SW Portland Martial Arts Blog

Day 14 – Keep Moving

March 27th, 2020

We hope that we’re helping folks stay active! First off, we got the workout of the day. Having done the work myself, I’d give this one a 9 out of 10 on the intensity scale. It burned while doing it, and it will burn more tomorrow.

What did we do in kid’s class? Back rolls and donkey kicks! That’s right, we rolled around on the floor and kicked while we were down there. Good times.

Today was Jaydra’s internal martial arts class. Having trouble keeping calm? Breathe. Move. Do the class.

And finally, after doing the workout, I had enough energy to do exactly one YouTube video. The idea is simple enough – when you are doing shadow boxing, picture your opponent. When your brain gets tired of doing that, go fast and make yourself tired.

At home striking: see the shadows

Posted in All school programs, CrossFit, Martial Arts | Comments Off on Day 14 – Keep Moving

Day 13 – Headstands, Jabs, and so much more

March 26th, 2020

Dug’s striking class today covered toe out kicks, jabs, crosses, and front kicks. What happens when you throw all those elements into a mix? Awesome combos.

Kid’s class was all about two of the hardest striking surfaces we’ve got: elbows and knees. Want to see me elbow a giant stuffed penguin? This is the class for you.

The CrossFit skills today were the headstand, the pistol, and the back roll. I won’t tell you what was in the workout, cuz that spoils all the fun.

For your kata work today, just do the form. We’ve been really specific with our foci in forms: arms only, legs only, slow, fast, big, small, etc. It’s important to sometimes to just do the form. Don’t do the moves with a goal in mind, simply let your body do the form and let your mind observe. Then, if you observed something you could improve, do the form again and turn that observation into a correction.

At home kata work: just do the form

Shrimp, bridge, yeah yeah yeah.. we all know those are at home grappling skills we should practice. But the scoot? Yeah. It’s that thing you do when you are sitting and your partner is standing and you need to make distance and create an angle. Will practicing it without a partner make you better when you finally get a partner again? Let’s find out. Do the work.

At home grappling: the scoot

Posted in All school programs, CrossFit, Forms, grappling, Martial Arts | Comments Off on Day 13 – Headstands, Jabs, and so much more

Day 12 – Push ups, Side Kicks, and So many Posts

March 25th, 2020

Push ups as a skill? Heck yeah. Strength is a skill. You get better at it by practicing it. Watch today’s workout video and do the work.

Today in kid’s class we played the game “stick of no conscience”. It’s pretty much the most fun martial arts game ever. Did it work via livestream? Watch the video with a kid and see.

Lots of times, some of my best ideas come to me when I’m teaching kid’s class. Not too long ago, I had the idea to teach a “side body rock” to help the kids understand a side break fall. The awesome thing about tools that work for kids? They work for adults too. Watch the video and see if it doesn’t help clarify the side breakfast for your at home grappling work today.

At home grappling: side break fall

Side kick! Be that awesome shadow kicking figure on the front of every TKD gym. Why not? Besides, not only is it a fun kick, it works too. Watch the video and get to work on your daily at home striking practice.

At home striking: side kicks

What to do with your form today? Have fun. Do it with no arms. Do it with no legs. Why? Because it is fun AND it will force you to think about what you’re doing because if you aren’t thinking about what you’re doing then you’re just waving your arms and legs in the air.

At home kata work: armless and legless

Posted in All school programs, CrossFit, Kids, Martial Arts | Comments Off on Day 12 – Push ups, Side Kicks, and So many Posts

Day 11 – A new Striking Class!

March 24th, 2020

If you’ve been salivating for more online classes with punches, the wait is over! Dug was kind enough to lead a striking class today and will be leading them every Tuesday and Thursday at Noon on our Facebook page.

And of course, our kid’s class today was rocking! Bridges and ridgehands all class long. The dancing at the end of class is totally optional.

Our final live class of the day was the CrossFit class. Is it still CrossFit if we don’t use barbells? The answer is, if I do it during a CrossFit class, it is CrossFit. Even the crazy sideways hand balance pose I did. Man that was hard.

Special Bonus martial arts content! If you’re missing the vigors of Dave’s takedown class, here is some sprawling solo work.

At home grappling work: sprawl

Until tomorrow! Stay safe, train hard.

Posted in All school programs, CrossFit, Martial Arts | Comments Off on Day 11 – A new Striking Class!

Day 10 – Handstands, Backfists, and Sit Outs

March 23rd, 2020

I’m learning a lot about digital resources. That’s kind of fun. I’m learning about my own coaching by being able to watch myself on screen. Anyway. Enough about me. Here’s what we did today.

For Kid’s class, we worked the backfist and the toe out kick. Lara had us play a game (of hopefully safe) indoor soccer.

For our workout, the skills were: handstand, airplane balance, and the cossack squat. That airplane balance is a doozy.

Need some striking ideas for your solo practice? Try playing with the backfist and some variations.

At home striking: backfist vs backknuckle

Going insane without grappling partners? Or maybe you just have one partner? Try the sit through and maybe venture into the challenging world of the sit around. I know. All that sitting around sounds easy… but it isn’t.

At home grappling work: sit through

Finally, if you’re feeling kata oriented in this time of isolation, try focusing on your striking surfaces. What exactly are you hitting with when you are striking that imaginary opponent?

At home kata work: striking surface

Stay safe. Practice compassion. Build your skills.

Posted in All school programs, CrossFit, Kids, Martial Arts | Comments Off on Day 10 – Handstands, Backfists, and Sit Outs

<- Older Entries
Newer Entries ->