gggrrrrr

gggrrrrr
first day with my Gi

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Don't Quit

Rolling with Gary, it feels like a cruel trick with a little kid -- when you hold your arm out with your palm up against their forehead, and they run at you as hard as they can, flailing and squirming... and you just laugh! yep.. feels like a cruel trick. I felt like giving up quite a few times the other night during our roll, but I didn't. and I didn't cry. I rolled with a new friend next, and I told him that if I cry, it's not him and I'm not upset... he said, "yeah, me too." hehe. we were all pretty tired at that point.

Soft Pretzel

This might be my new fight name of the hour. No one name has stuck yet. I'm flexible, but I tap out a lot. Does tapping out too much make me soft? I wonder if giving in too much is my way of normalizing or rationalizing the failure part of learning.

I tap out pretty easily, because in my mind, it's practical. Training is practice, and I'd really like to stay calm and not get so frustrated that I get mad... or get hurt. I'm not sure if this dampens my 'fighting spirit,' but I'd say I'm still the tiny and tough one at the gym, but i'm not violent. Some of these new white belts are so wild and forceful, it's a little scary. One is testing my un-pancakeness, but i'm doing okay. Pancakes Are Still Only For Breakfast. haha. sounds like my movie sequel.

Oy. The Face Choke

There are still many ways that I find myself tapping out to positions that are not really jiu-jitsu technique, but provide a significant enough level of discomfort. The Barbarian Noggin Crush shows up every now and again, where someone hooks your head in their elbow and just starts squeezing. The occasional suffocation is unpleasant, but really... It's just hard to avoid The Face Choke. I don't enjoy it, and it makes me think, "it's training. you don't have the choke. why are you squeezing my face so intently?!" Volume 2 of 'The Guard' by Joe Moreira and Ed Beneville says that, "That sort of "choke" is not very sporting... Obviously it is rude to do that sort of thing to your training partners." And I agree.