Author: Aaron

So normally when I think of leg locks I either am thinking of an Achilles lock or an ankle lock. Last Wednesday’s class was a little weird at the end. One of the brown belts showed the 3-sided choke, and that lead to a round of “have you seen this one”. Well we started in an arm bars and Sensei showed a leg bar – which is just weird – you basically end up with your weight on your shoulders and your chin buried in your navel.

Sensei did not teach the move – just showed us (on me) twice. However I think this is what was happening. It felt like he stepped over my leg, hooked the ankle and sat back pretty much like you would setting an arm bar. Just like you need to be careful sitting into the technique with an arm bar so you don’t blow the elbow, Sensei was similarly carful to keep things loose enough while sitting into so  he did not blow my knee.  He could have easily torqued against my knee and blown it any time he wanted to, but the bar seems to be a pin pulling straight down the V formed by your thighs. The result is stacking the pinned person on their shoulders.

I think one of the weirdest parts of going to the dojo is that from the moment you step in the door you senses start winding up. When you first walk in the door it is just like walking in any room with some muffled noise coming from the next room. Then some time before getting both your shoes off you realize it is positively noisy.

The muted noise from the next room has become a bunch of distinct noises; a regular thump – thump – thump coming from someone working the heavy bag, the shuffle of sliding feet from practicing Kata, and the especially distinctive noises of people sparring. People moving, falling, dodging, and striking – they all make distinctive noises. From the moment you walk into your brain starts pulling the initial swirl of noise into its distinctive and components.

Meaningful training requires being able to put the rest of your life and the outside world aside while you train. It is difficult at first, but the longer you train the easier it is to put the rest of your life on a shelf while you train. Eventually when you walk into the dojo you just automatically start shifting gears and getting ready to train. Before you hit the mat training is all you are thinking about – at least on the good days.

Today it just hit me, this bizarre combination – just as my senses were revving up and the number of inputs my brain was starting to track was exploding – my overall clarity was increasing.I only had a moment where I could observe the whole process from the outside – but it hit me with almost physical force.

It is the kind of thing that makes me sad that so few people train in any kind of martial arts. It is an amazing experience.