Well the training is very different from what I was doing at the other camp. Instead of just turning up and hitting pads, here I'm actually being taught how to punch properly, combinations, and footwork. I learnt more in the first two days than I did in two weeks at the other place.
It's really nice to feel yourself progress in something that you enjoy. I've hit pads before but now I've been shown how to do it properly, a whole new world has opened up. There is a difference I never would have imagined between hitting something how you have hit all your life, and hitting something after a couple of hours instruction on how to hit effectively.
Then there are the kicks. Although I still have the nasty habit of kicking with my feet instead of my shins, these are coming along. At the moment they are very wobbly, with an almost complete lack of balance after the kick, but hey, I've got time to practice!
The best thing so far though has to be the knees and elbows. Hitting a bag with your elbow is something everyone should try now and again. It makes a really satisfying Thud! Hitting a bag with your knees just makes you glad that nobody has kneed you in the stomach. It just Has to hurt.
Then there is the ground work. Rolling around topless on the floor with another guy, covered in sweat, grunting and working for position is not a description I ever thought I would use to describe something I enjoy. It may be the heat, it may be the bottled water, I don't know. All I do know is that it's great. More tiring than it looks by far. A couple of minutes ground work is as tiring as two or three rounds of bag work. It drains every muscle you own and some that just moved in for the sole purpose of aching after ground work. You are meant to remain relaxed during grappling. I'm sure this will come eventually. At the moment, remaining relaxed while someone is digging their elbow into your chest and leaning their weight on it, choking you with their forearm and manipulating you into an elbow lock. . . is a little hard to do!