Here's another great post called GSP v Hardy from the excellent Epic Martial Arts Blog |

After the rather unexciting fight card of UFC 110 this weekend’s event features a Welterweight title fight between Canadian  George St.Pierre and Dan Hardy from Nottingham. On the surface it seems as though Hardy will simply be just another victim for GSP, as he is relatively untested in the UFC. But Hardy is dangerous, he’s an athletic busy fighter, very strong standing up with plenty KO power. He has spent time training with Freddie Roach to improve his ‘hands’, and by the looks of it his timing too. He has also shown he is patient and calm under pressure, winning a number of fights by decision. Hardy seems to think GSP will go ‘hard at it’ until he gets hit with something too big to handle. Hardy likes to trash talk and says he likes to let his opponent know he’s up for the fight and the night won’t be easy. This has worked before, he certainly had Marcus Davies rattled pre-fight, but interestingly Hardy reckons that GSP has got in his own head. I think GSP is far too cool to be affected by any trash talk, and with experience on his side is pretty unlikely to under any [...]

Read more about tons of Martial Arts topics at Epic Martial Arts Blog

Here's another great post called How to bark…. from the excellent Epic Martial Arts Blog |

Or more precisely how to get the disinclined to bark…. In a comment on an earlier post Boris B asked for some tips on how to get people who can’t let go sufficiently to vocalise whilst striking. Often people will feel awkward about ‘barking’ when striking. People can feel a bit silly, ironic really if they are wearing pyjamas and bowing to each other! With kids its easy enough, they usually love to make a noise and then it’s just a case of refining the noise they make. For a shy retiring adult, it is probably a good idea to explain why barking is useful. In a previous post I outline some of the ways I’ve used different vocalisations when I teach. You can explain that weightlifters make a noise when they explode into a clean and jerk, or how Seles and others would grunt on each shot. Quoting Steve Morris The utterance of sounds whilst training and fighting is one way of charging the CNS to raise the number of motor units recruited and their rate of firing.  The sounds also can determine the pattern, rate, and intensity with which you strike, defend, or counter.  The duration of the [...]

Read more about tons of Martial Arts topics at Epic Martial Arts Blog

Here's another great post called How to… one inch punch from the excellent Epic Martial Arts Blog |

I literally stumbled upon a blog post concerning the one inch punch, specifically Bruce Lee performing the punch on a judoka. Personally, I always thought it was a bit of a myth but did come across people who could indeed manage a one inch punch. People talk about ki expression when they try to explain the phenomenon. An old friend of mine showed me the one inch punch; he did tai chi and was able to propel someone across the room. Later when training with Steve Rowe in Chatham I saw the one inch punch, or something similar, again. Unfortunately, for me anyway, the explanation of how to ‘one inch punch’ involved lots of Chinese terminology, such as fa jin, which confuses the hell out of me. Learning the one inch punch It wasn’t until I trained with Steve Morris that I understood the one inch punch. In fact, you could say that Steve Morris taught me the one inch punch, but…. without ever teaching me the one inch punch! Sounds a bit crazy but there you go. Incidentally, I always say Steve Morris taught me more about sanchin kata than anyone else and again that was without ever teaching [...]

Read more about tons of Martial Arts topics at Epic Martial Arts Blog

Here's another great post called Alignment during a technique from the excellent Epic Martial Arts Blog |

Some time ago on the now defunct United Goju Forum Steve Rowe wrote that anyone could kick head height as long as the alignment was correct. This was met with some scepticism and derision, one poster wrote that there’d be a line of people from his club wanting assistance. At the time I didn’t quite get it but at Primal last year in one session Steve Morris showed this statement to be true. First he had us against the wall, side on, swinging the kicking leg up so that when it was in contact with the wall we’d reached the finish position. Of course kicking the wall there was no finish as such but the body was in a ‘straight’ line with the head below the kicking foot; the lower the head the higher the foot. I found that it was essential to turn more than you thought was necessary; it requires that you have a go. While an improvement was instant I spent a lot of time practising and hallelujah head kicks were possible for the first time in 10 years or something. But I had to try this drill out on someone who really struggled with high kicks. [...]

Read more about tons of Martial Arts topics at Epic Martial Arts Blog

Here's another great post called UFC 121 Velasquez Lesnar – Brock battered! from the excellent Epic Martial Arts Blog |

UFC 121: Velasquez Lesnar main event The main event of the evening at UFC 121 was the  Velasquez Lesnar fight for the heavyweight  Championship. Scheduled for five rounds the fight failed to get through the first. Unsurprisingly, Lesnar came out of the blocks fast and rushed Velasquez going for takedowns which failed or were negated immediately. When trading punches Lesnar missed but Velasquez hit, which was the real difference. Velasquez managed to get Lesnar down and get in some good shots  as Lesnar’s defence was inadequate, it was all he could do to simply cover his head. This worked to a degree against Carwin last time out, but only because Carwin got over-excited and ‘gassed’ himself from throwing so much leather. This meant that a lot of shots failed to hit the target and it appeared as though Lesnars defence was successful. With Velasquez  picking his shots Lesnars defence was hopelessly ineffective. Velasquez dominates Lesnar in stand up Velasquez’s stand up superiority is not surprising as according to the Bleacher report Velasquez is successful with 53% of his punches while Lesnar only connects with only 30% of his! The difference in striking ability was very plain in this fight. If [...]

Read more about tons of Martial Arts topics at Epic Martial Arts Blog

Here's another great post called Greatest ever fight from the excellent Epic Martial Arts Blog |

Potentially the greatest, anyway. Yesterday it was announced that the Mayweather vs Pacquiao scheduled for March 13th is off due to a row over the drug testing procedure. It seems that the Mayweather camp has been casting doubts over Pacquiao’s status in regard of performance enhancing drugs, despite there being no evidence at all to suggest he is anything other than completely clean. Pacquiao has agreed to the standard drug-testing protocol of the Nevada State Athletic Commission but Mayweather wants to implement the more stringent protocol of that used by the United States Anti-Doping Agency. This version is used to test Olympians in the US, with Mayweather claiming that if this protocol is good enough for the Olympians then it should be required for a fight ‘of this magnitude’. As Pacquiao has not agreed to the USADA testing protocol Mayweather said I have already agreed to the testing and it is a shame that he is not willing to do the same. It leaves me with great doubt as to the level of fairness I would be facing in the ring that night That’s a bit rich in my opinion, there is no suggestion whatsoever of Pacquiao having failed a [...]

Read more about tons of Martial Arts topics at Epic Martial Arts Blog

Here's another great post called Martial Arts Injuries – Damage to Knee Joint from the excellent Epic Martial Arts Blog |

Martial Arts Injuries; damage to knee joint Often martial arts injuries occur at the knee and these frequently occur as a result of training ignoring the structure of the knee. The knee complex prefers to function strictly as a hinge, with flexion and extension being the primary motions, although a lesser amount of medial-lateral rotation is permissible. Knee damage is not an integral part of martial arts training and need not occur if your martial arts training is sympathetic to the structure of the knee. If your training practice works against, rather than with, the knee complex structure, debilitating damage can occur over time. Full force kicks into thin air or poor alignment of the supporting leg in round kicks can cause hyperextension at the knee of the kicking leg or excessive rotation  of the supporting leg respectively, compromising joint integrity. Put simply, these practices are likely to mess your knee up. Training that works within the parameters of normal knee function allows the joint to survive and thrive. It’s common sense really. Preventing further knee damage One of the ladies who trains with us has a tough time with her knees. They have never been right from as far [...]

Read more about tons of Martial Arts topics at Epic Martial Arts Blog

Here's another great post called UFC 141 Jon Fitch Suffers One Punch Knockout from the excellent Epic Martial Arts Blog |

Jon Fitch vs Johny Hendricks With the UFC being increasingly strict, getting videos that last of Friday nights UFC 141 show is not straightforawrd, certainly ones you can embed. So I’m almost overjoyed to have this link of Jon Fitch against Johny Hendricks from UFC 141, the last of 2011. With GSP out for some time I was expecting Jon Fitch to dominate the welterweight division. But as is often the case with MMA there was a surprise in store and a very quick one. But amazingly I found the embed code One Punch Knockout A TKO after 12 seconds or whatever is spectacular and the left hand shot from Hendricks was right on the Jon Fitch button! It really was the first punch Hendricks threw, amazing!  On the way down Jon Fitch looks out but is coherent moments later after the ref stopped the fight. The way Fitch handled the ref suggests that he was in fine fettle and could have continued. Was it too early? It’s a matter of opinion and while I am no fan of early stoppages the UFC has to direct it’s refs to err on the side of caution. The sport is in it’s infancy [...]

Read more about tons of Martial Arts topics at Epic Martial Arts Blog

Here's another great post called Power Punching with the Waist from the excellent Epic Martial Arts Blog |

Increasing Punching Power by Opening and Closing The waist area is packed with muscle and potentially will add substantially to your power punching. In karate Senseis often tell you to use your hips but they should really be interested in the waist. After all the hip is no more than a joint between leg and pelvis. There is a lot of muscle working across and around this joint which can contribute to the power and force produced in a punch if it is applied correctly. And that’s probably what those Senseis actually mean though. Opening and Closing separates the actions within the whipping punch sequence When performing a whipping punch a defined sequence is performed; the snapping action at the waist causes the hip to snap toward the target quickly followed by the shoulder and then the arm. At the waist, this action involves a stretch, opening it up, and then a contraction causing it to close again. This opening and closing process is a critical part of the whipping punch and is apparent across other joints too. When learning this punch the most difficult part, or one of them, was ‘leaving the shoulder behind’. Differentiating between the hip and [...]

Read more about tons of Martial Arts topics at Epic Martial Arts Blog

Here's another great post called Hello world – First Post! from the excellent Epic Martial Arts Blog |

NOTICE OF INTENT…. This blog will chart everything that is going on in my martial arts world at Epic Martial Arts Academy in Birmingham, UK. I will cover everything that concerns the club as we progress. A brief, non-exhaustive list follows…. My struggles with absorbing the teachings of Steve Morris and the Morris Method Projects – using Martial Arts training to help disadvantaged groups Struggles with conforming to ‘good practice’, i.e. multiple across agency CRB checks Fight observations – resulting from Steve Morris’ assertion that we should ‘watch the fight’ and lessons learned from watching MMA related information and fight/show reviews and observations Karate observations Interviews (hopefully) Club events Technical discussions Occasional diversions off a theme And probably plenty more. Should be a blast. Originally posted 2009-01-29 14:23:23. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Read more about tons of Martial Arts topics at Epic Martial Arts Blog