Friday, 27 December 2013
Post Boxing Day Open Mat Session
Most of the Christmas calories were burnt today after 7 - 8, five minute rounds of No-Gi and Gi BJJ sessions, thanks to Excel trainees and friends from other clubs.
The Transformation of the New Club
Our new club began in an empty warehouse and was converted to what it is now in a very short period.
A brand new set of floor mats were added to more than 100sqm of area to increase the number of pairs on the floor on a busy day
The Octagon for MMA and fully equipped fitness training equipments were added later on - the gym is free for all members to train and keep their fitness levels up.
The training nonetheless goes on amidst all chaos!
The weight training area with more than what you can lift
Lots of training gears
 | |||
| The first few moments |
A brand new set of floor mats were added to more than 100sqm of area to increase the number of pairs on the floor on a busy day
Rob Toman - The Dedicated Trainer
Rob is a 3rd degree Black Belt in freestyle
Jiu Jitsu and a Brown Belt (with two decades of experience) in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under Julio César.
Rob started his martial art training in 1988 in
traditional
style fighting. By 1996 he started to realise that real
fighting required
more than what traditional, one dimensional, styles offered. Rob got involved in kickboxing and fought in a few amateur
fights but shortly after this he saw the early UFC fights.
A friend living in Newcastle, whom Rob had been training with, told him about Brazilian Jiu Jitsu BJJ) and his interest in grappling started. Rob started added elements of kickboxing and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and started Excel Combat Academy with the aim of teaching realistic fighting; this soon became to known as MMA
At the time when Excel Combat Academy was found, BJJ was relatively unknown in Australia, and there were only a handful of schools that offered training in it. Rob attended the occasional seminars or classes but, due to his teaching commitments, and the lack of local BJJ training, he found it hard to get any regular formal training. Rob then became involved with a Ju Jitsu (traditional Japanese Ju Jitsu) club, and represented the Australian team in the Ju Jitsu World Championships held in Leeds, England in 2000.
Immediately after the World Ju Jitsu Championship, Rob travelled to Brazil for the first time and joined a small club in Rio de Janeiro and then went to Belo Horizonte to train almost for a month. At Belo Horizonte Rob trained at the Gracie Barra Belo Horizonte school.
"After returning to Australia, Rob continued teaching, and started incorporating BJJ into his curriculum. He still couldn’t find a local club to train and used what he learned in seminars, the training in Brazil, or techniques he saw in books. In 2002 however, Rob attended another seminar held by a visiting Brazilian, where he met Paulo Guimaraes; he started training with Paulo and immediately noticed the advantages of having a quality Instructor and good training partners. In 2004 Paulo Guimaraes awarded Rob with a blue belt, and in the same year he won the NSW and national titles; He finished second at the Pan Pac in Melbourne.
Rob competed at the BJJ World Cup held in Salvador and was placed 2nd. During this this trip he stayed in Aracaju for 5 weeks and trained with Prof. André Almeida, 4 time State, 3 time National and a World Champion; André was a part of the Marcus Bello team. Rob travelled to Brazil for a 3rd time in 2006, and spent 6 months in Salvador. He trained with Alex Cintra this time and was awarded the purple belt. Rob returned to Brazil once again in 2007-08 and trained with the Brazilian Top Team; he got the chance to roll with Rousimar "Toquinho" Palhares on a daily basis; Toquinho has since signed a contract with the UFC and has become a legend with his unbelievable BJJ skills.
In 2009 Rob returned to Rio and this time he trained with black belt Isaac Araujo. Isaac linked him with Julio César the founding member and main instructor of the world famous GF Team. Rob trained with Julio and was awarded his Brown Belt.
Rob's goal has always been to start his own school
to teach effective and realistic fighting. This led him to
BJJ which he believes is a must, because almost all street fights end
up on the
ground. In the 90's UFC Royce Gracie proved that a fighter with no ground skills could not survive and can easily be
beaten. MMA game has developed enormously and BJJ
doesn’t
appear to enjoy the same dominance it had in the early
days purely due to the fact
that all top level fighters are well trained in BJJ.
This is what Rob has to say: "My personal philosophy regarding BJJ training is highlighted in the feedback I have had from training partners in Brazil. I have gone from an inexperienced fighter using tons of strength, to a fighter who values technique over strength. I think this is the secret of BJJ. It’s always been an art where smaller, weaker fighters are able to beat larger, stronger, less skilled fighters. My approach is to try to out-think my opponent and set up techniques they don’t expect. Mostly though, I believe that while “fancy” techniques are great, and a lot of fun, strong basics are the key to success."
A friend living in Newcastle, whom Rob had been training with, told him about Brazilian Jiu Jitsu BJJ) and his interest in grappling started. Rob started added elements of kickboxing and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and started Excel Combat Academy with the aim of teaching realistic fighting; this soon became to known as MMA
At the time when Excel Combat Academy was found, BJJ was relatively unknown in Australia, and there were only a handful of schools that offered training in it. Rob attended the occasional seminars or classes but, due to his teaching commitments, and the lack of local BJJ training, he found it hard to get any regular formal training. Rob then became involved with a Ju Jitsu (traditional Japanese Ju Jitsu) club, and represented the Australian team in the Ju Jitsu World Championships held in Leeds, England in 2000.
Immediately after the World Ju Jitsu Championship, Rob travelled to Brazil for the first time and joined a small club in Rio de Janeiro and then went to Belo Horizonte to train almost for a month. At Belo Horizonte Rob trained at the Gracie Barra Belo Horizonte school.
"After returning to Australia, Rob continued teaching, and started incorporating BJJ into his curriculum. He still couldn’t find a local club to train and used what he learned in seminars, the training in Brazil, or techniques he saw in books. In 2002 however, Rob attended another seminar held by a visiting Brazilian, where he met Paulo Guimaraes; he started training with Paulo and immediately noticed the advantages of having a quality Instructor and good training partners. In 2004 Paulo Guimaraes awarded Rob with a blue belt, and in the same year he won the NSW and national titles; He finished second at the Pan Pac in Melbourne.
Rob competed at the BJJ World Cup held in Salvador and was placed 2nd. During this this trip he stayed in Aracaju for 5 weeks and trained with Prof. André Almeida, 4 time State, 3 time National and a World Champion; André was a part of the Marcus Bello team. Rob travelled to Brazil for a 3rd time in 2006, and spent 6 months in Salvador. He trained with Alex Cintra this time and was awarded the purple belt. Rob returned to Brazil once again in 2007-08 and trained with the Brazilian Top Team; he got the chance to roll with Rousimar "Toquinho" Palhares on a daily basis; Toquinho has since signed a contract with the UFC and has become a legend with his unbelievable BJJ skills.
 |
| Rob with UFC legend Toquinho |
In 2009 Rob returned to Rio and this time he trained with black belt Isaac Araujo. Isaac linked him with Julio César the founding member and main instructor of the world famous GF Team. Rob trained with Julio and was awarded his Brown Belt.
 |
| Rob with Julio César in Brazil |
 | |||
| Rob with his students |
This is what Rob has to say: "My personal philosophy regarding BJJ training is highlighted in the feedback I have had from training partners in Brazil. I have gone from an inexperienced fighter using tons of strength, to a fighter who values technique over strength. I think this is the secret of BJJ. It’s always been an art where smaller, weaker fighters are able to beat larger, stronger, less skilled fighters. My approach is to try to out-think my opponent and set up techniques they don’t expect. Mostly though, I believe that while “fancy” techniques are great, and a lot of fun, strong basics are the key to success."
A rough guide to Gi Kimono Sizes
| Male Gi Sizes | Weight | Weight | Height | Height |
| A1 | 50 - 65 kg | 110 - 143 lbs | 158 - 167 cm | 5'2" - 5'5" |
| A2 | 65 - 80 kg | 143 - 176 lbs | 167 - 179 cm | 5'5" - 5'9" |
| A3 | 80 - 95 kg | 176 - 209 lbs | 179 - 185 cm | 5'9" - 6'1" |
| A4 | 95 - 115 kg | 209 - 253 lbs | 185 - 195 cm | 6'1" - 6'4" |
| A4 (Long) | 95 - 110 kg | 210 - 240 lbs | 195 - 207 cm | 6'3" - 6'8" |
| A5 | 110 - 125 kg | 240 - 275 lbs | 185 - 195 cm | 6'1" - 6'4" |
| A6 | 115 - 140 kg | 253 - 308 lbs | 188 - 202 cm | 6'2" - 6'6" |
Sunday, 22 December 2013
The Brand New World Class Gym - Opened
The long awaited Excel Combat Academy's brand new venue was opened on
the 14 December 2013 in the presence of members, families and new
starters. The club now is in par with most world class gyms across the
world. Several square meters of brand new soft mat area gives ample
space to train Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ), Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) and
Muay Thai Boxing. A new Octagon and a huge array of fitness training
(more than a tonne of weights) will take the trainee to a whole new
level.
The club is probably the best fight training club for beginners in the whole of NSW.
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