Mizblog

My 4th Krav Maga class back went down this Saturday morning. There were lots of people invited to the classes to participate for publicity videos that AJ was having filmed. They were regular people. I liked them fine.

We had interesting rope-ladder warmup drills where we worked on footwork and took turns standing in line (big class!) so I feel the class size contributed to my sense of improving cardio. I wasn’t gassing out by the end of warmup.

Then we partnered up. I got paired last, with a girl. We did straight punches for what seemed forever, with a flurry drill that left me gassed by the end but I didn’t give up. We did round kicks and groin kicks, with the “Cheshire Cat” pad drill (or “Pendulum” drill, more traditionally) where the pad holder holds the pad at various angles and the kicker throws the appropriate kicks continuously. Exhausting!

For the defense technique, we did defense against a gun to the midsection from the side, in front of the arm. I may or may not have done that drill before, but it felt somewhat natural so maybe I did. I’m still kind of intimidated by guns. I view them with reverence and respect for their power and utility, and danger. Finally a defense technique that doesn’t hurt the defender (like the knife defenses we’d been doing the week before) but it sure bruises up the gun hand when you’re playing the attacker and having the gun twisted out of your hands repeatedly. If you do it right, you’re going to have a bruise between thumb and forefinger.

Saranya did her 3rd class (first with equipment and a belt) and I got to watch. The kids’ classes are way less intense than the adult classes, and Saranya’s home practice sometimes made her look like an expert in front of the other slacker goofy kids in the class. She learned 1-4 combos, groin kicks, and front choke pluck.

UPDATE: Four hours after the class, I’ve had a nap. My left knee feels really gimpy. When I try to straighten it, I feel pain on the outside of the joint.

UPDATE 2015-09-13: Knee feels better already, but sometimes goes “out” and has to be “popped” back in. This has been “normal” for years, but the discomfort of it being “out” feels worse now.