather. Where each two group person does a 4 count combination.

Kali – disarms

We worked on disarms and chokes as well again. Today I had to leave early to go and get H from the airport. He was coming back in from a business trip.

I was acting as a single parent for 4 days of the week. Let me say those single parents out there my hats off to you. I was happy to see my husband, but I was also so happy to have my partner and fellow parent here to help with the kiddos.

This week I only made it to two of my martial arts 5 training days. Wednesday baby girl was sniffling and had a runny nose, and I was on my own so I decided to let her rest. On Friday I had my husband home and we got a much needed date night away from the kiddos. Today we decided to just rest and let everyone recoup. Life happens and I feel like I have grown realizing that not all the time will the schedule work.

I have a new martial arts class to look forward to this next week. Brazilian Jui Jitsu, I am hoping it will be ok for my back. All I can do is try it out and see.

Keep working to make yourself the best you can be, and thank you for reading. As always please let me know if you have any questions. My respects for you all.

Martial Arts 09/03/2019: Muay Thai – Balance is king, Boxing, (High, Mid, and Low line)

Woo this month in Muay Thai we are focusing on boxing. For the more advanced students Kry Kristen is focusing on the more technical side of boxing. She mentioned when she started Muay Thai she would throw noise punches out there that did not do anything just to get to kicks, however, when she figured out how to pivot and move her feet properly to get power into her punch it changed her game entirely. Anyway this week I completed 6.75 hours of training.

Tuesday 9/03/2019 – 2 hours of training Muay Thai and Kali

Muay Thai – Boxing, Technical training, (High, Mid, and Low Line)

So I know people learn in one of 4 ways. When I was a child they tested me and found I learn all 4 ways equally. This is… wait, I just read an article stating that the learning styles are not exactly accurate… however, when I was a little girl… Hrm… that makes me sound really old. But non the less… when I was little, they tested me and I learned all 4 ways equally. What are the 4 ways you ask? (Memorization, Visual, Auditory, and Doing/manual manipulation) Apparently your preferred method of learning changes based on what you are doing. You don’t learn math just verbally, and you can’t learn language very well just by seeing pictures. So what I was going to say goes out the window.

However, that all being said, and my verbose description aside, for me and martial arts visual seeing it done, verbal, and writing it down is really helping me. So I am going to make another chart for boxing ranges and High/Mid/Low lines shots. Here is the chart below.

For today’s class, Kru Kristen was explaining the different areas for strikes in boxing. How if your opponent goes for the high line, you drop your level and hit say a hook to mid section of your opponent and get the mid line etc. If the go low, you guy high, or mid line. She did not want to be to esoteric but thinking of the opponents body in terms of shapes and areas in those shapes to strike are helpful she said. For me this description is very helpful. I love the thought of this. I am an artist and I think and see shapes all the time. I see the way things are made up, so thinking of my opponent in shapes and how they are made up, to see where to hit in response to something just made a light go on. (see doll above, for shapes and strike areas)

Training:

  1. 1 x 3 minute round jump rope warm up
  2. 1 x 3 minute round plus sign range management drill
  3. 1 x 3 minute round plus sign range management drill with 1/4 turns
  4. The goal of this drill is to focus on pivot, and foot placement on the punches, the head movement and the deep step, then the shoulder check to close range. You are going to be in the inner mid line with the hook before you bob and shoulder check.
  5. Jab
  6. Cross
  7. Hook
  8. Cross
  9. Bob
  10. Deep step in to right side of opponent and shoulder check
  11. Either get out, or continue to press the strikes
  12. Cross to Hook burn out drill
  13. The goal of this drill is the same, pivot, foot placement, and range management, also adding change in level of strikes.
  14. Jab
  15. Cross
  16. Hook to body
  17. Hook to head
  18. Bob
  19. Deep step in to the right side, and shoulder check
  20. Either get out, or continue to press the strikes
  21. Body hook, Head Hook, Cross burn out drill

    Windshield wiper shoulder bump drill
  22. Windshield wiper = Lead hand covers belly, rear hand covers side of face usually on lead side face. Reverse when bobbing other side, rear hand covers belly, lead hand covers face.
  23. Foot work, is female triangle, or rear step out to side of opponent.
  24. Bob with lead shoulder toward opponent doing windshield wiper
  25. Bump shoulders
  26. Bring feet back together, and hands up covering face
  27. Step with lead foot to lead foot to side of opponent
  28. Bob with rear shoulder toward opponent doing windshield wiper
  29. Bump shoulders

    Windshield wiper shoulder bump drill with hook, or uppercut
  30. Foot work, is female triangle, or rear step out to side of opponent.
  31. Bob with lead shoulder toward opponent doing windshield wiper
  32. Bump shoulders Bring, throw a hook/upper cut to opponents head (for drill shoulder so you don’t hurt your opponent)
  33. Step with lead foot to lead foot to side of opponent
  34. Bob with rear shoulder toward opponent doing windshield wiper
  35. Bump shoulders throw a hook/upper cut to opponents head (for drill shoulder so you don’t hurt your opponent)

Kali – 6 count drills

In Kali today we covered the basic 6 count drills. It was nice to work on something we have done before and we have the muscle memory for it already. Some days its nice not having to tax you brain. Muay Thai did that for us today already, so tonight was nice. I turned off my brain and just went through the movement. I tried to make my movements more smooth. Tried being the operative word there.

Wednesday 9/04/2019 – 1 hours of training Muay Thai

We worked on the same things we did yesterday, however, today we added one more drill. Also I worked with a girl who is brand new and because of that I went slower, tried to help teach her how to hold pads, and just made sure she was comfortable. While I go slower, I work on my form. Today I worked on my pivot and the escapes.

Escapes we worked on:

  1. Lateral step in and bump with shoulder to mid section, then bump with other shoulder to create space.
  2. Boogie out ( a way to get out of the corner, or cut a corner)
  3. Quarter turned out and side shuffle out

Warm Up:

  1. Monster walks with resistance band forward and backward across the mat
  2. Side lounges across the mat with resistance band down and back across the mat
  3. Contra Lateral Movement, bear crawls, side ways across the mat and forward and backward across the mat
  4. Agility Ladder drill – Ali Shuffle x 3 minute round

Found the Agility Ladder drill on youtube so you can see it:

New combo we worked on today:

  1. Jab
  2. Cross
  3. Lead upper cut
  4. Cross
  5. Quarter turn and side shuffle out

Today was a good day. Kru Kristen complimented me on my form and movement. She said the more I get into boxing stance. The more I move properly. I am using my body for my strikes and moving my head. That is great news, because when I spar I tend to feel very stationary. I need to learn to move and keep my movement dynamic.

Thursday 9/05/2019 – Took today off, scoliosis was hurting me and causing headaches all day.

Friday 9/06/2019 – 1.75 hours of training Muay Thai – Balance is king, and making your Thai pretty

I love working with Tony, he has a different perspective and he has points of view I had not thought of. When you train with a instructor in Muay Thai, and you go out there in the world, you are representing your trainer/instructor. Muay Thai practitioners really believe, that you represent all of your instructors. (I to believe this, and try to show respect in all things, and only do what would make my instructors proud.) I have mentioned it before, but when you learn from a instructor, when they take you under their wing and decide to teach you, they are taking you into their family. They are taking you into their lineage.

I am lucky and honored to have Tony, Kru Kristen, and Khun Kru Krysta instructing me.

Today while we were training he talked with us about making our Thai pretty. We are representing him out there in the world and he loves it when people recognize his families art as pretty. He emphasized taking the power out of the kicks and the knees. He wants us to put them out there, make them pretty, work on our balance and then the power comes later. He really likes us to feel our bodies and how they work. You can see this in the warm ups we do. I really love the differences between my instructors. I get the best of so many worlds.

I started my workout 30 minutes before class started.

Training:

  1. 5 minutes of stretching
  2. 5 minutes walking knees across the mat
  3. 10 minutes bag work for, working on kicks, teeps to kicks, and closing the distance for knees
  4. 10 minutes of windshield wiper bump drill first on bag, then with partner

Training in class:

  1. 10 minutes of jumping rope
  2. 1 round of easy walking kicks to shields, using both orthodox and south paw stance.
    1. (He wanted us to losen up our hips, get our body moving, and feel how our hips move. Because all to often we are tight we are holding our hands up to cover our faces which is good, but then we tighten everything else.)
  3. 1 round of rear driving knees
  4. 20 push ups
  5. 1 round of pad holding for your partners rear driving knees.
    1. (Tony emphasized that the pad holders responsibility is to hold well for your partner. If they are shorter you should lower your stance and hold it lower for them. His contention is that yes a shorter person can kick higher, but that is a different motion and different kick, than say a torso kick at the shorter person level.)
  6. 20 push ups
  7. 1 round of lead teep, to switch step to lead knee.
    1. (The key here is balance. You want to be able to teep a person to stop them from coming forward, but not eject them. You then want to have your shield up for the second before you switch step into a driving knee.)
  8. 20 push ups
  9. 1 round of holding pads for your partner
    1. (The key here is that he wants the pad holder to not move back on the teep, and to get enough resistance and push back that the knee-er knee is pushed back down and then can get back into stance again. We need to be good pad holders so that our partner can work the drill correctly too. )
  10. 20 push ups
  11. 2 rounds of sets of 50 machine gun kicks.
    1. ( We worked both sides. after about the 200th kick I was gassing. He wanted the power taken out of it and for us to feel the movement and get the speed in. We ended up doing about 250 kicks per round)

Today was a great day of class. I loved it. I am glad I took the day yesterday. I could have pushed through but the way I was feeling was not conducive to a great training day. Some days I just have to take it off. I am slowly coming to grips with that.

Also today I was working on putting more weight on my back leg, and less on my front leg. I have a habit of leaning forward in my stance and that is not good. I makes me slower and less able to react quickly and reduces my power. Tony wants us to feel our bodies and how they move. I noticed my driving knees were so much more powerful when I just leaned back more on my rear leg. This was a light bulb moment for me. We are told to do just that lean back more, but it is hard to feel/see what they are talking about till you drill it out and figure it out on your own body.

Saturday 9/07/2019 – 2 hours of training Muay Thai and Staff – waking up on the wrong side of the bed

Today was one of those days where when you wake up and all the little things that irritate you or upset you through the day add up, you wish you just had not gotten out of bed. Yeah… today was that day. I woke up on the wrong side of the bed as I heard my elders say when I was a wee little girl.

I won’t list all the things that made it bad, or annoying, or sad, just that it was, and so it colored my day. It also made me doubt myself and have to cut out of staff class just to go check that I had unplugged a waffle iron. I wanted to make sure I did not burn the house down. So I missed a good half of staff class.

I had the pleasure of working with my trainer/instructor Khun Kru Krysta and I got to see all of my Thai family and my Kali family. That was nice. I shown up, and I tried to put the work in. As my friend said to me today, “even if you only put in 25% while you are here, you are here and you tried. You did not give up when you had a bad day!” So yeah I did that.

Training today was all things we have done and have been studying. This is good. This is great, because I did not have to over think what I was doing. I could just let for the most part muscle memory take over. Even though I felt like the kicks I was putting in were terrible. I was putting them in, and correcting as I was going.

Staff – We worked on various redondos and backhands.

Striking/Muay Thai Class – we worked on catch, parry, and returning 4 counts to opponent, teeping them and then getting out.

This is a video of me working on some of the drills we did in class. As you can see I am working on my technique. I am just not 100% today.

https://youtu.be/SBByaAwJ3g4

Well I hate ending on a down note. Wait a second it is not a down note. I went to class I worked things out. I did not let the little things stop me. I might have had a moment here and there that got me down, but I worked through it.

Thank you all for reading. If you have any questions feel free to ask. My respect to you and I hope you follow your dreams to become the best you that you can be.

Martial Arts 08/27/2019: Muay Thai – Its all in the hips, Kali – Saint Uriel

6.5 hours of training this week. Its been another great week of training. I had some hiccups in my week. Work, and life got in the way, so I missed my weight lifting workout, and got some needed chiropractic adjustments. This is a holiday week for us in the U.S. so there is no class on Saturday.

Tuesday 8/27/2019 – 2.5 hours of training Muay Thai and Kali

Muay Thai – Pra Jiad test prep

In Muay Thai today we practiced the fundamentals. We worked only on the Full 4 counts. The Thai 4 counts that he added to and developed by Guro Dan Innosanto. He took original Thai 4 counts and added 4 more. Starting with the Jab, and Cross.

Thai 4 counts are:

  1. Left to Right –
    • left kick
    • right cross
    • left hook
    • right kick
  2. Right to Left –
    • right kick
    • left hook
    • right cross
    • left kick
  3. Left to Left-
    • Left kick
    • Right cross
    • Left hook
    • Left kick
  4. Right to Right
    • Right kick
    • Left hook
    • Right cross
    • Right kick

The added combinations are:

  1. Jab, cross, left to right
    • Jab
    • Cross
    • Left kick (walking kick)
    • Right kick (walking kick)
  2. Jab, cross, right to left
    • Jab
    • Cross
    • Right kick (walking kick)
    • Left kick (walking kick)
  3. Jab, cross, left to left
    • Jab
    • Cross
    • Double left kick (speed kick)
  4. Jab, cross, right to right
    • Jab
    • Cross
    • Double right kick (speed kick)

We then worked on pop the leather where our partner got to do a 4 count then we got to do a 4 count.

A lot of power in Muay Thai comes from the hips. So when you throw a punch you are throwing your body and hip as well. Sometimes pivoting sometimes not but surely using your hips. Its all in the hips.

Kali – Saint Uriel

Woo in Kali we worked on a new running saint, Saint Uriel. But I am getting ahead of myself.

We worked on:

  1. umbrella 6
  2. Umbrella 8
  3. Umbrella 7 (which always takes a minute to get used to)
  4. Umbrella 18 (two sets of umbrella 7, with a transition)
  5. Saint Uriel

I had a blast. My brain kinda bent, but was not melted today. After a Thai class I love having Kali. Its a great way to wind down the physical and get your mind going then I pass out when I get home and showered.

https://youtu.be/MtapH011vUo
https://youtu.be/ccYcTI9-fEU

Wednesday 8/28/2019 – 1 hour of training Muay Thai

Today we trained for 1 hour. We worked on basics. Knees to kicks, working on range management (whether to do a leg kick, torso kick, hop kick, or stutter kick). When we go back to basics we get to work on our form and foot work. Which is supper important.

Warm up:

  1. 1 x 3 minute round of jump rope
  2. 1 x 3 minute round of shadow boxing

Training: (manage your range, and choose leg kick if you are two close, torso kick if you moved them a little with your knee, and if you moved them a lot do a hop kick)

  1. Rear knee to Lead kick
  2. Lead knee to Rear kick
  3. Lead knee to Lead kick (focus on stutter step, to decrease time between strikes)
  4. Rear knee to Rear kick (focus on stutter step, to decrease time between strikes)
  5. 30 sit ups
  6. 50 Russian twists
  7. Stretching

That is all for today. I got a good sweat in, but it was not super taxing. I had fun, and I worked on form.

Thursday 8/29/2019 – 1.5 hours of training Muay Thai – Pra Jiad Test!

I was awarded my blue pra jiad! Woot!

Today was the pra jiad test. I was so excited. We get to see just how much we have learned, and how many skills we have picked up. Also today my left elbow is giving me hell. It hurts and I was annoyed it hurt. But this is part of Thai Boxing. Injuries will happen, its how you treat them, deal with them and train around them that matters. So I just did not throw the punches in with my left hand full force, and I made sure that my form was perfect as can be on my holding pads. One last thing I did was make sure my partner knew my elbow was being a bum and that I was going to not hit hard with that arm.

Kru Kristen had us separate in three rows of people. She had us start with a technique demo. To give you an partial example we did the following:

  1. Boxing stance
  2. Kicking stance
  3. Elbows #1, #2, #3, #4, #9
  4. Knees
  5. Some kicks

Then she had us break into pairs and drill the following: (not in this order)

  1. Trigg 10
  2. Boxing 20
  3. Full 4 counts
  4. Four boxing hits and out
  5. 2 x 3 minute conditioning rounds (three kicks hard one side, three kicks hard other side, then clench and 5 knees)
  6. Pop the leather

It was fantastic. It was hard, and the last two conditioning rounds had me gassed at the end. I love working that hard. I loved testing to see where I was. I made mistakes and I could see them, but I kept going.

So yeah I got my blue pra jiad. I could not be happier and or more proud. Woot!

Friday 8/30/2019 – 1.5 hours of Muay Thai Training, with Tony – Body Hooks

Today we got to work with Tony. He is an amazing instructor and has ring experience. He wanted us to focus on body shots today, and getting in for the jab cross and laying in the power with the body shots.

I look forward to Tony’s classes cause I know he is going to work us hard. His classes tend to be more conditioning, with an equal amount of skills training.

Before we started class I was working on the boxing 20, trying to make my flow better and keep my strikes coming in time, and keep moving. I also noticed after looking at the video among other things I need to bring my elbow up for my hooks. Sigh… but I am learning and hopefully getting better.

The combo is:

  1. Jab
  2. Cross
  3. Hook
  4. Cross
  5. Bob and weave
  6. Cross
  7. Hook
  8. Bob and weave
  9. Hook
  10. Cross
  11. Cover incoming right body hook
  12. Left Upper Cut
  13. Cross
  14. Cover incoming left body hook
  15. Right Upper Cut
  16. Hook
  17. Cross
  18. Slip the incoming Supper Man Overhand punch
  19. Either should into opponents mid section, or deliver a right body hook
  20. Left hook
  21. Overhand Cross

Here is the video.

https://youtu.be/M4ajHf3zR1k

Training:

  1. 1/4 mile run
  2. 1 x 3 minute round of jumping low hurdles with both feet sprinting to the end and jogging back
  3. Jab, cross, body hook
  4. Jab, cross, body hook, head hook, cross
  5. Left horizontal elbow, clear pad or hand, to throw right horizontal elbow.
  6. 1 x 3 minute round of conditioning kicking. 5 rapid/machine gun kicks, on the left and right hand side.
  7. 1 x 3 minute round of jumping rope

It was a fantastic class. I had a great time, and I definitely got my conditioning in. I get to work with a great group of people.

Thanks for reading. I hope you all had a great week. I sure did. I passed my pra jiad test or “powered up” as my daughter described it. I had a blast and got to work with my team mates my extended family. My respects to you all. Keep working to be the best you that you can be.

Martial Arts 08/19/2019: Muay Thai – You can’t fake mat time,Getting ready for my blue pra jiad test, Kali-Punyo Sumbrada

8.5 hours of Martial Arts training for this week. Yay!

08/20/2019 Tuesday 2 hours of training – Muay Thai and Kali

Today was a great day! I had a blast in class and felt really good. We worked on parrying the cross to enter with a knee. Then we added in elbows and kicks. It feels good when things flow together, and when your body just does what you have been training it to do.

  1. parry the cross
  2. post on the shoulder or head
  3. throw rear knee
  4. Burn out 25 skip knees #2
  1. parry the cross
  2. post on the shoulder or head
  3. throw rear knee
  4. Rear Tach malach or #8
  5. Lead horizontal elbow or #1
  6. Lead Knee
  7. Burn out 25 skip knee #2

First 6 of the Thai 15

  1. Parry the cross
  2. High elbow cover for incoming hook
  3. Lead #1 elbow
  4. Rear #3 elbow
  5. Rear knee
  6. Lead kick or lead round house

Blitz drill

  1. for 3 minute round, rear knee, to rear kick, you move your partner across the mat, continuing to do rear knee to rear kick for entire round of 3 minutes.

Kali – Punyo Sumbrada

In Kali we worked on the Punyo Sumbrada drills. The Punyo is the but end of the weapon. So for a sword it is the pommel, for a stick it is the shorter end that you hand is near, for a knife it is the but end. This is a Inosanto flow drill that uses the punyo of the stick, or weapon to strike at your opponent.

  1. feeder feeds a #3 strike
  2. you low wing block, and control the feeders striking hand
  3. you punyo strike up to the face
  4. feeder catches your blow with a C clamp/monkey paw
  5. you strike with a witik toward the face
  6. feeder blocks with the stick
  7. You reach inside the box and rotate the hand of the feeder so you can hit them with your weapon
  8. They wipe off your hand
  9. feeder feeds a #1 strike
  10. you high wing block, and control the feeders striking hand
  11. You yank/pull the feeder to you, and punyo strike up to the face
  12. feeder catches your blow with a C clamp/monkey paw
  13. you strike with a witik toward the face
  14. feeder blocks with the stick
  15. You reach inside the box and rotate the hand of the feeder so you can hit them with your weapon
  16. They wipe off your hand
  17. feeder feeds a #5 strike
  18. you low wing block, and control the feeders striking hand
  19. You yank/pull the feeder to you, and punyo strike up to the face
  20. feeder catches your blow with a C clamp/monkey paw
  21. you strike with a witik toward the face
  22. feeder blocks with the stick
  23. You reach inside the box and rotate the hand of the feeder so you can hit them with your weapon
  24. They wipe off your hand

From there we we worked on 4 disarms. We worked them into the above drills.

  1. snake
  2. vine
  3. plus sign
  4. equal sign

08/21/2019 Wednesday 1 hour of training – Muay Thai

Today we worked on the skills and combos we need to learn and know for our pra jiad arm band test. I originally wanted to get in early and get another hour in. But I had lost my bank card at a Starbucks, I went through the drive through and never got it back. I did not notice I did not get it back and the lady at the window did not give it to me. So I had a scare right before class and had to go get it. That put a dampener on my day. However, I went in and trained hard, and feel better now.

Pra Jiad – is a type of armband worn by Thai Boxing/Muay Thai athletes. Originally it was given to a fighter for good luck and confidence, from the family members. If I remember correctly, legend has it a mother tore her skirt and tied it around the arm of her son going into battle. She said, “bring it back to me, this is just a loan.”

The Pra Jiad is also used to show ranks in Muay Thai in some gyms, and by the WTBA (World Thai Boxing Association). Below is a chart of the ranks we have. These ranks are similar to belt systems in other martial arts. My gym and Kru are WTBA certified instructors and our gym is an WTBA gym.

I am currently a green pra jiad rank. I will be testing for the blue band. My instructor looked me in the eye and said you are training, so I guess that is that. =)

So on to today’s training:

Warm up –

  1. 1 round of jump rope
  2. Banded monster walks forward and back across the mats
  3. Banded side walks down and back across the mats
  4. Bear crawl forward and backward
  5. Sideways bear crawl forward and backward

Training –

  1. Trigg 10
  2. Boxing 4 count
  3. Jab Cross Series
  4. Thai 4 counts
  5. Full 4 counts
  6. Then we did one x 2 minute round of 25 right kicks, 25 left kicks, and 50 knees, then we hit the bag hard for the remaining time left on the 2 minute round. My goal is to do 10 in a row like one of our fighters does.

Some action shots I took from today. I am pivoting, and up on the ball of my foot. Woot!

08/22/2019 Thursday 2 hours of training – Muay Thai – 90% of Amateur boxing is straight punches, and Kali – brain melting after a challenging Muay Thai class.

So today is one of the days I have to go into the bakery early in the morning. I get there at 5 am and have to work on all the orders that are due for that day, and start on orders that are due for the weekend. Some require more time to do.

So I am tired by the time training comes around. I am really tired. But hey that is life and so I go. Just have to get my go’er going.

Muay Thai – “90% of Amateur boxing fights are strait punches then getting out of the pocket.” per Kru Kristen. What she is saying is the jab, and cross are your bread and butter. Get in, throw those jab, crosses, and maybe a kick if you can and get out. Don’t let the other person hit you.

Warm up:

  1. 1 round of jumping rope
  2. 1 round of shadowboxing

Training:

  1. 2 x 3 minute round of Trigg 10
  2. 30 seconds skip knee #1
  3. 2 x 3 minute round of boxing 20
  4. 30 seconds skip knee #2
  5. 2 x 3 minute round of Full 4 counts
  6. 30 seconds jab cross blitz
  7. 1 x 2 minute round of 25 kicks left, 24 kicks right, 50 knees
  8. 30 sit ups
  9. And flutter kicks for 1 minute

Kali – Brain melting after a challenging Muay Thai class.

Kali today was challenging. But I felt good, and felt like I got into a flow. I video’d some of the drills we did today. It is good to look back and see the progress I have made, even if it is very slight.

Today we worked on:

  1. Heaven six
  2. Umbrella six
  3. Cob Cob
  4. Inward, backhand, backhand

We worked on all of those in a drill. After your body is tired and you ask your body and more importantly your mind to focus and move your body with sticks and avoid getting hurt by doing the drill right. Whew, does it melt the brain. My brain was giving me this, “ok… you get one or the other. We can work hard to make sure you don’t get hit, but you can’t move to much or you can move a lot and we will give you more energy.” I had to tell my body and brain, nope need both and just slogged through it.

Over all we did well. Had my hand hit a couple times with the stick. That hurts, but over it is ok.

https://youtu.be/ZbvR0SIUUHE
https://youtu.be/iud0QgK-StM

08/23/2019 Friday 1.5 hours of training – Muay Thai – that hit/strike you take and you just know its going to bruise.

Today was an interesting day. I ended up going to the dealership 3 times, because during a routine maintenance appointment for my 1 year old car they could not get right the resetting of the tire pressure sensor after rotating my tires. Why? Because it is a new car, 2018 and the techs just have not learned how to do it yet. Mind you this is a dealership of the same maker of the car. Also of note, the dealership was very apologetic. They were nice, and they got me in right away both times I had to return with my vehicle so they could reset the tire pressure sensor.

I digress. I got a lot done today, but by the time I had to pick up H from the metro I was done for the day. However, I put on my big girl panties and we all went into the gym.

Despite the crazy morning I had, I had a great training day.

Warm up:

  1. 1 x 5 minute round of jumping rope
  2. 2 x 3 minute rounds of Knees across the mat, shadowboxing knees

Training:

Today was clench work and knees

  1. We worked on clenching up and putting long leaning knees in.
  2. We worked on clenching up and putting rear knees in. He taught us to bring them up and pivot on our feet to get more distance to push your opponent away. This is done to break their posture and you can then run your other knees. Like curved knees
  3. We worked on a jab, hook, inward knee combo
  4. We worked on a jab, hook, inward knee, with double left kick combo
  5. We worked on a three elbow combo.
    • You Thai lean and control your opponents hands. Pushing their left hand out of the way, you throw a #1 elbow/ horizontal elbow to face. You throw a #2 or upward diagonal elbowMove the pad/head out of the way Throw a modified side in elbow with rear hand, it is modified by putting your hand on your head as if you are elbow covering, not high covering. Then you rotate and drop the elbow side in and diagonal.
  6. We then did sparring.
  7. We then ended with partner double kicks on the bag. Where your partner kicks twice on the back and then you kick twice on the bag
  8. We finished with suicide runs, across the mat x 2

So during our sparring we wear shin guards. Even so we have a chance of getting hit and getting bruises. These guards only protect the top of the foot and the shins. But if some one knees say my knee then we have a boo boo. I got kneed in the side of my knee well right above my knee in the muscle/fascia . Our knees hit each other. And that is the moment when I realized yup that is going to bruise. It hurts and you can just tell that one is going to be painful. So right now I have a deep tissue bruise, you can barely see the purple under the skin, but I imagine it will blossom.

One last thing for today. I had a really nice compliment from one of the instructors at the gym. J said I was really looking good in Muay Thai. He said you can see all the time I had put into it. That my form was looking great, and I was moving around great. He said, “you can’t fake mat time.” He said you put the time in on the mat and you will see results. Yay!

08/24/2019 Saturday 2 hours of training – Staff training, Striking class

Today marks the last day of my training for the week. I did my weight lifting and run on Monday, then I had martial arts training for Tuesday – Saturday. For a total of 8.5 hours for this week. As you can imagine I am tired, but its a good tired. This is a tired of, I worked my body and now I need a rest.

Staff – Bo Staff Drill

In staff class today, it was a beautiful morning, and we worked Saint Rafael and then we worked on another drill. I don’t know what it is called or would be called but it contains a equis, witiks, redondo, abecedario 3.

I took a video of it and we are still working on getting down and smooth.

https://youtu.be/pp4x9nRPivM

Striking class – feint entries

In striking class we worked on feint entries. We feint with our jab, cross, and or left kick.

  1. Jump rope warm up
  2. Feint Jab
  3. Lead kick
  4. Cross
  5. Hook
  6. Rear kick
  7. Teep
  8. Feint Low jab
  9. Feint High jab
  10. Lead kick
  11. Cross
  12. Hook
  13. Rear kick
  14. Teep
  15. Feint Jab
  16. Cross to mid section
  17. Lead uppercut
  18. Rear kick
  19. Teep
  20. Then we did a few rounds of pop the leather.

I had to leave early today to get to my friends wedding. But I had a great time in training, and I had a great time at the wedding. It has been a great week, and I am done. I need the rest day of tomorrow.

I have a few videos and lots of pictures in this post. Thank you for reading. I hope you have a great day. My respect to you all.

Saturday Bo Staff, Striking, and Jiu Jitsu…4 hours of training, Change in format for posting

4 hours of Training today. Yesterday I had the honor of being able to train in Bo staff class, in striking, and in a seminar for woman’s defense.

Bo Staff

We worked on the High Box with staves. We also changed the #1 strike to the #7 piercing strike.

High Box:

  1. opponent feeds you a #15
  2. you roof block
  3. you return a #1 strike or #7 piercing strike
  4. opponent inside deflects
  5. opponent returns #4
  6. you drop stick defend
  7. you return a #3
  8. opponent turn the tip down, drop tip, or low wing?
  9. opponent returns a #2
  10. you roof shield
  11. then you feed the #15 and the whole flow drill starts again

Bo staff was fun today. I enjoyed scrambling my brain to get it around the new strike.

Striking Class:

We worked on combos with counter attacks. We worked our teeps, and knees.

We emphasized evading a kick or a upper cut. Then added 4 counts return attacks.

Woman’s Self Defense:

I had the opportunity to go to a woman’s self defense class. This is my first official Brazilian Jiu Jitsu class. I have been a little worried about taking BJJ because I have scoliosis and don’t want to have my back wrenched. However, I believe it is good to up my game to grappling, and ground level. Kru Kristen was teaching this class, and she always says.

“100% of fights start standing, 90% end up on the ground.”

Kru Kristen

We learned how to break fall, how to get back up quickly and safely. We learned how to stop an assailant in open guard, how to keep them away. We learned how to deal with an assailant when they are in mount. We learned how to knee shield from guard, and shrimp away, then kick their head to get away. We learned how to deal with someone trying to pick us up in bear hug, and how to knee bar them.

The main focus was teaching us how to get away from the situation. Kru Kristen also reiterated you want to be all the way in or all the way out. Always try to get away from the assailant. But if you have to deal with them, get in and don’t let them hit you. Stop them from hitting you until you can get out.

This was a fun class and we were able to work on dealing with a choke as well.

Changing the format for posting:

So I have been thinking. I am now doing 5 days of martial arts. More importantly 5 days of Muay Thai. That coupled with my weight lifting workouts, means that weekly I would have been doing 6 posts a week. That is a lot, and its a lot of content to keep up on. Also it seems like a lot to bombard you all with. So I am going to be changing my posting status.

I used to post every time I went to train, so that I could keep track of what I was learning and how I was feeling/getting it. This is also so I could look back and see my progress in the future. I did this as well to catalog what I was doing, so I could go back and drill the same drills. This is a lot of posting, a lot of content, and it is hard for me to keep up with.

So I am going to try to do 1 martial arts post a week. This will be notes I took about each training session. I will break it out by day, and I will still have the drills/training we did every day represented in one post. Any videos I take for that will be in that post as well. This means there will be a weight lifting post, a martial arts post, and a food post when I have one to upload. That is 3 instead of 6 to 7 a week. I am going to shoot to have that weeks martial arts posted on Saturday after my training sessions that day.

Anyway thank you for reading. Keep working to be the best you that you can be. My respect to you and your family.

Thursday Muay Thai and Kali…Clench Sparring, In a knife fight you drip or you gush

2 hours of training today. Gonna make this short and sweet. Today I have been up since 4:30 am. I did not sleep well, and had to work two of my jobs today.

Muay Thai

We worked on entries with knees again. This time we used a scoop of the jab or cross and returning an knee. This gets you in to return your 4 count strikes.

I got to work with one of our fighters that actually goes and fights in sanctioned fights. He is really awesome and helped me work the drills. He is tall and I surprised him that I can kick as high as his torso. We discussed the fact that these entries are only for when a person is committed to the punches. If they are just throwing noise then you can’t scoop the jab or cross and get in there. I am having a hard time in sparring knowing when they are committed. I have been assured by him and Kru Kristen that, that is just time and practice. You have to know/feel when they break the imaginary barrier to bring the distance in and hit you.

After that, the more senior of the students broke out and practiced clench sparring. That is a tiring set of 6 rounds. However, it is a lot of fun. I feel like my clench sparring game/abilities/skills have gone up since I was at Thai camp. We did a lot of it, and I got to work with a lot of people. I was able to get my timing right and get my opponents in class off balance.

To finish we did:

  1. 100 knees on the bag
  2. 30 sit ups
  3. and x planks

Kali

We worked on knifes. Gunting or scissors move where you cut and pass the opponents arm when they attack you with #1 through #5 attacks.

We worked on disarms with:

  1. a c clamp on the wrist
  2. figure 4 arm control where you cut their throat with their own blade
  3. control of opponents arm and sheath the blade into opponents on leg, or arm pit
  4. three direction peel the blade away from opponents hand

We then got to spar with knives. We all wore mouth guards, eye protection, and gloves. One person had a knife, the other had just their hands. We tried to disarm the person with the blade and not get cut. The person with the blade was trying to cut but not get disarmed. This is another fun asymmetrical sparring practice.

We say in Kali/Silat/JKD in a knife fight you either drip or gush. You don’t want to be the one that gushes. What this means is going into a knife fight knowing you will be cut, but not knowing just how bad. Is more realistic. Knives cut fast and deep, and you will most likely get cut in a knife fight. If you get out of it with a few small cuts, and you did not die, you won!

That is all for today. Thank you for reading, I hope you have a fantastic day. My respect to you and your family.

Tuesday Muay Thai and Kali… Trigg Combo, Asymmetrical Sparring

2.5 hours of training. I warmed up by hitting the Thai pads for 30 minutes before class. Muay Thai and Kali were fun classes tonight. Thank you Khun Kru Krysta for the great classes.

Muay Thai – Trigg Combo

When we were at Thai camp we got to work with the one the only Ajarn Leonard Trigg. The guy responsible for our Trigg 10 drill. We love him and his drills. He worked with us at Thai camp and he gave us this combo to work on. I had the pleasure of working with my instructor for this combo and when we did I had so much fun. It was hard, but it was great. I asked that we do this combo in class.

So what did we get to do today in Muay Thai? Yup you guessed it. That very same Trigg Combo. I don’t know if it has a name, but suffice to say, Ajarn Trigg is well known for his amazing boxing skills.

The combo is this:

  1. feeder feeds a jab
  2. you swipe right
  3. you return a R shovel hook
  4. you return an R overhand
  5. you return an L hook
  6. you return an R cross

This combo is great. Ajarn Trigg emphasized that he wanted us to work on flow and timing. The goal is for every one hit the opponent tries to make you return 4 shots. There pop, your pop, pop, pop, pop in rapid succession.

I worked with one of my favorite partners, my husband. I got a great workout, and he know just how much to push me, and tries to keep me honest about keeping my hands up. I find sometimes when I work with people that are newer that my class is not as physically demanding cause we are going slower, and we are getting in less reps. So sometimes it is nice to work with some one I know that can hold pads well, and I can go at a faster pace with. I get more rounds in and I can work on my speed, timing, and form at the same time.

Some more combos we worked on today:

  1. Opponent throws Right head kick
  2. You lean back by – taking a step back, cover face on right hand side, left arm goes down to side of body and you shoulders are level.
  3. You throw a right cross
  4. You throw a left body hook
  5. You throw a right roundhouse
  1. Opponent throws inside leg kick
  2. You step back to avoid the kick
  3. You throw a left roundhouse
  4. You throw a cross
  5. You throw a hook
  6. You throw a right roundhouse

Kali – Asymmetrical Sparring

In Kali we worked on disarms again, and mostly entering on the inside deflect. However, we also worked on a weave. We did some puno disarms and the inside deflect snake and vine disarms again.

Weave Leg Take down:

  1. Inside deflect
  2. control opponents right hand with our left hand
  3. return a #4 rib shot
  4. Step on opponents foot
  5. weave our stick between legs
  6. pull opponents hand and push opponent over with our stick

I got a video of me doing this.

Then we got to do asymmetrical sparring. In this version of it, we had one person with boxing gloves on, and one person with a boxing glove and a soft stick. We would attack each other. The goal of the one with just boxing gloves was to crash in and disarm the other. The goal of the one with the stick was to just keep the opponent with just boxing gloves away and don’t get disarmed and or punched.

Asymmetrical sparring is fun, and I have enjoyed it every time. It makes you have to think about how to get in, when you don’t have all your tools available to you.

Thanks for reading. I hope you had a fantastic day. Keep working to be the best you that you can be. Respect to you.

Saturday Bo Staff and Sriking…High Box with Staff makes my brain feel stupid, My flow has improved

2.5 hours of training today. We worked on bo staff, and striking (JKD). Today was the first day after Muay Thai camp where my body felt like normal. Even felt good. I went hard, and got a good workout with my husband and partner feeding me.

We started out with staff class. We had some visitors down from Maryland, and it was cool to have new people in the class. They have come down once before and wanted to train with us again.

Staff Training:

We started off with abecedario with staff. Which while a fundamental move with sticks changing staves makes the movement slightly different.

Abecedario = High forehand, low back hand, high back hand

Then we worked on abecedario with redondo. A redondo is a circular forehand strike from around your head. Not to be confused with an ordabise which is a circular back hand around your head.

Redondo with Abecedario = Circular forehand strike high, circular for hand strike low, circular forehand strike high, low back hand strike, high back hand strike.

In preparation for the high box, we did a roof to shield drill that required the feeder to feed a #15 strike that you roof, then a #15 strike to a shield.

And finally for staff training we did high box with staves. Now this for some reason was more difficult for my brain parts. I can do a high box with sticks, with swords, with espada y daga (sword and knife), but with staff you have to hold with both hands and your body movement is different. Which makes for the perfect storm for Kali brain issues. Which hand.

Staff High Box – #15 strike from opponent, you roof block, opponent returns a #1 strike, you inside deflect and return a #2 strike. The opponent shields the #2, and then you start the circuit over by feeding a #15 to your opponent.

We started to work on middle box/standard but we ran out of time.

I love Kali and the staff class. I love how it stretches my brain muscles and makes me think. Now my brain is dead.

This video is of us working on the Redondo with Abecedario.

https://youtu.be/hG6mjg-tKm4

Striking (JKD):

We worked on combos. This is were I was able to work on flow, timing, and speed. My partner told me he could see a difference between when I left for Muay Thai camp, and now. He said I flow better, my speed, form and focus are much better. I could not ask for more from Thai camp. I wanted to learn all I could, and to increase my skill set. It seems I have. Yay!

Khun Kru Krysta broke the training down to two sets of combos. First where the feeder feeds, a jab and a right straight cross/cross. The second where the feeder feeds a jab, and a wide cross. For the wide cross think John Wayne punch. Or old western bar fight punch.

First combo –

  1. Feeder feeds Jab
  2. You catch
  3. Feeder feeds straight cross
  4. You parry while doing a simultaneous left kick to inside of leg
  5. You return a cross
  6. You return an upper cut
  7. You return a cross
  8. You return Left torso kick/round house

Second combo –

  1. Feeder feeds Jab
  2. You catch
  3. Feeder feeds straight cross
  4. You split the cross, slide in with a cross to the body
  5. You follow with a hook
  6. You return a cross
  7. Right kick/round house

Third combo-

  1. Feeder feeds Jab
  2. You catch Jab
  3. Feeder feeds a wide cross
  4. You shoulder/bicep stop the cross
  5. You return a cross
  6. You return a hook
  7. You return a cross
  8. You return a right torso kick/round house

Fourth combo-

  1. Feeder feeds Jab
  2. You catch Jab
  3. Feeder feeds a wide cross
  4. You bob and weave
  5. You return a body cross
  6. You return a hook
  7. You return a cross
  8. You return right long leaning knee
  9. You return right torso kick/round house

These were great combos. I loved feeling like I was back into my groove. I liked feeling like I had more confidence, and I love just working on my technique, flow, timing, and target acquisition.

This video is of us working on the third combo, or the stop the shoulder or bicep combo.

https://youtu.be/RNMHz-_Dxrc

I hope you are all having a great weekend. I certainly am. Thanks for reading, let me know if you have any questions. Keeping working to be the best you that you can be. Much respect to you all.