The 12 strategies of mantis boxing are considered to be the cornerstone of this bare-knuckle clinch fighting art originating from...

Good Afternoon All, Back here in New England after spending a week at Martial Arts Studies Conference 2024 in Cardiff, UK. The conference was exceptional, but more on that later. For now, I’ll highlight one of the many outstanding encounters of the trip. I had the distinct pleasure this past week of meeting and sitting down with…

I had the great pleasure of returning once more as a guest on Sensei Ando’s channel Happy Life Martial Arts. We had an amazing, and thought provoking discussion on martial arts forms training, solo training, and more. We even threw some virtual punches, and a shadow Heimlich maneuver was almost necessary. Check out the video for a great podcast.

Is getting hit in the head bad for us when we train in martial arts such as boxing, MMA, kickboxing, karate, muay thai, etc.??? Here is how I see it, and what I did to my students to make them train smarter. Being educated on the truth can keep us training safe for years to come.

Ever been mistaken for a sack of potatoes? Do you dislike being dislodged from the earth you stand on, turned upside down and dropped on your head or back? Here’s a little tip to counter that nasty hip toss throw your opponent might try out of mistaken identity, or something more nefarious.

Here are a few tips if you are a smaller grappler trying to submit larger opponents with the omoplata submission from Brazilian jiu-jitsu. This can drastically alter our success rate for finishing, rather than struggling to combat height, strength, and counters.

Here is another follow-up to the videos we shot in LA with Sensei Ando last year (May 2019) as we catch up with the backlog of footage. In this one, Thomas and I will cover the Reverse Hook and how to use it to gain control of the clinch, along with options for follow-up such as: crushing knee, wicked knee, and hanging hook.

As I’m sure some of you can understand, the idea of having to work closely with someone else, especially on the ground, used to 'skeeve me out'. There is a stark differential between what I was accustomed to - striking, kicking, and takedowns, in contrast to rolling around on the ground with another human being while wearing pajamas, or skin tight clothing. In the world of hindsight is 20/20…

Here's one of my favorite closed guard breaks, and why it is horrible for taller vs. smaller. If you do use this BJJ escape, here is the answer to 'why isn't my closed guard break working?' Enjoy this next installments in our Size Matters series. This is a must see if you are trying to break a smaller grapplers closed guard.

There are two types of fighters - offensive fighters, and counter-fighters. A list of descriptors for offensive fighters is comprised of - aggressive, confrontational, type-A personality, control freaks, etc. On the inverse, the counter-fighter may be described as - laid back, docile, relaxed, non-confrontational. I contest that, no matter what your style of fighting is, I will make the case that the counter-striking skills are crucial to both camps of fighters. For now, if you are an offensive fighter, skip ahead to the section below on Offensive Fighters. If you are a Counter-Fighter, then carry on to the next paragraph.

What has become abundantly clear to me through the research for my book on Mantis Boxing; along with the discovery and extrapolation of more and more techniques from within the forms, as well as the examination of the historical data surrounding the collapse of a dynastic period of a major civilization in world history, is the following…

The following takes all of the data laid out from my timeline research (people, places, events, catastrophes, wars, rebellions, etc), as well as the mantis family tree, and assembles it into a condensed re-write of a more grounded history for mantis boxing. This is a brief overview notating some discoveries and answering questions, as there were many. For the purposes here, I removed mythical backstories and unsubstantiated people. Beginning instead with verified living representatives/associates.

This podcast is a re-recording of a talk I gave at the 5th Annual Martial Arts Studies Conference held at Chapman University in Los Angeles, California in May 2019. The event was hosted by Dr. Paul Bowman, and Dr. Andrea Molle. A two day extravaganza of martial arts history, politics, and culture. There is amazing research into the martial arts taking place around the globe today. It was an honor to be a part of this significant event, and contribute in some small way to the Martial Arts Research Network. Below is a copy of the…

We were in Los Angeles last week for the 5th annual Martial Arts Studies Conference, and after it wrapped up, we dropped in on Sensei Ando at his location. While there, I showed some 'clinch escapes' that I like. Ando asked me to come home and share the follow-up to the escapes - takedowns!!!

What I am about to share with you, is my early journey into Brazilian jiu-jitsu. My first attempts were not exactly a ringing endorsement of the art. What happened to me? What can you learn from my experience? Why did I keep trying after all of this?