2017 Martial Arts Year in Review

2017 was my second full year practicing martial arts, since my return in January 2016. About a year ago I posted my 2016 Martial Arts Year in Review, reporting some statistics on my training and how I spent that time.

Because I have no official training scheduled today or Sunday, it's time for me to analyze how I practiced in 2017.

For comparison's sake, in 2016 I spent approximately 300 hours in formal training. About two thirds involved Krav Maga. Less than one sixth involved other martial arts, such as Kali, combatives (including my first serious ground work), and Kung Fu. The remainder involved fitness (Jungshin and Ground Force Method) and firearms.

Krav Maga

In 2017 I began my second year of training at First Defense Krav Maga in Herndon, VA. I started the year as a P-2.

Prior to my P-3 test in March, I participated in 50 formal Krav Maga classes. (I had trained 94 hours since my P-2 test.)

Between my P-3 test and my P-4 test in September, I participated in 50 Krav Maga classes.

After my P-4 test and through the end of December, I participated in 30 Krav Maga classes.

That is a total of roughly 130 hours of regular Krav Maga classes, down from 144 in 2016.


In addition to regular classes, I participated in several seminars and camps.

In March I completed the five day, 40 hour General Instructor Course One (GIC1).

In April I completed the five day, 40 hour Kids Instructor Course (KIC).

In May I attended 7 hours of the spring KMG camp.

I September I spent over 3 hours in an instructor seminar.

In October I spent 3 hours in a sparring seminar taught by GM Jeff Smith.

That is a total of roughly 93 hours of special events, up from 73 in 2016. Combined with my formal classes, I spent 223 hours training Krav Maga in 2017, up from 217 in 2016.

In 2017 I spent time as an assistant or as a primary instructor for youth and adult classes. For kids, I spent 61 hours teaching (outside of the classes that overlapped with the KIC.) For adults, I spent 27 hours teaching (outside of the classes that overlapped with the GIC.)

That is a total of roughly 87 hours of instructing, up from 0 in 2016. Combined with my personal training, I spent 310 hours as a Krav Maga student or instructor in 2017.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

I began studying Jiu-Jitsu on January 30th. My last post, Reflections on 100 Hours of Jiu-Jitsu, explains my experiences as of December 16th. Since that post I added 4 more classes, and adding my trial class, I spent 105 hours in formal classes at Professor Pedro Sauer's school in 2017.

I also trained outside of formal classes.

In March I spent 2 hours with Rener Gracie at his seminar in Leesburg, VA.

May was busy: I spent 2 more hours with Rener at his seminar in Baltimore, MD, 2 hours with Royce Gracie in Takoma Park, MD, and 6 hours at Prof Sauer's spring camp. 

In September I spent 3 hours with Rickson Gracie at his seminar in Albany, NY.

In November I spent 6 hours with Henry Akins at his seminar in Atlanta, GA.

Adding these 15 hours to my 105 formal class hours, I spent 120 hours as a student in Jiu-Jitsu in 2017.

Other Martial Arts

I trained in several other venues in 2017. In January I completed an 8 session, approximately 12 hour introductory course on Kendo.

In February and August I participated in two Shuai Jiao seminars taught by Nick Masi, for a total of approximately 4 hours.

These martial arts totaled 16 hours.

Other Training

In February I spent 3 hours with other Krav Maga instructor candidates learning urban defense tactics at Silver Eagle Group.

In September I began practicing Yoga at East Meets West Yoga Center. As of this writing I've practiced 13 hours, but I plan to add a class on Sunday the 31st to end 2017 with 14 hours of Yoga.

This other training totaled 17 hours.

Summary

Adding up all of the time I spent in formal training or teaching in 2017, the total was approximately 463 hours, up from 300 hours in 2016.

Removing hours spent instructing, the total is 376 hours, up from 300 hours in 2016.

Only looking at training hours, about 60% involved Krav Maga and 32% involved Jiu-Jitsu. The last 8% involved other martial arts or training.

Looking Forward

As noted earlier this month, I decided to no longer pursue instructor status in Krav Maga. Although I am interested in Jiu-Jitsu instructor opportunities, I do not expect much progress in 2018 due to my low rank. I therefore do not expect to be logging instructor hours in 2018.

I expect a shift towards more equal training time in 2018. For several months I have attended Jiu-Jitsu classes 3 to 4 nights per week, and Krav Maga classes 3 days per week. When possible I try to attend one night Krav Maga class as well. I will probably still train 3 to 4 hours per week in Jiu-Jitsu and 3 to 4 hours per week in Krav Maga. Therefore, the two activities will be more balanced in 2018.

For Krav Maga, I hope to test for my P-5 rank in the spring and G-1 in the fall. For Jiu-Jitsu, I would like to test for my blue belt some time in 2018, although I am not in any rush to do so! 2019 would be fine as well.

How did you spend your training time in 2017? Stay informed of new blog posts by following me on Twitter @martialvitality.