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Savate

Savate is a French style of foot and fist fighting. Systematized in post-Napoleonic France, Savate is the only martial arts native to Europe that still exists in both sport and combative forms.

Don't Skip Breakfast

Why Breakfast Is Important

By Shereen Jegtvig, About.com Guide
Updated May 23, 2011

Studies show that children who eat breakfast perform better on cognitive tests and in school. Maybe it works that way for adults too. In any case, skipping breakfast is probably a bad idea.

Most people looking to lose weight and eat healthy have a preconceived notion that they will have to shell out a ridiculous amount of money for “health food”.  This belief comes from the fact that most foods label “diet”, “low fat” or “low carb” ARE overpriced pre-packaged nonsense.  If there is one thing to remember when it comes to making smart decisions in the grocery store its “Convenience=Cash”.  The more prepackaged foods you buy the more expensive your food bill will be.  Healthy food doesn’t have to be labeled healthy to be healthy.   “Clean” food, as the fitness industry c

Animal Styles

I ran across some of these animal style descriptions and philosophies and thought it was quite interesting and therefore I decided to share them. Some of these are complete systems, others are sub-systems, and some are concepts. I’m sure with some digging you can find more complete descriptions but these are interesting nonetheless.

History:  

Capoeira is the common name for the group of African martial arts that came out of West Africa and were modifed and mixed in Brazil. These orginal stlyes inculded weapons, grappling and striking as well as animal forms that became incorpated into different components and sub styles of the popular art.

The Front Snap Kick is a finesse kick. It’s a well placed kick to a vital target. Although this kick does have power it is more about the placement and quickness of the kick. The kick’s primary target is the body but it can also be used to attack the chin. In a street defense situation, the kick can be thrown to the groin as well as the knee.

The Vikings and other Norse practiced this grappling art and are responsible for bringing it to Iceland.  Often this grappling art was demonstrated in matches at festivals and it is unknown whether or not it was used in a combative form, but as in most grappling arts, combat was likely its origin.  There are heroic stories of Glima matches that date back a 1000 years, some even between men and women. 

An uppercut is thrown from inside range.  Inside range being a range of about 12-24 inches from your opponent.  The uppercut can be one of the harder punches to perfect because it requires you to drop your body to “load” the attack.  Due to this “loading” it is a technique that is thrown off of a set up technique and typically not thrown as a leading or stand alone technique.  The uppercut can be thrown to the chin as well as the body depending on the angle of attack.

Catch-As-Catch-Can Wrestling

In a street fight, no-holds-barred competition, or Catch match, the basic strategy remains the same: to hook (submit) your opponent as quickly as possible while absorbing the least amount of punishment. Catch Wrestling teaches one to control an opponent, concentrating on balance, leverage, and technique to control one's opponent and ultimately hook him.

The Cross

A cross is thrown from outside range off the back foot.  Like any other technique, it requires relaxation and timing.  It starts with the pivot which gets the legs and hips involved and finishes with the returning of the fist back to the guard.  Below are some key points to remember when throwing the cross as well as some common mistakes.