SW Portland Martial Arts Blog

Kick Catching

January 17th, 2025

In the fantasyland of martial arts movies, snatching kicks, punches, spears, and swords out of the air is common practice. Unsurprisingly, kids are particularly susceptible to the illusion that plucking strikes out of the air is a thing.

It’s completely possible to kick catch, it’s just most of the time, the kick has to actually land to make it catchable. That’s why on Wednesday, in the kid’s martial arts class, we practiced letting the kick hit us, moving with the momentum of it THEN scooping up the leg. While it might not look as cool as a Kung fu movie, it’s generally a more successful strategy.

 

 

Posted in Kids, Martial Arts | 0 Comments

Fundamentals Class

January 11th, 2025

Starting in February, We’ll be running a “fundamentals” kids class for ages 8 and up. It’s on Tuesdays @5pm. There will still be the regular class in the big gym, replete with all the sparring, wrestling, and grappling that the students are used to… this is an additional class.
Why? Because there are students who are not ready for the rough and tumble of wrestling and sparring. This class will be all about technique and drills. We will work with partners but there won’t be any competitive sparring or wrestling.
All current students are welcome to take the class at no charge. New students can sign up for a package of the 4 Tuesdays in February for $80 here.

Posted in Kids, Martial Arts | 0 Comments

Dumbbells versus Barbells

January 8th, 2025

If there was a fight between barbells and dumbbells, who would win?
Trick question, they’d both lay there inert because they have no capacity for independent motion so neither would win. Instead, think of yourself as the winner of the battle, the possessor of two distinct and functional tools.
If you are worried you might not have equal strength in both arms, use the dumbbells. They’ll let you know if you have a weak side. If you’re looking to load up on more total weight, use the barbells. If you haven’t used the dumbbells in a long time, give them a try, there’s a whole different feeling of challenge you get from moving around two separate objects versus the barbell.
In the eternal fight between barbells and dumbbells, you are the winner. Use them both… probably not at the same time, but you know, alternate using them.

Posted in CrossFit | 0 Comments

January is Armbar Month

January 6th, 2025

What better way to start 2025 than by learning all the details of the armbar? (The correct answer, by the way, is that there is no better way.)
Okay. So maybe armbars are awesome but aren’t there like… other submissions in BJJ to learn? Absolutely. However, it’s not an unreasonable thing to claim that if you don’t have an armbar, you’re missing a major part of the game. Just digging through a list of statistics, the armbar is either the most common submission, or the second most common submission. In either case, it should be high up on your list.
Suppose you hate the armbar and feel dirty using it on people. That sounds rough, but even in that scenario, you should learn it inside and out because everyone else is going to try and do it to you.
If all those words don’t convince you then listen to these: the armbar sets up all sorts of other submission opportunities, as well as sweeps (assuming you’re trying your armbar from the bottom.)
Gi or no gi, let’s get those armbars locked in, people!

Posted in grappling, Martial Arts | 0 Comments

Set 2025 on Fire

November 30th, 2024

The hardest part of training is getting through the door of the gym for the first time. That’s why we’re thrilled to offer new students the easiest possible entry we can, with an offer of $25 to access our full schedule for the month of January.
This means, for only $25, you can take all our martial arts classes, all the CrossFit classes, and all the yoga classes. The only thing you can’t take is kid’s classes (they need less help getting started because they’ve got parents helping push them through the doors.)
We thought we’d time this with the new year, because it’s the time where folks think about trying something new. We’ve done our part by gathering all possible excuses into a pile and lighting them on fire. All you have to do is click here and then walk through the door.

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