Clinch Sparring

Muay Thai is known for it's use of the clinch. To be able to fight and defend yourself in the clinch takes lots of practice. Thai fighters will knee spar sometimes 30 minutes in a training sessions. It is great exercises and will wear you. Check it out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9I-cKLqQfC8&feature=related

Credible Coaches

They need to stop! I keep hearing of fight gyms with coaches who have no real experience. I get irritated at these "boxing" and "kickboxing" coaches who have almost no real fight experience, outside of a few amateur fights. This is B.S! A coach doesn't have to be a champion to teach, but a coach should have been a fighter and have years of training and experience as a competitor. So, if you come across a twenty something year old instructor and you can validate his or her experience, don't spend your money.

U.S. Shidokan Open 1996

Here's some "Best of U.S. Shidokan" action from 1996/1997. Some good stuff that aired on ESPN.

Part I
http://trammellfitnessmartialarts.blogspot.com/2011/06/martial-arts-action-stars.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmHINhyIQ5o&feature=related

M-1 Global

When people think of Mixed Martial Arts, the first organization that comes to mind is the UFC. M-1 is very big in Europe and puts on big shows too. There are a lot of stars out there from different countries mixing it up. Check out this highlight video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBFFKAzSsCo&feature=related

Fighters of Shidokan Atlanta

Shidokan Atlanta was started officially in 2002. I became a member of U.S. Shidokan in 2000 and asked U.S. Shidokan president Shihan Eddie Yoshimura to start a branch in Atlanta. Since then, I have trained fighters to fight in almost every combat sport there is. Here are a few of my students testing themselves. Win, lose, or draw they learn and their experiences are educational to the dojo.

Phil Sehenuk (fighting in a Shidokan Triathlon rules fight Chicago: Karate, Kickboxing, MMA and Pro Boxing)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dP8nG5YygmM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKV826ATEPk

Jaral Bowman (fighting MMA and Sanshou)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQNM16DVIWc&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrF7SbW5PN8

Camron Wilthshire (in the 2006 Shidokan World Open Triathlon Rules)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsCAspbI6sA

Joshua White (in MMA and Judo)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqCzpJwqueI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pu7y6N7x3Y

Quincy Sutton (MMA)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UTLzVR_nag

Kata Magic

I've discussed Bunkai (the application of Kata) in previous posts. I am always seeing new "Experts" in the field of Kata. Some present some decent material, but a lot are still reaching. I will argue that full contact (in a combat sport if you have no real life fight experience) is the only to learn how to fight. Despite what the experts present, they forget that fighting of any kind requires: timing, reaction, emotions, and reflex. Now they will say that they have drills and that the techniques presented can be done without seriously hurting your training partner, etc. An amateur boxer or kickboxer with less than a year of experience will usually beat a student of another martial art (i.e. Karate or Tae Kwon Do) with a few years or more experience in a scrap (I say this from experience training boxers and karate fighters). Now I am not being anti-Kata. Kata is based on a principles of combat and they give history to what Karateka do. The applications given in most cases become a little overcooked. The best learning method is to spar or compete. Through sparring you can have a non-compliant opponent and you can learn to deal with strikes, throws, submissions, etc. I teach Kata and enjoy it tremendously and I teach them to my students. But, I emphasize sparring and impact training (hitting things). My guys and gals get out there and compete in all combat sports to experience the adrenaline, the pain, the fatigue and the ups and down of fighting. Then they can apply this to their Kata (not the other way around). So, don't be mislead by the Bunkai theorists who tell you that sport fighting is real enough. Notice they never have any fight experience they can show you. Listen to the Kata guy with knock outs and tap outs.

The Side Kick

The side kick is an effective technique that you may not see a lot in combat sports. You will mainly see the front and round kick as the most utilized of kicks in competition. The reason being is that you can keep your body square when using the kicks. The side kick requires the body to turn sideways and the chances of getting countered are greater. But when timed, it is a very effective technique. The best time to throw the side kick is when your opponent attacks with a technique the squares his body up (i.e. a right hand). Offensively you can throw the kick into your opponent's guard to knock him off balance. Here are a couple of side kicks knock outs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_ekaP_EO1I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-03TpERPtI

Don't Forget To Stretch

Stretching is one of the most important pieces of training. Not only does it prevent injury, but it enhances movement. My recommendation is to do passive, static and ballistic stretching. After warming up, do some light stretches, holding the stretch 10-20 seconds. When getting ready to kick to some dynamic stretches (i.e. crescents, straight leg to chest) to prepare the body to kick. After training, grab a partner and have them push your body or leg for some passive stretching. Breath slowly and focus on relaxing. As you exhale go a little deeper. If you don't have partner, use a belt or strap to pull yourself into deeper stretches.

Yoshiji Soeno Still At It

Kancho (Grandmaster) Yoshiji Soeno is the founder of Shidokan Karate. Soeno was an instructor for Kyokushin Karate, but set out on his own in 1981 to start The World Karate Association Shidokan. Here he is in Europe conducting a seminar with Shihan Murakami (a former K-1 fighter and Karate Champion).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rg8zqg-ZrQ&NR=1

Kata Men Video

I view Kata as an artistic expression of combat. I'm not into the musical and xma stuff. I appreciate the hardcore classic Kata. Check this out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PETO_aKd5H0

Old Man Having Fun

Being a combat athlete for many years, I was able to compete at high level for Kickboxing, Muay Thai and Shidokan (The Triathlon: karate, kickboxing, grappling). In the disciplines mentioned, I was able to spend several years training and competing in each. I've been studying judo for several years, but wasn't able to devote time to competition until this year. Prior to this time, the last judo tournament I competed in was in 2002. Yesterday, I competed in the Georgia Games State Championships in Judo. I competed in the Seniors division (young guys) as opposed to my age group for Masters (40-45). I was able to take first place for gold. It was a place and great experience. For the past year, I've been training with 2x Olympian, Leo White at his Wakamusha Judo Club. I would like to give a special thanks to Josh White (one of the top players in the U.S.) for helping me improve my judo. The Old Man (me) is having fun. So, challenge yourself to get out there and take on a new challenge in life. Train hard.

The Demolition Man

Alistar Overeem is top dog in K-1 and MMA. He is the only fighter to win a world title in both.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfqQhcIyv7A

Do What You Do

As martial arts change, evolve, etc., you see so many martial arts schools add whatever the current craze is to their curriculum. Karate and Tae Kwon Do schools add Cardio Kickboxing, Grappling programs, Krav Maga, etc. It is not a bad thing to make money, but a lot of instructors go to weekend seminars or just fabricate the credentials to teach something new. As a pro kickboxer, I have gone out of town and looked in the phone book to find a kickboxing gym to go train at. Upon getting to the gym, I found out that it was really a kickboxing gym, but a Karate school. To me, that's false advertisement and it's lying to people who join. I've had ladies come in the gym and say they've kickboxed before and you ask them to do a kick and they do a dance step before they kick. People confuse Cardio Kickboxing with Kickboxing. Martial arts have become commercialized and that's OK. They are part of American culture, but I would like for gyms and schools to teach with truth and integrity. There are guys with zero to a few amateur fights teaching at "Fight" gyms. Unless you put in the time to teach something, stick to what you do.

Martial Arts Action Stars

It is very difficult for me to be entertained by today's martial arts action movies. There is too much special affects and instead of using martial artists, they train actors to do some moves and give them stunt doubles. I have to watch old school martial arts movies (Enter the Dragon, Drunken Master, 18 Bronze Men, etc.). But there are a few martial arts actors out there today that bring some excitement to the screen. My picks are:

Michael Jai White
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoy4r-6V1ao

Donnie Yen
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLbA5FtWzac

Scott Adkins
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYkeifxLk-I

The Brazilian Kick

The roundhouse kicks is the most utilized kick in martial arts. This is a version of the kick where the kicker folds the kick over an opponents guard. In modern times it is known as the Brazilian Kick. Brazilian Kyokushin Karate fighters Ademir DeCosta, Francisco Filho and Glaube Feitosa are known for this technique. Here Glaube demonstrating it for us.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5cNUkGhV2q4&feature=related

The Front Kick

The Front Kick is a basic but effective Karate technique (the basics are the most important). The knee is chamber and the ball of the foot is extended into the target and then the knee is recoiled. The kick can be snapped or the hip can be thrusted forward. The snap creates force from the snap and the thrust is used to drive through and knock an opponent away. Look at the clips below.

Anderson Silva's Front Snap Kick
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72C8UJlkTKk

Lyoto Machida's Jump Front Kick
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_7uezGfzz4

Larry Jarrett

I was talking to my friend Marshall Davis (owner of KBX gym in Alpharetta GA) and we talked about former Kickboxing champions. He mentioned Larry Jarrett, a tough fighter from Florida that I fought several years ago. Come to find out he passed away earlier this year. Larry came up in Karate and boxed and kickboxed. He was none for being one of the most durable fighters of his time. He became a World Champion, a fireman, husband and father. Here's the video of our match. This was for the ISKA Full Contact Rules U.S. Light Middleweight title in Doraville GA, 1997. I knocked him down twice in round 1 and he recovered and managed to finish the fight strong. He was truly a tough one because he's the only guy that I didn't finish after knocking them down. This was a nine round brawl. After the 4th round, I knew I wasn't going to get the KO, so I had to win on points. Larry came out harder each round. Tough dude folks. He fought champs like Dave Marinoble, Paul Biafore, and more on his way to becoming a world champion. Rest in peace, Champ.

IKF write up on Larry
http://www.ikfkickboxing.com/LarryJarrett.htm
Me and Larry fighting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxcYF_w1GdQ&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAi934LpRqY&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tDncUXnYAE&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qkXo55qhqs&feature=related

How To Be A Champion E-Book Available on Amazon

Hello Friends,

A few months ago, I told you that my 1st book, "How To Be A Champion" would be available. Well, now the E-book is here for you. We are still working on making the hard copies available (which will have a really cool cover). But, for now you can get an inexpensive electronic copy from Amazon. There will be a bio section, I will talk about my first Shidokan experience, I will discuss a little of the mental and physical preparation, and a good section on techniques for full contact karate, kickboxing, and grappling. Thanks to Phil Sehenuk and Jaral Bowman for helping to demonstrate techniques. You will also see fight photos from Shidokan shows (some that I promoted and some promoted by U.S. Shidokan). I would also like to thank Noel Plaugher for making this happen. Enough talk for now, get you E-book! Go to www.amazon.com and look it up (How To Be A Champion by Richard Trammell). Thanks for you support.

A History of Boxing Video

Here's a pretty cool boxing video showing fighters from the the past to present. I like it up to the present. I think that there are a lot of good boxers past the 90s era (in the clip, current guys get dissed). I will agree with a lot of people that there are not a lot of good Heavyweight fighters (United States) right now that we see. Today, I do see a steady rise in boxing of lighter weights. Bernard Hopkins shook up the boxing world by winning a fight recently at the age of 46 against a strong Pascal. Anyway, you will still enjoy this clip as it will give some history to this amazing sport.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hmu_iUkv2Q

Scared to lose?

When I was coming up in the martial arts as a competitor, I would take every chance I could to compete. I trained everyday, so, if asked to fight on a week or 2 day notice, I did it. Today, a lot of young fighters aren't so quick to do that. I see amateurs turning down fights because there opponent has a couple of more fights than them. I've promoted events where a fighter looking to make her debut wouldn't take a fight against a girl who only had one fight. Professional fighters avoid ranked fighters because they don't feel they are ready. My fourth professional kickboxing match was against a 2x World Champion. My 4th boxing match was against an Olympic Bronze Medalist who had over 200 amateur fights (to my 3). I say fight the best opposition and test yourself to see if you have what it takes (assuming your goal is to be champion).

Sanshou Chinese Kickboxing

There are many forms of kickboxing. One of them is Sanshou/Sanda. This sport combines kickboxing with throws and takedowns. Points for throws are based on how how good a throw is performed (i.e. sweep, throw over the back, throw overhead, etc.). Here's a highlight clip of this exciting sport.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8nCgNTByiE

Jean Frenette

I am not a big fan of musical kata, but I have to admit I use to like watching Jean Frenette do his thing. His Creative Musical Kata, still kept some Karate in it (with out turning to a dance, gymnastic routine). Check out this clip.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nHyy25WaTY

Shuai Jiao (Chinese Wrestling)

Shuai Jiao is a form of wrestling developed by the Chinese. It history dates back to 2697 B.C. and it is practiced to this day and is a popular sport worldwide.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYqW67992Yw

Forrest Griffin

I remember seeing Forrest Griffin fight on local shows in Atlanta several years ago. This is before the Ulitmate Fighter and the UFC Light Heavyweight title. He's come a long way and remains humble to this day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kai_CbgA2JA