Friday, July 24, 2009

balancing act

We've been doing a lot of a balancing drills lately in class. Generally in the last 10-15 minutes. Some of these are actually variations of sparring drills. Specifically, get your opponent to commit to an action that you can easily counter for a score. I've made up my own names for some of these for lack of anything better.
  • Chicken Fight - Think back to when you were a kid. Hold one of your legs up like you would be sitting cross-legged (aka indian style). Bounce around on one foot and try to knock your opponent over without falling over yourself. You lose if you put your foot down, fall down, or your hands leave your ankle that you are holding.
  • Patty-cake Squats - Squat down. Don't let your butt touch the floor but keep it below your knees. Face your opponent and slap each others hands (both hands at once). Try to knock your opponent off balance or have him over commit and put himself off balance (i.e. let him strike but move your hands out of the way). Feel free to move around but your butt can't go above your knees. If any part of your body touches the ground, you lose. You are only allowed to strike his hands. No other part of the body allowed.
  • Patty-cake Horse Stance - Same thing as above but in a horse stance.  However, you can't move your feet.
  • Partner Crab Race - Stand back to back with your partner. Squat down so your butt is almost parallel with your knees. Brace your weight against your partners back. Race against other teams in the direction that one of you is facing. This not only helps with your balance (you're reacting against shifting weight), but your quads are getting a great workout and your building a sense of trust with your partner.
  • Side Kick Statue - Perform a side-kick but hold it extended for 10 seconds or more. Your supporting ankle will be getting quite a workout as you try to maintain your balance.
We spent a lot of time on Tae Guek Yuk Jang tonight as well. I really don't know that form as well as I should by now. Time to start practicing out in the back yard. I'm sure my neighbors (who can all see pretty much directly into my yard) find it at least amusing when I'm out there.

Side note: I've got a bruise on my left foot the circumference of a baseball.