My cross-training journey

[gyoja]

Worked on kicking fundamentals, I suck but I'm improving.

What specifically did you work on?

 

[O'Malley]

@gyoja We've done basic kicking drills for the front kick, side kick and roundhouse kick. The drill was 0 > chamber > kick > chamber > 0.

I'm slowly ingraining some muscle memory, but I'm particularly struggling with roundhouses because I have terrible side-to-side flexibility and my left hip feels too tense and closed. I also probably lack some strength in the muscles responsible for straddling the legs, if this makes sense.

 

[gyoja]

@gyoja We've done basic kicking drills for the front kick, side kick and roundhouse kick. The drill was 0 > chamber > kick > chamber > 0.

I'm slowly ingraining some muscle memory, but I'm particularly struggling with roundhouses because I have terrible side-to-side flexibility and my left hip feels too tense and closed. I also probably lack some strength in the muscles responsible for straddling the legs, if this makes sense.

It makes sense to me. Stretch, stretch, then stretch some more. This will make the kicks easier. Just like striking, you will develop skill through good repetitions. Make sure to stay on the balls of your feet, especially on the plant foot.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

Some thoughts on my last training sessions.

Eskrima
- Worked on kicking fundamentals, I suck but I'm improving.
- I feel like I'm still reaching out too much sometimes.
- We practiced a basic jab-cross-lead hook combo and the guy holding the focus mitts complained about my hook being really heavy. I was happy, also because it was not particularly taxing, but coach said I'm too open.

Nippon Kempo
- Worked on parries (yay!) with some joint locks and then we sparred.
- Last time I got nailed too many times so I made a mental note to tighten my guard and not jump in like an idiot. It made an enormous difference: I was hit surprisingly few times and managed to parry/block most of what was coming. Footwork also helped but I need to work on angles and entries.
- I absolutely need to work on my cardio because I was gassed after the third partner swap.
- I'm relatively hard to throw and I attribute that to my aikido training. My partners tried hip throws, foot sweeps and reaps but they just bounced off me.
- I've experimented with a clinch entry that I had posted on here some time ago. So far it seems to work! I still need to figure out how to bring my aikido to that ruleset (or what to do in the clinch in general).
- Yet, I've been able to nail some cool stuff like clinch > standing arm lock > sokumen iriminage; and the aikido classic: clinch > back take > suplex.
- So far I'm doing well against guys who've been there for a while but I have more overall martial arts experience than my sparring partners. It's good because I can focus on the basics and experiment with stuff but I want to know how I fare against the instructors and competitors of the group.
- I've got lots of wacky ideas to play with next time.

I think the aiki mechanics you’ve trained give you some subtle defenses that work well against standing grappling, especially when your opponent doesn’t have that training.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

I can imagine that. The problem with wrist locks in NK is that both contestants wear boxing gloves so they're almost undoable. It also limits your options for throws as you can't grip. I tried a sacrifice throw in sparring and only nailed the sacrifice part, because my hand slipped. But yeah there are aikido techniques that could be set up from the 2-on-1.

I’ve used “kempo” gloves at times for this reason. They are fairly padded, but you still have the ability to grab and grip.

 

[gyoja]

I’ve used “kempo” gloves at times for this reason. They are fairly padded, but you still have the ability to grab and grip.

I use these as well. They definitely help with throws and joint locks.

 

[O'Malley]

I think the aiki mechanics you’ve trained give you some subtle defenses that work well against standing grappling, especially when your opponent doesn’t have that training.

I'm not sure whether I'd be able to defend against a decent grappler but I've certainly developed a natural resistance to unbalancing and structure deformation.

I’ve used “kempo” gloves at times for this reason. They are fairly padded, but you still have the ability to grab and grip.

That would be cool to try but unfortunately I'll have to stick to the standard gear for now! It's cool to try and think of what I could use under that ruleset though!

Quick update: trained eskrima today and did stick and unarmed sparring against competitors. I'm getting better at stick sparring but the unarmed one (against an experienced sanda competitor) showed a lot of flaws in my form. I have good instincts and power, so I sometimes get lucky and do well against inexperienced people, but my form is still a beginner's, which translates into lots of openings and telegraphing that skilled opponents can exploit. It's good because now I know that if I polish my form I should make good progress.