Day 6 - Boxing. Jiu Jitsu.

Today was my first day of doing back to back training sessions. I did an hour and a half of boxing, walked across the hall, changed and did an hour and forty five minutes of Jiu Jitsu. Surprisingly I got through it pretty well. My conditioning is already improving.

The routine at boxing hadn't changed since the last time I was there months ago. In fact it has been the same for as long as I can remember. This is leading to the possibility of having to make a tough decision. The people there are great, my trainer is also great and very knowledgable. However, the fire and enthusiasm that used to be present there isn't. It seems to be going stale. In these types of sports, that fire is what pushes you past your limits. It's what encourages progress.

The boxing class was broken down as such...

The first half hour was free time. This is time to warm up, stretch, hit the back, shadow box etc. I spent this time skipping, doing some light bag work to warm up, and stretching.

The next half hour is spent doing drills infront of the mirror. We start out with footwork, and then we work in various combinations of punches focussing on technique, not speed or power. We did a short conditioning session consisting of pushups, vertical jumps, and running in the same spot with high knees while punching.

We then went to the heavybags for some work. We did all out 1 minute drills utilizing all of the punches in various combinations.

The last hour of class is once again free time. Generally this time is used for further conditioning, practicing technique, or sparring. I continued my heavybag work and finished with skipping.

Then it was off to the changerooms because Jiu Jitsu was to start in 5 minutes.

Conditioning/Stretching: The first half hour or so was spent doing various conditioning exercises (pushups, situps, squats, lunges). Then we practiced various rolls and techniques to safely get up to our feet in a fight or MMA match. And we finished this first section off with a full body stretch to prepare for the techniques and sparring that follows.

Techniques: During the technique portion of the class, emphasis was on sprawls (blocking the take down), shooting (going for the take down), and various escapes that can be used when stuck under someone after they have sprawled on you. I am definitely catching on to the techniques faster now.

End Class Drills: We finished the class by having the higher ranking students lay on their backs, and we got to choose a starting postion, our goal being to maintain the starting position or another dominant position. This went on for about 25 minutes without a break.

Summary: I am thinking about how I am going to train. Will I stop boxing and just take my Jiu Jitsu even more seriously? Will I box elsewhere? Will I take Jiu Jitsu to the next level and just keep my boxing skills in decent shape by working on them alone? Should I box elsewhere (not sure where else to go around here). An idea that I am considering is quiting boxing and taking up Muay Thai instead which incorporates kicks, punches, elbows and knees from the free moving phase and the clinch. There either is or was Muay Thai right next to Jiu Jitsu at some point.

Well we'll see where I go from here.

Feel free to post any questions, comments, or suggestions on where I should go.

Take care