Oh! I love Tuesdays, because I get to do all my favorite things.
First hour was teacher training. At first teacher training was fun because I had my teachers all to myself and got loads of one-on-one help. Now teacher training is fun because there are several of us learning to teach different classes, so I get to learn from everyone's mistakes & successes.
Next hour was level 3/4 with the Gorgeous Bastard. Chokes & stick defenses, which we did outside. I love stick. It only hurts if you get smacked with the stick, whereas gun hurts every time they rip it out of your hand or you rip it from theirs. I noticed I didn't move smoothly, I felt very awkward the whole hour- probably because I didn't take the time to warmup & hit the bag or spar before class. What a huge difference that makes.
Next hour was yoga, Bon bon's first time to teach, ever! She did a really good job. Usually we're all cracking jokes & insults the entire class, but everyone was trying to be sweet since it was her first time & we were all quiet & obedient as little mice. Turns out that made her more nervous, so when she asked us why we were all being so quiet, the party started. We all elbow each other out of the way to get a spot on the wall for headstands now, I think its everybody's favorite pose. We also did a cool one called double downward dog - I'll try to attach a picture, if you don't see one, you know I'm still a technological infant.
Last hour was MMA with the Professor. We seem to have a new Tuesday night formula & I freaking love it. We start out with padwork, holding a focus mitt & a Thai pad. Thai pads are heavy, so if we keep this up I'll have a super strong right arm like Hellboy, then I knock you down, baby! Next we learn some groundwork, building upon whatever we did the week before. Last night we worked keylock & reverse keylock from a position called something like "kaysa katami". I couldn't tell exactly what the name was because everyone kept calling it "queso" & requesting chips and queso. Then we rolled. My partner was the Gentleman, who is made of pure fun and sunshine. I can't wait til next Tuesday!
First hour was teacher training. At first teacher training was fun because I had my teachers all to myself and got loads of one-on-one help. Now teacher training is fun because there are several of us learning to teach different classes, so I get to learn from everyone's mistakes & successes.
Next hour was level 3/4 with the Gorgeous Bastard. Chokes & stick defenses, which we did outside. I love stick. It only hurts if you get smacked with the stick, whereas gun hurts every time they rip it out of your hand or you rip it from theirs. I noticed I didn't move smoothly, I felt very awkward the whole hour- probably because I didn't take the time to warmup & hit the bag or spar before class. What a huge difference that makes.
Next hour was yoga, Bon bon's first time to teach, ever! She did a really good job. Usually we're all cracking jokes & insults the entire class, but everyone was trying to be sweet since it was her first time & we were all quiet & obedient as little mice. Turns out that made her more nervous, so when she asked us why we were all being so quiet, the party started. We all elbow each other out of the way to get a spot on the wall for headstands now, I think its everybody's favorite pose. We also did a cool one called double downward dog - I'll try to attach a picture, if you don't see one, you know I'm still a technological infant.
Last hour was MMA with the Professor. We seem to have a new Tuesday night formula & I freaking love it. We start out with padwork, holding a focus mitt & a Thai pad. Thai pads are heavy, so if we keep this up I'll have a super strong right arm like Hellboy, then I knock you down, baby! Next we learn some groundwork, building upon whatever we did the week before. Last night we worked keylock & reverse keylock from a position called something like "kaysa katami". I couldn't tell exactly what the name was because everyone kept calling it "queso" & requesting chips and queso. Then we rolled. My partner was the Gentleman, who is made of pure fun and sunshine. I can't wait til next Tuesday!
Parker:
ReplyDeleteI watched the video. I still get confused by that combo + kick exercise, especially when you have to hold the bag for the kick, instead of letting the kick land on your thigh. Jeff tried to explain it to me one time as if there were a regular pattern: "If the last punch the attacker throws is a left, then you hold for a left kick." Or maybe it was, "If the last punch the attacker throws is a right, then you hold for a right kick." I was never sure. Either way, as I watched the video, I could see that sometimes the Gentleman ended with a left punch and then threw a left kick, and sometimes he ended with a left punch and then threw a right kick. So now I'm more confused than ever. (I mean, if you had been holding a bag for his kicks after the punch combos, how would you have known where to hold it...right or left?)
Can you help? Thanks, the Scribe.
Hi, Scribe! I think it looks like the Gentleman was throwing different kicks because we were moving so much, but on the exercise he was actually only throwing kicks with his right leg. However, when you are holding for someone who will be kicking with the leg that immediately follows their same-side punch it helps to remember that they're doing it that way because having that punching hand extended and recoiling it winds them up perfectly to kick that same leg.
ReplyDeleteSo, from your fighting stance, throw a slow right cross and recoil it. During the recoil, start to bring the right leg up for a kick. Feel how perfectly balanced that movement is. Watch yourself do it in a mirror, with both right and left punches & kicks, to know what you will expect to see from your partner.
When doing it in class, have your partner start slow (they shouldn't mind, this exercise is confusing from their end, too). Speed up as you begin to master the movement. And be patient, bag holding is an art that we all need to work on!
Thanks, Parker. I'll try it in the mirror and on my bag at home.
ReplyDeletemmmmmm, while in a real fight you should do what your body tells you it is ready to do. In practice, we rotate the hips into every punch/kick/knee/elbow, so when throwing combinations - - - as we recoil, for example, the left punch and our hips with it, you should feel wound up for a right kick, or right punch/knee/elbow.
ReplyDeleteAnd just to make things more complicated, a more complex move would be to fake a punch, get your hips rotating and throw the same side leg. In this case you are not recoiling the punch but using it as a disguise for the kick.