On studenting

[JR 137]

Observation: Your teacher sees many things you can't. He/she sees you move in real time, and from multiple angles. Even if you're in front of a mirror, you still don't see it. Believe what he/she says, even if how you're doing it feels right and you don't see the flaw in the mirror. Make the adjustments he/she tells you. That is why you chose him/her as your teacher, after all.

 

[mograph]

Believe what he/she says, even if how you're doing it feels right and you don't see the flaw in the mirror.

Yes. Ask any Alexander practitioner about the limits of our ability to tell whether we're doing it right or not. It might feel right and natural, but that might be based more on habit than actual optimal positioning.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

Yes. Ask any Alexander practitioner about the limits of our ability to tell whether we're doing it right or not. It might feel right and natural, but that might be based more on habit than actual optimal positioning.

Me: "Don't put your upper blocking hand directly in front of your forehead."
Student: "I'm not."
Me: "Look in the mirror; your hand is directly in front of your forehead."
Student: "No, it's not."
Me: [lightly strike's students hand, which bounces off his forehead].
Student: "Ow."
Me: "What just happened."
Student: "My hand hit me in the forehead."
Me: "Hmmm. Wonder how that happened, since your hand is not in front of your forehead."

 

[Gerry Seymour]

Me: "Don't put your upper blocking hand directly in front of your forehead."
Student: "I'm not."
Me: "Look in the mirror; your hand is directly in front of your forehead."
Student: "No, it's not."
Me: [lightly strike's students hand, which bounces off his forehead].
Student: "Ow."
Me: "What just happened."
Student: "My hand hit me in the forehead."
Me: "Hmmm. Wonder how that happened, since your hand is not in front of your forehead."

Oh, no I really want a student to make that mistake this week. You are a bad influence, sir.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

Student: "My hand hit me in the forehead."

When you block your opponent's punch, your arm should extend forward near your opponent's head. This way, your block is also your punch. A "hay-maker" can be a block. It can also be a punch at the same time. IMO, a "double hay-makers" can block both jab and cross.

I don't like to deal with my opponent's punch in my territory (near my head). I like to deal with my opponent's punch in his own territory instead (near his head).

 

[Gerry Seymour]

When you block your opponent's punch, your arm should extend forward near your opponent's head. This way, your block is also your punch. A "hay-maker" can be a block. It can also be a punch at the same time. IMO, a "double hay-makers" can block both jab and cross.

I don't like to deal with my opponent's punch in my territory (near my head). I like to deal with my opponent's punch in his own territory instead (near his head).

That is one approach, and has a lot of advantages, but not a universal approach to blocking.

 

[Midnight-shadow]

Me: "Don't put your upper blocking hand directly in front of your forehead."
Student: "I'm not."
Me: "Look in the mirror; your hand is directly in front of your forehead."
Student: "No, it's not."
Me: [lightly strike's students hand, which bounces off his forehead].
Student: "Ow."
Me: "What just happened."
Student: "My hand hit me in the forehead."
Me: "Hmmm. Wonder how that happened, since your hand is not in front of your forehead."

I get similar students to that when I'm coaching diving. They insist they are doing the technique a certain way even though it's clear they are not. It gets to the point where I have to film them doing the movement and play it back to them in slow motion before they'll believe me.

On a side note, I have another piece of studenting advice: Listen and be honest. It really annoys me when I have a student who does a technique wrong, and when I ask them about it, instead of thinking about it and giving me an honest answer, they just say what they think I want to hear. For example, a student doesn't swing their arms up high enough on the take-off for a dive. Conversation follows:

me: "did you get your arms all the way through to your ears on take-off?
student: [instantly] "no"
me: "do it again then"

Student does the move again and this time gets their arms all the way through correctly.

me: "did you get your arms all the through?"
student: [hesitantly] "no"
me: "why do you think that?"
student: "because you wouldn't ask me about it unless I did it wrong"
me: "You did it right that time. Stop just saying what you think I want to hear, and think"

 

[Dirty Dog]

Me: "Don't put your upper blocking hand directly in front of your forehead."
Student: "I'm not."
Me: "Look in the mirror; your hand is directly in front of your forehead."
Student: "No, it's not."
Me: [lightly strike's students hand, which bounces off his forehead].
Student: "Ow."
Me: "What just happened."
Student: "My hand hit me in the forehead."
Me: "Hmmm. Wonder how that happened, since your hand is not in front of your forehead."

I've done the same thing. I also use Coaches Eye to surreptitiously video students and then show them. Excellent app. You can draw on the screen to show them where things SHOULD be, while they're looking at where they actually are.

 

[JR 137]

I've done the same thing. I also use Coaches Eye to surreptitiously video students and then show them. Excellent app. You can draw on the screen to show them where things SHOULD be, while they're looking at where they actually are.

I love Coach's Eye.