The Third Lockdown
Due to a massive surge in cases, hospitalizations, ICU admissions and ventilator numbers, Ontario tightened the COVID-related restrictions three weeks ago. This is an extension of varying degrees of a lockdown since December. Despite that, the trend did not change. The province then imposed a…
Friday Recommendation #6
If you are not able to view this video, click here. This terrific podcast interview with Rickson Gracie is revealing. He speaks of his life philosophy that stems from his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu career. At one point in the podcast, he expounded on the meaning of…
Countering the Punyo Feed
If you are not able to view this video, click here. A YouTube viewer asked, “How do you counter a punyo feed?” In this video, I responded to this query and demonstrated three examples of countering a punyo feed. Firstly, I instruct beginner students to…
FMA Translations
One of the keys to mastery of FMAs is knowing how to translate a movement across different platforms. A good example of this is “gunting.” This is a scissors-like movement, characterized by the left hand parrying an attack while the right hand defangs or cuts…
YouTube, Zoom, and Cross-Training
Intro The martial arts industry has been upended as we have gone through this pandemic. Several martial arts schools in the vicinity of where I live have closed. One school was in its location for 30 years only to be brought down by the pandemic…
Friday Recommendation #5
If you are not able to view this video, click here. Sensei Jesse Enkamp and MMA Coach Ramsey Dewey pack quite a bit into this 10-minute discussion. The exchange between the two veers away from the video’s title. For this post, I’d like to focus…
Friday Recommendation #4
If you are not able to view this video, click here. While this podcast is three years old, it’s terrific. A little background on the interviewer. His name is Rokas, and he lives in Lithuania. He taught Aikido for several years and became disenchanted with…
Friday Recommendation #3
Before you delve into Sensei Ando’s 25-minute podcast about Bruce Lee’s famous quote, let’s refresh your memory first by watching this clip. If you are not able to view this video, click here. I have to admit that I have always been a big fan…
Closed Captioning on Zoom! Yeah, Baby!
As some of you know, I’ve been teaching Modern Arnis/Filipino Martial Arts classes and private lessons on Zoom for the past year or so. I’ll be the first to admit that it does not replace live teaching in any way, shape, or form. That said,…
Friday Recommendation #2
In December, I came across this podcast by Iain Abernethy, in which he discusses the differences between martial arts, fighting, and self-protection. He posits that losing the distinction among the three leads martial arts instructors astray. If you are not able to view this video,…
