Saturday June 23, Sensei Maria

It's been a while since I blogged. Too long! I've been spending doing a lot of reading and research, and also scoping out other blogs which I'll post below. Inspired by Jeannie's technical notes I will (near future ) post up a list of glossary terms that encompass a broad scope of technical japanese terms. I really can not stress how valuable it is to know some very limited terminology especially if you train with someone who has english as a second language. The terminology is a global standard.

1. KoSoto Gari

Video

• As uke enters parry punch away from body using the parry to richochet your hand up to the shoulder
• Once on to the shoulder drop elbow "close waki"
• Sweep

*Advanced
• Hand lifts into uke's face
• Sweep as soon as foot is forward

Lately I have been trying to find the thread between judo and jujitsu. I understand that they are from the same source, but more I find that there are subtle differences and specialties. For example the sweep. In judo class always starts with ashi-waza or leg techniques, so for 45 minutes you execute sweeps. The trick I was told is to see their foot by feeling the shoulder.

When I was starting I would look at the foot, by looking down or using my peripheral vision. This will not work. It's wierd but as Sensei Coleman says "You have to believe you have it" and most of the time you will! Though sometimes it won't work which leads to a combination...

*Combinations
After class Sergio and I were doing Ouchi gari to Ippon Seionage. I have been working on this with Sensei Stephen during the week. It's so simple it kills me! You go in for a sweep, uke will naturally move there foot back, wouldn't you? ... but uke is now of balance so you grab for ippon and BOOM! This also works in Ne-waza, go for a Kimura, uke moves thier arm, now you have Kata Gatame...you see my point.

So back to Kosoto, I saw if you miss the kosoto gari, you can follow up with the pulldown, or iremi nage or osoto gari, basically anything that requires a entering entry.

2. Waki Gatame


Waki means the negative space that is created by the armpit
Gatame means hold

from knife attack across throat
• Hands up!
• Hips turn into knife as the "waki" closes
• Drop! ( ¡Warning sudden drop breaks arm! )

The waki gatame seems to be the "All-Purpose" arm lock. Judo, Jujitsu and Aikido have it.
I remember Sensei Stephen telling me it was a good save in case you missed the elbow for ikkyu. You can always slip it on.

3. Sparring
Recently I saw this great interview with a female mix martial artist Gina Carano. In her interview she said that she personally had more technical fights because she truly had no idea how to punch, or kick, but she felt that men felt they had the need to at least act like they did.

This blew my mind! Because at least for me, she was right.

I have had next to no martial arts training before this. Granted a took classes here and there and I studied aikido for a while, but really aikido wasn't very informative and the karate was more "Let's beat up the fat guy."

So...I'm starting over.Step by step. Personally I find this allows me to become a sponge. As my Sankyu test approaches I am going to be training in boxing to build my cardio/endurance and to train myself to get hit. For Green belt I trained in judo, which really helped, so this works out pretty well. Here's 5 big things I have learned so far, the 4th referring to judo.

a. The Jab - When jabbing let your body turn to the side so you may enter
b. The Reverse punch - Don't flair your elbow. At the gym I hit the bag over and over again keeping my elbow at the side. I notice when I hit it right the back "buckles" rather than swings back and forth
c. Hands Up! My brother got me some weights to wear around my wrists. This really helps!
d. The clinch - ok, so this is where the judo comes in.
When I spar with dixon and we clinch, it's never like a muay thai, or a necktie clinch. He always grabs me around the waist, similar to a tackle. I asked around about this, and the responses I got from various arts was very similar, this is a classic takedown. On the street, in the gym, whatever, this will be what you have to defend against if someone wants to basically "tear you down." Here's 2 solutions, I used sumi-gaeshi twice in my last sparring with dixon.
1. The burpee
When I did play football, we did these all the time, and they will crush you! It allows you to sprawl, to basically keep the person from pulling you to the ground.
2. Sumi Gaeshi
With sumi gaeshi and any sacrifice throw, you can be caught in a hold, so usually you want to invert on top of them or use it to enter a choke.

*Note Last night I was watching UFC, there was a fight between these two guys, oh here's the video, so anyway at the end you see him take him down with the takedown I mentioned above. Not only does he fall hard enough on the guys ribs to cause him to tap out, he also knocks himself out. It was interesting seeing this because that's what really happens when you land on your face!

e. Slow down!
I am faster than I think I am. No one ever tells me to speed up. Slow down! Like my daddy said "Do it right the first time"

A closer look at entries and footwork...

I have been trying to focus on entries and footwork these past weeks. Only at this point, a la green belt, I've distinguished around 21 unique entries and foot work. Phew.

We got the hitch step, taisabaki, side step, tenkan, cross step (like in Taisabaki kata), step in, and even not stepping at all (as per conversation with Sensei Stephen). But then if you break them down further to figure out whether tori goes inside or outside of uke and where the off balance happens, that makes these entries / footwork seem even more unique.

For instance, I notice that sometimes we hitch step in a straight line to get close to uke. Other times (like sankyu) we hitch step away at a 45 degree angle to get an off balance. Sometimes hitch step toward tori's front or tori's rear at a 45 degree angle, inside or outside of uke.

I've been jotting notes like these, which have helped me organize the entries and foot work. It's a work in progress!