Dialing it up - dialing it back

Back into my routine after my two week Christmas break - I am keen to get back to my day-to-day, and so once again I know I am on the right track. When we are not keen to get back to our day-to-day, it's probably time to change the way we live. Simple litmus test really.

Anyways, I was running through my first Strength and conditioning routine for 2011 this morning and I had to tune in and become very aware of the pace I was setting, as I had eight exercises to get through, a minute break and I needed to do six rounds of it - hence the need to keep an eye on my pace and intensity. In the 10 seconds break between exercises I thought about what my mind needed to do ... and it occurred to me that although, at one point, I needed to dial the intensity back 10%, I still needed to maintain 100% focus on what I was doing. it then occurred to me that this is also the case with light rolling. When we roll lightly, we need to dial back the intensity - but not at the expense of being technically correct. Although we can choose to dial down the intensity with which we roll/wrestle, we should keep fully focussed on what we are doing and try our best to maintain perfect form. This ability to dial back intensity whilst maintaining good form is very important because when we need to turn up the pace we don't have to do anything very different inside of our heads. it's like concentrating fully when we are driving our car, even though we are only driving at 50KPH - then when we decide to accelerate, the focus and attention is right there - we don't have to go looking for it. Think on it ... play with the dial but keep 100% focus on what you are doing. Best wishes
JBW

Comments

Matty Perkins said…
Hi John. This post will help me set a target/standard for more "relaxed" rolling. I have been finding it difficult to understand what that term means and control my intensity. Will let you know how it goes :)
OliverMurray said…
Thanks John great post.
This is something I have grappled with ;-) for awhile. Most of my grappling is with relatively new guys (1 to 3 years) and it is easy to get sloppy as there are no consequences unlike my trips to Perth!

My motto is "Roll light but keep it tight and do it right"

Personally it is the fundamentals that slip usually elbows in

Regards
Oli
Nick Brown said…
This is a very eye opening thought.

As a motorcyclist, I am always 100% focussed while on the road, as being aware is of paramount importance. The slightest mistake or missed observation could lead to danger.

I hadn't even thought about applying this principle to my BJJ. While the stakes aren't as high, it is a simple way to ensure you're always working on your technique, even if you don't think you are.
It makes perfect sense. Thanks for the insight.
MiCrO said…
There's always different people telling me their version of how to light roll (or flow roll), but your explanation defines the core principles behind this exercise. As long as we're able to keep these principles true during the light roll, I believe the how will sort itself out and will probably be different for everyone.

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