The End of My Break Fall Career
One of the things that I enjoyed over the years was taking break falls. Unfortunately, my break fall career has come to an end. I first started learning serious break falls as a freshman at Notre Dame, specifically as a member of the Notre Dame…
It’s Real and It’s Spectacular
“It’s real and it’s spectacular” is, of a course, a slight riff of a famous line in the 1990s comedy series “Seinfeld.” In this post, I discuss a recent remark by a martial artist about me teaching a children’s Modern Arnis class that involved some questionable logic. Essentially, he…
7 Killer Reasons To Take Private Lessons
For many students, group classes are the optimal option for various reasons. These reasons range from socializing to the opportunity to train with different partners, decompressing from work, forgetting about distractions, and having get-togethers after class. On the other hand, there are 7 killer reasons to…
5 Easy Ways to Learn in Class!
Having attended many martial arts classes over the past three decades, I have learned that the learning process can be hindered in various ways. It took me a while but, over time, I developed a list of 5 easy ways to learn in class. Here…
Six Ways To Practice Your Cane Anyos
I’ll discuss six ways to practice your cane anyos in this post. Or is it just six? Martial arts schools vary widely in the number of required forms, ranging from fewer than 5 to 30. Invariably, these schools have different philosophies concerning the practice of…
10 Tips for Surviving a Martial Arts Camp
Having been to over 50 martial arts camps (the vast majority are Modern Arnis camps) in the past couple of decades, I’ve learned ways to survive a martial arts camp and have fun! For newbies, a weekend-long martial arts camp can seem daunting. How do…
10 Tips To Avoid Killing Your Uke
If you are not able to view this video, click here. Demonstrating a technique on Jason. First, what does the word “uke” mean in martial arts? “Uke” means “receiver of a technique” and, in layman’s terms, means “demonstration partner.” Instructors often use demonstration partners to…
The Importance of the #5 Poke in Modern Arnis
The #5 poke is a tremendous way to move your opponent. Why? You are attacking your opponent’s centreline; frankly, folks don’t like their center being attacked. They either get hit or move out of the way. Either way, it’s a winner for the driver. If…
My Martial Arts Beginning
I began in the martial arts in December of 1982 after I “retired” from high school football. I was a star player for the YMCA team, the Oakdale Red Devils, from the 4th through 7th grade. The trajectory to stardom continued as a member of…
A Moment in Time- Avoiding Violence
In the past decade or so, I have gotten quite interested in the psychology of violence. Over time, I have gotten interested in the writings of Marc “Animal” MacYoung, Rory Millar, Kris Wilder, Lawrence Kane, and Peyton Quinn. Finding MacYoung’s website (http://www.nononsenseselfdefense.com/index.html) was the portal…
