Class 3...

After spending my first two classes getting tapped out all over the place I decided to try something new in sparring today.

Before we got to sparring we did plenty of warm-ups, stretches, drills and exercises. Building up stamina is obviously a key requirement of grappling and I noticed my stamina was not too bad... but it obviously still needs work. I did Indian push-ups for the first time today, too, and I'll be adding those to my training regime as I need to target my upper body and my back.

I also need to learn to do basic drills, such as shrimping the hips, properly. I can sort of do this but it's still not right and it's such a key move that I need to learn to do it.

Onto the sparring session with two blue belts: one was quite a new blue belt and the other a year or so on and more experienced. I still got tapped all over the place but I wasn't such an easy target when I solidified my base and kept both my hands together.

I'm still very much getting used to working around my own and other people's bodies and I'm trying not to go too hard in sparring with other people. If I tap anyone I want it to be because I've used the correct leverage and technique and not because I'm physically stronger. I'm also trying to stay relaxed so I can see or feel how my opponents are working around me. I can already see that's going to be a big part of the learning curve.

One success of the day, however, was employing a theory expounded by the always excellent Stephan Kesting. He calls it 'caging the hips' and it's basically a defensive move using your knees and arms to cage the opponent's hips when you're in their guard. This limits your opponent's movement and offensive options and because it helps stabilise your base it makes you very hard to shift or roll.

I employed this against the senior blue belt today when we rolled for the last time and I managed to keep him at bay and fend off his attacks during a four-minute sparring session. He was tired and he probably wasn't going full-pelt and it was at the end of a hard session but it did work.

Position before submission... and today I managed to stabilise my position for the first time. A very small victory. Of sorts...

LESSON FROM TODAY: To cage the opponent's hips when in their guard; it denies them room to operate sweeps and it helps stabilise your own base.