Two years now, I have foot warts on top of my right foot, a bit lower than the big finger. I got the first outbreak last year, it started with one wart, then after several cryotherapies I now have 3 big warts which need more attention -nice therapy, I know :cry: -. Anyway, since I started JJJ last year, I had those warts, sometimes bigger, sometimes smaller, sometimes as wounds (after cryotherapy). I ALWAYS covered the warts with tape to protect others, but all this taping and friction (especially during kicks as we didn't use the shin and during groundwork) led to more micro-injuries at that particular area, and injury helps warts to regrow, according to my doctors. It was tiring and led nowhere, to be honest. Has any of you encountered foot warts and how did you treat them, while doing MA / sports that aggravate them? Also, I was wondering about MAs done on shoes with not that much friction/kicking/groundwork and I thought of boxing and FMA (maybe, not sure,never searched for them a lot). I'm pretty sure Wrestling and TKD will aggravate foot warts at that place due to their nature. There is no boxing gym nearby my place, but there is an Eskrima / WTK class thrice a week really close and I've got the urge and time to start MA again so I thought of trying a class or two there. I wonder though, is Eskrima / WTK done on shoes and / or does it involve a lot of kicking with the top of the foot / groundwork? Do you think it will aggravate the warts and hinder their treatment? From what I've seen, no, but I'd like your answers since many people here practice FMA. Thanks in advance! Edit: I also find it embarrassing, having to tape your foot every class while others look at it like "Damn, this sick boy, will he infect me with something, what is he doing?". That's mostly in my mind, but I still don't like it.
I can't speak for every FMA school obviously. But the three I've trained in all involved wearing shoes for the most part. I wore wrestling shoes. And while I didn't have any particular problems with my feet to begin with, I think wrestling shoes would probably be enough to protect your feet in that context.
Thanks ap Oweyn, appreciate it! Do you mind sharing your training in general, how you drilled, how you pressure tested etc -I've watched videos but it's different this way-? Also, it would be nice if you could tell me what were the most usual injuries you saw but also the most serious ones while training!
No worries. How I was taught (versus how I'd do it were I teaching): Lots of drills, but the drills were progressing toward freestyle. You're dealing with weapons, so there have to be concessions as you go along. Those concessions generally take one of two forms: 1) a structured drill or 2) safety equipment. So our classes generally consisted of line practice (i.e., practicing technique in the air), but move quickly to partner drills. Abecedario (comparable to karate 1- and 3-step sparring, but more steps), contra-y-contra (counter-for-counter; google "sumbrada" for a common example), and sparring. We tended to do stick sparring wearing padded jackets and metal grill helments (google "wekaf armour" to see examples). We practiced forms (anyo or sayaw, depending on the terminology of the school) as well. We started with single stick, then double, then stick and dagger, dagger, empty hand. With various other weapons, combinations, etc. peppered in throughout (e.g., long staff or whip). Most usual injuries would probably be impact to the fingers. Certainly those were the most common to me personally. It's not an FMA class until someone gets their finger jammed by a stick. Most serious... Broken fingers, likely. But that wasn't common. Then you'd get the usual suspects. We did empty hand sparring, so we got the usual array of nose bleeds, bruises of all sorts, jammed toes, etc. Nothing spectacular. Does that help? Happy to answer other questions. Just want to check in and see if I'm heading in the direction you needed.
That helped as much as a reply could help, THANKS again The thing is, right now what I focus on mostly is fitness / appearance and I think this will be my goal for a long time, MA is secondary but I'd like to practice one. Though, from my really limited experience: -Grappling leaves me so beat up physically I can't really focus on weight training the next day / days. I've injured my left AC shoulder joint in just 7 months. It also injures the area where the warts are. -Striking (I've only practiced semi-contact) was better, only some bruises, I'd do that again but right now I want to treat the warts completely and these two don't go together well. Also, I'd like to avoid hard full-contact sparring with hits to the head because of the possibility of brain injury. I suppose though, hits to the head are not the norm in FMA, correct me if I'm wrong! I don't think an injured finger will leave me unable to workout-continue my usual routine-mess me up a lot, so I guess FMA will fit with my choices. What's your opinion?
It really depends on the group and how they spar. It's certainly possible to get hit in the head in practice. But it's possible to get hit in the head in any number of activities. Assuming we're not talking about some full-contact sparring group (e.g., The Dog Brothers), such incidences are few and far between. I don't remember sustaining a head injury in FMA. If I had, there's probably quite a few things I wouldn't remember. Like the entirety of 5th grade, for instance. Seriously, though, as a general rule, there's a healthy respect given to the damage that COULD occur with a weapon. So precautions are taken. I'd think that, given your concerns, a good FMA school should do just fine for you.
In this same place there is Muay Thai taught and from what I've heard from friends who already go there, there is little to no hard sparring, mostly a lot of hellish conditioning and fast drills. This place is a commercial gym, with TKD, BJJ, MT, Capoeira, Hung Gar Kung Fu and FMA. Other than the TKD and Kung Fu-whose trainers are former champions-, most other MAs are done in an amateur way, so I guess that the owners / trainers don't really want people getting their heads messed up because this will give a really bad vide to the place. I'm optimistic that the FMA class will serve me well, I'll try that soon if everything goes well
Hello, can any moderator change the title to "RaKzaroK's Fitness+FMA Log" and move this to the Logs section? I'd like the log to have the current conversation! Thanks!
Goals, Nutrition, Training Methods Current Fitness Goal: Cutting, 175 cm, started at 80 kg, now 76.5-77, no idea what my body fat% is. I need to get at 15% or ideally even lower. Nutrition: Maintenance calories (including activity) are approximately 2700, so I aim for 2000 calories daily, tracking my calories / weighing my food as accurately as I can. I don't cook though, I eat either what my mother cooks or out, so some times, especially when eating out, I have to make assumptions. Also, I don't have specific macro goals because of not cooking my own food, it is impossible to hit your macros if you eat random food everyday, at least in my opinion. Training Methods: Generally, I work out in my place, having a 10 kg barbell with 60 kg of weight to load, dumbbells that go up to 30 kg and a really mediocre multi-machine. I've maxed Bench Press, Squat and Deadlift to those 70 kg, for, like, 1 year and since then I'm finding ways to work with this weight, adding bodyweight exercises, progressing to more difficult variations etc. I don't have powerlifting goals, I weight train mostly for bodybuilding, so I don't really care about my lifts. My pullup max is 22 reps and my pushup max currently is 61 reps, while my best max attempt was 73 reps. Of course, I'm talking about fast reps with no pause and a bit less than full extension. I've tried many training methods and I've found that Upper / Lower splits work best for me. Right now, while cutting, I try to add some low intensity cardio (mostly walking) to burn some extra calories and help with recovery while preventing catabolism, but I'm just too bored to do so. I also add HIIT sessions now and then. Introduction: The End
26 - 5 - 2014 So, today I joined the gym the first posts before the introduction were about. I've been there before, in terms of gym equipment it's mediocre to bad, but still a lot better than my home gym. I also tried the Eskrima class, more on that later, now it's time to post my first workout: Upper Day 1 Not really sure about the exact weight I used in most exercises, I guess I'll have to start using Jefit again. Pull-ups 12 10 10 8 Smith Machine Seated Overhead Press 30 x 10 32.5 x 10 32.5 x 7 32.5 x 6 Also, before I get bashed, the gym doesn't have a squat rack or a power cage to do heavy presses, you have to clean the bar and then do your work. I was too bored for that today, still got a really good workout with the Smith Machine. Seated Cable Row 35 x 12 40 x 12 40 x 12 Flat Dumbbell Bench Press 17.5 x 12 17.5 x 12 17.5 x 12 Dumbbell Bicep Curl (one arm at a time) 12.5 x 20 12.5 x 18 12.5 x 16 Rope Tricep Pushdown 15 x 12 15 x 12 20 x 8 Cable Crossover 20 x 12 20 x 12 20 x 12 Smith Machine Shrug 30 x 12 30 x 15 Back Hyperextension ( not in the program, did the exercise because my lower back was feeling sore ) 0 x 15 5 x 12 This was the workout part. Then, I joined the Eskrima class, we were only 4 people, two instructors and two newbies (myself included), it was like a private class to be honest. We've done the 12 basic strikes and their blocks using a single stick, then a basic two sticks drill with 3 strikes, then one of the instructors explained the largo, medio and corto ranges and lastly, an empty hand drill with movement to learn / improve footwork and get used to limb destruction. The empty hand drill was actually called "Scissors" or something, too many foreign names at once Anyway, the enemy was doing a jab, you were blocking with the rear hand and hitting the tricep at the same time with the lead hand. The content was very nice, I liked it very much! One question though, in the empty hand part, the instructor told us to have the stronger arm as lead and after asking him why, I don't really remember it all and I didn't understand everything, he explained to me that you need your weaker arm to do the blocks / parries and the stronger arm to deal damage and that while blocking and using footwork, most of the time your stronger arm will be rear when it's time to hit. I'd like your opinion on this 26-5-2014: The End
27-5-2014 Lower Day 1 Weight is always in kilograms. I need to find a good quad-dominant exercise other than the standard Squat, I'm thinking of Lunges , Front Squat, Bulgarian Squat and maybe Smith Machine Leg Press/Squat ( it's done in a different way than the standard Squat because of the fixed way the bar moves ). Why? Because there is no squat rack in the gym. Dumbbell Lunges 12 x 14 12 x 14 12 x 14 12 x 16 Leg Extensions 20 x 12 30 x 12 30 x 15 + 5 (small amount of rest without standing up, then continue) Leg Curls 20 x 12 30 x 11 30 x 10 Smith Machine Standing Calf Raise 60 x 12 100 x 12 100 x 12 100 x 8 Roman Chair Leg Raise (a) 12 20 Back Hyperextension (b) 10 x 10 10 x 15 Decline Situps (c) 15 20 (a)(b)(c) done as a circuit with sufficient rest between exercises. 27-5-2014: The End
29-5-2014 Day Off - Eskrima When adding weight for dumbbells, I'm talking about the weight on the dumbbell, handle and locks are excluded. Normally, this would be a total day off, but I've been to the gym one hour earlier than the Eskrima class, so I kinda split the Upper Day 2 in half, or something like that. Flat Dumbbell Bench Press 22.5 x 12 22.5 x 15 22.5 x 11 Pec Dec 35 x 15 40 x 12 45 x 12 50 x 10 + 35 x 10 (Drop Set) 50 x 12 + 35 x 12 (Drop Set) Normally, I would do a Barbell Bench Press for 4 x 5-8, but at that time a buff dude was doing smith machine squats, with like 200-250 kilograms, most of the weight in the gym (remember, it's a crappy gym) AND the barbell that's used in the bench was being used from another guy. Also, the dumbbells go from 22.5 kilograms to 30, so I had to do more reps. I forgot to do one set of those 4 and I remembered that after doing 3 sets on the Pec Dec, so I thought "Let's just burn the chest". I'm writing this because if anyone reads this journal will say "Look at this stupid guy, 3 sets of a compound movement and 5 sets of an isolation movement -two of them drop sets-, ridiculous!" and I'm a proud guy . Eskrima Part - 12 basic strikes and blocks for them, 2-man drilling of them (becoming more and more free and random) -Empty handed part: the "Scissors" Drill again included in a "platform" (that's how an experienced guy called it) where you're doing something like Sticky Hands (I think, never done that). Practically so far I'm able to do the Scissors and a 1-2-3 block, blocking with the rear hand, backfist/strike to the attacking arm of the opponent, then block the same area with the rear hand and punch the throat/face. I think this "platform" is called "Tie & Release" or something. After reading a bit into the FMA forum, I suppose the stick drilling is a form of abecedario and the empty handed part is a form of trapping. TOO MANY WEIRD NAMES! 29-5-2014: The End
30-5-2014 Rest of Upper Day 2 Cable Seated Row 50 x 12 60 x 10 x 8 x 10 Seated Dumbbell Overhead Press 17.5 x 10 x 10 x 6 (Failed at 7th rep) Wide Grip Lat Pulldown 60 x 12 70 x 8 65 x 10 Rope Hammer Curl 25 x 12 35 x 12 Cable Curl 35 x 12 35 x 15 Unilateral Cable Curl ("Finisher") 25 x 10,10 (Left, Right) Bent Over Overhead Cable Triceps Extension 25 x 12 30 x 12 35 x 10 x 10 V-Bar Triceps Pushdown ("Finisher") 20 x 10 Lateral Dumbbell Raise 10 x 8 5 x 15 5 x 10 Reverse Flyes 5 x 10 x 10 x 10(Last set Unilateral) Smith Machine Shrug 60 x 10 x 6 x 5 The exercise selection will change over time, I'm still in the period where I'm testing on equipment in the gym and I will make modifications frequently. Regarding 26-5-2014, in every exercise done at the Smith Machine, I didn't count the weight of the "bar" which approximately equals 20 kilograms (commenting this for future reference mostly).
02-6-2014 Normally, Friday 31/5 would be my Lower Day 2 but I haven't done the workout for two reasons: 1. Calf Raises destroyed my calves in an extent that I could not walk, literally. 2. I wanted to recover until Sunday when many running events were talking place. Saturday and Sunday were off days, I didn't go to any running event after all So, Monday 02/6: Upper Day 1 Smith Machine Overhead Press 50 x 8 52.5 x 8 x 6 x 8 Pullups 10 10 7 5 Barbell Bench Press 50 x 12 60 x 10 70 x 7 Close Grip Seated Cable Row 50 x 12 x 10 x 12 Cable Unilateral Curl 25 x 10,10 (Left,Right) 25 x 7,7 Dumbbell Hammer Curl 10 x 8,6 10 x 8,8 Bent Over Overhead Cable Triceps Extension (with Rope) 30 x 12 40 x 8 x 7 35 x 9 Cable Crossover 25 x 12 x 15 x 10 Unilateral DB Shrug 22.5 x 12,12 x 12,12 Eskrima Part - 12 basic strikes and blocks for them, 2-man drilling of them (becoming more and more free and random) - 8 power strikes all aiming for the head (solo drill) -1st and 2nd basic strikes as power strikes and of course, the block to them (pretty much the same with the less forceful 1st and 2nd strikes but with the wrist "more" parallel to the stick, I think) After some blocks to 1st and 2nd strikes as power strikes, my left forearm got swollen a lot, still hurts now, that wasn't exactly pleasant but I suppose my forearms have to get conditioned. I just hope that this won't interfere with my lifting in the long term. -Empty handed part: Some shadowboxing and then pad work for cross-jab-cross, cross-hook-cross and cross-body hook-cross.
I'm absolutely unqualified to comment on the weight training. Awesome. That usually costs extra! "Gunting." Lit. "scissors." Technically, it describes that crossing action you described, parrying one way and hitting the opposite way, creating a scissoring action in the middle. But the term also gets applied more broadly to describe limb destructions in general. In my experience, anyway. You can do gunting with any combination of weapons as well. Empty hand and dagger, stick and dagger, etc. Yep. That's a common one. Another one is the same parry, but a back fist to the opponent's tricep (hitting the other side of the arm than you did in this drill). I wouldn't think of it so much as strong and weak. More dominant and nondominant. Think about Western fencing (which has historically influenced eskrima, due to the Spanish occupation of the PI). It's a weapon art, and you're often simulating the action of a blade. So imagine you've got a machete instead of a stick. So does the other guy. Got it? Now picture this: If your empty hand or shorter weapon (e.g., dagger) is in the front, it doesn't have the range to hit the other guy readily. It doesn't have the size to provide a viable defense. And in eskrima, one of the primary targets is the other guy's hand. "Defanging the snake." So if you've got your nondominant hand in front, it's a target without much chance of defending itself. Now reverse things. You've got your dominant weapon up front, where it can parry, block, and strike at range. When it does parry or block, your nondominant hand can slip into the gaps to check, parry, and monitor your opponent's weapon, while your dominant hand is now free to counter. Put a dagger in that nondominant hand. Now the machete is doing the heavy lifting, and when it creates an opening, the dagger slips through the gap for the finishing blow. Thinking about the weapons involved is key. There's no "glancing blows" with an edged weapon. Any contact with the blade is dire. So having your dominant weapon up front is essential. If nothing else, with blades involved, he who hits first very often is the victor. So keeping your long weapon up front affords you the opportunity to hit at range, where keeping it in back would require a step and telegraph your intent or compromise your range. As for keeping it in the back for blocking, that really depends on where you are in relation to the attack. Generally, if you're both right handed, you're going to be right foot forward in response to forehands and left foot forward in response to backhands. The alternative would be to expose your back too much to the opponent. And in eskrima, you always assume the other guy has a knife you haven't seen yet. Turn your back and you may well find that knife in your kidney. So you switch leads to keep yourself in a beneficial position relative to the other guy's weapon. Easier to apply and resist force, monitor his movements through tactile feedback (your nondominant or "alive" hand), etc. Make sense?
Thanks for your comments ap, and yes, it makes sense It just got me confused in the beginning as it was an "empty handed" drill and in my mind, that means empty hands only for both "fighters", so I was like: "Southpaw stance in a <<boxing>> match?".
No worries RakzaroK. Ah yeah, so now you need to make a bit of a paradigm shift. The goal of eskrima is to develop a sense of continuity between empty hand and armed combat. That's both for abstract conceptual reasons and very practical concrete reasons. First, the concrete practical reason: You're assuming that there are weapons at play, even if you haven't seen them yet. Either because they're hidden on his person somewhere or because you can count on him scanning the room for something that will double as an edged or blunt weapon. And you should be doing likewise. You want to be able to move seamlessly to weapon defense (and offense) at a moment's notice. Now the conceptual reason: When you're using one weapon, you're generally trying to gain crossover skills with another. Or simulate the effect of another. So take the gunting drill for an example. Imagine that you had a knife in your lead hand. Now, instead of driving your knuckles into his bicep, charlie horsing the arm, you've severed the bicep or perhaps that artery on the inside of the arm. (I want to say brachial, but I could be way off.) The empty hand movements emulate the motions you'd make with a weapon, so that you can flow from one state to another seamlessly. My advice: Get comfy throwing a cross with your left hand. I did. I'm right handed, but I've spent enough time in styles that go dominant lead that I'm much more comfortable there now than I am in an orthodox (right-handed) lead.
