Capoeira-Basics.pdf

Capoeira Basics Let me tell you that I am just a beginner in the art of Capoeira; I've been studying for half a year so far and maybe the whole section is utter crap in the eyes of an experienced Capoeirista. This page is designed for newbies who want a brief insight, it's nowhere intended to be some sort of reference material. Nevertheless I would appreciate any feedback on this particular  section; come on, let me know!

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In Capoeira you don't try to beat the shit out of your opponent. The other one is not your enemy, he is your friend, and both of you try to keep the game going. Therefore no bleeding noses please.  No active blocking in Capoeira; instead try to be evasive. When the pace of the game increases, get some distance between yourself and your fellow (at least in Regional). Don't be predictable. That may sound hackneyed, but since Malandragem (dirty tricks) is accepted and widely welcomed among Capoeiristas, you can easily get tricked into some serious trouble. Be creative and let the music take controhoholl.

Ginga: the most basic movement of Capoeira. Instead of taking a fixed stance, you have to keep moving all the time; all the t he other moves derrive from this dance-like pattern. p attern. Ginga  becomes soon second nature and provides great potential for unpredictable unpredictable 3D movement and fake attacks. Handstand : practice practice practice! It's very stylish and part of many defensive/offensive movements. If you never ever tried it, start with swinging up at a wall. Don't look at your  hands, keep your eyes on the opposite wall instead. Once you get the feeling for it, try a handstand without support. If you are about to topple over, lift one hand and find your balance again. Occasionally that won't work; then try tr y to roll over or -even better- lift lif t one palm, use your other hand as a pivot and gently step down in the opposite direction.(example: lift your  left hand, turn clockwise for 180 degrees, put it down again, lower one leg, touch the ground, lower the other leg, get up and always keep smi ling:). No problem you say? Then try to... • • • • • • • • • • • • •

get up into handstand from a squatting position. get up into handstand from a cartwheel. get up into handstand from a headstand. get up into handstand from a macaco. get up into handstand with a 180 deg turn. combine the above. walk on your hands. Forwards (where the heels are) i s easier than backwards. clap your feet to the rhythm of the Berimbau. Straddle your legs both back and forth and left and right. Straddle your legs and twist your hips for 90 degrees. go into handstand and squat with your legs in the air. stretch your legs into an angle with your body (big inverted "L"). stand on one hand.

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spin on one hand (e.g. starting from a one-handed Compassa). combine the above. get down into a headstand. get down into a Queda de Rins. get down with a handspring.

Queda de Rins: "stand on the kidneys". Begin as if you wanted to go into a headstand; crouch. Turn both your knees that they face your right elbow. Shift your weight over your left hand, then lower your head. Place the area above your left hip on your left elbow and let the left side of your head touch the ground. Slowly raise your legs and put your right knee at your  right elbow to a rest. Both legs are now drawn up. The picture on the right shows an example of  how the Queda de Rins can be put to good use in Capoeira. In the image we start from a Queda de Tres but you can enter the QDR from  Negativa, jumping in etc. as well. Drop down to one side but keep your body up by touching the ground with one hand and sticking the elbow into the flank of your body. Feels awkward at first  because you have to twist your arm somewhat, better get used to that. Now lower your body further, stretch your free hand over your head and put it down as well. Then let your head touch the ground on its side; put it on the imaginary line between your two hands (Normally you need not put everything in a straight line but for this trick it makes getting up much easier). Your weight rests mainly over your support arm (the one that rams into your side) at this point. Time to get up again: Lift one leg (dia gram: right leg) and move it in a straight arc over your torso. The other legs follows as well but concentrate on the first one for now. Get this first leg over your head and try to let its foot touch the ground on the extended line that goes through your hands. Stretch out your aching arm (image:left one) again, thus pushing yourself up (6th frame). This takes some muscular effort- later on when you get down the  balance and perform the move with schwing it gets much easier. When your head's off the floor, push with both hands and get straight up.

Au: the cartwheel. Immensely important in Capoeira. Use it for a quick retreat or lure your partner into a trap. •

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Common Au: I assume everyone knows how to do this. In Capoeira remember to keep eye contact with your   partner; don't ever look at your hands. At first, don't stay too long on both of your hands; try to have only one hand at a t ime on the ground. Later on you can try to delay the movement or even to freez e in handstand  position. Always be prepared to get knocked down by a Cabecada or Bênção. Small Au: Not so flashy but much more safe. Put your hands further apart, move your  head closer to the ground, keep your knees bent and work strongly with your hips to shift your body's center of gravity over your head. Au with spin: Start an Au to your left side until you reach handstand position. There take off your left hand and spin on your right hand in clockwise direct ion. After  turning ~270 degrees, go down as shown in the diagramm. This is a cute st yle move that leaves you open for a brief moment, so tr y to do it quickly (It shouldn't take more time than an ordinary cartwheel). Au into Queda de Rins roll: Do an Au. When you pass through the handstand position, drop down into a Queda de Rins and roll over. You will end up in negativa positi on. If  you like to watch the difficult part of the exercise, take a look at m y private homepage. In the upper right-hand corner you can see a 'Mac aco into Queda de Rins roll' animation.

Au Malandro: I really love this one. If you attempt a cartwheel and your roguish  partner goes for the Cabecada (headbutt into your stomach), BAFF- he'll get punished by your lightning-fast legs. To pull off, grab the ground with one hand and jump. Now you twist your chest slightly upwards and do the jacknife movement with the upper leg. At the begin it's easier to keep the other leg bent; later on, you can try to keep it stretched. Now simply go down forwards or sidewards. Experiment with hitting above your head and to your front, try out various angles between your legs (striking with two legs, doing the splits etc). If all that poses no problem to you, continue the movement to a handstand, do an Au Malandro in the opposite direction and go down there. Voila,a Capoeira cartwheel.

This is a really tricky movement. For training purposes I suggest you get yourself a partner who can give you support. Face your friend ; both of you should grab each others arm (see pic: right arm to right arm). Now start as if you tried an Au (cartwheel). Once you are 'airborne', twist your body a little bit upwards.. fold your first l eg towards your face and don't worry about the other one at first. If you keep a firm grip on your partner's forearm (and vice versa), you can train this move with great efficiency. I strongly recommend (as for all other movements too) practising the move in both directions.

Cocorinha: A way of avoiding circular kicks at a close distance. You duck below the kick and lift the arm on the side the kick comes from, thus protecting your head (Lift it higher than the man on the right!). The other  hand touches the ground and gives you balance. Make sure your entire soles have contact with the floor; else you could easily be pushed over. And keep eye-contact.

Queda de Tres: While the Cocorinha is employed mainly in Regional, Angoleiros favor the Queda de Tres instead. You crouch on your toes and put one hand diagonally behind for   better balance. Unlike the Cocorinha, the Queda de Tres requires you to turn your body away from the partner a little  bit (the scribble on the right shows the move viewed from the front). The remaining hand protects the head from kicks that come from the side which are more likely to occur in Capoeira Angola than in Capoeira Regional. You can shift your weight over your supporting hand and lean away from the other  Jogador if he comes too close; or you can go into Queda de Rins, Tesoura Angola, Negativa, Rolê to to keep the game flow smooth.

Queda de Quatro: The Queda de Quatro is a way of dodging kicks and typical for Capoeira Angola. Let's assume your partner launches a Rabo de Arraia at you and you decide to evade with a Queda de Tres (described above). You go along with the kick when your friend suddenly changes legs and performs the Rabo de Arraia in the opposite direction, aiming direct ly at your face. To perform the Qdea de Quatro you glide gracefully backwards onto your hands (coming from the Queda de Tres) and walk away on your hands until your legs are stretched. From there on you can do the Rolê, cross your stretched legs and attack with a Rabo de Arraia, move forward again and ca refully get up etc. Always remember that you may never touch the floor with your bottom.

Negativa (Stance): Very important because of the vast range of  follow ups; you can rolê away, go into Au/Head/ Handstand, do a Macaco, attack with an S-Dobrado, Martelo or Mei a Lua de Compasso, change orientation, retreat, close in,... Basically it's a way of avoiding kicks (see Cocorinha) but can be done for its own sake as well. You can drop into the Negativa from t he Ginga, from an Au, a Queda de Rins, whatever, just keep it fluid. You have one leg bent and your  weight should be balanced on its football. The other leg is stretched (or only little bent), with the toes pointing to the side. That's for reasons of safety, because if someone kicks at or falls onto your knee with your foot pointing upwards your leg could get broken in a very nasty way.. Gain better balance by touching the ground with the one hand on the side of your  stretched leg. The other leg can protect the head if necessary. This kind of the Negativa is fundamental to Capoeira play in general. However, there's a variant that is used exclusively in Capoeira Angola... •

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The Negativa Angola shows all trademarks of a classic Angola: you are bent really deep down, both feet and  both hands touch the ground  but everything else floats closely above. Coming from the Ginga you step parallel and move down, similar to the Cocorinha (feet are a bit further apart). Now 'flow' to one side, in the direction the incoming kick goes. Shortly  before your head touches the floor you have stop the movement and remain in this position. Your one hand gives support in front of your chest, the other hand behind your back. Looks like a pushup where you have your body twisted to one side. The leg on the upper side is s tretched, the other leg is bent. Try to touch the floor only with both of your hands and your feet,  but do it as deep as possible. To come back into Ginga, do everthing in the opposite direction. When you're down in the Negativa Angola and your partner is standing rather cl ose to you, exchange the position of your feet. This is a great se tup for a Rabo de Arraia (Meia Lua de Compasso with both hands on the ground). Scroll down to the rolê or the Meia Lua de Compasso to see how the movement continues after the the third image. The lower leg of your bent leg travels forward so your leg gets stretched. From here on you have all the rolê move variations at your disposal, look up the item below for  reference.  Negativa Angola into Headstand-Au. If you are down in the Negativa, pull yourself a little forward with your hands. Put your head in upright position down on the floor (strain on neck). Now try to push/pull yourself over into headstand and get down on the other side; it should resemble a very deep Au with the head on the ground. Try to do it very slowly in training so you learn to control it better.

Rolê: This 'rolling' motion is -together  with the Ginga and the Au- the basic method of moving around in the Roda. The diagramm to the right shows the Rolê from the Negativa into the Ginga. Start from the Negativa. Lean to the side you're going to rolê to (image: left, always the side with the stretched leg) and shift your weight a little forwards. Push yourself up by stretching your bent leg while rotating along the axi s of your  left leg until your chest faces the ground. Left hand gives support. Now put your other hand on the floor and swing your right leg around; look through between your legs to keep your   partner within your field of vision. Finally take off your left leg and swing it around as well; rotate for 180 degrees and put it down behind. Better keep your upper body low until you finished the rolê, else you could eat an Armada. Keep your eyes fixed at your partner for the entire movement; when your body is facing away, let your head hang down. P.S. You need not rolê into the Ginga stance. It's perfec tly right to rolê closer to the ground into Negativa position again. Here we have the Rolê combined with the Martelo. Easy and useful. Just stand up from the Negativa  but keep your hand on the ground. This creates tension around the hips on the side of your rear leg. If you now take off your rear leg, it should soar through the air; hit with the instep and put it down after rotating 180 degrees. Continue the Rolê movement as described above. To put it in other words: do the Rolê but lift your rear leg a little higher and keep it stretched when turning. If you do the same movement with  jumping off, it's called S-Dobrado. This is basically an ordinary Rolê but with a Meia Lua de Compasso tossed in. Easier to do if you are further away, so you can role towards your partner  instead of escaping him. Just think of a Rolê where you strike with the heel of the leg that was stretched in the Negativa. Here's the description for the proper execution of a Meia Lua de Compasso.

Chapa de Costas: Move of Capoeira Angola. Do it of the Role, Queda de Rins, from the Rabo de Arraia etc. Aim for the groin or head. If the other  one is far off, don't simply strech your  leg but work with your arms and standing leg as well to achieve a long range.

Negativa (Takedown): By employing the Negativa you can elude your partner's kick as well as let him kiss the ground. Simply bend one knee and dive away in the direction the kick  goes. Make sure you upper   body half is really deep down; your bent knee should be the highest part of your body. Slide with your other leg behind your  opponent's pivot leg and hook in there. When the kick has passed by, shift your weight over  your hands and jump into straddle position; the hands remain on the floor. If you did it right, you pulled away your partner's foot and sent him down.

Meia Lua de Frente: Coming from the Ginga you lift your rear/relieved leg and move it in a half  circle motion. To maintain  balance move your arms in the opposite direction, so you don't lose your  orientation. Stretch out your pelvis to achieve a bet ter kicking height. Once you can't move your leg any further without turning away from your partner, bend the kicking leg and pull it  back into the position of the Ginga (parallel or step position). During the Meia Lua de Frente, your arms should always counteract (to) your leg movement.

Macaco: Sit down with your entire soles touching the ground. Put your  right hand on the ground behind you.  Now stretch out your left hand in front of you; focus it throughout the whole sequence. Say "one!" - wave your left hand over your head, follow it with your eyes, stretch out your knees, then go back into inital position. Say "two!" - repeat

step one but do it with more power; stretch into bridge position as in scribble no.2; don't jump off yet. When you say "three!" you have to explode: pull your left hand fiercly over your head, throw you head back and jump off with both legs. If everything goes straight you will land in a handstand, which leaves you open to 1000 possible movements described above; but at first you should simply step down. For this exercise you need the stretching of your shoulders and your spine. In practice you can be supported by two people who grab you under your thighs and at your back; they should be able to lift you gently over without any danger to your body.

S-Dobrado: SDobrado is a generic term; this technique allows dozens of  variations. To  perform this kick from the Ginga simply grab the ground with your left hand; dive down on your left leg and pull the other one in a ci rcular motion around in front of you (Alternatively to the Escopado you can also opt for a Rasteir a now). Then shift your weight over your right hand and drag up your right hip in one continuous, fluid motion (scribble no.3). At this point you may decide either to continue the Escopado or to j ump a Macaco (Be creative: I like doing an Escopado-into-Macaco-into-headstand). For the Escopado keep your hips wide open, don't ever bend your hips! Pull your right hip up, then let it gently float to t he right and put your right foot finally down in front of you. The kick itself is ex ecuted with the left leg which is dragged behind the rest rest of your body. Remember to hit with the instep. If done right, the striking leg will fly by and you can turn further to face your partner again. The whole sequence consists of one single fluid motion; until t he very end, your right leg never touches the ground. Keep the movement round, avoid any edges.

Bênção: A straight kick that still requires some skill. Pull up one knee and hunch your torso as if you tried to grab your partner. Then slowly stretch your lifted knee and drag your virtual opponent behind. Again, you have to work very heavy with your hips. Hit with the sole. Don't try to snap; don't kick soccer-like. The leg does not come directly from the ground, that would make your  intention visible and leaves you prone to counter attacks. When you lift it first, your partner doesn't know whether a Bênção, a Martelo or some other  mean kick will follow. And once again: You should be able to push your partner awa y not get him bruised; kick him rather slowly but firmly.

Ponteira : Looks similar to the Bênção but it's quite a different move. Whereas the Bencao is very common in both Regional and Angola, the Ponteira rather  suits to Regional style  because it's a lot faster and more unpredictable. Imagine you are wearing sandals and want t o get rid of them; you then throw your foot fiercly forwards in a snapping motion to shoot them away a s far as possible (pic 3). With the Bencao, you first lift your knee very high then push your leg towards the opponent (foot trajectory is parallel to the ground). The Ponteira flies in a round arc from the floor to your partner's stomach/chest, however you do not keep your leg stretched throughout the entire kicking motion. Lift your knee while stretching out the kicking leg so i t gets extended to the maximum at the point of impact. Hit with the foot ball, don't break your toes with it. The Ponteira doesn't require muscular effort, it is easiest to execute with much swing and it hits in an instant. Don't overuse it unless you want to make the Jogo more competitive and aggressive. Try to follow up the Ponteira with a Martelo or a spinned Chapa without  putting your kicking leg down; works very well if you want to surprise your opponent and catch him off-guard.

Meia Lua de Compasso (Rabo de Arraia): Staple move. When you step behind during the Ginga, keep your feet where they are and shift your weight over your  front leg (by stretching your rear leg). Bend your upper body inwards and down. Reach down with your hands until your hips can't get twisted any further; drop your head so you can keep constant eye-contact with your partner. By now great ener gy should be created by the tension you built up. Unleash this power by taking off your rear leg; it should fly around in a quick  half-circle without any muscular effort. Always hit with the heel! Once your kicking leg is aligned parallel with your upper body, finish the motion by rotating your entire torso until you face your partner again. Watch out that you don't get hit because of raising your head too early - Meia Lua de Compassos are often answered with further Meia Luas. This is one of the most common yet difficult moves, but with constant training you will be able to deliver fierce single-handed Meia Lua de Compassos within fractions of a second.

Queixada : This kick  (pronounced "kishada") is a great setup for kick  combinations; common follow-ups are Queixada, Armada or jumped Martelos. The movement can be slightly awkward when you do it only with force, so try to relax and get in the flow.. Proceed as shown in the diagramm on the right. Coming from the Ginga, you turn your body slightly inwards to prepare some centrifugal force for the kick. Don't let your arms hang down; keep them ready for loose protection of your head and use them t o enhance the swing. Now throw your upper body around in the opposite direction while crossing with your rear leg  behind your front leg. Take off your (old) front leg; It should fly in an arc without any muscular effort if you produced enough rotational power with your upper body. Your final  position now mirrors the stance you started with, so you can easily do another Queixada in the other direction.

Armada: The standard standing spin kick in Capoeira. It is a crossing between the Mei Lua de Compasso (rotation) and the Queixada (hitting area, posture). As usual, start from the Ginga. Turn inwards on your heels (or foot  balls); rotate for 270 degrees on your rear leg and for 180 degrees on your front leg. Now quickly throw your upper body around until you see your partner again. You will lose eye contact with him for this moment, so get this part over quickly. Once you can't twist your  torso any further, release the tension by linting your rear leg; it should get dragged along very fast as your body is untwisting. This kick is performed with the hitting leg's foot pointing straight up (The same applies to the Meia Lua de Frente and the Queixada). Put your foot at rest in the same position you started with. You can now follow up with further Armadas, Queixadas in the opposite direction, Meia Lua de Compassos etc.

Martelo: Common kick in Capoeira Regional. It requires good stretching of  the legs and a fair sense of balance. Looks very simple yet it needs constant training. Lift your knee as it is seen in the Bênção movement. Turn for about 90-180 degrees on your foot ball; keep your  kicking leg's knee at roughly the same position. Remember to turn your hips as well. Do you

feel now why you need stretching of the legs? Lean back a little to keep balance. If done ri ght, your hips should be aligned parallel with your kicking leg. Your thigh should point straightly at your target (shoulder/head area). Contrary to the other kicks mentioned above, you now have to snap quickly with your lower leg. Hit with the i nstep. To prevent spinning away from your opponent move your arms in the opposite direction - just compare diagramm 2 to 3 (this  protects head area as well). Finished? Put your leg down again. The Martelo is very Regional, very competitive, quick, brute and unaesthet ic. However it's a good way of interrupting an opponent who is stuck in endless spinning kicks, just wait for a kick to pass by and quickly jump in with a Martelo. Or do it from the side your partner is going to step with the Ginga to. He'd better rolê away...

Martelo Rotado: Compare it to the Rolê+Martelo move described somewhere above. Basically you do the Martelo but  pull your leg violently through and slam it into the ground right  behind you. This kick  has to be done fast and with force; it's not very good to start with when both you and your partner just ginga but if you want to have the last word in a fr enzy exchange of kicks throw the move as fast as you can. Still don't overuse it, stick rather to Armadas and Meia Luas for setting up a game of call and response. First, lift up your knee. Then turn on your foot ball while stretching out your kicking leg, gain momentum by pulling with your hips. Wave your arms around the other way (compare pic 3 to pic 4). Study the Martelo explanation above. Instead of putting the leg down you pull it  powerfully down to the ground behind you, accelarating all the way. Keep your head at facing your partner until the kicking leg rests on the fl oor. Now throw your upper body around (untwisting your torso, pic 7) and go back into the Ginga. Although this expanation makes the move sound rather stiff it's a very smooth and fluid motion with no stop in between. Try to get it technically right, then work on speed.

Martelo Rotado (jumping) :Now the common  jump kick of  Capoeira, the Martelo Rotado.  Not too difficult if you practiced the other kicks  before. Stick to the first line of   pictures first. You start as if  you did an Armada- do everything as described there; twist your upper body so that you get your partner back into view and to generate lots of tension. Unleash the tension by taking off your first leg (the kicking one if you did an Armada). However, keep it bent now. Lean back a l ittle with your  torso and jump off with your support leg. Open your hips on the side of your second leg, don't  bend them there. As you spin around, the second leg gets dragged behind. Since it is the kicking leg, try to execute the strike in the same way as with the standing Martelo Rotado. Keep it bent at first, then pull it powerfully around (where it gets stretched and hits like a whip). Hit with the instep- watch the descriptions of the normal Martelo. Don't kick with your  foot pointing up (like Armada, Meia Lua de Frente etc.). Now while the second leg flies around you gently land on your first leg. Pull down your second leg and put it to rest behind. Rotate (both feet now grounded) till you face your partner a gain. Note: 1. In the picture the kick is executed in the opposite direction compared to the scribble of the standing Martelo Rotado. Don't let that confuse you. 2. Because of the arrangement of  frames one could believe that you have to jump far to the front.. Don't travel too far, it's better  to stay stationary (still depends on situation). The second line shows a one-legged MR. This one is quite hard: You have to jump really high and delay the rotation as long as possible. You le an back even a little more. Then when you reach the apex/peak, you have to pull off the kick s o violently that you complete the rotation still in the air. Now you land on your kicking leg first which by now has overtaken your first one.

Escorão/Chapa: The Escorão is a kick that is somehow similar to the Bênção and the Martelo; you have to hit with the sole but your body takes a sideways/lateral(?lack of vocabulary!) stance. At the Escorão (from the front), you put for instance your right foot from behind into parallel stance. Then you turn your body a little bit to the right, drag your left l eg along, lift it up a little bit and push it in the direction of  your partner's chest (watch picture). You can do it from behind as well, crossing your legs as with the Queixada and then throw the kick. Or do a Es porão, aka spinned Chapa, where you have to spin -similar to the armada- and then deliver the blow out of the rotation in a straight line. However I'm not sure what the arms do during the motion; if someone knows exact details, feel free to email me (or perhaps I'll ask my teacher tomorrow).

Rasteira : Pronounce Hashtera, 'a' like in 'car'. The most common way of taking someone down. It's applied against all kinds of incoming kicks, it's simple to execute but hard to time. Note: don't sweep your partner's feet away in an arc-like movement, that would only hurt both of you. The move is strictly a 'go in-pull out' kind of  motion. Do it as followed: If there's, for example, a circular kick coming your way from the left, bend down to the right. Always move in the same directi on as the kick goes. Keep your weight over  your right foot while trying to get your left foot behind the attacker 's supporting leg. Your  right knee should point straightly away from your target (requires good stretching). Gain  balance by putting down your right hand somewhere on the imaginary line you're going to  pull along. Keep your left leg stretched and hook in behind your partner's supporting leg (the lower you hook in the better the leverage). Keep your left arm above your head. If you can feel your opponent's heel on your left foot, it's tim e for the pull. The power doesn't come mainly from your leg; except for the hooked foot your leg should be totall y relaxed. Stretch your left arm as far as possible and move it over your head until your hand touches the ground. Since you are stretched from your left hand down to your left foot, your left leg is automatically dragged along. Your partner should start to fall right now, and we complete the movement by swinging our left foot around and stepping back with the right leg. The Rasteira is very timing-dependent. Do the pull when your partner is throwing his leg up in the air, that's when there's little weight over his supporting leg. When his kick has already  passed the vertex (?), you have to pull far more harder.

Cabeçada: The Capoeira Headbutt. Regional variant: Keep your back straight. Aim at the solarplexus region of your   partner, bend your knees and lean over. Gain momentum by stretching your rear  leg and strike in a straight line. Keep your  hands crossed loosely in front of your  face; They should provide protection from surprising knee-strikes or accidental spastic movements of your partner. Angola variant: Keep everything low. Get close to the ground, take aim an d thrust yourself at your partner's stomach. You end up with only your hands and feet touching the ground but everything else hanging down. Arms remain stretched, legs spread a l ittle bit. The Cabeçada is applied mainly against Aus, handstands and headstands but also against some kicks (Meia Lua de Compasso, Rabo de Arraia). Advanced players also aim at the opponent's head (chin and nose). Of course it's perfectl y feasible to knock someone out of a handstand with a Bencao; but since a handstand is thought as a provocation, kicking means to deny the challenge and take the safe/cheap route.

Escorpiao: Mind you this is not a very common attack and it should only be used if you are very certain that it will surprise/ hit/leave you unharmed. Do an Entrada, step slightly forward. Duck as if you simply want to evade a move, then put both your hands in front of you. Now jump up into handstand but but keep your legs drawn up, ready to explode. Twist your hips towards the other pla yer. Extend your legs suddenly into his direction. Now don't try this step b y step but instead in a continuous motion without a break, like a spring you drop down, get small and then shoot out with force -doiiing! The problem with the move is t hat you break the basic handstand rule of  Capoeira of never showing your back to your opponent, but if it is done in the proper situation everything's fine. Again, you should keep eye-contact with your partner throughout the movement. This is much easier if you start with your partner not directly to your front but more to the left or right, therefore the Entrada in the beginning (Does this make sense to you?). At the end you should get down as fast as possible because you are in a very vulnerable  position; don't simply drop down but draw you legs up again actively and with force while going down (see 5th picture).

Vingativa: Fancy movement; If you get it through, it will  provides you with great satisfaction. However, you must be really quick to get the timing right. Once the other  one moves in and attempts to land a, say Armada, you have to place your right foot right  beside your friend's right one. Stand firmly on your right leg, get behind your opponent (see scribble No.1) with the other  one. Meanwhile use your elbow to prevent him from escaping to the front. Now shift your   body weight from your right leg to your left one and watch your partner slowly falling  backwards. The throw itself works very well when applied at the proper moment.

Tesoura: translates as 'Scissors'. The idea is to trap the other   player between your legs and lever  him over. Step with your left foot beside your partner's right foot and cross your other leg behind; this resembles the inital Vingativa position except that your legs get crossed and you plant your  feet just the other way round. Your upper body is facing rather downwards, but your head keeps looking at the opponent. The right hand stays firmly on the ground, the left hand can be also put down if you like to. Get your crotch(?) real ly close to your partner's leg, because the

throw works better when performed with the thighs rather than with the lower legs. Once you are properly aligned, throw your left arm fiercely around. This should make your upper body and finally your hips and legs rotate to your left (counter-clockwise). Now your partner  should start to fall over behind. Rotate further on until your left hand touches the ground; lift off your right hand and do the rolê over your partner's stomach. If he struggling to get free you may nail him with your left knee in his bell y and fake a knee strike (right leg) at his face (last picture). The player who gets thrown with a Tesoura is advised to make the fall as soft as  possible and to cross his arms in some distance in front of his face because of a possible incoming Joelhada (knee blow). Once you master this move and your partner got accustomed to the many hard falls, you should try to jump in with a Tesoura. This is much more safe to you because if you do it the other way your victim could hurt your tripping leg during the fall, crushing on the knee from above at a bad angle etc. The move stays basically the same, although your right leg doesn't touch the ground at all. In this case the right leg flies straight at the back of the knees while your left leg is aiming at the stomach area. Mind you this is elegant yet very rough if not applied properly, so do it with caution and only if your partner can deal with suc h a situation. (A) Tesoura from standing (B) Tesoura jumped in (recommended)

Tesoura Angola: Better don't do this move in a Roda of  Capoeira Regional unless you like getting jumped in the back from above.. This version of the Tesoura is a good example for the playfulness of Capoeira Angola. Although you might use it for quickly approaching your partner and throwing him with the scissors move described above, it's rather a challenge you propose to your partner. You may start the motion from wherever you like, but Queda de Rins, de Tres or de Quatro a re all good occasions. Spread you legs a little and face the floor with your front. The only body parts that make contact with the ground are your feet and your hands. Let your body hang through but nevertheless keep up some tension. Now turn your chest to one side so t hat your body gets twisted down to your  hips. Watch your fellow Capoeirista over your shoulder and push yourself in his direction with the help of your hands. Your feet slide across the floor in an attempt of trapping your   partner between them. Your further actions depend on your opponent's reaction: To him the most obvious way of escaping is making an Au to your backside; cause that 's where your eyes can't follow him easil y. If he does the Au to your front side, kick him Bênção-like with your lower lying leg. Or try to catch him with with a Cabecada, either way. If he tries to flee through the backdoor (watch diagramm) you can get on him by rotating your   body on one hand and the lower lying leg; pull your higher leg through underneath and aim your kick him at the stomach/chest area (3rd picture). Alternatively try a Cabecada, but then timing may be critical. Another nice method of countering the Tesoura Angola is sliding through between the

attacker's legs with legs first (I forgot drawing a picture, perhaps next time). It's executed in a similar fashion to the TA, yet legs are closed so you fit through. Mean people lift their heels when their feet pass by underneath the attacker's face, others like to get up violently. I have even seen an advanced player rolling over the atta cker's back when he got approached by a Tesoura Angola, but that had been a joking Roda anyway:)

Cruz: The Cruz (cross) is an elegant way to evade an incoming Bênção or  Ponteira and throw the  partner at the same time. Instead of pushing the kicking leg away you bend down and slide under it. Spread your arms so his leg cannot esca pe to the side, trap it on your back. Now simply get up again and watch your opponent fall. If you get trapped with a Cruz by someone else, don't fall on the back of your head as the Capoeirista on the right does. Try to fall to the side and dampen the fall with your hands, doing a Au-like motion. This is Cruz viewed from above. The diagramm shows the move the way I was told, and I found it very practical and useful since then. If there are any other variations I'd be glad to get emails from you. To avoid getting accidentally hit by the supporting leg during the throw you have to shift your head to the right side. If you perform the Cruz and and your position is that of the first  picture, you have to roll your head to the other side so that you end up as in the second picture. If you're already there, don't do anything except standing up. I do so since t he girl I intented to throw over with a Cruz did a Macaco backwards and kicked me with her support leg right into my jaw (Hi there Julia!).

Style Moves

Backflip : I didn't learn this move at Capoeira, I adapted it from the lessons I had in gymnastics. Still it's a nice way to enter a Roda, following an Au or Macaco or doing it on its own. Mind you this transcends Capoeira Basics, there's a high risk of injury if you don't take proper   precautions. Ask two friends for help and try this out on a soft mat in a gym hall. Stand straight, keep your arms stretched in front of you. Now sit down as if there were a chair   behind you. Very important: don't move your knees forward, keep your lower legs at exactly the same position, just move your thighs. Your upper body shifts back- and downwards but remains perpendicular to the ground. At the same t ime, swing your stretched arms down and  behind (see diagramm). Once your posture consists of two 90 deg. angles (hips, knees), do the following actions at the same time: 1. reverse the swing of your arms, throw them from behind in a wide circle far over your head. Do it really fiercly, because it's the only way to gain the neces sary rotation. Throw your arms  back as far as possible, keep them stretched at all costs, and throw your head back as well (you should see where you land after all). 2. Stretch out your legs as quickly as possible. The mai n power for jumping off doesn't come from your feet but from your thighs, the sudden burst should travel strai ght through your legs into your heels. If you did right the above, everything left is prett y obvious: you land on your hands but the rotational power pulls your legs down (either one after the other or both at the same time). Common follow ups are further backflips or backwards somersaults. For training purposes get yourself a soft and a hard gym mat. Place them in such a wa y that you jump off from the hard one but land with your hands on the soft one. Have a fri end at each side of yours who grabs you at your back (>support) and under your thighs (>rotation). At your first try let your friends do all the work; fall backwards and let them carry your whole weight. They should put you gently down in handstand position. With every further tr y jump off a little more until you need no active support from your friends anymore. It's hard work   but can be mastered; Today I do it on concrete one after the other, yet I don't dare to finish with a somerault yet:] Please do this really carefully, I don't want to feel guilty for any accidents of yours. Thanx.