Hello all, I suppose I should start by writing a little bit about myself and my history with the Martial Arts. Some of the details are a little hazy. Not sure if that is because I am getting older or one too many crash bangs to the ol' noggin. Growing up I studied Goju-Ryu karate from around the age of 7 until 17. Over the course of those ten years, I achieved the grade of 5th kyu (purple belt). I believe that there was an age barrier to grading any higher than this. Eventually, the dojo relocated to Toronto and I subsequently took a break from the martial arts. Six years or so, I trained in Genbukan Ninjitsu (9th kyu) but then the opportunity to volunteer in Brasil arose. Other than a few informal lessons in Capoeira, my martial arts training had once again ground to a halt. Fast forward to present, and I am now a married, 30 year-old, shift worker, who is a proud Dad of two girls. This year, my eldest daughter turns five and I wanted her to enjoy the same experience as I from learning a martial art. Fortunately, very close to our home is an excellent judo kai. The hunt for a good environment for her has inspired me to begin training in martial arts again as well. I have begun training in Ninjutsu as well as a trial membership at another martial arts school. Here I will attempt to keep track of what techniques I have learnt, how I feel, and anything I can improve upon.
Look forward to reading your log How are you finding the Genbukan training? Ps- your second link doesn't seem to be working.
January 26 No Gi Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Wow. I am out of shape. Started off with a bit of cardio and afterwards I was already dying. Since the birth of my kids I have not been to the gym on the regular and it shows. Instructor was really great, noticed I was new, and introduced himself right away. Paired me up with a very experienced (a national or world champion of some kind) and humble partner. First technique was passing guard by placing your knee upright on a 90* between his legs and sitting back on the heel of your other foot. This seperates the legs so that you can pass. Second technique was passing guard by pushing knee and donkey kicking around it. Third technique was stepping out to the side and using my body weight to create space to slide shin over top of opponents thigh and pass guard. Then we did some rolling and I completely gassed trying to pass his guard and getting nowhere. When it was his turn, I tried my best to squeeze that guard as tight as possible but he still managed to pry my legs loose and pass. Those elbows on my thighs made for the longest minute of my life. One thing I noticed right away was when my partner was applying the techniques to pass the guard he had very tight, compound movements and there was always pressure. He slithered kind of like a snake. After rolling, I was ready to puke but managed to cool off by stepping outside a minute and regaining my composure. This would be a problem for the rest of the night. Felt like all the blood just drained out of my head and I was going to pass out. Next we learned how to do the zombie in order to get an underhook and control your opponents arm from the bottom. After that we grabbed the wrist of the other hand, shifted our hips, and performed a reverse triangle choke. Does it matter which leg runs perpendicular to the neck and which one locks the other leg? We also learnt how to do a tee-pee choke but I did not get around to practicing it. Following the reverse triangle choke we learnt how to turn it into some sort of crazy shoulder lock. You wrap your leg around into an arm-bar, but just use it to position yourself then you sit down and turn your body so you are both facing the same direction. Grabbing his waist with your free hand you then use your legs (which are both on the ground now) to drive his shoulder into the mat. Raising your hips to submit the shoulder. More rolling with new partners, more dying. Lots of tapping by yours truly. Had to opt out of the last rolling session because I had nothing left in the tank. Next-day Physical - Lots of pinches, a pretty wicked looking sternum abrasion, sore on the rightside of my back and one very sore big toe.
I think I fixed the link. New at this so bear with me. Genbukan training is really fun. There is a wide variety of things to learn and it is a very small class so we are all chummy. I really like the movement you learn in the class such as break falls, rolls, and the dreaded cartwheel. There are also some pretty awesome take downs which are always followed by a brand new, evil joint lock. There is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu class today that I wanted to attend, but I'm so sore from last night that I'm on the fence. I'm a wimp and my jammed big toe has me on the injured reserve.
That shoulder lock is an omoplata. Basically works like a kimura but with the legs. Tip re guard: don't squeeze, adjust. Just focus on keeping your hips central (not letting them get angle) and controlling grips and posture. It's less tiring and way more useful Glad you are enjoying training and don't feel bad about skipping a few to recover. I'm back tonight after weeks due to shoulder injury... I'll probably be feeling it big-time. Look forward to hearing more about the genbukan training especially
Sorry about that, Simon! Sometimes they just slip out. Especially when cardio is concerned. Jan. 27 Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Was pretty sore from the work-out last night. Going to be more sore after the class today. Started off passing the guard by placing our head on the mat, controlling the opposite leg, and springing our legs over. Then we got an underhook on the opposite arm and gripped up the head and arm. From there we learnt how the bottom guy can escape from that position by bridging the hips, and pushing with the free arm while driving our trapped elbow to the mat. This then allows us to retain full guard and even an arm lock if we can catch an arm by our neck and our knees on his shoulder. We learnt another escape from side control where the oppressor (uke? I dont know what you call the guy on top) doesn't have an under hook but is keeping your legs from regaining guard. You need to bridge, and gain an under hook with your opposite arm. Then when both are on their knees the uke has a wizard but you can escape by posting up and dropping your shoulder. You can also grab his obi and his sleeve then roll yourself and pull him over into an arm bar. The rolling was more fun today. I was feeling a lot less gassed but totally quit a few times. Had a couple good guard passes, and even one mount. Lots of advice was given. I need to remember to keep my arms on opposite sides when on top. Learnt one mount escape: two hands on one side controlling an arm. Elbow pushing the knee down and then bridge in that direction. I couldn't get free when rolling but with practice and maybe a few more tricks! Lots of practice getting choked and tapping out today. A few wicked bruises on my left arm. Not sure if it was from partner or my own grip trying to prevent whatever evil was about to be performed.
Ninjutsu Jan 28 Class was good today. Slower pace then usual because instead of working through the basics with a senior student I was paired with a 9th kyu. Had to rack our brains a little to remember them all. Only my third class now. In some ways this was helpful because I had to think about the patterns and not just mimic what was applied to me. My partner was kind enough to slash at me with a sword while I practiced my evasion. A little tight for space so the techniques had to be modified/ I had to be aware of my surroundings. During training they talked about how Soke can trace his lineage to both Iga and Koga. Really should dedicate more time to reading the Stephen Turnbull books I purchased. Does anyone have an opinion on their accuracy?
