Welcome to the first installment of White Collar Submission. This is where I will personally take the plunge to begin learning and training different MMA fighting styles. Once I feel comfortable with my abilities, I will then take my skills to the ring. Welcome to Mixed Martial Arts for the regular guy. Want to learn what it takes? Keep reading.
About Me: I’m in my mid-twenties and I am married with two young children. I stand 5′8″ and weigh 147. I have never been in a fight where more than two punches were thrown.
Background Info: As a Mixed Martial Arts admirer for years (mainly UFC), I was interested in learning more about the sport, but never got involved enough to actually want to learn how to fight. Recently, a friend of mine helped introduce the world of MMA to me for the second time. This world not only included UFC, but also Pride (pre-UFC buyout), IFL, K1, and Abu Dhabi. I began to search out more information and watched The Ultimate Fighter 5 every Thursday night while beginning to get back into shape. I bought a medicine ball and some weights to build some muscle and trim some of the fat. I ran my first mile since high-school and began to eat food that was actually good for me. No more soda, candy, ice cream, or any other junk food. Breakfast includes oatmeal or a muffin and coffee. Lunch typically includes a salad and chicken. Dinner may vary, but I try to eat as much chicken and tuna without making myself sick. I’ll eat fruits throughout the day and drink wine instead of beer. The entire transition was not difficult. I look much better after a month of simply regulating my diet and exercising. The entire process took about a month.
Fast forward to now. I took my first Jiu-Jitsu class at a MMA/Karate training facility not far from my home. I simply searched the web for MMA classes in PA and found one that was nearby. I called the center and confirmed that it was OK to take an introductory class along with my friend while my 6 year old son took the Kids Jiu-Jitsu class at the same time.
What to Wear: It’s similar to gym class so wear cotton shorts or basketball shorts and a t-shirt. Women can wear a sports bra and a t-shirt or other gym apparel. Men can wear a protective cup if they want, but you most likely will not be doing anything dangerous on the first day. A mouth guard is also optional at this time. You will need gloves, better shorts, and protective gear if you decide to continue training. You can get everything for around 50$ to $80.
Arrival: Don’t show up exactly on time, be early. You will most likely need to sign a waiver to release the center from any injuries. You may also want to meet the instructor(s) and talk a little about what you want to get out of the class. Most recreational centers understand that not everyone is there to become a world championship MMA fighter. Some are there to learn self-defense or to just stay in shape.
Hygiene: You will be on the gym mat or in the ring in socks or even barefoot. Be clean and keep it all inside the clothes you are wearing.
Behavior: Keep in mind that you are in someone else’s gym. Don’t pretend to be something that you are not and be courteous to everyone there. Let the instructors show you what to do and make the best effort that you can. The instructor will understand if you are unable to do 50 push ups on the first night. Do what you can and don’t overwork yourself. Everyone will help you learn what they have already learned in the past. It helps them maintain and improve while introducing you to skills you will need to learn.
No Turning Back Now: Once we arrived at the training center, we were greeted by one of the instructors and we introduced ourselves. I had called earlier to confirm availability and to ensure that my son was old enough for the children’s classes. We met the instructors and were told to start stretching out on the mat. Socks were optional and I decided to take mine off just to maintain better grip on the mat. We spent about 15 minutes stretching before we began warm-ups.
Warm-Ups: We started out with 50 jumping jacks which nearly everyone should be able to complete. Our next task was a little more difficult; 10 push ups following by 9 push ups followed by 8 push ups until we reached 1 push up. To make it a little more difficult, the last 4 sets of push ups were done with a diamond hand placement. This is where you place both hands as close together as possible on the mat underneath yourself. You will form a diamond shape out of your forefingers and thumbs.
Drills: Our first drill dealt with learning how to flip and fall while using your hand to slap the mat and break the fall. We broke up into four lines and somersaulted across the gym floor while using one hand to slap the mat and break the fall. We did this drill twice; once for each hand.
Our next drill focused on take-downs and learning how to bring someone safely down to the mat. We started with a single leg take down in which the instructor first explained the take down, performed the take down in front of the class from different angles, and then broke us up into pairs to practice. This is where a partner comes in handy. Having my MMA-savvy friend with me helped me practice on someone who on the same level as me. I would recommend going to your first few classes with a friend who shares a similar height and weight. I was at a slight disadvantage considering my friend a few inches taller and about 15 pounds heaver, but I felt more comfortable performing take downs during my first class with someone that I personally knew. As we performed the drills, we were to make it more difficult for whoever was performing the take down by providing increased resistance with each take down. This helped build some defense and transitioned into learning some maneuvers to move someone from a defensive position into an offensive position within seconds. During the drills, the instructors would watch us and coach us if we made mistakes. There was a lot of positive instruction and I began to ease up have fun almost immediately.
During the drills, the instructors would also jump into the pair and challenge someone to show off their skills on them. It was a great quick one on one session that helped me improve my take down skills. I was invited into the ring to practice single and double leg take downs while he attempted to box at my face with a pair of gloves. It quickly turned into me getting taken down and tapping out thanks to a couple of arm-bars. I couldn’t complain though, it was my first night and I was outweighed by probably 40 pounds. I learned how to administer my first arm-bar from the half-guard position. By this time, I was exhausted, but feeling really well about the first night of Jiu-Jitsu.
The final task for my friend and I was to learn some of the guard positioning and how to either maintain the half, side, or full guard or escape from the guard. From the top, I was in a bad position with a near arm-bar, but I managed to pick up my friend in a pathetic attempt to slam him back on the mat, Rampage-style. We finished the night with some more guard drills.
Group and One on One Instruction: A combination of group and one-on-one instruction really helped ease the class from one drill to another. Group instruction helped us gain an overall feel of the drill before we attempted to use our new skills on our partner-turned-opponent. As we were going through each drill, we were given individual instruction with verbal cues to either continue or make subtle changes. If we had questions about hand placement or post-take down maneuvers, they were answered with a visual representation of the movement.
After the Class: I was bruised, but tired more than anything. My arms were extremely sore for a couple of days, but it had been quite a long period of time before the class since I have actively used all of the muscles in my arm for an extended period of time. Expect to be sore, but continue stretching and be ready for the next class.
Conclusion: It was the best workout of my life and I’ll be going back at least twice next week. Keep watching MMAOpinion.com for the next installment of White Collar Submission.
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I do still love MMA and have...
