Posted 12:30 AM by spitgirl
Had to just do this for Laura and Lisa, so thought I'd post it here so I wouldn't forget where I came from at the beginning of the year...

Spin heel kicks - Better than they were a year ago. I have problems chambering, with balance, and according to Duc, I need to be able to do them fairly fast. I go pretty slow right now. I had a TKD person (Bobby) look at them on Wednesday, and his opinion is that I have a hitch on my right side, and my left side is smooth and has less balance problems. I'd give myself a B to B-.

Throws - Need to work left side, but probably one of my stronger points. Butt waza on a number of throws. Need to work with someone who is slightly harder to throw than Chris. Have talked with him about regularly observing my throws. Probably will talk with Kenny (low center of gravity) about trading throws regularly after Sunday workouts while Chris watches. Have been having sporadic knee problems over the past year or so, but I think part of that was because I was doing falls with shin pads on. (But my shins bruise easily, sigh.) Probably B+ right now. I've been working on this the most over the past year or so.

Board Breaks - HELP! Woefully unprepared. Don't know where to start. Last attempt at board breaking in TKD last year bone bruised both wrists before my brown belt test. Need help deciding which ones to do, as well as trying them out. D/F

Bag Work - Need reps. Dr. Link gave me some tips over the break on working the circle, which I really haven't had time to process yet. May come early or stay late to see if I can work on that in the next couple of weeks. Will probably need instruction after then. Sometimes I seem like I just don't move the bag. C+

16 Step - Need to review, but most of them were in good shape. Need some work on the carpet rolls and major work on the fireman's carries and the spring hip. Mostly needs refinement and some smoothing out. Will probably work on this with Kenny. Last semester, Anne Marie and I won the 16 step competition. OH. Need work on varying my finish-offs, deciding which one I want to do where. B+/A-

Test Kicks - I need help with variance. Narabang has some hip problems. Need work on flying kicks - I still "spear." Duc was also telling me that I need to work things out so that I have some tempo variance on my kicks and strikes across the room. Need to work out some good combos. However, I have okay to decent flexibility (or working on it) and Eden says I have some good power shots. Jumping kicks okay, might need help with turning and spinning kicks, mostly with balance. B

Dive Rolls - Yay! Fun! I haven't really challenged myself on this lately because I strained/lightly sprained my ankle four times in six weeks (soccer + long grass + gopher holes = pain), but I've done 9 of the large red barriers before, 8 consistently. So, maybe... up to my nose? Landing is okay. Might be nervous about jumping over James. A

Attitude - Need to work on hiding my weariness. Sometimes this is hard, especially if I get really thirsty or dizzy, both of which, I think, is related to salt intake and low blood pressure. I think I have a decent kihap. Probably like A-/B+

Joint Locks - Good on fingers, okay on wrists. Ankle bars problematic. Need to remember the basics, especially hip movement. Might need some help with some more advanced comealongs. I trained in small circle jujitsu for a while at Chabot (Fall 2003), and have dropped by Chris' studio a couple of weeks when I couldn't make it to Monday pm workout due to work. I've also gone to a number of seminars this past year held by Jujitsu America, mostly focusing on control and takedown techniques involving wrist and finger material.

Trithalon - Gah.

First round is okay but not stellar - I have a tendency not forget lateral motion and stick with forward/back motions. Don't know if this has to do with ankle trauma or just a mental block. I'd rate it a B.

Second round is a big question mark. I asked Chris last night after the judo Olympic trials if he'd teach me some ronduri techniques, but I really shied away from second round due to recurring ankle problems. (I also had a really bad experience my first day doing ronduri in Monday night class - had a deep bone bruise about 7" long on my shin from my first ronduri as a brown belt... with someone who outweighed me by 100lbs. :/ Ow.) Probably D level.

Third round, I think I've been steadily improving in this area recently. Probably could hold my own against someone about my weight, but heavier might be touch and go. B? B+?

Fourth round, depends. I've done fourth against mostly lightweight kickers, and have attempted to kick at someone I didn't want to get close to (Randy), but the latter has actually caught my foot and lifted me heel over head twice so far. I'm okay against some people, useless against others. NEED HELP WITH HANDS AND PROTECTING MY HEAD.

Other random problems
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+ Ducking my head when I punch

+ Cardio (working on this primarily on my own - talked with Laura, must find the strap for my heart rate monitor in my closet)

+ Sometimes have problems with hip alignment/snap/coordination with punches (probably when I think about it too much)

+ Balance, especially while turning - might be related to ankle stability? I continue to do rehab, but have stopped wearing the brace.

+ Snapping IT band (chronic problem), rarely flares up, but when it does, have limited mobility in right hip, especially in circles

+ SOFT ROLL - 'nuff said

+ foot slap break fall - can do it easily from a headstand, but hard from a handstand - is this okay?

+ Small person technique?

+ Remembering to breathe regularly during techniques

+ flow of movements

+ need to work back knuckle - I don't lean enough into it (as per Duc)

Other stuff I should probably work on, but haven't in a while
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+ 4 corner attack

+ falls with height (again... ankles... sigh... been avoiding this kind of lateral impact, except back fall. Probably will start adding height in early July, after I build up more strength in both ankles)

+ rolls combination

+ punch combos - need to vary height and tempo of punches (as per Duc)