ATM ... Takes a licking but keeps on ticking!
Back on the mat for a Monday training. There are a thousand reasons why it's great to train on Monday (I was reading a bodybuilder e-mail I subscribe to - don't ask - that was making a similar point about Monday being mandatory squat/legs day). But the fact that you know exactly what you're going to get from the moment you open the door and the music is thumping upstairs. It's like flipping a switch and it's time to go. A great way to start the week.
Rodrigo has started alternating his days a little bit so that he can spend time meeting and training with different folks - including new people he's never even met. This had him back at GB Seattle on Monday, though Lindsey still led his class (Rodrigo and Stephen led the second sparring class that was mostly guard/pass guard specific).
Lindsey had us focus on armlocks from the guard, particularly from the guard I used to call Hilo Guard. He used double sleeve control, which seems like a nice combination with Hilo.
A couple of pointers: make sure not to push back too far and create too much space. That will only allow the guy to put up a knee and start to work a Royler or Fowler pass. Also, make sure that the "chucking" leg doesn't just come up hard under the armit but also comes down hard on the upper back and shoulder. The leg has a major destablizing role to play in driving the guy over AND in keeping him over long enough to get the other leg over for the armlock. Think of the armlock as a sweep, a flower sweep in reverse, and drive the leg all the way over.
Tatame was pretty good. I'm still working the standing passes, which is Project 1 for 2009. I think that once I get over the initial Vertigo of it, I'll be fine. They are actually a hell of a lot more fun and less draining than wrestling around trying to restore your posture on the ground. The trick will be in being relentless about training them, the death cycle as it were.
