Matt Thornton
Amateur Fighter
- Joined
- Sep 2, 2004
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So lately when I spar, I notice a huge difference than before. I'm so much more relaxed when I spar. I'm not nearly as tense when punches start flying as I used to be. Of course, my Kickboxing/MT coach tells me all the time when I spar, to relax, so I'm still not totally relaxed, but definitely improved.
One quick thing I'll give you guys, that helped me a LOT, is spend a few rounds asking your partner to just throw kicks (especially low kicks), and just defend them, without hitting back. Taking care of punches is one thing. But I used to find myself getting really tense and confused when I had to worry about the arms AND legs. These days I find myself blocking leg kicks as a reflex; I barely even think about it anymore, and my leg just moves. I'm much more relaxed about defending both.
Sometimes what confuses people, at least what confused me, is having to defend upper and lower body. Spend some extra time correcting your kick defenses.
Also, I've posted this before, RELAX! Chill out. Some people are naturally cool with getting hit. Others, especially former TMAists like myself (where perfection is drilled into your head; can be bad in some situations), get confused when they get hit, and it goes all downhill from there. Learn to relax when you're under fire. Just because a punch hit you doesn't mean you're losing. You can't block and dodge every punch. Worry about if you're still standing, and worry about the outcome as a whole. You can't win every skirmish, but you can win the war.
Hope this helps some people who are getting pissed at themselves after sparring matches. And feel free to throw in some of your advice.
One quick thing I'll give you guys, that helped me a LOT, is spend a few rounds asking your partner to just throw kicks (especially low kicks), and just defend them, without hitting back. Taking care of punches is one thing. But I used to find myself getting really tense and confused when I had to worry about the arms AND legs. These days I find myself blocking leg kicks as a reflex; I barely even think about it anymore, and my leg just moves. I'm much more relaxed about defending both.
Sometimes what confuses people, at least what confused me, is having to defend upper and lower body. Spend some extra time correcting your kick defenses.
Also, I've posted this before, RELAX! Chill out. Some people are naturally cool with getting hit. Others, especially former TMAists like myself (where perfection is drilled into your head; can be bad in some situations), get confused when they get hit, and it goes all downhill from there. Learn to relax when you're under fire. Just because a punch hit you doesn't mean you're losing. You can't block and dodge every punch. Worry about if you're still standing, and worry about the outcome as a whole. You can't win every skirmish, but you can win the war.
Hope this helps some people who are getting pissed at themselves after sparring matches. And feel free to throw in some of your advice.