In Training

So, for the past couple of weeks I haven’t been doing Muay Thai at all. I’ve decided to challenge myself, and enter the Tiger Balm tournament for Submission Wrestling.

I’ve only been doing the Submission Wrestling classes for about 4, maybe 5 months, so I will be entering the beginners bracket. So, I’ve been using all my training time to do No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu classes, and have put Muay Thai aside for now. It’s been a bit of a change, as I am monitoring my weight very closely now to make sure I do not go over-weight for my division.

Preparing for a competition is a great motivator. While I have no expectations of becoming a champion in my first ever competition, I am enjoying how it motivates me to work longer hours in the gym, work harder, and push myself even further than normal. There’s a few other guys preparing for the same tournament, and the more senior members have been great helping us less experienced members get prepared. It really does feel like being a part of a team, and adds another layer of motivation.

I’ll continue to chart my progress as I go along. A few things I’d like to really focus on are controlling people in my guard, and escaping side control.

Things are running pretty smoothly right now.

Again I’d like to reiterate the importance of hand wrapping. I’ve been showing up just as class is about to begin, so I haven’t had time to wrap my hands lately. I’m certainly noticing the effects though, as my hands and wrist are a bit sore from Muay Thai yesterday. So, I’ll have to work on following my own advice a little better. Class has been good though, and I’ve managed to keep myself working out 5 days a week now. Being more active, I’ve noticed an improvement in my stamina in class, as well as longevity in punching power. Lately I’ve really been trying to focus on my hips when I kick, trying to make sure that most of my power is coming from the hip, and not from the leg. Same thing with my boxing as well, trying to focus on making sure my hooks are driven from the hips. So my main goal right now for Muay Thai is making sure my hips are doing their part.

Jiu Jitsu has been great as well, as I found myself only getting submitted once last class. Improvements in my conditioning are helping me stay lively, and keep a strong defense. I’ve also been trying to focus more on improving my position, as opposed to just looking for submissions. I feel better about my skills with each class, and look forward to improving even further.

Mix Martial Arts in Vancouver at its best

Things have been running pretty smoothly for me at Universal MMA. Muay Thai has been going well. I feel as though I’m not getting the speed and power I’d like on my punches and kicks. I think part of that could be remedied by improving my stamina, since it’s hard to throw your best punches and kicks if you’re tired. Another component is likely adding some muscle to my frame. I really suck at doing push ups, so my arms may be inadequate. The biggest component is obviously technique, but I think that my technique is fairly good at this stage. I’ve been doing it for 6 months now, and it’s hard to believe. The time has totally flown by, and I still feel like I have a lot to learn.

No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu is also going quite well. Every day I roll, I learn a dozen new things. I’ve tightened up my defense, and am getting submitted a lot less now. I’ve also increased my own arsenal of sweeps and submissions, and am having better success submitting and sweeping my peers. Recently we’ve had Shane Rice teaching the Jiu-Jitsu classes. He is the first Canadian to be awarded a Black Belt from Rickson Gracie. He’s been a great instructor, and I’ve already learned a lot from him.

Also, there is a new schedule in effect for classes that you can find on the Universal website, http://www.universalmma.com
Monday and Wednesday has 2 Muay Thai classes now. Beginners, and Advanced.

Return from the Holidays

So there’s been no blogging action for a while now, since Universal was closed from Dec.22 – Jan.4. Last week was the first week back, and day 1 went pretty much how you would expect. After a couple weeks of eating holiday style, and spending time hanging out with friends and family instead of working out, Monday was a tough day for many. Muay Thai Monday, Half way into the warm-up people were laying on the floor huffing and puffing. Not that I did a whole lot better. My punches lost all of their pop pretty quickly once we started padwork. We worked really basic combos for our first day back, which was probably a god thing since my technique definitely needed some reconstructing.

Muay Thai on Wednesday went a little better. The stamina was starting to come back, and I was able to throw strong punches most of the class. The Kicks were pretty good as well. We even did a little clinch work, which was fun.

No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu / Submission Wrestling on Friday was another tough warm-up, and we learned some good sweeps. Then we did an hour of Shark Tanking and Rolling. I got tapped out a few times, but also earned several submissions of my own, mostly from leg locks. Submission Wrestling has been going pretty well for me, and I’m really enjoying it. If I manage to add some muscle mass and improve my cardio, I think it will make a big difference in my rolling performance.

All in all, a good first week back!

Fight the Cold!

It’s getting to be pretty damn freezing outside, here in Vancouver. However, after 2 minutes of the warm-up you’re already beginning to break a sweat down at Universal MMA. We’ve mixed some intense cardio and footwork drills into the warm-up now for Muay Thai. Muay Thai has been going really well lately, as everything is flowing together nicely. My footwork is improving, my jab is faster, my hooks are more fluid and my kicks are gaining strength. My conditioning is also improving, as I am able to maintain powerful strikes right through until the end of class. I am also doing a good job of keeping my hands up to guard my head, as I used to drop my hands due to fatigue / forgetfulness / improper technique. Now I just act like my hand is glue to my head until I throw my punch, then it comes right back to my head after the punch.

 

In No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu last class we learned 2 excellent Armbars from the mount. I was happy to have a couple more submissions in my arsenal, and put them to good use while rolling. My offense isn’t strong enough to submit the more senior guys yet, but my defense is good enough that I can avoid getting submitted more than once or twice, in most cases. Conditioning also plays a roll, as I find a lot of the submissions I’m giving up are a result of me getting tired and not having the energy to do what is required to defend properly. Overall it is still very enjoyable, and I look forward to the new techniques that we learn every class, and to adding them to my growing aresenal of grappling techniques. 

Universal MMA – the best place to train in Vancouver

Universal MMA, still the best place to get an intense workout in the bitter winter months. Check out the main site, universalmma.com to see the new classes schedule taking effect as of Jan.1.2009. Muay Thai will be split into 2 classes now, advanced and beginner. The hours are also a little different.

Muay Thai this week was great, working on some combined punching/kicking/elbow combos. I felt that I had a good grasp on them, and performed them well. My left hook technique is improving, and becoming more comfortable. I feel good about my kicks as well, and I think that as long as I keep working them consistently, they will be quite fierce.

In No-Gi Brazilian Jiu Jitsu we learned some escapes and transitions. They were helpful, and I managed to work a good defensive game, but during open roll I didn’t score many submissions. Only doing the Jiu-Jitsu once a week probably isn’t enough to be competitive with the guys that are going 3 times a week, so I think that in January I will try to do this class more often as well. Once you start going, you get hooked right away. I can easily see how people would do this every day.

On a final note, be sure to check out Universal’s own Denis Kang in his UFC Debut at UFC 93 on January 17, 2009.

Muay Thai Boxing in Vancouver

 

Another week at Universal MMA, Training Muay Thai. It’s certainly cold and miserable outside, but you warm up quite quickly once you start working out in the Universal gym. Except my feet. Those always stay cold.

I got some new gloves last week, so I was anxious to try them out. After the usual warm-up, we did some punching combinations. I’m still working to make sure that my elbow stays neatly tucked in when I jab, instead of sticking way out. I’m more comfortable with hooks now as well, as my new gloves have added wrist support. Then we added some kicks into the combinations. I feel that my kicks have come a long way and I am very comfortable with them now. I think my technique is pretty good, and the speed and power has vastly improved. I also spent some extra time to work out on the heavy bags. Just practicing my jab, cross and also my kicks in order to toughen up my shins. Definitely important if you want to kick something that isn’t padded in the future.

 

Cyril Acres (Universal MMA) & Kenny Florian

 

 

Also this past weekend, Kenny Florian was in town, as you can see in the picture.

Dominant Position

Muay Thai this week was great. I felt like I had my best classes yet. My kicks were very clean, and powerful.
They changed the warm-ups a bit, which was enjoyable. It was nice to try some new workouts, and I felt my cardio was really pushed because of it. With each passing class, I find that my stamina is increasing, and I’m able to give it 100% for much longer.

I was really happy to do all the kicking drills we did this week, as I felt my kicks had improved a lot and I wanted to continue working them as much as possible. I’m generally happy with my boxing on most days, and I want to continue improving that as well.

No Gi Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class was great as well. The warm-up is very different than the one we do in Muay Thai, but equally intense. I felt that my defense had improved, as I was able to avoid more submissions than usual. I also managed to earn some of my own. My goal for submission wrestling now is to improve my arsenal of submissions, so I am able to provide a strong offense in addition to defense. I’ve been able to get into dominant positions while rolling, and I would like to capitalize on that with a good knowledge of submissions.

Gangster Wraps.

 

 

Wraps with Cyril Acres at Universal Mixed Martial Arts in Downtown Vancouver

Before I jump in and talk about how my first days back at Universal MMA’s Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (No-Gi) classes were, I’d like to briefly talk about Wraps. Not ones filled with lettuce, chicken, and ranch sauce. These ones are filled with your fist. For a while I was noticing that my wrists were sore after class, and on occasion, my knuckles were as well. A large part of the problem was probably that I didn’t have any hand wraps. If you’re doing any sort of sport that includes punching, be it Muay Thai, Boxing, Kickboxing, or any others where you’ll be getting an intense workout on the pads, bags, or sparring, you’ll notice a lot of people wrapping their hands. And for good reason. It’s good protection against injuring your hands and wrists. Personally I like “Mexican Style” wraps, which are more stretchy than the regular kind. 180 – 200 inches is a good length. The wrapping process is not too hard to learn, and there are many videos on YouTube dedicated to such. Everyone wraps their hands differently, so check out a couple different methods and then choose the one that feels best.

OK, so last week I was back in class after a bit of a layoff due to illness. My first Muay Thai class was just like my first class all over again. Getting disgracefully tired in the warm-up, sloppy kicks, and just a general feeling of awkwardness. It wasn’t a huge shock, since I was kind of expecting to be set back a bit after laying on a couch playing video games and drinking NyQuil for a week. My second class of the week was a bit better. I felt better in the warm-up, felt more strength in my strikes, and my technique was coming back to me. The speed was still missing, but it will come back soon enough.

My first Submission Wrestling class back went fairly well. I did fairly well getting through the warm-up, and then we learned 2 escape techniques. After practicing our new escapes, we started rolling. My stamina was still a bit hurting, as I would get into a number of bad positions because I was too tired to fight it. I did fairly well though, managing to only get submitted a couple of times against a number of more experienced opponents.

All in all though, I was just happy to be back training at Universal Mixed Martial Arts. When I was sick, I was getting stir crazy at home. It feels great to be active again, and practicing with such a great group of people. This week I expect I’ll have improved quite a bit from last week, and continue my climb back to where I was before getting sick.

 - C -

Don’t call it a comeback.

MMA Training Vancouver

Well, last we met I was a little bummed because I hurt myself and got sick. And while my turned ankle and pulled side muscles only took 2 days to heal up to where I felt like I could go to class again, I got a cold at that point and that kept me sidelined for the week. By Friday I FELT good enough to go to submission wrestling, but I thought I might still be infectious. Grappling with someone seems like a sure way to spread an illness, so I took the weekend off to prevent making anyone else sick.

Now it’s Monday, and I’ll be back in Muay Thai action. After more than a week off, I’ve been DYING to get back to it. I’ll have to work hard to get back to where I was conditioning wise before I got sick, but I’m looking forward to it.

So, since I didn’t train last week, I don’t have anything to write about in that department. However, It’s been just over 2 months since I started classes and my training blog, so it seems like a good time to observe my progress. I’ve noticed an extreme difference in my cardio conditioning. During my first class, I couldn’t even make it past the first 5 minutes without needing a break. Now I can hang in there with the warm-up no problem, with the exception of push-ups which I am still working on. I’ve noticed that my shirts now fit much looser around the belly, and much tighter around the chest and arms. I’ve noticed that aches and pains in my body heal up faster than they used to. I have more energy, confidence, and discipline. Perhaps best of all, I’ve met more positive and supportive people in my 2 months at Universal MMA, than I have in years and years in the outside world. That sums up the physical and some mental benefits I’ve enjoyed. The improvements in fighting are obviously astounding as well. I came into the program with little experience, so needless to say I’m 100 times the fighter I used to be. Overall, I’m very happy with the improvements that Universal MMA has helped me make.

Also, while I was sitting at home sick, I did some research on caring for your gear. I wanted to make sure that my clothing didn’t still smell like sweat after I washed it, that the inside of my sweaty gloves stay clean and mold free, and that the leather on my gloves and shinguards stays clean and sanitary.

For the laundry, I’ve found that adding a cup of white vinegar to the wash takes the sweat smell right out. Towels, shorts, shirts, jerseys. After trying a few tricks, I found that vinegar worked the best and I no longer wanted to set my towels and rash guards on fire.

For the gloves, I’ve been using Lysol disinfecting spray. It kills all kinds of bacteria, fungus, mold, etc. The inside of your gloves, being the moist dark place that they are, will certainly benefit from this. You don’t have to use Lysol, It’s just the one I happened to grab, but make sure you do get a spray that will kill all of those things.

And for the outside of the gloves, I used some disinfecting wipes. I’ve heard that a certain mix of bleach and water sprayed and wiped on your gloves will work too. I find that I sometimes wipe the sweat off my brow with my gloves, so I figured it was a good idea to clean the other surfaces as well.

So there you have it. The layoff is over, and tonight I’m back in action! Can’t wait!