LAST CALL!
This is the last call for the IBJJF Chicago Spring Open which will be held on Saturday, April 5th! You have until next Friday (March 28th) to register and sign up for this event. We have about 12 people competing in this Open, which will make this our biggest IBJJF showing yet so that’s super exciting! I will be driving down so if anybody wants to ride with me I have three spots in my car so hit me up if you want to come and support the team (there is no entry fee for spectators!).
Register and sign up for the event here. Ask myself, Karen, or Ryan if you have any questions about registration!
EMMMMMAAAAAA!!!!!!
Huge shoutout to Emma on earning her Blue Belt! Emma has been training consistently for a little over two years and has progressed rapidly in the last six months of training; sometimes training every day – sometimes 2x a day! How many of us can say that? Her work ethic is matched by her attitude, which is always incredible. She’s an amazing student and human being – we’re all so lucky to have her on the mats with us, and I’m so proud to recognize her as CTAs newest Blue Belt!
WILD CARD WEDNESDAY!
Starting this week I’m going to start throwing these on the schedule, randomly: days where you’re not really sure what to expect, but just know that you’ll be sweating a lot and having fun! These days will break up the monotony of our “normal” classes, shake us out of our routine, and introduce us to some novelty. You don’t want to miss these days; embrace the uncertainty and show up!
RISE AND SHINE!
Did you all know that we offer a 6:30am Fundamentals class every Monday and Wednesday? This is a great class to train in, start your day off strong, and ensure that you’re able to go home and relax after you get off work instead of slogging into the academy to train and getting home at 9pm only to lie away in bed until 2am thinking about how you got swept from SLX by a White Belt. We also have four – that’s right, four! – on site showers and towel rentals for you to utilize before you head off to work! Really, give this class a shot! You might hate it, you might love it, but there’s only one way to find out!
Fundamentals: last week in our Fundamentals class we studied the almighty Opening of the Closed Guard on Monday, on Wednesday we reviewed transitioning to the Spider Lasso and learning three sweeps from that position – depending on our partners response, and on Friday we chained it all together – ending up in Knee on Belly and studying how to escape Knee on Belly and attack the Single Leg Sweep.
Advanced: in Advanced class we discussed the demerits of the Spider Guard while our partner is standing and drilled some easy pass options from that position and then moved on to doing the right thing and transitioning to Spider Lasso and attacking the Triangle Choke in order to better connect to our partner, denying easy passing options and going on the attack.
No Gi: in No Gi this week we studied entries and finishes to the Aoki lock as well as attacking the Heel Hold and Knee Bar from Half Guard to SLX.
This week in kids’ class we focused on our posture from closed guard and controlling the distance with spider lasso guard. We finished off the week by working our knee on belly defense. We continue to work on being good partners for one another and providing the right amount of resistance. Being a good partner is important for providing the right level of challenge to the people we are working with! It’s a hard skill, but is great for practicing empathy and control. Congratulations to Hana, Valerie, and both Charlies for earning a stripe and to Toree for leveling up his belt. Keep training hard and having fun!