My Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu teacher (Andre 'Dedeco' Almeida) showed me this awesome Side Control drill when I was a new White Belt. It is one of the best drills I've seen for…
6 Positions of Side Control - How to Drill and Improve BJJ Side Mount
The Scraping Fist
Guest Appearance: Fight for a Happy Life with Sensei Ando
I had the honor of being invited onto Fight for a Happy Life martial arts podcast with host Sensei Ando. The episode just released today.
Check out our conversation on topics like - freedom, defining success, barriers to students progress, living life, and weird questions about what I want on my deathbed/tombstone (is this guy planning to kill me???), and lots of laughter.
Monkey Grips! How I Strengthen My Grips and Keep Them Healthy
Fingers hurt after training? Grips not strong enough to hold on when grappling? Check this out.
Grip strength and health can be a really important thing for martial artists. Grip intensive arts such as Judo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Shuai Jiao, and other Grappling Arts, all require/build grip strength, and put a great deal of wear and tear on the fingers. Today I'm going to show you the methods I use to keep my grips not only strong, but healthy. For strengthening: exercises like rope...
Guest Appearance: The Strenuous Life Podcast w/ Stephen Kesting
On the latest episode of his podcast - 'The Strenuous Life' - BJJ Black Belt and founder of Grapplearts, Stephen Kesting and I debate the value of Kung Fu, and if it can coexist with BJJ and MMA. I think you are going to like this! I highly recommend his channels if you haven't already found him!
"Can Kung Fu, BJJ and MMA coexist? Maybe they can, and maybe they can even learn from each other.
This is a conversation I had with with Kung Fu stylist (and BJJ brown belt) Randy Brown in which we touched on the history of Chinese martial arts and what made them less effective over time, what traditional martial arts look like when you start training them with resistance, and much more. I think you’ll like this one!"
The Tiger Tail - My Most Hated Throw!!!
This was truly one of my most hated throws. In 2009, on one of my semi-annual sojourns to San Diego to train with my Mantis Boxing coach at the time, I was introduced to this personal menace.
The primary purpose of this trip, was for my teacher to share with me the 20 throws of Mantis Boxing that his 8-Step Mantis Boxing teacher had...
Wicked (Diāo刁) - 7 of 12 - The Keywords of Mantis Boxing
Improve Cardio in Boxing - The Double Under
Hang (Guà 掛) - 6 of 12 - The Keywords of Mantis Boxing
'Sneaky' Americana for No-Gi
Connect (Zhān 粘) | Cling (Nián 黏) - 4 & 5 of 12 - The Keywords of Mantis Boxing
Connect (Zhān) - connecting with the opponent. A principle found in Mantis Boxing as well as Taijiquan. The process of trying ‘to stick’ to them. This can be done by grabbing, hooking, finding a way to slow down the limb e.g., a retracting arm, a leg, or taking advantage of a limb left behind.
Cling (Nián) - is the act of sticking once we are engaged. Once connected, staying in contact i.e., clinging, sticking, following, allows you to ‘feel’ where your opponent is at all times, and control limbs. Instead of the floating limb being able to bite you.
Check out our latest video in the series on - 'The 12 Keywords of Mantis Boxing'.
Ezekiel Choke to Americana Lock (Keylock)
Here is another attack using the same sneaky Americana I've been using from under the head. In this example, we go from the Ezekiel Choke and our opponent defends it. Because my weight is side shifted, my savvy friend will feel my opposite leg go light, and try to push my knee into half guard to gain a better position.
Rather than stay there and let them get half guard, we skip over to position 2 of Side Control. Now they defend the position by trying to build a frame. This presents the arm in a vulnerable position to grab it from...
How and When to Stand Up in a Fight
Team Note: I know many of you who train with me will enjoy this video. Truth be told, I wish we had done it years ago because it is so fundamentally important. There isn't enough time in the day to practice everything, so feel free to take this and practice it whenever you can, and as much as you want.
Video Description: Whether we like it or not, sometimes we end up on the ground in a fight/altercation, or just a dangerous situation. When and how we stand up, can mean the difference between success and fail. Here are some tips for standing up when someone is waiting to pounce.
Stop Your Opponents Crushing Side Control
Do you hate being crushed in your opponent's side control? Here's something I've been working on in my game that will hopefully help your game. Building a mountain under your opponents crushing side control can give you space and mobility for countering their attacks, and possibly bringing us to a better position.
Monkey Steals Peach: In-Depth
An in-depth look at the Mantis Boxing move - Monkey Steals Peach. This is one of my favorite counters. Over the years, I've come to rely on a few follow-ups after people began countering the move, and we're including some small details to help you with the execution.
The Straight Punch - Throwing the Forward and Reverse Punch
The Straight Punch - devastating and destructive! Forward and Reverse punch are a good place to start when learning to punch in Mantis Boxing, or other striking arts. They are destructive, and can easily be modified to open hand strikes if necessary.
The following video shows the in's and out's of...
How to Throw a Punch...Safely
Having an improper structure, leaving a finger misplaced, or snapping our elbow, can all cause lasting damage, injuring ourselves more than the object we are trying to hit.
Whether we are hitting bags, pads, mitts, makiwara boards, or sparring partners, it's important to keep these tips in mind to keep us punching without injury for years to come.
Pluck (Cǎi 採) - 3 of 12 - The Keywords of Mantis Boxing
Pluck (Cǎi 採) is the third of the 12 keywords of Mantis Boxing. The keyword formula houses the principles that define the art. They have been passed down from generation to generation for hundreds of years.
With Pluck (Cǎi 採), a short sharp pull down, or powerful snap, we can feed our adversary into a disadvantaged position. Commonly used after Mantis Catches Cicada, and White Ape Invites Guest.
How to Drill Your Basic Footwork Skills
Basic Footwork is pivotal in understanding how to move when fighting/sparring. Bad footwork creates vulnerabilities in our game that our opponent can capitalize on. Once we have an understanding of our basic footwork skills, Mirror Drill becomes a great tool to help train fluidity and responsiveness, as well as range sensitivity, and neutral position; where our guard/blocks work best.
