My ribs/back are at about 85% right now. Skipping Saturday I think was the right thing to do.

I’m back on the pushup bandwagon. Damian criticized my technique last week, so I’m starting over at Week 3 (b), and focusing on quality and range of motion, rather than quantity. 100 is the ultimate goal, but I’m only cheating myself if I skimp on the full benefits to hit it. Completed W3D1b yesterday with no problems.

Big class tonight, heavily weighted towards white belts. I warmed up with Bob, who is a member of the “Profuse Sweater” club. There’s a couple of guys who just get drenched and drippy. A little gross, but I can deal with it. For our last cycle of Side-control 101, I escaped side control with the bump and run escape we learned awhile back, and Tim happened to be sitting there watching it. “Look who’s getting fancy!” was his comment I think.

Class was more of the turtle guard sweeps that we did on Thursday. Nothing new, just more drilling. We eventually ramped it up to include some resistance at the end of class too.

I rolled twice with Rob, agreeing to go light. First one he tried to pass a couple of times, but I held and regained guard pretty good. I switched to open guard, and popped a triangle on him, but he stacked me up quick and then slapped a Ezequiel choke on me. Afterward, he said that’s the only way he knows how to get out of the triangle, choke the other guy first! We went again, and he got to half guard. I tried the turtle move of the day, but he took my back and had it well enough that he was going to squish and choke me so I tapped right away.

He went off and rolled with someone else, so I grabbed the heavy bag and ran through the 5 positions a few times on my own.

Fundamentals was taking the back from guard. Eventually. We started with what to do when you break down posture and the top guy clamps on a headlock and stalls in your guard. There’s a flat out awesome sweep we learned, a variation of the elevator sweep. Butterfly hook one leg, hack the other and roll. Easy as pie. Taking the back is similar, escape hips, break the headlock, reclamp the head, escape, and pull him over on top of you.