Sat 2/27/10

“Circumstance - which moves by laws of its own, regardless of parties and policies, and whose decrees are final and must be obeyed by all - and will be” - Mark Twain




Who knows why things happen the way they do...

Tim did not have his fight tonight. There were some issues with the promotion when we went to the weigh ins. Out of 17 fighters, only 2 or 3 had their proper blood work, so they could not fight. Even worse, Tim's opponent did not show up.

Still, Tim got in great shape in two weeks and I got some more training experience, a new agility ladder, and a cornerman's (cut/wrap) kit.

Tim is hoping to fight under another promotion, so we will be even better for the next fight.

Seth has a fight in April (maybe 2 fights in April...), so we will be training every Sunday, starting tomorrow.

Have a safe journey.

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" - Chinese proverb

I didn't get to swim today, but hope to tomorrow.

Today we just used the new agility ladder my awesome wife bought me and went over our strategy and code words for Tim's MMA fight.

Tim will be taking off tomorrow, the weigh ins are on Sat morning, and the fight is on Sat evening.

Even though we only had two weeks to prepare for the fight, I believe he is ready and able!!

Have a safe journey.

Thurs 2/25/10

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" - Chinese proverb

I didn't swim today, but hope to tomorrow. Today we just use the new agility ladder my awesome wife bought for me and talked about our strategy and code words for the fight.

Tim will be taking off tomorrow, weigh ins on Sat morning, and then the fight on Sat evening.

Even though we only had 2 weeks to train for this fight, I believe he is ready and able!!

Have a safe journey.

Don King makes his way into MMA - WTF?!

Damn, now Don King wants to fu*k up MMA like he did to boxing with his crooked business practices??? Maybe this will make the boxing pricks who talk down about MMA happy.


By Kevin Iole

His stable nearly barren of world-class boxers, his once-massive staff shrunken dramatically and his luxurious Florida mansion on the market, 77-year-old promoter Don King may seem like he's about to leave the public eye.

If you believe that, though, you don't know King.

King was on his way to Manchester, England, on Tuesday to promote a bout between Marco Antonio Barrera and Amir Khan on Saturday at the Manchester Evening News Arena.

But his even bigger news is that he's planning to enter the world of mixed martial arts.

King said he'd lay out his involvement in a group put together by Ross Mandell, whom King said was in Israel, in a few weeks.

He confirmed, though, that he would begin promoting MMA fights and said he couldn't conceive of failing. Though nearly every challenger to the industry-leading Ultimate Fighting Championship has failed, King said there's plenty of room for both to succeed.

Lorenzo Fertitta used to be one of our commissioners in the great state of Nevada (as part of the Nevada Athletic Commission) and I'm not surprised by the phenomenal, truly outstanding job he has done," King said. "Lorenzo and Dana White deserve nothing but kudos for bringing this sport to unparalleled heights. But it's their dominance that will make what we're doing very unique."

King had a dalliance with MMA previously when Ross Goodman, the son of Las Vegas mayor Oscar Goodman, asked him to become a partner in the World Fighting Alliance. King had many talks and even discussed a contract with Tito Ortiz, but ultimately did not buy into the deal.

He wasn't forthcoming with many details, but praised the sport and said boxing evolved from MMA and not the other way around.

"This is going back to the origins of fighting," King said. "MMA is nothing new, just sophisticated barbarism. This is where the Marquess of Queensbury came in and put up some rules and brought us the great sport of boxing we know and love today. And just like the Marquess of Queensbury refined and developed boxing, that's what Lorenzo and Dana have done with MMA."

"It used to be no-holds barred, a pier-six brawl. But they've truly done wonders and the public loves it now."

King spoke of a burgeoning friendship with Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim and hinted that Slim may be part of the MMA promotion. Slim is reportedly the world's second-richest man. In 2008, Forbes ranked Slim behind Warren Buffet and slightly ahead of Bill Gates as the world's richest men.
The promoter said he'd speak more on the matter when he returned from the U.K. and his partners were ready to explain the deal.

"This is going to be something that is quite unique and is going to have a great impact on the sport," King said.

Wed 2/24/10

“You've got to get up every morning with determination if you're going to go to bed with satisfaction.” - George Lorimer

I swam 14 laps today at lunch. It doesn't sound like much, but I only have about 30 mins and have to warm up & stretch before I swim, because I am getting older.

Tim and Chris came over for a light workout because Tim's fight is on Sat.

Warm up: 3 mins agility ladder - hands and feet - stretch

Workout: no rest between exercises

pull ups - 5 reps

Push ups - 5 reps

squats - 5 reps

Ball slams - 10 reps

bear crawls - 10 reps (16')

jump squats - 10 reps

ball slams - 15 reps

sprawls - 15 reps

push ups - 20 reps

ball slams - 20 reps

3 min drills:

Focus mitts -

Foot work -

Ground:

We went over posture, defending subs, under hooks, and standing up.

Have a safe journey.

My lifting workout

Day 1

Warm up: Do 5-10 mins of one of the following:

Jump rope
Treadmill
Agility Ladder

Stretch - 5 mins

A. Max-Effort Exercise upper body - work up to a max set (4-5 sets) of 3-5 reps in one of the following exercises:

Barbell bench press
Barbell floor press
Incline barbell bench press
Decline barbell bench press

B. Max-Effort Lift Lower Body - work up to a max set (4-5 sets) of 3-5 reps in one of the following exercises:

Squats
Deadlifts
Hangclean
Hangclean & push press
Dumbbell Swings

C. Horizontal pulling/delt superset - Superset one exercise from "Group 1" with one exercise from "Group 2". Perform 3-4 supersets of 3-5 reps of each exercise.

Group 1:
Pull ups
Pull ups with Gi
T Bar rows
T Bar rows with Gi
Dumbbell rows
Barbell rows
Inverted bar rows with feet on ball
Lat pull downs using gi
Cable rows using gi

Group 2:

T-bar one handed press
Upward rows
Push press
Smith machine overhead press
Wall handstand push ups or walks or one hand balance

D. Traps - perform 3-4 sets of 8 reps of one of the following exercises:

Dumbbell shrugs
Barbell shrugs
Behind the back barbell shrugs



E. Unilateral Movement - choose one of the following exercises and perform 3 sets of 8 reps:

Lunges
Bulgarian split squat
Reverse lunge

F. Elbow flexor exercise - perform 3-4 sets of 8 reps of one of the following exercises:

Barbell curls
Weighted dips
Dumbbell curls
Tri press down
Hammer curls
Tri press down with gi
Skull crushers

Stretch - 5 mins


Day 3

Warm up: Pyramid Circuit - Push up, pull up, & body weight squat

Do these three exercises as a circuit, performing one set of each in a row without resting. Use the "pyramid repetition structure" to do the workout. In your first round through the circuit, do one rep of each exercise. In each round after, perform an additional rep. So you'll do two reps of each exercise in round 2, three reps in round 3, and so on. Once you have completed 5 rounds, continue on, but reduce the reps by one in each round except in round 6. So in round six you do 5 reps, round seven you do 4 reps, round eight you will do 3 reps, until you have completed 10 rounds, 30 reps of each exercise without rest.

Stretch - 5 mins

B. Supplemental Exercise - perform 2 sets of max reps in one of the following exercises. (Choose a weight you can perform for 15 reps on the 1st set. Use the same weight for both sets and rest 2-3 minutes between sets).

Flat dumbbell bench press
Pec Deck
Incline dumbbell bench press
Decline dumbbell bench press
Medicine ball push ups
Plyo pushups
Stability ball push ups

Preform 2-3 sets, 10 reps each of the following exercises:

Hex dumbbell holds or plate pinch
Burpees or sprawls
Mountain climbers with arms on stability ball
Medicine ball slams
Box jumps or squat jumps
Kettlebell or dumbbell swings
Jump pull ups

Stretch - 5 mins


Day 5

Warm up: Do 5-10 mins of one of the following:

Jump rope
Treadmill
Agility Ladder

Stretch - 5 mins


Do all of this Randy Couture workout without letting go of the bar for the best conditioning effect:

Bent rows X8
Upright rows X 8
Over head shoulder press X 8
Good morning X 8
Lunges X 8 (each leg)
Squat push press X 8
Deadlift X 8

1 minute's rest. Do 3-5 sets depending on how much you feel like puking.

Stretch - 5 mins

Tues 2/23/10

“The greatest barrier to success is the fear of failure.” - Sven Goran Eriksson




Today we had Tim's friend workout with us, who has had a few pro MMA fights. I was lazy today and didn't swim at lunch, but will make up for it tomorrow.

Warm up: 3 mins agility ladder - stretch

Workout: Four 3 min rounds, 6 exercises 30 sec each (extra 30 secs on 4th round, don't tell Tim), 1 min rest between rounds

Round 1-

Sprawls - on stability ball
Shoots - partner lift
Scrambles on partner
Medicine Ball slams standing
Push ups on bag
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, and elbows on stand up bag-
Rest 60 sec

Round 2-

Burpees -
Ball Slams on bag -
Knees on stability ball with bungee -
Hand walks with feet on stability ball -
Clinch -
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, elbows, shoots, and sprawls on a stand up bag-
rest 60 sec

Round 3

Shoots with bungee -
Technical stand up -
Clinch with partner -
Bear crawls -
Jump squats -
Bag -

Round 4

Treadmill - 30 secs -
Shoots with partner lift - 30 sec -
Treadmill - 30 sec
ball slams standing -
Treadmill - 30 secs
Clinch - 30 secs
Treadmill - 30 secs
rest 2 mins

Tim rolled with Chris for 2 mins then with me for two mins, no rest in between

3 min drills:

Clinched for take downs -

Sparred -

Sparred -

Ground: - back control, defending subs, switching positions, posture

Cool down: Crunches - Stretch

Have a safe journey.

Mon 2/22/10

"Striving for success without hard work is like trying to harvest where you haven't planted” - David Bly

Tim did some hard rolling and sparring with me, Seth, and Dan on Sun. This is what we did today:

Warm up: 3 mins agility ladder - stretch

Workout: Four 3 min rounds, 6 exercises 30 sec each (extra 30 secs on 4th round, don't tell Tim), 1 min rest between rounds

Round 1-

Sprawls - on stability ball
Shoots - bungee
Scrambles on bag
Medicine Ball slams on bag
Push ups on bag
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, and elbows on stand up bag-
Rest 60 sec

Round 2-

Burpees -
Ball Slams on floor -
Knees on heavy bag -
Hand walks with feet on stability ball -
Clinch -
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, elbows, shoots, and sprawls on a stand up bag-
rest 60 sec

Round 3

Shoots with partner lift -
Technical stand up -
Clinch with partner -
Bear crawls -
Shoots with bungee -
Bag -

Round 4

Treadmill - 30 secs -
Jump squats - 30 sec -
Treadmill - 30 sec
Run in place holding medicine ball -
Treadmill - 30 secs
Sprawls - 30 secs
Treadmill - 30 secs
rest 2 mins

3 min drills:

Focus mitts with take downs -
Clinch -
Wall clinch with body strikes using body shield -

Worked ground - posture, safety position, defend subs (arm bar, triangle, umaplata, Kamura), stand up, stack-
Subs from top - head & arm choke, Americana, Barb wire, Darce
Defending while in half guard

Cool down:

Duck walks - Stretch

Have a safe journey

Fri 2/19/10

"Thus, what is of supreme importance in war is to attack the enemy's strategy.” - Sun Tzu

Warm up:
3 mins agility ladder hands -
20 Hindu Squats
Ab wheel
Partner drag with Gi 96'
50 punches with 5lb dumbbells
Stretch

Workout: Today we did 1 9 min round, 18 exercises 30 sec each, No rest between exercises

Round 1-

Sprawls -
Shoots - partner lift
Scrambles on bag
Medicine ball slams on bag
Push ups on medicine ball
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, and elbows on stand up bag-
Burpees -
Ball slams on bag-
Mountain climbers on stability ball
Wall clinch -
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, elbows, shoots, and sprawls on a stand up bag-
Shoots with partner lift -
Technical stand up -
Clinch with partner -
Bear crawls -
Shoots with bungee -
Bag -

After we worked:

Keeping the guy in the corner of a square cage and taking down -
Getting out of the corner of a square cage -
Defending while in guard - arm bar, triangle, Umaplata, and Guillotine choke -
Darce choke from side control -
Americana from side control -
Barb wire from north south -
Reverse Guillotine from north south -

Cool down - 20 squats
Stretch

Have a safe journey.

Thurs 2/18/10

" Never give up, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn." ~ Harriet Beecher Stowe

I didn't get to post last night because I was playing the New Super Mario Brothers on the Wii with my wife. I didn't swim yesterday, but here is the MMA training I did with Tim.

Warm up:

5 mins on treadmill with sprints -
10 pull ups -
10 each side 100lb heavy bag lift & slams -
Duck walks -
Stretch

Workout: Three 3 min rounds, 6 exercises 30 sec each, 1 min rest between rounds

Round 1-

Sprawls -
Shoots - partner lift
Scrambles on bag
Medicine Ball slams on bag
Push ups on Medicine ball
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, and elbows on stand up bag-
Rest 60 sec

Round 2-

Burpees -
Ball Slams on bag-
Mountain climbers on stability ball
Wall clinch -
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, elbows, shoots, and sprawls on a stand up bag-
rest 60 sec

Round 3

Shoots with partner lift -
Technical stand up -
Clinch with partner -
Bear crawls -
Shoots with bungee -
Bag -

Round 4

Run in place holding medicine ball -
Shoots with partner lift -
Medicine ball hold -
Grapple -
Run in place holding medicine ball -
Bag - work punches, knees, elbows, shoots, and sprawls on a stand up bag-
rest 2 mins

3 min drills:


Take downs -
Cage control and take downs -
Spar -
Pass open guard -
Defend subs from closed guard and escape -
Work guard - hold down & stand up -
Spar -

Cool down:

100 punches on bungee

Have a safe journey.

Wed 2/17/10

"Bravery is the capacity to perform properly even when scared half to death.” - Omar Bradley

Today at lunch I swam 12 laps, then at night I did 5 sets of bench press x 8 reps and 5 sets of pull ups x 5 reps.

MMA training -

Warm up:

Agility ladder feet with 12 lb medicine ball - 3 mins

Agility ladder hands - 3 mins

Stretch

Workout:

Round 1-

Sprawls on stability ball -
Shoots/lift/slams on 100lb heavy bag -
Scrambles on bag
Medicine Ball slams on heavy bag
Push ups on Stability ball
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, elbows, shoots, and sprawls on stand up bag
Rest 60 sec

Round 2-

Burpees -
Ball Slams -
Mountain climbers on stability ball -
Jump squats -
Push ups on medicine ball -
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, elbows, shoots, and sprawls on a stand up bag-
rest 60 sec

Round 3

Shoots with partner lift -
Technical stand up -
Clinch with partner against cage -
Bear crawls -
Shoots with partner lift -
Bag -
Rest 60 secs

Round 4

Spar 30 secs
shoots with partner lift 30 secs
Grapple 30 secs

Sprawls 30 secs

Spar 60 secs

Rest 2 min

3 min drills:

Head movement and foot work to get inside and clinch or shoot -

Cage control and take downs -

Spar -

Pass open guard -

Defend subs from closed guard and escape -

Scramble from back to get on top or stand up -

Spar -

Cool down:

Sea Turtles 96'

Partner carry sprints 128'

Medicine ball throws

Stretch

Have a safe journey.

Tues 2/16/10

“Competing in sports has taught me that if I'm not willing to give 120 percent, somebody else will.” - Ron Blomberg

Today we warmed up with 5 mins on treadmill, 3 sets of handstand walks with feet on wall for 16', and then stretch.

Workout:

Round 1-

Sprawls -
Shoots - on bungee
Positions/Scrambles on bag
Medicine Ball slams
Push ups on Stability ball
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, elbows, shoots, and sprawls on stand up bag
Rest 60 sec

Round 2-

Burpees -
Ball Slams -
Knees on stability ball with bungee attached to waist
Jump squats -
Hand walks with feet on stability ball -
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, elbows, shoots, and sprawls on a stand up bag-
rest 60 sec

Round 3

Shoots with partner lift -
Technical stand up -
Clinch with partner -
Bear crawls -
Shoots with bungee -
Bag -
Rest 60 secs

Round 4

Treadmill 30 secs
Clinch 30 secs
Tread mill 30 secs

Then we did some 3 min drills

Clinch to take down - 3 mins
Focus mitts - worked punches and take downs
Passing open guard -
Ground control - staying busy and switching side/positions -
Take down up against the cage - Pushing partner up against cage, dirty boxing, and taking them down away from cage to stop wall craw -
Defending back and the choke while partner has back - controlling arm and turning
Dead lift 100lb heavy bag, carry for 32 feet 3 times
12lb medicine ball twists 2 sets on 10
12lb medicine ball sit up throws 2 sets of 10
Sparring - partner padded up to punch and kick fighter to get in and take down using punches, head movement, circle away from power hand, and fakes - two 3 min rounds

Cool down was bear crawls and crab walks for 16 feet x 10 sets - stretch

Have a safe journey.

The Way to Train - Jiu-jitsu Idealism

An article by Tal Williams of Elite Mixed Martial Arts


"I was put to task to write something about Brazilian jiu jitsu. I’m not going to teach you any bad ass moves that will ensure metaphoric death to your foes because I don’t know them, and it also doesn’t go with the title. I thought I'd write about some of the key aspects of training the ideal way and some of the challenges that come with it. These are some of the things that have stymied my progress and are the three key things I’d like to get closer to the ideal.

1: Consistency

You have to train more than twice a week every week to make real progress in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Sure, you will get better going 1 or 2 days a week but your progress will be similar to the evolution of man. You will be the homo habilis of jiu jitsu. The people who are there 7 days a week will be the ubermensch.

Lately I haven’t been as consistent as I used to be. We all have reasons why we aren’t training with the frequency jiu jitsu idealism demands. Sometimes the rigors of employment, traffic, and life in general leave me with a deep yearning for couches, televisions and McDonalds and jiu jitsu becomes another task or destination. I almost always find that when I am able to fight through this feeling and go to the gym I feel better about life and I’m glad that I got another training session in. Sometimes, shit happens and missing class is unavoidable. We can’t do anything about that. My goal is to try be more consistent and fight through excuses to avoid training.

2: Ego

Anyone who trains has heard the phrase “leave your ego at the door” at some point. The ego check is extremely important. Many times it’s mentioned in the context of “don’t be a douche bag,” meaning don’t hurt someone else or yourself because of your fear of losing face. Everyone has an ego flare up from time to time, if you had no ego you would just lay there like a Buddhist on fire, and get beat up. The key is to find the balance between the desire to win and the desire to improve.

When you are training don’t think about winning and losing all of the time. Sometimes it’s good to roll like it’s a competition but if you’re always trying to win it only serves a short-term goal of “winning” that next roll. It’s a much greater tool to put yourself in positions where you will likely lose. This is the most difficult thing to do and why most people don’t do it.

Try different things. If you are always using your A-Game your A-Game will start to suck. People will figure it out and you won’t have anything else for them. Don’t always pull guard or play from the top. Don’t always go for your bread and butter moves, mix it up.

The positions or submissions that you don’t call bread and butter should be drilled until you can classify them as such. This leads into the next key part of jiu jitsu idealism.

3: Drilling/Repetition

Most people don’t enjoy drilling. If you let everyone vote at your next class on whether the whole time should be spent rolling or drilling one move. It would probably be a landslide victory for rolling. That is an unfortunate fact. Drilling is what will make you better than everyone who doesn’t do it. This is one of the things I’ve been meaning to incorporate into my training for the longest time.

Learning a new technique in class and drilling it 10 times doesn’t count. What I’m talking about requires “independent study.” Find someone or a group of people who are interested in really drilling stuff and do it as often as possible

There are many different ways to drill, gross motor movements to give you a foundation can be done fast and without much regard for technique. Then focus on the details, do a bunch of reps as slow as it takes to do it right and then gradually increase the pace and/or resistance and add variations.

Drilling shouldn’t always be about that new bad ass upside down guard to triangle you saw on YouTube. It doesn’t even have to be focused on submissions. One of the coolest (I’m using the word loosely) drills I’ve seen was someone practicing all of the different control points from side control. Check out these blog posts on Aesopian.com - he agrees with me too! Drilling isn't a four letter word, and Bridging the Gap."

Article by Tal Williams

Mon 2/15/10

"The harder you train, the harder it is to surrender." ~ Vince Lombardi





I didn't get to lift much today because I had to coach my friend for his MMA fight in two weeks. This is what we did:

Warm up - 3 mins agility ladder - feet (he held a 12lb medicine ball in front of him)
3 mins agility ladder - hands
3 mins clinch fight

Workout: Three 3 min rounds, 6 exercises 30 sec each, 1 min rest between rounds




Round 1-

Sprawls -
Shoots - on bungee
Positions/Scrambles on bag
Medicine Ball slams
Push ups on Medicine ball
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, and elbows on stand up bag-
Rest 60 sec

Round 2-

Burpees -
Ball Slams -
Knees on stability ball with bungee attached to waist
Jump pull ups -
Bear crawls -
Heavy bag - work punches, knees, elbows, shoots, and sprawls on a stand up bag-
rest 60 sec

Round 3

Shoots with partner lift -
Technical stand up -
Clinch with partner -
Bear crawls -
Shoots with bungee -
Bag -
Rest 2 mins

Then we did some 3 min drills

Clinch to take down - 3 mins
Sparring - partner padded up to punch and kick fighter to get in and take down using punches, head movement, circle away from power hand, and fakes - 3 mins
Take down up against the cage - Pushing partner up against cage, dirty boxing, and taking them down away from cage to stop wall crawl.
Passing guard -
Ground control - staying busy and switching side/positions
Defending while in guard - Safety position, stacking, posture, and backing out
Defending the choke while partner has back - controlling arm and turning

We ended with a pyramid of push ups, pull ups, & body weight squats - reps 1,2,3,4,5,5,4,3,2,1

I did 5 sets of bench press x 5 reps
5 sets of pull ups x 5 reps

Have a safe journey.

Sun 2/14/10

"Walk on road, hm? Walk left side, safe. Walk right side, safe. Walk middle, sooner or later get squish just like grape. Here, karate, same thing. Either you karate do "yes" or karate do "no." You karate do "guess so," squish just like grape." - Mr Miyagi






This is a sweep I have been playing with, but only hitting it 50/50. Any comments?

2/13/10

" A lifetime of training for just ten seconds." - Jesse Owens

I didn't get to workout Sat night, but hope to do some BJJ on Sunday.

I have been addicted to the Olympics lately. It is a little odd considering I have never skied, only ice skated to pick up chicks when I was a teen, and thought the Luge was a feminine product.

To me, this is what sports is about, dedicating all that time training to test your self against the best in the world. What a risk, but what a payoff. The death of Luger Nodar Kumaritashvili from the country Georgia was a tragic start to the Olympics, but this shows how great the urge to compete is. I hope everyone else gets through the games safely. U.S.A.!!!!!!!!

Have a safe journey.

Fri 2/12/10

“What we face may look insurmountable. But I learned something from all those years of training and competing. I learned something from all those sets and reps when I didn't think I could lift another ounce of weight. What I learned is that we are always stronger than we know.” - Arnold Schwarzenegger

I swam 12 laps and ran 4 laps in the pool today at lunch time. We got a couple inches of snow (Atlanta, GA freaks out when it snows) so we left work early.

I did this Randy Couture workout a few years ago in San Antonio, TX, but it seemed a lot tougher tonight. I thought I did it with a 45lb plate on each end, but quickly realized I had to switch it to a 25lb plate. This is the killer workout I did tonight

Two round circuit: Did this workout without letting go of the bar:

Bent rows X8
Upright rows X 8
Over head shoulder press X 8
Good morning X 8
Lunges X 8 (each leg)
Squat push press X 8
Deadlift X 8

Felt like puking.

4 sets of pull ups x 5 reps

Tomorrow is my son's 9th B-day.

Have a safe journey.

About "getting good" and enjoying the process

Written by Christian Graugart from Copenhagen


From new students, I often get the question "How long does it take to get good at Brazilian Jiu Jitsu?". It is always a question that requires some time to explain, as there is no answer really.

What is "good"? When are you "good"? Consider, that no matter how long you train, there will always be someone who are better and someone who are worse than you at this sport. Let's say you have a goal of reaching the black belt. You train and train for years always with the goal of "getting there". One day, you finally get the belt... and then what? There are still tons of guys out there, who are much better and tons of guys who are much worse.


No matter how long you train, no matter how much you - in your mind - measure your own level up against other students, no matter how much you think about how far the other gym in town has come now compared to you, you will never come to a point where you are "done". It is a natural thing for people to gather in groups (/tribes) and then start to gossip about other groups of same interest with whom they have little or no communication with. I think this is seen more in sports, where those groups eventually will meet in competition and measure themselves up against each other. In real life, some or all of those people in the other group could have been your best friends if you have just met them in another way than as competitors within your own interest group. Does it really matter how "good" they are? Does it really matter how "good" you are? Does it make sense to not be best possible friends with people who share the same interest as you?


The point is, that you can never "get there" and then you are "done". So if you always focus on getting to a certain point in your training where you are "good" (measuring yourself against others), then you might forget the most important thing of it all - enjoying the process.

Of course, setting a certain goal can be very beneficial for some people/personalities, but I always encourage my students to try to throw all these (naturally occurring) thoughts of measurement away and just enjoy playing BJJ. Because the process of training is the real goal, not the belt or a certain level. The real value of this sport is in the training, the sweating, the pain, the small successes, the small failures, the friends you make, the self esteem, the hard work and the development of non-fantasy skill that actually works against resisting opponents. And you are already right there to enjoy it. Every day in the gym, on the mat. So forget about getting good and enjoy what you are doing NOW. The goal is right there in front of you and it has been there all the time :)



My own gym is completely designed with this in mind. Our number one priority has always been to create the best possible environment for enjoying the process of training. We always play nice music in class, hang up pirate flags, play playstation, arrange social activities, and most important of all - we never take training too seriously. Some people might find themselves comfortable in a strict, hierarchical, no-music, serious and competition-minded environment, and that is perfectly fine. They just won't come to our place then. We never focus on "being the best", although a side benefit of our process-focus has been, that people are getting really, really good at what they do. Simply because they enjoy coming to the gym every day to hang out and train.

Just some thoughts on a pleasant winter Friday in Copenhagen. Enjoy your weekend :)

How to Win a Fight: Self-Defense for the Untrained Person

You’re out and enjoying life with your friends or a certain young lady. But some knucklehead is determined to end your fun by trying to punch your lights out. What can you do?

There are some simple self-defense tactics that even someone who's not in great shape or has any special training can employ:

First of all, wake up!
Who’s watching you?
Look around, is someone giving you a hard look? Or alternately, does someone quickly avoid your gaze?
Watch people’s hands as you are walking, don’t look away when you pass.
Cross the street if you have to avoid a group of punks.
Don't get too drunk.
Are you doing something stupid like hitting on someone’s girlfriend at the bar?
Are you in the habit of boasting about your fancy watch, car, apartment?
Point out the troublemaker to the bartender or doorman.
If the negative vibes get too intense, leave.
Remember, it’s always easier to STAY out of trouble than to GET out of trouble.

Second of all, keep from getting hit in a vital area!
Get your hands up in front of your face to protect your head.
Keep your mouth closed with your teeth clenched. When your mouth is open you are ripe to get your jaw broken (which means you should forget about ‘talking trash’).
Circle away from his power side (circle to the right if he has his right hand cocked back, circle to the left if he has his left hand cocked back).
You need to be either two arms lengths away from him (outside of his kicking range) or all the way in tight against him (holding him in a boxing clinch). Anything in between puts you in range for his punches and kicks.

Third, use your strongest weapons against his weakest targets.
Use the proverbial knee to the groin when you are clinching.
Smash him with your elbows in the face, throat and neck.
Kick him in the knee, groin or lower abdomen. Kick straight ahead using the bottom of your foot like you would kick in a door. Or kick straight back like a mule using your heel. If you are untrained, resist the urge to kick with the top of your foot like you are punting a football, you will probably use too much of your toes instead of your shin (ouch!).
If you try to trade punches with him, you're probably playing right into his game.

Finally:
Get a barrier between you and him (even if you have to run around a car).
Yell for help. You can't count on people coming to your aid, but he might think someone will render assistance.
Use a weapon. Hose him down with your pepper spray. Use a chair like a lion tamer. Throw ashtrays at him.
Make your escape. Lose your ego and your attitude. Retreat and escape. Live to go out and party again next weekend.
Better yet, start training tomorrow in a self-defense art or program.

I Method

This form of teaching highly regarded by BGI (That is where I got it for)

The I method is the fundamental training method of the Straight Blast Gym. We use the I method because it’s a training tool that is a very effective way of integrating Aliveness (Working with an resistant partner using timing, energy, and motion) into training. Below you will find a description of the 3 phases of the I method with a description of what to expect in each.

Introduction
The introduction stage of training is designed to help you to learn new techniques. In the introduction stage, you are learning all the particulars of the technique. Things like where to put your arms and legs, which way to move, where to grab etc. are gone over in detail.
In the introduction stage you communicate with your partner and work together to make sure you understand how to perform the technique. Your partner is compliant in this stage. There is no resistance. Your partner may employ pressure as it’s needed for you to execute the technique, but they will not resist your technique. An example of the kind of pressure you might employ would be things like your partner leaning forward while in your guard so that you can execute a sweep or your partner standing up while in your guard so that you can execute a ankle grab sweep with your knees. You give your partner the pressure they need to execute the technique. You don’t give them pressure that nullifies or prevents them from using their technique. Verbal communication is encouraged.
In this stage you switch on your own. Usually you will perform the technique a few times and then switch roles.

Isolation
In this stage you work against resistance. This is your chance to test the technique out in live sparring. Your instructor will give you the rules of the “game.” Your job is to try to execute the technique you learned in the Introduction stage. A good training partner will give you Progressive Resistance. Progressive Resistance means that your partner will not necessarily resist 100%. They will give you enough resistance that you are working hard to execute your technique. If you never get to execute your technique your training partner will dial down their resistance. If you are getting the technique easily your training partner will dial up the resistance. The point of Isolation stage is not to win or beat your opponent. It isn’t a contest. The point is to allow you to get some flight time in with a particular technique. Verbal communication should be very limited in this stage. This is learning by doing stage. Talking will only distract your partner. Let them learn by trying it out.
In this stage your instructor will tell you when to switch roles.

Integration Stage
This is the stage where you put it all together. You use all your tools and are sparring to submission. Here is where you get a chance to try out the technique in a live sparring situation with your partner having all the tools they have at their disposal. In this stage you give full resistance taking into consideration the size and experience difference between you and your partner. This is not the stage to learn new techniques or review old ones. You should not use this time for that purpose. It is OK to ask your partner to show you what they did to submit you after the tap, but don’t stop the roll to discuss technique.
You will switch positions when someone gets a submission or when your instructor tells you.

Thurs 2/11/10

“Half of life is f*cking up, the other half is dealing with it.” - Henry Rollins

I didn't swim today because of a work lunch and didn't workout at night because of Cancer Bingo at my daughter's school. My dad died in Oct 2009 from Lung Cancer, so it was important for me to go. We gave $80 and won a basket with a bunch of card and other games.

I will swim tomorrow at lunch if it doesn't snow too bad, lift tomorrow night, and do MMA Sat & Sun.

A friend of mine who is a really good wrestler has a fight coming up on 2/27/10. He wants me to help him train and corner him...not a lot of time.

Have a safe journey.

Wed 2/10/10

"Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It is a very mean and nasty place and it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't how hard you hit; it's about how hard you can get hit, and keep moving forward. How much you can take, and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done. Now, if you know what you're worth, then go out and get what you're worth. But you gotta be willing to take the hit, and not pointing fingers saying you ain't where you are because of him, or her, or anybody. Cowards do that and that ain't you. You're better than that! - Rocky Balboa

I didn't swim today but here is the workout I did tonight:

Warm up - 3 mins agility ladder feet - stretch

Pyramid circuit - Push ups, pull ups, body weight squats - reps 1,2,3,4,5,5,4,3,2,1 no rest between

Chest - 3 sets of bar floor press x 8 reps

Grip - 3 sets hex dumbbell holds for time

3 round circuit of the following:

Sprawls - 10 reps
Mountain climbers with hands on stability ball - 10 reps
Medicine ball slams - 10 reps
Jump squats - 10 reps
Dumbbell swings - 10 reps
Jump pull ups - 10 reps
Repeat
Repeat

I won't be able to swim tomorrow because of work and have Bingo for a Cancer charity tomorrow night at my daughter's school, so not sure what workout I will be doing.

Have a safe journey.

Posture/Pressure/Possibilities

Tues 2/9/10

"The only way of finding the limits of the possible is by going beyond them into the impossible." - Arthur C. Clarke


Today I was able to swim and swam 13 laps and ran 1 lap in the water. I fell asleep after dinning, didn't go the the BJJ school, and my friend didn't come over so I did this workout instead:

Warm up - 5 mins jump rope - stretch

500 Thai kicks on bag, each leg. Half way through I had to put shin pads on.

100 crunches

200 side crunches each side

Stretch - shake - shower

Looking forward to swimming tomorrow and working out at night.

Have a safe journey.

Mon 2/8/10

"“If you can accept losing, you can't win.” - Vince Lombardi


I swam 12 laps today. I was able to swim near a group of older swimmers and they gave me some pointers and corrections on my technique.

Here's what my workout was:

Warm up - 5 mins on treadmill - stretch

Chest - 5 sets of bench press x 5 reps I was able to get back up to the weight I was at.

Back/Legs - 3 sets of dead lefts x 5 reps

Back/shoulders - 3 super set of pull ups x 5 reps & smith machine shoulder press x 5 reps

Traps - 4 sets of bar shrugs x 8 reps

Legs - 3 sets of Bulgarian split squats x 6 reps each leg

Tris - 3 sets of weighted dips x 3 sets

Stretch - shake - shower

I felt good while and after working out. I felt like I could have done more. This is a problem for me as I have over trained for years. I am geting close to being back to where I was before my boo boo.

Going to try to swim tomorrow, but I might have a business lunch. Not sure if I am going to the BJJ school or doing MMA with one of my training partners tomorrow night.

Have a safe journey.

Sun 2/7/10

“Notice that the stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while the bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind.” - Bruce Lee





I didn't workout today, but will swim and lift tomorrow.







Some thoughts from Bruce Lee

On the mental attitudes of combat

Question: What are your thoughts when facing an opponent?
Bruce: There is no opponent.
Question: Why is that?
Bruce: Because the word ''l'' does not exist.
A good fight should be like a small play...but played seriously. When the opponent expands, l contract. When he contracts, l expand. And when there is an opportunity... l do not hit...it hits all by itself (shows his fist).
Any technique, however worthy and desirable, becomes a disease when the mind is obsessed with it.

On the power of the fluid

Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way round or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves.
Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water my friend.


On reacting to the opponent

The highest technique is to have no technique. My technique is a result of your technique; my movement is a result of your movement.
A good JKD man does not oppose force or give way completely. He is pliable as a spring; he is the complement and not the opposition to his opponent’s strength. He has no technique; he makes his opponent's technique his technique. He has no design; he makes opportunity his design.
One should not respond to circumstance with artificial and "wooden" prearrangement. Your action should be like the immediacy of a shadow adapting to its moving object. Your task is simply to complete the other half of the oneness spontaneously.
In combat, spontaneity rules; rote performance of technique perishes.

On readiness

Do not be tense, just be ready, not thinking but not dreaming, not being set but being flexible. It is being "wholly" and quietly alive, aware and alert, ready for whatever may come.
The danger of training with the heavy bag is that it doesn't react to one’s attack and sometimes there is a tendency to thoughtlessness. One will punch the bag carelessly, and would be vulnerable in a real situation if this became a habit.


Have a safe journey.

Sat 2/6/10

"Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter" - Mark Twain

To we took the kids to see the cast of the new movie "The Lightning Thief" at Boarders. Then we went to Red Lobster, before we had guest come over to watch the UFC.

So I only had 45 mins to lift. This is what I did:

Warm up - agility ladder hands for 3 mins - stretch

Chest - 4 sets of bench press x 6 reps

Back - 6 sets of pull ups x 4 reps

Shoulders - 3 sets of over head press x 6 reps

Core - 2 sets dumbbell swings x 8 reps

Stretch - shower - shake

Probably do bjj tomorrow.

Have a safe journey.

Fri 2/5/10

"The belly rules the mind" - Spanish Proverb





"The way you cut your meat reflects the way you live" - Confucius






I didn't workout tonight because we went to a Hibachi/Sushi place for Jordan's B-day (which is next Sat). I feel like I had a workout. I had soup, 9 piece Sashimi appetizer, Hibachi (2 shrimp) fried rice, vegetables, and chicken, then I washed it all down with a Lobster sushi roll...

I will use today as my rest day and workout tomorrow and do BJJ/MMA on Sun.

This is something I read from SBGI (Straight Blast Gym) a while ago:

"Posture- (Structure)
The initial stages of learning a new position always involve learning posture. Posture is simply where to put your arms, body, head, and legs in relation to your opponents. To work posture using the Isolation stage of the I method you will either have students start in posture and try to keep it or the other option is to start without posture and try to obtain it.

Reset Drill- Start out of posture. Work to get to posture. The instructor will call out “reset” periodically and reset you to the start position.

Objective Drill- Start in poor posture and work to get optimal posture. When you get to good posture you “win.” Start over again…
Call Out- Instructor calls out posture and student gets that posture and tries to hold. Example- safety position, base and posture, and combat base.
Pocket Drill-Students stay in the pocket or “range zone” and work to get posture. Example would be head fighting while clench surfing.
Isolation Drill- Here you start with the posture and must move to an objective from that posture. An example would be that top guy must maintain mount and finish from there. Or bottom guy must finish from guard etc.

Pressure- (Tactics)
Pressure refers to how you move your body while in posture. This could be a pull or push or lift or twist or rotate.

Reset Drill- Start in posture and execute pressure until you no longer have posture or until the instructor calls out “reset.”
Objective Drill- Start in posture and use pressure to move to a different posture or escape or submit or reverse etc.
Call Out- Start in posture and instructor will call out the pressure to use. Example- Barrel, spike, rudder, tripod etc.
Pocket Drill- Start in a particular range and keep it there. Student either has posture already or is working to get it. Once posture is obtained student works to pressure. Opponent must stay in the pocket.
Isolation Drill- Use pressure from a particular position. An example would be starting from seated butterfly guard and working to push, pull, lift and rotate from there. Could isolate a particular objective of the pressure like a sweep or submission etc.

Possibilities/Potential- (Strategy)
This refers to what you are trying to accomplish with the pressure. It could be submission or escape or reversal or pin. This is technique. If students have worked well through the posture and pressure stages techniques should pop up spontaneously all over. All the instructor needs to do at this point is to take what students are already doing and refine a bit. To name and refine the technique at this point will help them to organize it and put it into their game.
There may be times however when there is literally nothing to do at this stage. Especially with beginners. To start to show techniques at this point may just confuse the issue. It’s possible to leave students with posture and pressure and give them some time to work just that into their game before you address specific techniques. This will allow them to play and discover some techniques for themselves. It’s a great way to produce active learners at a gym. If you always “feed” students the techniques then they will be passive and expect you to always solve problems for them. This way they are free to discover the answers themselves because they have all the tools necessary at their disposal. Posture and pressure gives them that. It’s also nice because it allows them to discover their own game. Some techniques will work for some students and not for others. The nice thing about allowing them to discover their own technique is that they always discover the ones that work for them. They build their own game.

Obviously you can’t do this all the time. A healthy balance of giving them technique and allowing them to discover them on their own is probably the best solution. I won’t claim to know what percentage of each is optimal. I think as long as students are given time to play and create, and they are taking charge of their own learning it will work out well. The point is that you don’t spoon feed students all the time or they will come to expect it and become lazy learners. If they have a healthy dose of figuring it out on their own they will learn how to become active learners within the game of BJJ.
This is a way of breaking down and organizing the game of BJJ into an easier to teach and learn system of postures and pressures. It’s always taught in this particular order because this is the order it occurs in rolling. Before teaching a lesson using this method you must first give students the objective of the posture and pressure. The objective is usually a submission, an escape, a pin, or a sweep or reversal. Students need to know this ahead of time so that they can connect the pressures to the objective when they are drilling. Also, don’t forget to give the students the answer to the question “Why?” as you teach this way. They need to know why this posture as opposed to another or why they should pressure in this particular way. It’s important that they get an intellectual understanding as well as a kinesthetic one"

I hope it helped.

Have a safe journey.

Thurs 2/4/10

"That's my gift. I let that negativity roll off me like water off a duck's back. If it's not positive , I didn't hear it. If you can over come that, fights are easy." - George Foreman

I swam 11 laps and ran in the water for 1 lap today, getting better.

Today my friend Brandon came over to workout, so I didn't go to my other friends school.

I warmed up with 3 mins of jumping rope and then stretched. Then we did:

3 min round of moving around evading punches. I did well, making sure to move side to side, not back wards. Brandon got caught a couple of times, but he did good.

3 min round on the focus mitts, making sure to circle away from the power hand and ducking and countering with either a 2-3 or 3-2 depending on what side the punch was thrown from.

3 min round on the focus mitts, but this time I made sure to start every punch combo with a jab and end every punch combo with a jab.

It felt good to do some boxing, but I was a bit winded.

The we decided to roll. We did a 3 min pass the guard/sweep drill, then we rolled.

We did no gi, but I did well, getting control and submitting him a few times. Still, I think tonight was the best Brandon ever did against me. I told him a few things about passing my guard and he used them well, passing my guard 2 or 3 times. I was able to escape his side control, but he did well.

I am going to try and swim tomorrow at lunch and lift weights at night. TGIF!!!!

Have a safe journey.

Wed 2/3/10

"I have always adhered to two principles: The first one is to train hard and get in the best possible physical condition, the second is to forget all about the other fellow until you face him in the ring and the bell sounds for the fight." - Rocky Marciano



I didn't swim today and had a really bad tooth ache (sucked). I did get to work BJJ gi with a fellow blue belt. To warm up I ran on the treadmill for 5 mins at a pretty decent pace (7.2) for me. I normally only run when being chased.

We went over half guard because he said he has been having trouble with it. My thought was because he is not up on his bottom elbow, so he gets flattened easily. I showed him how to post up and move in, out, around, and under and how to use his other arm to frame. From there we went over two simple sweep concepts depending on where his opponents weight is, getting back to his knees, and taking the back.

Then we went over a couple of things I have been working on:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlp8EgKyt6k

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4z4Sk7K0Br0


I normally do well against him, controling and submitting, but he is a big guy so my technique has to be good or he can be tiring.

I did well against him, but a little tired from the run.

He caught me in a triangle choke/arm bar combo when I did something stupid. I was going to pass his guard and thought I was in a different position than I was and put my arm right in position for him. I stayed calm and was able to escape. I can't even say I learned a lesson because I have no idea why I did that.

He also swept me twice, had side control once, and almost mounted me. These were good lessons for me as I was trying different things and made mistakes. Over all it was a good workout.



I may train with him and his instructor at his their school tomorrow, but I'm not sure yet. I'm still babying my ribs and not sure if they can take a whole class of people jumping on them.

I hope to swim at lunch tomorrow.

Have a safe journey.

Tues 2/2/10

"Invincibility lies in the defense; the possibility of victory in the attack." - Sun Tzu

I kept my word and swam today. I was doing 20-22 laps in 30 mins during my lunch hour before I got injured, but I was only able to do 7 laps today. Pretty sad, but it is a start.

I was going to box tonight, but changed my schedule around because my friends want to do BJJ/MMA on Wed & Thurs, so today I did a light plyo/core workout:

Jump rope for 3 mins - stretch

3 sets of bungee punches x 30 reps

4 sets of different push ups - push ups with hands on stability ball x 10 reps - plyo push ups on medicine ball x 8 reps - 2 sets hand stand push ups x 6 reps

3 sets of static jumps x 10 reps

2 sets of medicine ball smashes on heavy bag x 20 reps

3 sets of plank to push up position x 10 reps

Stretch - shake - shower.

I'm going to swim tomorrow at lunch and do at least 8 laps, then do some boxing/kickboxing and BJJ tomorrow night. Nothing planned as of yet, but if we work gi I have a few techniques to drill.

Have a safe journey.

Mon 2/1/10

"To see a man beaten not by a better opponent but by himself, is a tragedy." - Cus D'Amato

It is hard not to get discouraged...every time I get to the weight I want to be at or start lifting heavier weights, something happens. Still, I have to force myself not to over do it and turn a small injury into a big one.

Here is my workout from tonight:

Warm up - 2 mins agility ladder feet - 2 mins agility ladder hands (this was pretty tough for me, barely finished all sets in the 2 mins) - stretched

Chest - 1 set pec deck x 50 reps

4 sets bench press x 5 reps (I increased the weight each set but still did not get up to where I was before the injury)

Multi joint - 3 sets clean & press x 5 reps (it was pretty sad)

Back - 4 sets pull ups x 3 reps (pitiful, but last week it hurt to do any)

Tris (core)/bis - 3 Super sets dips with feet on stability ball x 10 reps & dumbbell curls x 6 reps

Legs - 3 sets lunge jumps x 8 reps

Stretch - shake - shower

Tomorrow I hope to swim at lunch and either BJJ or some boxing at night. As my buddy Tony Horton (P90X guy, I don't really know him) says "do your best and forget the rest!".

Have a safe journey.