Boxing Journey

Discussion in 'Training Logs' started by Ero-Sennin, Jan 7, 2013.

  1. David Harrison

    David Harrison MAPper without portfolio

    I bet it will be an interesting exercise for you to read over your posts a few years down the line.
     
  2. Sandninjer

    Sandninjer Valued Member

    Even though you threatened to call the cops on me in an old thread, I'm going to give you credit where it's due. This was a good read and some times I wish I was still boxing. After doing it for 3 years, part of it on and off, I wanted to move onto something different since I didn't have the time to enter amateurs and make it a full-time job.

    As far as instruction, I started an intramural club for boxing at NOVA, Annandale campus, for a semester. Best turn out was around 13 or so people, both male and female. It ended up turning into me showing people the basics, doing mitt work, jump roping, jogging, basic cardio, and I did a few rounds of "high pressure" sparring with a few guys that wanted to test me. Made friends with one of em afterward though. Wouldn't necessarily say I qualify for having actual instruction experience, but I will say this: it felt good seeing people improve.
     
  3. Ero-Sennin

    Ero-Sennin Well-Known Member Supporter

    Staying Fresh

    Staying Fresh

    Probably the biggest hurdle I had to overcome in sparring, and probably the same hurdle I'll have to cross when I start competing, is staying relaxed in a sport where somebody is trying to hurt you. Being tense and jittery is absolutely horrible for your endurance in the ring and it was a major cause of my lack of success when I started boxing. I haven't met anyone who started any combative sport who didn't have to overcome this to continue to develop and simply relaxing while fighting is a constant battle no matter how much sparring or fighting in competition you've done. It's not easy keeping your composure when you walk into a punch that rocks your world and cuts your vision off for a split second.

    Relaxing is one key to success, but being tense and overly defensive isn't the only thing that kills your endurance while fighting. When you're in there with another person, you're going at it with each other and everything from quick foot work, counter punches, and flurries will sap you of your energy and at some point will cause so much fatigue you're pretty near defenseless. This will happen to you even if you are relaxed and it's a major reason why you put in those endless hours of conditioning. One, three minute round of sparring is easy, doing that for consecutive rounds, or in a competition . . . that's a different beast and you have to be prepared.

    While relaxation and conditioning will definitely help you fight off fatigue there are also some tactics involved that can help you stay fresh, regain composure and even set you up to unload on your opponent and start putting some dents in their willpower to hurt you. The focus of this post will be three different tactics that I have learned and have had great success with sparring both novice and experienced people.

    Drop Your Hands

    That's right, drop your hands. Don't cover your face to defend, let them hang. Heck, shake them out a little if you want to. Keeping your hands up is absolutely vital for defense in boxing, but once you learn about distancing you learn when you can get hit and when your opponent is too far away to hit you. When he's too far away to hit you, put your hands down.

    I don't mean to say take yourself out of the fight. You're still in the ring and you still need to be cautious, aware, and ready to react. However, if you feel the grips of fatigue setting in because you've been pounding away and taking damage you can easily just skip back a step out of range and drop your hands to help regain some energy. Footwork and learning to work the ring also come into play here. While your hands are down you need to keep out of striking range from your opponent. You also shouldn't show that you're tired or start running away as these are key hints that you're feeling some fatigue and a more experienced Boxer will know this (he experiences all the same things you do) and get the idea to start stalking you and unloading some serious shots on you.

    This tactic works pretty well, especially if you've had the upper hand in the last few exchanges. A guy who just got a few punches to the face isn't usually eager to rush in on somebody who has been getting the best of him and he may also take your retreat out of punching range as a set up for another exchange. I've found that focusing on foot work and ring movement isn't as important when a situation like this is playing out, but if you were on the other end and were the one who's pride was being picked apart you definitely need to move around to make sure you're not wasting the endurance you have left by taking unneeded shots to a weakened defense. You lose less energy moving with your hands down out of punching range then you do moving around out of punching range with your defensive posture at 100%.

    Set Up To Counter Punch

    This tactic is something I wasn't really taught but have fumbled my way into using and adapting as an actual Boxing strategy of mine. It pretty much involves keeping your defensive posture but you don't move anywhere, you just stand there. To do this there are a couple things I've found that are necessary to have done before you start utilizing this as a strategy because more often then not you will actually have to counterpunch against your opponent.

    Realizing the punches your opponent likes to use to initiate an exchange is essential to using this strategy. You counterpunch a lot better when you have a good idea what's coming. If you've been in a few intense exchanges, or have had to deflect or fight off a couple attacks (or lets be real, got hit with a couple of those attacks) over the duration of a round or two then I've found this strategy to be worth doing. Stopping all your movement in the ring and planting your feet will only last a few moments but those few moments can be vital for you to remain fresh and active. It can also put a wrench in the rhythm of your opponent, especially if the flow of the fight has involved a lot of moving around.

    Another situation I use this strategy is when I know I've been getting the better of my opponent. Getting the better of your opponent also usually means you've been expending a bit of energy to do so. I've found simply stopping and planting my feet to cause somebody I've bested to either take advantage of my lack of movement and back off, or be hesitant because it looks like I'm setting them up. I've experienced other people more experienced them me do this as well and I have both taken the advantage to move away or be overly cautious in coming in as well.

    Those are the two situations I use this strategy and sometimes it doesn't work well against a more aggressive, experienced opponent who will take advantage of your lack of movement and you end up counter punching more often then resting. However I've found this technique to work for me more often then not to regain some needed energy to continue a round.

    Absorb Some Punches

    Recently I purchased some one on one sessions with the boxing coach at my gym and this is a tactic I have been recently taught and am already using a lot in the ring with a lot of success. The keys to knowing how to absorb punches in a way you can regain stamina is relaxing and knowing what range you're at and the punches that can hit you.

    The basics are simple, put your arms in front of your face and crunch down a little bit so you can easily drop a little to block possible body shots. Stay within a distance you can only be hit with straight punches, relax, breathe, let your opponent waste his energy punching your arms and regain some stamina. You can even taunt your opponent doing this by walking towards him if he isn't willing to commit to closing enough distance to throw hooks. Be weary of using this technique if you're not good enough to be constantly aware of what punching range your in though as hands in front of the face means hands are not on the side of your head leaving it open for hooks.

    My favorite thing about doing this is that it shows you're not scared to stay within punching range (which can cause discomfort in your opponent), keeps you from wasting energy by having to move around the ring a lot to avoid taking hits, and if your opponent buys into wailing away at your arms he wastes his own energy while you're nice and safe behind your hands (leaving an awesome opportunity to unload the stamina you just regained on your opponent who just depleted his own stamina).

    Using this technique to regain stamina takes a high level of comfort with being hit and I honestly wouldn't try to teach this to somebody who is just starting out and the very motion of a hand or shoulder strikes the anxiety of being hit into their soul. To be absolutely honest I don't think I could have maintained enough composure or confidence to use this technique when I started. It has found its way into my tool box and has given me another method of regaining stamina and it's something I would definitely mention to somebody who's looking for a few different tactics to help regain composure in the ring.

    Recap

    Staying fresh while boxing is extremely important to maintain your ability to attack as well as defends. You can't maintain a brawl fest without refreshing yourself momentarily. While I think the three boxing tactics I've explained in this post that I use regularly are great, I'm sure there are a number of other methods that can be used (beyond just grabbing the other guy so he can't hit you, that helps you regain some stamina too) and I don't claim to know or even use them. So far these are the three things I use most often and have found great success with. As always, if you have any input on the subject or criticism feel free to comment! If you made it to this part of the post congratulations! And I appreciate you reading it being it was so long.
     
    Last edited: Jan 16, 2013
  4. Ero-Sennin

    Ero-Sennin Well-Known Member Supporter

    That's actually one of the reasons I'm writing all of this stuff down, as well as my actual training log! I'm sure I'll look back and think, "wow, if I only knew then what I know now!" That's the goal anyways, just have to keep with it.

    However, if I do start Boxing seriously (meaning I go beyond amateur fighting to a professional level in the future) I am essentially writing out how I train, what I think about, and how I do things for my future opponents to take advantage of! :p
     
  5. Ero-Sennin

    Ero-Sennin Well-Known Member Supporter

    I remember that thread! I didn't mean to come across as "I'm going to call the cops" but rather that putting as much detail as you did probably wasn't a good idea! At least that was what I was thinking, I may very well have come across in a way that made it sound like I was actually going to call the cops and I apologize if I did. Hope you don't harbor too much hate for me, I had already forgotten about all that and every time I see you post and see you're from Delaware I think about trying to get a bunch of MAPers in the area for a get together or something!

    Watching people get better, especially when you have a hand in it is awesome. The other night I got to watch one of the guys I've had to really hound on to get in the ring spar against other people. He's got a lot of anxiety about getting in the ring and you can really see it when he's in there. For a couple months he would only really spar with me under set conditions and I kept showing him some different things to do and kept talking him into getting sparring in with me. The other night was probably the first night he went in to spar with other people and he did really well, I would even say he won a couple of the rounds. Made me feel that spending time with other people really does help benefit others as well as upping the level of sparring partners with decent skill in the gym. Hopefully I can get a job doing it at some point once I'm competing : P.
     
  6. Sandninjer

    Sandninjer Valued Member

    Actually, you know, I am kind of glad you said that because that was one of the rare times I actually took an e-argument personally. I never had someone threaten to call the cops on me (online). As far as the details, since you're in the Georgetown area, you've probably seen multiple brawls at the lounges and clubs if you've been out at that time of the night. Heck, there's probably at least one in every single spot in DC every weekend night. But moreover, I also knew that my actions were completely justified and in self-defense so I wasn't afraid of any of the repercussions. But ANYWAY! I appreciate it man.

    As for a MAP meet, I'd definitely be down assuming my schedule would allow me.

    So are you trying to go amateur yourself or train an amateur fighter? Some times I regret not trying to fight amateur myself but in the end, it just wasn't the best path for me.
     
    Last edited: Jan 16, 2013
  7. Ero-Sennin

    Ero-Sennin Well-Known Member Supporter

    Heck yeah man! I'm sure more then a few people would be interested, maybe one of us can get our gym involved to let us use a facility. Schedules are definitely going to have to be synched though, we all have those pesky "real lives" to deal with and all : P.

    I would like to do more then just amateur fighting. The gym I'm at is new and is trying to go about starting an amateur program in a good way and Feb-March has been mentioned. If the gym doesn't get up to competing by summer time I'll probably leave to find a gym I can compete out of but I don't think that's going to happen. I at least want to compete in amateur fighting because my other goal is to make a profession out of training combat athletes in some way. I'm starting school up this month and am majoring in Kinesiology so I can get some of the "gold standard" (PT) trainer certifications in the future.

    Right now I'm trying to get good at boxing, help the people I can along the way to get some experience teaching, and getting in to competing while I'm working on the long term education goal, maybe even working at the gym I go to at some point. The fighting bit will help me out in the future to go along with the education on a resume for what I want to do, and by a long shot (especially since I'm getting pretty old) if I can start fighting professionally at some point and be successful in a few years that would be great.

    I definitely want fighting to be a focus on a future career in some way whether it be fighting, doing physical therapy for fighters, training them, anything. Coming out of the military has put me in a bit of a situation being that I'm so old to really get on this path, but I've also found myself in a financial situation that will allow me to work on it without worrying and I definitely have the passion and discipline to continue with it. I'll probably end up as a car salesman though : P. Just have to see what life brings me.
     
    Last edited: Jan 17, 2013
  8. David Harrison

    David Harrison MAPper without portfolio

    Old schmold.

    I'm a young man of 32 and still feel like I have the world at my feet!
     
  9. Sandninjer

    Sandninjer Valued Member

    Wish you the best of luck with that, that's really exciting. You have a good amount of it planned out which is far more than most fighters do when they say they wanna get in the ring and just fight competition. Regardless of whatever your age may be, just remember Sergio Martinez ;) Started his professional boxing career at like 25 I think? Rather, he started his entire boxign career as a professional with no amateur experience if I'm not mistaken. As far as ending up as a car salesman, LOL! That made me actually laugh. Well, hope not, I've been there and while I actually enjoyed it, the hours sucked. But any way, since you've served in the military and you're going to school, why not get into criminal justice and get into some kinda law enforcement? FBI, DHS, heck maybe even CIA. You could still start up a boxing gym and coach people. Any way, lots of ideas there, but good luck.

    If something ends up happening with a meet, let me know! I just got back from visiting family in VA again over the weekend. I wouldn't mind trying to set something up but I don't know the others on the forum enough to not make it awkward sending out invites.
     
  10. Ero-Sennin

    Ero-Sennin Well-Known Member Supporter

    What a good body shot feels like

    What a good body shot feels like.


    We have a newcomer to the sparring culture at the gym. By newcomer I mean new to the gym and hopping in to spar, not new to Boxing. He's a 275lb monster. He's got noticeable fat on him, but he also has noticeable muscle as well and he's around 6'2". He's also fast as hell and a technical boxer. The only thing that has probably saved me in a couple sparring situations with him is my conditioning since he's trying to get back into shape which shortens up the amount of flurries and hard punches, or chasing me down : P. I've gotten a lot of work with him recently and he's been helping tweak my game, just in time too since our gym is getting ready to start competing at the amateur level. We'll call him Skoal for the sake of reference. Aside from a few footwork and counter punching issues, the best lesson I've gotten from Skoal is learning how to take a hit. Currently I would put my weight around 210-215lbs so he has me by a good 60lbs in weight. The difference in the force produced from that extra weight vs. other sparring partners of similar or less weight is extremely significant, especially when it is mixed with skill.

    I've always wondered what a good body shot felt like. It's one of the questions I ask the people I'm sparring with to recap with me after we go at it, "were my body shots connecting? Are they solid?" I know what it's like to take a hard shot to the head, but between my preferred use of the Philly Shell and being a big guy, I haven't really experienced any real stopping power, or punches that make you think twice about staying in the clinch with somebody when the body is concerned. Skoal enlightened me.

    I'm sharing this story because I often wondered what it feels like to get hit hard. Hard enough to lift you up and think "holy crap." I'm glad I won't be experiencing this type of punch for the first time while competing, because you definitely have to have some mental discipline and fortitude to conceal the pain and keep on fighting through a devastating punch to the body. So, for the knowledge of what a good body shot feels like to anyone wondering, and comedic content, I feel like sharing the experience.

    There have been two body shots I remember specifically. While I have suffered more then just these two sparring with Skoal, these ones lifted me off my feet and I'm assuming my eyes bulged out of my head taking the size of dinner plates (that's what it felt like anyways). One was to my center line just above the sternum, the other to the upper left portion of my rib cage. The one to the center-line basically felt like I swallowed my throat. I had just thrown a cross from the Philly Shell stance and on my way back to centering my position Skoal threw a monstrous hybrid lead hook uppercut right into my chest. It lifted me off the ground, caved my body in and like I said, it made me feel like I swallowed my throat. The feeling didn't shake right away either, it took the rest of the round (about 1 min) to not affect me anymore. For anyone reading this that has done wrestling, it basically felt like somebody just did a beautiful double leg takedown on me and landed with the full force of their body on one point of my chest with their shoulder, only x2 (and yes, I've experienced the receiving end of what I just described).

    Now, the second shot I remember was a lot different. If you've ever watched those "fight science" videos where they show a simulation of somebody getting hit and the red shockwave crap goes through their body, that's what happened in my head on impact. I got hit, and for some reason saw that in my mind's eye. I don't recall what lack of technique and skill I had to warrant the punch to the ribs, but I sure as hell remember what it felt like and that it was a right hook. Thank god I was breathing out when I got hit, because Skoal's punch decided my lungs didn't need to be filled with air anymore on impact. I could almost swear I could feel my ribs compress as well, but who knows because in my short moments of being lifted off the ground again all I saw was white.

    In both of these punches, the agonizing pain of a No0b in any martial arts experiences when getting hit in the solar plexus (that gasping, can't breathe feeling) was present for a few moments even though the punches I'm recalling didn't land there. It really blew my mind what a good body shot felt like to be honest, and I'm a bit proud I was able to work through it and keep going like nothing happened (in my outward expression anyways, I was in agony in my mind).

    I know it sounds crazy, considering taking hits like this to be a good thing. You're going to get hit in Boxing though, it's part of the game and you can't avoid everything. Thankfully my breathing, conditioning, and ability to move (up in the air in this case!) with punches prevented injury and let me fight through it. 6 months ago I probably wouldn't have been able to take that kind of hit, so I see it as a marker of toughness that will be necessary for competition.

    Anyways, just wanted to start writing in this thread again since I've had a lack of time to really sit down and write anything in it. Thought I would start it back off with a failure that measures a kind of success, and a new experience for me :p
     
    Last edited: Apr 30, 2013
  11. Ero-Sennin

    Ero-Sennin Well-Known Member Supporter

    Shadow Boxing

    Shadow Boxing

    Go into any gym or deadly internet warrior Boxing forum and you will find no shortage of people proclaiming the importance of shadow boxing. Things like, "it helps you refine your technique!" and "So and so used to shadow box 7billion rounds a week!" will often be barked at you to prove its importance. The thing that ticks me off about all this emphasis about why you should shadow box is that you'll rarely come across somebody who will actually tell you (or know) why it's important for developing your technique, or why getting ample amounts of it in your training is a must.

    I mean seriously, if you think about it what does shadow boxing offer you that more interesting forms of exercise or training doesn't? You throw punches and work on footwork with the heavy bag (and you get to hit something), you do the same on the double end bag, and you need to jump rope for footwork and get actual sparring in, so why not do things involving more impact that will help you develop a stronger punch or accuracy, or "real fighting skill"?

    A lot of people I've met with an opinion on shadow boxing really don't understand the importance of it, and while the "technique refining" and "the pros do a lot of it" opinions are thrown out without any thought about the subject, it is still lacking on the how it improves technique and the why.

    So let's start out with how shadow boxing helps your technique out. Imagine for a second that you're wailing a heavy bag. You're doing great, really laying into it imagining that last argument you had with your girlfriend or wife or boss (or boyfriend or husband : P). You're grunting on every impact, watching the bag swing from the wrath of force you're generating and on its swing back you're counter punching the crap out of it. Good job rambo. What most people don't realize about bag work when it becomes the bulk of their workout, is that you start punching for a heavy bag. You know there is going to be an impact, you know you can throw with such force that if you missed you would snap your elbow but you don't, because the impact of the bag stops you.

    If you're familiar with an overhand right and the way your shoulder has to roll to throw it, go ahead and get up and throw one right now. Then recall when you threw one at the heavy bag. Now throw that overhand right as hard as you would on the heavy bag. Feel the tension on the shoulder? I don't know about you, but that's not present for me when hitting a heavy bag because the recoil stabilizing the angle my shoulder takes when throwing it. I can't throw the overhand right in shadow boxing like I can on the bag, I can't overcommit either. I actually have to throw it correctly or I'll snap my crap up. Since all of our body's are pretty similar to each other I'm guessing if you got up and tried that it was the same for you.

    That doesn't just apply to the overhand right though, personally that's just the one I notice the biggest difference between shadow boxing and bag work. It's the same for all punches. Go ahead and over-extend yourself, or throw a punch with such force that impact on an object is the only thing that will save you from injury during shadow boxing and see if you don't hurt yourself. Shadow boxing forces you to do things correctly whether you're going slow or fast, and you need to develop that awareness for when you throw a punch that just might not make contact with your opponent. It's not like a guy is just standing there for you to punch him. Shadow boxing affords you the opportunity to throw your punches with correct form (and you can get a brutal workout shadow boxing, as well as throw hard, clean punches) in a way to counter habits created through bag work, and give you the balance of learning what impact feels like (bag work) vs. recovering from a punch that doesn't land but is still thrown with full force.

    I can't stress how important being able to throw a punch correctly with full force without hitting something is. It's the unfortunate other half of sparring, where you miss your opponent and have to recover or follow with another punch. You can't get that on the bag and honestly, that type of awareness and ability is far more important then being able to hit something with all your power and force. Strangely enough, because you develop the actual technique without hitting something, it transfers over to sparring and bag work in a way that makes you hit harder, react faster, and engage in attacks or defense in different ways as well since you're working on your skill set from a different angle with a huge emphasis on technique.

    Shadow boxing is certainly a staple for learning how to throw technique for punching correctly, and gives you the ability to adjust in the ring when you miss your opponent and not overextend or hurt yourself when throwing punches. If you're not doing a lot of it, you should be!
     
  12. Ero-Sennin

    Ero-Sennin Well-Known Member Supporter

    Cruising through youtube watching some boxing stuff to maybe find something I can work on and came across this. Beautiful work and some awesome set ups/use of the jab by the one in blue, great reactions and hook combos by the other. It's amazing some of the stuff you can find that's not in the mainstream.

    [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_88t_n19iic"]Stacey "stayLo" vs Killa Kim (round 4 sparring) - YouTube[/ame]


    And here is what superior skill looks like going light on their sparring partner (hint, superior skill isn't the male)
    [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=np1O8eakEXg"]World Champion 'stayLo' spars at South Florida Boxing (1) - YouTube[/ame]
     
    Last edited: May 6, 2013
  13. Simon

    Simon Administrator Admin Supporter MAP 2017 Koyo Award

    Nice videos.

    I'm a real fan of sparring with the amount of power shown in the second video. Everyone gets to go home safely, but you can learn so much.
    You get that extra second to work your timing, footwork and combinations without having to worry about getting sat on your backside.

    First video. Nice, but watch that rear foot coming off the ground, blue.

    Thanks for posting.
     
  14. Ero-Sennin

    Ero-Sennin Well-Known Member Supporter

    Bam! Just noticed the gym posted a video of me sparring. This video is a few months old and I've dropped a lot of weight since, and my Philly Shell doesn't look as lazy : P. To put the video into context, the guy I'm sparring is clearly way smaller then me. I worked a lot harder due to a situation that happened previously to me sparring him where the guy I was sparring went really hard against another member of the gym after he asked to go light. Kind of rubbed me the wrong way. I was informed the guy I am sparring the video didn't quite know how to spar lightly yet afterwards, so I felt kind of bad.

    Things I was working: Keeping distance and speed. Wasn't really trying to throw a lot of power and you can clearly see when I did (especially with the jab) because he flies into the ropes : P.

    Things I saw wrong: Sloppy Philly Shell. While I did shoulder roll a few crosses it could have been a lot cleaner and somebody knowing how to counter would take advantage of the sloppiness. I also think I looked a bit sloppy altogether, flaring my strong side elbow out whenever I threw the jab. Some of the leaning forward is intentional to try and bait, but I noticed myself doing it at other times where it's just bad form.

    Anyways, critique is welcomed.


    [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Vnnl8PdR0U"]Sparring time 40 - YouTube[/ame]
     
  15. David Harrison

    David Harrison MAPper without portfolio

    You have a really good sense of timing with your intercepting jabs. You shut him down every time he tried to close in. I couldn't help thinking that you had many opportunities to throw a power shot following some of those awesome jabs, but maybe that was because it was light(er) sparring?

    You did slow down and drop your guard as you (appeared to) get tired.

    I also felt a bit sorry for the guy when you clinched - if your arms weren't 3 times the size of his he might have actually got a body shot or two in.
     
  16. David Harrison

    David Harrison MAPper without portfolio

    ...that was the critique bit. :)

    I was impressed at how you moved and pre-empted him. And for me it bears repeating: excellent timing/targetting/distance with those jabs. It looked to me that you clearly out-boxed (if that's even a word?) him.
     
  17. Ero-Sennin

    Ero-Sennin Well-Known Member Supporter

    I like to think my jab is pretty decent : P. It saves me a lot, against sparring partners my size too although if the guy has more reach it obviously becomes a lot more difficult. Wasn't really trying to throw power too much and a lot was me skirting the outside, so there were definitely some areas lacking as far as complete boxing goes. I'm pretty sure I was tired which caused me to slow up, fatigue always being a weakness to work on.

    This wasn't the best video to put up because of the size difference and the clear advantage that brings. It's the only vid. of me on the gym's youtube though and I've been wanting to post something up for a while now, just haven't had a camera around. A permanent camera did just get installed on the ring though and I definitely want to watch film of myself to tweak my game since I should be competing June 1st, so I'll definitely be posting more sparring. I'll probably be my harshest critic, but it'll also be nice to get a different perspective from people on MAP too.
     
  18. Simon

    Simon Administrator Admin Supporter MAP 2017 Koyo Award

    Nice and props for posting.

    I don't want to be critical. I'm a big fan of people posting their videos and want to be supportive, but if I was your corner man I'd want you to circle away from your opponents rear cross.

    Either circle away from the rear cross, or hit and angle off.

    As a martial artist I found out the hard way what happens when you spar a boxer and don't angle off. I soon studied boxing.

    Bob Breen posted a really simple clip this week about taking away one of your opponents weapons, just by angling off.

    Simple, you already know this, but worth a mention all the same.

    [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeVhm5-LI_M"]EP #01 - 420 strategy (Combat Essentials) - YouTube[/ame]
     
  19. Ero-Sennin

    Ero-Sennin Well-Known Member Supporter

    Feel free to criticize away! What you suggested is actually one of the things I've been working on the last couple months! That and making it natural to come back with a punch after dipping/weaving, and setting up/working from angles. Your advice is spot on! The finer parts of footwork mostly. The biggest thing for me lately is taking just a slight side step to throw the other guys rhythm off and make him miss, very subtle and hard to focus on currently. Great video as well, although I had to watch it a few times just to sift through the accent to hear what he was saying :p.

    Again, I'm open to any criticism from anyone. Any other video I post up will be more current, and I'll do my part to make sure I'm describing the context for the rounds if I can. That way if I'm working on just the jab and movement or defending it'll be clearly stated and people don't have to sit there wondering why the heck I'm not throwing any other punches or no punches at all : P.
     
  20. Ero-Sennin

    Ero-Sennin Well-Known Member Supporter

    Two rounds sparring with the coach.

    Situation: This sparring is after a 30 minute run and 30 minutes of shadowboxing/bag/rope work. Was pretty spent by the time we started, sparring partner is fresh. It's just general sparring, not trying to do anything specific but on the later half of the second round I started to work rolling off to the side and countering when sparring partner attacks. It was successful a couple of times until sparring partner caught on.

    Other then some sloppy footwork and a need to be overall more kinetic (prior conditioning contributing) I was happy with the sparring. I took a lot from it as far as the mental game goes and while I don't feel I did great I walked away having learned and practiced a couple of different things.

    Feel free to critique, it's what I'm posting it for.

    [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ib9fm1zikiY"]tireorangeD - YouTube[/ame]
     
    Last edited by a moderator: May 18, 2013

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