Blog post.. CATCH UP!

It's been a couple of weeks!

Training:
Dear leader, after watching us noobs roll around, seemed to have a bit of an epiphany. He said, "I can't be training you guys every move in order and expect you to keep up on them all" so for two weeks we trained side control defense, sweeps and transitions.

I liked it a lot! I was there for 5 of 9 classes. Though I feel like I only took one soild move from it, and a couple of other things I may remember when the time comes.. I was able to do a couple of the sweeps instinctually - so, progress!

In open mat, I had someone compliment my strength! But after a few days to think about it I think it was likely a backhanded compliment - like, "Wow, you're a lot stronger than I expected" means, "You're using way too much muscle". Regardless, it was nice to be considered strong! I know that I've got a lot to work on, but right now I'm going to focus on timing and anticipation and let the strength part fall to the wayside -

Sick & injured:
Today, I'm sick! I'm not sure what's up- a bit of a cough, weak body & mind. It's no fun. Trying to pinpoint where that came from, I think it's from breathing in the same air (face to face) when rolling with some new people. new people, new germs.

Also, I had a hair in my mouth and then, when trying to fish it out, I got a cold sore on my lip and tounge! I'm not sure what to do about that.. maybe a clean, hair-licking rag.. i'll of course keep you, my devoted blog fans apprised if I find an adequate solution in this arena.

Anyway, it's not so bad. My buddy Shannon says it takes a couple of years to acclimate your body to those types of germs and in general, you should avoid putting things in your mouth. So now I know!

Personal :
I've also been training a decent amount with Shannon at my house- I'm up to about 1 hour 45 minutes of rolling at a time! I get my ass whooped, but I'm not completely worthless, my transitions are good, I'm defending a lot longer. I feel like I'm using more strength than I need to, but it's nice to know that's an option. Plus, I'm putting on more strength as I use it.

My stamina is getting much better! If I just stop for a moment between bouts to catch my breath, I can roll all day! Next step is to push myself further and further so I can train even when pooped

My friend Jessica F. , dear leader's sister, came to visit this past week - she was there when I started training and left several months later. We trained several times and got to hang out otherwise. It's fun to see how we've both progressed.

Deep thoughts:
If you recall, I wrote about having some consternation regarding the time I was spending in BJJ and how I felt that BJJ was taking over that drive in my life to progress - that it was easy to go to BJJ and call it a day. Even at that time, I had a white board which I use to keep track of my goals, but ever since I felt like that was an issue, my white board has changed dramatically. Instead of tracking monthly, I do weekly. And my goals are much more well defined. I have a couple of catagories on the whiteboard like "Do" "Learn" "Education" as well as BJJ, Social and the like. Tracking monthly it was easy to push some of the less fun things off onto other days of the month, but weekly, and since the week I've drawn out is the same size as the month was previously, I feel much more compelled to do things.

Relatedly, I had to 'shit or get off the pot' so to speak - I wasn't doing myself any favors by half-assing the amount of time I could give BJJ - things progress much more quickly when I go often and so long as I can see I'm keeping up on my other goals, the progress will be greater by devoting more time to BJJ instead of lessened.

Crucifix, turtle attacks, learning to better control my body and looking good nude!

This past week we went over a lot of turtle attacks. Namely pinching their arm between your legs and moving in different directions to get an arm-bar. Even though the turtle only happens about 1/6 of the time, this leg movement for an arm bar seems to happen often enough. Not that it's easy to pull off but it leads to other things.

One of them, pinching their arm with your legs, you roll over their head, and then you have them in a crucifix hold. From there, you open their gi up, reach in with the other hand and simply choke.

There's also a really sick choke against someone in turtle that you simply grab on and move out.

I've been really trying to slow down my arm bars and put thought into them by holding them for a moment before moving to complete.

Using that mindset I just mentioned, I've been pulling off arm bars more often. If not them, then Omaplata - or transitioning. As I mentioned in my last post i seem to be getting better now. Still a lot to learn but at least having an idea as to what I should be doing.

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Today in open mat I could really feel a size difference between me and my good buddy Shannon. I felt HUGE and like I could just scoop him up or move him around. I don't know why, maybe something suddenly clicked? He still stomped me, multiple times, I'm sure me commenting on how tiny he felt while we were rolling didn't de-motivate him at all ahaha

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I looked at myself nude in a full body mirror yesterday and noticed I looked pretty fit! I just need to keep my posture in mind and I think I'll be studly. I'm not especially muscular but the fat on my belly has dropped off and i have some muscular tone now.

I sent notice to a few friends about that one (text, not photo, dirty-birds!)

I'm getting better!

This is more of a landmark or bookmark of an event - but I noticed yesterday and more so today, I'm getting kind of OK!

I think I've finally got defense well enough down - or maybe I don't feel as pressured -- that I'm starting to look for submissions instead of looking for defense.

What's strange is when I was there Thursday, I didn't do that well - I thought because I had not been to class often in the preceding two weeks.  Or maybe my heart wasn't in it during sparring after class, or the stamina requirement was higher.

But Saturday, Sunday, much better! I still got tapped often, but kept at it, and was grabbing things, moving in proper ways. I even did some things instinctually which a higher belt said he learned from!

Hurrah!

1,2,3, baby tell me how's my knee? you look just fine, now i'm really going to make you fly!

I've decided not to go train Mondays, but need to make it the other days.

We've got morning classes now, I'd like to work those into my day and I'm curious about what effect that'll have on the rest of my day.

Yesterday:
We started out training take downs.

Big Circle:
Hand on same side lapel, hand on same side seam. Pull opponent toward you, hip into their hip, same side leg across theirs so you're setting them up for a trip, then just look over your shoulder.

Little circle:
big circle fails, so you move the foot for big circle onto the back of their other foot. From here you just kind of.. shin forward which causes them to fall, or you can pick their foot and hold on.

Toss:
Both fail, but now the opponent is setup. I noticed a TRIANGLE OF ACTION here. Basically, triangles are the shit.. if you ever see a person's body positioned like a triangle, you know where their center of gravity is. In this instance, you simply move close, drop to your knees, load your hands up and pull them across your back so they flip over your head.


Then we moved onto guard-escapes, sweeps and submissions:
Guard to Triangle:
Guard to belly-down Armbar:
Guard to situp sweep:
guard to omaplata:
guard to guillotine:

A lot of these seem foggy in my head now, but I learned something important from the situp sweep: when you go to move, do so explosively and slap your foot off the ground opposed to kicking it and trying to use momentum.

I feel comfortable with: the omaplata, situp sweep, guillotine. Less so with the triangle and even less so with the belly-down armbar.

I also think I'm forgetting some of the things we trained last night.

North-South Escapes & Deep Thoughts

SO, three weeks have passed,
I've been skipping Monday & Tuesday, I'll elaborate as to why toward the end of this article.

IN BJJ, I'm often using my legs wrong. I love to pull them up toward my head and use them like a vice to move people. It doesn't always work. It mostly doesn't work.

But we've been trying North-South escapes and one of the moves is similar to just that!

Basically, you pull your foot up, grab it at your toes on the same side, tuck it between their legs and 'flex' your leg in such a way that it easily takes you to their back. So friggen' simple!

Another escape, you use your head as a fulcrum on their knee - it's important to remember to grab their knee when you do this so they can't easily base out. Once your head is in position, you just bridge and push from your far side, across them, your head prevents them from basing and they fall. you assume side control.

Another escape was to swing your legs back and forth to build up momentum, then kick your knees into their stomach and go for mount or attack the arms.


Another thing I am very happy to have learned is an arm-pick from side control where you use the tip of your elbow to scoop their arm, you lock your arm behind their head so their arm is trapped accross their neck and then apply pressure. This chokes them out.

If you can't quite get that last choke, you can then grab their other, free arm, move into a high mount and now you've got both their arms.

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In free rolling I pulled off a lot of that, including an actual-speed triangle! For the first time! Woo!!

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Lastly, I've found myself ADDICTED to bjj - and I'm not sure how I feel about that. Similar addicts say it's good, but I'm not sure how i feel. It's easy to become satisfied by the gains I"m making there while more tangable personal growth efforts fall to the wayside. I've been skipping monday and tuesday to get some of that motivational pressure back in my life, but I literally end up feeling depressed when I don't train! At first, when I missed a day or two, I thought I was depressed for other reasons, but that emotional pressure went away after I trained. I don't like being obligated to things and I miss the pressure to be more - if I were to plot my learning, reading and training, outside of BJJ - it would have taken a nose-dive when I joined BJJ.

My gym opened up morning classes, I think I may start going to those in conjunction with my normal training times. I'm going to try and get my schedule to three classes and at least one open mat a week.

Our gym also stepped itself up; we have more water barrels so we won't run dry, they installed carpeting and furniture for waiting parents, covered all the outlets and open vents, put proud stickers on the window. The gym leader quit his day job to do this full time. It's very nice!

These are the things on my plate:
Breathing, Not Spaz, Posture, hooking my feet in their transition.
Arm Bar, Arm Tuck attack, Triangle, omaplata.
Arms in, Elbows in, turtle, side control escape.

Side Control Escapes

WELCOME BACK - to myself!

Not counting a couple of days of training, I nearly took two weeks off from BJJ! St. Paddy's in Savannah took up some of it, work and laziness the other.

My buddy Josh brought his BJJ mats to my house which I have setup in my living room. Josh works with Shannon (another friend) at a BJJ school as an instructor in a neighboring town. Josh has been practicing his instructional moves with me - it's enlightening.

Anyway!

Last night at BJJ we worked on side control escapes.

I learned that when you're on the bottom, arm placement is important. You want the tip of your elbow in their hip as to support their weight, you also want your other arm either framed across their neck, or tucked under their far arm and around to their back.

Basically, step your back foot back further and frame it on the ground, use that angle to twist your body onto it's side and then get your arm below yourself so you can't be easily flattened out.

Put your hands on their hips, elbows on the ground and straighten out. Then, 'thread the needle' so your knee is up, bring your other leg through and step around

OR

When on your side and they're pressing on you, straighten your arm out, grab their pant leg, walk your legs into theirs and use your grabbed pant leg to dump them and you take their side

OR

When you go on your side, with you arm tucked, put your knee against theirs and straighten your leg out as to extend their leg - then use your other leg to hook that straightened out leg, pinch your thighs together (flag pole), twist their body, free your original knee and move to full guard - you may have to push on their loose leg. You can also sometimes get to full guard without pinching and twisting their body if you're quick/flexiable and lucky enough - but our gym leader said that wasn't the best habit to get in - it would work in a pinch but not against people who didn't want it to work.

We also did about 30 minutes of sparring last night. I felt pretty controlled and did better against the less spazzy people - moving slow. I've really been trying to slow myself down or at the least not be so winded. I find myself matching whatever's thrown at me regardless of my stamina - which is why I did better against less spazzy people. That said, my dominance and submissions didn't feel as present as they normally do.

Core Warmup, Takedowns & Defense

Yesterday, Wednesday the 4th-

We warmed up with core exercises. So tough! My legs were shaking at the joints when we finished- worth it!

We did some take down & punch defense:

1. hands near your temple, swat firsts coming in without reaching too much (straight punch)
2. hands near your temple, use your elbow to deflect body shots while still being ready as described in #1

3. Protect against a wide swing = bring your elbow up, then use your other elbow to strike as you drive through that same foot
4. Protect against a wide swing with your elbow, pinch their arm in your lat, drop your body weight and grab their leg.

Take down:
1. Duck under their swing, grab around their hips with both hands lock your hands, push your hips forward, extend your knees/legs as to lift them and dump them. Note: Keep lifting out of the back by looking toward the ceiling.
2. Duck under swing, grab their hips, pull your far leg through theirs and extend as to trip them - try and maintain posture
3. Duck under their swing, grab their hips, they sprawl. keeping one leg outside, drop the other inside- as your knee drops, extend both of your hands like you're taking a bow in a theater, this popping motion swings them off you and if they're sprawled then they're committed. From there, just swing around to their back for control.

Edit; my abs and sides are exercise sore! feels good!