Jeremiah Blatz (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} jeremiahblatz) wrote,@ 2008-10-31 23:11:00 |
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Martial Arts Walkabout #12: Tiger Schulmann's Mixed Martial Arts
My, I've been a slacker about updating.
Okay, so a long time ago, I signed up for a free (with $50 uniform purchase) month at Tiger Schulmann'sKarate Mixed Martial Arts. The place has kinda a rep, and that rep isn't really good. Does it deserve the rep? Stay tuned!
Right, so before anything, I had to put down my money and buy the uniform. Once I did that, I changed and took my free introductory class. We sorta learned some punches and kicks, and then worked out our membership schedule. You get scheduled for classes, even though you can come anytime you want. I assume that this is to help people with limited discipline. You don't just make a commitment to yourself, you make a commitment to Tiger Schulmann (and yourself), so I guess you're more likely to show up. Sounds fine, TSK (hey, it's the domain name), isn't exactly target at the hard-core.
So, the first thing, of course, is that when you start out, you can only take a few classes. I think it's only Basic Core and Submission Grappling (maybe Yoga?). This is pretty much okay, `cause they offer a lot of classes. The Manhattan school is the HQ, and they have 3 training rooms. The mats are nice and smooth, though not as clean as one might hope. Plenty of mirrors, etc. The pads are fine, the focus mitts are those foam squares, which kinda suck, and they use soft foam kick shields instead of proper suitcase pads. They do have proper thai pads upstairs for the core class. They have a bunch of heavy bags on sliding rails, the bags are nice. I think they might have a couple of the less awesome uppercut bags. (They have the horizontal bags, as opposed to the ones that stick out from the wall with targets for straights, hooks, and uppercuts.) I don't recall seeing any teardrop pads. I think they encourage students to buy their TiGear brand equipment, I don't know when/if it's required. I got no static for bringing my own gear, but all the folks in the kickboxing classes had all TiGear everything, including their duffel bags.
Right, so after my intro class, there was a submission grappling class, so I attended. The warm-up was a bunch of static stretches with some sit-ups and push-ups. After that, I was paired up with another first-timer. This class was pretty small, and we were the only n00bs. The rest of the class did their own thing, and a couple of students showed us a few basics. I think there was the kimura, rear naked choke, maybe an arm bar from the mount, and the shrimping mount escape. Except for the substandard warm-up, it followed the normal BJJ class structure: warm-up, partner drills, rolling, cool-down. Cool-down was a different set of stretches (held for longer), and I think more push-ups and sit-ups.
In later sub grappling classes, the size of the newbie section was either bigger, with a dedicated instructor, or there was no beginner section at all. I was in the beginner section for the whole month. I think I learned:
The emphasis at TSK definitely seems to be on the striking. The day after my trial, I attended a basic core class with Joshu Lyman Good. Warm-up was similar to the grappling warm-up. We then did basic kickboxing pad drills -- punching combos and the round kick and front push kick. Lyman's instruction exceeds his name, he is an excellent teacher. (He's also pretty handy in the ring.) We worked a few drills, then more push-ups, then relaxed static stretching. All the basic core classes seem to follow that pattern. There's no mixing of kicks and punches, for instance. They do some basic slipping of the pads, but I didn't see any blocking or parrying. Once thing that impressed me was that Lyman gave me a stripe for my belt on my second class, and told me that I could attend regular core classes in my 3rd basic core class. I kinda assumed that TSK would do promotions based on number of classes only. They still might do some promotion based on attendance, but they do merit/prior experience promotion as well.
The regular core class is similar to the basic core. There's a little more intensity, but I think it's still just focus mitts and kick shields. There's also a bag class, which is a combination of thai pads and bag work. When you're on the thai pads, you do work integrated striking and kicking. Ironic that the conditioning class is more technical than the technique class, but I digress.
I guess once you get to a certain level, you can attend kickboxing class. I watched a bunch of these, but sadly was not invited to attend. Students wear gloves and shin pads (and chest protectors if they're girls). Headgear is optional. These are what i think of regular kickboxing classes (i.e. where other schools start you out). Students do kickboxing drills of varying complexity. I saw the whole gamut from exchanging jabs and parrying to semi-free-form exchanges where the feeder would choose one of a menu of pre-arranged attacks. Apparently they also spar, but I didn't see any.
There are also boxing, "power core" and yoga classes, and a submission grappling class for the fight team, but I didn't watch any of those. They also have kid's classes during the day.
Sadly, I got really sick during my last week, and couldn't attend any classes. Even for three weeks was definitely worth $50. (And I got a uniform out of it, whee!) So, does TSK deserve the McDojo rep? Yes, and it's all about the money. The instruction is good, legitimately good. The classes tend to be far too large, and generally there's only one instructor, but they're teaching you real stuff. It's a good a workout (though many students tend to sandbag a lot), and you're learning martial arts that you could actually use to defend yourself. (Although, really in the grappling class and the advanced striking classes.) Joshu Lyman is a standout among the other instructors, but none of them were bad.
But, the money. TSK is expensive! First off, it's not all you can eat. You buy blocks of classes. Also, they require you to take at least two classes a week, so you can't just go once a week while you look around at other schools (as I asked about.) I don't remember exactly how much the blocks were, but I think that at three classes a week, you would end up paying around $2500 a year, and that's if you pre-pay for all 150 classes. If you wanted to train like I do, you'd use up you 150 classes in about 6 months, making it $5k/year.
Also, you could train there a long time and still not know how to fight. I cannot express how important it is, in learning how to fight, to get hit. As far as I can tell, it takes quite a while to get to the point where you get hit at TSK. Kickboxing is the 3rd level, after all, and I don't recall seeing any yellow belts in the kickboxing classes.
That said, I would put TSK (at least the headquarters) at the top of the McDojos. If you're turned off my the "real" MMA gyms, TSK might be for you. For one thing, they never match up men with women. This seems like it might be very appealing to women who might not feel comfortable rolling with guys, or getting hit by them. It's a very non-threatening environment, you have to be there a while before you get hit. It's good physical training, if you can push yourself even a little bit. The classes are complete, they make you do a proper cool-down. Many other gyms let you do whatever after class. If you're not driven to train hard, forcing you to do some strength training and stretch after class is probably a good thing.
I'd definitely encourage anyone to try their "free" $50 month of training if they're looking for a place to start. (I think the deal is only in the summer, though.)
My, I've been a slacker about updating.
Okay, so a long time ago, I signed up for a free (with $50 uniform purchase) month at Tiger Schulmann's
Right, so before anything, I had to put down my money and buy the uniform. Once I did that, I changed and took my free introductory class. We sorta learned some punches and kicks, and then worked out our membership schedule. You get scheduled for classes, even though you can come anytime you want. I assume that this is to help people with limited discipline. You don't just make a commitment to yourself, you make a commitment to Tiger Schulmann (and yourself), so I guess you're more likely to show up. Sounds fine, TSK (hey, it's the domain name), isn't exactly target at the hard-core.
So, the first thing, of course, is that when you start out, you can only take a few classes. I think it's only Basic Core and Submission Grappling (maybe Yoga?). This is pretty much okay, `cause they offer a lot of classes. The Manhattan school is the HQ, and they have 3 training rooms. The mats are nice and smooth, though not as clean as one might hope. Plenty of mirrors, etc. The pads are fine, the focus mitts are those foam squares, which kinda suck, and they use soft foam kick shields instead of proper suitcase pads. They do have proper thai pads upstairs for the core class. They have a bunch of heavy bags on sliding rails, the bags are nice. I think they might have a couple of the less awesome uppercut bags. (They have the horizontal bags, as opposed to the ones that stick out from the wall with targets for straights, hooks, and uppercuts.) I don't recall seeing any teardrop pads. I think they encourage students to buy their TiGear brand equipment, I don't know when/if it's required. I got no static for bringing my own gear, but all the folks in the kickboxing classes had all TiGear everything, including their duffel bags.
Right, so after my intro class, there was a submission grappling class, so I attended. The warm-up was a bunch of static stretches with some sit-ups and push-ups. After that, I was paired up with another first-timer. This class was pretty small, and we were the only n00bs. The rest of the class did their own thing, and a couple of students showed us a few basics. I think there was the kimura, rear naked choke, maybe an arm bar from the mount, and the shrimping mount escape. Except for the substandard warm-up, it followed the normal BJJ class structure: warm-up, partner drills, rolling, cool-down. Cool-down was a different set of stretches (held for longer), and I think more push-ups and sit-ups.
In later sub grappling classes, the size of the newbie section was either bigger, with a dedicated instructor, or there was no beginner section at all. I was in the beginner section for the whole month. I think I learned:
- kimura from the mount
- holding the mount
- shrimping mount escape
- elbows-on-thighs guard pass
- guillotine from the guard
- armbar from the mount
- rear naked choke
The emphasis at TSK definitely seems to be on the striking. The day after my trial, I attended a basic core class with Joshu Lyman Good. Warm-up was similar to the grappling warm-up. We then did basic kickboxing pad drills -- punching combos and the round kick and front push kick. Lyman's instruction exceeds his name, he is an excellent teacher. (He's also pretty handy in the ring.) We worked a few drills, then more push-ups, then relaxed static stretching. All the basic core classes seem to follow that pattern. There's no mixing of kicks and punches, for instance. They do some basic slipping of the pads, but I didn't see any blocking or parrying. Once thing that impressed me was that Lyman gave me a stripe for my belt on my second class, and told me that I could attend regular core classes in my 3rd basic core class. I kinda assumed that TSK would do promotions based on number of classes only. They still might do some promotion based on attendance, but they do merit/prior experience promotion as well.
The regular core class is similar to the basic core. There's a little more intensity, but I think it's still just focus mitts and kick shields. There's also a bag class, which is a combination of thai pads and bag work. When you're on the thai pads, you do work integrated striking and kicking. Ironic that the conditioning class is more technical than the technique class, but I digress.
I guess once you get to a certain level, you can attend kickboxing class. I watched a bunch of these, but sadly was not invited to attend. Students wear gloves and shin pads (and chest protectors if they're girls). Headgear is optional. These are what i think of regular kickboxing classes (i.e. where other schools start you out). Students do kickboxing drills of varying complexity. I saw the whole gamut from exchanging jabs and parrying to semi-free-form exchanges where the feeder would choose one of a menu of pre-arranged attacks. Apparently they also spar, but I didn't see any.
There are also boxing, "power core" and yoga classes, and a submission grappling class for the fight team, but I didn't watch any of those. They also have kid's classes during the day.
Sadly, I got really sick during my last week, and couldn't attend any classes. Even for three weeks was definitely worth $50. (And I got a uniform out of it, whee!) So, does TSK deserve the McDojo rep? Yes, and it's all about the money. The instruction is good, legitimately good. The classes tend to be far too large, and generally there's only one instructor, but they're teaching you real stuff. It's a good a workout (though many students tend to sandbag a lot), and you're learning martial arts that you could actually use to defend yourself. (Although, really in the grappling class and the advanced striking classes.) Joshu Lyman is a standout among the other instructors, but none of them were bad.
But, the money. TSK is expensive! First off, it's not all you can eat. You buy blocks of classes. Also, they require you to take at least two classes a week, so you can't just go once a week while you look around at other schools (as I asked about.) I don't remember exactly how much the blocks were, but I think that at three classes a week, you would end up paying around $2500 a year, and that's if you pre-pay for all 150 classes. If you wanted to train like I do, you'd use up you 150 classes in about 6 months, making it $5k/year.
Also, you could train there a long time and still not know how to fight. I cannot express how important it is, in learning how to fight, to get hit. As far as I can tell, it takes quite a while to get to the point where you get hit at TSK. Kickboxing is the 3rd level, after all, and I don't recall seeing any yellow belts in the kickboxing classes.
That said, I would put TSK (at least the headquarters) at the top of the McDojos. If you're turned off my the "real" MMA gyms, TSK might be for you. For one thing, they never match up men with women. This seems like it might be very appealing to women who might not feel comfortable rolling with guys, or getting hit by them. It's a very non-threatening environment, you have to be there a while before you get hit. It's good physical training, if you can push yourself even a little bit. The classes are complete, they make you do a proper cool-down. Many other gyms let you do whatever after class. If you're not driven to train hard, forcing you to do some strength training and stretch after class is probably a good thing.
I'd definitely encourage anyone to try their "free" $50 month of training if they're looking for a place to start. (I think the deal is only in the summer, though.)
