Behind the Curtains of Training

[JowGaWolf]

I often show highlights of techniques working and clips of partial training. This is the first of 2 videos I'm going to post in this thread that actually shows a training day unedited with the exception of cutting out the long break that I took.

I think this was a Saturday class where no one showed up. The people you see in the video are family and a next door neighbor (my son's friend). It's an older video back when I was teaching. Our school had an off site Sifu so you won't see the Sifu in any of these videos. But anyway, no one showed up for class so the 2 instructors decided to make it a sparring day where we would try and fail with various techniques. The sparring that you see of me in the background, is me trying to work specific techniques. As an instructor I don't always go full defense, sometimes I serve as the sparring that you can hit to work your techniques. This means I will intentionally leave a spot open so that my sparring partner can take advantage of it. Think of it as. It's not an issue that I left it open. It's an issue that I left it open and my sparring partner didn't take advantage of it or see it.

You'll see me do things like tap my sparring partner on the head, just to remind him that he left his head open. I still use it to work my techniques as well, because it's training for me too.

The second video that I post will show more sparring but it will also show the discussion that we had after the sparring talking about what we did and tried to use and giving each other advice. That was typical for me and the other instructors as a way to help each other. Here's the first part. I'll post the second part when I get back from doing some things that need to be done today. The Asian lady in the video is my wife.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

Do you put on face mask when you train?

 

[Danny T]

Do you put on face mask when you train?

If you are asking about a mask due to the coronavirus...he did say this was an old video from back when he was teaching which was before the pandemic.

 

[JowGaWolf]

Do you put on face mask when you train?

All of these videos are from maybe 2 years before Covid-19

 

[JowGaWolf]

This is part 2 of the video that I originally posted. This part has a take down that my opponent didn't see coming. The first half of the video is sparring the second half is discussion. You may have to turn up the sound to catch parts of what was said. This type of training was and still is a requirement for me, before I teach an application for use. If I didn't know how to use it myself then I wouldn't teach that application. I would still teach the technique and the basic application of it, but I wouldn't teach it in sparring class.

I do this because there are things that can only be learned and understood by doing. Things like how to set up a technique and how to understand the timing required to do it, can only be learned by doing. Andy only with successful applications of a technique against a resisting partner or an attacking partner. I only work 2 or 3 techniques that I'm not good at when I spar. Once I get good at it and understand it, then I will grab 2 or 3 more, depending on if I learned the remaining techniques that I originally started with. Lots of trial and error and getting punched in the stomach or face.

You won't see me try to fight too hard out of grappling situations unless that is something that I'm training. If I can't escape from a grappling attempt with in a few seconds then I tap out and mark it as something I need to work on in the future. This helps me to stay focused on the technique that I'm trying to get the maximum workout on.