Feelin' Groovy

I posted this on my BJJ Club's Forum and thought I'd add it here as well: 

In struggling with some of the recent techniques we’ve been learning in class ~ Fantastic Pants Mount Escape comes immediately to mind ~ I am reminded that while practice does indeed make perfect, until that perfection is reached, there are small improvements in execution that should not be ignored as successes just because they haven’t resulted in the ‘perfect’ move.

Last week we did a stand-up throw, one we’ve been practicing a lot and that I had been feeling was not my best technique. We covered it in the Hannette Staack workshop as well. You know the one: it starts from single collar tie, then you step in towards your opponent, encircle her neck, pivot so you face the same direction as she is, bend your knees and bring your hips below hers staying bent over at the waist. Then you bring her weight forward onto you as you straighten your legs, turning your head away as you bring her around and over for a perfect throw!

I had my share of struggles with this one… not stepping in close enough to start with, or not bending my knees enough, the balance not quite right when attempting the throw – got a few bruises down my leg and some dings on my knee from that part, not to mention how my poor training partners would have felt with such an ungainly throw!

So it was a surprise to me to feel, for the first time last week, what a [almost] perfect throw must be like. The movement was nearly effortless, the weight of my training partner balanced just so and the throw itself even ‘sounded’ good at the end… That certain impact on the mat that is neither too hard, nor too soft, but just right.

All those practice sessions paid off! Though in and of themselves, none of my previous attempts felt “right”, each was a little bit improved over it’s predecessor; something I was rarely conceding.

And so now I am looking at my performance each class a little differently. Not so much as to how perfect I can be, but rather how improved I am over the last class or my previous attempt at a particular technique. Measuring one’s progress is always challenging, so I am determined to acknowledge the improvements as they come, and to keep reaching for the Tipping Point; that moment when a previously rare event becomes rapidly and dramatically more common.

Here’s to each of your successes on the mats and in life; celebrate all of them!