Joker's Training Journal

Started with our standard warm-up, then moved to into some (combat specific) games:

Shoulder Tag

In this game you try to tag your partner's shoulder without getting tagged in return, defense is all body movement without parrying or blocking. This can be considered RATTLE building drill.

Knee Tag

From an erect posture you are working on tagging the knees. You can move your legs but you cannot block the hands. Again a RATTLE building drill.

Wrestling Off Base

With this drill we attempt to push or pull our partner off their base (moving their feet). This is just to isolate and notice how much of our balance is dynamic and accomplished by moving our feet.

Prison Riot

Here everyone tries to move around tagging others between the shoulder blades without getting tagged in turn. The goal is to work on your movement and awareness. With compliments to Marc "Crafty Dog" Denny.

Next week broke the class into junior and senior students. The senior students learned all sorts of Jeff-jitsu mysteries that I was not privy to. Meanwhile I worked with the junior students working on kicks and straight knees. General notes on kicking:

• For both rear and lead kicks a small step is used move us off centerline as well as generate more power.
  
• Pivot on the base leg, turning our base foot all the way over so that the heel is pointing toward your partner.
  
• The use the distal shin and bounce it off the target (elastically collide) returning to your "fighting stance". The foot can be used for slapping shots, but in training use the shin.
  
• Arms can be in classic Thai position (kicking side extended, other hand on forehead) or the modernized style (kicking side arm swung back to increase power but with the shoulder tucked to the head, other hand in guard position).
  
• The lead leg kick requires a switch step to load the kick

For knees:

• The kneeing side arm extends away from the body, while the opposite hand rests back of the hand on forehead.
  
• Extend the knee so that it travels parallel with the floor, through the pads.
  
• Be able to return to your fighting stance, don't just flop down after your done.

The junior students worked 4 x 2 minute rounds:

1. 1-Kick and 2-Kick.
   
2. 1-Knee and 2-Knee.
   
3. Mixed 1-Kick/Knee and 2-Kick/Knee.
   
4. Conditioning 1-3-6-9 kicks with 30 seconds pitterpat, repeating

Meanwhile the advanced students worked 3 minute rounds of:

1. Multilevel Boxing
   

2. Tiip-Kick Combinations
   

   "Fundamental": Tiip-Jab-Cross-Lead Kick
   

   "Tiip 4-count": Do a four count kicking combination leading with a tiip or rear tiip but ending with a kick
   

   Tiip-Rear Kick
   

   Tiip-Lead Kick
   

   Rear Tiip-Rear Kick
   

   Rear Tiip-Lead Kick

3. Punch-Knee Combinations
   

   Cross-Knee
   

   Hook-Knee
   

   Knee-Cross
   

   Knee-Hook
   

   I don't like Knee-Jab since I see the knee followed by a power shot which the jab (at least mine) is not.

4. Conditioning
   

   n lead kicks - cross - lead hook - n rear kicks - lead hook - cross - sprawl - repeat, with n = 1-10

I also covered the basic two-hand grabbing attack scenario (two hand choke, shoulder grab, shirt grab) defenses. Remember the key here is that they are physically connecting themselves to you, you know there their hands are.

1. The spectacles-testicles-necktie-knee (eyes-groin-neck-knees) shots
   
2. The bow and arrow using forward pressure on the shoulder and backward pressure on the opposite wrist. Think of a push-pull action breaking the shoulder posture in the anterior-posterior direction (an application of the combat chiropractor).
   
3. And of course, back to the basic street self-defense or bailey concept

We also covered the side-headlock, noting the importance of using small micro-correction get us out of a bad spot, the formula is:

1. Secure by controlling the inside of both their arms so they cannot twist on you or hit you.
   
2. Break the grip by inflicting pain (knuckle to the ribs, groin shot) or postural change (standing erect or picking the near leg)
   
3. Escape by pulling your head out (after the knuckle or standing erect) or by moving your partner (hand under the nose or lifting them with the leg pick).

I related the story of the wrestler who grabbed another man by a headlock and was subsequently shot in the head. Remember, nobody picks a fight their pretty sure they cannot win. What is that person hiding? Physically they could be concealing a weapon on their person or behind their back. Strategically they could have friends in the crowd. Emotionally they could be the sweetest guy early in the evening and the monster who tries to rape you later. In any case, question them and not yourself, and remember that your safest bet is avoidance before altercation.