Example Of Form That May Be Used As Template For A - Lighting Direct: Fill & Download for Free

The role of a Lighting Designer depends on many variables, most notably, the budget and genre of the show. Community theatre is going to be very different to a corporate event, to a Broadway musical, to a touring rock concert. But, all Lighting designers will have some things in common, while the scale changes.Get the gigThere are a lot more Lighting Designers (LD's) out there than there are gigs for them to work on, and as in any industry, those who do good work and are nice to work with will tend to get more jobs than others. As always, connections matter. But a disappointingly large amount of time is spent finding, chasing and quoting on jobs.Once there's a "nibble", the difficult process of quoting and negotiation begins. Producers will want to keep costs down, and LD's need to ensure their rent is paid, and maintain a level of cred. Usually, the Producer will feed some information - an indication of the budget, venue, project, dates.It's the LD's responsibility, of course, to ensure they they do not book themselves on two concurrent jobs, though often, for designers in demand, Producers are willing to work around schedule conflicts to a degree.Understand the briefSome clients will be delighted to leave as much as possible to the LD, so long as they work within a budget, and the result is "reasonable" - dance parties and music tours often fall into this category, and can be good fun for a LD, as they can practise with different approaches and equipment that they may not risk on a job that has a more "picky" Director. The performers (or more likely, their manager) assigns a budget for lighting, and the LD is expected to make the show look good with that.Other clients will be extremely specific with what they want, and really want more of a coordinator than a designer - the LD takes the design and implements it, taking care of many small details to ensure it meets the Director's vision. Corporate theatre sometimes falls into this category, in my experience.Other clients adopt a much more collaborative approach, where the LD and set designer work closely with the Director and costume designer to create a more cohesive, immersive look and feel to the entire production.This would come from first researching the environments and periods that are to be represented on stage (for theatre and musical productions), or understanding the feel the overall production should have (for music and dance productions, for example). There's a series of meetings where the set and costumes are gradually designed, and the LD contributes from a lighting perspective. This would usually occur while the Director is rehearsing with performers.A typical rehearsal room setup, for some kinda circus show. Note the uncomfortable chairs, a hallmark.Make a lighting plan and equipment listWhile understanding the brief, the LD will start working on a lighting plot. Most LD's will have a "standard rig" they'll use as a template, then modify it to suit this production, venue and budget.For example, most drama productions are going to need "standard" three-point lighting in areas of the stage where action takes place, to model the actors (so they stand out from the set), and create a sense of time and place. Most rock concerts are going to have a lot of backlight / effect lighting (to involve the audience and provide some spectacle). Most dance productions will have a lot of side-light (to emphasise the dances bodies and their movements). Most corporate theatre events will require lecturns for speeches, a look suitable for video projection, and some spectacle for product reveals.From understanding the creative brief and knowing the budget, an LD will start to picture in their mind what sort of "looks" would work for this production, and thus, what equipment is suitable for for creating those looks. In general, most lighting equipment is very flexible, and so can be used to create a huge variety of looks, which is good, becasue it's likely there will be many, many small and large changes in the creative vision, and thus, needs from the lighting department.The LD will use software to design a plot, showing what fixtures will go where. Some software will count up each type of fixture and make a pretty list, that then gets sent off to lighting equipemnt hire companies, who quote on the equipment, accessories, and possibly supporting technicians for installing and maintenance. The Producer would be involved to some degree in negotiating prices for equipment - like most hire industries, it's cutthroat, and the LD may be encouraged (or just told) to use substutite equipment as the price is more apealing.A lighting plot for an Australian concert act, for a venue of ~10,000 people. Most fixtures are moving lights.Catch up with creativesAround this time, it's common for the LD to check in with set and costume designers, meet with the the musical director, watch some rehearsals, and meet with the Director, to share ideas and bed some aspects down - how many songs will there be? How long is this scene? How will the set change from this scene to the next? How many acts are there? What time of day and year is it? Where is this geographically set? What are the script changes?As the production comes closer to launching, these meetings might occur monthly, then weekly, then daily.Catch up with techsAlso around this time, the LD would start meeting with the Head Mech (the person responsible for the set, how it moves and looks - the right hand person of the set designer. The LD would also meet with their 2IC, the Head Electrician (this was my role on several large productions). This role might be appointed by the Producer, or it might be someone who is specified by the LD.The Head LX is responsible for taking the LD's lighting plot, and getting all the equipment set up in the venue, ready and running for the LD to start programming the lights into scenes for the show (and also to maintain the equipment through the run of the show). At this stage, broad conversations about the equipment and venues would occur, and discussions of how any special equipment might be incorporated.The LD may have a lighting programmer they prefer to work with, and it's around this time some brief discussions would be held - mostly around scheduling, as it's assumed the equipment will be ready and working when the LD and programmer arrive at the venue.Inspect special equipmentMany LD's like using new lighting equipment, as they can make their show look unique and exciting, compared to its competitors. It's also valuable for a designer to know what equioment is available, so in disucssions with the Director and other creatives, they can offer ideas to enhance or create vision.Lighting rental companies will set up demos of equipment, or invite LD's to attend shows where the equipment is in use, and set up meetings for them with people who have used the equiupment.LD's may also contract lighting companies to create custom lighting equipment, special effects, or rigging equipment to get lighting equipment in special places in a venue for a specific look.For example, I worked at a lighting production and rental company where a LD wanted to fill an enormous stage with 2 feet of dense fog in under 12 seconds (during a blackout, while a musical sting played), for 8 shows a week for six months) (oh, the 90's and the money there was to burn!)A dry ice machine made from a 44 gallon drum. Water is heated and pumped onto dry ice pellets, the resulting "fog" is fan-forced out of the drum and onto stage. This production had 12 of these, six each side of stage. About 100 kgs of dry ice per show, for a 2 minute effect... looked fantastic, though!The LD may also visit the (first) venue of the production, if they have never worked there before, to help visualise how their ideas will come to life - venues are always accomodating in this regard.Finalise lighting plotThe lighting plot is the central reference point for what's coming up - production week, where the show is set up in the first venue for the first time - so the LD will spend considerable time finessing the plan, allocating every fixture a channel (so it can be activated easily), and thinking deeply about how it will participate in the overall look of the show.Colour coding fixtures on a lighting plot is a common tactic, sometimes by designers to help them think about the plan, other times by the HeadLX to help identify and communicate subtle differences to the rest of the crewIt's very common to move fixtures around on the plan, and add and remove fixtures. Some LD's use visualisation software, where a CAD plan of the venue (with the set) is shown, and each lighting instrument is added in, cues are programmed, and the look can be ascertained.An example screen shot from WYSIWYG lighting design and visualisation softwareWhile making the plan, the LD will also be taking notes (perhaps in a script) as to cues - what specific lights should be at what level, colour, shape, direction and position, for each scene. This will reduce programming time, which is expensive becasue the entire theatre is dark, and it only has two people working in it!Once the lighting plan is "close enough", it's sent to the Head LX, the venue, the lighting equipment hire company, and the head mech to review. The equipment is ordered, prepared and delivered to the venue.(Load in)It's rare the LD would be present for the load-in, but I have included it because it's pretty important - where the lighting plot is considered, and each individual fixture is placed, secured, patched, and tested.This usually happens before the set is assembled, though while the set is being assembled some lighting works will continue. The Head LX works to ensure the entire rig matches the LD's plot exactly. Often there will be phone calls to get clarification on some specifics.FocusThis is where each "conventional" (that is, each fixture that is not a moving light) is pointed in the correct direction, has its' beam made the appropriate size and shape and focus, and has its' colour set.The LD will stand on stage, in the position of actors, and direct technicians to make adjustments fixture by fixture. A 300-fixture rig might take a crew of six 8 hours to focus the first time - the LD might utilise two teams, in two differnt places on stage, to alternate (as it takes some time for one team to move to the next fixture).The contracption in the background is a "tallescope", often used to focus lighting fixtures on-stage. It's kind of like an extension ladder on wheels, and can go as high as 6 metres / 20 feet, while someone is in the top basket - you can just see someone there in this image, focussing a fixture.At least one tech will be assigned the task of operating the lighting desk ( more in my post, How do moving lights (the ones in nightclubs, concerts, etc.) work?) - that is, turning lights on and off as needed; another tech will be assigned to only fix problems that are often uncovered at this stage.The theatre has to be dark for focus to occur, so many other departments cannot keep working on stage (though, there may be work happenning off-stage, and perhaps some minor things on-stage).ProgrammingThe LD sits with the programmer at the "production desk" - a temporary desk in the middle of the stalls (around row H) and painstakingly creates each individual cue. A cue might take between 2 minutes and 2 hours to create, and a musical theatre or rock show might have several hundred cues.A typical production desk - removed before the first audience, of course. The lighting desk is on the right, and looks like the desiger is beside it - note the large peice of paper under his laptop, a lighting plot.These days are long - 14 to 18 hours are normal, as time is critical, and it's seldom that everything goes to plan.The Head LX is standing by to fix things, and is setting up bits and bobs backstage. The Stage Manager may attend some sessions, to get a feel for the lighting looks, and the Director might drop in for the same reason.Tech"Tech" is where there are cast on stage performing, and the lighting and set peices are moved and tested and progressed. Each scene is performed multiple times, while the crew get used to the actions and problems are ironed out. It's also an opportunity to experience the show with the set and lighting, and that may uncover problems that need to be addressed.The Director, Stage Manager, Lighting Designer and Programmer will be at the production desk. Many cues will change a lot at this stage. This may be done on the spot if the team is waiting for techs on stage, or notes taken to refine cues that night, after the tech is over.Dress TechThe show is gradually getting refined into better shape. The Dress tech is where the actors are in full costume, and the show is run through from start to finish, but with lots of stops and starts. Typically, the first dress tech run through will take 12 hours, to cover the entire show. Scenes that just have a lot of talking will be skipped, if there are no technical cues or costume changes occuring.The LD works with the programmer still to refine cues, especially timing, so they work in with costume changes, blocking and choreography, music, and set movements. The music might be the full band, though the stop-strt nature makes it hard for them to practise, so it might just be one piano.PreviewsTest audiences are brought in, but it's still being polished. The LD sits in the audience, usually in a different place each show, and takes copious notes. After the audience has left, the programmer and LD refine cues more, often to one or two am, becasue they can keep the theatre dark and not affect anyone else.They have a later start the next day, while the set crew went home earlier and would come in first thing to work on their own fixes.Depending on the type of show, the LD may not be present for opening night - most likely they are working on their next show.The LD may be involved when the show moves to a new venue, or perhaps it's left to the Head LX to replicate the show appropriately.

Traditional boxing used different fist positions to modern gloved boxing principally due to the vast difference between (1) punching without handwraps and gloves on compared with well-protected hands, and (2) a combat system versus a combat sport.For hundreds of years of bareknuckle English boxing, until around 1910 in some cases, even though gloves had been used for some time already, straight punches were delivered with a vertical fist (or near-vertical) position; we can abbreviate this to VF. The bareknuckle era lasted for much longer than gloved boxing has been in existence.The risk of hand breakageThe problem with punching to the head without heavily protected hands is that if the modern gloved boxing fist position is used for a straight punch in a bareknuckle situation, there is a significant risk for breaking the hand.Of equal importance are the old tactics for preserving the integrity of the hand.What happens using a straight punch with the HF fist in bare fist fights: broken outer metacarpals when the opponent jinks sideways - the ‘fistfight fracture’ every trauma medic has seen..In the photo above, the opponent has jinked: ducked outside & down - so the punch hits high and at the edge of the forehead. You can see there is now a serious risk that one or both the outer metacarpals (the bones supporting the end knuckles) will break - they just cannot take this impact when no handwraps and gloves are worn.That is why this punch was never used in classical boxing, as it was all bareknuckle, and the hands break with this kind of punch.Hand break risk versus fist positionThe vertical fist works better for bareknuckle fights because there is less risk of a hand break; it connects better across a range of possible angles; and it can drill through a tight cover better. There are also several other advantages.Here is the correct fist format for straight punches to the head in bareknuckle fighting: the VF.Importantly, if you miss there is no downside: you just miss; but the horizontal fist has a major problem here because if the opponent jinks off to the side, you can hit with the outer two knuckles and break the hand. A miss has serious consequences.And you will miss. This is why across the hundreds of years of old English bareknuckle boxing, the vertical fist was used exclusively for straight punches as above.Tactics: power managementThree power levels were used for straight punches: snap punches, mid-power punches, and full-power punches - this applied equally to left and right punches. So for the left hand we have a jab; and on the right, we have the snap right. Both are delivered in the same way: with a fast snap, delivered to a 1″ depth.This means the opponent’s eye can be closed up or the nose broken, without risking a broken hand if something goes wrong - there isn’t enough power for that.HooksThe hook punch was invented by English boxing champion Jack Broughton. Before him, all hits were straight punches, swings and strikes of one kind or another.When he first used this new punch, it was called ‘the new curved blow’ as there was no pre-existing example anywhere (and this is true globally - all circular hits with the knuckles were various types of swings, not punches). It had to be used carefully in bareknuckle boxing because it was a power shot, and there was elevated risk for a hand break. For this reason it was best used low on the face, to the chin or jaw, to avoid hitting high and therefore with high risk.Broughton’s hook was a horizontal fist hook, i.e. a palm-down hook - therefore it is a powerful hit but with an intrinsic risk for breaking the outer metacarpal hand bones if the target is missed. For that reason it is only used to a clear target low on the face, ideally the chin or jaw; it is carefully targeted for that purpose; it is not fired off in a ‘throw it & hope’ mode; and it is best trained as a long punch in order to avoid the common issue of missing short that afflicts so many hooks. It can easily be shortened up if you train long; but if you train hooks as a short or medium range punch, you’ll find it exceptionally difficult to lengthen a hook out as the opponent sways back. Train it long, target it well - or don’t use it bareknuckle.It is not always necessary to punch when fighting: strikes, not punches, were used for hitting high on the face or head; and throws when in close. Boxing never mandated a ‘punch or nothing’ policy: that is ridiculous in a combat system used for road defence.Boxing: a comprehensive combat systemWe do of course use all these methods today since they are perfectly designed for practical boxing: boxing as a self-defence method not a sport. They have hundreds of years of development for this exact purpose, and it makes no sense to ignore that - especially considering that old English bareknuckle boxing both was and still is the ultimate system for punching to the head. No one has ever done it better.So broadly speaking we use vertical fist straight punches to the head; carefully targeted horizontal fist hooks; strikes, when the face is covered or a punch might be risky; and throws - especially if the opponent shells up, as they then become very easy to slam or throw with many different moves. Body punches have a range of formats, there is no rule here on which is best since that varies according to circumstance.This is traditional boxing strategy and it transfers directly to modern urban defensive boxing. We also have more to choose from now, and several aspects of combat such as footwork, defence, and angles are more sophisticated today and so cannot be ignored. The basic template of old bareknuckle boxing is still as valid as ever.Nobody has ever come up with a better system for head shots - so if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Hundreds of years of English bareknuckle boxing don’t lie.A throw on hard ground can end the fight. In traditional boxing, a popular KO shot was to use a power hip throw followed by a hip fall: dropping with the hip into the gut or ribs. This could end the fight. James Figg, the first universally recognised champion, was reported as following the hip throw with a choke-out on the ground; there were no rules until 1743. While old-time boxers could punch, strike and wrestle effectively, in the 18th century they also trained and fought with weapons - some matches involved rounds with weapons, and these were not sparring: the intention was to stop the opponent whether it was with sword, staff, fist or throw.Some photo examplesHere are some images that may make some of these concepts clearer.Here we see a right snap punch to the nose at an inbound stage. The idea is to break the nose and cause blood flow to interfere with the breathing. It will be used when the chin is tucked down or covered up. You can see the vertical fist format, with the correct fist crank to align the main two knuckles and metacarpals with the radius forearm bone and take the end, weak knuckles back out of the major impact zone (the fist is tilted down a little, which we term ‘fist crank’). The average untrained person would hit square on the centre knuckle, but the trained boxer cranks the fist down a little so the first two knuckles align with the radius forearm bone, to create a solid driveline through the fist, wrist and arm - this is called the radial column. A fist crank is common in many arts that use punches, whether with the VF or HF straight punch.The snap punch has 1″ depth past the flat surface of the face. It doesn’t have enough power to break the hand if something goes wrong - but it has enough to break the nose..Now we see a left snap punch to the eye, today called a jab. It is a fast, light punch designed to close up the left eye and restrict vision. It has little depth or power, so that if things go wrong there is low risk for hand damage. This punch is used if the lower face is protected by the guard. You may be able to spot the correct fist crank applied here.Another view:The snap punch has 1″ depth past the flat surface of the face. It doesn’t have enough power to break the hand if something goes wrong - but it has enough to swell and close the eye and cut the surrounding flesh..A good example of a well-delivered vertical fist straight punch from MMA. Excellent distancing..The front swing:Strikes are used when the face is covered up and we are too far out for a throw. Here the opponent covers the face - so the boxer at left fires a front swing, also called a topfist swing. The right arm is being swung around in a circular strike, and will hit with the top of the fist (the thumb side, opposite to the ‘hammerfist’ or bottomfist) and the distal radius: the last part of the thumb-side forearm bone. The boxer may choose to reposition the thumb lower, down on to the middle and ring finger, to flatten the topfist.Note that this strike is a hand and arm hit - it connects with the top of the fist and the bottom half of the forearm, at the thumb side. Depending on circumstance, it bangs into the temple and rear side skull, or upper neck and behind/below the ear.Alternatively the boxer hits to the body - and the bare fist is more effective than a gloved fist. Many more cracked or broken ribs will occur than in gloved boxing. One obvious feature of old boxing prints is that many fighters preferred to cover the body with the non-striking hand when punching, not the side face, to block a fast counter to the body under their attack. A hard puncher hitting to the ribs bare knuckle can do plenty of damage.Here’s a short range liver shot..It is very difficult to cover the head against all of these strikes as there is usually a way to get around any cover. Or the boxer can hit to the body, or move in for a throw.If the opponent makes the mistake of shelling up or resting in the clinch, he can be quickly thrown. Here is a simple pickup & slam in the early stages. Once the waist hold is locked on (aka double low underhooks) it’s flying time. We can force the opponent to cover up, with punches to the face, then throws get easier.We will often used throws that dump the opponent hard but do not involve us going down with them. This is good policy on concrete and with a risk of multiple opponents; so the basic format of boxing throws is to dump them hard but not follow down. Some of these throws are designed for that purpose, or modified to suit boxing better, or done in a safe mode so as not to go down with the opponent.The basic idea is to throw hard as this is a fight-winning move on the pavement, but not to have an arm under as the ground is met or to be tied up so the next attacker has a free shot at you.How we use traditional boxing todayThe old methods are perfect for street boxing today: the use of boxing methods for self-defence. Street defence is bareknuckle with no rules, exactly like old English boxing for hundreds of years - so the old system is perfect for the job.Today’s boxing has better footwork and a more sophisticated defence, though, so we use that. Thai boxing has some excellent short range moves - especially for lightweight fighters - and so we utilise those too; you’d be unwise not to. The power front thrust kick of Thai boxing (not the pushing kick) and the low kick are well worth practicing by a boxer - if only for defensive purposes by those who don’t like kicking: what you don’t work with will catch you out.The beauty of it is that all boxing methods integrate perfectly as they have the same engine. The breath control used for English boxing punches is exactly the same as used with the Thai knee; and they combine perfectly. A punch-knee combo goes exactly the same in every way as the punch-swing or punch-strike or punch-punch of English boxing.Old English catch wrestling is the same: boxing and wrestling are the two sides of the same coin and fit together like hand and glove.All these combine smoothly as they have the same foundation, the same motor. What you end up with is called a hybrid boxing system. When its purpose is to be useful both on the street and in the ring, it is termed a practical boxing system.Why gloved boxing is differentNow we need to look quickly at why exactly today’s gloved boxing is so different.This has two main components: (1) tactics when the hands have near-bombproof protection; and (2) facial cuts.1: Tactics with bombproof handsAs you can imagine, things are very different when the hands are well-protected by wraps and gloves.The hand wraps protect the fist more than the gloves, at contest glove weights - this is not the case with 16s, but we don’t fight with 16’s on.With wraps & gloves, any fist format can used as long as you’re reasonably careful.Punches can be thrown at a terrific rate, as targeting is not important.Bunches of punches can (and should) be fired off, so you score with something along the way. It is like suppressing fire in a platoon engagement: once in a while something connects, though mostly you’re just keeping their heads down and preventing an attack.None of that can be used in bareknuckle fighting. Punches must be carefully targeted, and power levels varied according to target and risk. Instead of machine gunning, the boxer becomes a sniper. The ‘spray & pray’ method of gloved boxing contrasts with the careful targeting of bareknuckle fighting.2: The cuts and swells of bareknuckle boxingThe old time fights resulted in a lot of facial damage, and you can see echoes of this in modern MMA due to the skinny, hard gloves. So, a boxer could tactically close the opponent’s eyes, bust their nose, and tear the flesh above the eyes or at the lips. This interfered with ability to see and breathe, therefore to fight, and led into an effective endgame. If the opponent can be handicapped, the end comes faster.When the gloves came in, all that was finished. You could no longer force the opponent to quit because he couldn’t see or breathe.Then one day a revelation occurred - someone discovered that if you screwed the fist after you hit, you could get cuts even with a glove on. The glove leather would stick to and tear the flesh if driven in hard then twisted at the same time.After that (around the 1920s I believe, since at 1915 they still used vertical fist shots even with the gloves on), the habit of twisting the punch at the end spread. By the 1950s it was universal.The strange thing is that after a few decades nobody could remember why it was done - it just was. Nobody knew, after a time, that the only reason the fist is twisted at the end of a straight punch to the face is to get the cuts.Some of the funniest things you will read are from people who have no idea about any of the history or reasons for the way things are done, and come out with gems such as “It has more snap to it”; or, “It has more power”; or, “It is stronger”; or “It has more reach”; or, “It engages the pecs and lats more”, or “I can cover my chin with a raised shoulder”. The last one is a gem as it means the boxer must be some kind of hunchback puncher, always defending with a punching arm. They say, “The fist must be turned over at the end as that is the right way to do it”, or “It is safer and better”, or “It has more power if you turn it over”, or “It is harder”. This may be true with gloves on, although the difference is marginal - at least you can get cuts - but it is completely untrue with no gloves. Indeed it is just plain wrong on all counts.Screwing it is just for the cuts. No other reason. The horizontal fist straight punch is no more powerful than the vertical fist punch; it has no more power or effect or ‘snap’ or reach or anything else. But you can get a big LOL from listening to folks talking this way.There are some places a screw punch is superior: (a) to the body: the power transfer is better into a deep, soft target using the screw punch; (b) some atypical punches such as the reaching punch (the half-jump punch off the right, snapping it in high over the guard; and (c) for a defensive straight shot down the middle, you can hunch the shoulder up more easily and hide the jaw behind it to protect against a hook. But this ‘hunchback punching’ style is not going to be a major feature of anyone’s game; it’s hard to think of any successful boxer who does this as a matter of course. It will play OK with the left hand in Philly shell, but that strategy is a disaster in any fight except under modern strict boxing rules.Unless you are a pro boxer and it’s your livelihood, it makes no sense to train only the modern sport version and then use it for self-defence when needed. It’s better to train the old combat version as it works fine in the ring if you just drop 90% of the fighting moves from the old system and only punch. That turns out to be easy for boxers who train in the full system, because modern sport boxing is so limited that they can easily treat it as a separate contest format. It turns out to be easy to train in full combat boxing of the old style and then compete in modern boxing (just punch, and nothing else) or Thai boxing: in full open-rules Thai boxing, much of old English boxing is allowed - so it is a really good ruleset to compete under, for traditional-style boxers.The Thai rules are easiest to adapt to, as in its true form, most of old boxing is allowed: punch, strike, grapple, hit short, throw. In provincial Thai boxing, no adaptation at all is required: the Thai rules allow all of old boxing technique. Localised versions of the Thai rules are more difficult to adapt to as they ban odd parts such as some throws or strikes; but it’s worth trying to adapt as the muay Thai contest format is the only stand-up ruleset where we can use all/most of the old English boxing technique.MMA is also good but the fighter ideally needs to be a ground-based wrestler as many boxing defences against a wrestling attack are banned, leading to a strong bias toward mat wrestling (and wall grinding, which doesn’t exist in any real-world fight: the rules protect the grinder). Old English boxing, as a fighting method, never prioritised for ground wrestling (you can’t fight on the ground against multiple attackers or armed attackers).Fist shapesIt is a bad idea to use the modern fist shape for street defence - one mistake in timing and it’s goodbye hand, hello hospital. I call it 1950s boxing as it encapsulates all that was so grotesquely second-rate in that era.There’s not even any need to screw the fist in the ring, never mind on the street. The longest KO I’ve seen in the ring in 50 years came from one of our guys getting a full-power vertical fist cross on some poor sod’s chin. This was with an 8 ounce glove on. He was out cold for several minutes and we began to think he was dead. They got him moving around in the end, and he was carried off. There was some relief all round, there. A night in hospital no doubt.There is no power drop from using a vertical fist. Neither does the range reduce, or the ‘snap’ decrease, or anything else. It is in fact a simpler punch as the elbow stays down all the way, out & back - and this means form is always perfect, the punch is always piston-straight, and with no power leak-off due to elbow flare (early elbow rise to the side) as often seen in the horizontal fist (HF) straight punch. The HF punch is more complicated, which often seems ‘better’ to the user; like a double spin jump kick perhaps - it feels great. ‘Feels better’ does not equal ‘is better’.It isn’t better in any way, it just feels like it’s better; and there is no substance to that - it is a false superiority that does not stand up to any hard test.A bit more on fist alignmentBecause the vertical fist straight punch is fundamentally simpler, it then becomes easier to improve all sorts of other factors that can increase power and speed, instead of having to spend time on correcting the bad form so commonly inherent in straight punches delivered to the head from a high guard when using the twist punch. The coach often has to spend a ton of time reducing the elbow flare that leaks power off.When my gym changed over to vertical fist straight punches to the head, around 1980, this was a huge source of relief for me: a coach wastes hours trying to reduce elbow flare in straight punches to the head with the horizontal fist. It’s soul-destroying. But go to vertical-fist straights and that problem disappears - now you can concentrate on snap or power, ranging or inertia, and so many things more valuable to a punch’s effect than having to continually deal with that pervasive elbow flare problem.Exploiting potential power gainsWhen the VF straight punch is used with palm-down hooks, there are additional gains that can be explored. We soon came to the conclusion that Broughton was no fool, when first exploring this complete reversal of 1950s boxing technique back around 1980. It worked so well in so many ways we switched over to it 100%: vertical fist on straight punches to the head, horizontal fist for hooks to the head (and extremely well-targeted). Body punches have a different class of effect and so are best discussed as a separate case.Try it yourself on the bag with a simple jab-hook off the left: the regular method today is with a horizontal fist jab (so the left elbow is up) - vertical fist left hook (elbow still up). See how this jab - left hook feels on the bag. That is the modern boxing method (or 1950s boxing to be more accurate).Now change to the opposite fist alignments on both punches: left snap jab vertical fist - left hook horizontal fist. This is the old bareknuckle format. The elbow will be down in the first punch, then rise in the second. Almost everyone hits harder using this method - the hook has increased power.Just make sure to target the hits well when boxing in the real world - power shots need to be low on the face for bareknuckle use.…………..I hope you enjoyed this intro to traditional boxing. Thanks to the guys for posing these photos: Alex, Tyler and Aslan.

I've always found I work hardest with a goal in mind. A deadline.At the start of 2015, I had recently got a girlfriend and had gained some weight. I decided I wanted to get lean. So I signed up to compete in a physique competition with one of my best friends. I had three months to get ready to walk on stage.Here's a before and after shot. The tan is most definitely fake.So you may be thinking, “3 months? That's ridiculous.” You're right.I'm not special, so how did I do it?As Will Smith says,I agree with the first half of that statement. But not as much with the second, I value sleep. But I didn't get shredded enough to walk on stage by sleeping. And working hard as an answer is a cop out. Everyone knows to go through anything transformational requires hard work.I can't teach you how to work hard, that's something you'll have to master yourself.What I can do though, is run you through EXACTLY what I did over those 92 days of competition prep.1. Sign UpThis is often overlooked when considering trying to lose weight. To me, this is one of the most important parts and why I'm putting it first.For me, signing up was registering and paying for the competition. I entered in two divisions, paid my fees and had a final date in mind.For you, signing up may be some sort of challenge, it could be the fact you want to run in the fun run coming up later in the year, it may well be a competition like me.It could be anything. Whatever it is. Be specific. Be really specific.Just saying, "I want to lose weight." is not good enough. It's too easy to stray away from. It's equivalent to, "I want to be a millionaire."Cool goal, but how, when, why?Frame it in a way you can keep working towards. Pick a goal weight, a goal number, a goal date, a goal dress size, whatever it is be specific. Pick a date, write it on your wall, post it in your bathroom, above your scale.In my case, my goal was to "Today is February 22, 2015, I, Daniel Bourke, will get lean enough to stand on stage in a fitness model competition by 25/05/17."I had no choice. The competition date wasn't going to move. It was the 25th May. Not the 26th, not the 24th, the 25th.This will put you in the right mindset. This is fundamental. Now all of a sudden you're accountable. Every single day counts.Thinking of missing a day? Well you just decreased your chances of reaching your goals.So sign yourself up to something. Sign yourself up to a specific goal.2. Get a CoachAnyone who claims they're self-made, be skeptical of them. Sure, weight loss is most definitely an individual journey but why do everything yourself when you can (especially in today's world) stand on the shoulders of giants.Even Arnold, who is often referred to as self-made, strongly states that he is not a self-made man.Tools of Titans Foreword — Arnold Schwarzenegger!!! “I Am Not A Self-Made Man”I had a competition deadline and I wanted to do it right, I didn't want to just compete, I wanted to win. I had dabbled in the fitness world for a couple of years. I had even competed before. The first time, I did it all myself. Not this time.So I reached out to one of my idols, Marc Lobliner. I had been watching his videos for years and loved his approach to everything fitness.I hired him as my coach. It was probably the best decision I've ever made in my seven year fitness journey (so far).Yes, I PAID for a coach. Even though, I knew the information I needed was available online for free.Do you have to pay for a coach? No you don't. You could follow everything I'm about to write in this answer and you can do what I did (remember I'm not special). But another thing I've learned is that often, people (including me) don't take things seriously unless their paying for it.If you can't afford a coach. Become your own coach by educating yourself with the abundance of free resources online.So now, not only was I paying for the information on how to best get ready for a show. I was accountable to someone other than myself. I was accountable to Marc.So if you want to lose weight, or complete any sort of goal for that fact, I'd highly recommend getting a coach. If you can't afford one, do your research.Remember though, there's an abundance of people out there who will claim they can help you achieve your goals and sure they may be able to but ultimately it's up to you. No coach in the world will have a magic wand to help you achieve your goals.What I loved about Marc is that from the start he told me,Nothing works unless you do.It has resonated with me ever since.My advice for getting a coach?Do your research. First and foremost, don't just hire anyone. If you're going to be paying for someone to guide you through something as significant as losing weight (ultimately the knowledge they impart on you could change your life), find the right person.As I said, I had watched Marc for years, I had seen him do the things I wanted to do (get on stage).So find someone who has done what you want to achieve. If you're paying for it, try and make sure you're contacting them, not a member of their team. You want to be able to pick their brain when you can. And make sure you do.If you hire a coach, ASK THEM EVERYTHING.The goal of every good coach/teacher should be to ensure their pupils become better than them. If you're coach isn't trying to put themselves out of a job with you, you can do better.In person coaching is best but sometimes it's not an option. Online with contact options is the next best thing.3. Put It Out ThereWhen I signed up to my first competition, I told no one. I was scared of what other people would think of me. Looking back, this was the opposite of what I should have done.The next time was different. I made it known. I told everyone.Even if people didn't ask, I would work out a way to make it known I was competing in a few months.This made me even more accountable. All of a sudden, I was no longer only accountable to myself. I had an entire network of people around me holding me accountable.I created fear myself. The fear of letting everyone down. Fear and love are the two best motivators in the world. I had both.I fell in love with the process. I made it a game with myself to see what I could achieve.So put it out there what your goals are. It'll end two ways. You'll either fail or you'll achieve what you set out to achieve.And trust me, the latter is one of the best feelings you'll ever experience.4. Track Your ProgressHumans are terrible at estimating. Even experts are terrible are estimating.We overestimate, underestimate, claim this, claim that, sometimes we may get it right but there's no arguing with numbers and evidence.Track your results. What should you track? You should track the results that are directly relevant to your goal. Your goal may be different to mine (competing on stage) but I did manage to lose a fair bit of weight in ~90 days so I'll run you through how and what I tracked.I tracked:Calorie and macronutrient intakeWorkouts (reps and weights)WeightAppearance (with progress photos)I would send a weekly email to Marc with all of these details. This is where the accountability comes into play.I'll break each of these down in seperate points.5. Progress PhotosThis a screenshot of my Prep 2015 photo album.Every week, I would take photos of my front, back and side, tensed and relaxed.Why? Because my goal was to get on stage. I needed to get lean. I needed to to look good.But there's also the fact that the scale can be deceiving. If you're working out, chances are you may be putting on muscle AND losing weight. So paying attention to the number on the scale may not be the best indicator of whether you're losing weight.Take progress photos. The changes will be minimal on a weekly basis. Fortnightly or monthly may be best for you.But these will be you reference. Photos don't lie. If you feel like you're not making progress, compare the photos from when you started to where you are now, then decide. Take action based on these.6. FoodMy philosophy with weight loss is that it is 90% food and 10% training. Obviously this not an exact science but from my experience this ratio holds true.You can never out train a bad diet.Below is a shot of what a daily food prep would look like for me.Yes, this took a lot of time. Making food takes time.I would get up early and cook food before going to university or work. I would make time to make food. There's no two ways about it.Okay, you may have 3 kids, a full time job, other commitments etc. And food prep like this is just a no go. Well invest in a meal prep service. Out source the food preparation. And yes, I know eating healthier costs more. It shouldn't but it does. Can you really put a price on health though?If you're still going to make excuses, realise that you have to eat. You can't not eat. The leading causes of death around the world can be prevented with proper nutrition.So if you're going to eat badly, understand you'll be both lowering your chances of losing weight as well as damaging your overall health.I could spend hours talking about this but let's get back to what I actually did.The first week of my preparation, I found my baseline calorie intake. Let me run you through what this is and how you can do it starting today.A baseline calorie intake is the average amount of calories you take in on a daily basis.To work this out, I used an app called MyFitnessPal.Here are the steps:I signed into the app.I tracked everything I ate for a week.I got the average intake of my calories for the week (by adding up the total daily intake and dividing it by 7).Tracked everything? Yes. I tracked everything that I put into my mouth.You may be thinking that sounds tedious and you're right. But it got me results.I weighed all of my foods using a small digital. Below is the actual scale I used and still use.If you can't weigh your foods, use the inbuilt barcode scanner in MyFitnessPal or even the hand portion size rule.Use this to estimate what you eat and track it.Don't change what you eat for a week. Keep it the same. Just track it as if you were eating your normal diet. This is important.By doing this for a week. I knew exactly what I was eating. Remember what I said about people being bad at guessing?So now I had a starting point. Most calorie tracking apps will give you a starting point based off your height and weight and this may be fairly accurate but mine was completely different.My average daily intake was about 3100 calories. Now I could use this number and work it into the magic equation.In other words, if you burn more calories than you consume, you will lose weight.There's far more science behind it but this is weight loss in a nutshell. So to lose weight, I would have to burn more calories than I consumed.The body requires a lot of energy to stay up and running as it is. So by lowering my calorie intake, slowly, as well as burning a few extra working out, in theory, I should lose weight.At the start of the prep I was eating around 3100 calories per day, by the end, I was eating about 1600 calories per day.I was hungry all the time. It was hard. But if it was easy, everyone would be shredded with abs.Each week my calories were lowered by 100-200. This is where Marc came in. His keen eye and experience was guiding me through the process.Throughout the entire process I was burning more calories than I was consuming and in turn, losing weight.What did I eat?Anything, but mostly whole foods. 90% single ingredient foods and 10% processed foods.My main protein sources were:Lean meatsWhey proteinEggsEgg whitesMy main carbohydrate sources were:Sweet potatoOther PotatoesRiceOatsFruitVegetablesMy main fat sources were:OilsNutsRather than a strict meal based diet plan, I was following a modified version of the dieting style IIFYM (if it fits your macros).This means, no food was off limits as long as it fit within my macronutrient goals. But it wasn’t an excuse to eat poor quality foods.For example, if my total calorie intake for a day was meant to be 3100 calories. My macronutrient goals for the day may look like:180g protein (4 calories per gram of protein = 720 calories)370g carbohydrates (4 calories per gram of carbohydrate = 1480 calories)100g fats (9 calories per gram of fat = 900 calories)This means, I could eat anything (within reason) that would fit within those ranges.Each day of eating was similar though because prepping meals in bulk is easier than cooking every single day.Tracking your food is hard. But it gives you an idea of what you're eating on a daily basis.If you think you're food is plain and boring, you're probably doing it right. It will take a while for your body to adjust to eating in a different way. There are bacteria in your gut which enjoy the foods you most eat, so when you change it, they get angry and start to cause you to crave those foods.How The Bacteria In Our Gut Affect Our Cravings For FoodIt takes a few a months to adjust these bacteria to get used to certain foods. I've eaten in a certain way for long enough that I no longer crave foods high in sugar, or damaged fats (usually these are the worst, but do your own research as to what foods you feel you should eat).What should you eat? There's arguments for and against for almost every kind of diet. My advice, eat what's sustainable for you. My favourite resource for nutrition information at the moment is, NutritionFacts.org.In my opinion, the best diet in seven words is, eat food (whole foods), not too much, mostly plants. But this can be interpreted in many different ways so find what suits you best, track it, start understanding the quantities and adjust your intake to your goals.7. TrainingNotice how I put training at number 7? Most people start with training as number 1.Looking back at my journey, this was the easiest part.I was training 4-6 times per week, including additional cardio sessions towards the end of the prep.During the three months, this probably changed the least. I was already training at least 4-6 times per week (without cardio) and I still currently train at least 4-6 times per week.A typical week of training at the start of the prep might have looked like this:Monday - Chest DayTuesday - Back DayWednesday - Leg DayThursday - Rest DayFriday - Shoulders and ArmsSaturday - Whole BodySunday - RestBy the end of the prep the training days weren't much different, the only difference was the added cardio sessions.So the week would've looked like:Monday - Chest Day + 20 mins walking on treadmill inclineTuesday - Back Day + 4 mins of TABATA trainingWednesday - Leg DayThursday - Rest Day + 30 minute walkFriday - Shoulders and Arms + 11 mins of HIIT trainingSaturday - Whole Body + 4 mins of TABATA trainingSunday - Rest + 20 mins walking on treadmill machineThe extra cardio was to the increase the amount of calories I was burning on a daily basis.What did I track for training?My training mainly involved weightlifting. So I was tracking the number of reps, sets and weights I was doing every session. With every new session, I would try to beat my previous records in some small way. Many consecutive small steps add up.I had this training schedule in my calendar. I knew ahead of time what I would be training, whether or not I needed to do cardio and because of my tracking I knew what my goals would be for each session.The best app I've found for tracking weight sessions is Strong.Or a simple notebook will suffice.8. WeightIn terms of tracking, this was my lowest priority. Getting on stage didn't mean weighing in at a certain weight. My goal was to look lean and muscular.I started the prep at 88kg and got on stage at 71kg.This is what I ended up looking like on stage.I weighed in every morning, naked, after going to the toilet. I average about a ~100g weight loss per day. But this weight loss wasn't a goal, the idea was that if I was losing weight, I should be getting leaner which was the goal.If I lost too much weight, I'd end up losing the muscle I worked so hard to build.Progress pictures were more important to me than numbers on the scale. I was more worried about the look than what I was weighing.How did I keep the weight loss up?If my weight stayed the same for a consecutive number of days (didn't go down) or went up, my daily calorie intake would be lowered slightly.What would this look like? Here's an example:22/02/15 - Weight: 88.0kg, Calories: 310028/02/15 - Weight: 87.0kg, Calories: 300001/03/15 - Weight: 87.1kg, Calories: 300002/03/15 - Weight: 87.0kg, Calories: 290009/03/15 - Weight: 86.5kg, Calories: 280010/03/15 - Weight: 86.5kg, Calories: 280011/03/15 - Weight: 86.5kg, Calories: 280012/03/15 - Weight 86.5kg, Calories: 270013/03/15 - Weight 86.4kg, Calories: 270014/03/15 - Weight 86.3kg, Calories: 2700This process repeated until the end of prep where as previously mentioned I ended at about ~1600 daily calories and ~71kg.I've created a tracking template you can use for free on Google Docs, feel free to make yourself a copy. I used one exactly like it for my prep and I use the exact same one for my clients.[NAME] Macro and Weight Tracking Document [TEMPLATE]9. RestPreparing for a competition is a real test. Looking back, I didn't rest enough. I continually put myself in situations where I could've suffered a serious injury.I was sacrificing proper sleep to make sure my food was prepared and I had done morning cardio sessions.Now I treat sleep as being sacred. My goal is 8 hours per night. Some people need more, some people need less.Find what you need and get it. No excuses.Don't overwork yourself. You're weight loss goals will be impeded if you're injured or worse, be completely undone.If you have a choice of getting a proper nights sleep or getting up early to fit a workout into your schedule. Get the proper nights sleep and do a shorter more intense workout instead. The sleep is worth it. There's studies promoting both sides, my experience favours the sleep side but everyone is different.That's not to say don't workout. If you really want to improve your health/workout. Proper rest, proper workouts and eating well should be priorities.10. Getting Back to RealityFor 12 weeks and many subsequent weeks, I was a hermit. I ate a very particular way, I trained practically every day, without excuses and I was studying full time/working 30+ hours a week.I was on a mission. I didn't eat out with my girlfriend at the time. Even at family dinners, I had my own prepped meal.My life revolved around looking as best I possibly could on stage.Living like this is not for everyone. Even after getting on stage, I continued to eat tracking my calories for months.I didn't want to undo all of the work I'd done getting lean. This is where I was lucky to have a coach. Marc strongly advised that I start reverse dieting. Essentially eating in a controlled manner until I got back to my baseline calorie intake I started at (about 3100 calories).So if it took me 12 weeks to slowly get down to 1600 calories per day, I should do the same but in reverse back towards 3100.I continually attribute this to being the most important part of my weight loss journey. The reverse is just as important, if not more important as losing weight in the first place.You see people like Oprah who lose 50 pounds in 8 weeks and then gain 100 pounds in the subsequent weeks (major over exaggeration).No hate towards Oprah, just a public example, she has been very open about her weight loss/gain journey.This is called yoyo dieting. It's what happens when you lose a drastic amount of weight over a short period and think you've made it so you go back to how you were living before the weight loss.Here's how most fad diets work:Massive immediate daily calorie reduction = rapid weight lossThis would be the equivalent of me going from a starting 3100 calories per day to 2000 calories per day. Instead of slowly going down little bits of a time, they get you to drop a massive amount in one hit and then show you before and after photos of massive weight loss.What they don't show is the after after photos.Here's a few recent photos of me:Trust me, I don’t look like this all the time. Both of these photos were taking under optimal lighting conditions.I still use selfies like the one above to track my progress.The reverse diet helps you get back to a sustainable amount of daily calorie consumption whilst staying lean.I'm now eating around 3000-3500 calories per day (I don't track anymore, this is a guesstimate after tracking for two years). I believe I'm as lean as I am now because of the work I put in during the reverse dieting phase.The reverse dieting allowed me to return to a normal way of living. No longer did I have to worry about tracking my foods or weighing them. I had built up a keen eye for knowing how much I should be eating on a daily basis.I now no longer pay for coaching. Marc embodied in me all of the knowledge I need to coach myself. But if I was to ever go for a big goal like stepping on stage again, I would definitely consider hiring a coach.I didn't win any prizes for stepping on stage but the fulfilment of accomplishing a goal I set out to complete was far better than any prizes that were on offer.Summary1. Sign UpSign up to a goal. Don't have a competition to get ready for like I did? Create your own goal. Be sure to make to specific.2. Get a CoachIf you want to get serious. Pay for a coach. The right coach, find someone who has done what you want to do. Do your research right and the value you will get from them will be worth far more than the price you pay.If you can't afford a coach, become your own coach by educating yourself. Read books, watch YouTube. The information is out there.3. Put It Out ThereMake yourself accountable. Create a fear of letting others down. Fear is an incredible motivator. You're more likely to let yourself down than you are others.If you fail, who cares? At least you tried. Try again. If you succeed, it's the best feeling in the world.4. Track Your ProgressMake your results concrete. Measure your success in relation to your goal.5. Progress PhotosIf your goal is weight loss and you're working out, you may be gaining muscle and losing fat at the same time. So take progress photos. If the scale isn't moving, refer to these as evidence of your progress.6. FoodTrack your food. As I mentioned, for me this is 90% of weight loss. You can never out train a bad diet.7. TrainingThis is a small piece of the puzzle. Your body burns enough calories just staying alive. If you do it right, you can lose weight without training at all but I wouldn't suggest this.Train in a way that moves you closer towards your goals.8. WeightThe whole point of this question was weight loss but I put this at point number 8. There's much more to losing weight than just a number on the scale. Work on the above and this one will happen automatically.9. RestSleep well, and don't overtrain yourself especially if you're new to training.10. Getting Back to RealityJust because you've lost a lot of weight, doesn't mean you're finished. There is no finish line. Staying healthy and keeping the weight off is a perpetual journey.Be skeptical of any diet which promises extreme results in a short amount of time. The best diet shouldn't even be referred to as a diet. It should be a sustainable way of life.Final NoteI hope this helps in some way. I tried to impart as much as my story as possible. Remember, my goal of getting on stage may be completely different to yours. However, I did end up losing a fair amount of weight and have kept it off ever since using the exact steps I mentioned above.If you're looking for more help, my email address is [email protected]. I respond to ALL emails (if I take too long, email me again).I also offer fitness coaching services if you're interested in learning more but if I'm honest, what I've put above is more than enough to get started.Whatever your goal and journey, I wish you all the best.