Can Older People Do Jiu-jitsu? Just Ask Rick...

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Pressure Point of the Day: Lateral Femoral

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Technical Analysis: Shoulder Throw

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How to Throw Big When You're Small

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How to Improve Your Success Rate in Applying Submissions

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One Way to Remove Strength from Takedowns/Throws

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Feedback for Upcoming Ground Defense Book

Hello everyone! Sorry I didn't post last week. I had a good reason; I was away on my honeymoon. Anyway, I'm back now and am ready to share some good news with you all. Over the past few months I've been working with representative of Tuttle Publishing (one of the largest martial arts publishers in the world) on a book proposal. I didn't want to say anything until things were a bit more solid, but things are starting to look promising.

The book is about practical ground defense, specifically in a street self-defense context. The goal is to provide easy to learn tactics and techniques that a BJJ-er can combine with his sport grappling training for an effective toolbox of skills that can be used in a street defense context. Conversely, traditional martial artists that are more focused on stand-up defense would also be able to learn an effective package of ground defense tools. The book will also be accompanied with an instructional DVD to supplement its contents.

My contact at Tuttle said that there is definitely interest in my book and on top of that they're interested in having me expand the content. There are many different topics related to ground defense, and I have many of them covered already, but I would like to find out if there is anything of particular interest to my blog readers on this matter. Please let me know in the comments of this post. I very much appreciate your feedback and support. :)

A New Rank in a New Shorinji Kan Curriculum

If you follow my blog regularly, you know that this fall I got back into training in Shorinji Kan Jiu-jitsu under Jonathan Jamnik Sensei at his dojo in Vancouver. I had trained with him and with Kevin Eugene Sensei at the BCIT dojo in Burnaby over a year ago, having double graded and earned my orange belt. I ended up taking a break from it for a little while I focused on my own dojo, but decided to get back into it with a goal of developing my throwing skills more since Shorinji Kan places a heavier emphasis on throwing than we do in Can-ryu.

There was a big change when I came back though. A new curriculum had been developed with the addition of Henka-waza (transitions) and Kaeshi-waza (counters) as applied to throws, joint locks and ground work.

With all the changes, I was glad there was no talk of double-grading again. At first it seemed like there so just so much more to learn on the curriculum, I wondered if I would even learn it all in time for the November grading. The additions affected all my previous kyu levels as well as the one I was grading for, and I was expected to know them all. But as I spent more time playing with the new additions, I realized it wasn't so overwhelming after all. The so-called "additions" weren't all that "additional". The transition and counter training techniques were more a way of teaching how to flow between the different moves so that students don't get stuck on one way of getting the job done, so to speak. When trained correctly, it helps students adapt to the changing circumstances that are likely to occur in a real physical encounter.

The key to training transitions and counters correctly is to maintain proper intention, which can be tricky at times. If training a transition, you have to go in for the initial move, whether it's a throw or joint lock, with the intention of completing it. If you only go in for the initial move half-committed, holding to the goal of the final transitory move in mind, you miss the point. The transition is only meant to be used if the first move fails.

As an uke, it's a good idea to let your tori follow through with the first move on occasion, as well as performing the appropriate counter for the purpose of transition practice. This helps "keep it real." As for counter training, uke should always try to throw tori for real so they develop the necessary movement skills to do a proper counter. Of course, when first learning a counter, it's a good idea to go more slowly, while still committing to the throw.

As for the test, all went relatively smoothly and I passed. As always, there were a number of things I would have liked to do better. I certainly wish I hasn't lost my balance while performing a ko-uchi-gari and fallen butt first onto my uke's chest with all my weight :(. Thankfully, my uke was a strapping fellow weighing in at over 200 lbs, so he could handle the unexpected blow. But when all is said and done, I accomplished my goal of improving my throwing skills, and certainly the transition and counter training played an important part of that. I look forward to working on those skills further as I continue with my progression as a martial artist.

How I Learned to Be a Student

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How to Practice Good Strike Targeting

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Jiu-jitsu Style "In-Laws": The Marriage of Can-Ryu & Shorinji Kan

Some of you may already be aware of this. For others, it may be new information. Last month, I got married. The man I married, Chris, is my second in command at my dojo, who had originally come to us just over 3 years ago as a brown belt holder in Shorinji Kan Jiu-jitsu.

Apparently, a new term has been coined with regards to our marriage, with our two styles now being referred to as "in-laws." Steve Hiscoe Shihan, heir apparent to our style, recently visited the dojo run by Andy Dobie Sensei (head of Shorinji Kan's Jitsu Canada) in Peterborough. After the class, Shihan was quoted as having been very glad to have the opportunity to visit, explaining the connection between our two styles as "in-laws" now that Chris and I have married them together, so to speak.


Chris came to our style having moved to the Vancouver area, where there were no Shorinji Kan dojos at the time, which is why he started training with us. Originally, he took up Can-ryu with the goal of keeping an open mind, but naturally looked at everything we did with a Shorinji Kan eye. Over the years, he has come to be a Can-ryu practitioner every bit as much as he was a Shorinji Kan-er. He earned his Shodan in Shorinji Kan in December last year. And at the end of October, he'll be testing for Shodan in Can-ryu. If he passes, he'll be the first to hold the rank of Shodan in both styles.

I, too, have earned my own place with Shorinji Kan, having received my orange belt last year. I took up training with the new instructors who had moved to the area with the hope of focusing on skills that receive less emphasis in our style. It's also just nice not to have the weighty responsibility that comes with wearing a Yondan belt. I had to take a break from it for awhile, but I've re-started my training this fall and hope to test for green belt in late November.

Chris and I hope to continue to maintain a good relationship with both styles. Of course, our dojo is a Can-ryu dojo, but Chris still goes to the Shorinji Kan dojos that now exist in Vancouver to help out whenever he can. We also invite Shorinji Kan instructors to teach at our dojo as guests and, vice versa, I occasionally teach at Shorinji Kan dojos as a guest. And, of course, we always welcome Shorinji Kan students to drop in at our dojo. They're family after all...

90 Years of Jiu-jitsu Experience in 3 Cool Instructors

Firstly, I want to apologize for the delay in my blog writing. Last weekend, attended a Jiu-jitsu seminar in Sicamous and was away for 4 days, so I had a few things to catch up on. Now, I'd like to do a little run-down on the seminar.

A lot of times when you go to these types of events, there is a weak link in the instruction. I'm happy to say, however, that all 3 of the weekend's instructors were just awesome. Collectively, Andie Dobie Sensei (Shorinji Kan Jiu-jitsu), Steve Hiscoe Shihan (Can-ryu Jiu-jitsu) and Michael Seamark Shihan (Kokodo Jiu-jitsu) have over 90 years of martial arts experience between them, and it showed in their instruction (left to right in the pic below). They were like 3 peas in a pod of pure pain.


The participants in the event thoroughly enjoyed being twisted up, punched, squeezed, and slammed. The instructors never seemed to be without a smile when teaching (unless demonstrating their "mean face"). I'm not sure I can say the same for their ukes.

Steve Hiscoe Shihan also introduced us to a fun new "game." He created some Can-ryu Challenge coins (see pic on left). The idea is that you carry this coin on your person and if you whip it out to someone and say "Challenge!" they have to produce their own coin (if they have one). If the challengee doesn't have one, they must buy the challenger a drink. If they do have one, then the challenger has to buy. I got the ball rolling with my own coin (Sorry Dobie Sensei!). It didn't take long before people started buying their own (thankfully!).

Anyway, we all really got our money's worth, having learned/refined techniques, made new friends and shared drinks (so to speak). It was very successful and expect that it will be even better attended next year (we're gonna need more mats!). I feel very privileged to have the opportunity to train under such fine martial artists.

Playing with Improvised Weapons

As a senior black belt, sometimes I want to do something creative in my training, something that stimulates the brain, something that makes me look at an analyze techniques I've practiced for years in an entirely different way. One way to do this is by playing with improvised weapons.

You can take any single item that you might carry with you or have on you in an defensive situation then try to use it in a way that enhances weaponless techniques you've learned.

At the orange belt level in our style of Jiu-jitsu, we introduce the concept of the yawara. In training, it is simply a short stick about 3/4 of an inch thick and about the length of a pen. But this item in theory need not only be a stick. It could be anything that is a similar size and structure, like a pen, small hair brush, a mascara container, etc. Students are taught a variety of strikes with the yawara and are encourage to improvise defenses that incorporate its use. At first, the focus is on more practical techniques involving strikes and simpler movements. Later, as students progress through the belt levels, they are encouraged to use the yawara to enhance joint locks, throws, etc.

When I get on the mats to train rather than teach, occasionally I'll pick out a random item and improvise defenses that incorporate that item. This week, I think I'll experiment a bit with the cane, which could also be a cane umbrella which is an item I sometimes carry on me. I have no formal training in the use of the cane, other than a few random techniques I was shown over the years, but that just makes my play time all the more creative and fun.

How about you? Do you incorporate improvised weapons into your training?

Everything I Need to Know I Learned from Doing Hip Throws

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How to Be a Good Uke (Training Partner)

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5 Rules of Ground Defense

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Can-Ryu Ground Defense Concepts Applied

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Body Shifting from the Underside of a Ground Attack

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Fundamentals of Can-Ryu Ground Defense

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Moving Away from Set Defenses from Specific Ground Attacks

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