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-Blackadder- posted:So, how did you guys start out? Were fundamentals emphasized early on or was it like hey it's the new guys first day, let's teach him how to do a flying armbar? Are fundamentals important for beginners to focus on learning and retaining in order to get a good foundation or is just jumping in and picking it up as you go fine? I'd say its most efficient to pick up some fundamentals, but just take what's in front of you and it'll be a net positive.
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Oct 6, 2014 13:31
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| # ? May 13, 2024 18:35 |
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Some gyms have good beginners programs some just toss you in. It's not always a sign of overall quality for the gym and you won't care in a year because you'll have seen enough either way.
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Oct 6, 2014 15:20
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My BJJ gym has a pretty strict curriculum for our beginner program that people usually will stay in for 6 month to a year before we feed them to wolves. The focus is on one fundamental position a month (i.e. side, mount, back) that repeats every 6 months as well as a basic set of 9 passes and sweeps to drill for warm up. Sparring is almost entirely positional unless focusing on a specific set of submissions. People can come to as many beginner classes as they want a week (total 4), so promotion into the advanced classes is completely based on when the coaches think you're ready. The retention rate of new members seem to be way up from a few years ago when people just got tossed into the thick of things, to the point that we're running out of mat space in the upper classes. The guys getting shuffled up to the upper classes are at least able to defend themselves and aren't too lost in open sparring. I'm also seeing a lot less injuries to beginners since you don't have enthusiastic 4-stripe white belts cranking on newbies to show they're ready for their blue belt. If you're not 100% gung ho about getting your rear end beat day in day out for months on end at the beginning, I would strongly recommend a gym with a structured fundamentals program.
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Oct 7, 2014 06:26
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Neeber posted:The retention rate of new members seem to be way up from a few years ago when people just got tossed into the thick of things Our french kickboxing classes suffer from this. Even though we have the 2,5 month basic course, only after which you can partake in any advanced classes. We have a couple tagged for those who have trained "6 months or less" but it rather means it's simpler techniques, not that people might not get paired with someone who has been training for 1 or 5 years and people fresh from the basic course often suffer a horrible shock in discovering they have basically learned what a "jab" or a "fouette" kick are instead of how to throw them well, much less the required side movement, slips blocks or anything, suffer a catastrophic meltdown to the tune of "aaaahh I suck these people are too good" and then leave never to return  I have no idea how to fix this. It's not even that the more skilled people beat the poo poo out of newbies or something, that never happens.
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Oct 7, 2014 10:43
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Ligur posted:Our french kickboxing classes suffer from this. Even though we have the 2,5 month basic course, only after which you can partake in any advanced classes. We have a couple tagged for those who have trained "6 months or less" but it rather means it's simpler techniques, not that people might not get paired with someone who has been training for 1 or 5 years and people fresh from the basic course often suffer a horrible shock in discovering they have basically learned what a "jab" or a "fouette" kick are instead of how to throw them well, much less the required side movement, slips blocks or anything, suffer a catastrophic meltdown to the tune of "aaaahh I suck these people are too good" and then leave never to return If they suffer when they are exposed to of other dudes, do it early ,even if you have them doing basic drills alongside advanced practitioners so the shock can be eased. Perdido posted:Guy who was at a tournament I was at had hot pink head gear and lime green hand wraps. He was like the early 90s personified.  2 nogi classes a week have the side effect of me looking for neon yellow tights.Still haven't found them 
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Oct 7, 2014 11:42
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Lamadrid posted:If they suffer when they are exposed to of other dudes, do it early ,even if you have them doing basic drills alongside advanced practitioners so the shock can be eased. They might not be all yellow, but they sure are neon! I'm sure you can find them on Amazon or somewhere too: http://www.kamppailuvaruste.fi/product_info.php/cPath/32/products_id/900/product_name/manto-long-spats-multicolor I need to get a pair...
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Oct 7, 2014 11:48
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Ligur posted:..suffer a catastrophic meltdown to the tune of "aaaahh I suck these people are too good" and then leave never to return For adult beginners, the key seems to be that they have a decent group of peers to practice/work with, where they can better see their relative progress and also practice with without feeling like complete idiots. This also gives them an instant social circle, where they don't have to get/feel accepted by their seniors. It's also worth inprinting from the get-go, that it takes *time* to get good at martials arts. Often it's actually the more naturally gifted athletes that will quit first, as they will be ones least used to adversity.
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Oct 7, 2014 21:25
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all good points. I think a solid well put together newbie program is a cornerstone for a successful gym. BUT many great martial artists and martial arts teachers are not organizational system type people so you've kinda got to accept what you're given
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Oct 7, 2014 21:35
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From this... a year ago: To this tonight:  And it only took a year to get it due to absences from down cycles!  Ben is on vacation so I had to get it from another instructor.I said that once I get my orange belt I am going to switch my schedule. Well I had a really rough time tonight due to doubling my mood stabilizer on Sunday. It can cause lethargy. Regardless, now I'm going to try to do the advanced classes and BJJ and wrestling. I certainly need more cardio and I'm quitting smoking on the 15th. I got shin splints last week from running so I have a stationary bike in my room that I want to work on cardio with if I can gather the motivation. Hell, I don't even know if I can do the MMA schedule I am planning. Perhaps strength training on a weekend day. Who knows? It's so hard to motivate myself to do anything so I hope if I can just get in there and I'll eventually start running on autopilot and go every day. I usually go at least an hour early and just sit and watch another class to get ready for kickboxing. It takes a lot of mental work to build up my motivation. I'm really hoping I can pull this off since MMA has been so good for me physically and especially mentally. I can only keep trying.
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Oct 8, 2014 04:06
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I think the logistics for a beginners class just don't work out well for a lot of gyms. The gym I go to is relatively small and may only have 1 to 2 legit beginners around at any one time. If that. They have a beginners class, but it seems to just end up as an additional regular class. Plus I think it probably doesn't hurt as a beginner to be exposed to more "advanced" techniques or roll with people who are way better than you. It's fun to learn X-guard sweeps even when you have a tough time nailing them. That said I'd still kill for a class that was nothing but basics.
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Oct 8, 2014 20:38
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So I found a possible option to supplement my MMA. Unfortunately Rothwell MMA doesn't really have an open gym and they don't have a ton of bags/equipment for multiple people anyway. It's all usually reserved for the fight team. I hate doing mindless cardio and I don't find lifting weights too fun either. I found this place: http://www.gothedistance-fitness.com/home.html It's sort of a boxing gym that has open hours from 8am to 8pm. This is good for me since I can go earlier in the day. The website makes it look more like a zumba fitness class type thing but when I visited it today it's pretty much a full out boxing gym. They had maybe 7 heavy bags, some speed bags, double end bags, weights, pull up bars, that ladder on the ground thing, ropes, etc., and a small boxing ring and rolling area. They do boxing instruction at 4pm, which I don't need, and also have a 12 station circuit in another room involving weights and bags that takes about 30 minutes. 2 minute rounds and 30 second breaks. I'm actually thinking that this place might be perfect for me since it's geared towards boxing/MMA fitness which is really what I'm looking for. I can cancel my $10 a month gym membership and do this which is $40 a month without boxing instruction. Basically I'm just wondering what you guys think and if this might be a good supplement for me since I'm weak as poo poo and have no cardio. Still quitting smoking on the 15th. 
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Oct 8, 2014 22:06
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Pennywise the Frown posted:They do boxing instruction at 4pm, which I don't need 
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Oct 8, 2014 22:08
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Pennywise the Frown posted:So I found a possible option to supplement my MMA. Unfortunately Rothwell MMA doesn't really have an open gym and they don't have a ton of bags/equipment for multiple people anyway. It's all usually reserved for the fight team. I hate doing mindless cardio and I don't find lifting weights too fun either. Uh, why don't you just quit smoking today?
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Oct 8, 2014 22:10
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Sorry, but I'm already taking kickboxing and the class starts at 5:30pm, and if I do wrestling that starts at 4:30pm so I don't really see the need to add boxing since it might screw up that schedule. mechafunkzilla posted:Uh, why don't you just quit smoking today? Because I will murder people. On the 15th I see my VA GP (once a year) and she can give me the patch for free. Plus, I don't know if you know anything about quitting smoking but it's good to set a date and good for me to mentally prepare for the quit. Quitting smoking isn't a walk in the park. I've heard it's more difficult to quit than certain harder drugs. I already got a new e-cig to help with bad cravings. I'm going to start reading forums, etc. about quitting to get motivated. I don't know what else I should do but that's a good start. Mainly I'm waiting for the free patch. 
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Oct 8, 2014 22:26
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Pennywise the Frown posted:Because I will murder people. My personal experience, so take it for what it's worth: Nicotine gum was the key. It included a physical action along with stimulating the craving and it was relatively easy to substitute the nicotine gum out with regular gum. Took about 2 weeks to get over the worst. Been smoke-free for 8 years now. E-cigs are a lost cause. You are just replacing the regular smokes. Give it away before you stop.
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Oct 8, 2014 23:58
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Well you can basically do the same thing with e-cigs. They have lighter nicotine liquids and then they have zero nicotine liquids. I do have some leftover nicotine gum from the last time I was hospitalized though so I can always use that instead. I've tried to quit before so I'm a bit nervous yet but they say, not always, but it generally takes numerous times in order to finally quit. I think my dad just got cancer though and it's probably from smoking so now is a good time even though I was planning it anyway. Just more motivation. BTW, congrats on quitting.
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Oct 9, 2014 01:57
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Pennywise the Frown posted:Quitting smoking isn't a walk in the park. I've heard it's more difficult to quit than certain harder drugs. I already got a new e-cig to help with bad cravings. I'm going to start reading forums, etc. about quitting to get motivated. I don't know what else I should do but that's a good start. The thing that got me was all the little triggers that happen during the day. The morning ciggies with coffee. The ciggie on the way to work. The ciggie when I was bored and wanted to waste 5 minutes. So I put myself in a situation where all my habits and routines were not applicable by going on holidays for a week or so. Kept myself busy doing new things in a strange place that just didn't have the same triggers to start the cravings. I realise not everyone has this opportunity.
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Oct 9, 2014 02:44
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That's going to be an issue for me. Driving in my car is a big one. Also I have about 10 cups (according to the pot) of coffee a day and I love smoking when driving and when drinking coffee. Plus I get bored often because I don't do much since I don't work. Maybe this new boxing gym will help with boredom during the day. This discussion isn't very MA related so I should probably stop, however this thread isn't that active anyway so 
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Oct 9, 2014 03:37
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I switched to swedish snus and it's easy, doesn't smell and doesn't affect my cardio. You should also lighten up on the coffee if you're having anxiety problems.
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Oct 9, 2014 04:23
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I quit smoking in 2007 after a bout of bronchitis which forced me to stop for 4 weeks. My first training session after that was such a revelation it was easy to quit. Thanks, bronchitis, without you I would not have noticed just how much smoking messed with my cardio. When you have a solid hands-on experience like that which makes you realize how much better off you are without cigarettes, it becomes much easier to quit. (That said, I started smoking again a few years ago but it's mostly a social habit which involves drinking beer. If I'm going to train at 20:00, I'm not going to smoke before that, don't even need gum.)
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Oct 9, 2014 12:00
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Ligur posted:(That said, I started smoking again a few years ago but it's mostly a social habit which involves drinking beer. If I'm going to train at 20:00, I'm not going to smoke before that, don't even need gum.) That's a huge trigger as well. I'm on day 16 of no alcohol right now. I plan on drinking on Nov 8th at the fights though. But it will be freezing outside probably so that should help out since I hate the loving cold. Yeah, I know, I shouldn't live in WI. I don't live here by choice.
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Oct 9, 2014 13:14
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origami posted:You should also lighten up on the coffee if you're having anxiety problems. My mood stabilizer and klonopin (anxiety med) can cause lethargy. Lately I've been drinking a pot of coffee and falling asleep minutes after, even if I've been awake for just two or three hours or so. I usually sleep 10-12 hours a night so I don't know what's up. Probably a symptom of depression mixed with medications. I'm at the hospital now for both of my parents but I'm hoping I can make it to the noon BJJ if I have the energy/time. I can also try wrestling today which I've always wanted to try, again if I have the energy/motivation. Let's hope so! It was kinda cool on Tuesday. The wrestling instructor didn't show up because it was one of his kid's birthdays. So one of the newer guys who wrestled in high school (hell, he might still be in high school) stepped up and just took over and went through drills and taught moves to the other guys there. I thought that was pretty cool of him.
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Oct 9, 2014 14:38
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Pennywise the Frown posted:My mood stabilizer and klonopin (anxiety med) can cause lethargy. Lately I've been drinking a pot of coffee and falling asleep minutes after, even if I've been awake for just two or three hours or so. I usually sleep 10-12 hours a night so I don't know what's up. Probably a symptom of depression mixed with medications. I'm on two mood stabilizers, Lamictal and Xanax. For a while, my psych tried putting me on Klonopin and it was the WORST medication EVER! It did the polar opposite of what it was supposed to do. Klonopin made me an anxious mess. It also turned me from a even keeled person almost to one of those "WTF YOU LOOKIN' AT ME?! I'LL loving FIGHT YOU!" people that fly off the handle at any little thing. Scary thing is, I didn't even notice that was happening to me! My girlfriend was the one that noticed and strongly suggested I get off that stuff. Obviously, YMMV. For me, I have ADHD and I believe it is co-morbid with anxiety. If you're remotely in the same boat, perhaps talk to your doctor about switching to something else. Lamictal + Xanax has been a great combo. Xanax for the anxiety, Lamictal for the mood stabilization (to combat the on edge, short fuse issues common with ADHD).
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Oct 9, 2014 20:33
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Klonopin used to make me almost manic but now it really chills me out. If I don't take it I chew my fingernails until they bleed and grind my teeth. I've been having a problem since I doubled my dose of Lamictal on the 5th to just 100mg. I think the usual dose is about 200mg. I'm getting extremely fatigued during kickboxing and BJJ (which I went to today). I start sweating profusely within about 10 minutes of activity and am just dripping with sweat the entire class. I almost had to sit out on Tuesday at kickboxing but I refused to quit. I was dizzy and extremely exhausted and had to take frequent breathers. I'm pretty sure it's the Lamictal since I was fine the past 2 weeks and was actually surprised at my endurance given I had that leave of absence. I hope this goes away at some point but I'm just going to keep chugging along since the meds seem to be helping me get to MMA in the first place. Edit - Somethings up because it's only been a few hours and I feel like I have DOMS everywhere. Normally that takes a day or usually 2 for me. Pennywise the Frown fucked around with this message at 01:13 on Oct 10, 2014 |
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Oct 9, 2014 21:21
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Wow I had no idea so many people here are licensed psychiatrists.
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Oct 10, 2014 00:02
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He expended too much energy and got tired
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Dangersim posted:Wow I had no idea so many people here are licensed psychiatrists. They're not but they do have advanced degrees in oversharing
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Oct 10, 2014 00:04
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Working on my masters in oversharing with a minor in boring bullshit idle talk. 
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Oct 10, 2014 01:05
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TCC is a place. So next week is my doctor's appointment about a wrist injury thats kept me out for over a month. Hoping for good news.
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Oct 10, 2014 04:02
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hi liter posted:TCC is a place. Ask him for xanax.
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Oct 10, 2014 09:57
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Dangersim posted:Ask him for morphine. fxd
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Oct 10, 2014 10:18
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Whats the deal with schools that don't allow any sort of rolling until you're a 2-stripe white belt? I get that maybe when you're just starting out, they don't want you rolling so you don't hurt someone, but how the heck are you going to learn to roll at all if you don't even do position-based rolling?
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Oct 11, 2014 02:27
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IT BEGINS posted:Whats the deal with schools that don't allow any sort of rolling until you're a 2-stripe white belt? There are schools like this? First few days of class they let me roll and I really didn't know anything except attempt to survive and try to tap before it starts to hurt/suffocate/what ever. Turned out fine. I just assumed throwing people in the deep end was the norm?
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Oct 11, 2014 02:37
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IT BEGINS posted:Whats the deal with schools that don't allow any sort of rolling until you're a 2-stripe white belt? I get that maybe when you're just starting out, they don't want you rolling so you don't hurt someone, but how the heck are you going to learn to roll at all if you don't even do position-based rolling? Most schools that do this have two policies - 1) Stripes at white are purely based on how many classes you've taken 2) a specific fixed curriculum week-by-week at lower belts So by the time you've gotten two stripes, you've solidly drilled 2-3 basic moves in every position, and when you start rolling as a two stripe there won't be any situation in which you don't know what to do and just flail wildly. Personally, I started rolling my first day of grappling, but on the other hand the first two moves I learned were a single leg takedown and a heelhook, so my training wasn't exactly standard. I can see advantages and disadvantages to both approaches but there's definitely some thought and reasoning behind the two-stripe policy.
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Oct 11, 2014 03:18
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My school does that, but at the same time if you came to the morning classes they were all levels and you could roll on your first day, and at the fundamentals classes we usually end with sweep/pass training (guy on top just tries to pass, guy on bottom just tries to sweep, if you do you reset), normally with one of the color belts working with a white belt. Also like fatherdog said the white belt stripes were mostly based on time so by the time you had an idea of what you were doing you would have 2 stripes.
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Oct 12, 2014 00:36
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Do any of you guys spend a shitload of time overthinking the development of their game? I've been really nerding out about it this last year and it's really paying off for me. I basically realized that my game was a mishmash of poo poo that didn't fit together very well and I didn't have any core positions or submissions or anything, and I've been rebuilding everything I know almost from the ground up. Spend a lot of my weekends making flowcharts to wrap my head around it all and work out piece by piece what I need to add. Am I alone in this? A lot of people seem to build a coherent game subconsciously over time.
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Oct 12, 2014 04:00
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fatherdog posted:Most schools that do this have two policies - That makes sense. I guess I'm just frustrated, having been rolling for a month and a half and now I have to come to the 6AM classes to at least get some good drilling in. Hopefully I get that second stripe soon!
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Oct 12, 2014 05:25
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02-6611-0142-1 posted:Do any of you guys spend a shitload of time overthinking the development of their game? I've been really nerding out about it this last year and it's really paying off for me. I basically realized that my game was a mishmash of poo poo that didn't fit together very well and I didn't have any core positions or submissions or anything, and I've been rebuilding everything I know almost from the ground up. Spend a lot of my weekends making flowcharts to wrap my head around it all and work out piece by piece what I need to add. I find that most of my rethinking comes from sparring new people. I make notes about how they fight and think through the appropriate counter tactics. Every subsequent time I spar with those people, I review whether my breakdown of them is accurate and revise as needed. It's fun when they act exactly as "reviewing tape" showed and I take advantage of it. At my level, I don't think kickboxing has the same flow or depth as grappling. It's a series of exchanges whose tempo is dictated by each opponent's aggression and tendency to press. Although that view of kickboxing might be strongly colored by my counterfighting personality.
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Oct 12, 2014 06:13
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Man when it comes to grappling I mostly just wing it and YOLO poo poo because I find grappling more fun and intellectually engaging when I am being a gigantic fool. Most of my "wins" have been getting my back taken, escaping into side control and doing a nice kimura to the guy. Then again I'm the type of guy that would use an Under and Over hooks in the guard position and give you a loooooong hug. 
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Oct 12, 2014 12:26
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I'm exactly the same, except I've been grappling like a playful idiot for four years or so. There's a point where it's useful for your improvement, but there's also a point where it hindered my development because I never had a serious A-game where I've studied my favourite submissions and positions in depth. I'm about half way up blue belt and a guy who started the same day as me but is a bit more analytically minded and a bit more focused is half way up his purple. Basically I feel like you need an A-game and a playful game, and you need to alternate between them depending on who you're rolling with and what your goals are for the roll/night/week/whatever.
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Oct 13, 2014 01:50
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| # ? May 13, 2024 18:35 |
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02-6611-0142-1 posted:Do any of you guys spend a shitload of time overthinking the development of their game? I've been really nerding out about it this last year and it's really paying off for me. I basically realized that my game was a mishmash of poo poo that didn't fit together very well and I didn't have any core positions or submissions or anything, and I've been rebuilding everything I know almost from the ground up. Spend a lot of my weekends making flowcharts to wrap my head around it all and work out piece by piece what I need to add. I've found the most valuable time to be thinking about this stuff is while you're sparring, and working on/figuring out things in real time.
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Oct 13, 2014 04:56
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