This War Continues

Eight weeks of boxing courses end tonight. This is the session and then there is a three week break.

All and all, it's been pretty intense. I never imagined that I would be able to skip-rope so well. In fact, if I had to point to the most important improvement to my self-defense skills it would be the vast improvement in balance. Boxers have good balance and I feel that I've picked-up some of that.

The other two major improvements are simply:

(1) practice hitting something solid. In Jui-Jitsu when we point-fight, part of the exercise is having the self-control to never make contact with your opponent. So I've really appreciated the experiance with true contact and how that effects your next move.

(2) endurance. Boxing classes have been exhausting and I'm not exactly out of shape anymore. One of the best results of BuildingBatman is that I've been in the best shape of my life for nearly two years and counting. Since the begin of the summer season I have been rotating running, biking and swimming on top of boxing class. I have loose plans to compete in a TriAthlon this year. We'll see about that but it's all because of this blog.

So there's a three week break and then I repeat the eight week course.

Up next: A review of police scanners.

Boxing Batmen, Batman

I forgot to tell you how boxing went on Friday: It couldn't have gone better. Unlike Jiu Jitsu it is a really organized program. They have a system and they follow it.
It goes as follows:
1) Stretches
2) For 45 min do a circuit consisting of
-skipping
-skipping
-speed bag
-heavy bag
-heavy bag
-speed bag
-skipping
-skipping
-shadow boxing
-heavy bag
-heavy bag
And repeat. You spend 2min at each before moving to the next.
Before finishing, we did something the coach called a punch-out. He broke us into small groups and had go hard on the bags (still focusing on stance but not stepping in and out just continual strikes).

It made for a tough workout.

And In This Corner... the Batman

I just got back from my last Jiu Jitsu session of the season. The community dojo that I attend shuts down over most of the summer. All and all, I'd say it was a great experience. I attended a handful of competitions, went to classes weekly and was awarded my orange belt. Although the goal of this blog is to introduce me to (and not master) all the skills and abilities that Bruce Wayne would need before becoming the Batman, I think that I will continue with Jiu Jitsu next fall.

In the mean time, starting next Friday I will be attending a local gym for a training course in boxing. I hear that it's pretty intense and I hope to get alot out of it.
PS Anybody who wants to consider themselves learned about Batman's martial arts training must read the series of posts on the subject over at Comics, Films, Kung Fu, and Whatever the Hell Else:
Intro
Boxing
Jujitsu
Savate
Eskrima, Kali and Arnis
Capoeira
Kung Fu
Wing Chun
Mok Gar
Northern Shaolin
Tien Hsueh

Batman: Arkham Asylum

I finished Batman: Arkham Asylum last night. The dream is over and it only lasted three days. Too bad. Now that I'm done the game, I don't really feel like the Dark Crusader. Too bad. So I'm back to my training: 20 laps in the pool during lunch, a 25 mile bike ride this morning and Jiu Jitsu in the evening. But before I get back into it here at Building Batman why don't I review the game for? Just a few comments.
I'll do it in a Pro-Con format and start with cons because the good drastically outweighs the bad and so I want to finish on the positive notes:
Cons:
1) The game was too forgiving. They made this soundtrack and setting that are as creepy as could be. It's really tense BUT because Batman just re-spawns whenever you screw-up, there are no consequences for my actions and therefore I'm not scared. Why did Resident Evil work so well so long ago? Because not only was it scary in all the ways that a scary movie was but if you as the player screwed up there were terrible consequences: you might not have anymore ammo for hours, or maybe you would die and have to start from a point that felt like it was at the very beginning of the game. Batman: Arkham Asylum lacked that. Since I wasn't concerned about any consequences, the tension that they worked so hard to make so good was diffused.

2) The game was very linear. Although it was placed on an island and you could theoretically go anywhere, in actuality there was only ever one path and it was always right in front of you. I'm not asking for a game like Fallout but give the world's greatest detective multiple ways to go about solving a problem.

Pros:
1) You couldn't have this game without Batman. In many ways, it's not just 'another Batman game' but it's a game about Batman. You couldn't just be anyone with a boomerang. The game actually explores his character.

2) It's not the rogue gallery vs Batman. It must have been so tempting to just trot every Batman character in and say, "Everyone against Batman!" Instead, Batman is stuck in a crazy storm. It's all about him and the Joker. When other villains show up they are there on their own terms and for their own reasons, not just as super-henchmen in the Joker's scheme.

3) Paul Dini wrote it (really the last two just boil down to this).

4) Mark Hamill is amazing.

Oikiryu Jiu Jitsu

I asked my sensei what school of Jiu Jitsu I'm studying today at class and found out that it is Oikiryu that I have become a pupil of.

So what do I do after class? I come home to look it up and write a detailed description of it for you my faithful readers. But what do I find out from my trusty search engine? Nothing.

Nothing at all. In the age of the internet how can that be?

So I start to get a little more creative. Maybe it's aikiryu... no, nope. If it is so young and so western then I wouldn't expect a confusion over the spelling.

So what's going on here? Did I misunderstand my sensei? Is my spelling wrong? Is it uncommon? As always if anyone has anymore information than I do please speak up. Leave me a comment.

PS. Last week we were introduced to methods for deflecting attackers armed with knives and this week we started point combat. Holy shit, Batman! Did I ever feel like a cat in water! I've never punch or kicked before this and I'm being thrown in the ring and asked to just do it! It was crazy but by the end I was starting to get the hang of it. Although, I was told I have to loosen up.

Great Comment

I know that not everybody who reads a blog takes the time to read the comments but M.C. Elroy left a really great note on my jiu jitsu post and I wanted to point it out to you.

Jiu Jitsu

On Tuesday was my first Jiu Jitsu class. It was great! I think I'm going to enjoy this component of my Batman training more than I had expected.

So before I get started I should clear up a few things. When I mentioned that my quest to become Batman would soon include martial arts training, I posted a link to Jiu Jitsu. Jiu Jitsu is a Brazilian variant that is descended from Judo. This IS NOT what my dojo teaches. The class that I'm attending teaches Jujutsu; however, they spell it Jiu Jitsu. As I understand it, Jiu Jitsu is a more archaic term and Jujutsu is the more accepted term.

Out of respect for my dojo, I'll refer to the tradition as Jiu Jitsu, ok?

To get an idea of the spirit of Jiu Jitsu, let me give you a brief historical tour of it's development. In feudal Japan, the combination of heavy armor and a highly tuned offensive techniques made samurai warriors the ultimate tank of the era. If one were to meet such an opponent unarmed and unarmored, one would need specialized techniques to be victorious. Striking an armored opponent wouldn't do the trick and allowing them the room to utilize a katana or yari would be a very bad idea. Jiu Jitsu is martial art for neutralizing enemies through grappling, throwing, locks and chokeholds. In this regard, it is far more akin to western wrestling than other eastern martial arts; however, there is a substantial difference: whereas wrestling seeks to pit strengths, Jiu Jitsu is literally the "art of softness" or the "way of yielding". Wikipedia says it quite well: "These techniques were developed around the principle of using an attacker's energy against him, rather than directly opposing it."

We began with exercises and stretches. These weren't so bad except for the squats. Those are muscles that I have not invested in and they were stiff until this morning. We were then introduced to falling techniques. Since Jiu Jitsu is a grappling art, absorbing the impact of falls is crucial.

We then learned three locks and two chokes. Although I've been practicing them every day I won't try to explain them to you yet. Don't worry though. I will as soon as I feel more comfortable with them and have found a reasonable body of resources on the internet to point you to.

PS If anybody does know of good resources that I should be familiar with please leave me a comment.