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Sean Mullen

movement, mindfulness & motivation science simply explained

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Jul 04 2016

Legends Seminar 2016

I returned to the Inosanto Academy on June 2nd for my second (the 18th annual) ‘Train with the Legends’ seminar. The occasion was also marked by Guro Dan’s 80th birthday. The seminar included–although not limited to–a curriculum of Kali, Silat, BJJ, Wing Chun, and Muay Thai Boxing (afterall, Bruce Lee’s philosophy of Jeet Kune Do is deeply rooted within all of Guro’s instruction & affiliate instructors). It was an incredible experience to be surrounded by all 4 legendary instructors (Guro Dan Inosanto, Professor Jean Jacques Machado, Sifu Francis Fong, and Ajarn Chai Sirisute, in addition to Ajarn Brian Dobbler), as well as 40+ martial artists from all over the world.

My ultimate goal is to achieve technical knowledge and skills at a level that is considered proficient for teaching Kali, Silat, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and Muay Thai. According to Guro Dan, “Before you can teach, you must learn. Before you can learn, you must first learn how to learn.” I couldn’t agree more. Last year, I did my best to soak in everything but my brain fatigue was so intense that I forgot all of the afternoon Wing Chun sessions. After surviving last year’s 40-hr seminar, I was more mentally prepared this year. I already established rapport with multiple training partners and I was familiar with the Legends format, many of the drills and the teaching styles of each instructor. In addition, I learned how to quickly identify similarities across the arts and techniques. This allowed me to more easily absorb key differences between techniques (although I continue to struggle with knife drills…perhaps because I find it hard to bring myself to practice cutting another human being–it’s a brutal form of fighting that doesn’t fit my personality–but I need to overcome this mental block and acquire the coordination).

I don’t really have a “main art” but I have logged over 1.5 years of training in BJJ and ~25 hrs of private instruction under Coach Jack McVicker. I injured my knee in March, 1 week prior to Pan Ams and was forced to withdrawal and subsequently limit my mixed martial arts training. However, I was capable of participating in all sessions at Legends (I admit I did sit out of some Silat takedowns and some kicking MT drills). By day 4, I found myself evolving as a BJJ practitioner. I started to become more aware of how to borrow and integrate takedowns, trapping, mobility and coordination drills into my Jits game. Although I have been feeling really blue after my injury, I left this year’s Legends seminar feeling inspired by some of the greatest martial artists in the world. I cannot wait to resume my training after my knee is repaired and rehabilitated. In the meantime, I’ll be observing classes at McVicker’s Martial Arts Academy, and doing what I can with supplemental at-home online MMA training.

Written by Dr. Sean Mullen · Categorized: Mixed Martial Arts · Tagged: BJJ, Inosanto, Jean Jacques Machado, Mixed Martial Arts

Apr 12 2016

Guro Dan Inosanto’s Seminar in Evansville, IN

Inosanto-Seminar-Evansville-041016

Written by Dr. Sean Mullen · Categorized: Mixed Martial Arts

Oct 21 2015

My First BJJ Competition

On October 24th 2015, I competed in my first Jiu Jitsu tournament called the “Extreme Grappling Open” otherwise known as E.G.O. I am 35 and weighed in at 169 lbs so I fought in the “Masters Lightweight” division. There was only one other competitor in this bracket so we mutually agreed upon a best of three matchup. I won my first and second match, but I sustained an injury to my shoulder (type III separation). Overall, the whole experience was a lot of fun and I learned a lot.

If you are interested in watching some scrappy White Belt maneuvers, feel free to watch the videos below.

Match 1 – Mullen wins!

https://youtu.be/Gc6yh4j6qNA

Match 2 – Mullen wins 6-0)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMHgRuu_t0o&feature=youtu.be

The cool thing about BJJ is that you can fight each other for 5 minutes and then shake hands and remain extremely cordial 5 seconds after the match is over.

Mullen-Masters-Lightweight-First-place-SuperEGO-2015-10-24

…and here’s the X-ray of my shoulder afterwards

separated shoulder

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Looking forward to getting over this hurdle and back on the mats!

Written by Dr. Sean Mullen · Categorized: Mixed Martial Arts · Tagged: BJJ, competition, EGO, Extreme Grappling Open, jiu jitsu

Jun 10 2015

Legends ’15 at Inosanto Academy

Mullen-with-Jean-Jacques-Machado-2015-06-06

For 4 consecutive days in June 2015, I completed 40 hours of mixed martial arts training at the Inosanto Academy in Marina Del Rey, California as part of the annual “Train with the Legends” seminar. The morning consisted of Kali, Eskrima, and Silat. We had about 1.5 hours for a lunch break and when we returned, we engaged in 1.5 hours of training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under the direction of world-renowned, 7th degree Red & Black Belt instructor Jean Jacques Machado. Jean Jacques had a full house of BJJ practitioners from all over the world. There was quite a wide range of skill and at the time, I had only been training for about 6 months. I learned a lot from JJM’s exceptional demonstrations, in addition to feedback from my training partners. There was an incredibly positive atmosphere in the academy throughout these sessions. JJM even jokingly named a shoulder pivot maneuver after me (ironically, I cannot pivot on my shoulder any longer due to an injury that I sustained from competition). Meeting him was definitely one of the many highlights of this trip.

Written by Dr. Sean Mullen · Categorized: Mixed Martial Arts · Tagged: BJJ, Jean Jacques Machado, jiu jitsu, Legends 2015

May 04 2015

Megaton Diaz’s BJJ Seminar – May 2015

Megaton Diaz BJJ Seminar May 4th 2014

Written by Dr. Sean Mullen · Categorized: Mixed Martial Arts · Tagged: BJJ, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Jack McVicker, McVicker's Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, McVicker's Mixed Martial Arts Academy, Megaton Diaz, Team McVicker

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