10/8/17: double stick

Thanks to James for the following blog post

Double Stick

Odd Series:

From closed guard (R. stick on shoulder, L. stick under R. armpit):

R. forehand, roof with the R. as you L. backhand, R, forehand follow through so your R. stick is under your L. armpit, your L. stick resting on your shoulder. Do the same on the other side.
R. forehand watik (like a jab) so as you L. backhand your R. stick retracts back onto your R. shoulder. R, forehand follow through so your R. stick is under your L. armpit, your L. stick resting on your shoulder. Do the same on the other side.
R. forehand, umbrella with the R. (turn your L. shoulder side on and keep the stick tight) as you L. backhand, R, forehand follow through so your R. stick is under your L. armpit, your L. stick resting on your shoulder. Do the same on the other side.
Do (1) to (3) in order.
A1, A2 (make sure you turn your body) then go into (1). Do the same on the other side.
A1, A2 then go into (2). Do the same on the other side.
A1, A2 then go into (3). Do the same on the other side.
Do (5) to (7) in order.

Empty Hand to Takedowns

Slip outside the J., step R. leg up and move to the back controlling his hips with your hands (L. ear against his back) and then pivot anti-clockwise and hook his R. arm in the crook of your R. arm (point your hand up to the sky), pull his elbow into your body, grab your R. wrist with your L. hand and drag him down towards your L. foot (or where your L. foot was as you will be moving your L. leg anti-clockwise), stretch his arm up and step L. leg over his head & stamp and then bring it back close to his neck, step over him (like a lunge) and your L. knee rests on the floor and arm bar then sit your butt back for the choke.

Parry and eyeswipe the J. over the top, lap and R. vertical fist, using your L. arm on his tricep to bend his arm, hook R. arm under his L. arm above the elbow and use a knife hand and point your finger to the floor. Quarter turn L. leg counter clockwise and put L. hand on top of his neck, thumb digging into the side of his neck. Step your L. leg behind your R. leg, gable grip your hands and drive him head first into the floor. Put knee in kidneys and shoulder lock (use your bicep to make sure his arm does not straighten).

Catch the J, waslik the RC and step in with your R. leg as you continue the circular motion of your L. hand and grab around his neck so your fingers are digging into the L. side (his L.) of his neck. His head should be pressed into your L. shoulder (this would be a shoulder smash) and the L. side of your head should be pressed against the L. side of his head. Bring your L. elbow towards your hip as you step your L. foot in a small anti-clockwise circle, keeping control of his head for the takedown. Finish with R. knee on belly/chest and throw hammerfists.

3/8/17: boxing and hubud

I am starting to think more about concepts and attributes and how they apply to the techniques being taught. This is because I know I will not remember every technique yet if I can consider the concepts or attributes, then I can apply these transferable skills to different aspects of the system. I will continue to recount the lessons being taught but will also attempt to summarise by having an umbrella concept or attribute for each phase of the lesson. Sometimes, Steve talks about them and sometimes not. Until ‘edited’, the conceptual and attribute themes are based on my understanding at my current level. Meaning, if I have misunderstood the concept or attribute, please let me know.

BOXING: the conceptual theme was attacking by changing levels.

Changing the level and throwing the jab: Drop the weight first then jab by moving forward on the low line, then move back out after the jab. Make sure you drop the level and not slip or bend forward.

Changing the level and throwing the cross: As above but with the right hand

Blocking the jab and cross: keep the elbows tight to the body and use turn the torso to divert the attack. Ideally, block the same side punch – if he jabs, use your right forearm by turning to the left. The cross, use the left forearm by turning to the right. Again, tight and precise motions whilst avoiding
• Bowing motion
• ‘chopping’ down in place of turning,
• over turning

Block and respond: This was almost like a pak and punch but using the forearm instead of the hand against his jab and cross to the body.

Change level jab to right body hook: Person A threw a jab, Person B changes the level and jabs then steps out to the right and throws the body hook with the right hand.

Change level jab to left body hook: Person A throws the jab, Person B changes the level and jabs then jump steps left and throws the left body hook.

HUBUD: the conceptual theme was breaking the structure by locking out of motion

The basic roll, putting in flight time.

Attack 1: lap and punch (lap with the right hand on the motion after the pak with the left, zone off), dumog pull into wrist lock #1 on his right hand

Attack 2: high lap and deep jab (by stepping through) to put your arm pit on his tricep, with his thumb facing down go to 2 hands to 1 to arm wrench. Add the ripping lunge as this will force him to the floor.

Attack 3: wrist lock #1 on the left hand after a strong and committed attack (to the neck) with the right hand which is your final motion of the three in the drill. Step on the foot and left elbow in his chest to beak his structure. Insert the left arm under his forearm and clasp the wrist for a wrench

Working all 3 in any order

25/5/17: syllabus focus for all

SHADOW BOXING WARM UP (ALL)

RED BELT SYLLABUS FOCUS

Jab defences:
1: catch and jab

2: slip and uppercut

3: cut punch

4: outside deflection

5: split entry into dumog pull

6: lead high elbow cover into hammer fist

Jab-cross defences:
1: catch and jab

2: bob and weave

3: outside deflection

4: split entry into dumog pull

5: parry left and overhand right

6: cut punch

PAD ROUNDS: (ALL) the focus was defending the clinch then striking
1: against the single arm clinch - shrug off with the elbow followed by cross-uppercut-cross

2: against the single clinch - inside gunting - followed by cross-uppercut-cross

3: against the double clinch - bob and weave - followed by cross-uppercut-cross

4: against the double clinch - drop the level and push up against the triceps - followed by teep-cross-hook-cross

5: against the double clinch - arms over and push against the chin - followed by overhand-uppercut-overhand

6: THAI PADS - right rear leg round kick-left hook-right cross- rear leg round kick

SINGLE STICK:

Downward figure 8

Upward figure 8

Cinqo teros patterns:

1-2-3-4-5

1-4-3-2-5

1-upward backhand-upward forehand-2-5

Putting them all together in a loop drill

ADVANCED SYLLABUS WORK

As always, thanks to James for the detailed notes

Thai 4 Counts

Partner steps in to J, as he steps in front leg teep, step down with a hard ankle and rear leg thai (RLT), LH, RC, step-off inside leg kick (ILK).
Partner steps in to J, as he steps in rear leg teep, step down to the R. and ILK, RC, step-off LH, RLT.

Clinch

Cover the J with R. forearm (L. elbow cover your face) and immediately move R. hand to the crown of his head (hit his neck with your forearm on the way in) and the L. hand to his R. bicep or his forearm if his guard is tight, then put L. hand on top of R. (palm to palm), before the forearms are completely pinned together your partner bob and weaves out (keeping the forearms low and horizontal to cover the knee) then RC, step-off LH, RLT.

Cover the J with R. forearm and cover the C with L. forearm (R. elbow cover your face) and immediately move L. hand to the crown of his head and the R. hand to his L. bicep or his forearm if his guard is tight, then put R. hand on top of L. (palm to palm), and bring forearms together and sink weight down, your partner moves his hips in tight to yours then shrug his shoulders up to trap your arms, brings both arms over the top and pushes against his chin (one hand on top of the other) as he straightens his arms and brings his elbows together then pushes out and RLT.

Double Stick

From open guard step out to the right and A1, A2, swing the L. stick under your R. armpit then do heaven 3 (alternatively, you can swing the L. stick at the same time as you A2) & go back to open guard; step out to the left and A2, A1, swing the R. stick under your L. armpit and heaven 3 then go back to open guard.

Do drill (1) then step out to the right and A1, A2, step out to the left and A2, A1 then heaven 6.

From open guard step out to the right and A1, low backhand watik; step out to the left and A2, low backhand watik, then standard 6.

From open guard step out to the right and A1, low backhand but this time follow through and at the same time swing your L. stick under your R. armpit then heaven 3 & go back to open guard; step out to the left and A2, low backhand follow through and at the same time swing your R. stick under your L. armpit then heaven 3 & go back to open guard.

From open guard step out to the right and A1, A2, step out to the left and A2, A1 then heaven 6 and go back to open guard; step out to the right and A1, low backhand watik, step out to the left and A2, low backhand watik, then standard 6 and go back to open guard; step out to the right and A1, low backhand watik, A2; step out to the left and A2, low backhand watik, A1 then earth 6 and go back to open guard.

18/5/17: functional trapping masterclass

The function of trapping is to hit. If the hands are low; hit. If there is a gap in their guard; hit through. If they have a tight and alive guard; trap and hit. The two drills below were an opportunity to get flight time in the motions meaning no power, heavy paks or punches with depth.

There are many classical variations of using pak sau and lap sau, here are a few we looked at.

Pak sau cycle
Person A pak (R) and punch (L) (to get the attachment), Person B short parries across the centreline, with the rear hand, Person A comes under their punching arm to get an attachment on Person B’s arm. This could be a tan sau type shape or a biu type shape, so long as it moves his arm off the centreline to enable pak (L) and punch (R). And the drill continues.

Pak - lap cycle:
Person A does short lap (L) and punch (R) just to get the attachment but not a reaction from the rear hand, this is then followed by pak (R) and deep punch (L) and from here the drill continues in the above fashion.

Trapping applications in gloves and motion:

3 pak and hits against the jab
1: Before – ‘nothing’ is happening apart from movement, range finding and an alive guard from both people. No strikes are being thrown until you attack with pak and punch.

2: During – as above in terms of movement then he jabs, and as he jabs, you pak and punch.

3: After – as he jabs, you lean back like a shoulder roll and catch the jab and follow it back with pak and punch.

Lap and hit:
Send the left arm long, like an eye strike then pull with the lap to clear the arm for the simultaneous punch. There was also some triangular footwork in stepping right as you punch to give a clearer shot to the head.

Trapping into locking. The ‘locks’ below are wrenches, throws or breaks. We train slowly to be technically sound but the intention, which comes from the Filipino arts, is destruction and immobilisation

Pak and hit – wheel the arm and go edge on – chicken wing control and thumb in the neck. Ensure his arm is bent, elbow is tight to you and blade of outer wrist is across his elbow crease.

Lap and hit – dumog arm pull – his elbow tight to your chest – wrist lock #3 (figure 4 over the shoulder)

This is an interesting illustration of trapping in Muay Thai. Move the arm and hit, it is neither pretty nor classical but clearly effective.

20/4/17: single stick master class

SINGLE STICK MASTERCLASS

Downward figure 8 with female footwork. Steve likened the body mechanics for angle 1 like the jab and angle 2 like the cross and throughout the whole night, kept reminding us to use the body mechanics in all stick motions.

Upward change: After the backhand, for example with the right hand, insert the stick upwards alongside the outside of the left forearm. Catch the stick in the left hand, take a grip, make sure there is the punyo available then continue the striking family with this hand.

6 count plus change and footwork in the mirrors: Putting it all together by stepping out on the right to do a 6-count strike with the right, do the upward change and swap to the left. Repeat.

Against the stick: As previous but now against the stick that the partner was holding laterally. Now that impact was part of the drill, it was key to let the stick flow and for the motion not to ‘break’ or ’stop’ on impact. Or to be caught trying to hit the stick. Use the body mechanics and letting the stick flow was the mantra to stay focussed on.

Upward figure with female footwork: Whilst still considered a figure 8, both the upward strikes are very close to vertical. Lots of body mechanics once again, rhythmic fluidity.

Downward change: The Bruce Lee Nunchaku change – you pass the stick down past the outside of the forearm and catch the stick under the lower upper arm. Catching it in the position, allows you to go straight into the upward backhand strike smoothly.

You will notice both Bruce and Guro Dan doing said motion at the start of the video, then nice and slowly around the 1:10 mark.



6 count plus change and footwork in the mirrors: Same as the downward figure 8 practise.

Against the stick: Partner held it laterally, facilitating working the upward striking family.

Abanico in the mirrors: Upper arm parallel to the floor, lower arm vertical and the stick is mostly parallel to the floor (as he were working the high line abanico).

Against the stick: Feeder held the stick vertically to enable connection from the movement.

Angle #1 – half beat abanico on the high line– angle #2 in the mirrors. This was tricky and requires lots of work. We were working the angle 1 and 2 slowly to enable an explosive half beat abanico. Really challenging.

Against the stick

Numerada: Feeder feeds, slowly, angles 1 – 5, strike from long range using the angle #1 – half beat abanico – angle #2. Footwork, proper range, distancing – using the end of the stick to attack his hand.

4/4/17: hubud, pad rounds plus stick and knife sumbrada

HUBUD
Basic roll – left and right sides

Chi sau pass – arm on the inside blocking the attack to the neck, rolls out to in, back of the hand wedges onto the two arms, pak sau then hit to the neck to continue the roll. The lower hand also moves in a circular motion to enable the crossing of his arms for the wedging pin and control.

Dagger pass – as he attacks going for the neck, snatch the attack with same side arm by pulling it towards you, follow up immediately with the same arm, slide up his to attack the neck for the clinch. The partner then yields and folds his forearms back in a bong sau fashion to then enable the continuation of the drill.

Dagger pass to clinch – as above but he does not get the elbow up in time, and so you clinch on the near side of his neck, the rear hand monitors his other arm, pinning it to his torso momentarily before joining the other hand at the back of the head for full clinch.

Clinch defence 1 – lose the neck, drop the weight yet posture up as get the hips as close to his as possible and step a leg between his; interlock your hands behind his back just above the hips to enable control of his base.

Clinch defence 2 - Lose the neck, arms over the top compress and face push. Keep it all tight to allow no slippage or simple escape from him.

PAD TRAINING
Thai 4 counts

Lead switch kick to the front leg – cross – hook – round kick to the rear leg.

Lead round kick to the front leg – cross – hook - lead switch kick to the front leg.

STICK AND KNIFE
High box 3 beat sumbrada, using the knife to replace the checking hand

5 beat sumbrada – as above

Stripping the knife – building on the work of last lesson:
Application of the motions:
Person A: attacks with angle #1
Person B: zone off line, inside sweep with the stick and use the knife to check the weapon hand followed by angle #4 to the lower torso.
Person A: straight stab to the abdomen
Person B: zone right and drop stick right against the stab, maintain stick pressure on his arm as you stab over your arm to his ribs. Small redondo with the right hand followed by a stab over the top to the neck. From here, slide the knife holding hand down his arm to where the stick is monitoring his wrist, pinch the wrist and have the back of the blade against his wrist. Strip the blade out from this control position.

30/3/17: rounds and rounds of conditioned sparring; stick and knife

SHADOW BOXING WARM UP

CONDITIONED SPARRING ROUNDS
Even though numbers were smaller than usual tonight, everyone got to work with everyone in all the rounds.

1: Jab only

2: Lead hand only (any punch) – there might have been the occasional cheap shot with the right hand from a sneaky move to right lead. No names mentioned.

3: Body shots only

4: Lead hand v rear hand (both in left leg lead)

5: Both hands v both hands

The sparring rounds were constant hard work with very little rest. They were incredibly taxing as the rounds went on but bloody good fun. A true feeling of aliveness and being in the moment. A personal thanks from me to all the lads who were at training tonight as this was hard work that required trust and respect and thanks to Steve for facilitating so well whilst reminding us of:
• Footwork
• Head movement
• Hands up and chin down
• Control
• Pressure
• Being edge on
• Using the right pak to set up the right hand
• Controlling the range with jab
• Constant work rate
• Changing levels of attack

STICK AND KNIFE (KALI)

Footwork:
The right-hand side of the diamond – start in neutral, step out at 45 degrees with the right, the left then comes to meet the right but does not touch the floor, it moves out 45 degrees.

Drilling the footwork pattern and adding the stick and knife mechanics
1: angle 2 backhand strike (right-hand) with stick, while stepping off to the right
2: left hand high line stab with the knife, on the same 2 line, followed by
3: angle 2 backhand redondo (right-hand) with the stick
4: reverse stab on the angle #1 line

Drilling the 4-count pattern mirror fashion with a partner

Preceding the 4-count with other striking family patterns
1: Figure 8
2: Heaven 6
3: Angle#1 forehand – low backhand watik
4: Abanico

Application of the motions:
Person A: attacks with angle #1
Person B: Step off line, inside sweep with the stick and use the knife to check the weapon hand followed by angle #4 to the lower torso.
Person A: straight stab to the abdomen
Person B: zone right and drop stick right against the stab, maintain stick pressure on his arm as you stab over your arm to his ribs. Small redondo with the right hand followed by a stab over the top to the neck.

Steve illustrated the concept of hitting the hands regardless of what shapes the attacks take or when they come. Hit, hit, hit and hit; it’s the Filipino way.

21/3/17: trapping, conditioned sparring and knife sumbrada

Great to see Marc back in the class after being away working is miserable Brunei…

Shadow boxing warm up.

TRAPPING:

Pak sau and punch, he covers the centre with a palm block, you then take centre control with the eye jab. Come under your own punch and replace with the eye attack. Make sure the elbow is down and not raised at all as this will keep your attack tight and afford him no gaps to exploit. Have the fingers pointing to the far side eye as this will ensure control of the centre.

Short lap sau and punch, pak sau and punch to eye attack.

Pak sau and punch – he sends the energy across the centre, you use this for the jau sau (hooking palm strike to the face or jaw trying to get the thumb to the eyes). Make sure to step off line to get outside the arm to have a better angle for the strike.

Lap sau and punch, he catches the punch at the shoulder, drive the lap hand forward off his forearm to trap the catching arm against the chest as you rip out your punching hand. As the punch comes out you also need to step behind (in contact) to control his leg and ultimately, his base and balance. With the forward pressure in your motion, chop to the neck with the arm you ripped out and then cover and chop to the neck with the other hand.

CONDITIONED SPARRING

One person jabs and the other person responds or attacks (depending on the timing) with a trapping method:
• Catch the jab
• Pak and punch before he jabs
• Pak and punch as a response to his jab
• Pak and punch as the jab retracts
• Lap and punch and step off line

KNIFE SUMBRADA (COUNTER FOR COUNTER)

Continuing to get flight time into the drill. Tonight, we were working smaller and tighter motions with the knife and increased control of the partner with the empty hand. As the motions become tighter, the ‘defender’ needs to move much more to get the body out of the way.
We revised the strip against the stab that was worked in the last class too; continuing to work it in the drill as opposed to a static technique learning situation. A further reminder was about not watching the knife as this will take your awareness away from all the attacking options and tools he has, not just the one you’re dealing with.

16/3/17: thai boxing fundamentals, knife sumbrada plus strips

THAI BOXING FUNDAMENTALS

Shadow boxing warm up - head movement, punch defences plus footwork patterns

Long guard drilling
Long guard: left arm out straight down the centre, right arm covers the right eye / right bicep is against the cheek / right forearm is diagonal across the face so that the right hand is at the top left of the head / chin is tucked / looking through the eyebrows
- by holding the structure
- by moving into the position from the on guard stance

Crush drilling
Standing leg is bent, 'blocking' leg is 90 degrees bent with the thigh parallel to the floor and perpendicular to the body, toes flexed, long arm of the same side as the standing leg which is simulating pushing into his chest/head/shoulder
- by holding the structure
- by moving into the position and combining this with the long guard

Kick for kick
Crush the kick and return, first against the switch kick off the left leg, then against the rear kick of the right leg.

PAD ROUNDS - Thai 4 counts
Lead round kick - cross - hook - rear leg round kick
Lead round kick - cross - body hook - rear leg round kick
Lead round kick - cross - lead uppercut - rear leg round kick

KNIFE SUMBRADA
5 count, building on the practise from last week. Trying to make the motions tighter and use the non-weaponised hand/arm to control his weapon hand.

STRIPS

OFF THE ROOF
Take control of the wrist and swing counter clockwise (with your left hand) so you finish with your palm up. Have your elbow pressing into your side for structural support and be off line of the line of attack. If he was simply stumble forward, the knife would be in you, hence being off the line of attack. Strip the blade out against the gap in his grip using the webbing of your right hand.

If this doesn't work, maintain wrist control with your left and use your right forearm against the flat of the blade. You move to being back on his centreline and feed the blade back to him by pushing your right forearm forward.

OFF THE STAB
Step the right leg back as you come down on his stab with the left forearm, reach over your forearm and clasp his writ with your thumb and put the blade of the blade against his wrist to secure the position. Use the left hand to quickly 'slide' up the weaponised arm for the strip.

What a great class as always. On the way to training, I was listening to an interview with Duane "Bang" Ludwig on the Drunken Daoist podcast, and he was talking about how we need to be honest yet respectful to our training partners - we must feed them the right energy; too much and it becomes silly, emotional and senseless injuries occur, too little and they don't get to work with a decent energy and thus get a false sense of security coupled with crap technique. That to me feels like essence of this group; hard work, honest attacking and safe work. Challenging yet supporting each other. Bloody brilliant.

7/3/17: kicking, Jun Fan counts on the focus mitts and lock flow.

A massive thanks to James for compiling the notes for the class tonight.

With partner - both sides in shin guards - one for one of the following kicks - strong eyes:

Rear leg thai
Inside thai (close the distance and kick with no telegraph) or put the jab in to hide the step-up before you kick
Rear teep to body or just above lead leg knee
Lead leg teep to body or just above lead leg knee (close the distance and kick with no telegraph) or put the jab in to hide the step-up before you kick
Rear leg side kick (chamber knee - use edge of the foot) to body or just above lead leg knee
Put the jab in to hide the step-up then lead side kick to body or knee
Oblique kick (stamp down) either to just above knee or raking down the shin
Spinning back kick to body (step lead leg across, turn your back and shift your other leg up so it’s almost parallel then kick out using your glutes. You should spot the target as you’re turning rather than spotting it then kicking)
Mix (1) to (8) above - one-for-one
Do any two kicks from (1) to (8) above in combination then other side goes

Focus mitts - jun fan 5 count:

Step-up lead leg round kick to body (flick kick using instep), cross, hook, cross, step-up lead leg round kick to body. Pad holder moves back the whole time.

Lock flow:

Numbers 1 to 16, left and right.
Lock to disturb - one side locks, the other side ‘disturbs’ the lock but doesn’t always use the same motion e.g. use shoulder, knee etc. so partner gets to used to locking out of a variety of positions.

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.

24/1/17: Thai 4 counts and single stick

As I am currently yet briefly out of action with illness, James has thankfully written the blog post for tonight.

Thai 4 Counts

Done offensively then defensively:

1. Step-off jab, rear leg thai kick, cross (throw it without putting the leg down after the kick and kick the leg back like a superman punch), inside leg kick.
2. Catch the jab then do combination (1).
3. Inside leg kick, cross, rear thai kick, step-off jab.
4. Crush the switch thai to your rear leg and do combination (3).
5. Cross, inside leg kick, step-off jab, rear leg thai.
6. As (5) but throw the cross as a cut punch as he jabs.
7. Rear leg thai, step-off jab, inside leg kick, cross.
8. Crush the rear leg thai and do combination (7).

Single Stick

All of these motions are not ‘blocks’ but hits to the hand:

1. Your stick points down - roof block the angle 1 (drop your weight down and slice the stick from L. to R.) and then angle 1 down his centre line.
2. Your stick points down - umbrella the angle 1 (block like a roof but instead of slicing the stick from L. to R. just block then take the stick anti-clockwise behind your head) and then angle 1 down his centre line.
3. Your stick points up - inside sweep the angle 1 (zone R.) and reverse slash across his stomach.
4. Your stick points up - outside sweep/deflect the angle 2 (zone L. into cat stance) and hit down on the arm.
5. Your stick points down - wing block the angle 3 (zone R.), flip the stick then jab to the throat.
6. Your stick points down - wing block the angle 4 (zone L. - hide your L. hand behind your stick by putting the edge of your little finger against it), forehand redondo and jab to the throat.
7. Your stick points up - shield the angle 4 (zone L.), forehand redondo and jab to the throat.
8. Your stick points up - you see the angle 3 late so you pass it by shifting your R. leg back and hollowing your stomach and using your L. hand to deflect his hitting arm back into him and to the R. (not just moving it sideways) as you hit his arm over the top.
9. Your stick points down - you see the angle 4 late so you pass it by shifting your R. leg back and hollowing your stomach and using the back of your L. hand to deflect his hitting arm back into him and to the L. (not just moving it sideways) as you hit his arm in a similar motion to the wing block.

12/1/17: Glove fundamentals, clinching off punches into throws and submissions

The class was split in two tonight, more advanced grades working their material whilst our group worked on fundamentals.

GLOVE WORK

Defences against solo jabs or crosses:

Split entry – uppercut – hook

Slip (come forward with the body) – uppercut – hook

Salute (on at least the elbow to move his centre otherwise he can fold the arm and not move!) – arm break – elbow

GRAPPLING

Against straight punches: long guard – cover the punch so you can sweep it out of the way to crash in. 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 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.

Against hooking / haymaker punches: no need for the initial cover to remove the arm, just cover the head and crash in for the clinch.

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.

If he tries to escape before the initial arm bar goes on (before you sit down) he will post the other arm up to push away from you and will flatten, and maybe come up on the other shoulder. Turn clockwise 180 degrees with your knees tight and the arm he just tried to post off with, is now caught between your legs. Now your left foot is tight behind is shoulder blade and the right foot is in front of his face. As you sit down, take the arm for the submission.

10/1/16: Footwork, Thai 4 counts, pad rounds and standing catch wrestling flow drill

FOOTWORK
Step and slide in 4 directions with single step then double. Added jabs to coincide with every step. Feet shoulder width apart, rear heel up which means the rear leg is bent. Be mindful of the feet as what you feel might not necessarily be what is going on. Having the mirrors is a great benefit. The rear foot is alive and not being dragged around.

Slide and step (to cover distance) forwards and backwards adding punches, as above – timed into the stepping.

THAI ROUND KICK PREP
The prep was on both sides of the body.
Coiling/screwing the body to open the hips. Had a silat feel to it.
Round kicks – coil, back up and throw the kick. Steve used the analogy of having a torch out of the hips laterally, so when you kick, you want the beam of the torch now goes forward.

THAI 4 COUNTS (off the jab)
1: Catch the jab, shift off the line on the inside jab (a high protective jab)-cross-left inside leg kick-right outside leg kick. Steve also talked about major and minor shots; in this instance the inside kick is minor, the outside kick is major as it has more hip/torque/body behind it. He also mentioned minor shots are used to set up major shots.
2: Catch the jab on the inside again, jab-cross then double right outside round kick. First to the thigh then up to the ribs. Bas Rutten style

Here is a great highlight video of the great man in sweet spleen splitting action.



3: Parry the jab (hard and at the elbow, you want his centre and equilibrium stunned for a brief moment to allow your attack in) and step out to the right and attack with the jab-cross-outside right round kick (minor) and step down on the right to deliver the left inside (major) round kick. Check your distance on the final kick so you’re not too close so the kick is compressed.

PAD ROUNDS
Each ‘group’ of punches was:
Cross
Jab
2 punches (any)
3 punches (any)
5 punches (any) repeat from the beginning again.

CATCH WRESTLING STANDING FLOW DRILL
Start with the split entry off the jab (parry right and split with the left hand)
1: Snake the left hand so it clasps the occipital bone (top of the base, base of the skull as this will prevent him muscling up and out. He could do this if the hand was on the back of the neck) and control the tricep with the right hand. The left foot is standing on his lead foot.
2: Swap/replace hands so the right snakes in to the same place. Keep the turn of the head for control, control his arm with your left hand. Step on his foot with the right hand. Be aware of your base and posture. Just because his head is lower and you ‘have him’, don’t let this break or weaken your base and posture.
3: Move to his back, head against the shoulder blades so he can’t elbow you. Be close to him. Reach around and put the fingers on his hip bones. This is one of those parts of the body that when manipulated can have a dramatic effect on the body.
4: Slide the hands up the torso and insert the fingers into the clavicle for the takedown.
5: Full Nelson, hands at the occipital bone and straight the arms as you push forward.
6: Snake an arm to do number 2 on the other arm.
7: Switch to number 1

1/12/16: double stick, takdowns into submissions and positional rolling.

DOUBLE STICK PARTNER WORK
All the following with female footwork. All the double stick work gets the brain firing because you constantly crossing the centreline with alternate hands and the feet are moving. The more I did it, the more rhythm I felt I got despite the constant mantra in my head of what strike or numbers or patterns we were working.

FIGURE 8’s
Open posture, right hand figure 8 then left hand figure 8 as a continual loop drill.

HEAVEN 6
Right forehand, left backhand, right backhand, left forehand, right backhand, left backhand.

We then put the 2 drills together as a loop – figure 8’s on the right followed by half of the heaven 6, figure 8’s on the left hand followed by the rest of the heaven 6.

8 COUNT
Right forehand (high), right backhand (low), left backhand (low), right backhand (high), left forehand (high), left forehand (low), right backhand (low), left backhand high.

We then put all 3 together as a loop drill:
Figure 8’s left and rights sides into complete heaven side then full 8 count.

CARENZA (shadow boxing with sticks)
Using double sticks and adding footwork.

SINGLE STICK
3 count high box sumbrada

5 count sumbrada. My first time in a while but managed to fumble along. Looking forward to putting the reps in. I still, to this day, find it fascinating how each person has a different energy to feel to the work they do. It always takes me a few minutes to adjust to the feel of a partner change because we all attack from slightly different angles, or check with slightly different energies or have small adjustments in range. Plus oddly, I appear have a tiny stick compared to everyone else. They must be compensating for something…

Adam was working double stick gunting against whoever was working the 3 or 5 count. I think Charlie and James might have been doing some cheeky punyo variations as well in their corner of the room.

TAKEDOWN TO SUBMISSIONS

AGAINST THE JAB
Parry and eye jab on the outside of the arm, overhook to had on the shoulder and step up to him, step back with the right 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.

Parry and split entry, 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.

From here, depending on the response from the person on the bottom, there were 3 options we looked at.
If he blocks and covers the head, go for the Americana.

If he extends an arm, go for the head and arm triangle.

If he tries to push away and make his arms long, go for the arm bar from s-mount.

Although the Olympic judoka and world champion is not pinching her knees together you can see how tight her hips are to the shoulder of Meisha Tate; escape was futile.

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.

Parry the jab and split entry off the cross onto into Alien / head tilt takedown, knee on belly to possible pull up wrist lock. Thanks Steve for the edit.

POSITIONAL ROLLING
Giving and taking positions, no submissions. When Steve said rolling my eyes must have lit up as I saw James’ grin from across the mat. This was about getting a position of dominance and then allowing them to escape and find their own position of dominance. Almost like a counter for counter drill. A lovely activity of movement and feel. You get a chance to flow and breath with no need to worry about control or things getting ripped. Steve did show a variation where you look for submissions as a counter for counter but that is for another day.

Once again, a bloody great class. This is class and the instructor is clearly the best kept secret in martial arts despite my best intention to advertise and promote the Academy through this blog. In addition, the senior students are always so accommodating and patient with the lumpier work from those of us with less experience. A great place to be, to learn and to grow #SMFAA

20/10/16: conditioned boxing sparring rounds, knife 8 count attachment drill and defences from scarf hold and mount

CONDITIONED BOXING SPARRING ROUNDS
Jab v jab
jab v 2 hands (any attacks)
Knee to knee

Focus was on staying relaxed, footwork, head movement, body mechanics, keeping the hands up, shoulder lead and not being square, staying busy and playing with the range and timing.

KNIFE 8 COUNT
downward forehand - upward backhand - upward forehand - downward backhand - stab - lateral backhand - lateral forehand - high backhand stab
Keeping the motions tight, nothing wasted or extended.

8 COUNT ATTACHMENT DRILL
Simultaneous interception and eye strike followed by passing, turning the head and controlling the elbow, thus giving yourself enough distance for the next attack.

SCARF HOLD DEFENCE
T bar (upper forearm against the jaw sitting on top of the lower forearm which is acting as a support as you get on your side), shrimp the hips out and tuck the head into his ribs, as his head is forced back, lift the leg over the face and reverse the position to take you to the scarf hold.

MOUNT DEFENCE
Cover from the punches then hip up and elevate him with a knee to disturb his base. He will post and wrap up one of his arms and tuck the head into his chest. Hip up to 12 o'clock then to 2 o'clock and sweep over into his guard. Secure his biceps and keep the head on his belly. Posture up, if he tries to punch then put the fingers in his lower abs, this prevents elevated punches and keeps them away! Post up on one leg, keeping the spine erect, then step up on the rear leg. Begin to strike the groin, this should open his legs, pass the leg and go to knee on chest with his arm pinned. Strike then escape.

18/10/16: cross loop drill, hook defences and lock flow

CROSS LOOP DRILL
- shoulder roll
- short parry
- lead elbow
- cut punch
- gunting
- uppercut
- parry, salute to arm break

HOOK DEFENCES
All of the follwing defences are worked against either hook but tonight we were working against jab and over hand right/rear hook.
1: catch the jab, shoulder/bicep stop, step on the foot and palm to the face/thumb to the eye, ABC

2: catch the jab, shoulder roll, ABC.

3: catch the jab, bob and weave and hook to the body, step into him using your elbow so his weight is through his left leg and off-balanced, throw body and head hooks.

LOCK FLOW
Depending on our shirt, depended on what numbers we went up to. Us white shirts worked 1-4-1, the reds and above worked 1-8-1 then 1-12-1.
1-8 are wrist focussed, 9-12 are finger locks.
Of note is the tightness that must be applied at all times. We need not go quickly through the locks but we must have control at all times, leave no gaps and give his mind no time to rest. When Steve and Charlie were doing them on me, at no piint was there any let up in the pressure,

1: kotegaeshi (outward turn wrist lock)

2: wrapped arm bar and tricep roll

3: figure 4 over the shoulder

4: straight arm wrist lock, elbow up and sandwich grip

The 9-12 finger locks are pretty grim, especially number 10.