KALARIPAYATTU

Kalaripayattu is the exclusive martial arts legacy of Kerala, taken to China by the Buddhist monks which became the fabled model for the modern martial arts. All the modern day martial arts such as Kung-Fu, Karate, Judo, Kick-Boxing, Tai-Chi etc are believed to have been originated from Kalaripayattu.

History

The first written records of Indian combat appeared in the Lotus Sutra (600-500 B.C.), which says that nata (a form of boxing) was learned through dancing. Perhaps the first famous warrior of India was Buddha who was an expert fencer and pugilist and was possibly schooled in vajramushti, a brutal fighting art. When vajramushti was combined with Buddhist teachings, it gave birth to yoga and later became the foundation for the fourth-century art of kalaripayattu (aka kalari payat or kalaripayit,) which stressed attacking pressure points, weapons, yoga stretching and pranayama (breath control).

Although it is thought that Sage Parasurama founded kalaripayattu (art of wielding weapon in the arena, i.e., battlefield training) in the Indian state of Kerala, warrior Chieftain Thacholi Othenan, from the North Malabar area of Kerala, popularized the art in the 16th century. The ethnic Indian martial art of Kalari Payat (Kalaripayattu) – meaning ‘Battleground’ or ‘Gymnasium’ – (Kalari), ‘Method’ or ‘Art’ – (Payatt), has a special significance for practitioners of the Tibetan and Chinese martial arts. In tradition, the Shaolin Temple martial art of China was introduced by the Indian Buddhist Patriarch and founder of Ch’an’ (Zen) Buddhism; Bodhidharma (450-523 AD).

Training

Kalari training is traditionally carried out in an enclosure which is 21’ width and 42’ length. Such training grounds are constructed according to Vastu shastra and are considered as pious as a place of worship. The entrance faces the East and the place of deity is to the South West. The deity place has its seven steps symbolizing Strength, Patience, Commanding power, Posture, Training, Expression and Sound. Students attain the power to control the internal energy, breath, mental power and the power to focus by following the rituals and reciting mantras. Students are instructed not to sleep during the day time and are advised to sleep well at night. It is important that the students understand that Kalari is not only a means of self-defense but also a means to becoming determined and self-disciplined.

Kalari training can be started as early as seven years of age. Beginners start with training in balance and body flexibility and then move on to advanced lessons. Kalari requires speed, agility, and co-ordination of body parts. The training to become a Master includes training in Ayurveda and knowledge of human anatomy which helps in understanding vital nervous points.

The combat training can be divided into four categories

Meipayattu

Wearing Katcha or loin cloth and smearing his body with oil, the student after prostrating before the deities and the Gurukkal begins his initial training with Meithari system, which forms the foundation for the entire repertoire of Kalaripayattu training. Every conceivable form of stretching, turning and twisting of the body is mastered by practicing this. The body control exercise include swinging of the legs along with different methods of leaps and jumps. Concentration, agility, confidence, reflex action, physical and mental power are the result of Meithari.

Kolthari

The Second phase is known as Kolthari which involves training in wooden weapons like Kettukari 12 span staff and Cheruvati 3 span staff etc.Ottakkol is a special curved wooden weapon in the Kothari repertoire which serves as a training instrument for co-ordinating the intricate movements of the body and feet and also as a stepping stone to the proper execution of the advanced Kalaripayat techniques. Various sequences of Kolthari lead one to the proper understanding of mind and body in action.

Ankathari

The third and final phase of training is Ankathari or combat training with weapons. This begins with Kattarom or dagger, which is knife shaped metallic weapon for duels at close quarters which includes several locks and many elements of barehanded fighting techniques. Using Sword and shield in an efficient manner is considered to be the peak of perfection in Kalaripayattu. Various methods in the use of sword as a weapon of offence and defence are being practiced today; but most awesome among these is the ‘Puli Ankam‘ where the combatants fight like tigers. An extra ordinary control over the body, agility, a quick eye and a keen presence of mind are necessary for the mastery of the sword fight. Urumi is long flexible sword measuring about 6 feet in length and sharp at both sides. A warrior in mass attack uses this. If the wielding is not perfect, it may cause wounds on the user itself.

Verum Kai

This is the training for defence without using any weapon against an armed or unarmed person. In Verum Kai, different techniques of locking, gripping, throwing are taught. The student also learns the marma treatment as part of Kalari’s advanced study. Verumkai is said to be the advanced stage of Kalari. Master of the martial traditional order will impart this knowledge only to those students who are highly disciplined not only in Kalari but also in their daily life.

Many advanced elements of empty hand fighting is taught in the different sequences of Kathiyum Thalayum, in which one learns to defend onself with a common two meter long cloth on one’s own shoulder called the mundu.

Kalaripayattu has 108 marmas or pressure points. Marmas are actually pockets of Prana or vital energy cross points. You don’t need to strike–you can even frighten a guy to total submission. Basically unarmed Kalaripayattu deals only with Marma Adi–or lethal blows to vital meridian points. Kalari strikes used very little fist and palm. The wrist has too many bones– there is a limit to which a wrist can take stress– after which it pops–and that too permanently.

Kalari warriors wear the Urumi like a hidden belt around their waist. On their knees, they have satchels of coagulant turmeric power based medicine and several tourniquets.

Kalaripayattu helps to gain mental peace, physical strength and flexibility. The training includes exercise to develop sharp reflexes for unarmed combat and techniques of combat using daggers, sticks, sword and shield, long flexible sword called Urumi etc. Kalaripayattu encompasses an invigorating Ayurvedic herbal treatment for chronic ailments like Arthritis and Spondylosis and a massaging regimen which repairs physiological damages and makes the body young and supple. The Uzhichil or oil massage using specially medicated oil enables and enhances proper blood circulation and the removal of excess fat from the body. Kalaripayattu is not only a martial art that is also an Orthopaedic system, massage regimen, Ayurvedic treatment and a cultural experience that teaches self-defence and discipline.

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Jeet Kune Do – The Art of Intercepting Fist

“Research your own experience. Absorb what is useful. Reject what is useless. Add what is essentially your own“– Bruce Lee

Though it fits neatly under the category of a martial arts style, Jeet Kune Do really isn’t one. You see, it’s more of a philosophy. A way. And that’s exactly what founder Bruce Lee Was thinking of when he formed it. “I have not invented a new style composite, modified or otherwise that is set within distinct form as apart from this method or that method. On the contrary, I hope to free my followers from clinging to styles, patterns, and molds,” Bruce Lee once told the Black Belt Magazine. In other words, Lee believed that only what worked should be used in martial arts and the rest discarded. And that’s what makes Jeet Kune Do special.

 

The Early History of Jeet Kune Do and Its Founder Bruce Lee

Bruce Lee studied Wing Chun, an empty hand form of kung fu under Sifu Yip Man and one of his top students, Wong Shun-Leung, in China before leaving for the United States in 1959. With this training, he developed an understanding of striking through centerline control (protecting the middle so opponents had to attack from the outside). He gained a dislike for flashy movements and an understanding of how to intercept an attack before it had even started (an unorthodox method of countering). Beyond Wing Chun, Lee also studied both western boxing and fencing.

After moving to America in 1964 (Seattle), Lee opened a martial arts school named the Lee Jun Fan Gung Fu Institute (literally Bruce Lee’s Kung Fu Institute), where he taught Wing Chun with some modifications. However, things changed for him and martial arts in general in 1964 after he fought and defeated local Chinese martial arts master Wong Jack Man in less than three minutes in a challenge match. Despite his victory, Lee was disappointed, believing that he had not fought to his potential because of the limits his style of fighting had placed on him. Eventually, this led to the formulation of a martial arts philosophy without limits, one that did not force practitioners to adopt only one style or way of doing things. This new philosophy would eventually allow Lee to incorporate boxing, Wing Chun, grappling, and even fencing into his training.

One year later, “The Way of the Intercepting Fist,” or Jeet Kune Do was born.

 

Characteristics of Jeet Kune Do

The overriding principle of Jeet Kune Do is to eliminate what doesn’t work and use what does. This isn’t just a global ideology, either. There is also an individual component to the Jeet Kune Do philosophy, where the strengths and weaknesses of practitioners are taken into account when practicing and formulating their martial arts plan. Although jeet kune do’s foundation lies in wing chun theory, Bruce Lee liberally borrowed from other kung fu styles: taekwondo, wrestling, fencing and Western boxing.

 

Some frameworks of JKD are:

Centerline Control: Lee’s Wing Chun training taught him to protect his centerline so attackers were forced to try and strike from the outside in. This is a staple of JKD.

Combat Realism: AKA- forget kata. Some martial arts styles swear by kata, or prearranged fighting movements conducted in isolation where practitioners are asked to pretend that they are taking on attackers while delivering punches or kicks. JKD and Lee did not subscribe to the kata philosophy, nor any flashy movements or point sparring measures. Rather, they believed that learning in such a manner sometimes fooled martial artists into a false sense of combat security, as many of the moves being practiced did not work in real life.

Economy of Motion: Eliminating wasteful movement is a staple of Jeet Kune Do. In other words, why do a spinning head kick if a front kick to the midsection will do? The front kick is faster and doesn’t waste as much motion.

Emphasis Placed on Low Kicks, Not High Kicks: If a high kick opening presented itself, then fine. That said, JKD, in conjunction with the idea behind economy of motion, emphasized low and body kicks to the shins, thighs, and midsection. Of course, nothing in JKD was written in stone, which may be why Lee stopped short of abolishing the idea of high kicks completely.

Five Ways of Attack: This refers to the five ways JKD practitioners are taught to attack. These are Single Angular Attack and its converse Single Direct Attack; Hand Immobilization Attack; Progressive Indirect Attack; Attack By Combinations; and Attack By Drawing. Emphasis is placed on deception and counter striking in all of these.

Four Parts of JKD: These are efficiency (an attack that reaches its mark quickly and with sufficient force), directness (doing what comes naturally in a learned way), simplicity (without flashiness or being overly complicated), and quickness (moving in a fast manner before an opponent can think).

Inside Fighting: Lee believed in learning how to fight not only from a distance- as most point styles emphasize- but also on the inside.

Simultaneous Blocks and Attacks and Intercepting Attacks: Again, in going along with the economy of motion principle, JKD emphasizes simultaneous blocks and attacks so as to not waste motion or time (speed was important). In addition, anticipating an attack and delivering a strike while an opponent was coming forward was also emphasized (intercepting attacks).

Three Ranges of Combat: Rather than ignore certain parts of combat, Lee embraced them. Along with this, he noted that the ranges of combat were close, medium, and long.

Since Bruce Lee’s death in 1973, two variations of jeet kune do have evolved: original JKD, which is promoted as the art Bruce Lee practiced; and JKD concepts, which applies Bruce Lee’s concepts to martial arts techniques drawn from various Indonesian, Philippine and Thai styles. The lineage of Bruce Lee continues to liberate seekers from the patterned rigidity of traditional martial arts.

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Haryana to Rio – Sakshi Malik

From yearning to fly in an aeroplane as a kid to clinching a bronze medal at the Olympics, Haryana wrestler Sakshi Malik has come a long way in her fairy-tale journey to etch her name in the country’s sporting history. Born into a humble family in Mokhra village near Rohtak; Haryana, Sakshi tried playing kabaddi and cricket but wrestling caught her interest and she soon started to win bouts. But little did she and her parents know that one day she would become the first woman wrestler from the country to win an Olympic medal.

According to her father, she was motivated to take up wrestling from seeing her grandfather Badhlu Ram, who was also a wrestler. Coach Ishwar Singh Dahiya still remembers the day when a 12 year old Sakshi accompanied her mother to the Sir Chotu Ram Stadium Wrestling Academy in Rohtak.

“When she had first come to the academy, she would feel nervous initially but her fear disappeared with training and she won medals at the Asian sub-junior level,” her coach said.

She had to train with the boys and fight them in the akhara, in a region where the sport was ‘not for girls’. Sakshi and her family had to fight against all odds.

“She has given befitting reply to people who say that women cannot be wrestlers,” her mother said

On the night of Wednesday, August 17, Sakshi ended the country’s painful wait for a medal at the Rio Olympics by clinching the bronze medal in the 58kg freestyle category, pulling off a sensational 8-5 victory over Aisuluu Tynybekova of Kyrgyzstan in the play-off bout. She scripted history by becoming the first woman wrestler from India to bag an Olympic medal and only fourth female athlete from the country to climb to the podium at the biggest sporting event in the world. Overall, Sakshi has won India’s fifth wrestling medal in the Olympic Games.

Sakshi earned the dramatic win after falling behind 0-5 following the first period in the do-or-die bout. The Indian turned the tables on the Kyrgyzstan wrestler in the dying seconds of the bout as Tynybekova was in complete command inmost part of the clash.

“It’s not easy to come back when you are five points down – and to win the match in the last few seconds! She just kept going and kept trying to go for the shots and eventually she got them. From what I saw, it was pure grit and determination,” Arvind Lalwani, Team Singapore wrestler and head coach at Juggernaut Fight Club told the BBC.

Sakshi had lost 2-9 in the quarter-finals to Russia’s Valeriia Koblova in the fifth bout of the day before getting a second chance in repechage when her conqueror reached the final.

The  journey to Rio

2010: By the age of 18, she had tasted victory at junior-level competitions. She won a Bronze at the 2010 Junior World Championships in the 59kg category.

2014: She first came to the international limelight after taking home the Gold at the Dave Schultz International Wrestling Tournament (60-kg).

July-August 2014: Her professional international career began with a silver medal in the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, courtesy two 4-0 bouts.

September 2014: She crashed out in the Quarterfinal at the World Wrestling Championships in Tashkent. But not before beating her Senegalese opponent 4-1 in the Round of 16.

May 2015: Then on to the Senior Asian Wrestling Championships in Doha, where she won the Bronze.

Sakshi was one of three female wrestlers to qualify for the Rio Olympics, each hailing from Haryana, where women have long been treated as second-class citizens and ‘honour killings’ and sex-selective abortions are rife. Sakshi had spent the first seven years of her life in this village and may have travelled down that beaten path had it not been for her parents. In the build-up to the Summer Games, Sakshi had recalled in an interview some of the instances when villagers had sniggered and pointed fingers when she wrestled with boys or wore shorts in a state where women are usually covered head-to-toe and confined to their homes. Her bronze medal is a major victory over sexism in one of India’s most conservative states.

Right after the match, when her mother called to ask her if she was tired, the 23-year-old said that “Nobody feels tired after winning a medal for country”.

This year it has been the female athletes from India who have ruled the roost and made Rio Games their own. From Dipa Karmakar’s death-defying gymnastic moves, to Lalita Babar’s historic track final, to bronze medallist Sakshi Malik’s wrestle against all odds to PV Sindhu’s silver medal – these feats have ensured that women too are eligible of bringing honour and pride to the country.

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Find your ‘FLOW’ in BJJ

The phrase ‘Flow Rolling’ often gets a bad rap in the grappling world. You know the feeling you go to slap and bump hands and your partner says, “You mind if we just flow?” You’re probably thinking, “Flow? What the hell! I want to fight!” People in the Jiu-Jitsu community often think of flow rolling as something less than live rolling. Some might even think that you only “flow roll” when you’re injured, broken, old, or weak. Flow rolling is a method of sparring that occurs at a lighter, less competitive / more cooperative pace than the regular rolling, involving a give and take in the match where your opponent is allowed to apply their techniques without your full defence and the emphasis is on movement and the exchange of positions. Flowing is when two students train from one movement to one movement without stopping or going for a “tapout.”

With an understanding of it’s definition and the knowledge of the basic movements of BJJ, a student can now flow. A practitioner will first warm up by stretching the legs, groin and later the upper body for a full body warm-up. The practitioner will start in a sit-down pose, on knees, facing his partner who is on their knees as well. They Shake hands and begin the first movement which could be bringing one partner into the guard position. Each partner will take turns and initiate the next move, never forcing a finishing move as the one of the main purpose to flowing is to not stop moving. A partner will move again until reaching a dominant position, like a full mount or knee on stomach. When position is attained the partner will let go of that position, knee on stomach in this case, and move to a side mount, or roll the partner off his back and begin cycle again. This training can go on and on, based on the skilled level of the students and cardio endurance. This flowing back and forth is a psychically a complete workout and mentally reinforces the techniques the students attempt during the flow session.

I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once. But I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times. – Bruce lee

Develop your ‘Flow’

• Practice cyclical flow drills – Use these drills to help you develop more precise, accurate movements and transitions.
• “Dark” rolling (eyes closed) – When you grapple with your eyes closed you narrow your focus to your immediate needs. So instead of being distracted by all of the external stimuli when you grapple with your eyes open, you develop laser point focus on your partner. In addition, you are forced to move slower and with better precision which improves your technique.
• ‘Catch and Release’ flow rolling – This is a great way to move your body in and out of submissions. You want to use as little strength as possible and rely almost exclusively on technique. The goal is to exchange techniques with your partner using continuous movement with no breaks in the rhythm.
• The “right” partner – It’s important to find a partner who moves well. Also, find someone you roll with all the time who is familiar with the way you move. If they are choppy, resistant or in a deep egoic state it will be difficult to flow.

There are limitations to full intensity sparring (especially with evenly matched opponents) where each person will avoid taking chances or trying a new technique for fear of losing position and ending up getting submitted. This is where flow rolling will loosen up your game. Here are 4 ways that flow rolling can improve your jiu-jitsu.

1) Try new positions / develop your weaker positions

One of the ways one is discouraged from incorporating new positions or even attempting to improve your weaker positions is the fear that when your opponent counters the technique, you will lose your position on possibly get submitted. So you tighten up your game and instead restrict yourself to only your tried and true best techniques. But you have failed to try to incorporate that new position into your game and over a period this stifles your progress and growth.

With the cooperative nature of flow rolling you can attempt your triangle and your opponent allows you to lock it up before he starts the correct counter. With repeated attempts in flow rolling, you gain confidence in your ability to apply the triangle and have both added a new submission to your arsenal and corrected a weak spot in your game.

2) Exchange of many different positions

During a 5 min round of intense sparring, each person will attempt to limit the movement of their opponent and control the positions. This results in static matches where each tightens their grips and the movement between positions grinds to a halt. Instead, in flow rolling, you have the option to direct the roll repeatedly to the back position and try choke as many times as you wish. Repetition is the mother of skill and this a great way to get those reps in and make that technique part of your game.

3) Learning opponent reactions

Marcelo Garcia said that a key to getting deadly at submissions was to allow a tight, defensive opponent to move, thereby opening up opportunities for submissions. By the time most BJJ-ers are at bluebelt, they have some idea of their best positions. To bring their level up higher in those already strong positions, flow rolling will build your transitions to get to those strong positions and also build your knowledge of how your opponent counters. When you have a solid idea of how the opponent will counter your favourite technique you can now anticipate their reactions, start to build combinations and re-counters and thus always be one step ahead of your opponent’s defence.

4) Training around injuries

One of the unfortunate realities of bjj is dealing with training injuries. It can be frustrating to sit on the sidelines as you recover and feel that your hard won progress is slipping away. Training around injuries is a skill to keep your jiu-jitsu progressing and providing some mental relief from the frustration of being sidelined. High intensity sparring involves sudden, uncontrolled movements where you are unexpectedly forced to post a hand or shift balance onto your knee to avoid being  swept. Flow rolling will allow you to avoid certain positions that aggravate your injury and still retain your timing and movement.

Flowing helps improve your agility and timing as well as teaches you how to use your momentum when you are training.

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Knocking down the myths in MMA

When talking about Martial Arts, it comes as no surprise to us that there are a few misconceptions about the art and those who practice it. Due to a lot of hype by mainstream media, those who have never practiced a Martial Art easily make assumptions. To set the record straight, here is a look at some of the major misconceptions about MMA.

No Holds Barred & No Rules? Is MMA the most brutal sport on the planet?

Many casual fans of MMA might perpetuate the idea that they like watching the sport because there are“no rules” or “no holds barred.” No Holds Barred, or NHB fighting is a completely different animal from MMA. MMA has several rules. Primarily there’s no biting, eye-gouging, head-butting or hair pulling in MMA under traditional rule requirements. Most leagues also forbid kicks or knees to the head of a downed opponent.

Mixed Martial Arts has often been compared to boxing and called more dangerous. However, the fact is Boxing has a much longer history and exponentially higher incidences of formal prizefights on record than MMA has in its still young life span. It’s been said that there is not a single recorded death that has occurred due to injuries sustained in a formal sanctioned Mixed Martial Arts Fight. According to the popular “Manswers” TV show, boxing is responsible for an average of nine deaths each year.

Mixed martial arts is a fighting sport, and there is some level of aggression involved and obviously a great deal of adrenaline, but that does not mean the sport is inherently brutal. Fighters do not battle to the death or face men twice their size, and the level of sophistication has evolved 10-fold since the heady early days of the sport when fighters fought in tournament-style showdowns facing multiple opponents per night. Now opponents are of similar weight, a typical pro fighter rarely ever fights more than twice a month at most, and the rules and customs of the sport are designed to protect the fighters from serious and life-changing and/or threatening injury.

Women can´t do Martial Arts.

There are certain individuals who believe that Martial Arts, clubs and academy´s are a boys only club. As a result, these people feel that women are unable to train and develop enough strength to defend against an average sized man or to discourage an assailant.

We know this isn’t true, as we have seen so much recent news coverage, where girls as young as the age of 23 have taken on and successfully defended themselves against attack. These real life stories seem to be happening more today than ever before. Women, who train in Karate and Aikido for example, will always have the element of surprise on their side. These women are trained to defend themselves with a focused counterattack and develop the skill to strike pressure points, bones and even organs of the assailant without hesitation.

All Fighters are Brain Dead Bruiser Types Who Come From Bad Backgrounds and Broken Homes.

Most fighters can take each other apart with unmitigated fury in the confines of a cage or ring and just as easily put all that aggression and intensity behind them as soon as the fight ends. Also, though some guys who fight take on the look of a common street thug in a bad action movie, looking menacing can be a psychological edge. Many Fighters are smarter than you think, and though some might come from troubled childhoods, have criminal records, or went to reform school, you usually find it is organized fighting that kept them out of trouble rather than what got them into it.

Many people are astonished to find out some of the toughest fighters in the sport are the nicest and most intelligent people you could meet when they step outside the field of combat.

Everyone in MMA is on performance-enhancing drugs.

Thanks to organizations developing relationships with professional drug-testing facilities such as the World Anti-Doping Agency, and promotions like ONE Championship placing new weight-cutting procedures into play, the sport of MMA is getting healthier by the day.

Fighters can no longer take performance-enhancing drugs and get away with it. There are also stiff penalties, such as extensive suspensions, in place for those who get caught. For a professional fighter, not being able to fight is a huge blow to their career and livelihoods.

What’s more, athletes like Shinya Aoki, Ben Askren and countless others have showcased skills that allow them to overcome physically larger fighters based on ability alone.

Grappling and ground fighting is boring.

Unfortunately for MMA fans, this is a comment that will likely be heard until the end of time by those who are passionate about boxing or kickboxing. You could almost compare it to American football versus regular football in terms of followers not understanding why you use your hands in one and not the other.

Regardless, MMA is maybe even more about what happens on the canvas thanks to its connections with Brazilian jiu jitsu and wrestling, as it is about standing and out-striking your opponent. Once you see a high-level grappling exchange leading to a spectacular submission, you’ll realize ground fighting can be just as exciting as seeing two fighters trading blows in the center of the cage.

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Arts & Techniques in MMA

Mixed martial arts, or MMA is a full contact sport that combines striking and grappling arts, and has fighting techniques from various styles of fighting. Undoubtedly one of the best aspects of MMA is the sheer variety of techniques that fighters can use during a match and this is what makes it so exciting and different from every other combat sport.

There are dozens of submissions and strikes that can end a fight and some of them have repeatedly been proven effective time and again.

Choke

A finishing hold that cuts off the blood and/or the oxygen to a mixed martial artist’s brain. A player who does not tap to a well-executed choke will pass out. There are different kinds of chokes, some that use the forearms or biceps to put pressure on the arteries in the neck and/or the windpipe, and others that use the legs around the head and arm.

Clinch

A position where competitors try to control each other’s bodies by wrapping their arms around one another, fighting for good arm and hip position, frequently as a precursor to a takedown attempt. Although a clinch looks a bit like hugging, rest assured it is not at all affectionate.

Elbow Strike or Elbow

A blow to the opponent’s body or head using the point of the elbow. Elbow strikes are painful, and they can also open cuts. The use of elbows is generally heavily regulated. For instance, a competitor may not raise his elbow straight in the air and bring it straight down upon his opponent. Elbows must come in at an angle.

Ground and Pound

A strategy where a competitor takes his opponent to the ground and unleashes a flurry of punches and elbows to try to finish a fight.

Kicks

They are strikes that involve the legs, knees, feet or toes. Depending on the intention of the practitioner, his power and/or speed, simple kicks, like the front, side, back or roundhouse kick, can generally be performed one of two ways. First, the practitioner can deliver the kick with a quick snap of the knee and hips. Second, he can deliver it with a powerful hip thrust in which he locks his knees to deliver a focused straight-leg kick. Advanced kicks require better balance, speed and flair on the part of the practitioner for successful delivery.

Strikes

Characterized as a physical hit with any part of the body or an inanimate object, strikes are meant to cause pain, injury or death to an opponent. For martial artists, striking usually involves hitting with the legs or arms. For the legs, the practitioner strikes with his foot or knees. He also can stomp. For the arms, the practitioner uses his elbows, wrists, fists or fingers in a variety of ways. Finger strikes can be executed by individual fingers or in combination for soft-tissue and vital strikes. Sometimes the practitioner will hold his hand in a claw like grasp to rip at flesh or grab at soft tissues and vital points.

Closed-hand techniques include punches and hammer fist strikes. Various open-hand strikes like the spearhead aim at the soft-tissue areas. Open-hand strikes like the knife hand, chop, cupped hand and palm strike instead attempt to bludgeon larger areas with powerful hits.

Submission Hold

A submission hold is applied with the purpose of forcing an opponent to submit out of either extreme pain or fear of injury. Submission holds are used primarily in ground fighting and can be separated into constrictions (chokeholds, compression locks, suffocation locks) and manipulations (joint locks, leverages, pain compliance holds). When used, these techniques may cause dislocation, torn ligaments, bone fractures, unconsciousness or even death.

Takedowns

In this technique, a practitioner off-balances his opponent to take him to the ground. The practitioner aims to gain control of his opponent through a take-down manoeuvre by landing in a position of power when both combatants end up on the ground. Commonly used techniques include leg trips (or leg sweeps) and a wide variety of single- and double-leg takedowns.

Throws

Throws refer to a method when a practitioner off-balances his opponent to throw him to the ground. The practitioner typically remains on his feet during throws. Commonly practiced throws in martial arts include leg throws like reaps and trips, sacrifice throws and shoulder throws.

Wrestling

Wrestlers bring more to the table than just their physical skill. Typically they have been competing for far longer than other fighters. Therefore wrestlers often have a competitive mental edge as well as a familiarity with what it takes to prepare for competition.

There are two main styles of wrestling you will see in MMA – Freestyle and Greco-Roman. Freestyle is similar to the collegiate style most people are familiar with, whereas Greco-Roman is a style of wrestling which focuses on the upper body. You cannot use the legs at all to score points, so the emphasis is on upper body engagement. Because of this, a fighter with a Greco-Roman background brings something unique to the game of MMA.

Wrestling has two main uses in MMA – controlling the opponent and taking the opponent to the ground. Wrestling is not a submission art, but can put a fighter in position to go after submissions, and wrestling defense is essential for strikers wishing to keep the fight standing. Therefore, wrestling and wrestling defense can be the linchpin for a fighter trying to keep the fight in their domain.

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All You want to know about Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Jiu Jitsu, or Brazilian Jiu Jitsu as it is commonly named outside Brazil, is a martial art, combat sport, and a self-defence system that focuses on grappling and especially ground fighting. It is unlike many other ground fighting styles, particularly in the way that it teaches practitioners to fight from their backs.

History of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

Over 400 years ago, Buddhist monks developed a method of grappling as a way to defend themselves as they roamed Northern India to spread Buddhism. It was this new practice of self- defence, which would eventually be known as Jiu-Jitsu, that allowed these monks to subdue attackers without killing them. It was the Japanese who improved this practice and meant to keep it a secret. However, in 1914, Esai Maeda, who was a Kodoku Judo master, came to Brazil and stayed with a man named Gastao Gracie, who helped Maeda with a business endeavor. As a token of appreciation, Maeda taught Gracie’s oldest son, Carlos, all he knew about the art of Judo and Jiu-Jitsu. Carlos then taught the art to three of his four brothers, Oswaldo, Gastao, and George, and in 1925, the first Gracie Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy was opened in Rio de Janeiro.

The fourth brother, Helio, was very small in comparison to his larger brothers, and was not included in the original instruction because of this. However, he diligently watched and learned from the side of the mat, developing his own modified techniques based on using leverage rather than strength. The brothers finally saw how imperative Helio’s new techniques were to the art of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

The concept of techniques based on leverage, not strength, became the essential principle of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu or BJJ. To prove the effectiveness of their art, the Gracies provided an open challenge to anyone who doubted the applicability of BJJ in a real fight. These challenges were known as “Vale Tudo” (Portuguese for “anything goes”) matches, and was similar to the type of combat we now know as today’s MMA.

Characteristics of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is divided into three broad categories, each mutually supportive of the others; self-defence (including striking techniques and unarmed techniques against armed opponents), free fighting competition (commonly referred to as “vale tudo” or “anything goes” events, now popularly called MMA), and sport grappling with and without the gi (matches that include a wide range of submission holds, but no striking).

BJJ promotes the concept that a smaller, weaker person can successfully defend against a bigger, stronger assailant by using proper technique, leverage, and most notably, taking the fight to the ground, and then applying joint-locks and chokeholds to defeat the other person. BJJ training can be used for sport grappling tournaments (gi and no-gi) and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition or self-defence. Sparring (commonly referred to as “rolling”) and live drilling play a major role in training, and a premium is placed on performance, especially in competition, in relation to progress and ascension through its ranking system.

Since its inception in 1882, its parent art of Judo was separated from older systems of Japanese ju-jitsu by an important difference that was passed on to Brazilian jiu-jitsu: it is not solely a martial art, it is also a sport; a method for promoting physical fitness and building character in young people; and, ultimately, a way of life.

Style of Fighting

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is an art based in ground fighting but it also teaches takedowns, takedown defence, ground control, and especially submissions. Submissions refer to holds that either cut off an opponent’s air supply (chokes) or look to take advantage of a joint (such as armbars). Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fighters tend to feel very comfortable fighting from a position called the guard, if need be. The guard position– in essence, wrapping one’s legs around an opponent to limit their movement— is what allows them to fight from their backs so effectively, and is also something that separates their art from most other grappling styles.

Basic Goals of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fighters look to take their opponents to the ground. When on top they generally hope to escape their opponents’ guard and move to either side control (positioned across an opponent’s’ chest) or the mount position (sitting over their ribs or chest). From there, depending on the situation, they may choose to continually strike their opponent or set up a submission hold. When on their backs, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fighters are very dangerous. From the guard various submission holds can be employed. They may also seek to turn their opponent over in an attempt to reverse their fortunes.

The BJJ Rules

Few important rules that are followed in BJJ are:

• “Queda” – Throw or Takedown: If both challengers are standing, and one initiates and succeeds at taking the other to the mat, he is awarded 2 points.
• “Raspada/Raspagem” – Sweep: If your opponent is within your guard (any kind of guard) and you invert the position (you landing on top and your opponent on the bottom) you are awarded two points.
• “Passagem de Guarda” – Guard Pass: If you are inside your opponent’s guard and manage to escape that position, still maintaining top position, you have improved your position and therefore are awarded 3 points.
• “Pegada de Costas” – Back Mount: Regardless of where you are, if you manage to take your opponent’s back and place both feet around the inside of your opponent thighs (hooks), controlling him that way, you are awarded 4 points (you will need to place the hooks, body triangle will not score points).
• “Montada” – Mount: On top position with both legs around the opponent’s torso with knees on the ground, 4 points.

Physical Benefits

The fact that Brazilian jiu jitsu will change your body cannot be denied. You can physically see your body changing with every day or week. BJJ teaches you how to use your body as one unit. Most of spent our day sitting, driving, or working at a computer, the body develops some strange and unnatural movement patterns. The body awareness that BJJ teaches you is priceless. With an increase in body awareness, strength and mobility will soon follow.

Mental Benefits

Beyond any physical improvements that come as a result of Brazilian jiu jitsu are the mental improvements that are often overlooked. The process of learning a technique requires as much mental activity as it does physical. One of the hidden benefits of BJJ is what the struggle of learning, drilling, and rolling does for you. Walking into a class after spending months learning a technique, attempting it, and being crushed by everyone is not a good feeling. What is a good feeling is walking in the next day and trying it again.

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Daily Cup of Yoga

How we choose to start our day can be a vital factor in determining how the rest of our day would probably turn out. Mornings are a time when we can influence how we are going to think, act and respond for the rest of the day, so it only makes sense to shape that time in a positive and inspiring manner. If I’m rolling out of bed and going straight to work, the first beverage I reach for is a big cup of coffee. It is the way most of us start our day but this widely accepted everyday practice can take a toll on our well being. Too much coffee can lead to sleepless nights, anxiety, anger, and a case of the jitters. So if not for caffeine, what’s the best way to dust the cobwebs off of our brain and get our body ready for the day at hand? Could the magic potion be YOGA?

Practicing Yoga early in the morning has a myriad of benefits. A mere 15 minutes practice of Yoga everyday centers the mind, balances the body, and jolts us awake with more lasting energy than any espresso can provide.

1. Yoga helps us have a good day

The way we wake up sets the floor the rest of our day. If we wake up late, overtired and grumpy, we carry these emotions to the rest of our day, and they create an impact on how we see the world. If we start our day with yoga, we wake up to a dose of positivity. When we centre ourself on the mat, we create a more calm and balanced internal environment that will probably lead to clarity of mind.

2. Early morning Yoga regulates sleep rhythms

An important key to establishing a consistent sleep pattern is to get up every morning at the same time, so that our body can become accustomed to the routine. Getting up every morning to start the day with yoga regulates our circadian sleep rhythms, allowing us to fall asleep more easily, and stay asleep for the duration of the night.

3.  Early morning Yoga has a soothing effect

Do you ever wake up and already have a to-do list running through your head? Start your day with yoga and allow it to clear your mind. Focusing on your breath in conjunction with the movement of your body will relax you and give you a calmer outlook of your day.

4. Morning Yoga increases metabolism and improves digestion

If we start our day with Yoga, it helps regulate our appetite throughout the day. Also, the early morning circulation boost will help nutrients move through our body quickly and jump start our metabolism, and keep it elevated all day. Certain poses stimulate the digestive system and metabolism naturally, particularly twisting postures, throat chakra poses, and dynamic flows. First thing in the morning, before we have eaten or added caffeine to our bodies, we get to fire ourselves up in a completely natural way using breath and conscious movement. Start your day with yoga and burn more calories for the rest of the day.

5.  Morning Yoga lets you make healthy food choices for the day

Once you make it a habit to start your day with Yoga, it’s easier to make healthy choices throughout the day. When it comes to food choices, it easier to stick to the mindset that you wake up with. When you start your day with Yoga, you start your day with a health boost that will keep you going all day. When you have taken time early on to nourish your body and mind with Yoga, you will be less inclined to eat emotionally and far more likely to make balanced and healthy choices throughout the day.

6.  Exercising in the morning builds our discipline

If we exercise in the morning, we are more likely to stick to this routine. Our lives get pretty hectic and if we wake up and think “I’ll do yoga tonight”, a million things might come up that would discourage us from going to class. When our day starts to get demanding, exercise is often the first thing to slip. In the morning, the only thing preventing us from exercise is our discipline. When we start our day with yoga every day, we build discipline that will last throughout the day.

7.  All your exercise for the day is done

Its only 8 am and you are already done sweating it out. This is one of the best parts of exercising in the morning. You can take pride in how much you have already accomplished. Even if nothing else goes well, you can think, “Atleast, I already did yoga today!”At the end of a long and tiring day, it’s all too easy to skip your yoga practice and make a beeline for the couch. Incorporate Yoga in your early morning routine and you can dive onto the couch guilt free.

8. Yoga helps awaken our creative chakras

Poses that stimulate the energy at the ‘Sacral Chakra’ (Swadhisthana) can get our creative juices flowing. We don’t necessarily need to be an artist, writer or musician to appreciate that energy because creative expression can have a positive effect no matter what we do. Bhujangasana (Cobra), Urdhva Mukha Svanasana (Upward Facing Dog), Uttanasana (Standing Forward Fold) and Paschimottanasana (Seated Forward Fold) are all sacral chakra poses.

9. We are at our strongest in the morning

We are stronger in the first half of our day, before we become exhausted and weakened from work. Doing Yoga in the morning is a great way to capitalize on this strength, and you may find that your arms and legs are more strong and relaxed.

10. Expansive quality of breath

When we wake up, our body and nervous system are more calm and settled. Without the stimulation of the day, we can float straight into quality, expansive breathing and set ourselves up with plenty of oxygen and prana from the very first moments.

Even on those mornings when you can barely drag yourself out of bed (we have all been there), come to your mat or simply your living room rug and practice simple Yoga sequences (no experience or toe-touching flexibility required). Not only do these feel-good poses perk you up, but they will also open your hips, stretch your shoulders, and lengthen your spine. The result: You will walk away feeling centered, focused, and ready to own the day. So ditch that ‘Cup of Joe’ and get high on Yoga for a dose of wellness!

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Lifestyle Decisions Ruining your Health

Ever realized we do so many things in our daily lives without realizing their repercussions? Right from our ways of living, personal choices, work culture; everything has a direct impact on our well-being. Unfortunately, most of our lifestyle decisions are adversely affecting our physical, emotional and mental health. We have let our modern day lifestyle come in the way of a healthy life.

A lifestyle choice is a personal and conscious decision to perform a behavior that may increase or decrease the risk of injury or disease. If we exercise every morning then we have made a positive lifestyle choice to increase our physical wellness. If we choose not to drink alcohol then we choose to avoid serious potential consequences, such as a car crash while driving drunk or damage to our internal organs, such as our liver. These are all active lifestyle choices that benefit our health.

Bad Lifestyle Factors

Of course, many choices also harm us. Just take the alcohol consumption example. If we choose to drink, especially in excess or at the wrong time, then we increase our risk of death from something like a car crash. If we smoke, then we increase our chances of developing various diseases including cancer.

Let’s examine some lifestyle decisions that are ruining our body and health on a daily basis.

Skipping Meals

Most of us do not follow a proper diet regime. We only eat when we have time and not when we should be eating. Sometimes we even skip an entire meal altogether. Such practice can interfere with our body’s metabolism, leading to health concerns such as low appetite, blood pressure, acidity to name a few.

Erratic Sleep Patterns

Blame it on technology or late work hours, most of us find it difficult to sleep on time. We may hit the bed on time but don’t fall asleep easily because we are either on our phones or laptop. Getting a sound sleep is more essential than we may realise. Lack of proper sleep creates a mental imbalance and affects our productivity and the body’s ability to function actively the next morning.

Eating junk and outside food

‘You are what you eat!’ This phrase has been around for who knows how long and quite frankly, it’s not too far off the mark. If we eat well, we are much more likely to have a healthy body and mind. If we choose junk food over fresh vegetables, then this is less likely to be the case. Fast food often contains higher calories and highly saturated fats that the body does not need.

Lack of Physical activity

Chairs – we sit in them, work in them, shop in them and eat in them. The fact that most of us have sitting jobs; we do not get to move around much. Once we are home, we just lie around, watch T.V., or use our laptops. With a routine like this, we tend to become lethargic and gain body weight. Even a little bit of physical activity easily exhausts and tires us out. Sitting for long periods is bad because the human body was not designed to be idle. Lack of movement slows metabolism, reducing the amount of food that is converted to energy and thus promoting fat accumulation, obesity, and the litany of ills—heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and more—that come with being overweight.

Smoking and excess Alcohol consumption

Quit smoking and you’ll be healthier and your skin will look better. Stop excess drinking and you will feel better, stay healthier and stay in shape. Next time you light up, feel your pulse. It will start rising within a minute. That’s extra work for your heart. Instead of oxygen the blood cells carry carbon monoxide. Apart from increasing the risk of heart disease, smoking causes many serious medical disorders including lung cancer and emphysema. Moderate drinking is not a problem but if you drink more than the recommended daily limits, the risks of harming your health are increased. The harm caused by alcohol usually only emerge after a number of years and by then, serious health problems may have developed.

Stress can be deadly

You may feel there’s nothing you can do about stress. The bills won’t stop coming, there will never be more hours in the day, and your work and family responsibilities will always be demanding. But you have more control over stress than you might think. Stress causes deterioration in everything from your gums to your heart and can make you more susceptible to illnesses ranging from the common cold to cancer. It’s vital that we learn to relax and take it easy every once in a while. Identify the triggers that are causing you to stress out and figure out healthy ways to deal with them.

Over exposure to Gadgets

Your thumb and wrist are throbbing, your eyes are bloodshot and you’re pretty sure you have “text neck.” Sitting hunched over and tapping away at your smart phone comes with its share of consequences. The human eye is not adapted for staring at a single point in space for hours on end. If you log significant time in front of a computer monitor, you’ve probably experienced computer vision syndrome: eyestrain, tired eyes, irritation, redness, blurred vision, and double vision. Over exposure to gadgets can retards brain health, cause frequent headaches, disturb the sleep cycle and can lead to many more debilitating changes to the body.

Many of the risk factors described above won’t kill us suddenly or irreversibly hurt us right away. This means that we can still help our-self, our health, mind and body by altering some of our poor lifestyle decisions and incorporating some new healthy ones.

A few key ways to achieve better health and subsequently a better lifestyle are through physical activity, exercise and a healthy diet. Exercise aids cardiovascular and respiratory functions, slows the loss of muscular strength, increases bone mass, aids digestion and bowel functions, promotes sound sleep and prevents depression.

So instead of “treating” yourself to something like an ice cream or beer that will do more harm than good, treat yourself to good health.

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Breaking & Bad

Because most of us have been there right? Smoking weed, dropping acid, popping a pill, snorted blow…

It can seem like oh-so-much fun and so very exhilarating when you escape the confines of everyone who always told you drugs were bad. So many people are doing it. Can’t be all that bad. Right?

Remember your first time? The first hit is generally uncomfortable, the taste is odd. You take another drag…Everything begins to vibrate for some reason…things around you begin to turn into a kaleidoscope of colors.

Now who would not want to experience this outrageously euphoric feeling over and over again. To be able to surprisingly feel both numb and alive in the same moment, forget about all the worries of the world, just break free and have a good time. Why would anyone in their right mind deny himself of such an incredible adventure?

People who don’t do drugs usually come with major unattractive qualities, like always being sober and going home early, which makes us wary of their alternative motives. What could be more fun at home than dancing on tables and cutting your foot on glass at a club?!

So what if these drugs fry your brain and kill your brain cells. Not like they hand out OSCARS to people for having healthy brains.

Non drug users tend to err on the side of extreme caution. Their version of spontaneity is getting their popcorn buttered at the movie theater. When you are young, you should be living life to the fullest, making the most of your youth, going with the flow, expanding your consciousness, becoming one with nature. What will get you there??? No it’s not travelling, trekking, exploring, following your passion, socializing and all of that typical stuff…Drugs will get you there and take you places even though you will just be hallucinating; still the experience would be unparalleled. People who don’t take drugs miss out on the chance to open up and expose themselves on a different level.

Life can get really mundane and taxing at times. Sometimes you feel like you have had enough and you just want to run away from everything. You try to find a solution but the obvious ones that are available like getting help, talking to someone, changing your lifestyle could all require a lot of effort. On the other hand, drugs can prove to be the answer to all the problems in your life. Once you are high, not only will all your emotional pain and trauma disappear in thin air but you will also undergo a life changing experience, i.e., for as long as you live because drugs might kill you soon enough.Ever been fascinated by the prison life? Movies and T.V. shows sure make it seem so thrilling. Wondering how to get there? Follow a simple step. Let the Cops catch you with Drugs and in no time, you will find yourself inside a cell. You will be famous, the media will be all over you and if really lucky then someone might even write a book or a make a movie based on you. Drugs can be your instant shoot to fame.

“I have been fat all my life and I want to lose weight. I eat healthy and exercise and I am still fat.”

Most of us are struggling to lose a few pounds. We can follow the usual route like exercise, hit the gym, take up yoga, go on a diet. We might lose weight and become healthy eventually but that would require us to put in a lot of hard work and commitment. Why should we go through the pain of such a disciplined life when we can easily become slim and skinny by just doing drugs. Cocaine, for example, will make you lose weight really really fast. In fact, coke will suppress your appetite and your body won’t be able to store any fat, allowing you to achieve that perfect body image. You may suffer from some kidney problems, diarrhea, rectal bleeding, liver damage but hey let’s not deviate from the bigger picture here, i.e., to get those toned abs and cheekbones.

To top it all, in the future when your kids are hitting their teenage years and they  question you about drugs, imagine the amount of knowledge and data that you can share with them. You can tell them about all your experiences and maybe you can even give them their first joint rather than letting some random dealer do the job for you.

Obviously you will need lots of money to be able to get your hands on drugs because all things GOOD in life generally come at a price. Even if you have already lost all your money on drugs,  there is always Grandma’s chequebook? Dad’s big fat account? When those are gone there’s always little brothers piggy bank or SOMEONE TO ROB. In the end, getting the drugs and being high is what should be of foremost importance to you, regardless of what or how much you lose and who gets hurt in the process.

Not doing drugs won’t make you any special. You may get to keep those brain cells, your health and your life but you will never attain ‘Nirvana’ unless you have tried drugs. So give yourself to the higher power of drugs and bask in its glory until the day you overdose and CHOKE TO YOUR DEATH.

The next time you are tempted to do some drugs… pause. Just for a moment. Take a breath or two. And ask yourself…Do I really want to do this? Am I ready to deal with the consequences that arise from this? Is this the best choice I can make for myself?

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