28/2/17: double stick masterclass

The main principles that were reinforced all night were:
Eyes on his eyes
Keep the same level
Use the last 4 inches of the stick
Extension through the arms, be long
Use the stick like a sword

2 COUNTS
From the open position (stick on each shoulder)
forehand - backhand (R) then repeat on the left

or

high (R), high (R) high (L) high (L)

high (R) low (R), high (L) low (L)

3 COUNTS
From the open position (stick on each shoulder)
forehand - backhand - backhand (R), repeat on the left

or

high (R) low (R) high (R) high (L) low (L) high (L)

Upward figure 8s - upward forearm, upward backhand, upward forearm then repeat on the left

4 COUNTS
From the chambered position (both sticks on one side of the body, if the right side, right hand on the shoulder and left hand under the shoulder)

Do the following 3 times from the right chambered position, switch then repeat on the left
forehand (R) - backhand (L) - backhand (R) - forehand (L). The final backhand, after the hit, sits on the right shoulder. The final forehand hits through and finishes under the left shoulder.

ODD SERIES
From the chambered position
Forehand (R) - backhand (L) and right roof - forehand (R) then repeat on the left

Putting together the initial 2 count plus adding the odd series

HEAVEN 6
In pairs and in the square. People on the 4 corners of the square were solo drilling the heaven 6 pattern. The person in the middle of the square would start the paired version of the drill as they were 'swinging'. The person in the centre was dictating the speed but also the length of the drill before moving on to the next person occupying a corner.

7 COUNT
Initial 2 count on each side followed by a short series of 3 strikes, Person A with an angle 1, Person B responds with a roof, Person B then attacks with an angle 1 and Person A responds with a roof, finally, Person A with an angle 1, Person B responds with a roof.

Strips:
After the final roof, roll over his weaponised hand and abanico with the left to his neck/jaw/face, scoop down with the left as you zone off line to be out of the line from an attack with the stick in his left-hand. The right punyo goes over the wrist and scissor your hands with the sticks for the strip and finish with a heaven 6.

He then attacks with the left hand, intercept with your two sticks, roll over and abanico with the right hand, scoop down with the right as your left hand opens to capture his hand. Make sure you move the right hand down his arm so you can clasp the wrist using your thumb. Strip the stick out and finish with a heaven 6.

23/2/17: boxing off the jab, pad rounds and single stick sumbrada

BOXING OFF THE JAB
A: jab B, catch and jab. One for one. Lots of changes of partners. Most rounds with left lead then several with right lead.

A jabs, B responds with catch right then jab down the centreline then move offline to the left and jab again.

A jabs, B responds with catch and jab, right cross on the low line to the body (drop the weight and ned the legs and enter in to close the distance) followed by a jab on the high line as you exit back out. As Steve said, it was all about footwork.

A jabs, B responds with catch and jab followed by a left hook to the kidney. Make sure you step left and pivot for the hook.

Conditioned sparring rounds: A jabs and B responds with any of the 3 replies practised earlier on in the session.

PAD ROUNDS
Round 1: jab, jab then left hook to the kidney.

Round 2: jab - cross on the low line to the body - exit with the jab

SINGLE STICK SUMBRADA

Orange belts and below worked the following: (higher grades doing secret stuff on their side of the room)

A attacks with angle #1, B responds with roof then own #1

A attacks with angle #1, B responds with inside sweep and angle #4

A attacks with angle #4, B responds with drop stick plus left hand under his weaponised wrist followed by angle #5

A attacks with angle #5, B responds with wing block then responds with angle #2

A attacks with angle #2, B responds with shield block then angle #1

The work from the higher grades, many thansk to James for the notes

Roof the A1 then slice down with the A1.

Inside sweep the A1 then A4 across the stomach.

Pass the A4 - with the R. stick chambered on your L. rib and your L. arm resting in front (like you’re hugging yourself), drop your R. foot back and deflect his forearm with the back of your L. hand (push his arm into him, don’t just scoop it round) as you hit his stick (would be his hand in reality). Then hit with the A3.

Pass the A3 - either move both legs back and hollow your body as you deflect his forearm with your L. hand (push his arm into him, don’t just scoop it round) and hit his arm over the top then move into cat stance (R. toe pointed) and hit with the A2 OR just skip further back and hit over the top without deflecting the arm and hit with the A2.
Shield the A2.

Do (1) to (3) as a sumbrada flow - the person who starts with the roof should make a ‘Z’ shape with his stick as he roofs, feeds the A1 then passes.

Do (1) to (5) as a sumbrada flow.

Here is a series of images from JKD instructor, Steve Powell, from the second city in the north, Manchester.

http://www.jeet-kune-do.info/jun_fan/sumbrada/

We then put it all together in the 5 count sumbrada drill. First with stick then checking hand but later on no stick contact and just checking the hand.

21/2/17: Panantukan and single stick (redondo focus)

PANANTUKAN methods against straight punches (the jab and cross)

1: Against the jab: Parry right and hit to the body with the left, left hand slides back along the arm to monitor as the right shovel hook goes into the body, the right hand then slides back along the arm to monitor as the left hand hits straight to the body.
Repeat with the cross working on the other side of his body.

2: Against the jab: Parry right and split with the left down the centre. Dumog pull the left forearm into his elbow crease and clasp with the right to secure the arm. Continue to pull his arm in and down so that his elbow ends up on your body. Turn the left palm down and away from yourself (to the left) to put pressure on the shoulder and compress his structure followed by a right body hook then a right head hook. Keep the arm wrapped with your left as you strike.
Repeat against the cross working on the other side of his body.

3: Against the jab: split and stick - parry right and eye jab left, slide the left arm down his arm as the right eye jab goes in, right pak sau on his arm coupled with the left fist. Reach over with the left to take the crease of his arm, the right hand is going to wheel his wrist to the right as the left hand moves the crease in the same counter clockwise motion. Your right arm will now slide into his elbow crease, your palm is facing you, and the left thumb is in his neck to prevent turning back into you.
Repeat against the cross working on the other side of his body.

4: Against the jab: Upper gunting into the salute with the left. From the left salute, slide the left hand down for wrist control as use wrench/break the arm with your right elbow then follow up with the left horizontal elbow to the head.
Repeat against the cross working on the other side of his body.

5: Against the jab: left elbow destruction followed by a series of hammerfists (Left backhand, right forehand-right backhand - left forehand - left backhand). Keep the tight and fast.
Repeat against the cross working on the other side of his body.

6: Against the jab: Parry right and salute with the left then uppercut with the right or go for the arm wrench/break instead. He then throws a shot with the other hand, you will need to keep shifting away from his right hand, intercept inside his attack with your right hand and use the back of the hand to wheel his wrist (and thus arm) in a counter clockwise circle. You end up with both his arms crossed at the elbows and balanced terribly compromised.
Repeat against the cross working on the other side of his body.

7: Against the cross only as the left leg forward and the torque of the right cross allows the offsetting for the throw. This can't be accomplished off a jab with a left lead.
Right elbow destruction the go straight in over the top with the right hand fingers to the eyes. Step in (keeping control of the left arm) and get your left shoulder tight to the back of his, or as close to the top of the tricep as possible. This will already have his balance off, As you step through with the left leg, the left hand is going to clasp the outer side of the leg on the other side of his body. The 'block' of his leg coupled with your step through will have him off balance and unable to attack with anything.

SINGLE STICK

Solo drilling in the mirrors

1-2-1 (right hand) step back, feet together, swap hands and repeat with the left

2-1-2 (right hand) step back, feet together, swap hands and repeat with the left

1-2-1 Redondo

2-1-2 Redondo

As a whole sequence: 1-2-1-redondo-2-1-2-redondo

Numerada: Feeder gives the 5 angles with the stick, 'defender' applies the 4 hits whilst continuously moving. Each hit was targeted on the weaponised hand.

16/2/17: Boxing body mechanics and empty hand v knife

BOXING
Tonight, we were using the stick as a training tool.

Jabbing (singles)
Partner held the stick vertically whilst moving around the room, the puncher threw single shots at the stick. Aim was to have sound hands, always - elbows in, hands up, piston-like punches in and out, chin down, extending the jabbing shoulder and looking through the eyebrows. In this drill, the puncher was in control as it was up to them when they threw the punches. The stick holder could add occasional angle 1 and angle 2 (slip against it) or high line angle 3 or 4 (bob and weave)

Jabbing (singles and doubles)
In contrast to the previous drill, the stick holder was in control of when the punches were thrown. The stick holder was paying particular attention to the balance and motion of the puncher. His job was to call 1 (single jab) or 2 (double jab) whilst moving in all directions and trying to make the call when the puncher was in motion and not 'set' to throw the punches. Again, it was about sound body mechanics and punch delivery as well as snap to get the stick moving when contacted. Similarly, the stick holder could feed the 4 angles for the puncher to practise slipping and the bob and weave.

Hook and uppercut
The stick was held vertically at shoulder height; the puncher was pointing the shoulder to simulate the slip followed by the bob and weave with the body hook followed by the uppercut. The key was the bob and weave coming from the legs and sound body mechanics. The punches needed to be tight and integrated with the body motion, especially the uppercut. Each side was done alternatively.

Lateral motion plus two punches
The stick was now held at a slight diagonal angle with the tip above the puncher's head. This acted as the centreline for the puncher to continually move under laterally, just as we practised throughout the boxing section in Tuesday's class. Likewise, the punches being thrown were the long uppercut then jab/cross or the other way around; jab/cross then long uppercut. To emphasise, the key learning theme running through this class and Tuesday was body mechanics; the punches were an integrated body motion not just lazy arms making punch shapes.

Out of range sparring x6 rounds
The first thing we had to be cognisant of was motion, lateral motion. Steve has been explicit in his desire for us to develop the ability to move and hit simultaneously. Constant work rate coupled with throwing any punch combination at the person in front of us (as they punch at us too). Not all of the southern softies in the room maintained a high work rate for all the rounds #powerfulnorthernmonkeys. In all seriousness, there was a really positive energy and tempo in the room, everybody was pushing everybody.

EMPTY HAND V KNIFE
Ice pick grip knife tapping against the 5 angles
As Tuesday, getting off the angle of attack more than the hammer grip attacks. An additional point for me was the passing. Having partners giving feedback and critiquing your work is most valuable and luckily for me, working with Adam, he could feel gaps and errors when I was passing the knife. I need to ensure that when passing, his knife arm goes towards him as opposed to taking it around and then towards him.

Empty hand against any 5 angles
The knife feeder this time could feed any of the 5 angles, in any order. So, aliveness and alertness was key; dying was obligatory.

Strip against angle 1 ice pick grip
Intercept and eye strike as per usual but instead of passing the blade, rev the left wrist away from you and downwards ending either with his hand on your side or his elbow against his side. This motion breaks his structure considerably as his elbow is in his centre but the hands is outwards of the centre. This causes a breaking of the structure as he must bend laterally to ease the pressure on the elbow and shoulder. Your right hand comes up behind the crook of the elbow to 'salute' against your eyebrow then straightens towards his shoulder as you strip the knife with the left hand.

Strip against angle 2 ice pick grip
Get deep to the outside for the interception and eye strike. Slide the left arm under but along his arm and clasp your left hand over his knife hand; your hand will cover the whole of his grip. As this happens, your left shoulder is tight to his to ensure there are no gaps that the knife could 'slip' through. You now pivot right to end up facing him as you torque his arm so that the forearm is now horizontal (elbow over wrist), maintain the twisting motion as you take the knife from the hand. This is one of those moves where the person holding the knife wants to drop it due to the torqueing but can't because their hand is being clasped shut. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed lots of people holding knives, who at the end of the defender’s motion, were high on their toes. The signal that the twist was 'on'.

14/2/17: boxing body mechanics and knife work

BOXING:
The theme running through the boxing work was constant movement and learning to hit whilst in motion. A moving target is hard enough to work against but add in to the mix a striking and moving target, this will give the opponent much more to consider rather than a body in front of them.

In the mirror:

Lateral motion drilling: keeping the feet still but moving the torso like a pendulum - getting the head off the centreline, the ideal would be the Tyson style rocking motion.

Bob and weave drilling on both sides interspersed with lateral movement. Everything comes from the legs in the bob and weave.

Lateral motion plus a single slip, working slipping on alternate sides.

Lateral motion plus 2 punches - long uppercut and straight jab/cross or jab/cross then long uppercut. The first time was move laterally with the body then throw the 2 punches with the aim of working towards throwing the first punch on the lateral movement (simultaneously).

Then worked this in with a partner throwing jabs or crosses and using movement and the 2 punches to respond.

Partner then throws any punch, including long looping hooks, defender's job was to keep the constant lateral motion and reply with 2 punches. The feeder threw their punches slowly but consistently, this allowed the defender to always be working in motion.

KNIFE

5 angle slashing knife tapping: Steve mentioned several times the need to keep an awareness, a sensitivity or feel for where he is after each attack. Leave no gap.

Against #1 move inside, high block and strike to eyes and neck, backhand sweep the knife hand towards him, cover the elbow, strike to the eyes, head, face.
Against #2 stay behind it, high block and strike to eyes and neck, backhand sweep the knife hand towards him, cover the elbow, strike to the eyes, head, face.
Against #3 low block (like a bong sau) and strike to eyes and neck, backhand sweep the knife hand towards him, cover the elbow, strike to the eyes, head, face.
Against #4 low block (like a bong sau) and strike to eyes and neck, backhand sweep the knife hand towards him, cover the elbow, strike to the eyes, head, face.
Against #5 move inside, low block and strike to eyes and neck, backhand sweep the knife hand towards him, cover the elbow, strike to the eyes, head, face

5 angle stabbing knife tapping
As above but move more as the knife will be longer in its angle in relation to you.

Stab defences: for each of the stab defences we had to make sure that the eyes were on the opponent and not the blade and that we primarily moved and got the body out of the. As we were drilling, after each stab we would take the blade and return the attack, one for one if you will.

High straight stab defence: it's like a cut punch with the left as the high stab comes in. Cut across, so the your index finger points towards his eyes, you have extended through the left shoulder because you have pulled the right foot back and turned with the left hip. Capture the wrist with the right hand as you thumb to the eyes with the left, then come under the arm and strike to the face. Take two hands to one for an arm wrench then strip.

Mid line straight stab defence: pivot on the lead leg to get the body out of the way, grab at the wrist (thumb up and fingers down), extend his motion to just take his balance and strip by turning it back towards him.

Mid line stab defence version 2: get the legs and hips back as you drop the weight and use the back of the forearm, reach above with the other hand and use the back of the forearm to apply the strip.

Working against all 3 stabs in any order: partner feeds any stab; the aim was to get out of the way and apply a strip.

9/2/17: Thai 4 count and takedowns into submissions

Tonight, we had a special guest down, Ben Richardson from https://www.candomartialarts.co.uk/Home Long-time friend and training partner of Steve.

SHADOW BOXING WARM UP

THAI STRAIGHT KICK DRILLING
Crushing the grapes - shifting the weight left and right on the toes with high hips. Each person taking turns to deliver a left then a right kick to the abdomen. Need to make sure the kicks aren't telegraphed and 'go' when the weight is on the supporting leg.

THAI 4 COUNT
Left lead straight kick (abdomen) - shift offline to the left and throw the jab - right round kick (outer thigh) - Thai clinch.

It was then broken down into a layered attack and counter sequence.

Counter to the front kick - as it lands, scoop it with the left hand, make sure the elbow is high. Push the leg down and away, not so much as he turns away and can throw a spinning technique. As his leg lands, he is partially turned away and you throw the round kick to the back of his legs.

He throws the lead straight kick but you don't manage to scoop the leg, he steps off line and throws the jab, you catch/parry or waslik the punch and move left and throw your own jab followed by a round kick (outer thigh).

He now throws the front kick and jab and he then throws his own round kick to the leg. Crush it with the left leg, step down and forward and attack with a long right knee. Make the crush strong and rooted so you can step forward on the strong ankle.

This time, he gets all three techniques in then goes for the clinch. As the clinch lands, drop your weight as you push up and away on his triceps. Keep the level you are at as you attack with the straight kick (abdomen) then the round kick (outer leg).

Finally, the drill was one person tries to complete the 4 count. The 'defender' the picked any of the defences to do. Tricky and challenging, just what the learning process should all be about.

GRAPPLING

AGAINST HOOKS
As you crash in, cover the head (palm on back of the hand on the of the head, forearms are covering the sides of the face, lose the neck) put the ear on the chest as the right steps forward and the right arm goes around to get the far hip, the left hand has wrist control. Apply forward pressure to get him backing up. Your head is under the chin, perhaps so much under his chin that the head is lifted, thus adding to the unbalanced sensation he will be experiencing. Hip throw: From the clinch, step the left foot across to get inside his left foot then step the right inside his right foot as your hips are square into his. Straighten the legs and he will become ‘light’, bow forward and over he goes on to the floor. Keep hold of the arm when he hits the floor, control him with knee-not-on-belly-but-on-ribs.

From the hip throw into the arm bar (elbow extension):
Keep a tight hold of the arm and lift it. Jam the right foot and shin behind his shoulder blade, the left foot steps (stomps) in front of the face and pulls back so you have him tight between your feet and legs. As you sit the hips to the floor, pull the arm up so your hips can almost get under his shoulder. Pinch the knees, hip up and lever the wrist down for the submission.

AGAINST THE JAB
Shoot in for the takedown by driving the shoulder into the abdomen as you pinch the knees together, double underhooks at the lower back and takedown into mount. to take him down whilst maintaining the control of his arm and upper torso. Left knee is tight to his back, right hand hammerfists the face. Step over with the right foot and use the calf against his face to tighten to control. Control the arm tight to your body and turn to your left for the shoulder submission.

AGAINST THE JAB CROSS
Parry and cross over the parry to the chin, sandwich grip the hand as you plant the back of the hips to him, you now have his arm (elbow up) on the top of your shoulder, maintain the grip as you drop under the arm and rotate and turn the wrist outwards for the takedown. From here, put his palm on your hip and turn to the left for the wrist submission or break.

7/2/17: R.A.T. masterclass part 3

Shadow boxing warm up

SOLO DRILLING:

Straight blast running across the hall

Rear knee and lead elbow

Whole sequence - straight blast - eye rake - headbutt - knee - elbow

PARTNER WORK:

Destructions against the straight punches, interceptions against hooking punches, interceptions using the lead kick to the groin. These were worked primarily by keeping your fence up and the distance long. Distance = time. That was a key theme running through the night. Initially we were working the destructions and interceptions but then we added the layers of the full complement of RAT tools. As in previous sessions, only going in after the pain response was given. Lots of changes of partners to get a feel for different energies and body types.

2 v 1:

The walking dead. The 1st person was the primary target; their job was to walk you down. The 2nd person had a knife and were slowly trying to get around the first person to get to the defender. The defender's job was to:
Keep the fence up
Keep the first person in between themselves and the 2nd person.
Keep moving and not get cornered or jammed against a wall.

We then added punches so the defender used any of the initial 'defences' followed by the straight blast and follow up techniques. However, if the 2nd person was encroaching, the defender had to be aware of this and maintain neck control and zone off rather than completing the RAT to the detriment of their safety.

Being cornered. Escaping along the wall - the two attackers wore focus mitts and encroached and hit as in the image at the top of this blog entry. As they started to strike, the defender covered and moved by side stepping rapidly whilst covering, when out of range they out up the fence. This was a great drill to practise the covering whilst keeping the eyes strong and staying calm.

5/6 v 1 whilst being cornered.

Now obviously, it was a movie so we did not use the spinning hook kicks to get us out of the way. We used forward, aggressive intent coupled with the straight blast and vocals such as "MOVE!" Two people help the Thai pads shoulder to shoulder simulating a barrier. Our job was to get through the barrier with aggressive forward intent in our strikes and our voice. It didn’t look nor sound pretty but it was both effective and empowering.

2/2/17: R.A.T. masterclass part 2

Tonight we revisited and built on the study from Tuesday's class.

Destruction of straight punches. Primarily, keep your range and distance, hands are up in the fence position. Palm to the top of the head and elbow on the centreline as the punch comes in.

Interception of hooking and haymaker punches. Keep that range and intercept with the outside of the forearm as the other hands shoots to the eyes.

Attacking the low line as punches come in. Whipping the lead leg to the groin on the one o'clock angle. Make it fast. We worked this on the Thai pads.

Straight blast drilling. Working running and punching in the air and then on the Thai pads.

Walking the lines practising the knee and elbow combination. Unlike the Thai knee, this one just comes stright up without the hips pushing through. Right rear knee then left lead elbow, then same opposite on the other side of the body.

Headbutt drilling on the Thai pad.

Knee drilling. On the Thai pads, hands on the shoulders and pulling as you add the knee.

Knee and elbow drilling, again, on the Thai pads.

Working all 3 options (the destruction, the interception and the lead groin kick) followed the rest of the sequence: straight blast - eye rake - headbutt - knee - elbow