Tuesday 27 October 2009

Bob Breen Academy - 27.10.09

Hey Guys

This week we covered the last section for the moment on close range single stick training. There are 2 videos below. The first covers the techniques I taught the main class today whilst the second video covers the techniques I taught the Black Belts

In the main class we concentrated on locks and takedowns with the stick:

1. From the angle one strike with the punio, roll your left arm and underhook their stick arm. Simultaneously you use your stick to attack the eye and then rest your stick on their straight arm bring them to the floor. From there, knee their deltoid with you left leg then use your straight leg to spin their body around

2. From the angle one strike, you cover it in the normal way. You then conduct the lifting movement and move their stick arm to the right side of your body. You then use your left forearm to extend their arm and put them on the floor. Pin them on the floor with your knee

3. As per no 2 but instead you set up the armpit take down with the punch to the head (see video)

4. Here, you set up the V arm lock using your stick. As you pull them into you, you are able to choke them, take them down or use the lever motion to crank them to the floor




Black Belts


In this section we concentrated on timing and how to 'beat' their angle 1 strike with a 4 count counter strike sequence. We also did a similar thing to the angle 2/ backhand strike whereby we countered the strike with your stick, stab them in the stomach and move to the vine disarm.

This needs to be drilled alone and within Hubud to get the timing.

Enjoy guys!




Friday 23 October 2009

Walter "Broca" Jnr - BJJ Seminar - 11th October 2009 @ London Fight Factory


Hey Guys

A bit late in reporting on this but in truth I was waiting for a photo of the seminar.

On the 11th October The London Fight Factory hosted a BJJ seminar with UFC Champ Lyota Machida's BJJ coach.

It was a well attended seminar with a good range of belts attending. He taught a variety of techniques from guard and half guard. Not to forget the trademark position of his teacher, the De La Riva Guard.

Everyone got something from it and I must say he is a real friendly guy with no ego

Here are some of his accolades:


3rd Degree BJJ Black Belt & No-Gi Champion

BJJ Coach of UFC Light Heavy Weight Champion Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida
BJJ:
2x Black Belt Mundial World Champion
2x Black Belt Mundial Silver Medalist
2x Black Belt Brazilian Nationals Winner
6x North & North East Champion
No-Gi:
3x Brazilian Nationals Champion
MMA:
Professional Record with 11 Wins
ALL via Submission

Wednesday 21 October 2009

BJJ - Technique(s) of the month - October 2009

Hi Guys,

Welcome to the 1st BJJ training video to be posted on a monthly basis. There is a lot of instructional information out there now in the form of you tube, dvds, books etc.

The purpose of these videos is to help supplement the training that I am giving to those who I train with. It is not about posting the 'latest' technique out there because there are much better places than here to find them.

My goal is to see all round improvement for my student, friends and training partners as well as myself and that means sharing what you have in an unselfish way.

Whilst I hope the video speaks for itself, this is what I cover:

Grip

Only one grip is covered here from the guard position. Here, my right hand has the deep cross collar control, whilst my left hand controls their left facing arm at the tricep. Using this grip I perform the following

Techniques

  1. Simple/scissors sweep
  2. Arm bar
  3. X choke with over grip - palm facing down
  4. Failed or fake simple sweep attack into arm bar
  5. Failed or fake arm bar attack into X choke with over grip


Feel free as always to comment, and thanks to Steve for taking time 'out of the dark' to help me demo. Also to Top Osteopath Savash Mustafa for holding the cam :)

'Intelligent combat'

Guro Jun De Leon - Filipino Martial Arts Master

(Guro Romelle, me and Guro Jun - Canada - August 2007))


I would like to introduce you to one of my Filipino Martial arts teachers Guro Jun DeLeon. I first met him about 5 years ago on one of my regular trips to Canada. My first exposure to his style came through one of his leading BLACK SARONG students Desmond Watson.

I am fortunate to be counted as one of Guro's students even though I do not get to train with him as much as I would like to for obvious reasons.

His style is one of the best I have come across, and certainly has the most effective use of the double stick that I have seen.

Below is a link to a video demo of his style from his site and I hope you enjoy it. It is my future goal to bring him to the UK for a seminar.

Profile

Kali deLeon (KDL) is a Filipino Martial Art based on the creative but disciplined use of various weapons including, -- but not limited to, sticks, knives, improvised weapons and empty-hand techniques. More than that, KDL is the melding of battle tested traditional techniques with modern teaching methodologies. KDL offers a complete curriculum built upon progressive skills development that has been shown to both quickly advance and deeply inspire each and every KDL student. Guro Jun deLeon , the founder and chief instructor of KDL, has always been selective about whom he allows to be his students. Starting from humble beginnings where only a few chosen friends and family were taught, Guro Jun decided go public with his teachings to a wider audience. He did this for two reasons: first, he wanted to promote the arts and culture of his Philippine homeland to Canadians and especially Filipino-Canadian youth who may have been truncated from their own culture, and: secondly, he wanted to give back to the country that had accepted him. Guro Jun wanted to show Filipino Martial Arts in a modern perspective with relevance to today’s world. Beyond its obvious applications in self-defense and combat, Guro Jun wanted to teach it as an art form that developed not just the physical body but also the spiritual being. He did this by connecting today’s practitioner to the sacrifices of those who came before and build upon that tradition, history and culture. Guro Jun welcomes those who wish to join him in promoting and developing the Filipino Martial Arts.Despite world-wide recognition for his accomplishments as a teacher and martial artists, Guro Jun maintains that he is a student first and a teacher second. KDL is a dynamic art with an ever developing curriculum because Guro Jun continues to learn from and develop new approaches. The KDL of today is not the KDL of a decade ago, nor will it be the KDL a decade from now. It is because of this that the standards remain high and the curriculum stays relevant. Guro Jun is assisted in this task by Guro Romelle Espiritu, his senior student. Guro Romelle offers perspective, insight and expertise from his experiences not only as an accomplished martial artist but also from his background in sports sciences.

http://www.kalideleon.com/gallery/teaching_worldwide.htm




Bob Breen Academy - 20.10.09












Stick Training - Bob Breen Academy - Tuesday 20th October 2009



Another packed class yesterday. Great fun and a good atmosphere. Above is a picture of those who trained and a video summary of some of the stuff we did.


This week, we continued with close range stick training from Hubud, but looked at trapping possibilities. Here is what we did:




  1. 1 for 1 basic from pary parry series

  2. 2 for 2 basic from parry parry series

  3. Using the pak/tapi entry in to angle 2 strike to the head, your partner counters with a centreline parry. You then use your left hand to trap their countering hand and punch them in the mouth with your stick hand like a cross

  4. As above instead of punching them in the mouth, you gunting their left arm with your punio whilst moving to your left

  5. As above except when you punch them in the mouth, you hit them from angle 1 with a hammer type or straight blast punch

  6. Using the same attack entry, your partner counters your strike with an over centreline parry. This time you react with a lap sau type movement (berehon) pulling their parrying hand to your left and then striking them to the face with the centre of your stick OR with the punio.
  7. Finally, following on from no 6, after the strike to the face with the centre of the stick, place your stick on the left facing side of their head, use your left hand and pull them to your left and then put the choke on (see video)

As I explained in class, these drills are to help you with timing for attacks and responses to attacks. They will also help to enhance your sensitivity when determining the correct attack and response. There is no substitute for drilling, becuase even if you are aware the technique exists, if you cannot actually perform it in training it will certainly never materialise in actual combat or sparring.


The video clip should help you to put things into perspective.


If you have any questions, feel free to comment and I will respond ASAP.


Enjoy!

Monday 19 October 2009

Feeling old? Monday morning blues? Here is your inspiration

In the office......cold.....body aches.....no longer 22 years old.

And then I cast my mind to one of my Martial arts mentors and teachers Guro Dan Inosanto who in his early 70s trains harder and longer than I do every day.

Here is a link to an old video of Guro training with my first BJJ teacher John Machado. John gave me my blue belt in 1999.

This video was shot in 2007 and I believe Guro had just turned 70.

I think I just persuade myself to stop whining!! Have a great day





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZKNlYBCkO0

Thursday 15 October 2009

Dating in the Dark!!




Steve Payne is a good friend, student and fellow member of the Bob Breen Academy.


He is a talented and respected martial artist holding a 3rd Dan grade in Karate who won the AMA National championship 3 times.


He is a Black belt in JKD/Kali under Guro Bob Breen.


He is a Blue belt in BJJ graded by me. As a white belt, he took the SILVER at the Kent Open in his first competition (2008) and in his second competition at the European Championships, Lisboa (2009), he took the GOLD. .


He is also a very secretive guy with a great sense of humour..........Lately Steve has been doing a little bit of travelling and 'busy' for no particular reason.


The reason became clear when he was spotted on Living Chanel 112 last night in the program "Dating in the Dark" . Apparently it's a show where people meet in a completely darkened room....talk....fondle or whatever ......and then decide if they want to see each other in the light!!


Like a true champion, Steve got the girl, but only he can say whether he ended up being a winner!!


(I took this picture of Steve at 7.30 this morning after we had finished BJJ training for an hour and me laughling like an idiot every time I reminded myself I was training with a TV celebrity)

Wednesday 14 October 2009

European Champion - Brown Belt Middleweight Senior 2 - 2009

Tough fights....good guys........happy me!

European Champion - Purple Belt Middleweight Senior 1 - 2008


A great competiton, good fights and the best possible result...........followed by lots of food!

The Italian Connection - Fabrizio, Vitaliano, Me and Corey after a CFS seminar in Assisi, Italy - 2007

Mirror mirror on the wall..........who has the greatest body of all? Hehehe! Home time!
Vitaliano Promoted to Apprentice Instructor Level 1 - FMA & JFGF

Rolling with BJJ Blackbelt and UFC Fighter Mark Bocek in Canada (2004)

Rolling with 9x BJJ World Champ Ricardinho Vieira in 2004

Stick Sparring with Guro Roger Barnes (2003)

Breakpoint Gis - My Favourite pimped up gi!!



Bob Breen academy - Classes - 13.10.09

I taught 2 classes last night which were great fun.

The first was an empty hands class covering boxing basics. We looked at:
  • slipping
  • bob and weave

After practising them in the air, it was then done with a partner. One person simply slipped all jabs and crosses thrown for a defined period then swapped over

The same thing was then done with the bob and weave in response to lead and rear hooks.

Next we combined both by using the slip and bob to avoid jabs, crosses and lead and rear hooks.

We then used a 6 punch combo drill to practice covering punches thrown;

  • jab
  • cross
  • lead head hook
  • rear head hook
  • lead low body hook
  • rear low body hook

After practicing both sides, we added the cover drills to the slip, bob and weave drills to enhance evasion skills

Finally, there was light sparring where the emphasis was to do all of the above whilst hitting your opponent too!!

All of this was done within 'punching range', so as to enhance reaction time and sensitivity.

Weaponry

I then continued with the single sick close range series from Hubud which I started last week.

We practiced the following basics from Hubud:

  • parry parry
  • 1 for 1
  • 2 for 2

We then looked at striking at the same time as parrying hitting on angles;

  • 2 - to the arm
  • 4 - to the rib
  • 10 - to the leg
  • All strikes were of course from right to left

We then looked at why it is you actually parry the stick and then why and how to counter the parry on the high and the low line

Finally, there was Freeplay!!!