Tuesday, August 23, 2011

August 22nd - Gi Class (Paying for Vacation)

My family and I took a pretty nice vacation to Kansas City from last Thursday to Sunday.  It was pretty much all about the kids as we went to a hotel with a water park and did a lot of cool activities that they would like. Unfortunately I also pigged out all weekend.  Lots of barbeque, hamburgers, seafood and various junk food.  I even questioned if I should go to class on Monday night because I was feeling a little under the weather.  I decided to go because I missed Jiu-Jitsu.

We worked on the arm drag mostly.  First from standing into double leg take down.  Then we worked on single leg for a bit.  Finally we did some arm drag stuff from the ground, which I haven't done before and found it interesting.  I'm not sure when I'll be good enough to use it.

We finished with some butterfly guard drills.  I was already sweating pretty badly and felt a little fatigued.  I went with Fuji first and then Matt next.  It was pretty even both times I think.

During open mat I went with Adam first.  I was able to escape a couple of submissions but ultimately he got me in a kimura.  I think I need to relax more against bigger guys.  I always feel like I have to use strength when I go against someone stronger than me.

I rolled with Mike next.  We had a pretty good couple of rolls.  He is really good at moving himself around.  I almost had him a couple of times but let the submissions go because I didn't think I could finish.  There was one point where we were in donkey guard and we kind of stalemated each other not being able to attempt leg locks.  Although he did kick me in the face a couple of times.  Later on he was getting me in an armbar and he hit me in the face with his hand.  It was a little annoying and I'm sure on accident but I really didn't feel in the mood to continue so I gave him the arm.

I then rolled with Alec and tried to be as relaxed as possible because I was really feeling it.  It was fun and he eventually got me in a crucifix. 

I felt like shit after that.  I was light headed and my gi was soaked.  I wet my towel and draped it over my shoulders and stumbled my way outside.  I felt dehydrated but also felt like I couldn't drink anymore.  It was the first time I questioned if I should drive home.  I waited a little while longer and felt a little better with some sips of Gatorade.  I'll probably take a trip to Max Muscle and see if I can find something for recovery after workouts and something during.  I've also got to get my diet on track because I'm sure the crap I ate over the weekend had something to do with it.  I hate the lack of energy feeling towards the end of class.  Maybe it will be better when this heat subsides.


Tuesday, August 16, 2011

August 15 - Gi Class - Almost fulfilled a goal

Jerad taught class last night.  The theme was guillotine choke.  We did it from guard and mount as well as some escapes leading to the Von Flue choke and then an anaconda similar to the guillotine setup where you pull them into guard.  We finished class with the 8 minute drill which is actually more like a 16 minute drill.

During open mat I rolled with David first.  We started standing up and when he went for a leg I was able to sprawl and then eventually went for the guillotine.  I thought I had it.  I got him to the ground and wrapped my legs around him.  I dug my forearm into the side of his neck, but he would not tap.  The other thought going through my mind was that I didn't want to use too much strength and blow my load.  However, it's not that often that I get David this close to a submission.  I could here people trying to tell me how to make the choke work but I just couldn't figure out how to make him tap.  He eventually got out of it and kind of laid on top of me I suspect recovering.  I thought that this was the time that I should act and go for something else but I was tired also.  He eventually put me into an arm triangle and I tapped.

I rolled with Matt next.  I tried to give him some pointers.  I told him I'm glad that he was there because at least there's one person that I can submit there.  Hopefully he sticks around, it will be interesting to see how fast he grows since his martial arts experience before Jiu-Jitsu is limited.

I rolled with Adam last he got me into a knee bar with his legs and I felt a shooting pain in my heel.  That kind of worries me.  I know I've felt this before and I'm not sure what it is, some kind of a nerve or something is really tight in my legs.  It's a sharp pain that feels like it could tear.  We moved on.  Eventually I was in top half guard and I moved over like I would if I was in side control.  From here he took a deep half guard and was able to wrap my legs up and sweep me easily.  This has been happening to me a lot lately.  We stopped and worked it a little bit and I think I learned what I've been doing wrong and how to prevent my legs getting tied up in that situation.  So I learned something yesterday.

Monday, August 15, 2011

August 13th - Open Mat Relax, Relax, Relax

Open mat is a fun time to be had by all.  I rolled with Jared, Ray, David, Matt, and Bauer. 

Bauer and I had a really good roll.  Much better than the day before where I pretty much got stuck in side control and half guard.  I learned from that and decided to relax a little bit more throughout the match.  It went much better and we had a lot of back and forth.  There was a point where I had him in an arm triangle that I thought I was going to finish but my arms were tired and he eventually escaped.  Eventually I was escaping side control and there was a scramble where he took my back and made me tap with a rear naked choke.  There were a couple of times during our roll that I'm pretty sure no one else was rolling and they were just watching us and coaching.  I think we also covered a lot of ground and ended up far from where we started. 

Rolling with Jared, Ray, and David was about the same as usual.  They all helped me with my questions and we went over where I was screwing up after they tapped me out.  Ray usually taps me out fairly quickly so we went 3 or 4 times.  He told me I did a good job for not letting him take my back.  Yeah, thanks Ray. 

I've got to start going to more open mat.  If only I didn't have to work anymore, my jiu-jitsu would be so much better.

Friday, August 12, 2011

August 12th - Gi Class Vendetta Finished but the war goes on

Conan taught class yesterday and the theme was side control escape.  I decided to wear my rash guard under my gi just to see how it was.  I liked it until we started to work on Judo later and it rolled up on me.

Side control is still my #1 hated position to be on the bottom of.  I'd rather be mounted or back mounted than put into side control.  I know, I've complained about all of this before.  I'm planning on starting a supplemental workout plan to focus on improving my bridging, going into tripod position and shrimping.  I hate the feeling of helplessness when I can't get out of people's side control.  We worked on a couple of escapes/reversals that I didn't know.  I just wish I could put them into action.

For the Judo portion of class I got partnered up with Aaron.  Definitely good to be partnered up with someone who does Judo when working on Judo.  We worked mostly on Osoto Gari from being pushed away with straight arms.  From there we worked on a counter if we couldn't bend their knee and went into a different throw.  Aaron really helped me with the kazushi part of the throw and getting the opponent to move the way you wanted them to so you could throw him.  Having him throw me is different than anyone else that I have been thrown by except for Ray.  Hopefully I'll eventually be able to understand why.

The only thing I don't like about doing Judo on Tuesdays is that it takes away from open mat time.  Bauer and I got to roll finally and it pretty much went the same as our tournament match.  I was able to reverse him and get on top very quickly.  I wasn't really able to do anything from the top though and I eventually ended up in half guard.  We went from half guard to guard a couple of times and then eventually ended up in side mount with him on top.  I couldn't get out of it from there, after all of the techniques that we worked on I couldn't make space and get him off me.  He eventually got me with an Americana.

While it didn't go well for me it has fueled my fire a little bit more.  Made me want to train harder and work on side control escapes.  Also I need to relax more and pace myself so I don't gas out.  Whenever I go against someone stronger than me I try to use my muscle too.  I don't last as long using Muscle as I do when I use good technique.  Hopefully Bauer stays with Jiu-Jitsu and I can use him as a benchmark for progress as we both improve.  I foresee us having some epic battles.

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

August 8th - Gi Class (Baaauuuuueeeeeerrr!)

Had a good class last night with 8 of us starting out.  Good for even partners.  Jerad taught and the theme was the gift wrap position from mount to various submissions.  I don't think there was anything particularly new that I haven't done before but it was a good review.

During open mat I rolled with Adam first.  He was working to get me into x-guard repeatedly.  He got close a couple of times but I was recognizing what he was doing and kept my leg away from him.  It seemed like a pretty good match however I think he was just trying to work a different game and not smoke me as fast as he could.  There was one point when I had Adam in a turtle position and even though I was on top I knew that I was in trouble.  His wrestling is awesome.

During my match with Adam, I noticed that Bauer had changed and he was leaving.  I thought we were going to have match number 2 since he beat me in the State Games on points and I haven't seen him in class since.  What makes it worse is that he told David that he knew I would be pissed as he was walking out the door.  I guess I'll have to catch him on Thursday.

I rolled with a new guy (Mike) next.  He has been training for a year in Maryland (I think).  He said the school that he went to was very big and there could be like 50 people in a class.  He was awesomely flexible and I had a really hard time with passing his guard.  I was able to get him in a Darce in our first match but he turned up the intensity a little bit and we had a second match that lasted quite a bit longer and he eventually tapped me with a teepee.  Definitely impressive for only doing it a year and giving up 60 lbs.

I rolled with Ken next.  Surprisingly at one point I ended up in x-guard, it was awesome.  However, the sweep didn't go as well as I would have liked but it's a good start.  I eventually got mounted and I was so tired that I tapped.  I shouldn't have and it pisses me off.  I've got to work through that.

Thursday, August 4, 2011

No Class Today - Taveling to Chicago and the found match

So I will be missing Jiu-Jitsu today or Sunday because I'm going to Chicago for my brother-in-law's wedding.  I'm not really looking forward to the long drive. 

Gina uploaded some videos from the State Games tournament and the match that I didn't get on video was on there.  While I dominated the entire match I see some mistakes that were rather obvious like when I put my leg right into his half guard when I was going for mount or knee on stomach.

The coolest thing in this video (besides my armbar submission) is at the end when I hear Sara and (I think) Conan talk about how well I did at the tournament. 
Conan: "He's done really well"
Sara: "He is not fighting like a white belt."
Conan: "I know, it's good"

I guess I get so used to rolling with purple belts and getting destroyed all of the time that has done two things.  Made me better and it makes me keep striving to be better because I hate getting beat all of the time. 

THANKS Conan, Greg, Ray, David, Ken, Jared, Carlos, Will, Patrick, Adam (probably forgot somebody) for the repeated ass-kickings.

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

August 1st - Drenched Gi Class

Pretty cool class last night.  It was a hot one.

After a warmup Greg taught us some x-guard techniques.  I've never worked on this position before and it was a good change of pace.  I worked with Brian, Tate, and Jared on getting the position and a couple of sweeps.  I can't wait to work on this some more and get better at it.

There were a couple of times where I wasn't holding the opponents legs or arms right to prevent a triangle or getting reversed.  Greg phrased it oddly I thought, something to the effect of "I'm worried about the way that you are not holding their leg when you pass."  I found it odd because it isn't the way I'm used to being taught.  Instead of just telling me how to fix it, it seemed like he was concerned for my welfare.  Interesting, I think I should take the same attitude about training.  The price is high if these techniques are not executed correctly.

We finished with two 2 minute open guard drills.  Top guy trying to pass and the bottom guy not allowing them to do so.  I did this with Brian and Aaron and man was I tired after this. My gi was soaked with sweat and heavy.  I decided to take it off for open mat, which I usually don't do, and put a rash guard on.  I rolled with Matt first.  He's not quite as experienced as me so I tried to give him some pointers and allow him to put me in some bad positions so I could get out of them.  I eventually submitted him with an arm triangle.

I rolled with David next and had absolutely no energy.  I tried my best to just relax and go with the flow but I eventually felt too hot and gave up.  I hate giving up, I'd rather be submitted than give up.  However, it was probably a good time to quit because I felt like I was overheating and a little light headed.  I think I sweat too much, but I don't know what I can do about that.