THE RED CORNER

NEWS AND UPDATES FROM THE NORTH STAR ACADEMY OF MIXED MARTIAL ARTS

WEEK OF FEBRUARY 3rd, 2025

 

Happy Monday Team!

Ah yes, February.  The coldest and shortest month of the year.

Thematically appropriate as this week’s newsletter is both short and kind of boring 🙂

As we roll into a new month, we’ll be kicking off some new material in our programs.

Adult Jiu Jitsu will follow our “Coach’s Choice” model, in which each coach in the all levels and 201 programs will share a series of skills and drills selected out of their own playbook.  I’ll personally be working on the basic berimbolo skills with all of you!

We’ll be focusing heavily on rhythm and feints in our Striking 201 sessions this month as well.  Viewing striking through the lens of rhythm and flow can help us organize our approach to initial and reactive striking skills.  Beyond that, developing an understanding of the different rhythms can help you organize your approach as you begin to explore sparring and higher level practice.

Our youth Jiu Jitsu program will explore guard retention and establishing control from the bottom in both our Fit Jitsu and Junior Samurai classes, while our youth Muay Thai program will continue to work through the fundamentals of strikin.

We have two events on the calendar this month: the Main Line United In-House BJJ Tournament on 2/15, and the 8 Limbs MOC Competition on 2/16.  If you are interested in participating in either event, please speak with a coach!

March brings some additional events including the USA Muay Thai National Tournament and also, hopefully, a UFC Fight Night Screening in-house at the academy.  Trying to figure out dates and times for that!

I’ll personally be out of town next week from Sunday the 9th to Sunday the 16th.  All classes are on as normal with the exception of BJJ Open Mats replacing our 10am Monday/Friday 10am morning sessions.  Please, if you have any specific needs of me, reach out ASAP so we can tie up any loose ends.  I’ll be more or less “off the grid” as I travel back to Austria for a week long Jiu Jitsu training camp with some of the top names in the sport — Roger Gracie, Ffion Davis, Vicente Cavalcanti, and Braulio Estima.  And also, maybe, some Kasekreiners as well 🙂

See you on the mats!

 

–Coach Jackson

You can find this week’s Monday Mindset HERE

You can find this week’s Junior Samurai Stripe Challenge HERE