Saturday

Remembering who I am is the only thing I really need, but it is a never-ending task, because forgetting is very easy and equally easy is not realizing I have forgotten. Maybe our ideas, words and opinions remain the same, but inside a light fades. We are still who we are, but just a little less intense, less passionate, less alive, less of the person we can be. When this happens, what we need is to go through an experience that turns the switch back on. -Daniele Bolelli, On The Warrior’s Path

Saturday no-gi at Sleeper.  I did indeed seem to have a better class today for having rested. As much as I like Friday and saturday lunchtime class at GB, and Friday and Saturday evening class at Sleeper- I think the timing of trying to do all four is just leaving me scraping the bottom of the barrel (physically, mentally, emotionally) every time I get over to Sleeper. I think I might train more effectively if I just pick one class on Saturday and one on Sunday.

You are in opponent's closed guard. Make L's out of your hands and socket them in opponent's armpits. Place forehead on opponent's belly button. Stretch arms and back. Stand up. Crouch back down (posturing up) with one knee up in the hole you have just created. Break guard and pass to the side *OPPOSITE* the one with with the knee up. Make sure to get the underhook. Side control.

Same opening, except after you break guard, back out. (Note: when backing out, keep the feet wide apart so that opponent can't sit up and capture both of your feet.) Sidle back in with the rt toe in front. Grab opponent's rt foot near the toes with your left hand. Dive outside hir rt hip (rolling on the shoulder closest to hir head). You want to catch opponent's left knee with your rt leg as you go over. Once on your back, figure-4 your legs around opponent's left leg to keep it out of your way. Now you can do a figure-4 on hir rt shin and brace on it while you use that toe hold to bend the ankle TOWARD the big toe. The pain should be in the ankle. (Note- tap early with this one, as it is one of those subs that doesn't hurt until it's almost too late)

You are standing, opponent sits up and threatens one of your legs. Step backward and swing your butt towards hir, and squat down right beside her with your arm around hir neck and palm over the ear. Sit back and apply Shoulder Of Justice. You have your other arm and both legs to keep opponent's near leg in the air. As long as that near leg is in the air and you have good shoulder going, that person ain't getting out nohow. You can leisurely jack hir far arm up and try to pin it with the same hand you have around hir neck, then kick your legs free and take side control. Cindy does this to me ALL THE TIME. I never want to sit up and threaten her leg while standing- because the next thing I see is her butt coming at me, and then I'm tied in a knot and tapping.

Rolls with all three of the men who were present. I got tapped a few times, and I didn't get any taps, but I still feel reasonably okay about my performance (esp as it's no-gi, my weaker aspect). I did a bit of guard playing with one guy (I'm trying, Carlos).  I'm just trying to get out of the mentality of feeling defeatist in that position.


At one point, one of the guys trapped my arm between his legs while I was in top side control, and then tried to stuff my head down there. I said, "Oh no you don't... Jalen's gotten me with that one too many times." The guy said, "Oh my GOD!" and we both started cracking up and commiserating about suffering some of Jalen's more painful favorites.

 I really need to perfect a non-gi choke from front mount. Or better yet, a couple of effective options. I can't really muscle these men into keylocks, and I keep trying to do forearm chokes (one in front and one behind) and not succeeding. When I try to cross-collar in gi, I often can't get deep enough to finish before they buck me off.