Students are often eager to help out their training partners with techniques they think he or she may be having trouble with. This is usually motivated by a genuine effort to help out. That being said, sometimes these students who want to help actually interfere with their fellow student’s learning.

Here are some guidelines I offer my students when it comes to helping out their fellow students:

Ask first. Ask your training partner politely if they want your help before giving it. This can be something like, “Can I make a suggestion?” or “Would you like me to help?”. You want to make sure they actually wants your help before offering it. Sometimes a student prefers to work through a technique in his or her own mind because it helps them to retain it better.

Don’t overextend yourself. While you’re still in the early stages of your own development, stick to helping your training partners remember the sequence of a technique (if requested) rather
than trying to teach all the technical details. Sometimes the Sensei is applying a graduated training method chosen specifically for that student’s needs and by showing a different method, and your “help” may interfere with his or her teachings.

Keep chatter to a minimum. Don’t talk at length about the technique you’re working on. By doing so, you rob yourself and your partner of precious training time.

Consult with your Sensei or Sempai. Any time you offer help, it’s a good idea to verify what you showed your fellow student with a Sensei or Sempai the next time they come around to check up on you.

Let your Sensei or Sempai do their job. If the Sensei or Sempai is there attending to you and your partner, don’t interrupt them. It’s fine to ask a question about the technique. But never talk over the instructor when he or she is trying to teach, even if you are just trying to help out. It interferes with the communication process.

Ultimately, it’s great to have dojo at which everyone wants to help each other to achieve their best in their martial arts training (I’m quite proud of my own for this reason), so long as they’re doing it right. Even though we’re all on our own journeys of personal development, an important part of that development is sharing in the experience and taking pride in the overall advancement of the dojo and its students. That’s why teaching is considered to be one of the most important roles of senior students and black belts.

Tags: leadership | teaching

Summer is here and so is high temperature training. I personally love training in the summer months because the body tends to be warmer and looser. I find people tend to sustain less injuries in the summer. That being said, an important part of summer training is staying properly hydrated, something many people fail to do.

Water comprises of around 60 percent of your body weight. Every system in your body depends on it. Water is as important to your martial arts training as it is to maintaining your overall health.

Lack of water leads to dehydration. Even mild dehydration — as little as a 1-2% loss of your body weight — saps your energy and can keep you from performing your best during training and in your life altogether. It is a common cause of headaches, light-headedness and fatigue.

Drinking Water Helps You Perform Your Best

Here are several important ways drinking water helps your body perform better as a martial artist:

Protects Your Joints and Muscles. Water lubricates and cushions your joints and muscles, protecting them from shock and damage. When you’re dehydrated, your body becomes more susceptible to injuries. Drinking adequate amounts of water, before, during and after training, helps prevent muscle cramps and joint injuries.

Optimal Body Function. The body depends on water for survival. It is involved in every aspect of the body’s functions, from digestion and excretion, as well as absorption of nutrients. Water maintains your body temperature and removes toxins from your body. If you’re not getting enough water, your body doesn’t function at an optimal level. You’ll feel more tired and less focused during class.

Improved Metabolism. It’s well documented that staying well-hydrated makes it easier for your body to metabolize stored fat and therefore helps you lose weight.

How Much Water Should I Be Drinking?

• Drink 250-500 ml of water every morning.
• Keep a water bottle with you throughout the day, drinking at least 500-750 ml.
• Drink 250-500 ml of water 30 minutes before class.
• Drink another 250-500 ml over the course of class, having a few gulps every 15 minutes or so.
• When class is over, drink a further 250-500 ml.

This may sound like a lot, but it’s necessary to keep you hydrated. If you can’t drink that much water at once, take smaller amounts every 10 minutes. You shouldn’t wait until you’re thirsty to start drinking. If you’re thirsty, you’re already dehydrated.

These amounts vary depending on your body size, level of exertion during class and environmental temperature. Click here to use a generic water consumption calculator.

When training, a good rule of thumb is to drink 500 ml water for every pound you’ve lost. If you can, weigh yourself before and after class to find out how much you should drink.

Monitor your urine for signs of dehydration. The more yellow it is, the more dehydrated you are. It should be clear and colourless.

Some people prefer to drink sports drinks but, in truth, water hydrates better than any other drink. Sports drinks can be useful for replacing lost electrolytes and carbs, but it’s not really necessary unless you’re training at high intensity for over 90 minutes, or if your blood sugar gets low for whatever reason. For general consumption, if you prefer to drink sports drinks over water for taste, I recommend watering it down a little.

Don’t forget that drinking alcohol and caffeine (to excess) dehydrates you. Doing so can make you urinate and lose fluid quickly, so you’ll need an extra 250 ml for each cup of coffee, alcoholic or carbonated drink you have.

Tags: dehydration

Before I started using the speed bag, I didn’t really get what it was for. Since I started doing more boxing training, I’ve discovered that it’s a fascinating little piece of equipment with a variety of benefits. They are as follows:

1. Hand-eye coordination
2. Rhythm and timing
3. Conditioning of shoulders and arms
4. Cardio-vascular conditioning (when you get really good at it)

When using the speed bag, you have to deliver both faster and powerful repetitive punching combinations while moving your fists shorter distances than you usually use while punching. The key to this is understanding how the bag works.

First, the bag must be at the proper height. The fattest part of the bag should be level with your mouth or nose. Many people have it much too high, leading to bad form or improper/ ineffective punching technique.

When you first start punching the speed bag, it’s important to learn how to keep control over it using more efficient, short arm and fist movements and by starting slow. Most people use the bottom of their fist at first (because it’s easier) to get comfortable with the way the bag moves before moving on to specific boxing punches. Speed will come eventually come with practice. The primary goal is to keep the bag moving and in control, no matter how slowly it’s moving. Some find it helpful to count the rebounds at first. If you find that the bag swings wildly, know this: The bag is never out of control, YOU are.

You’ll eventually want to use your standard punches on the speed bag. The first ones I suggest are jabs and crosses. Don’t expect to deliver your punches the same way you do on heavy bags or focus mitts. You’ll need to maintain a circular motion to your punches. To increase your speed, start your punches closer to the bag. To get faster, you need to swing smaller. Speed is often a function of distance. With purposeful practice, not just slamming away at the bag, you’ll increase your punching power along with fist speed.

The rhythm of the speed bag is important to understand. If you hit it from the front, the next punch should arrive after an odd number of rebounds (1, 3, or 5). Most people know the hypnotic triplet rhythm of the speed bag being hit. The basis for this beat is the accents of the sound. The first rebound (off the fist) is the loudest, the second rebound (by your face) is a little softer, and the third (away from you is barely heard, and runs into the returning fist which quickly adds the next accented punch as the fist connects. 1-2-3, 1-2-3… it’s the sound you’ll come to love. It is the same sound done slower or faster. Try and hear that beat, but if three rebounds is too fast for you, or you just refuse to slow down or hit softer, then use 5 rebounds. The bag will be in the same position after 5 rebounds as it as after 3, in position to be hit from the front again.

Jab-cross combinations can be practiced with 5 rebounds as well as 3. Hooks are a little different. To practice repetitive hook combinations (i.e. left Hook, right hook), use an even number of rebounds (2 or 4). Four is best to start off with. This works because the next punch is coming from the opposite side from the last punch, and the laws of speed bag rhythm require it.

To mix hooks with other punches, the number of rebounds needed may vary, depending on the angle of the bag rebound and the angle of your fist as it connects. For example, a left hook may follow a right cross after 3 or 4 rebounds, depending on the bag angle established by the right fist and the angle your left hook enters. Practice this slowly and watch how the bag angle changes. Also, after a left hook, the left fist can return for a left jab on either 3 or 4 rebounds depending on the rebound angle. Either way, the speed bag forces you to keep you hands up for combinations.

With a patience and practice, you’ll quickly find the speed bag helps you pick off moving targets a foot or less from your face. It’s a great complement to almost any martial art.

For speed bags and a wide variety of other training tools, check out MartialArtsSupplies.com.

Tags: speed bag | strike training

Due to the slightly flexible puzzle mats that are laid out at the school where I run my Jiu-jitsu classes and do my MMA training, I and many others keep spraining our toes. What happens is that the big toe catches slightly as you move sometimes then your weight comes down on it in a bent state. As a result, I and those who run the club are planning to lay down my Olympic Judo mats which I have in storage, which don’t cause this problem.

This condition is known as first metatarsophalangeal joint strain or ‘turf toe’ if that’s too hard to wrap your tongue around. The basic treatments for this injury that you can do yourself are as follows:

Cryotherapy. In other words, put ice on it. Make sure the ice or cold pack is wrapped in a light towel and follow the rule of 15 minutes on, 15 minutes off.

Non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs. I use ibuprofen, aka- Advil. Arnica gel is a nice topical anti-inflammatory agent that I use as well as I ice my injury. It really helps.

Decreased weight-bearing activities for at least 72 hours. This one is important. I didn’t do it when I first sprained my toe on Sunday. I went on to do my MMA training on Monday and paid the price by spraining it worse while I was grappling. Don’t be like me.

Taping. When you do go back to training, taping it up is a good way to keep from re-injuring it while it’s still in a vulnerable state. The photo featured here shows the taping I did on my toe. Another option for protecting your toes is to wear wrestling shoes while you’re still in your recovery period.

All the main info above came from a very useful book that my doctor student lent me called Clinical Sports Medicine. It is a comprehensive book of every imaginable sports injury/ condition and how to diagnose and treat it. It also has valuable information about warm-ups, warm-downs, nutrition, and a wide variety of other issues important in sport. It’s in invaluable tool for dojo owners. Sometimes my students ask me to recommend various stretches and strengthening exercises to help recover from injuries. It’s very useful for that, but of course, only after they have already had the condition diagnosed by a doctor.

At this point, I’d like to mention that none of the information in this blog post constitutes medical advice. I am not a doctor nor do I know the specifics of your individual condition. I did, however, have all this confirmed with a doctor for my own personal condition. And you should too for every injury you sustain.

Tags: tape big toe | toe injury

Many of you know that I’ve been coping with a pulled hip flexor for the past couple of weeks. My MMA coach didn’t believe that I would do what was necessary to recover from my injury. He said, “Fighters don’t know when or how to take it easy.” He’s wrong about me though. My dojo depends on me too much for me to be laid up by an injury. So I’m on a strict recovery program set out by my Jiu-jitsu student who is a doctor.

Conventional wisdom when it came to muscle and joint recovery used to be RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation). But recently it has been found that immobilizing an injury (unless it’s a fracture, torn muscle or your doctor advises you to) shuts the muscle down and restricts blood flow. Instead, modern medical research is suggesting that moving the muscle and encouraging blood flow to oxygenate the area and flush out metabolic waste helps you heal faster. Now many doctors are saying that RICE should be used only for the first 24-48 hours of the injury after which MICE should be used. In this acronym, “movement” replaces “rest.”

In my case, my student/ doctor recommended that I bike 20-40 minutes a day. I also did some gentle strengthening and stretching exercises specific to the hip flexor. Biking replaced my morning yoga work-outs since I didn’t want to accidentally do any stretches that would aggravate my injury. Then after the whole routine, I would ice my hip flexor. I was also told to avoid grappling, breakfalls and any other high-risk activities. My coach focused my training on other skills and strengthening exercises like boxing, and a variety of upper strength development drills (i.e. hand stands, push-ups, neck raises, etc).

Now, after two weeks I’m not feeling pain any more, though I still have to be careful. This is when the injury is most likely to be re-injured, because it feels fine, even though it’s still in a weakened state. So still no grappling, etc. but I’m going to try going for a gentle walk-run work-out on Sunday.

I’ll be so happy when the injury is fully recovered and I can go back to my usual training regime.

Tags: joint injury | M.I.C.E | R.I.C.E

In many martial arts, it is forbidden to punch the face while sparring. In our school, we allow it because you learn a lot from both punching to the face and being punched to the face.

In real self-defense situations, the head is a primary target. If you only ever deal with punches to the head in theory and not in practice, you won’t be at all prepared for what it’s like if you actually get punched in the head.

When I first introduce sparring to orange belts, it’s under very controlled circumstances. Students wear 16-oz boxing gloves and mouth guards and they spar at 10% intensity. Only punches and kicks to the shins are allowed. This gives them the opportunity to focus on one aspect of sparring at a time. At this stage, the most important thing to develop is the guard. When students are only allowed to punch, there are less different types of attacks to be ready for, giving them more opportunity to focus on using the guard to protect themselves from attacks.

The other thing students learn at this stage is mentally dealing with being hit in the head and face. Because it’s new to them, they start out flinching quite a bit, making it hard to defend. Also, when they take that first punch in the face, even though it’s a light one that doesn’t cause damage, it still fazes them and puts them on the defensive. After a few sparring sessions though, this reaction lessens as their mind begins to cope with the state of duress that comes from being hit in the face.

As the attacker, by actually punching to the face while sparring, you learn to do it for real. When you only ever spar stopping your attacks just short of the face, your muscle memory develops to do this naturally. A former student of mine who was a 2nd degree black belt in Taekwondo discovered this in a situation when he was forced to defend himself. He tried to punch his would-be attacker in the face and his punch stopped just short of the guy’s face. Fortunately, the attacker took this to be a show of skilled restraint and decided it wasn’t worth it to get in a fight.

While many people don’t like the idea of punching to the face or being punched to the face, it is an important aspect of self-defense. The key to alleviating students’ fears when it comes to this is starting out in very controlled circumstances then upping the ante gradually as their skills improve.

Tags: sparring

Students who are preparing to go for their green belt in my dojo are introduced to the concept of defending against multiple attackers. These students have usually been training over a year and have become comfortable with the rigors of sparring in a one-on-one context. But it’s always amazing to me how differently they react when thrown into the ring with two attackers for the first time. It’s an entirely different experience.

A number of new factors enter the picture with the introduction of a second attacker due to the high stress nature of the attack. They are as follows:

Time Distortion. If a defender has no experience dealing with combat stress, time appears to pass very quickly when under attack. If a defender has experience training under high stress conditions, however, time seems to pass very slowly. Since our students have already been exposed to one-on-one sparring for a number of months, they have some degree of experience with combat stress, but with two attackers the stress is ramped up and it’s like starting from scratch.

Tunnel Vision. When a person is under attack, she will focus on what she perceives as the principal threat. It is a zoom-lens like effect that is created by the mind, NOT the eyes. When the mind goes into tunnel vision, it’s very easy for multiple attackers to triangulate a victim, making it hard for her to defend. By training in high-stress sparring against multiple attackers, students can learn to keep a broad focus so they stay aware of all the threats that surround them.

Auditory Exclusion. When under the stress of an attack, a person’s hearing can become impaired to varying degrees depending on how much experience he has dealing with such conditions. This impairment can prevent him from hearing things that are happening around him, further impeding his ability to deal with multiple attackers.

All three of these factors can affect a person under attack, whether it’s against one attacker or multiple attackers. But when more than one person is attacking, these factors can make the situation particularly dangerous.

When we do high stress sparring against multiple attackers, we use a number of safety measures to protect both the attackers and defenders. The instructor leading the exercise is equipped with a whistle to ensure immediate halt when she sees a potential safety threat. Certain kinds of attacks are prohibited, including biting, eye gouging, attacks to the knees, back of the head and neck, as well as the spine and kidneys. Extra protective equipment is also used, including boxing helmets, 16-oz boxing gloves, mouth guards, shin guards, groin protectors, and chest protectors.

I was pleased with my students’ performance in their first exposure to two-on-one sparring. Each time they were a defender, they learned something different, whether it was employing pushing and pulling to keep one attacker between the other, trips and sweeps to take an attacker down, or simply using various punches, kicks and strikes as tools to incapacitate their attackers.

Tags: multiple attackers

Hakama are the skirt-like pleated pants worn by higher ranking belts (usually instructors) in more traditional Japanese martial arts schools. They are worn by black belts and sometimes brown belts in Aikido and in some more traditional Jiu-jitsu schools. This seemingly innocuous piece of clothing is an identifiable topic in the ongoing debate of tradition vs. practicality.

The hakama were originally worn by the Samurai. The baggy, flowing material served to protect their legs while riding, but it is also generally accepted that they had the side benefit of disguising their stance and footwork from their opponents. The hakama also have symbolic importance, though I imagine that the significance of the pleats was added after the fact and not when the garment was originally conceived. The five front pleats are said to represent Confucian virtues valued by the Samurai:

Jin – Love and Sympathy
Gi – Truth and Justice
Rei – Courtesy
Chi – Wisdom
Shin – Faith

Nowadays, the dojos that still use hakama generally introduced when a student earns their black belt and/or becomes an instructor. And while I can appreciate their symbolism, I find that hakama interfere with instruction, for the some of the same reasons the Samurai wore them. The pants hide the instructor’s hip and leg movements often making it difficult for students to see the subtleties of their technique. Instructors often have to pull their hakama back so students can see. And you can forget about doing any ground work wearing them. Shihan Michael Seamark (in the above photo) had to remove his when teaching the ground grappling portion of his seminar at the recent Jiu-jitsu BC techincal seminar.

In my dojo, instructors wear black pants to represent the hakama. I feel this is sufficient in that it pays homage to the symbolic representation without impeding my teaching. That being said, my old Karate sensei would wear his hakama for belt gradings and important formal events. I wouldn’t mind introducing the hakama in this capacity. They really convey an air of authority, highlighting the importance of the event.

Tags: hakama

Some of my students are currently preparing for their upcoming belt tests. They are coming in to class early and diligently preparing so they’ll do their best when the time comes.

Here are a few tips for when you do your next belt test:

1) Breathe. When people get nervous, their muscles often tighten up. This includes the muscles that control breathing. As a result, they end up taking shorter breaths, causing them to fatigue more quickly. Try to concentrate on taking longer, smoother breaths.

2) Don’t think, react. If you’ve properly prepared for your test, your body should already know what to do. Like with multiple choice, your first instinct is likely the correct one.

3) Control your speed and power. You don’t need to go a million miles an hour and clobber your uke to show you know what you’re doing. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. You should be able to show quick, but fluid and controlled movements that cause an appropriate amount of discomfort to your uke without injuring them or causing excessive amounts of pain.

4) If you don’t make it, fake it. If for some reason you do the wrong technique for an attack, don’t stop mid-technique or comment on it. Follow it through confidently as if it was exactly what you meant to do. If the examiner asks you to do it again, make the necessary adjustments, but if they don’t comment on the mistake, don’t bring attention to it.

5) Relax! This is by far the most important tip. It’s natural to be a little nervous, and that minor nervousness can even add to your performance, driving you to step up to the plate. But try to relax, stay calm and focused. This will improve every aspect of your performance.

Good luck to all those of you who are getting ready for an upcoming belt test!

Tags: belt test

We like to use medicine ball exercises in our dojo for strength work-outs. One of my favourites is the standing abdominal drop featured in the video above (I’m the one on the floor.) This exercise will not give you the six-pack abs you may or may not be looking for. What it will help you do is take a blow to the gut. Allow me to explain.

The standing abdominal drop exercises the inner abdominal wall, the muscles that surround and protect all the important stuff contained in your belly. When the ball is dropped (or thrown down for a more advanced work-out), the person receiving the ball tenses their abs and breathes out in time with the blow. This not only strengthens the inner abdominal wall but also teaches you how to time the action for maximum protection with minimal effort.

To do this exercise, keep your knees bent and your head off the mat. If you’re wearing a belt, be sure to turn the knot over to the side. Centre your belt on your belly and have your partner aim the ball directly at your belt. Start by having your partner drop the ball from not too high. Most importantly, make sure you breathe out when the ball hits. If you don’t you’ll be get a winding effect that can be rather unpleasant. It doesn’t take very long, but your body does need to get used to the new exercise before you push yourself with higher drops or full-on throws.

The ball I’m using in this video weighs 5.5 kg (12 lbs.) but some people will need to start with a 4 kg ball (9 lbs.) or lighter. Be sure to use a ball that is leather bound, or at least bound with something soft. Rubber balls are too solid and will localize the blow too much in one spot. You want the blow to distribute over a wider surface.

In Can-Ryu Jiu-jitsu, we always practice self-defense combinations using light contact (5-10%) on nerve motor and pressure points. This includes blows to the solar plexus. And while a strong, well-aimed blow to the solar plexus will still have an effect even if you do have a strong inner abdominal wall, this exercise definitely helps minimize the effects.

Tags: abdominal drop | medicine ball | motor points