No Longer Taking Names

6:15-6:30p: Stuck in traffic. Thought I was 15 minutes late, but turns out I've been away from the gym so long I forgot what time class started on Monday nights so I was 15 minutes early. Whew. I hate being late. Stretched.

6:30-6:50p: Warm-up / standard drills. Nothing special.

6:50-7p: Take down drills. Essentially judo. Skipped the first set. Didn't want to risk neck injury. Participated in the second set, but worked with someone who was also wary of injury and we didn't finish the throws.

7-7:10P: Sweep / pass the guard. After class tonight...over a few beers...I was gently admonished for posting the names of classmates. So, I've resolved to stop taking names. I'll only refer to rank. Although this is supposed to be MY training log, I realize that quite a few classmates have found my blog and read with some regularity. So...referencing rank should allow me to track my relative progress while also protecting the innocent. First up tonight was a Brown Belt. Stepped into his guard and pretty much got owned. No submissions in this drill, but in my zeal to pass his guard Mr. Brown let me know he set up but did not execute several submissions before sweeping me. Professor also told me to relax a bit lest I hurt my neck. Didn't think I was pushing it, but if it caught Professor's attention...guess I was overdoing it a tad. Next up a White Belt who had managed a few consecutive sweeps so I got him tired. Passed his guard with a smash pass. Not the most technical, but he"s huge, young, strong, athletic, etc....I'll take what I can get. A White Belt stepped into my guard. Sweep off a pass in no time. Blue Belt up next. Swept her after she attempted a floating pass. Upon further reflection, I muscled the sweep. Lame. I apologize. Blue Belt stepped in...time ran out before we could get anything going.

7:10-7:30p: Technique. Basic guard break and knee slide pass plus a feaux cross choke to knee slide pass. The feaux cross choke to knee slide was new to me.

7:30-8p: Rolls. 6 minute rounds. Got three Blue Belts. Crowded mats tonight so I felt like I was stopping mid-roll multiple times to reset. Fortunately my training partners were experienced and took it all in stride. Got swept on my ass from inverted guard after several minutes trying to pass. Not sure what happened. Professor said it was a You Tube sweep. Ok... Got worked. Got drilled by the second Blue. He had me in an arm bar from mount but we ran into another group so we yielded. I didn't tap but he would have had me if we didn't roll into the other group. Other than that I feel like I gave him a hard time from guard. Almost swept him with De la Riva and spider a couple of times...but didn't quite pull it off. Last roll was good. Ran into other groups a few times and had to reset, but I managed to take mount and finished with an arm bar from technical mount. Had a few sweep set ups too. Overall, very pleased with the rolls tonight. No neck/tingly issues at all. I hope that I can train a couple nights per week without too much trouble. Fingers crossed!

Neuorologist Weighs In

I had a neurologist check me out over the Christmas break and sent him my MRI results for review/comment. Here's a summary of his comments:

1. Reversal of cervical lordosis is suggestive of muscle spasm as the neck should be C shaped and mine is more straight. Not a major finding.

2. At C5-6 there is moderate narrowing of the spinal canal but no cord
compression (good).

3. Bony narrowing of the canals on both sides of the neck at C5-6 where the nerve roots come out of the spinal cord and go into the arms. Similar but less severe
findings at C6-7.

Diagnosis: Tingly symptoms and weakness in arm/hand are probably from irritation of nerve root in tight bony foraminal canal in C5-6, but C6-7 could be contributing. In other words...my symptoms are from disc degeneration and bone spurs.

Treatment Options: Not based on MRI, but symptoms. Significant pain, muscle weakness, or persistent tingling could indicate time for surgery. Surgery may involve a cervical fusion at C5-6 AND C6-7 --(fix both levels while they are in there). Surgery is called ACDF anterior cervical discectomy with fusion. Based on my symptoms (which seem to get better every day), he doesn't think surgery is mandatory...yet. Although I can delay the surgery, he thinks it's probably inevitable. He doesn't advise steroidal injections. Says my problem is anatomical. Injections hurt, are expensive, and only treat symptoms. Physical Therapy has a better chance of helping my condition, but not likely to be the source of major long-term improvement. Said it's worth a shot though.

Closing Note: He wrote: "Mixed martial arts may not be the best thing for you neck" and said he didn't know how good "wrestling" is as a form of exercise for someone in my condition. Good thing I don't train MMA or wrestle! Ha.

First Full Day Back

5:30-5:45p: Warm-up / standard drills. Henry (White) led. I think it was his first time leading. Did a great job. My belt is too small (or I`ve grown a bit in my time off). A wee bit uncomfortable.

5:45-5:55p: Partner drills. Sit-ups from guard. Leg lifts to each side and center. Back-to-back squats. Leap frogs. Legs quivering. Exhausted. Couldn`t finish all the reps.

5:55-6:10p: Sweep / pass the guard. Stepped into Nick`s guard. Defended the hip bump and other sweeps for a while, but eventually succumbed to a hip bump. It was Nick`s third round in guard so he gave up his spot. Swept a first day guy without a gi. Not as easy as it should have been. Got Cleve (Blue) next. Almost swept him from x-guard. Botched it and Cleve took advantage and passed.

6:10-6:30p: Technique. Guard break and stack pass review. Worked with Alex (Purple) and Chet (White). Explored ways to maintain base and avoid getting swept while inserting knee in butt crack to initiate break.

6:30-7p: Rolls. 6 minute rounds. Got Woody (Blue), brand new guy, and Alex (Purple). Very pleased with my performance after 5+ weeks off. Tiring but I didn't gas. Got several sweeps. Got swept even more. Passed guard a few times. Had my guard passed a couple times. Took mount. Got mounted. Got a straight arm lock. Tapped to a step over choke via gi lapel wrap around. A bit sore now, but not too bad. The post-workout high is incredible.

MRI Results = Sucks to be You!

MRI results:

1. Reversal of the usual cervical lordosis.
2. Moderately advanced C5-C6, C6-C7 level degenerative disc disease/hypertrophic spondylosis with related central canal and foraminal stenosis, at the C5-C6 level somewhat asymmetric to the right. Findings at the C6-C7 level include an eccentric left posterior central or paracentral disc herniation though with evidence of asymmetrically pronounced right-sided foraminal stenosis at the same level.
3. Comparatively mild degenerative changes referable to the suprajacent C4-C5 level with small midline focal posterior central C4-C5 disc protrusion.
4. More cephalad, evidence of asymmetrically prominent left-sided C2-C3 and right-sided C3-C4 foraminal narrowing which would appear likely at least in part developmental.

Might have well said, “Sucks to be you!”

Likely to see a specialist to determine next steps.

BTW, if anyone reading this is a doctor, feel free to translate. Might be a while before I can see a specialist.

Purple!

Made it to class tonight for the first time since December 8th. After 8mos training almost non-stop, taking a month off was rough. Gained 15lbs and generally feel miserable. I need to train. This neck injury and numb fingers be damned! So when I heard a friend Aaron was up for his purple tonight, I had to make it to class. Congrats Aaron!



5:30-5:50p: Warm-up / drills. Mike (Purple) led. Good partner drills. Sit ups from guard. Leg lifts. Leap frog. Etc.

5:50-6:05p: Sweep / pass the guard. Stepped into Mike's guard. Ended up with him in turtle to elevator take down. Guess I was a bit over eager 'cause Professor Matthias told me to take it easy on account of my neck. Mike had been in a couple rounds so he let me stay in. Got a young athletic white belt next. He thrashed and smashed but I ended up with a sweep. New white belt stepped in. He also thrashed and smashed. Had easy triangle, front gi chokes, and other subs, but this drill was sub-free. Played a little catch and release while waiting for a sweep to come to mind. Supposed to work for sweeps. Mind drew a blank...rusty... eventually let him take my spot...

6:05-6:30p: Technique. Arm bar and triangle from guard. Review, although the triangle is a variation that I'd struggled with in the past. Got one good electric zing down my arm and hand from one of the arm bars. Fortunately that was the only incident of the night.

6:30-7p: Rolls. Jammed pack tonight. Took it easy. Worked with Mike (Purple) a bit and then Matt (White). Mike worked guard passing. Got one sweep when he was trying stuff, but he didn't have a lot of trouble passing the rest of the time. Roll with Matt was a bit awkward. Wasn't sure what I was doing. Showed him a sweep from closed guard that landed him in mount. Struggled to recover half guard or escape the mount. Struggled but never could really recover. Caught him with an arm lock from guard via whizzer. Matt...watch the whizzer!

It was really good to be back on the mats tonight. Having a bit of post-training numbness, but nothing serious. Going to schedule an MRI tomorrow. Hope to find out what's really wrong with me soon.

Anatomy Lesson

Professor Doc Eddie says it's not Median Nerve Compression. Says it's likely a blown disc in the neck that's pinching the Median Nerve root, but the actual Median Nerve is in the arm, beyond the brachial plexus. Suggested I take it easy for a bit and not train at all (including core work and jumping rope). Then referred me to a neck specialist. Need an MRI. To say that I'm disappointed is an extreme understatement. I can finally tie my new blue belt, but can't break it in. Lovely.

Median Nerve Compression

I'm out...for the most part. Chiropractor clearly doesn't have a clue what's wrong with me. 5 minutes of googling tells me I have median nerve compression or irritation (but not CTS). Going to take it easy for a few weeks and see what happens. Through Christmas Eve, I'll show up to class a couple times per week, warm up, and be very picky about my participation in techniques and drills. No rolling. I'll work my core and other band/ankle weight conditioning instead. Then I'll take 10 days off while home for Christmas. If my symptoms haven't subsided come the new year, I'll have to see a neurologist.