The Year of the Mouche

[mouche]

Thursday 16th August
Beginners' MMA
Drill: head-arm choke off a partner scrambling to their feet
Sparring: 3 rounds, tapped a beginner 4 times in my last round (triangle, guillotine, head-arm choke from mount, guillotine), no other taps either way

Yay: confidence was up, tried a lot of things, spent a lot of time in mount, felt strong
Nay: overall not much to complain about, but I did roll with people less experienced than me so not a fair test

5 x 15 back extensions
5mins hand crank level 2, above 75rpm for 4 minutes, steadily increasing to over 100rpm for the last minute, as hard as possible for the last 10 seconds: max speed 129rpm
3 sets of pressups to fatigue with 10-20secs recovery: 37, 13, 10 (wasn't pushing overly hard)
8 x 30 abs reversed

[mouche]

Sunday 19th August
Nobody showed up for Strength & Conditioning so did about an hour of lifting instead.

Squats: new PB at 70kg
Failed badly at 75kg, just sank right down towards the ground until I was too far to get back up, no control at all.

Deadlift: 3 x 1 at 75kg
First time deadlifting fatigued, first rep was a shock but the rest weren't a problem. Just no point in increasing the weight when fatigue had set in and mindset hadn't.

Bench: easy single at 40kg, didn't quite make 50kg

Haven't been in a good mood today and haven't lifted much lately, and also wasn't planning on lifting so hadn't psyched myself up. Rational self knew I could have squatted 75kg and benched 50kg no problem, but doubt had set in. Also still learning the technique, it hasn't become second-nature yet so I'm using a lot of mental energy thinking about how to lift, rather than just lifting.

Some you win, some you lose.

[mouche]

Finally back! Had a fairly active week including a move, managed to fit in a few sets of pressups and some ab work on one day, but not really enough to log.

Monday 27th August
Finished work early so didn't wait around for Beginners' MMA, besides I felt I needed some decent conditioning.

12, 10, 8 circuit:
lat pulldown (25, 30, 35) - easy
seated row (20, 25, 30) - sets 1 and 2 easy, 3 hard
dumbbell press (10, 12, 14) - easy enough
fixed bar shoulder press (12.5, 15, 17.5) - easy enough
alternate dumbbell bicep curl (4, 6, 7) - sets 1 and 2 very easy, 3 easy enough
pushdowns (18.5, 22.5, 27.5) - easy

x-trainer sprints:
10 x 2mins hard level 8, 1 min easy level 4 - goal pace 0.26miles per 2min effort
mile per 2min effort: 0.32, 0.32, 0.31, 0.31, 0.30, 0.31, 0.30, 0.30, 0.30, 0.30
1.5miles: 11min17
30min total distance: 3.79miles

4 x 15 back extensions

Looks like a week off (and a coffee at lunch) did me a world of good!

[mouche]

No training yesterday as went to see Polar Bear Club.

Wednesday 29th August
Beginners' MMA
Drill: breaking guard
Sparring: two technical sparring rounds - one partner starting in guard, free roll, then switch - one round from knees

Swings: got into mount on partner number 1, got into half guard on partner number 2, attempted guillotine then triangle then armbar on partner number 3, really thought I could get them but no luck
Roundabouts: got swept by partner number 2... I'm usually the one who sweeps him... not cool.

Strength & Conditioning
Technical lifting
Plyo drills (hold squat, jump - tendon tap, tuck jump - tendon tap, jump onto step
Circuit in groups of 4, speed abs when not performing set exercise: ski squats, narrow pressups, squat jumps, head touch pressups, burpees

Feeling good, feeling strong, feeling fit, feeling happy.

[baldy]

No training yesterday as went to see Polar Bear Club.

Wednesday 29th August
......
Feeling good, feeling strong, feeling fit, feeling happy.

Can't ask for more than that, living the dream

[mouche]

No training yesterday as went to see Polar Bear Club.

Wednesday 29th August
......
Feeling good, feeling strong, feeling fit, feeling happy.

Can't ask for more than that, living the dream

Exactly! I know this is a bit of a wishy-washy log with all this feelings and emotions stuff, but it really does make all the difference!

Thursday 30th August
Beginners' MMA
Drill: regaining position from being on your back with somebody in your guard (hip escape sideways, onto knees)
Sparring: 3 rounds (little manchild guy, tall lanky guy, and Charlie), no taps either way

Plus: really switched on, paid a lot of attention to my positions and limbs, stayed and quite active strong throughout, grip felt strong and secure, attempted a triangle on Charlie knowing full well he would never let me triangle him but still pleased I saw the opportunity
Minus: little manchild guy took my back almost instantly and though I never let him pull anything off or even get both hooks in, I felt powerless to get him off me - tall lanky guy almost got a footlock, and Charlie threatened me with a footlock but was too sensible and experienced to let it go any further than that. Still, probably need to learn not to leave my feet trailing around!

Finished off with:
4 x 20 seated leg raises for hips on each leg (bent, less bent, toe pointing out, toe pointing in)
4 x 15 back extensions
20mins recline bike level 4 or 5, very easy pace

[mouche]

In France with the family, total relaxation and a little bit of exercise:

Sunday 2nd September
Morning:
pressups to failure - 51
8 x 30 abs

Afternoon:
1.56mile run, 12min12 (plus 3min warm-up jog and 1min cool-down jog)
10 normal pressups, 10 narrow pressups, 10 wide pressups (all slow, with short hold at bottom)
20 small crunches, 20 oblique reaches each side, 10 x left/right/both leg extension

Done for today I think! It's been a while since I ran and that was horrible. Was hoping for a slightly better time, but despite my warm-up jog I think I went out too fast and underprepared. Hurt all the way, had a stitch, raw throat and achey stomach. Now my calves and hamstrings are in bits. Good to work hard though I guess... holiday sessions are about the journey, not the destination!

[mouche]

Still sore from Sunday's run!

Tuesday 4th September
Morning:
pressups to failure - 52
8 x 30 abs

Afternoon (about 30mins total):
Short jog around the block to warm up
20 normal squats, 20 sumo squats, 20 ski squats, 20 alternate lunges, 20 alternate side lunges

3 x circuit: 12 squat jumps, 10 normal pressups, 12 tuck jumps, 10 narrow pressups, 12 out-to-ins, 10 wide pressups, 12 burpees
About a minute's rest in between, then did 10 reps of everything, then 8 reps of plyometric exercises (pressups stayed at 10)

30 secs hold wide squat, 30 secs hold normal squat, 3 x 10 secs hold narrow squat (about a second break in between each)

Quick run up the road, about the same pace as Sunday, then slow jog down to a walk back down

20 reps small crunch, small crunch legs up, small crunch with legs, legs away, arms away, arms and legs away

Hadn't intended to take reps down to 10 and 8 in the initial circuit, or to break the 30 second hold of the narrow squats, or to end up jogging then walking back at the end, was just feeling quite tired and weak and unmotivated. Legs got really tired, and I figured there was no point in pushing it. Maintenance is the key here, and I think I'm doing enough to secure that, both mentally and physically.

[mouche]

Back in London, back to reality.

Friday 7th September
MMA (afternoon class)
Drill: single leg takedowns - head inside, head outside, against southpaw opponent, defence, and finishing the move on a defending opponent
Sparring: 2 rounds with Latvian girl, 1 round with tall clean-cut guy, tapped 4 times (triangle, banana split, footlock - tapped early - and something else, maybe an armbar)

Really good class, much higher pace of learning but think I followed OK! Surprised not to find the Latvian girl that strong, as she has had a professional fight and weighs 60-odd kilos, but she still would have won on points. Hit a couple of sweeps on her and managed to recover my guard a few times. May have been a little bit too complacent at times though, but I'll put that down to nerves...

4 x 15 back extension on hyperextension bench
4 x 15 back extension on weighted machine
15mins stepper level 60

[mouche]

Sunday 9th September
Back to reality with Strength & Conditioning - only two of us in the class so class pretty much geared towards me which is always good
Lifting technique - lots of it - snatch balance and jerk
Power work on crash mat: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 medicine ball slams, chest pushes
4 x 10 full star jumps, 10 tuck jumps

Surprisingly wrecked after those medicine ball slams, though a little annoyed I couldn't quite get the technique right at the beginning of most sets, so kept missing the rebound.

15mins recline bike level 5, easy

[mouche]

Monday 10th September
Beginners' MMA
Drill: escape from side-control
Some light live-drilling from side-control
Sparring: 2 rounds, both with guys I didn't know, no taps with number 1, tapped number 2 three times (2 x armbar from mount, triangle)

Bonus: pulled guard successfully each time and didn't stop attempting things for a second, switching between triangle, armbar, chimora, guillotine, and also a head-arm choke, omoplata (which I so nearly got), teepee; hit a scissor sweep (ish... it was very sloppy), regained full guard after number 1 got into side control, had something murderous in me tonight when I took that arm with me for the armbar
Malus: everything was quite sloppy, kept losing my triangles for not hip-bumping enough and luckily my partners were too inexperienced to break my guard off the back of it, lost that omoplata attempt, the armbars from mount were simply horrendous, my guillotines were embarrassingly slow and telegraphed, and I don't know what happened to my scissor sweep

In all, what I need most is confidence and sessions like that help build it. I was tired and unfocussed and not feeling in great form, plus the gym felt like a sauna, so it's nice to know I still managed something decent.

Finished off with 8x30 abs routine.

[mouche]

Tuesday 11th September
Beginners' MMA
Drill: side-control to chimora, side-control to north-south head-arm choke
Sparring: 2 x 3min, number 1 with newbie and number 2 with man-child, no taps either way

Ups: very nearly caught a triangle and an armbar, albeit on newbie and unfinished
Downs: quite lazy and unimaginative tonight - newbie was flailing around trying to guillotine me from within my guard and I couldn't think of an escape, meanwhile man-child almost immediately took my back and spent the rest of the time trying to rear naked choke me which again I just couldn't get out of. He very nearly finished it too but released his grip each time I started needing air. Also somehow let newbie get into side-control at one point, but that didn't last long. Could feel his base was off a number of times, but was too lazy to do anything about it.

20mins stepper, level 60, 65, 70, 75
4 x 15 back extensions
4 x 20 hip flexor exercise
8 x 30 abs
2 x 30 neck up-down, side-to-side
stretching

Tuesday is definitely hump day for me training-wise! Also didn't help that I got into about 4 different conversations so everything happened quite slowly. Hips quite tired tonight, presumably from attempting about a millions triangles and armbars yesterday, so that'll be my excuse for the fairly substandard performance. But hey, keeps me humble at least!

[mouche]

Thursday 13th September
Beginners' MMA
Drill: mounting from side-control, resisting attempted escapes from mount
Sparring: 3 x 3mins, with Baldy (tapped me once with what I think was an attempt at a triangle but just crushed my shoulder blade), with Martin (tapped me twice with arm-bars), and new guy who seemed to know what he was doing (no taps either way)

Just one of those days. Felt awful in the warm-up, very very dizzy, knees niggling, very out of breath, pissing sweat. No idea why after a day off yesterday and feeling physically fine in general. Felt weak, but overall think I held my own alright. Got some confidence issues I need to overcome with Baldy and Martin I think. They are also both quite heavy, and Martin at least has been going regularly for a long time, to be fair.

5mins hand crank level 3 over 70rpm
5 x 10 double rope pulls, 1 x 50 single rope pulls
4 x 15 back extension machine

20mins x-trainer level 7
0.5mile 4:29
1mile 8:43
1.5mile 13:00
2miles 17:13

Felt tired on the x-trainer too, but times weren't too bad for an easy steady session. Anyway, another session done, plenty more to go.

[mouche]

Friday 14th September
Beginners' MMA (Luiz)
Drill: passing half-guard
No sparring, just some light play from half-guard, trying to escape, hold position or pass.

Wasn't feeling good at all going into class, considered not going at all, but it actually went really well. Partnered up with Pippa for the first time in a while as she has been away training in Brazil, she couldn't believe how much stronger I seem to have gotten. Always good to hear.

Finished off with 10mins recline bike level 5 or 6, can't remember, but nothing intense.

Unfortunately after years of respect for my veganism from people at work, at the gym, pretty much everywhere, I had to deal with my first bout of meatheaded ignorance. At one point when he was trying to explain something to me after class he goes, "You're not vegetarian are you?", so I told him I was vegan. Lots of pointing at canines and laughing and pffing at lettuce ensued, and the comment "I always knew you were weird" was uttered. Nice.

[mouche]

Sunday 16th September
Strength & Conditioning
Metabolic upper body (back) timed circuit: resistance band, dumbbells, fixed bar
Legs: 3 x walk across room and back, across again and back - squat-walk, high knees (rests in between)
calf-walk across wrestling mat and back
Med ball work on crash mat: 3 x throwdowns (av.10-12), chest presses (av.18-20), normal pushups on wrestling mat (av.14-16)
45sec crash mat circuit: mat star-jumps, tuck-jumps, high knees

Struggled with pushing through the pain barriers - probably could/should have worked harder on the very first circuit.

Found that I am good at controlling slow deliberate movements like the squat walks, but not so good at controlling my lower body in faster more explosive actions like the high-knee drills. Ankles are very loose, and hips/glutes quite weak - will be doing eccentric hamstring curls to remedy this.

Med ball work was much better, actually got the throwdown action right this time and put my legs into them.

45 second crash-mat circuit was horrendous! I would have thought I'd be better at dealing with that kind of pain now but apparently not.