danger room

One thing with the kids we did today, is we put the kids in two lines. Then me and another person were in between the kids and a small bag. The kids job was to kick and punch the blocker, then grab the bag. I thought it worked out well.

The rest of the class I checked strips today. I think alot of the kids are close to getting them. One of the kids I almost gave strips too.

Then we played tug of rope. The student I worked with really pulled hard. Even with one of the adults pulling against them. So I was quite proud.

With the green/green-brown belts, I set up four mats and grabbed some items to make what I call the Danger Room. Then had one student in the center, while another student would attack the one in the center. I had originally planned only four attacks, overhead club, sideclub, kempo punch, and an underhand knife. With four different ways openings. Well, the other instructor had us do the over head knife. So that was like twenty different attacks. Then later when the kids started understanding it, we closed the flaps, and let them go in with a blocker which was just punches and kicks. I tried keeping the time down so they weren't taking forever. I think it helped give them a sense of how to defend themselves in a real situation. The other instructor was checking stripes while this was going on. One thing is I kept a flap open so I could supervise what was going on.

The other instructor started working with the green/green-brown belts. I think they were working on some combinations then doing something with takedowns. I knew one side was punching in which was good for the green/green-brown belts too do so they get that interpersonal skill.

Then we played snow balls. We had trouble finding the snowballs but we found them.

a book I'm reading

I'm currently reading the Root of Chinese Qiqong, by Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming. It's a hard read, but worth it.

sun rising

Sun rising,
Cat watching,
Birds chirping,
Cars moving,
Morning Dew,
Perfection Seek,

weapons class

Me and another green-brown belt Bruce Burford started the weapons class. We did alot of jumping jacks, laps, running, situps. Oh what good time.

One thing we did is we did the form and then asked everyone if that was there best. Maybe I pushed too hard, because one person who had prior back injuries had a pain in her back. I went out and got her magnets and she put them on her back. One of the other green-brown belts, girlfriends who's parents are doctors massaged the area, and did a little exercises with her.

My concentration was broken after that. It didn't help that too of the four people I was working with were goofing off. Bruce says i'm getting better, but... When they do that I can't practice with them. The best thing I have found is going home and practicing my tai chi form. I don't know how many times I practice it but when I'm done I feel less angry.

hitting small bags

We got the kids lined up and we had four white belts. It's nice to see new students in the class. We must be doing something right.

Anyway we got them lined up and runnng around. Then we did the though of the day. Then I think we did some stretches. We broke into groups, I checked stripes on a couple people. Then I worked with the yellow belts, I think on one pinion. Then i worked with the orange and purple belts, on 1 and 2 pinion.

Then I worked with them on an exercise. What I did is got some small bags out, and split them into two groups of 2 each. Them I had them hit the four bags with a particular strike. I also incorporated stances and kickes, which the kids seemed to like.

Then for a game we played kick the bag. One of the kids changed the side then kicked the other person out. I told her that was good, but your not supposed to go over the line. It's going to be interesting teaching her.

Then we had the blue through green belts. I ran with them through most of the laps. Then they started chasing me which is kind of the reverse from what usually happens.

Anyway, I worked with the green and green brown belts. First we went down the line and had them demonstrate a technique, then the entire group did that technique, and then they did that technique on each other. We repeated it for sideclubs, and over head techniques. The kids wanted to do takedowns so I had them put a plastic dot in there belts. Then after they are done grab the plastic dot and throw it too the ground. They were like, how is that a take down. So I demonstrated the technique on another instructor that is a takedown. The thing is, until they can do something; block, dodge, whatever, when someone punches in I don't really see the point in having them do takedowns. One thing is it's hard to teach takedowns, to keep them focused.

Then for the game we played kick the bag again. It gave me and another instructor a chance to talk.

Dew of the Grass

I went outside to practice my tai chi sword form. It's said a very good Tai Chi practicioner can practice that form for ten years. Hmmm.... ten years huh? I wouldn't mind that.

In other news I want to get a stone ball to practice with. That would probably build some strength too. Although I plan on wearing steel toe shoes while practicing with them.

Focus

One thing one of my instructors at college told me. The best people work ten percent harder then other people. That's all ten percent.

Now, I know everyone's got to make a living. If you got to miss a class here and there, that's fine. However, when you are in class use the time you have. If you want to goof around do it before and after class not during class.

wavemasters

The wavemasters were out so we used them as a sort of mini obstacle course. We had some mats for the kids to jump over, then run through the wavemasters, and then back. Then we had them working on kicks. Then we went over stuff to work on. One thing I thought the kids had fun with was for me to shuffle around and have the kids try and follow along with me. Then we played hot "wavemaster". Where we took one wavemaster away each turn.

Then for the blue and green brown belts. I worked with a green belt and her friend. I had them work on front position, right foot out and and elbows, horse stance, front two knuckle punch, back two knuckle punch, and thrust punch. It kind of channeled me figuring out ways to keep them busy while working on that stuff. We played jump the dragon. I think it's good to figure out some variations too it, so we change things up.

zenish thought

Must one see the wind to know it rattles the grass?

baseball bat swing trick

So we did three laps. Then did twenty jumping jacks with 10 super jacks. Then 20 regular pushups, and 20 situps.

We worked on the bo staff forms. We worked on one form they had some of. I wanted to work on a sai form. But not everyone had sai's. Oh well.. I think it worked out better anyway.

I showed a trick I practice. With one had I through up a bag, then hit it with my bo staff to prove a point. That it's harder to hit something diagonally with a baseball bat swing. One thing is the range, it's harder to dodge a staff farther out. Where if you use a baseball swing, to the knee you could lift your leg up, or duck under the staff.

Another point I made was that one could use the butt of a staff like a poking club. There is a part of the form where you do a figure eight then do a side poke. I think people paid attention to what I was saying.

Me and Bruce got a little more of the second tonfa form. The strikes in the form are kind of like an upper cut in nature. Then kind of a figure eight. It's really an interesting move, but it feels awkard. Oh well over time it will feel natural.

After class I went home and practiced the rest of my material accept for the escrima counts. I practiced throughing the sai's and worked on my tonfa's.

my thoughts

One thing I've been thinking about is really there should be three teams at a school. A demo team, a leadership team, and a "storm" team. A demo team could get together and help advertise a school. A leadership team could help teach classes. A "storm" team could get together and get stuff done for the studio.

One thing with a demo team is it gives students opportunities younger students something to do. Older adults might have commitments to do things. Also you might want the adults teaching classes. I'm not saying young kids can't be a help with teaching classes, but often times they need more time to develop as instructors. Then why a storm team? Well.. for one thing if you teach two classes a week, go to two classes, and have other commitments that doesn't leave alot of time for helping around the studio.

I think one should be required to help out the studio in some way. Yet does that always mean by teaching? Not necessarily. I think upper blackbelts should be able to teach. That's why there is blackbelts. Yet there is sometimes constraints on life.

one thought

Brick by brick, a strong wall is built

Wheel kicks and One Pinion

We didn't do alot of stretching or warmups in white through purple class. We did the thought of the week, and then working on material. I worked with two yellow belts and an orange belt on one pinion. I worked a few other things to. For a game we played freeze tag.

Then for the blue through green-brown we did the usual warmups. Then we broke off. I worked with a blue-green belt on checking her for stripe. I worked alot of wheel kicks. Then I worked with another person with wheel kicks too. We had two balls, that the objective was to hit the ball with the heel of the foot to get better at doing wheel kicks. Then for a game we played jump the dragon.

weapons class

We ran four laps today, one with figure eights, one backwards with doing figure eights, then a third one with overhead strikes, then a fourth helicopted sidestrikes. Then we ran some forms. Brad threw in some empty had forms and then had us do some of the forms as fast as we could. I got a chance to work on some of my upper forms, and to work on the sai's and tonfa forms.

Continuos Obstacle course

Me and one of the helpers we early so we set up an obstacle course. We set it up so that they wouldn't they go near the weight equipment. The kids did laps as part of the warmup then we had them do it after that. So setup some wavemasters so they punch the wavemasters then shuffle, and keep doing that, then have to army crawl under some stuff, then I attacked them with a club, then they had to go through a bags they had to avoid while someone was throwing snowballs. After we were done with it the other class used it. Then we worked on some overheads and sideclubs. Then we broke off and did some individual work. I worked with two people on the yellow belt material. Then we played freeze tag.

For the next class after the thought of the week, and regular exercises, we ran them through the obstacle course. We spiced it up a bit. This time I put a matt on top of some things so they had to duck under then go over some mats, and I used a yellow mat, then we had two people throwing snowballs. We also make it longer. Then after that we broke off. We worked forms for a few minutes, then I worked with the green-brown belts, on kempos. I had them work on each other, and after they got done doing a kempo grab a plastic dot from the other person's belt and pull it. My thought is if they can get used to doing something after the kempo, that it will make it alot easier for them to learn to take someone down. Then we played snowballs after that for the last event.

One idea another person Erin though of was to do have an obstacle course in a figure eight. One problem is them colliding with each other. If we were to have them crawl underneath the course then they wouldn't bump into each other.