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The ABC’s of MMA has been a pet project of mine for quite some time. The idea was to construct a manageable curriculum for my students up at the U to be able to quickly gain their bearing in the sea of mixed martial arts techniques.  I worked with my instructors and friends to narrow down what I felt were the most basic and useful techniques in MMA. To accompany these techniques, I wanted to codify a variety of warmups and drills I used over the years that help condition the body and strengthen ability to do the moves.

Next, I wanted to systematize it in such a way that it was easy to remember, teach to and track progress on. In essence, the ABC’s of MMA are to help someone develop a workable vocabulary of fighting techniques and training drills. It’s not meant to be everything to everyone; I’m not a guru and don’t know all mastery points for the moves contained therein. However, I think you’ll find it a slick way to organize teaching and learning.

The format of the program defines the three main areas of MMA (striking, grapling and conditioning) and has 3 levels of difficultly for each area.  If a coach thinks X is more important to Y, it’s easy to adapt or insert parts into the 9-cell program.

Below are two PDFs that define  the curriculum and help you keep track of your personal progress. The intent of the checkoff list is for your instructor/coach/mentor to initial each block after you show proficiency.

Explanation of the ABCs of MMA program

Checkoff list for the ABCs of MMA

I’m currently working on fleshing out instructions for each individual move inside the ABCs.  I hope you find the approach laid out here to be useful. If you have any ideas or would like to help, let me know.

Dieting is tough – and you know what makes it harder? Being next to broke.  A buddy of mine called me and asked me if knew how to eating well on a budget, and it turns out, I only know a little bit about nutrition but I know loads about being broke.

Get Your Mind Right

The first thing you need to do about eating like a fighter (on a budget) is leave the fear-based scavenger mindsets behind.  You have abandon some of the comforts of emotional eating and eating for pleasure. Logic must prevail.

You know the urge right after you get satisfied at dinner, but there is a little bit left on the plate? Why not finish it off? You don’t want it to go to waste, right? Aren’t you poor?  That’s the scarcity mindset.  Free samples at Costco or the boss is bringing in some fatty lunch for the crew?  Should you pass up a food source, you’re light in the cash department, right? That’s the scavenger mindset. Someone offers you a cupcake and you can’t say no?  You’re afraid someone won’t like you if you don’t eat a cookie?  That’s probably just lack of will power or you can’t stand up to social pressures – either way, grow a pair.

Anyway you slice it, you have to design a plan of attack for eating and stick to it. You can’t let these weird emotions in to wreck the course of your diet-ship. Again, you must steel your mind and kick out emotional eating.

Remember Classical Dieting

What I mean by “classical dieting” is the nuts and bolts of a disciplined, thought out eating plan.  Just because you’re on a budget doesn’t mean you can forget the basics. You should keep a food journal, shop with lists that come directly from your meal plans. If you’re trying to lose weight, you should be making sure you’re in a calorie deficit when you take into account your activity level; likewise, putting on weight requires that you are giving your self some surplus.

These kind of things are the basics of a sound  nutrition plan. I don’t want to spend much time developing them; rather, I want to discuss how to make it work as a pauper.

Be Prepared

Not only is the Boy Scout’s motto, it should be yours too.

• Prepare many meals ahead of time. Divvy out the goods and package them up for a no-brainer eating experience later.
• Prepare to buy, and cook, in bulk. However, don’t buy more than you can eat and store before it goes bad.  Having a meal-plan centered shopping list helps this out – you know when you’ll next be having X or Y food.
• Prepare to spend money on food storage devices.  You need to be able to save and store the grub you produce.  If you don’t have the space to store it, it’s going to get thrown out or go bad.  You don’t have a deep chest freezer? Enough Tupperware? If your place of employment doesn’t have a fridge – you’ll need a lunchbox cooler. Plan for that stuff in your budget.
• Prepare your fridge for the food you’ll be buying. You probably don’t think about it, but your fridge is club where all your foods have their pre-party (before they party in your mouth).  Bouncers are employed at regular clubs for a variety of reasons;  one of which is to control overcrowding.  Overcrowding can cause foods to spoil – creating uneven cooling, sometimes freezing stuff.  Remove stuff that doesn’t need to be in there (vinegars, onions, potatoes). I really can’t extend the metaphor to all I need to say – but you get the idea.
• Prep snacks/emergency meal replacements.  Maybe you’ll forget to bring lunch or the school bully steals it – you want a back up option that doesn’t force you to eat out.
• Prepare a list of things you can eat at the restaurants you’re most likely to visit.  When you do eventually go out to eat, you’ll be able to keep in line with your diet and budget.
• Be prepared to buy things you’re not crazy about;  foods that are in season are generally cheaper, and wait to buy stuff you really like until its on sale or in season and then save it in your deep freezer.
• Be prepared to get your hands dirty – buying foods in their raw, least unprocessed states is much cheaper.  I’ll take the skin off my own chicken breasts for $1/lb less, or stir in fruit to my yogurt and partition it off in a small container for single servings.

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Time = Money

A lot of “dieting on a budget” resources don’t account for the money value of time.  Cooking at home and buying foods like a shrewd business man makes sense on the balance sheet, but if you’ve ever gone to Costco you know that something that saves you cash can become an spirit-crushing ordeal.

Consider vegetable chopping; it can be pretty time intensive for you to make all the carrot sticks you’ll need for snacks for the next decade (or whatever).  My solution?  Cut corners!  or don’t, I mean.  Save chopping up a green bell pepper – just wash it and eat it when you have lunch at work.  Its not hard to eat it like an apple.  Same goes with celery, apples, etc.  If you must chop, ask yourself, “Can I reasonable do this at work without undue burden?” I do partial prep on several meals and then construct them at lunch.

When selecting recipes that fill out your daily nutrition needs, choose the ones with the least time-intensive preparation.

Behold, the crock-pot

The crock-pot deserves it own section, nay, its own post! They are glorious;  you get to save time and money.  Once you figure out how to make crock-pot meals, it becomes super-easy to do.

You can probably find everything you need, knowledge-wise, either on the net for free or at your (gasp) public library. Here are a few suggestions:

Make it fast, cook it slow ; Everything Healthy, slow cooker cookbook ; 7 Dollar a meal, slow cooker cookbook

The great thing about crock-pot dishes is they tend to be a good match for nutrition and budget.  Veggies, dried legumes, cheap cuts of protein, little mess, no or little cooking fats needed, easy to use and clean, non-time intensive.

Replace Wisely

• Ground turkey replaces ground beef.  Generally cheaper and better for you.
• Plain low-fat yogurt replaces sour cream and mayo.  Combined with stuff like balsamic vinegar, it replaces fattier salad dressings.  The plain variety is much more versatile than it’s pre-flavored brethern (or sisteren? who knows).
• Buy the plainer, larger version of pretty much anything. Individual servings of yogurt, oatmeal packets, etc.
• Corn tortillas replace flour;  less fat and calories, more fiber.
• Gonna have a candy bar?  At least pick the lesser of the evils. York peppermint patties, 3 Musketeer mint, dark chocolate.
• Water replaces (name virtually any beverage here).
• Parsley, cilantro, and cumber salad replaces the more expensive, less nutritious bag mixes.  At least where I shop, the parsley/cilantro bunches and cumbers are 50 cents a unit.  Plus, these greens last longer in the fridge before going bad. And even one MORE plus;  salads made from the parsley type green matter can be stored with the dressing on them without wilting. So its a boon all the way around.
• Unsweetened soymilk can replace regular milk;  one of the main benefits of it is that you can store it without refrigeration. Don’t get me wrong, I think the cows milk (casein) superior, but soymilk has its place. IMO, I don’t think it should be a main source of your protein intake – liquid or the protein powder – but again, its got is place.

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The Old Standbys

• Two excellent, cheap sources of protein are eggs and  low fat cottage cheese. Boiled eggs are super portable, making them an easy snack or part.
• Oatmeal – the less instant, the better. And don’t goober it up with sugars, syrups, cream, etc.  For many on nutrition plans, oatmeal is their go-to carb.  Its slow burning nature, protein content, and fiber (soluble and insoluble) make it one a hard carbohydrate to beat.  True, they have made some leaps in the whole wheat pasta world, but price-wise it may not fit into the budget.
• Chicken.
• Legumes of all kinds.  Pinto, Black, Navy, Mung, Garbanzo, Lima, Kidney, etc.  Using the slow cooker, buying the dried ones
• Brown rice. Goes with the beans to complete the proteins.
• Whey protein; ahh… a staple of those who pump iron.  My advice is to use it when it’s portability really matters, like after the gym session you hit on your lunch break.
• Fish: Tuna, shrimp, talapia. Of course, breaded is a no-no.
• Broccoli.  Plentiful, fairly cheap, and good for you.  I’ve known some bodybuilders who have this green stuff  15 out of every 30 days.
• Bananas;  cheap, chock full of potassium, and a solid carb to boot.  Mixes well with protein powders and dairy products.
• Invest in spices that make boring, nutritionally sound foods, more exciting.  You’re a lot more likely to carry out a diet plan if tastes and flavors are good, and periodically change.

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Resources:

Budgetbytes Blog ( http://budgetbytes.blogspot.com/)

I get a number of good recipe ideas from here;  Beth (the blogger) breaks out how much a meal costs and what the per serving cost is too.

The Grocery Guru ( http://www.utahcityguide.com/new/guru/index.asp )  This guys focus is buying groceries on the cheap and doesn’t really concern himself with athleticism.  Still, I’ve learned a few tricks and methods to shop from him.

Smiths Coupons (http://www.smithsfoodanddrug.com/in_store/Pages/coupon_landing.aspx) I understand how un-manly coupons are, I really do.  However, this makes it pretty easy. Just log in, select your coupons, and go to the store and buy stuff.  The coupons will enter in when you use your Smiths card.

Nutrition Tips for MMA Fighters (http://slcmma.com/nutrition-tips-for-mma-fighters/)  A long list of all things MMA nutrition.

What are your tips?

Do you have any really great tips?  Dirt-cheap meals?  Let us know!

WARNING NOTE – I AM NOT A DOCTOR. I AM NOT A PHYSICAL THERAPIST. IF YOU ARE INJURED, GO SEE A PROFESSIONAL.

Kneeling on the mats for hours, slamming someone’s face into your knee from the Thai Clinch, heelhooks and knee-bars – fight sports can be tough on the knees. Many fight cards have been changed due to knee injuries, so much so, that it’s almost common.

I injured my knee a while back and have since done some research to help me understand the subject. Boy, there is a lot to know. Here’s what I found out.

To See A Doctor Or Not To See A Doctor, That Is The Question

“I’m I really hurt bad enough to go see a doc? Can I afford it?”

If you had an unlimited pile of money, sure, if it hurts – why not go see a doctor and check it out? Or maybe you’re on a team of some kind and lucky to have a a sports medicine specialist on staff- then the check up is free. Of course, there’s the chance that there’s nothing the doc can do to make you heal faster and all you need weeks of rest and relaxation.

To me, there are two major distinctions in terms of knee pain.

1. You just had a sudden pain hit while you training – caused by a distinct injury.

2. A nagging pain that develops as you train, over time.

For the second type of pain, go see a professional, because it may not get any better if you don’t do something different.

For the first type, I think Medline Plus gives some good advice:

Call your doctor if:

• You cannot bear weight on your knee
• You have severe pain, even when not bearing weight
• Your knee buckles, clicks, or locks
• Your knee is deformed or misshapen
• You have a fever, redness or warmth around the knee, or significant swelling
• You have pain, swelling, numbness, tingling, or bluish discoloration in the calf below the sore knee
• You still have pain after 3 days of home treatment

(From the National Library of Medicine’s MedlinePlus Encyclopedia: Knee Pain, www.nlm.nih.gov )

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Get A Correct Assessment

Maybe you’ve decided to go see doc, maybe you’re going it alone. Either way, before you know how to fix the problem, you have to know what the real problem is.

If you want a professional, get a doctor, orthopedic specialist or sports medicine doc to check out your knee. If you’re not sure who to go to in your area, see if you can find who your local college football, basketball, or wrestling team uses.

I understand, there are considerations. I’m not rich and I don’t have great insurance. Plus, I’m a “do-it-yourself” kind of guy. If you are going to wait it out and try self-diagnosis and home care, you might try checking out this knee problem page at www.webmd.com or this knee symptom page at www.jointhealing.com to see if you’re on the right track of identifying the problem. It’s important.

For instance, if you tear the the ligaments on the sides of your knee (the extracapsular ligaments, the MCL/ LCL), there is a good chance of the injury healing on its own. However, the other ligaments (intracapsular ligaments) have “have limited potential for spontaneous healing and frequently require surgical reconstruction” (source).

Common Problems and Solutions

In terms of injuries, some of the most common are (in no particular order):

• Hamstring tendon strain
• ALC/PCL/MCL tears
• Knee-cap (patella) dislocation
• Patella tendinitis (jumpers knee)
• Cartilage injury
• Bruises
• Iliotibial band syndrome (runners knee)
• (For a full list, see here)

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However, in the textbook Introduction to Sports Medicine and Athletic Training, it states that the most common sports knee injuries are MCL tears (I happen to have one right now). In the fight-sports, it seems that ACL injuries are almost equally common.

There is a great ACL Injury FAQ posted on grapplearts.com with some awesome specific info, and if you have one, check it out.

One good thing about knee injuries it one simple formula solves a lot of problems.

R.I.C.E.

R. Rest. You know, not working out.

I. Ice – Cryotherapy. From the above textbook, the general procedure is to ice your knee 4 times a day, for 20 minutes a session, each session 2 hours apart.

I’ve heard some guys say 10 minutes on, 10 off is good, but I’ve had good success with the textbook version.

Another tip from the text – when you make an ice bag, make sure you squish out all the air in the bag before you seal it. You’ll get better cold coverage on your knee.

Also, make sure you ice the top part of your knee, not popliteal fossa – the soft underside. It’s got a network of capillaries, veins and nerves. Icing can damage the stuff back there.

C. Compression. Apply gentle pressure to the knee – a knee brace or knee sleeve will do the trick. Make sure there is a “snug” feeling without being too tight. Maybe something like this:

E. Elevation – get that knee lifted up and try to stay off it.

Drugs

Here’s what I’ve been told by a nurse. Taking some medicine will serve two main purposes: pain-relief and swelling reduction.

You want to take a full dose of an anti-inflammatory – Ibuprofen, Naproxin, Aspirin. It seems logical, if you have minor pain just take a minor dose, right? In terms of controlling swelling, you really need the full (as directed) dose to get the anti-inflammatory effect you’re looking for.

The thing is that some inflammation can help, bringing in some good body chemicals, but too much inflammation is bad. Many injuries are serious enough that the body overcompensates with it’s swelling so taking some Ibuprofen for the first day or so after the injury is a good thing. As the swelling goes down and you don’t need pain management, you don’t need them. However, your mileage may vary. People react differently to drugs, even over the counter ones. You know the drill – use common sense and seek medical advice when needed.

Supplements

I’ve never been a big user past my weekly multivitamin, but some people swear by the them. Glucosamine, shark cartilage, omega 3 fatty acids/DHA/EPA complex (like highly the ever popular supplement Flameout ), calcium, vitamin C – there is a wacky, wild world out there pimping supplements to helps your joints. You can read about some of them here.

I think there is some value to a few, and if you’re training hard I’d make sure you’re taking enough of the most important sports supplement: food. There are many guys who are over-training or have symptoms of over-training because they aren’t getting proper nutrition from well balanced meals.

Rehab

If you have to lay off the knee for a while, you’ll need to be extra careful when getting back into training. When it comes to specific knee rehab exercises for you, I’ll leave it to your physical therapist. In general, here is a decent list of knee rehab exercises. The list includes stuff like step-ups, calf raises, squats (you can do just the first 1/4 if you need). Another list with some different options can be found here. It talks a bit about stretches, coordination, and usage of the stretch-bands.

In this article, there is a more structured, “back to full function” approach, as well as an outlined workout program.

Of course, these are just examples and may not suit your injury. However, whatever the game plan is to heal your knee, you have to see it to the end.

When you’re sick and the doctor gives you a set of anti-biotics, you need to continue taking them as the prescription dictates until they run out, even if you’re feeling better – if you don’t you risk re-infection with a now resistant bacteria. In this context, we get that. But when it comes to training, we just like to jump the gun. If the doc says, 6 weeks, no training – take six weeks off. If the doc out lines 12 weeks of recovery exercises, do them.

If you’re passionate about your sport, take extra care not to push too hard. When you have a weak link, you’re more likely to injure yourself again. You’re still at risk of re-injuring the knee, or even injuring another body part. While protecting the bum knee, you can put other parts in danger -that’s what happened to me, I was nursing a hamstring tear on one leg, then I hurt the knee on the other leg.

In the majority of texts I read, when things aren’t too serious, you can exercise with weights as long as your knee tolerates. Just take it slow and easy.

If you’re looking for a simple book to supplement your knee knowledge, you might want to pick up “Treat your knees” by physical therapist, Jim Johnson. It’s short, to the point, and solid scientifically.

Surgery

There are times when things are serious enough that no amount of rest and exercise will fix the problem. It’s time to consider surgery. Can you put it off? Sometimes. From the stories I’ve heard, most people said that they wished they had gotten it done sooner. Many people can continue walking around, living and training, but remember, there are injuries that absolutely cannot be undone with ice and TLC. If one of your cruciate ligaments are ripped to shreds, it’s only a matter of time before re-injury.

If it’s come to surgery, a book you may want to consider is “Heal your knees” by orthopedic surgeon Robert Klapper and water therapy expert Lynda Huey. They show a bunch of exercises like pool walking, underwater bicycle kicks and quad extensions. This book talks about x-rays, MRI’s, surgery, post-hospital advice, etc. To me, it would be more useful if you think you’re going to have to go under the knife than the above “Treat your knees” – which is more pragmatic and abbreviated.

Prevention

In an interview with MMA trainer, Greg Jackson, he says:

If you’re training smart and the people around you are trying to help – not hurt you – that’s important. I think most people get injured when their teammates are trying to take their head off. You can be competitive without trying to blow each other out of the water. So you need a cooperative competitive dichotomy and you’ve got to skirt that line. Most injuries I know come through people getting a little overzealous, rather than just the freak injuries.

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I think this is spot on for knee injuries. Good training partners both push protect you. The first line of defense for your knees is a safe, quality training environment.

Know when to tap, when to stop. One of the defining attributes of adulthood is knowing when to stop. There is a difference between discomfort pain and injury pain. Don’t let machismo mess up the next few months of your training.

If you’re knees are sore, give them time and protect them.

You can also do specific exercises to prevent knee problems. Here’s a page about specific ACL injury prevention – their program includes warm ups, stretches, agility drills, etc. If that’s too much, make sure you read the article “What squatters Knee’d to know“, by Frederick C. Hatfield, aka Dr. Squat. Hatfield goes over proper lifting shoes, knee wraps, and proper squatting technique.

Talking with a friend of mine who does some flexibility and strength coaching at the U of U, he gave me the tip to make sure you’re adjust the angles of your feet when stretching. He also mentioned that you don’t want to hit the same exercise the same way every time. For example, you will want to pick different variations of the squat, such as the sumo squat where your feet and knees pointing slightly out, squatting with a wider stance. Making sure you’re getting strength and life with those different joint angles is important to keep the knee stable and strong.

Resources/Refrences

http://www.gundluth.org/upload/docs/Services/SportsMedicine/knee-MCL%20gradeII-1+instability.pdf

http://www.jaaos.org/cgi/content/full/8/6/364

http://www.jaaos.org/cgi/content/abstract/3/1/9

http://www.fpnotebook.com/Ortho/Knee/CltrlLgmntTrOfKn.htm

http://www.fpnotebook.com/Sports/Pharm/RcThrpy.htm

http://www.fpnotebook.com/Pharm/Analgesic/NnstrdlAntInflmtry.htm

http://www.fpnotebook.com/Sports/Pharm/LclCldThrpy.htm

http://www.grapplearts.com/ACL-Injury-FAQ.htm

http://sfuk.tripod.com/articles_03/sports_injuries1.html

(Photo Attribution: paoe)

Note: This article was written by one of my students, Garland Hummel. In my MMA class up at the University of Utah, I asked my students to write a short paper, and his is excellent. He used a number of books at videos as reference (some of which I’ve interspersed in the post), along with his Muay Thai training. He goes over some basic and advanced clinch work and considerations. With his express permission, I present,

The Clutches of Siam: Gross Prummb/Clinch 101

By Garland Hummel

Forward

It seems to me a great injustice to divorce an aspect of an art from the context in which it is rightfully found, both culturally (as it is indisputable that each and every martial art has a culture all its own, even distinct and unique from its ethnic and national roots) and physically (that is to be isolated out without giving any thought to the techniques, tactics, and strategies that support it’s use) without at least a nod or tribute to the art in it’s entirety and a word of wisdom to the reader… The art of Muay Thai must be experienced to be understood. Its techniques may be taken out of their original context and used or modified to fit, and quite effectively I might add, in mixed martial arts events or cross-trained into other venues…but it should be recognized that this is not the full extent of this rich and beautiful expression of the human form. ALL martial arts and combat sports can and should be seen as modalities through which an individual can examine him or herself under great scrutiny and model and forge themselves into the best individuals they can be. Martial arts are an exercise in holistic totality, and an expression of the self.

What is the Clinch?

The clinch, also known as the prummb (plam, plum, plumb, plam lam, etc.) in Thai boxing can be succinctly called a range of standing grappling. The clinching range is essentially when you can reach your opponent’s head and they can reach yours. This is the range where “all guns fire”, that is, any and all weapons possessed by an individual fighter or combatant can be employed. From the clinching range you may kick, punch, elbow, knee, head butt, throw, choke, or utilize joint manipulations, and whomever you may be facing will be able to do the same.

In Western boxing, it is not uncommon to see tired fighters collapse on one another or even hold one another from this range. When boxers do this, the mentality is that by being close, they are able to muffle their opponent’s punches while they catch their breath or recover after having their bell rung. It is imperative that this not be considered similar to the extremely intricate and complex art of the prummb, which uses fulcrums, leverage, and unbalancing of the opponent in order to maintain dominance during a fight. In short, unlike in boxing, the Muay Thai clinch is a position of power and skill for a fighter, not a position of recovery nor of temporary frailty.

If a wrestler were to stumble into a boxing camp (a training facility for Thai kickboxers which can be compared more to a barracks than to a dojo or kwoon) in Thailand, they would probably recognize some of the clinch drills employed by the boxers as being similar or even identical to ones they employ during their pummeling drills. Thai clinch work can and does involve wrist wrestling, wrestling for the elbows, wrestling for the body, and ultimately wrestling for the neck.

When practicing, the boxers will fight for position, with both hands at the back of the head being the prize. The exchange will go back and forth as the fighters each try to gain this position and maintain it for as long as they can, like a sort of two person “king of the hill”. In a fight, they would use this position to drag or jerk the opponent’s face into their knee or frame the opponent’s face for a brutal cutting, spearing, or clubbing elbow.

In fact, from the clinching range, multiple styles of knees and elbows can be employed even without establishing a superior position from the clinch, or even initiating it. Due to the efficacy of these techniques, which are without a doubt the best and most powerful tools in the strikers’ arsenal at this range, the fighters will generally only throw light (as in 30-40%) curve knees to their partner’s thighs or ribs when training.

Manipulating the Head

The classical image of a Muay Thai clinch is when the fighter had both of his arms on the inside of his opponent’s with his hands grabbing the back of his opponent’s head. When a Thai boxer grabs an opponent’s head, they generally cup one hand around the back of the neck, followed by the other. This is a superior position in Thai boxing, which each fighter in the clinch may strive for, because it allows a fighter to pull their opponent’s head down in order to knee it. They cup the hands over each other, as interlacing the fingers is 1) impossible to do with boxing gloves and 2) dangerous and could lead to broken fingers. This cupped hand posture could also be described as a four fingered “monkey paw” grip, which can be assisted by the thumbs for directing the spatial positioning of the opponent’s head. The ideal position of the hands should initially be resting over the muscles on the back of the neck and at the base of the skull. From here all a fighter needs to do is curl the opponent’s head forward and down in order to break their posture.

The idea of moving the head forward has to do with leverage and skill, not simply trying to muscle an opponent’s head down. A smart fighter may push an opponent’s head backwards or to the side, or begin weaving their arms through the opponent’s in order to get them to relax their neck before jerking it violently down. The fighter’s forearms on the ulnar side should rest over the opponent’s clavicles at about the middle. In wrestling this is called a necktie. The fighter also wants to keep their head as close as possible to their opponent’s in order to prevent head butts and elbows. Space in the clinch is your enemy. The only time you want space is when you pull the opponent down into your knees or jerk them straight down to the floor.

A mean fighter may shave three to four days prior to a fight and let the stubble grow in order to make this even more uncomfortable, using the stubble on their chins like sandpaper on the opponent’s face and neck. As the head is pulled down, the monkey paw grip may move upwards to the occipital bone on the back of the skull and the fulcrum being used may switch from being the triangulation of the neck, forearm and collarbones to the back of the head, the tops of the collarbone and the elbows which could be ground in if the fighter so desires.

During the whole transition, even if the fighter is trying to trick the opponent into relaxing their neck, they should be pulling in and down on the back of the opponent’s head. Being able to manipulate the opponent’s head allows a fighter to control their balance and, hence, the rest of their body. A good saying that goes along with this is; “where the head goes, the body follows*.”

Fighting and Escaping the Clinch

When working the clinch, in order to engage in an almost dialectical back and forth exchange fighting for position, it is necessary to know how to break an opponent’s clinch and establish yourself in a superior position.

Usually the first method taught to fighters is to weave your hands, one at a time, inside of your opponents when they establish the full clinch (a.k.a. double neck ties). This effectively puts you in the superior position where you can pull your opponent’s head down, but don’t be fooled; your opponent can still fight from here with knees and “dirty boxing” type punches. It is important to maintain good posture while in the clinch to prevent your head from being pulled down. It is also as important to the person defending the clinch as to the person going for it to minimize space between their bodies. An upright back with the hips pushed forward is the posture you want, with your stance consisting of your feet pointing out at 45-degree angles slightly deeper than your shoulder’s width apart. I have heard this stance referred to as duck-footed.

Other ways of getting the superior position include using the forearm like a fulcrum (pry-bar) between (i.e. one part on top, one part under) the opponent’s arms in order to pry their grip apart. Pushing up on their triceps if they give you space will also break their grip. There are other methods where standing chicken-wings and even standing chokes can be established while fighting for position, or use of the elbows or knees to the arms can facilitate gaining a superior position.

Should your opponent succeed in breaking your posture and pulling your head down, there are a few methods available to you. Using both hands to grab around their waist and using your radius on the small of their back as you wrench them in half is a good way to fold them over and make them fall. This is a lot like trying to bear hug to break the back. Another way to escape this compromising position is to place one hand or fist into the opponent’s hip to create space and shove the other hand up to the back of the neck to establish a single neck tie and pull yourself up (push hip, thread through). Certainly in a mixed martial arts competition, shooting in for a double or a single leg would also be a good way to get out of the knee to face, patellar-maxillary ( :p ) junction that is the ultimate prize of the Muay Thai clinch.

Unbalancing the Opponent

While fighting for the clinch, Thai kickboxers can resemble twirling dervishes as they spin around the ring in circles and semi-circles. This is a result of the fighters trying to unbalance each other by twisting their opponents around. The boxers accomplish this while either in the full clinch, or what is called a 50-50 clinch wherein each fighter has one necktie and one hand on the other person’s elbow (i.e. their opponent’s elbow where they have their necktie sunk in). From here the fighters pull their opponent’s head down at roughly a 45 degree angle with one arm and at the same time use the same side leg to make a sweeping semi-circular rotation to twirl and unbalance their opponent. This technique will sometimes even cause an opponent to tumble over themselves, but the goal is simply to loosen the opponent up a bit and break their posture. This twirling of the body is usually followed up by curved knees to the opponent’s exposed side, back, or front, and can make prized targets such as the kidneys, base of the spine, liver, floating ribs, and even the solar plexus available to a fighter.

It is also not uncommon to see a fighter jerk the opponent’s head over to the other side of theirs in the clinch. This is done with the same intentions and to always keep the opponent from getting their head together. Sometimes they will do this while firing staccato, machine gun fire like straight short knees into their opponent’s body and thighs as they alternately pull their opponent’s head to either side of theirs.

At a more advanced level, throws (there are many throws legal in Thai boxing, however hip throws are not, but the opportunities for many types of throws are rich here) and trips can be incorporated into this exchange. (A good source for these tools are Kru Greg Nelson’s videos on the clinch.)

Knees from the Clinch

As hinted at in the other sections of this paper, there is a plethora of knee strikes in the Thai arsenal, and Thai kickboxers are masters of the knee. The first type of knee taught in Thai boxing is the long lead knee, which is delivered from the lead leg and goes up, out, and in to an opponent, as if trying to spear through their abdomen to their spine with the tip of the knee. When doing this in Thai boxing, the supporting leg pivots back and goes on the tips of the toes to allow for maximum reach and power, and the hips arch back for the same reason. The toes of the leg delivering the knee are flexed downward to pull on the tibia and expose the boney surface as a weapon. This knee can be delivered outside of the clinch, but is more formidable if the opponent is pulled into it. Using this knee in the clinch is one of the few times when a Thai boxer will intentionally make space in the clinch.

A another knee that can be fired off from long range like the long lead knee is called dte khao, or the “half knee kick” which is executed like a round kick which comes in at a more diagonal or even horizontal angle. This knee is best thrown after having caught a kick or after grabbing the neck and the opponent’s triceps, or even when exiting the clinch when throwing out an opponent using the aforementioned twirling method.

While in the clinch and fighting for position, staccato, rapid fire “rabbit knees” can be thrown to the legs or abdomen. These resemble the long knees, but don’t require a full extension of the hips through the arching of the back.

Perhaps the most prolific clinch knee is the curved knee, which is thrown by swinging the hip of the kneeing leg into an opponent at a horizontal angle. This is done in training with the inside of the thigh, but in a fight, the medial condyle of the tibia is the striking surface, if not the patella if the fighter has the necessary hip flexibility or has created the correct angle via the manipulation of their opponent’s body.

There are of course, a vast array of other knees found in Muay Thai, some of which are legal for competition and others that were developed for the brutal bare-knuckle matches of ancient Muay Boran matches that lasted until the turn of the century and the battlefield weapons art that spawned Muay Thai, krabbi krabong. Some of the fancier knees, such as the climbing knee, the flying knee, and Gorn Ling Preel (which requires the fighter to duck a round kick and then launch a jumping knee into an opponent’s exposed back) can be seen in modern competition, but are rare and difficult to execute against a skilled opponent, and hence are sometimes awarded with special financial bonuses if used in competitive fights.

Besides knees, straight legged kicks delivered with the inside of the shin, foot stomps, pecks with the heel, and “shrimping” (blocking incoming knees by controlling the opponent’s hip using the shin as a break) with the crus (lower leg) can give a fighter an edge in the clinch.

Conditioning for the Clinch

As anyone who tries wrestling for the neck for the first time can tell you, the muscles in that area become exhausted quickly and fighting for the position itself can be quite a chore if you aren’t used to that type of strain. It is not uncommon to see Thai fighters chomping down on a chain held between a t-shirt and loaded down with plate weights to develop their necks. This type of hardcore training will certainly help develop your necking, but can also chip and damage your teeth. A safer alternative can be found in a head harness type of apparatus that works on the same principle of lifting a weighted chain with a nodding motion. Sometimes you may even find gyms that include freestanding devices designed to work the neck, many of which were made with the needs of football players in mind, but work absolute wonders for the Thai boxer also. For beginners, simply nodding the head quickly and fully in each direction will help increase flexibility and strength in the neck muscles. When doing this particular “head banging” exercise, repetitions in the hundreds are needed for it to be effective.

The clinching movements facilitated by the arms can best be developed through calisthenics such as push-ups and rope climbing or pull-ups, and weight training exercises such as triceps extensions, biceps curls, and lat pulls. Also applicable to the clinch can be wrestlers’ bridges front to back, side to side, and around.

Of course, as with most martial or combative training, Sigung Bruce Lee’s adage holds true; “the best training for something is the thing itself.” Working the prummb is certainly the best way to incorporate muscular development and skill development at the same time. It has also been said that a strong neck can prevent knockouts due to contra-coup type injuries and minimize the disorientation caused by punches that effect brain areas and sensory organs located in the inner ear that deal with linear and angular acceleration of the head.

Consulted

Villalobos, Pedro. 2002. Fighting Strategies of Muay Thai. pp.114-119.

Spour, Bob. 2004. Ultimate Muay Thai. pp. 52-58, 87-106.

Moore, Tony. 2004. Muay Thai: The Essential Guide to Mastering the Art. pp. 69-73.

Nelson, Greg. 2001. Greg Nelson’s Clinch: Vol 1 & 2. Edges2, inc.

Also…all accolades to: Ajarn Surachai “Chai” Sirasute (President of the TBA), Khuen Khru Will Bernales (Owner Bernales Institute, formerly Kalista Academy of Martial Arts) Ajarn Sakasem “The Punisher” Kathawong (Former head instructor of the Muay Thai Institute of Kunponli), Kru Brian Yamasaki and Coach Brandon Kiser (Owners and instructors of Mushin Self Defense).

If you’re going to be wasting time on the net, you might as well be wasting it in the right places.

Here have been some of my current favorites.

http://www.sherdog.net/forums/

In my opinion, the biggest and baddest MMA forum on the net. There are some reasonably smart and well trained guys posting in there, so you’ll probably be able to find decent answers to what you’re looking for. Also, if you desire to start a huge war about which fighter is the coolest, look no further for hours of entertainment and smack talk.

http://stickgrappler.tripod.com/

This is an oldie but goodie. It has a wealth of information, some MMA related, some traditional martial arts related. While combing the net for some solid advice on boxing, I found it here and have kept coming back. Pretty neat, like this brief, but accurate post on clinching without getting hit.

http://www.t-nation.com

I know, it’s a body building site. I hate bodybuilding in general BUT… many articles written there have a semblance of science backing them up. You’ll see a few authors put the “works cited” section at the bottom with references to real medical journals and such. All in all, if you’re trying to find something specific, you might browse around here for a while. Plus, they’ll have little gems pop up from time to time.( Like the “Hammer Down” MMA workout series – part one Strength and part two Endurance.)

http://www.submissions101.com

Ari Bolden and his jujitsu-loving team put together a nice website. Every video here is good quality, well presented, and technically sound. You want training on the Rubber Guard? Oh yeah, this is the place. The forums are pretty decent too. They have a good number of guys, and the useful-information-giver vs trolling-douche-bag ratio is very favorable. In a nutshell, it’s like the reverse of youtube.

I recently purchased Mike Fowler’s No Gi Made Easy instructional DVDs to help bolster my no-gi jujitsu. I had been looking around for a decent DVD set for a few months, and I had narrowed it to down to three or four choices. I’d seen a few min-video’s of Mike teaching, and liked his style. Plus, Mike’s win over Saulo Ribeiro and Renzo Gracie at ADCC 07 (then only to be defeated by Marcelo Garcia) is pretty impressive.

No doubt, he knows his stuff. I decided to take the plunge and buy the 5 DVD package. When I bought it, “for a limited  time” it was $147 – about 30 bucks a DVD. A little pricey, but I just went with it. It arrived in about 10 days, and I was ready to rock.

Pro’s

The videos are just basically Mike and his training partner, Ryan, just showing the stuff he knows. Each DVD has 15 or so video segments, each devoted to a particular question or technique. Ryan will ask a particular thing, like “What’s a nice, no-fail guard passing technique?” and Mike will give his two cents and show a move. Mike will break down the move, emphasizing all the little technical details and potential pitfalls. He’s fairly thorough.

I personally liked the instruction, and think Mike is a high quality teacher. Even though the tone is conversational, Mike stays focused on the task at hand and doesn’t include any fluff.

As for the material covered, it’s basically 50 or so mini lessons on no-gi jujitsu. Half-guard, submissions, passes, positions – there is a little bit of everything in the DVDs. Each topic gets a 3-4 minutes of solid coverage. If you are subscribed to the Team Lloyd Irvin marketing emails (read:spam?) you’ve probably seen a list of all the things they’ll go over.

As for the video quality, the cam work is decent enough to get the point of the move across. No real bells or whistles here. Although the cam is static, Mike will reposition a few times and repeat the moves so you can see all the details from different angles. It all flows pretty well.

Now, about the moves themselves – Fowler has picked some of the best. He doesn’t hold back, keeping “secret” stuff to himself. These moves work. The insight and reasoning behind them is solid. A few of the escapes and tactics I’d never seen before. I think Mike’s move selection is the best part about the whole  DVD set. High percentage, workable, no-gi jujitsu techniques.

Con’s

When my package arrived, all it had was the DVDs in 5 individual soft plastic CD cases and a sales letter to buy whatever else Lloyd Irvin was selling. The DVDs themselves didn’t have any graphics, each strictly labeled “No Gi Made Easy: DVD 1″ (or 2,3,4,5).

When I opened the CD cases, I noticed that the DVD’s were a little oily – maybe an effect of the packaging or something. It didn’t affect the way they played, but it was a tad unsettling.

Additionally, the DVD’s didn’t have a real start up menu – only one option. You press play and it starts going over the techniques. I really would have like to have a full fleshed menu where I could see the chapters and what techniques each one was.  Since there is no table of contents for the DVD set and no DVD menu’s, it’s a guessing game where some specific technique might be. Very lame, very lame.

One thing that bugs me a bit about Ryan Hall, the co-host of the program. He blinks constantly and has thick eyebrows. I know it’s a small thing, but it’s seriously like 50 blinks a minute. (If you own the set, just watch for it and you’ll never be able to let it go).  But, I forgive them for that because it pales in comparison with the real CON of the review.

Also, when I purchased it, the limited time offer said I’d get some 90 day personal action plan to help me go through the material and even win a contest that Team Lloyd Irvin was having (progress the most and you’ll get some free lessons). I was looking forward to a game plan of sorts, because I didn’t just want another book for the library, I wanted an action plan to help me use the material and progress. In fact, this is what tipped me over the edge to buy Mike’s product instead of something else. I wanted a structured plan to get better at jujitsu.

AND GUESS WHAT? I never got it. It wasn’t included in the package, so I reread my emails to see if I understood correctly. Yep, I sure should receive something called “a personal action plan”. So I emailed the shipping guy, who responded slowly (three + days later) with an unsatisfactory “Uhh…. I’ve never heard of that.  Could you forward me what you know so I can go find out?” So I did, and then waited. Until one day I checked my inbox to find …. nothing. Almost a month later and nothing. It’s not like they have a flood of sales and just can’t keep up with every customer concern. But even if they did, come on! Have some marketing integrity or some customer service.

No disrespect to Mike, I’m sure he’s a classy dude. However, I feel like I’ve been a little screwed and ignored. I’m still open to having a positive buying experience, assuming Team Lloyd Irvin can take time away from sending me marketing spam.

The Final Word

5 DVD’s are packed with good information, taught simply and well. But it’s a bare bones presentation. No little things that it really make it more usable or give it some curb appeal.

And crappy customer service.

And/or dishonest advertising. (Depending on if they eventually send me what I paid for).

The Slovak Sambo Federation, with Fedor and M-1 Global’s permission, recently put together a DVD that shows footage from a seminar in Slovakia in 2007. In it, Fedor is showing off his stuff, how to do take downs, escapes, counter punching, etc. It really goes into the details of the kimura, americana and armbar. All around, pretty cool and good instruction. It isn’t in English, but it does have English subtitles – just so you know what you’re getting into.

One thing I’ve always liked about Fedor and his training camp, is their old school Russian philosophy of low-tech, high performance. Hard work, meat and potatoes, fist to face. Nothing fancy, just what works and works well.

Personally, I think it makes a good companion to Fedor’s MMA book. For example, counter punching is covered pretty well in the book, but video brings it to light in a way that words and a few pictures just can’t. Watching the timing and the angles on video will help you really “get it”.

Anyway, here are a few clips to show you what’s inside the DVD. I particularly like how Fedor seamlessly integrates striking with his submission attempts.

Fedor Shows Mount Escape

Fedor’s Gives Tips On The Armbar Submission

Kimura, Russian Style

Again, if you want his book, you can pick up a copy at Amazon.

Submissions 101

Just in case you’ve been hiding under a rock, the guys over at submissions101.com are spitting out high class instructional video’s like it was Christmas already. You can’t a find better introduction to Eddie Bravo and the rubber guard than sub101′s site.

Aesopian’s Tottaly Awesome Journal

Aesopian give’s his two cents on Brazilian Jujitsu over here. His commentary on different moves and techniques are unusually insightfull.

GrappleArts: Building A Better Grappler

Blackbelt Stephan Kesting is one good grappling Canadain.  The stuff on his site is solid, useful grappling info. Here’s a page full of different moves.

Gracie-Barra Marbella

“Sururu” Edson Jorge, runs two MMA / Submission Grappling gyms in Spain, and this is his website. His dojo’s are a great example of how things run well, as well as the vid’s he post every so often are great too.

Enjoy – and don’t forget to hit the mats!

“If you aren’t attacking, you are defending, and if you are defending, it means that you are losing the fight at that moment.” – Marcelo Garcia

Instead of blocking, you can counter with your own attack. In boxing, it’s counter-punching, in Bruce Lee’s Jeet Kune Do it’s stop hitting, in European épée fencing it’s a counter thrust.

In fact, the basic idea is well described by the translation of Lee’s Jeet Kune Do – “way of the intercepting fist.” Instead of trying to deflect a punch when it arrives at it’s target, begin intercepting the strike from it’s conception and initiating your offense at the same time.

To start simply, try “poking” an incoming punch with your elbow, as seen in the video below. The last part of the video is a little Hollywood for my taste, but watch how the guys raise their hands to their heads, creating a triangle and use the point of the elbow to jab into the oncoming fist. Depending on the hand protection, it can break an opponents hand.

If your opponent is in “striking mode”, make sure to circle and when he throws punches, you can either try to slip/parry and punch through them or strike right at his arm using stop hits or bunting punches. This can be particularly effective when he’s using the jab as a feeler punch trying to get his range – as soon as his jab has been initiated, side step and chop towards his his arm with a strike.

Another solid counter comes from Muay Thai kickboxing. When an opponent throws a low kick, punish him with a straight cross to the chin. When the opponent tries to land a jab – cross combo of his own, give him a brutal low kick with your shins. You’ll take a little impact, but if you angle right, most of the force of the strike doesn’t connect.

It’s natural to huddle up towards the fetal position when we get hit, so it takes some time to re-wire our brains, but it’s worth it.

Here are some quotes, mostly collected by Sidney G. Martin from from Bruce Lee’s The Tao of Jeet Kune Do, regarding intercepting attacks:

• The success of a movement, defensive or offensive depends on whether we perform it at the right time or not. We must surprise our opponent and catch the moment of his helplessness.
• Essentially, a stop-hit arrests the opponent in the development of his attack. It can be direct or indirect. It may be used as he steps forward with a kick or punch, when he is pre-occupied with feinting, or between two moves of a complicated combination.
• A stop-hit is more often useful and successful against attacks that begin with a step forward where the margin of time allowing for success is greater than against attacks not preceded by a step. We can therefore say that generally the stop-hit is the stroke chosen to deal with the stepping preparation.
• Counter-time is the strategy by which an opponent is induced or provoked to attack in tempo, with the object of counter-timing or alternatively taking possession of the opposing hand or detaching it and executing a subsequent attack or riposte. It lies not so much in drawing the stop-hit as in correctly timing the parry which deflects it. The speed of the opponent’s reactions will have to be found and his cadence judged.
• Distance must be judged correctly to minimize the danger of being hit while within reach of the opponent in order to land the final movement of the counter-time sequence (the riposte).
• To reach me, you must move to me. Your attack offers me an opportunity to intercept you.

There are tons of techniques that enumerate the concept but the main idea is that as far as it goes, the best defense is a good offense.