Lesson 1
The Reality of Self-Defense
Catch Haymaker to Front Bodylock
Side-Control
Kick-away to Technical Stand
It is critical that you are able to get back to you feet from the ground without giving your back. If you get pushed back down you won’t make it – so this is how you learn how to use body geometry (your base, frames and posture) to build up structure against an opposing force; known as “Bone Strength”.
Americana
Home Training for Extra Reps.
As a beginner it’s important to get as many reps as possible of core movement patterns in solo training workouts. Our stretching and calisthenics/shadow-movements workout that we warm up with in class should be considered a home workout structure that you can do any time, without any equipment. We want you to get in at least one solo training workout between each of our intro basics courses! Every day would be best, but building training momentum gradually is important, so build up how many days per week you train slowly.
Shadow these moves every time you train by yourself, try to get in at least 10 reps of each movement
– Bridging
– Shrimping
– Technical Stand
– Sit-Thrus
Spine Rocking (hip-up ab workout from a sit-ups position)
Always work in your basic bodyweight calisthenics with your stretching. Combining your bodyweight workout with jogging or cycling, either before or after, when you have time, is really good too! Cardio is key.
Breakfalls and Side Breakfall
Use Breakfalls to maximize shock absorption and surface area. DON’T LAND ON YOUR ELBOW! Breakfall arm should be 45° from body, breakfall with palm and forearm surface impacting the mat. Best to learn from a sitting position first.
Shrimping
- Shrimping is a movement on the ground, pivoting on your shoulder using your toes to scoot your hips, as opposed to getting up on your elbow for a technical stand. Shrimping is the most critical fundamental movement of groundwork. If you train bridging and shrimping, you will be able to escape any hold-down.
Most important points:
- Getting on your side so you can breathe – if you are pinned on your back with weight on you, it compresses your diaphragm.
- “Building the Wall” – Connecting your bottom knee and elbow.
- You can do two or more scoots on one side but the essence of the movement is in pivoting from one side to the other in combination with bridging.
Relaxed, Cooperative Practice
The way people learn the most effectively is starting off completely relaxed and just memorizing the position and doing repetitions of getting into and out of it, at first with no resistance, then very, very gradually increasing resistance from the training partner until they can do the move against live resistance. This is called “Progressive Resistance Methodology”.