4 hours of training today on day 15. I am exhausted. I hit a wall. Not a plateau, nor do I feel like I hit an over training hurdle. I just hit a wall like Wile E Coyote hits the ground after falling off the cliff. Like a Mac Truck hit me. I know that for your body to adapt you must hit these walls/hurdles and keep going, so that is what I did. I got in 20 rounds of training.
Yup that is what it felt like. But I had to keep pushing through.
I started out with a 1 mile run. It was not great timing wise. It was a 13.33 minute mile… it was also 93 degrees out.
I cam back in and did kicking rounds.
Power kicking rounds. 1 to two kicks per side for the entirety of the round.
Speed kicking rounds. Power is taken out, and technique is focused on. Pyramid kicks from 1 kick, 2 kicks, 3 kicks, 4 kicks, 5 kicks, 6 kicks, 5 kicks, 4 kicks, 3 kicks, 2 kicks, 1 kick. All in succession.
Speed and Power kicking rounds mixed together.
I did 4 bag rounds of 3 minutes each with a 30 second burn out.
I also working on rounds of boxing. Jab, Cross, Upper cut, Upper cut, body hook, body hook.
Muay Thai Class
Then we had Thai class. We warmed up with jump rope, then we did clench work to warm up.
Kru Kristen had us then work on punches transitioning to elbows, to knees. I got to work with Kru Krysta so we could both work on our conditioning for Thai Camp. As we are both going. Yay!
Each round ended with an elbow flurry blitz.
Kali – Espada y Daga
Then came Kali class, the 4th hour. My brain had stopped braining. My body was just tired, but I kept working at the drills. We worked on Gunting (scissor) five count. With double stick, Espada y Daga, and with single knife. We worked on pass, cut and disarm.
I know this is not super detailed but I am exhausted, need to shower and get to bed. I hope you all have a great day/night when ever you get to read this. Keep being awesome and working to be the best you can be.
2.5 hour Conditioning training today. There was a BJJ seminar in our gym today so all of the classes were canceled, and we decided to do our training out in the park. It was a beautiful day. Sunny, breezy and not terribly hot. We stayed in the shade of a big tree. The kiddos got to play in a play ground right next to us. There was a graduation party going on next to us as well. The people setting up wound up watching us. I guess it is not normal to see people drilling boxing, elbows, and knees at the park.
H had me working on 4 minute rounds. No burn outs today, just constant work. We worked on my boxing stance, since I tend to square up when I shift weight on my cross and jab.
We worked on my slip, knees and elbows. We also worked on knees to elbows, punches to elbows, punches to knees.
He can tell the difference in my downward diagonal elbow now that I have been to a Arjan Chai seminar. It is more powerful, and I throw it much better. He has started using that technique as well.
I worked up a sweat, we got about 20 x 4 minute rounds in. It was a great Saturday workout, and a great conditioning day 12 workout. I have 10 days left to train up for camp.
I recorded some video of two of the drills we did.
Here is the Cross, Jab, Slip, Jab, Cross, Slip drill we did.
And this is the Jab, Cross, Upper Cut, Upper Cut, Body Hook drill we did.
3.5 hours of training today. If I include the rounds in class too, I think I did about 25 rounds. I tried to do my mile run but got rained out. I got 8 x 3 rounds straight in today before classes started. This picture is of me looking like some soaked marsupial. I got half a mile in, and the thunder and lightening were over head. The rain came down harder and I threw in the towel as it were and cut my losses. Came back to the gym soaked with soggy, sloshy shoes.
We went in, and I asked H to hold pads for me. He asked me what I wanted to work on. He knows I am conditioning. I told him I wanted to do cardio, and flow. I wanted to work on getting my flow from hands to feet, and feet to hands better.
He is a really great pad holder, and a really great pad holder will make you look awesome. I got some compliments from the gym manager, who was teaching a BJJ class while we were working the rounds.
Training:
Rained out run, only 1/2 mile, but that half was done in 6 minutes woot! So if I did my full mile and kept that pace I would have had a 12 minute mile.
1 x 3 minute round – 4 counts left to right, and right to left combos for the first round
30 seconds – burn out kick pyramid. (1 kick, 2 kicks, 3 kicks, 4 kicks, 5 kicks, 4 kicks, 3 kicks, 2 kicks, 2 kick all on one side.)
1 x 3 minute round – Jab, cross, right/rear knee, right kick – Jab, cross, left/front knee, left kick – jab, cross, right/rear knee, left kick – jab, cross, left/front knee, right kick
30 seconds – burn out kick pyramid. (1 kick, 2 kicks, 3 kicks, 4 kicks, 5 kicks, 4 kicks, 3 kicks, 2 kicks, 2 kick all on one side.)
1 x 3 minute round – Jab, cross, right kick, right kick – Jab, cross, left kick, left kick
30 seconds – burn out 3 kicks with right/rear leg, 3 kicks with left/front leg, lather rinse and repeat for 30 seconds
1 x 3 minute round – double kicks, to slide in to knee
30 seconds – burn out 3 kicks with right/rear leg, 3 kicks with left/front leg, lather rinse and repeat for 30 seconds
1 x 3 minute round – Jab, cross, body hook, striking knee
30 seconds – burn out elbow blitz
1 x 3 minute round – Jab, cross, body hook, striking knee, striking knee, striking knee… doing both left and right knees
30 seconds – burn out elbow blitz
1 x 3 minute round – Jab, cross, upper cut, upper cut, body hook x 3 each side.
30 second – burn out body hooks
1 x 3 minute round – Jab, cross, body hook, striking knees x 3
30 second – 4 elbows, to 3 knees
I tried to not make to much noise when hitting the pads. I don’t like disturbing the other classes when I am using the gym. However, apparently I made an impression about how hard I was working. =)
Muay Thai Class:
We worked on clenching again, and flowing in clenching. Going from 1/2 clench, to 50/50 clench with bicep control, to off balance, to then breaking your opponents posture, to knee, to elbow.
The Thai Clenches
Both hands on the neck/crown of head = Full Plumb
Neck and Arm control, or Neck and Bicep control (great to give you inside control)
Under hooks ( really good for when you have a taller opponent )
Full Fence (great for off the line/off to the side)
Half- Single Wing (good for control of upper body, done well shuts down their upper body)
Waist and Arm control ( really good for when you have a taller opponent)
50/50 (is where most people end up, because full plumb is untenable)
Quarter
I was working with a new guy, he is a big dude. I am a short girl and have this clench and tie up, that I like, and a leg bump that we do. I do it all the time, and did it to him. He was surprised at how much I threw him and his mass around with out trouble. He easily has 100 lbs on me. I explained what I was doing and did it again, showing him. He looked surprised again, and Kru Kristen laughed and said, “that’s her favorite clench and dump. And it goes to show you that size does not have anything to do with it. You can do it to anyone if you have the right technique.”
After that we did rounds of sparring. Sparring is a mental thing as much as physical. If you are stressed, scared, or worried it shows. I need to relax. I do far better when I am relaxed. I can respond faster as well. I am standing flat footed, and to heavy on my lead leg. Thai fighters usually do 40 lead leg, 60 back leg. But when I am sparring I am trying so hard to remember everything, keep my shoulders up and hunched at the same time, covering my face, movement, getting hands to feet and feet to hands combos in, and blocking. I forget to be on the balls of my feet. Sigh! I have so much to learn, and get better at.
I however, was able to get 4 good kick blocks in. My friend A. helped me afterward for about 20 minutes working on not being heavy on my lead leg. I just need to keep practicing. I need to work on my hip flexors. I am a little tight there so I can lean back a little.
Anyway I am tired, and have to get up early in the morning. Thanks for reading. I have 12 more days of conditioning to get in before camp. Rest tomorrow, and then Saturday hit it hard.
Keep working on being the best you that you can be. I will try to do the same.
2 hours of Muay Thai and Kali training. Today was so much fun. I was excited to unveil the shirts I had made. Also thought today was going to be a test day. But alas it was not. Kru Kristen had to do some book keeping and see where everyone is first. And then we worked on espada y daga or sword and knife drills. Kru Krysta took over an taught both classes.
Muay Thai – Same side flow like water, Thai Shirts
So today was a great day for training. We worked on same side flow from, teeps, to kicks, to knees and back again. But all on the same side. So this make it difficult cause if your balance is not correct you will fall. You will not have power if you balance is off, and if you do not step out. If you do not teep your partner hard enough they may not step back far enough for you to get your kick in, so then you have to step off the line.
So I took video of me doing some of the drills. Meh…
Lead round house kick to lead tee
Rear round house kick to rear teep
Lead round house kick, to lead shield of kick, to lead round house kick to lead teep.
Rear round house kick, to rear shield of kick, to rear round house kick to rear teep.
Lead round house kick, to rear teep, rear feint, to lead knee.
Ok let me pick this crap apart. For some reason today I was dropping my hands, all the time. That is going to get me punched in the face. I was a bit off balance today that is not great for teeps, or kicks. My shields of kicks were down right sad. I need to remember to keep my foot flexed tight to shield, but I kept failing at that. My timing was not great and I felt slow, sometimes waiting for a few seconds to long to move to the next move. The strikes should be smooth and flow like water. So many things wrong with my drilling today… my body was just not doing what I wanted it to today. I know what I need to do, but just not executing it today.
And don’t get me started on how I looked. A hot mess is what comes to mind. But I digress, I know focusing on that does not help me flow like water.
I made Thai shirts for my team. I made the design, and had them printed up. I was able to hand them out today. I was so excited to do this. But the back of my head that little mean part of my brain was saying what if they hate it, what if they don’t like it? Trying to make me doubt myself.
So I ignored that mean chatter, and took them in anyway. My team loved it. They thought it was so cool and thanked me for it. I was very happy to do it and relieved that it was received well. It was a surprise and they did not know it was coming.
It says:
Crew AmpliThai
Nak Muay (means Thai Fighter) Respect Hard Work Perseverance Dedication
Then Kru Kristen’s quote: “Less Talking, More Hitting”
I like the way the shirts came out. =)
Kali – 7 count Knife Drill, T drill, all with Espada y Daga
Today in Kali we worked on the 7 count knife and stick drill or espada y daga (sword and dagger). We worked on the T drill separately, then hubud drill, then the 7 count separately. Finally we worked on the T drill and 7 count together in one full flow drill.
I filmed the T and 7 count full flow drill. Here is the video in all its um… glory? Well its something.
It is 12 pm here, and I must go to bed. I have a 5 am wake up. Weeee! Thank you for reading, and if you have any questions please feel free to ask.
2 hours of Muay Thai and Kali. I woke up had a lot on my plate, went into work early to get a cake done that my boss needed me to do. Her boss asked for me personally to do the cake. =)
Everything on this cake is made by me, and is edible.
I don’t usually show my work here. But this is just an example of what I have/had to work on today.
I digress though… back to the martial arts. =)
Muay Thai – A Little Uncomfortable
There are days we cover so much, and then there are days were we need to just drill out what we have been working on. Lately we have been working on the T.B.A. (Thai Boxing Association) Thai 17 count. But today Kru Kristen broke down some of the combinations.
The first combo we worked on left knee, left kick, cross, hook, right kick. With this combo we were working on knee to left kick, we needed to load the kick and not just land heavy on the left foot. We needed to set it back almost parallel with our back foot so that we could take the quick step and land the kick. With this combo we were working on flow, and transition, trying to make them smooth, and in my case kicking harder.
The second combo we worked on is right knee, right kick, hook, cross, left kick. Again we were working on the knee to right kick, with a quick step to load and step out. Producing power, and a better striking kick when you do. Flow and transition are again things we needed to strive to attain.
Its important to learn new skills but it is also important to take apart the new skills, drills, moves, and work the parts through. I feel that doing this, gives me time to develop the skills I need so that next time we go through the entire Thai 17 count I will be just a tiny bit improved. Its all about them baby steps.
We worked on clench work after that. We worked with the less experienced students, and were helping them learn half clench, to off balances.
Kru Kristen said an interesting thing. Training is important, and taking people to a high fear level, like throwing them into sparring to soon, is a detriment. The high fear just hinders their learning, however, on the other hand letting them stay in this cushy close, comfortable area does them no good. You can have a great technician, that does not know how to practically use the skills they have. You have some one that is good at fighting but does not have the technical skills. Its taking a student out of their comfort zone, and making them a little uncomfortable is where the real learning comes from. So practicing the skill in a safe environment is important, but then letting the student play around with it is also important. I personally have noticed this is true. You can see how a skill can get used, then strung together with another move, and you can begin to see the openings. When I first started learning Muay Thai, and Kali, the instructors would talk about seeing openings in a persons attack. This was daunting for me then. How was I supposed to remember the attack or move and see an opening at the same time? I can tell you it gets better with experience. You will see the openings when you know what they look like, and you will see what they look like when you learn the moves and how to make your body do the strike.
Kali – Time to Play
In Kali we worked on playing with each other. Kru Kristen says that playful drills where we are able do some flow drills, while then being able to find an opening and using a previously learned move is the beginnings of sparring. Now I have been sparring for a while now, and she has mentioned this before. I agree with her. Being able to take the fear out of it, but making it it fun, and just a partner and yourself just trying to find an in/entry. Or you and a partner trying to find a way to alternate drills that you are doing forces your brain to look for those openings.
We worked on hubud drills again, body pummeling, wrist pummeling, and Thai Boxing pummeling. She encouraged us to talk while doing it. She did not want us to focus on our hands but what our partners energy was doing. Where were they moving their body to, and could you counter without looking directly at their hands.
So to bring the same theme into the Kali class, she wanted us to have time to play. Because if we can play and flow through the hubud, flow drills, then into the body grappling, and then out again into striking, you can see where you would have a opening. Again play is the precursor to sparring, and allows us to be in a safe environment but again, makes you slightly uncomfortable.
This has become a long blog, and if you read this far, wow and thank you. I need to wrap this up and head to bed.
3.5 hours of martial arts training. With D.O.M.S set in from my weight lifting workout yesterday. I woke up to my daughter asking about a math problem, and my legs screaming at me about my workout yesterday. We rolled out of bed and grabbed breakfast.
Krav
I started my training with Krav. We worked on striking, different striking patterns. Jab, cross, hook, uppercut. Jab, jab, cross, hook. Jab, cross, hook left side, hook right side. I even was able to show a lady in my class some the Thai parries to knee, elbow or clench entries. I also was able to show her the Thai scoop to knee, arm lock, and elbow or clench entries. That was fun and a great warm up.
Bo Staff – swinging from the hip
In bo staff class, we warmed up with a double hand swing of bo staff. We then worked on the 17 strikes to the body. I was able to help the new people with the 17 strikes. I was so surprised at how well I remembered the 17 count with the staff. You can see the strike positions on the paper doll I made bellow.
We then worked on upper strike, low strike, low strike, upper strike. We had some new people that came from another gym and we were able to work with them. They had not had a chance to train with bo staves and had a great time. We worked on controlling the center line again, and swinging from the hip.
Muay Thai – Exhaustion
We start Muay Thai, and at this point I have been training for 2 hours, and am going into my third hour. I am feeling the exhaustion set in. But I pull up my big girl pants and push on. Let me just say this was one of the most exhausting training sessions we had, but it was fantastic.
Kru Kristen wanted to work on and finish up the TBA (Thai Boxing Association) Thai 17 count.
Muay Thai 17 – this is the full 17
Lead Teep
Lead Torso Kick, for me Left Roundhouse Kick
Cross
Hook
Upward Rear Knee, or Right Upward knee for me
Lead Horizontal Elbow or Left Horizontal Elbow
Downward Diagonal Rear Elbow or Right Downward Diagonal Elbow
Oh my goodness, we worked on the 17 count for an hour with our partners. I am so tired at this point.
So to give you a little glimpse into how we train. Kru Kristen will show us the first 5 count of the Thai 17. We will practice it with our partners holding pads for a 3 minute round. After that round she will tell us to do 25 skip knees of one of the three kinds. Then we switch the pads and hold pads for our partners. Let them practice that same 5 count for 3 minute rounds. Then they have to do the skip knees. Kru Kristen will demonstrate the next set 5 or 6 steps/strikes of the Thai 17. We will then lather rinse and repeat, till we learn all of the 17 count.
The last round we did, she had us do the Minnesota Shuffle. What is the Minnesota Shuffle you ask? Well let me tell you. It is hell when you have been working so hard for hours ahead. I have a love hate relationship with it. It is fantastic for cardio, and training, but hurt so much when you are tired.
How do you do the Minnesota Shuffle you ask? You have to do “machine gun kicks” or rapid kicks. These kicks are not meant to be hard, but to be quick. Your feeder chooses a side and says 1, you do one kick. Then they say 2, and you do 2 kicks rapidly. Lather, rinse and repeat up to 5 kicks. Then you have to do 25 skip knees, and then wait for it… 1 to 5 kicks on the other side. I love, and I hate these. Today I was so happy to get through it not be supper gassed, but I was/am exhausted. That means my cardio is getting more awesome.
Then after that, she split us upper class men/higher armband students out and had us sparring. She said, “no one will be hitting hard now in sparring cause we are so tired.” She tired us out, and then threw us in to a ring and told us to spar. Which sounds bad, but I think the goal is to replicate the ring environment, when the adrenaline dumps, you revert back to your basic skills. Also, when you are that tired you are forced to focus on technique. There is certainly a method to her madness, and I love it.
I love leaving a class feeling this exhausted, because I worked so hard. I love the feeling of accomplishment when I push my body further. Even if I hate the recovery for the next few days. =) I know I am working to improve myself.
If you have read this far, wow. I have been really wordy, but had to get a lot of information in from my three and a half hours. Thank you for reading. I hope you have a great holiday weekend if you celebrate Easter/Passover, or just a great weekend in general.
2.5 hours of Bo Staff Training and Muay Thai. I had a late night at work last night, so lets see if I can remember everything we did today. I made a diagram today! I write my blogs up after my training, sometimes right away and some times hours after. The time I write it up depends on what my schedule looks like. So inevitably I forget parts of training, but here is what I remember. The highlights if you will.
Bo Staff Class – Swing from the hip
(note:The numbering system for these strikes sometimes differ depending on your Goru. Each gym may follow a different Goru, but the targets are the same regardless of the numbers. )
For this class we worked on 17 count again. With staves we have to slide our hands along the staff when we change which side we are holding from. But we do not have to change all the time. Just when we are swinging from the hip. When we are striking with a 1 or 2 blow, we just keep our hands where we had them. When we work on 3 or 4 strike you have to slide your hand down the staff and use your hip and foot work to push through your opponent. So I have a lot to work on. I made a diagram of the 17 count strikes, because its helpful to me, and easier to explain with a picture I think.
We worked on controlling the center line with staves. Where we meet the force of a #6 thrusting strike, and move it off center line. Then follow the staff up with ours to complete thrusting strike ourselves, either to abdomen or face. Our instructor wanted us to work on controlling the center line because a person may swing wildly but if you can get in close and control the center line. It is hard to deflect. So learning how to deflect thrusting blows, and also how to give them is a huge tool in our tool box.
Muay Thai striking class – Speed vs Power
So lately I have been working on power in my kicks and knees. But there are different reasons to work on speed. We are told often that when we relax and let the kick happen instead of forcing it. We will kick far harder.
It is hard and counter intuitive to think this way. If you are asked to hit harder, or kick harder, you instinctively try to muscle your way through it. However, in Muay Thai that is just what you have to do. Kicking is not about muscling your way through its about doing the form as perfectly as you can, using physics and momentum with the torque of your full body to lay the kick in.
Today we worked on same side teeps, kicks, punch/elbows, to knees. If you have read some of my other blog posts. I mention the 4 counts. Where you go left to right. Left kick, cross, hook, right kick is just one example. Today we were teeping with right leg, to right kick, to right punch or elbow, to clenching up, then getting the knees in.
We also worked on knees to push the opponent away, to kicks, to punches.
Our object is to get speed and timing in. Less worry about the power, but get the feel and timing in.
It is my understanding and hope, that sometime in the future the speed and power will meet and I will have both. But for now I have to just work on both and hope to keep improving.
Food -choices/lifestyle
We went to late lunch, early dinner after, and I wanted to share something with you that I do often. I know a lot of my friends and family say they cannot eat out, or eat anything fun while dieting. I say dieting is not the way to go. Changing your lifestyle is the way to go. You can eat out if you choose healthy options. Making small good for your health decisions is easier than, saying, I can’t go out and enjoy food and company of friends and family. Soon you will resent your “diet” and may even fall off the wagon.
This picture is the food I ordered at The Cheesecake Factory. This is the dish I got.
CHICKEN LETTUCE WRAP TACOS
Butter Lettuce Leaves Filled with Grilled Chicken and your Choice of:
ASIAN Carrots, Bean Sprouts, Cucumber, Cilantro and Rice Noodles with Spicy Cashew Sauce
450 calories, 140 fat cals, 15 g total fat, 4 g saturated fat, 0 g trans fat, 80 mg cholesterol, 1040 mg sodium, 49 g fiber, 3 g total carbs, 32 g sugar, 29 g proteins
This was from the appetizer part of their Skinnylicous menu. This is huge for an appetizer, and perfect for a meal. Most of their regular menu items are 1500 to 2000 calories, and loads of fat and cholesterol. If you are in the U.S.A. just keep an eye out for healthy options, and you will be successful with your goals.
Well that is all, this blog post is long enough. Thank you for reading. Have a great rest of your day.
