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Last Saturday we covered the topic of interruptions and obstacles while rolling. Rolling is infinitely useful to learn. Rolling while avoiding obstacles, taking strikes, or having certain limbs restricted is infinitely useful to learn plus one. We didn't have very much time, so I divided up the rolling into two segments: without a blindfold and with. Taking away the vision is sometimes a nice way to enhance a drill, so that we can learn to trust the other senses. The rolling started out slow and from the knees, with only some pushes and using the body as an obstacle to the roller. We slowly moved into grabbing hold of various body parts and some striking while rolling. Unfortunately we didn't have the time to get into rolling from a standing position while doing these drills, but just as well. That can be a bit daunting.

Grabbing one's ankle and pulling backwards as they start to tuck and roll can really mess them up. I've landed flat on my head a few times from that happening. After a while, the realization comes that they're just sending the momentum elsewhere (an obvious realization, but difficult to see in the middle of a roll). The momentum from the roll is usually stopped, and you're left with your body falling straight down, head and face first, with the feet somewhat above the head. One way to deal with that is just to rotate around your spine with your waist and shoulders, landing on one shoulder so that the impact makes your body automatically roll to the other shoulder. This is just one possibility out of many for just one circumstance out of many. The point is that once a person gets used to rolling without interruptions psychologically, the next logical step is to throw in some interruptions. BUT, rolling without interruptions will still require much practice, even after the psychological impact of the act has been lessened. Mechanics, breathing, and form can always use work.