#kravolution

Test day!

I went in today calm and ready. We tested B1, B2, A1, and families (plus a fitness test and some sparring drills). I passed!

I am now a full instructor for Krav Maga. It was one of the hardest things I ever did, and I made a lot of progress.

Today we literally kicked off the morning. We practiced front kicks and defenses from straight kicks. I hadn't practiced some of those defenses, and I fine tuned the ones I had done.

I led the warm-up after lunch. I skimped on cardio (no surprise) because it felt monotonous (I did get some feedback on how to add to it in a dynamic way). My game was a disaster (equipment didn't do what I wanted it to), and I wasted some time trying to fix it. That being said, my group was warm, and they did have fun. I had good presence, voice, and body position.

We learned about the timelines after that. The best way to explain is to show you.

The horizontal timeline explains how much time the threat has to get to you, and the vertical timeline describes when you notice the threat. It's a very dynamic way to approach Krav Maga, and having it explained visually really helped me.

After that, we broke into groups to practice teaching. Yesterday we were in three groups of three. Today we were in a group of four and a group of five. I was in the group of five. I ended up being the last person to teach (which is cool with me - I can learn a lot from hearing others' feedback). Since the other group had already finished teaching, I got to do the first student-led whole group instruction!

I was a little nervous, but my classmates said it didn't show. I met some stumbles and flubbed some words, but on the whole I had a good lesson. I got lots of high fives and genuine compliments.

Today we did our teaching tests before lunch. I wasn't nervous while I was teaching, but I was so relieved when my lesson was over. I still have ways to improve, but I passed. All that's left now is the physical skills test.

We practiced after lunch and did some yoga to cool down. I feel so ready and serene. I was fairly calm this morning, but when we bowed out this evening, I felt so focused and ready.

Today we covered one final technique (one used for getting through a crowd) and then prepared for a demonstration. Right before we left to do that, we took our written test. Everyone passed!

The demonstration was, no joke, at a renaissance faire. We got to enjoy the faire a bit as well as show off our technique.

When we got back to the gym, we had a short lunch break and then went over our B2 and A1 skills (plus some "families" of related techniques). Then we did some light sparring and called it a day.

I took a pretty hard blow to the head. It stunned me, but I kept going. I have a nice knot coming up, but I don't think I have a serious injury.

My roomies and I went out for dinner. I had a soak when we came home, and my final lesson plan (for the class - obviously I'll make more for teaching) is done!

Also, thanks to practice today and the mock B1 test we did before, I've done everything I will do during my skills test on Sunday. I feel at ease. I've practiced all I can, and I feel confident in my work.

Today we worked on lifted bear hugs in the morning. We learned some tools for working with tall people who are unlikely to be picked up off the ground during regular practice.

We also did a mock test. I understand the skills we covered, but I get nervous and make bonehead mistakes. I hope that doesn't trip me up on Monday.

I led the afternoon warm-up. I felt much more like myself today than I did yesterday. It was a good warm-up, and I'm working on being more mindful with my language.

After that, we took turns doing stress drills and final drills from the lessons we prepared. Finally, we studied the curriculum. I studied some skills that I haven't practiced very much but are crucial to my test.

We received our assignments for our teaching test. I'm fortunate to have drawn a skill that I'm comfortable with. I started on my lesson plan tonight, and I'll do the rest tomorrow.

All in all, I'm nervous because I want to do well. I need to trust my abilities and trust my principles, and I'll be fine. All I can do is my best.

Today was less physically demanding, but it was mentally exhausting. I didn't use the inhaler at all!

We covered several techniques in the morning. In the afternoon, we went over the principles of Krav Maga, and then each student taught part of a lesson. We did only the introduction and exposition, no drills. Every person had a turn. It was kind of tough to cut off part of a lesson like that, but we all did pretty well.

I'm still working on being comfortable with teaching a single combative. I'm really struggling with the simplest things. I overthink for sure.

After all that (but wait, there's more), we studied the curriculum in small groups. We stayed later than usual (until at least 6 p.m.). The instructor stopped us only when our brains couldn't absorb any more information.