Geezer's Long March Toward the Elite Sneaking Up On the Finish Line

[Mark E. Hurling]

Big session today at the dojo. O-sensei, Master Bellman's teacher who promoted him to 10th Dan, was conducting a clinic. It started off with a simultaneously touching and unsettling greeting from the OCD green belt. He called me Sempai which is acknowledging subordination to me and a relationship of mentor. I didn't know he was that deep into the Japanese cultural thing.

O-sensei asked for some attacks to defend against and I asked about some of the groping attacks I used as examples in self defense for women. They were gropes of the buttocks and a hand on the thigh. As expected, he had a unique take on what to do. I'll give it some consideration. He is really big on the small elements that are often entirely overlooked. One such was energy loss from crossing the center line of the body. I know that the arm loses strength once it crosses over the sternum but he demonstrated how even if you cross the opposite hand over the center line it affects the other hand's strength. Likewise if you are holding something like a weapon in the other hand. Your concentration on that weapon holding hand weakens the opposite hand. Another one of the subtleties are is distraction. Movements in the peripheral vision cause a momentary hesitation or weakness to exploit.

He talked about how some movements involve the biceps and some the triceps, the latter of course are stronger muscle group. I have been to one of his clinics a few years back and I now wonder if my own inclination to use examples of strength and strength curves are a result of his earlier seminar. Later I asked about some club attacks that are adaptations of some baton techniques I used as a cop that I learned from Tak Kubota's techniques. All together a great session.

[tertius]

Big session today at the dojo. O-sensei, Master Bellman's teacher who promoted him to 10th Dan, was conducting a clinic. It started off with a simultaneously touching and unsettling greeting from the OCD green belt. He called me Sempai which is acknowledging subordination to me and a relationship of mentor. I didn't know he was that deep into the Japanese cultural thing.

O-sensei asked for some attacks to defend against and I asked about some of the groping attacks I used as examples in self defense for women. They were gropes of the buttocks and a hand on the thigh. As expected, he had a unique take on what to do. I'll give it some consideration. He is really big on the small elements that are often entirely overlooked. One such was energy loss from crossing the center line of the body. I know that the arm loses strength once it crosses over the sternum but he demonstrated how even if you cross the opposite hand over the center line it affects the other hand's strength. Likewise if you are holding something like a weapon in the other hand. Your concentration on that weapon holding hand weakens the opposite hand. Another one of the subtleties are is distraction. Movements in the peripheral vision cause a momentary hesitation or weakness to exploit.

He talked about how some movements involve the biceps and some the triceps, the latter of course are stronger muscle group. I have been to one of his clinics a few years back and I now wonder if my own inclination to use examples of strength and strength curves are a result of his earlier seminar. Later I asked about some club attacks that are adaptations of some baton techniques I used as a cop that I learned from Tak Kubota's techniques. All together a great session.

It's amazing, isn't it, how the musculature works, and the shortcomings of the brain? One of the most fascinating I learned was a somewhat goofy, but remarkably effective escape from a two-handed choke (an unsophisticated attack, but common, particularly if you're a woman). You might be familiar with it. All that you need to do is grab the attackers arms (near the wrist) and jiggle them up and down, in opposite directions. Their grip will completely turn to mush! It's the weirdest damn thing, but very effective.

[Jonathon Sullivan]

Very cool.

[Mark E. Hurling]

It's amazing, isn't it, how the musculature works, and the shortcomings of the brain? One of the most fascinating I learned was a somewhat goofy, but remarkably effective escape from a two-handed choke (an unsophisticated attack, but common, particularly if you're a woman). You might be familiar with it. All that you need to do is grab the attackers arms (near the wrist) and jiggle them up and down, in opposite directions. Their grip will completely turn to mush! It's the weirdest damn thing, but very effective.

Very similar to one of the three basic ones we teach our white belts. Hook (not grip) the wrists, pull them outward and downward to the rear as you step back. This draws the attacker forward and head down. Then step back in, hook the back of the neck with both hands, and bring a knee up and into his boys as he lurches forward. Also a common attack from a drunk to another man. Ah, I can smell the stale beer and sawdust on the floor in some divey watering hole now as describe this. Also it's less about how the muscalature works, than it is about how the brain controls and reacts to things. It stutters and then frequently goes into overload with too much conflicting information to process.

[Mark E. Hurling]

5 minute warmup on the bike (Heavy Day)

Did a couple of sets with the empty bar for bench presses and the shoulder, while better still lets me know it's not quite right. More healing seems indicated.

Overhead Press: 165 x 5 x 3.

Squats: 300 x 3. I was a little nervous about this just because of the symbolic aspect of the number and my resolution from my last session of squats where I vowed to drop a little lower just for legal depth insurance. So set myself with even more attention to detail than usual. All went fine although fine did not equal easy. I dropped a little lower as I had intended and my back still feels solid. Three big wheels here I come!

Foam roller and stretching.

[tertius]

Nicely done.

[Jonathon Sullivan]

Indeed. Strong work.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Thank you gentlemen.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Slept like hammered crap last night. Kept waking up with heartburn and chewing up the Tums I keep by my side of the bed. I was thinking of blowing off the lifting but the hardwired software kicked in at the usual O-dark 30 and I drug my tired ass up and into Golds.

5 minute warmup on the bike (Medium Day)

Overhead Press: 155 x 5 x 5.

Pull-Ups: Bodyweight 5 x 5.

Claw Grip: 170 2 x 5. I've held this a few sessions to clean up any possible cheating I might have let creep into the movement. Onward and upward henceforth.

I tried a set of bench presses with the empty bar again, and while the right delt keeps improving it's not ready yet. That and while it doesn't bother me at all on overhaed presses and only slightly when benching, I have an ice pack on it now because it does have a slight ache. Very odd why this is hanging in like it is.

Foam roller and stretching. An uncharacteristic event occurred at Gold's this morning. They have a stretching station there kind of like monkey bars that I use. There was a sweatshirt rolled up on the platform inside but no one apparently around using the station, so I started in. I finished up and another regular who uses that station was using some chin-up bars to do his stretching. I know he uses this same station so call over to him I was done with it. He thanks me as he comes over and asks about the sweatshirt. I said "I dunno, maybe we should sniff it to see who might have laying down a territorial marker." A few seconds later a shaven headed 6'3" guy about 240 stalks over and ostentatiously picks up the sweatshirt giving the full glare. There are a few ways to respond to that, but backing down by looking away is not in my DNA. So I return the direct eye contact with a half step back on my right foot. He swaggers off to put away the sweatshirt. I swear, primate dominance rituals are a trip. Just like in a band of chimps or gorillas. I guess that doesn't speak to highly of this old silverback for letting himself get drawn like that but . . . This was the same guy who had put is towel down on the bench press station earlier in my session and ignored the thing for the next 20 minutes even though he never benched.

[JM3]

congrats on the squat!