Dojo Discernment
Hi all!
Here is your weekly dose of Dojo Discernments where I share nuggets of thought gained from the mats.
What I'm Learning
For years I've asked myself the question," Why do we call the RNC, the rear naked choke?" I asked a few of my black belt friends and they didn't know either.
I always thought to myself, "Such a weird name!!!" Think about it...🤔
Then this weekend, I was brushing up on my judo structure and terminology and I learned why we call the rear naked choke the rear naked choke!
Judo has a very distinct list of moves within the sport. There are 12 defined strangles within judo and there is one that uniquely does not use the gi or kimono to strangle. Hadaka-jime or the Rear Naked Choke. This isn't explicitly said, you have to understand a bit of the judo naming patterns to see it, but as I looked through the list I realized why we call the RNC this odd name!
It's because we don't use any kimono grips to strangle. The Rear "Naked" Choke is more accurately the Rear no gi grips choke!
What I'm watching
Judoka
The 18 minute documentary chronicles a Canadian Judoka Doug Rodgers whom after taking silver in the 1964 Olympics was invited by Masahiko Kimura, yes the legendary Kimura who defeated Helio Gracie, to undergo his rigorous training regimen.
If you want some motivation to train, here it is.
What I'm listening To
The Art of War: Narrated by Master Chief
This is the best audio rendition of one of history’s greatest military strategy books. It blends timeless tactical wisdom with the nostalgic voice of Halo’s Master Chief, making it both engaging and insightful for sharpening the mind and the game.
Training on My Mind
"Not Training my mind" but training on my mind.
Something I see all top performers training, but I see very few others doing.
Why would you want to train your feet? They serve to ground us, create power, force, and drive. When I watch someone think or behave, I can correspond it with the health of their feet's ability to pull from the ground. We talked about this before in ground force tension and here we are again.
Those knee problems? yeah probably associated with those feet.
That cloudy thought process? Yeah, those feet.
Look into it đź‘€
UFCPI
The UFC Fight Pass Invitational that happened this Thursday night was an incredible event. Sophisticated and exciting grappling matches all the way around. The two highlights of the evening for me were Alex Enriquez' RNC and Brianna St Maries' Von Flue Choke. Highly recommend giving the card a watch!
Looking forward to being on the event soon, God willing 🙏
This is one of my favorite times of the week, because it sparks so much conversation with each of you. So if there's a specific part of the newsletter you enjoyed, reach out and let me know what that was!
If you'd like to support my endeavors, grab a membership to the Dojo Library that includes all the instructionals with more to come soon!
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