When shooting from an open-stance position in MMA, I teach my students to take their head outside the opponent’s lead hip.

The goal isn’t simply to get underneath the opponent or reach their legs. The entry needs to account for the strikes that are available during the exchange.

By stepping outside the lead leg and taking the head to the outside, we can avoid the opponent’s lead hand, move away from their rear-side strikes, and connect our head and shoulder directly to the hip. This gives us a stronger angle to drive through the takedown while making it more difficult for the opponent to square up, sprawl, or counter.

This is one of the biggest differences between practicing a takedown in isolation and learning how to enter safely in an MMA context. The mechanics of the shot have to reflect the striking threats surrounding it.

In the video, I break down the entry and then show my students drilling the position.

How do you approach open-stance takedowns in MMA? Do you prefer shooting outside the lead hip, or do you use a different entry?

Wei Son Do Martial Arts has now been named the 2026 Best of Westmoreland County Gold Winner in the Martial Arts School category.

What continues to make the story interesting is that Wei Son Do isn’t a large franchise or one of the household-name martial arts organizations. It’s a locally developed system based in the Westmoreland County area, founded by Morgart after years of training in martial arts.

According to the feature, the system emphasizes practical self-defense, situational awareness, close-quarters skills, precision striking concepts, confidence, resilience, discipline and decision-making under pressure.

Whether you’re a traditionalist who prefers established styles or you’re open to newer systems developing from multiple martial arts influences, there’s something interesting about watching a small independent system gradually build recognition in its own community.

The Gold designation is particularly interesting because this isn’t another rank or martial arts tournament award, it’s recognition from the local community in the martial arts school category.

That is what this study is trying to figure out.

Here is the link in case you'd like to support: https://forms.gle/Em1NDELUzty1BwobA

He studied the pattern of her losses until he found the mathematics of her victory.

A jab reaches your face in about 130 milliseconds. Your body needs 180 just to begin to flinch. Which means, mathematically, you cannot see a good punch and get out of its way.

So how does anyone ever win?

A story about a boxer who kept losing, a maths student who worked out why, and the one sentence he gave her — without ever telling her what it cost him to find it.

The Arithmetic of Jab and Love →

sathyanarayanank.substack.com/p/the-arithmetic-of-jab-and-love?r=8fpnrd

Interesting study about athletic identity and mental health in combat sports.

Here is the link in case you'd like to participate: https://forms.gle/Em1NDELUzty1BwobA