300th Post
This is my 300th post in the training log, which is really more a testament to how long I've been on the forum. It doesn't say much about the quality of my jiu-jitsu, which I'll explain in a second.
Overall, I'm getting back in shape. I've been running and doing some weights, resentfully, but I feel really good. My abs are slowly coming back and my back and tricepts feel strong, and since those are the muscle groups that I use the most rolling (besides, obviously, my legs) I find that feeling good about the strength there is really important.
I went in to train today (and got set up with a payment plan which will leave me almost broke, but that's another story) and was working on half-guard with the instructor running the morning class, who's a purple belt and a terrific guy, as well as very knowledgeable.
We were working through basic techniques for taking the back and some basic passes, and I was happy to find that my ability to pass the half guard is actually still very good. I've always been hard on my guard passing, because I felt like as a smaller guy it was always going to take a back seat to playing off of my back, but the last months of training judo, especially, really taught me that the little guys can have aggressive, powerful topgames and effectively use closed body passes from the half-guard and crossface positions that I really thought were just not going to work for me.
We did a few variations on the standard passes establishing the underhook and the cross-face and then working the legs through to pass. I found those coming back to me really quickly, which was great given how terrible I felt at the last class while rolling. My ability to take the back from half-guard is not where I like it to be, but I was finding the substantial half-guard positions, with the hip out and the ability to locate sweeps, pretty easily.
During rolling, I felt pretty good also. I was working with some of the heavier whitebelts, which is always good for me when I'm getting back in, as it forces me to really use my techniques to deal with the power difference.
At one point, though, one of the instructors came over and corrected what I was doing while taking the back, pointing out that I hadn't established control of the hips well enough. This is the kind of stuff that drives me nuts, because I know that I know better, I know that it's not a mistake I should be making, and I know that it's something I've thought about a good deal both on and off the mat. I even posted about it
in here not that long ago.
I was very frustrated with my own game, and realized that I wasn't doing a very good job protecting my neck from when I was one the bottom in half-guard. It's a habit that I thought I had gotten rid of, but apparently it's back. I made some adjustments and seem to have tamed it again, at least for now, but we'll see if it stays that way.
Overall, though, my rolling felt really good, especially after I got comfortable with my body again. I'm definitely not as flexible as I was when I left, which is really frustrating given that I had a few opportunities to catch omoplatas and even one chance to catch a mounted gogoplata where my leg was just not turning over the way I needed it to. Hopefully, though, the flexibility will come with time, since I know that at least those techniques are still something that my body is aware of.
My use of the triangle today was very good, and particularly surprising since it's a move that, while I'm reasonably good at it, I've never been able to really catch and hold on to as reliably as someone with my build is really supposed to. That said, I caught one of the back that was very, very slick, a reverse triangle that let me isolate the arm, and then I caught a textbook triangle from the guard. Against bigger opponents, especially who have wrestling experience, I'm always really happy when I can finish a triangle, even if it burns my legs out.
The best part of my game, though, was my guard passing. I was able to open the guard fairly easily and pass the open and half-guard better than I have been in a while. I don't know if that's the judo (though I think it probably it) but it feels very good and it's something that hopefully I will be able to keep doing.
This is my 300th post in the thread. I realized that it's also been about 4.5 years since I started the training log, which makes me really happy. I am so fortunate to have a place like MMAForum to talk about MMA and to log my thoughts. With that thought, I'm off to go get lunch. I've been trying to eat less, and it seems to be making me less hungry. I've also decided, since I've gotten back from London (where I had more beer than I'd like to admit) that I'll only be drinking water for a while.