Back in the park. Warmup then kind of spiralling back on some of the older drills and then bringing it all forward again. Nice mix. Spent some time revising the four foot position/ moving drills from last year, also kotikitae and arm conditioning, working with straights and hooks, recognising JMC and how it changes, power generation. Lots of discussion. Layers and circles.
Sunday
January 30th, 2012 by hereticAnd Loren’s version…
January 26th, 2012 by heretic25/01/12 Wednesday – Alot of different exercises for the warm-up today + breath work/holds. Then worked the rope drills from the Close Protection disc with Konstantin – first just going to ground by yourself to avoid the rope. Next, partner work – concentrating on breaking your partner’s structure and going to ground with them, supporting them.
Few push-ups and what-not thrown in here and there….
Next worked partner sits on ground, you kick. Person receives contact and escapes. First nice slow, deliberate work onto some good rough contact and impact. Proceed to working against them as the kick comes in – body moves first then arms/legs come into play to redirect, stretch out, disrupt attacker. Really looking at timing – finding that spot where they have commited to putting their foot back to the ground and using this point for disruption.
Ended with very light grab and escape drill – using the time to calm down and regulate our systems while still working.
Another good set of work – the crew blew me away during a round of sit-ups, form and perseverence were top-notch! Enjoy seeing people working things out for themselves. Keep up the efforts!! Cheers.
Few push-ups and what-not thrown in here and there….
Next worked partner sits on ground, you kick. Person receives contact and escapes. First nice slow, deliberate work onto some good rough contact and impact. Proceed to working against them as the kick comes in – body moves first then arms/legs come into play to redirect, stretch out, disrupt attacker. Really looking at timing – finding that spot where they have commited to putting their foot back to the ground and using this point for disruption.
Ended with very light grab and escape drill – using the time to calm down and regulate our systems while still working.
Another good set of work – the crew blew me away during a round of sit-ups, form and perseverence were top-notch! Enjoy seeing people working things out for themselves. Keep up the efforts!! Cheers.
It interests me to see the perspectives of student and instructor, the intentions of the trainer and the experience sof the trainee.
Wednesday Systema
January 25th, 2012 by hereticWill copy Loren’s blog later if he puts one up. Just interesting to get the instructors point of view. Tonight had a different emphasis, just as well as various muscles are singing to me from last night. Warmup phase was groundwork combined with walking and stress breathing, slow pushups ( I substitute plank). “Bodyguard” drills – Loren and a partner have a string pulled between them, held at about thigh height, move across the room. As bodyguard you have to protect your partner from the string that will cut you off – this means take them down with a disruption of structure but protecting their fall, cushhioning the impact so the string passes over, misses you both. Starts slow, ramps up. Quite an extraordinary drill this one, the string works like a scythe as everyone falls before it. Then stress situps – hold your breath on the ground, burst breathe as you sit up. Loren says the best situps he’s seen us do.
Then partner seated on the ground, have to kick them slowly but hard and with direction, they absorb and right themsleves. Then the kicking becomes harder and faster and the absorbing adds strategy. Move the body first then see what you can do to disrupt. Nice. More pushups and walking the room between phases of intensity.
Cooldown was moving to avoid grabs, lots of change partner, lots of improvisation, good fun.
Tuesday Systeam, Loren’s blog
January 24th, 2012 by hereticThis from Loren’s Facebook blog -:
24/01/12 Tuesday – Lovely day out in the park, sunshine. Warm-up with rolling drills. Solo. Partner – cat and mouse drills. First partner rolls away from you as you walk in. Second, partner chases you using rolls.
100 sit-ups, 50 push-ups.
Next, go to the ground from standing – very very relaxed, like someone has hit the ‘off’ switch. Then add in rolling backwards out of the ‘fall’…….
Rest o…f the session was all nervous system work:
Partner sitting upright – receives HEAVY strikes to upper chest. Partner works on truly accepting and trying to relax to the ground. You are working on striking structure and developing heavy strike with out resorting to muscling it.
Same work – now partner is sitting in low squat.
Same work – partner standing, you striking to shoulder. HEAVY.
Looking to really effect their systems – get strong reaction from them – they are looking to deal with pressure with relaxation.
Talked about how we spend a lot of time with tension in our lives – these drills allow us to explore how relaxation can get us through some truly tough times.
Last 10 minutes or so – changed the type of pressure being used:
Partner lays on ground – you use the application of pain (poking into places, heavy pressure with ‘sharp’ objects (knees/elbows), etc) to get a real escape reaction from them – their task is to try to relax through the process.
Ended with a slow 10 count push-up and a very good round of sharing in the circle-up. This session felt very good to me. Spent about a hour of my own training time before the session working on pushing my nervous system with sit-ups, push-ups and breath work – also thought about where I might take the day’s session. Turned out to be some nice work all round – thanks crew for allowing the work!!
100 sit-ups, 50 push-ups.
Next, go to the ground from standing – very very relaxed, like someone has hit the ‘off’ switch. Then add in rolling backwards out of the ‘fall’…….
Rest o…f the session was all nervous system work:
Partner sitting upright – receives HEAVY strikes to upper chest. Partner works on truly accepting and trying to relax to the ground. You are working on striking structure and developing heavy strike with out resorting to muscling it.
Same work – now partner is sitting in low squat.
Same work – partner standing, you striking to shoulder. HEAVY.
Looking to really effect their systems – get strong reaction from them – they are looking to deal with pressure with relaxation.
Talked about how we spend a lot of time with tension in our lives – these drills allow us to explore how relaxation can get us through some truly tough times.
Last 10 minutes or so – changed the type of pressure being used:
Partner lays on ground – you use the application of pain (poking into places, heavy pressure with ‘sharp’ objects (knees/elbows), etc) to get a real escape reaction from them – their task is to try to relax through the process.
Ended with a slow 10 count push-up and a very good round of sharing in the circle-up. This session felt very good to me. Spent about a hour of my own training time before the session working on pushing my nervous system with sit-ups, push-ups and breath work – also thought about where I might take the day’s session. Turned out to be some nice work all round – thanks crew for allowing the work!!
My Comments – -this was heavy striking. Brought tears to my eyes at one stage, involuntary reaction. Just have to learn to continue through the pain and shock. When Loren hits the top of your shoulders its like an electric current running thought your body, bloody disturbing. Very important stuff this, another aspect of conditioning.
Garage Ryu
January 21st, 2012 by hereticJust Ben and I today, with Daz in his garage. Tabata, mainly legs because the concrete floor is somewhat unforgiving, four rounds of five. Conditioning. Five strike drill -this has lots in common with some of the Systema work so I really like it. Sanchin, concentrating on feet at the moment. Thinking about this year’s goals.
And from another angle…
January 19th, 2012 by hereticThis was Loren’s blog of Tuesday’s training:
Tuesday/Wednesday 17, 18/01/12 – Some good work over the last couple days. Worked alot with movement drills and structure work. Looked at allowing movement to be very big to start with then becoming more subtle as the work evolves. Sorting out the dynamics of when to work for control rather than just accepting. Tricky, to say the least.
Worked – looking at the two extremes: really holding your str…ucture to being very pliable. Then based work on expressing these two ends and the spectrum in between while working against the partner – with you choosing when you want to express these two extremes.
Also, alot of breath work and calming yourself while under duress.
Interesting to see the differences in the core group of regulars and the newcomers – we talked alot about calming not only your body and relaxing but applying this same work to the mind/psyche. Very neat to see how everyone expresses themselves and responds to stimulus in different ways – The System seems to really get in on you sometimes and push some deep seeded buttons!! Fantastic process…….keep it up crew.
And for those – that have expressed interest in the training, what are you waiting for? Get out there and get working!! The System isn’t going to learn itself!?!
Worked – looking at the two extremes: really holding your str…ucture to being very pliable. Then based work on expressing these two ends and the spectrum in between while working against the partner – with you choosing when you want to express these two extremes.
Also, alot of breath work and calming yourself while under duress.
Interesting to see the differences in the core group of regulars and the newcomers – we talked alot about calming not only your body and relaxing but applying this same work to the mind/psyche. Very neat to see how everyone expresses themselves and responds to stimulus in different ways – The System seems to really get in on you sometimes and push some deep seeded buttons!! Fantastic process…….keep it up crew.
And for those – that have expressed interest in the training, what are you waiting for? Get out there and get working!! The System isn’t going to learn itself!?!
Tuesday Systema
January 18th, 2012 by hereticIntuflow type warmup. Groundwork – one partner trying to twist and lock the arms, the other just trying to move out of it, release the tension. Situps, lots. Then moving with more intent, adding knees, legs, whatever. Lots of rolling and flowing.Pressure situps where one partner pushes and disrupts, other has to find a way to get up. Another drill where you have to disrupt and deflect an attacker before the grab is applied. Freestyle pushups which involve elbos and wrists and all sorts of options.
Back Again
January 15th, 2012 by hereticWell I flagged the blog for a while. Havent stopped training, just didnt want any more obligations, of any sort at all, for a while. A new year, a new enthusiasm. The blog has a usefulness beyond just sending out information - I have to remember what I’ve done and briefly revisit it to record it. A good thing.
So - Sunday in the park, lovely day for a change. Started nice and easy with five sets of five to start with – quad press/spinal rocks/leg threads/bridge/ jump sprawls. Easing back after the break. Conditioning,usual drills. Sanchin – I’m changing the way I move to keep better harmonic alignment with knees and feet. Then NLD revisited – really like this, nice integration with Systema stuff. As always, lots of good discussion.
Update
October 27th, 2011 by hereticNot doing a lot, knee is not great, physio, exercises, just taking each day as it comes.
Sunday – Taking the centre (more)
October 22nd, 2011 by hereticSanchin. Expansion of qwa around the centre, contraction. Feeling groundpath. Harmonies. All the layers integrating. Ben did some great striking. Then a pushing drill, feeling the compression, sinking, centring, expanding, alignment, harmonies. Some applications. Always discussion. Lots of things are starting to make more sense now. Awesome. Thankyou! At least we took Marcus’s mind off the game tonight for a few minutes, GO THE ABs!