A different perspective

[Tony Dismukes]

At 77, I'm doing 14 hrs./week (if I consider warm up and stretching also as part of my work out).

Yesterday during my 4 miles walking/training, I held my 5 lb weight and did 1730 punches. I consider my non-kicking day as my resting day. I can still punch 1730 times with my 5 lb weigh. I can't do 1730 kicks any more.

That's my plan for once I retire. I'd like to get in an hour per day of walking while throwing punches in addition to my time on the mats. Technically I could do that now, and I occasionally do. But more often I'm burned out from my workday and just want some time to read and hang out with my wife.

 

[drop bear]

That's my plan for once I retire. I'd like to get in an hour per day of walking while throwing punches in addition to my time on the mats. Technically I could do that now, and I occasionally do. But more often I'm burned out from my workday and just want some time to read and hang out with my wife.

Take her with you.

Podcasts.

(I can't talk. I could do more and don't)

 

[Tony Dismukes]

Take her with you.

I do sometimes. But my wife has MS and her available energy to get out and move can vary drastically from day to day.

Podcasts.

Probably not a bad idea. I just have an aversion to walking around outside with anything like earbuds which block any of my sensory awareness of my surroundings.

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

Probably not a bad idea. I just have an aversion to walking around outside with anything like earbuds which block any of my sensory awareness of my surroundings.

I keep my headphone in my left ear, which is my worse ear anyway. And have learned to filter what I'm hearing from there vs. Sounds from the world at large.

 

[drop bear]

I do sometimes. But my wife has MS and her available energy to get out and move can vary drastically from day to day.

Probably not a bad idea. I just have an aversion to walking around outside with anything like earbuds which block any of my sensory awareness of my surroundings.

Not to dive too deep in to a walking discussion. But these exist.

For all your cauliflower ear friends as well.

 

[Tony Dismukes]

Not to dive too deep in to a walking discussion. But these exist.

For all your cauliflower ear friends as well.

Very interesting. Thanks for the tip. The brand he's reviewing is a bit pricy for my taste, but Amazon has a bunch of generic options for much cheaper which might be worth checking out.

 

[skribs]

For me, the imposter syndrome has nothing to do with a test or lack thereof. I've done a few of those in different arts over the years and they didn't matter to me much one way or another.

Holding a black belt in BJJ normally represents a combination of functional ability on the mats and knowledge of the art. My functional ability already suffers because of my age. I'm pretty tough for a 60-year old with a desk job, but I can't dominate the young athletes on the mat the way that I could if I was 30 years younger with the same skill set. That leaves knowledge. I'm pretty knowledgeable about BJJ and martial arts in general, but it feels like my knowledge is perishable and needs constant updating. People are building entire competitive careers around techniques and positions and concepts that I've barely explored.

Fortunately for my self-esteem, there are days where I come onto the mat and feel like a real black belt. Days where I can give my students guidance that immediately improves their sparring performance. Days where I can thrash much younger, stronger sparring partners without gasping for breath afterwards. But I have other days where it feels like I hardly know what I'm doing and I look forward to when I retire and can spend more time staying abreast of how the art is evolving.

Today, our other Professor was teaching a variant of the armbar. I was partnered with our main professor for the drill, there were a few times where he had to stop and ask, "how did he do that?" and ask questions about the technique.

Please take no disrespect when I say this, but my Professor is even more accomplished than you are. I say that to tell you that if HE can feel lost here or there, it's perfectly fine for you to feel lost as well.

 

[Tony Dismukes]

Please take no disrespect when I say this, but my Professor is even more accomplished than you are. I say that to tell you that if HE can feel lost here or there, it's perfectly fine for you to feel lost as well.

No disrespect taken. There are lots of instructors (especially other BJJ black belts) who are more accomplished than I am.

Today, our other Professor was teaching a variant of the armbar. I was partnered with our main professor for the drill, there were a few times where he had to stop and ask, "how did he do that?" and ask questions about the technique.

This is actually one area where I feel pretty good about my ability, i.e. seeing new moves and understanding what is being shown.

The last time we had Carlson Gracie Jr in for a seminar, there was a point where he showed a technique which sort of looked like a standard move we would do from that position. But it really wasn't the same move at all. I wouldn't even call it a variation of the usual technique, as it was using a different principle.

There were a number of other black belts at the seminar, including some more experienced and skillful than I am. But I don't know if any of them actually saw and understood the move that Carlson was showing. It's like he got to the position and started to move in a certain direction, and their brains all said "Oh, I know the next part", and they stopped paying attention to what he was actually doing. I ended up helping to coach some of the other black belts to understand what was being shown.

I honestly think that my original promotion to black belt had more to do with my ability to see techniques, absorb the details, and explain them to others than it had to do with my fighting ability.

That said, the ability to pick up the details on an individual technique is one thing. There are people in the BJJ world who are building new complex strategies based on chaining together a whole branching network of positions, techniques, and concepts aimed at achieving particular outcomes. Without immersing myself in the study of those games, I'm as lost as anyone else.

 

[Buka]

No disrespect taken. There are lots of instructors (especially other BJJ black belts) who are more accomplished than I am.

This is actually one area where I feel pretty good about my ability, i.e. seeing new moves and understanding what is being shown.

The last time we had Carlson Gracie Jr in for a seminar, there was a point where he showed a technique which sort of looked like a standard move we would do from that position. But it really wasn't the same move at all. I wouldn't even call it a variation of the usual technique, as it was using a different principle.

There were a number of other black belts at the seminar, including some more experienced and skillful than I am. But I don't know if any of them actually saw and understood the move that Carlson was showing. It's like he got to the position and started to move in a certain direction, and their brains all said "Oh, I know the next part", and they stopped paying attention to what he was actually doing. I ended up helping to coach some of the other black belts to understand what was being shown.

I honestly think that my original promotion to black belt had more to do with my ability to see techniques, absorb the details, and explain them to others than it had to do with my fighting ability.

That said, the ability to pick up the details on an individual technique is one thing. There are people in the BJJ world who are building new complex strategies based on chaining together a whole branching network of positions, techniques, and concepts aimed at achieving particular outcomes. Without immersing myself in the study of those games, I'm as lost as anyone else.

I know what you mean. Rickson showed us a variation of an armbar that I hadn’t seen before or since. It was for police work and cuffing.

As for being lost, I’ve been lost for so long I don’t even know I’m lost anymore.