Tiny Test

I've done a lot of exams in my life. None has ever been anywhere near as difficult

as the one I'm in right now.

University math, physics, history, or even Karate exams; nothing is even close.

What makes it so hard?

Let's look at the first part of it. There are 51 items to perform. Each is a sequence of movements. There can be no hesitation; every body part must perform exactly as required. There is also a partner to perform everything on. The candidate’s movements must correctly interpret their partner's movements, even if they are out of place.

In theory, the maximum time to perform part one is 15 minutes. In reality, it is more like 14 as there is a bunch of mandatory audio that has to be included. That works out to about 15 seconds to perform each of the 51 items. It is doable, but there is no lolling about or thinking time at all.

The second test part has more material to perform, and the third slightly less.

In all of this, the candidate is permitted a maximum of 20 demerits. The smallest hesitation, wrong grip, hand angle, or anything else draws a demerit.

At my Shotokan Karate Black Belt exam, there were three parts with pauses in between during which the candidate would stand waiting, and resting. Adding together all of the moving time, and it was maybe 15 minutes, tops; and there were two rest pauses of about 30 seconds when recovery was possible.

Each of the Jiu-Jitsu exam's first three parts is just as physically intense and draining as my entire Black Belt exam.

I don't know if it all requites more brain power than a university exam, but try doing calculus with somebody on top of you, as you squirm side-to-side, with the intensity of a footrace.

That covers the first three parts.

The final three section are blessedly only five minutes each. They involve sparring. With a weak opponent the expectation on the candidate is much higher. With a tough opponent, more leeway is given. The opponent is expected to do their best. These are marked on a pass/fail basis depending on the candidate’s use of appropriate technique.

These are much easier.

Each of the 6 sections is recorded, and bundled off to the Gracie University website for evaluation.

The only thing that makes it possible is that the sections can be performed as many times as desired until the candidate and their instructor is content with the result. This was all taken into consideration when the system was set up. This is why only 20 demerits are permitted.

I hate the bloody thing.

17 or less

Last night I started my Jiu-Jitsu exam. There are six parts, and one is over.

That means I'm 17% done. That sounds like a significant chunk to me.

Unless you don't count it as one part done out of six, but rather 5 minutes finished out of 60. The test parts are not all of the same length. That means I'm only 8% complete. That's a lot less.

Unless you consider that the part I've finished is not only one of the short parts, it's also only half as difficult to perform as the longer sections. Rating it and the other sparring sections as only half as significant per minute of performance, I'm under 5% done.

Over 95% to go.

That sucks.

Three Week Testing Trap

There is a trap waiting to spring on Madeline and I in our Gracie Jiu-Jitsu exams.

To get it finished before our instructor is unavailable is an important goal. It wouldn't be impossible to perform the exam without him, but much harder.

To get done in time, we have to finish the six exam segments in the next three weeks. That seems so easy. Three fifteen-minute technical drills, and three five-minute sparring demonstrations. We will be starting on the sparring this week.

The danger is in testing too slowly. Let's say Madeline and I get the first of the sparring sessions done. Let's say each of us need three attempts to get good recordings. That's 30 minutes of sparring time each. Add in breaks, and discussion, and setup, and it's easily a full hour. We will be exhausted by the end, and have eaten up a lot of mat time that is normally used for other training.

There is a very good chance that we'll all be happy with having completed that much for the week.

There's the trap. One test segment per week isn't enough. We must complete a minimum of two, especially if they are sparring segments. The sparring segments only take five minutes per attempt, and are marked on a pass/fail basis. The technical sections are fifteen minutes long per attempt and are precisely marked on all movements. As a result they will likely require more do-overs to be as perfect as we can make them.

In my previous example, a sparring segment was completed with one hour of effort. Getting a technical segment done with only three attempts each would burn three times as much effort and time. They are an entirely different kind of beast.

This is where the trap turns grizzly-bear deadly; with steel teeth dipped in poison.

Actually, even if we completed all three of the sparring segments this week we will have already fallen behind.

If we each do three sparring segments this week, and a technical one next week, and another technical one the week after, we will run out of time with one technical segment left to go.

I'd say we must beat down a technical segment every week to get this done. The sparring is almost insignificant. We could knock of one of those each week as well, or even do them all this week. In terms of difficulty, effort and time they are relatively trivial.

Must bang off a technical section every week to finish on time.

OMG

The Jiu-Jitsu exams for my training partner and me just got a lot harder.

Today is October 4^th, and we're working to get ready to start the testing process.

Now it turns out our instructor will be gone from October 28^th until some time in December. I want my exam done before Christmas, and Madeline will likely be moving away sometime in November and needs it finished even earlier.

The question becomes, “how much can we complete before he leaves.” Anything we don't finish by then, we'll have to do while he's away.

That is a terrifying prospect.

OK, calm down. Think it through.

We could both be ready for the first of the three technique sections this week if we work at it. We can also perform the three sparring sections anytime. All we need is the mat time when we can film. It is possible we could be done those parts within a week.

That leaves two technique sections to get ready, and to record. They are nowhere near to being ready, so will take significant effort to prepare. I'm confident mine will be ready whenever I need them to be. I'm a retired guy, after all. Madeline has a lot more demands on her time. Maybe she can do it, or maybe she cannot.

If we have to test and record any parts without our instructor, we will have no experienced eye telling us when an attempt needs a do-over, or when it's good enough. It isn't impossible, but it is extremely daunting.

I guess it will make us prouder of success.

Closer

Things have been kinda fuzzy around here date-wise.

I do have a Jiu-Jitsu exam to do, and we are going to visit friends in Vernon, and we are going to Victoria for Christmas, and we are going to LA in January. That has been set for a while, but except for Xmas, nothing has been tacked to specific calendar dates.

Today things have firmed up some. Still don't know when my test will be done, but it can't possibly be before the end of this month. That means we've been able to tell our Vernon homies that we will NOT be there before November.

Christmas will, of course, be someplace around December 25^th, so that's easy.

Regarding LA, I've contacted Gracie Jiu-Jitsu HQ about that. I asked a few questions about fees, and what kind of gi they permit. This all makes it seem more real.

Colds and such

Finished my last technique unit after 15 or 16 months of training, and I immediately fell apart.

Let's list the problems from least important to most in regards to training.

I have managed somehow to sprain a thumb. Who ever sprains their thumb? It makes gripping a little uncomfortable with my right hand. I don't push it hard, so in rolling I can only cling hard with my other hand. No big deal. Might be if I get it yanked on too hard. Score: no change to training.

Next up is my shoulder. I must have slept a little funny, as it's stiff and cranky. Who gets hurt sleeping? It's on the left side, so it balances out my stupid thumb in a weird way. I have two arms that each have their own arguments against hard training.

The big problem has nothing to do with body structure. Woke up yesterday with some kind of virus. I'll call it a cold. I should probably take it easy. Getting exhausted might slow my return to full health. Being an idiot I would ignore this and push through if that were the only problem. The issue is that I am a bundle of contagiousness. I'd feel rotten if I passed this on to my mat mates, so I'm off training.

The cold hadn't hit Monday, so I trained. Yesterday I sat out, but watched and tried to absorb anyhow; better than nothing. Today, I have to lead the high school club, but that's the only time I'll be in action.

Not going to the White Belt class at all, but will still attend the advanced session. Might as well, as I'd only be home watching TV otherwise. This way I watch Jiu-Jitsu instead.

The good news is that this can't be an ordinary cold, as it already seems to be fading away. Maybe I'll be training later this week. That will also give my shoulder and thumb a chance to simmer down, too.

Cough, cough...

Fight Juicier

I'm all for safety, and even sometimes for sanity; even safety and sanity in sport.

Mma is a dangerous sport, and kinda crazy. Of course there is the obvious, but the real problem is hidden.

A fighter recently died of a stroke at the weigh in for a fight in Brazil. This was a direct result of dehydration caused by cutting weight.

Fighters in combat sports do this all the time. They are divided into different weight divisions, and consider it an advantage to fight smaller competitors. The UFC welterweight champion Georges St Pierre theoretically weighs 170 pounds, but his everyday weight is over 20 pounds heavier.

The problem is the ritual called the weigh-in. The two competitors meet 24 hours before their fight and are put on the scale by fight or government officials. They only have to make the weight limit at precisely that time. They are also given a one pound leeway over the limit anyhow.

The way they get around the weigh in limitation is that they dehydrate themselves to varying degrees. Let's say a fighter is 20 pounds over their weight limit. They have to shed this by temporarily losing 9 liters of water. This is not a normal behavior. Your body isn't built to be short 9 liters of fluid. They do this in the 24 hours prior to the weigh in.

Simply not drinking won't do it. They also have to sweat it out using heat and exercise.

That's what killed the fighter I mentioned before who died in Brazil. Three college wrestlers in the USA died in 1997 cutting weight. UFC top contender Daniel Cormier gave himself kidney failure a few months ago cutting weight.

There seems to be a problem.

Problems need solutions, especially if they are easy.

American college wrestling moved their weigh ins to right before the matches. A fighter could still dehydrate themselves, but they would then have to compete in that state. It takes time for a human body to recover from that. College wrestlers also have to weigh in throughout the season a couple of times a week. If they want to fight lighter, they actually have to be lighter.

So why doesn't mma do this? Simple; it could cost big money. What would happen if a championship super fight competitor failed to make weight? The business interests will never allow this to happen.

So why not insist mma fighters weigh in periodically? There are just too many fighters, living and training in too many places, to police effectively.

What I think needs to happen is that the UFC needs to lead by example. They have to ignore the problem in the rest of the mma world, and fix it it within their own organization.

Step 1: the 250-300 fighters under UFC contract should have regularly scheduled weigh-ins. If their weight drifts up more than 5% above the division's weight limit, they automatically become registered in the next heavier division. They would have to make a certain number of weigh ins within a lower division's limit to move down a category. No big deal if they accidentally slip above their allowed weight, if they can get back down again after a couple of months maintaining the level.

Step 2: UFC fighters with upcoming fights have to start making their division's exact weight limit and having more frequent scheduled weigh ins. No more 5% leeway. There should be penalties for failure to make weight.

Step 3: The official weigh in ritual happens 24 hours before the fight, and a final time one hour before the match.

No more dehydration. No more related dangers. There would also be an added benefit in fighters competing against people actually the same size.