Why Joining Silat Clubs Will Help You to Learn Great Tactics For Self-Defense

The type of popularity and recognition Silat art form has received from all around the world is astonishing. Silat instructors and gurus are establishing Silat clubs and training schools for acquainting individuals with this way of martial art. People have also accepted this Malay art form and have shown great interest in learning it further. Establishing of Pencak Silat Federation of the UK, Pencak Silat Bongkot of France and Silat Federation of United Kingdom are great evidences of Silat growth and expansion in several parts of the world. Silat is coming up as an incredible art form for self defense and protection.

A few years back, to get right into a Silat training school was amongst essentially the most difficult tasks, since the gurus or the mahagurus used to decide on their students of their very own. High moral values and intense desire to learn Silat were two traits, which Silat gurus shortlisted their students on. But today, the time has modified and so has the choice process.

Now, all you require for learning Silat is your desire. If you desire to master this art form, then join Silat clubs available nearest to your home and learn something absolutely amazing and significant.

Once you’ll join a Silat club you’ll learn a number of the following Silat moves and tactics.

Elakkan or avoiding technique movements
Tangkisan or blocking technique
Tangkapan or catching technique
Amuk or rampage with due diligent
Weaponry system comparable to sickle, sword, cudgel, kris or a brief wavy dagger, rope, walking stick manufactured from hardwood, dagger with straight innovative and trisula.

The curriculum may vary in several clubs or schools, but most of it is going to definitely include those mentioned above. Attributable to this issues, in 2002 Malaysian government has act on this matter by appointing Grandmaster Anuar Abdul Wahab to research and develop a silat curriculum that could be used thoroughly to all silat clubs that often called Seni Silat Malaysia.

This curriculum was created based on the unique Malay Peninsula traditional art of Silat that didn’t import, mix, copy and even mix with other martial art or pencak silat movements. The silat movements are based on the movements of human beings in response to their geometrical measurements. On the 4th of December 2006, the Malaysian Government recognized silat because the Malaysia official art of self-defense and was gazette within the Akta Warisan Negara (National Heritage Act).

The curriculum also uses the fundamental traditional silat lessons comparable to the Bunga Sembah (the pillars of silat movements) and Tapak Empat (the art to manage the ring) in an effort to produce seven lessons in silat that are the Bunga (silat positions posture), jurus (art of attack an defence), Belebat (shadow training), Tapak (step pattern), Buah Pukul (self-defense), Tempur Seni (art of combat) and Tempur Bela Diri (self defense combat).

The standardization of silat system is giving the chance to each silat clubs not only in Malaysia but additionally at international level to exercise and implement the curriculum with none doubts of its originality. Many international silat coaches from France, Austria, Switzerland and United Kingdom are using this method to their training center attributable to the systematic of grading level from beginners to expert level.

Learning this art form will certainly be one among the best experiences of you life.

Self Defense

Learn How To Kick – Kicking Effectively In A Self-Defense Or Combat Situation Part 9 Of 10

Amit Gaikwad Apr 2, 2023 Leave a comment

This ten article series will take care of the assorted components that have to be addressed when considering the utilization of a specific kick in a combat or self-defense situation. These ten components may also be utilized by the tournament competitor although certain segments would should be modified barely for the tournament facets of kicking, fairly than the more intensive nature of using a kick or kicks in combat. Although all of those individual components are vital, they’re only when combined together and utilized accurately when executing a kick.

Although I’ll only be discussing certainly one of the components in this text, here is the whole list of all ten of them.

1. Your Kicking Ability

2. Your Intended Application

3. The Environment

4. Telegraphing

5. Striking Implement

6. Striking the Correct Goal

7. Initial Impact

8. Impact

9. Retraction or Follow Through

10. Return to Fighting Position

Component Nine; Retraction or Follow Through:

Now I used to be at all times told from the primary day that I began taking Karate that regardless of what kick you probably did, that you just never wanted to go away your foot “hanging” out within the air. There have been three primary reasons for this they usually are as follows.

1. The longer your kicking leg is “hanging” within the air, the longer you’ve got to balance on one leg.

As hard as a few of you could find this to consider, we humans were born with two legs for a reason, and that’s to face on each of them. We weren’t designed to be standing around all day like a pink flamingo with one leg “hanging” out within the air.

Now I’m all for extensive training on balancing on one leg while kicking and I even have several different training exercises that I do with the intention to improve my balance. Nonetheless, the keyword here is “training.” When in an actual situation where you’ve got to defend yourself, you should get your foot up and out to make contact with its intended goal as fast as possible, after which immediately get it back down on the bottom.

2. The longer your kicking leg is “hanging” within the air, the better it’s in your opponent to grab.

Ever watch a boxing match where certainly one of the boxers has a bent to go away his punch in his opponent’s face, or is only a bit too slow in bringing it back into position? What normally happens to that boxer?

Well, generally if the opposite boxer is any good, he’ll land at the least a punch or two on his opponent. Why? Because by leaving his punch “hanging” out within the air, he leaves himself wide open for a counterattack. Now as bad as that is, it’s over and over worse when you’re kicking. Not only do you allow yourself balancing on one leg, but you furthermore mght leave yourself wide open for a wide range of counterattacks. These can range anywhere from a punch, kick, and even tackling or throwing you to the bottom, and these aren’t even the worst.

The worst of all possible counterattacks is to have your kicking leg grabbed by your opponent. Why is that this the worst? Simply put, since you then now not have control of your body, your opponent does.

3. The longer your kicking leg is “hanging” within the air, the longer it takes before you’ll be able to execute one other kick.

Do this experiment:

Take one leg and hold it up within the air at about waist height, now leaving it up within the air, execute an efficient and practical kick. Now try throwing a few punches while standing on one leg. Does it work thoroughly?

A kick coming up from a balanced position on the bottom is much more practical and powerful than one which starts off already within the air. What I mean by that is that the primary Roundhouse Kick that you just throw from a standing position is way more powerful than the second that you just throw with the identical leg before setting your foot back down on the bottom.

For those who are executing a kick that relies on the foot being returned along the very same path of trajectory that it traveled to get to its goal, this could be called a “retraction” of the kicking foot. The next kicks could be ones that may require you to “retract” your kicking foot after making contact along with your goal.

1. Front Kick

2. Back Kick

3. Side Kick

4. Roundhouse Kick (with the notable exception of the Thai Roundhouse Kick)

For those who are executing a kick that relies on the foot continuing through the goal along the identical path of trajectory that it traveled to get to its goal, this could be called a “follow through” of the kicking foot. The next kicks could be ones that may require you to “follow through” along with your kicking foot after making contact along with your goal.

1. Wheel Kick

2. Axe Kick

3. Crescent Kick

4. Reverse Crescent Kick

5. Hook Kick

6. Hatchet Kick

Training Advice to Improve your Retraction and/or Follow Through:

Under normal standard training practices, the scholar attempts to execute a kick as fast as he can from a standing position to the goal. On this case, I’m going to have you ever do the precise opposite.

This can be a fairly easy, yet very effective, technique that you may practice with the intention to improve your retraction or follow up skills. Simply put, what you do is take your kicking foot and slowly place it within the position where it will have made contact along with your intended goal. As soon as you leg and foot are in position, as fast as you probably can, complete the kick by completing the retraction or follow through. At all times ensure and utilize the right technique in any respect times.

Final Thoughts:

As fast as your foot traveled to strike its goal, it needs to be just as fast if not faster returning back right down to the bottom. Aside from improper technique and improper application of the aforementioned technique, leaving your foot “hanging” or “posing” within the air after kicking is maybe the only biggest mistake you possibly can possibly make when kicking.

This “hanging” or “posing” appears to be prevalent in quite a lot of the tournament oriented schools more so than the normal schools. Although I actually have seen students “posing” kicks in each sorts of schools.

Self Defense

Guided Chaos Groundfighting: The Life-Or-Death Difference for Self-Defense

Amit Gaikwad Mar 31, 2023 Leave a comment

Considered one of the more intriguing features of Ki Chuan Do (KCD) for beginners and out of doors observers is Master Perkins’ “Modified Native American Ground Fighting.” Not only have most individuals never seen or experienced authentic Native American martial arts (due to the dearth of practitioners alive today and the even smaller number occupied with sharing their skills with the general public), but most martial artists and combative sport fans cannot even conceive of an efficient approach to fighting on the bottom that differs significantly from the grappling methods (wrestling, jiu-jitsu, etc.) so universally practiced today. To even suggest that a really different method could also be equally and even simpler for real violence immediately evokes skepticism, so conditioned are most individuals to contemplate “groundfighting” synonymous with “wrestling” or “grappling.”

Let’s take an analytical have a look at what KCD Modified Native American Groundfighting actually is, why it’s, and the way and why it differs from conventional groundfighting (grappling) methods.

DISENGAGEMENT vs. ENGAGEMENT

KCD groundfighting, unlike grappling, emphasizes DISENGAGEMENT, fairly than ENGAGEMENT with the enemy. “Engagement” here means the merging of two bodies right into a single system of forces for greater than a split second’s duration. Put more simply, conventional grappling methods emphasize engagement with the adversary in that the practitioner seeks to “tie up with” the adversary to be able to apply his techniques. The grounded grappler on the offensive seeks to reduce the space between his body and his opponent’s, hence gaining maximum control over and awareness of the entire opponent’s movements, maximizing opportunities to use attached joint locking/breaking and choking/strangling techniques.

Minimizing the space available to the opponent minimizes the opponent’s opportunities to strike the grappler (using conventional strikes, at the very least), and allows the grappler to make use of his full body weight and the strength of his core muscles against the isolated weaker joints of the opponent, provided the grappler has sufficient sensitivity, agility, endurance and knowledge to make the techniques work against his opponent. Even when conventional striking methods are integrated into grappling, as in the favored “ground and pound” strategy of Mixed Martial Arts competitions, the striking is generally performed from prescribed positions of maximum engagement (e.g. punches from the Mount position or knee strikes from the Side Control position) in order to take care of control over the opponent’s movements while creating barely enough space for the grappler to strike.

KCD groundfighting, then again, implores us to stay as disengaged as possible. Moderately than tying up with the enemy, a KCD practitioner strives to take care of his/her own freedom of movement, fairly than committing his/her body to merging with the movements of a single adversary. Contact with the enemy, fairly than being tight and constant as in conventional grappling, is fleeting and minimal, consisting primarily of kicks, strikes, slams, gouges, rips and quick wrenches. The principle of disengagement allows the KCD practitioner to utilize a component relatively unavailable to the standard grappler: MOBILITY.

GROUND MOBILITY

While grappler is mobile relative to his opponent, in that he’s capable of rapidly climb throughout and across the opponent’s body, the engaged aspect of grappling prevents the grappler from being mobile relative to the overall environment. While he’s attached to his opponent, working towards the opponent’s defeat, the grappler isn’t free to rapidly move across the environment he’s fighting in.

The KCD practitioner, specifically because he stays disengaged from the enemy (through trained rapid, convulsive and yielding movement and sensitivity), is free to maneuver wherever s/he wishes. Further, rapid mobility across the bottom (primarily within the mode of rolling) is something that’s trained always in KCD groundfighting training. This sort of training is notably absent from most conventional grappling programs, just because it doesn’t fit into the grappling paradigm of constant engagement.

SPORT vs. COMBAT

The contrasts explored to date expose the first difference between conventional ground grappling and KCD groundfighting: Newest grappling methods are designed for a SPORT paradigm, while KCD groundfighting is meant for REAL COMBAT. Due to all the time present possibility of multiple attackers in real combat, purposefully engaging with a single adversary on the bottom, thereby sacrificing mobility, is an especially dangerous strategy. While the story exists of a grounded grappler’s buying time against multiple attackers by manipulating his engaged opponent as a shield against the kicks and punches of the opposite attackers, that is hardly a reliable enough technique to count on. A much better strategy is the very same one a KCD practitioner would use on his/her feet: Remain MOBILE and disengaged to be able to prevent the attackers from targeting you for effective strikes and grapples while lashing out with powerful, accurate, full-body attacks against the closest attackers, while attempting to create a window to flee the gang.

This is precisely what the KCD multiple attacker strategy consists of: constant, unpredictable movement (within the mode of rapid, stomping steps while standing, and rolling when on the bottom); rapid, powerful, full-body striking in any respect angles (dropping strikes and kicks while standing, and dropping kicks [primarily], body slams and strikes on the bottom); and looking out to flee the mass attack (breaking out of the gang to run away while standing, and creating space to rise up after which run when on the bottom).

PROVEN IN WORLD WAR II

If this groundfighting strategy sounds novel or unproven, note these excerpts from the book Kill or Get Killed by Lt. Col. Rex Applegate, considered one of the best works on close combat of the World War II era:

“Avoid, if in any respect possible, going to the bottom together with your adversary. . . . One injunction it’s best to heed: Once going to the bottom, never stop moving. Start rolling and take a look at to get back in your feet as quickly as possible. When you cannot rise up and might’t roll, pivot in your hips and shoulders so you may face your opponent and block together with your feet any try and close with you.

Remember, it isn’t mandatory to go to the bottom once YOU have placed your opponent there. You possibly can finish him off together with your feet. Your enemy can do likewise if you happen to remain immobile on the bottom and stay inside range.”

(p. 15–emphasis included in original)

“When on the bottom, subjected to attack from a standing opponent, the person can use his feet to forestall the adversary from closing in or administering a coup de grace.” (p. 16-17)

“At the primary opportunity he should attempt to regain his feet.”

(p. 20)

Despite being an authority in sportive methods of ground grappling, Lt. Col. Applegate, like John Perkins, understood that under real combat conditions, where multiple adversaries can have boots and other weapons fully able to ending things right away if offered (stationary) goal, a) lying on the bottom is mostly a foul place to be, and b) when on the bottom, the sportive strategy of engagement have to be abandoned for considered one of disengagement and mobility.

THE STRATEGY MUST MATCH THE GOAL

The grappling approach of full engagement with a single adversary to be able to apply pins, joint locks and chokes is ideally suited to allowing a grappler to convincingly and demonstrably control and dominate a single opponent without seriously injuring him. For this reason grappling is such an ideal method for sport competition, where the thing is to display one athlete’s superiority over one other while preserving each athletes to perform one other day.

In contrast, the KCD approach of disengagement, with contact limited primarily to the impacts of powerful, full-body kicks, body slams, strikes, wrenches, rips and gouges, isn’t thoroughly suited to pinning an opponent in place or forcing him to confess defeat before serious damage is finished. What it IS fitted to, nonetheless, is maintaining the KCD practitioner’s freedom of movement and mobility, allowing him/her to maneuver sufficiently to forestall a lethal pile-on or boot party from multiple attackers and create space to rise up, while dealing out disabling and possibly lethal damage to the attackers.

THE WEAPON FACTOR

One other contrast between KCD groundfighting and standard grappling that illustrates their respective foci (combat vs. sport) is how the hands are utilized in each. In conventional grappling, the hands are used almost always to carry and control the opponent, and likewise at times to balance on and push off of the bottom or strike the opponent. In KCD groundfighting, nonetheless, the hands are almost never used against the bottom or to carry the enemy, and are used only secondarily for momentary striking, gouging and ripping. During training, the KCD practitioner is admonished to maintain his/her hands as free and unencumbered as possible. It’s because KCD acknowledges the incontrovertible fact that in real combat, hand-held weapons are sometimes a consider the final result. Subsequently, KCD groundfighting is designed to integrate seamlessly with weapons use. That is inherent within the art’s Native American roots, when a practitioner would have been expected to have tomahawks and/or hunting knives in his hands while fighting in close combat, on the bottom or otherwise. The fashionable KCD practitioner may as a substitute have in his/her hands a carry knife, a cane, or a weapon of opportunity which may be picked up from the bottom (e.g. a brick, a bottle, or dirt to throw within the enemies’ eyes). Groundfighting with weapons, in addition to picking up weapons from the bottom within the midst of a fight, are steadily practiced features of KCD training.

SENSITIVITY AND DESTRUCTION vs. CONTROL AND SUBMISSION

To sum up what we have covered to this point:

Sportive grappling SEEKS the bottom to be able to gain CONTROL over a single opponent to be able to make him SUBMIT to the grappler’s will.

KCD AVOIDS the bottom because of the risks of being on the bottom in an actual combat situation (versus in a sporting match). Nevertheless, if forced to the bottom, the KCD practitioner uses DISENGAGEMENT (through sensitivity), MOBILITY and MAXIMUM, IMMEDIATE DESTRUCTION OF THE ENEMY (including use of WEAPONS if available), similar to while standing up, to be able to minimize the danger while on the bottom and rise up as quickly as possible.

Generally, KCD groundfighting uses the identical strategy as KCD stand-up fighting: Use SENSITIVITY and the DISENGAGEMENT PRINCIPLE to as quickly as possible DESTROY THE ENEMY while maintaining a firm ROOT NO ONE CAN FIND (through balanced MOBILITY), looseness, and body unity.

The main differences that require additional training are using different ROOTING POINTS on the ground–hips, back, shoulders, etc.–as opposed to only the feet while standing up, and the increased availability of TOOLS, in that each legs could also be used concurrently from the bottom and in ways different from when standing up. Seeing because the legs (especially with sturdy boots on them) are by far the more powerful limbs of the body, it is sensible to reap the benefits of their increased usability on the bottom through additional training. Hence, the predominant foci of solo training for KCD groundfighting must be the event of BALANCE on and transition between the assorted rooting points available on the bottom, and the event of the musculature and coordination mandatory to make use of all of the available tools in all possible ways . . . and, in fact, the event of the flexibility to rise up off the bottom from any position as quickly as possible!

GROUND AVOIDANCE

Although this text primarily addresses how the KCD practitioner fights while on the bottom, since the prevention of going to the bottom is such a vital consider real combat, we’ll address it briefly here.

There are not any special “anti-grappling” or “counter-takedown” techniques in KCD. One problem with such techniques can be that by the point one realizes their necessity in a fight (i.e. when one recognizes the takedown attempt), it is generally too late to use them! As an alternative, the fundamental concepts of KCD, if trained diligently, will normally prevent the circumstances that typically end in fighters’ going to the bottom against their will. Specifically:

1. BALANCE: The “hyper-balance” that could be a results of KCD training makes it less likely that a KCD practitioner will lose his/her footing and fall to the bottom, whatever the cause.

2. SENSITIVITY and the DISENGAGEMENT PRINCIPLE: The trained KCD attribute of external tactile sensitivity together with its application in response to the disengagement principle (whereby the practitioner strives to stay as disengaged with the enemy as possible while remaining engaged enough to cause damage–to “stick but not get stuck”) can prevent a grappler from achieving a robust clinch with the KCD practitioner, because the KCD practitioner’s body all the time seems to “squirt” out of attempted grips and holds while striking into vital areas and disrupting the grappler’s balance from unexpected angles. This negates a standard grappling takedown strategy: to first tie up the opponent in a standing clinch to be able to suppress his strikes and gain control over his balance, after which to take him down from there.

3. DROPPING ENERGY (“absorbing the overtravel”) and the SPHERE OF INFLUENCE: KCD practitioners’ use of dropping energy to “absorb the overtravel” of strikes (as Master Perkins has explained in Newsletter #18) in addition to keeping strikes inside the sphere of influence (to forestall “reaching” with strikes) signifies that KCD practitioners are unlikely to overcommit to strikes. Profiting from a striker’s overcommitment to his strikes is the predominant means whereby an experienced grappler can shoot in for a successful takedown from outside of contact distance. If he cannot force the opponent to overcommit to long-distance striking attacks, it becomes very difficult for a grappler to attain a clean takedown without first achieving a controlling clinch (addressed above in point #2). Moreover, dropping energy (together with BODY UNITY) allows very powerful strikes from very close range, which might further frustrate a grappler’s efforts to securely close distance.

4. LOOSENESS: The KCD practitioner’s trained looseness makes it very difficult for a grappler to manage the KCD practitioner’s body, even when a grip is achieved. For instance, against an untrained person, a grappler can force the entire body off-balance just by manipulating one arm, because the untrained person naturally tenses up against the grappler’s grip. Nevertheless, many a grappler has grabbed a KCD practitioner’s arm only to comprehend that “he’s got nothing,” because the KCD practitioner’s looseness allows him/her to maneuver the remainder of his/her body decisively independent of the controlled arm to retain balance and attack the grappler. The importance of this mixture of Looseness and Sensitivity can’t be over-emphasized. It’s the emodiment of all the interior principles talked about in KCD. The practitioner learns to maneuver his body as if his attacker’s skin is red hot and scalding yet he must still feel where he’s and where he’s going; this completely changes the mindset from force and control to the touch, evasion and destruction. The image is, as we wish to say, considered one of carrying a hot potato in your hands across a room without dropping it. It’s too hot to carry but too vital to let go.

Generally, training the KCD principles will allow the KCD practitioner to cope with a grappler as with another fighter. Special attention is given to features of contact flow and combat application particularly germane to grappling (e.g. feeling the extent change, finding and indexing on the pinnacle, body unity and dropping to stop momentum, close range destruction, destroying the grappler while being taken down, etc.)

INTENTIONALLY GOING TO THE GROUND: “EMERGENCY OFFLINING”

While going to the bottom in an actual combat situation should generally be avoided, under certain circumstances, going to the bottom specifically ways will be the best plan of action.

In KCD, intentionally going to the bottom could also be characterised as a type of “emergency offlining.” Getting offline from an attacker’s charge is a fundamental concept in KCD. It is generally achieved while standing by stepping to the side (and preferably forward) of an attacker with appropriate timing, positioning and follow-up. Nevertheless, sometimes the practitioner may not have the space or time to maneuver to the side (e.g. in a confined area multiple attacker situation), or must immediately get his/her vital organs further away from the attackers’ weapons (e.g. knives) than a sidestep within the given environment would allow. If offlining can’t be achieved to either side, and if the KCD practitioner cannot levitate, changing the angle might be achieved in just one direction: downwards. The KCD practitioner must go to the bottom.

The methods by which the KCD practitioner goes to the bottom are very different from those utilized by most sport grapplers. Nearly all of the methods sport grapplers use to take a fight to the bottom (e.g. wrestling takedowns, judo throws) involve bringing their most important areas (head, neck, chest) very near the opponent’s hands. This creates a significant problem in real combat situations that require going to the ground–situations by which one GOAL of the maneuver is to GAIN distance between the fighter’s vital areas and the weapons of the enemy! The methods utilized in KCD, based on Native American takedown maneuvers, don’t suffer from this problem. They involve dropping, diving, spinning and rolling to the bottom at angles that present the practitioner’s feet towards the enemy, while moving the upper body away from the enemy’s weapons. The simultaneous takedowns are done with the feet and legs and have probability of seriously damaging the enemy’s lower body (primarily breaking the knees). Additionally they arrange the practitioner to make use of his/her legs on the bottom (again keeping the vital areas of the upper body away from the enemy’s weapons) to quickly end any subsequent groundfight.

TIPS FOR SURVIVAL

Listed below are some training suggestions to contemplate as you start your path to combative groundfighting expertise:

1. STICK WITH THE PRINCIPLES: Because KCD groundfighting looks different from KCD stand-up training, people sometimes assume that the fundamental KCD principles of balance, sensitivity, looseness and body unity don’t apply. NOTHING COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH! Balance in any position on the bottom is what allows all of the “crazy” maneuvers to be effective. Sensitivity (including tactile and subcortical visual) is mandatory to guide the practitioner’s movements across the bottom and into the enemy, even when the practitioner’s head could also be moving and turning rapidly to avoid danger. Without looseness, the practitioner’s body will quickly be broken against the bottom itself, especially in the course of the falling and diving maneuvers. Looseness combined with sensitivity can also be what allows the KCD fighter to not be dragged into an immobile grappling clinch. You could learn to maneuver your body like a writhing mongoose or a furiously twisting, spitting alleycat. Would you need to grapple a 160 pound alley cat? Try putting it in a headlock or a mount or a figure 4? In fact not, it will be insanity: you’d never get a grip on its body as you are being torn to shreds.

Finally, body unity is what makes the bottom kicking and rolling maneuvers so damaging to the enemy. The attacks come from the whipping and dropping (yes, even on the bottom!) of the entire body, not only the legs, allowing them to cleave through the enemies’ bodies fairly than bouncing off harmlessly. The unique Native American fighting methods KCD groundfighting was distilled from were characterised especially by a loose gracefulness and uninhibited use of your entire body as a united weapon to destroy the enemy.

2. REMEMBER CONFINED SPACE: Do not forget that if considered one of the possible reasons to go to the bottom is to find a way to get your vital targets further away from a weapon in confined space, it is advisable find a way to do all of the maneuvers in a confined space! Don’t practice the entire diving and falling attacks only by diving across the room into wide, ballistic arcs. It is best to find a way to drop to the bottom inside your individual space and take out the legs of the person right next to you. Going to the bottom like this starts out with a sensation much like dropping in your feet. Like a marionette that is had its strings cut, your whole body suddenly goes limp and drops–only fairly than catching yourself inside an inch, you let the drop go all of the technique to the bottom while spiraling or collapsing to land at the proper angle to assist you to take out the enemy as you fall. Whenever you do it properly, it’s best to appear to your enemy to suddenly disappear–only to reappear next to his broken legs, your boots against his neck and head.

Self Defense

Self-Defense for Women, Lisbeth Salander Style

Amit Gaikwad Mar 28, 2023Mar 28, 2023 Leave a comment

This past yr, I even have fallen in love with Lisbeth Salander, one of the vital riveting, exciting, tough, and empowered literary heroines ever created. And what kills me is that a person conjured her up, giving her skills, smarts, and strength with which to defend herself against a misogynistic and violent society that targets women and their supposed frailty. Lisbeth Salander is perhaps lower than five feet tall, but she fights back physically and intellectually, her instincts for survival acute and relentless. She takes a bat to a college bully that beats her up at school, lights her violent and degenerate father on fire, and withstands abuse from a psychiatrist in an establishment when she is just twelve. She fights back with equal fervor when she is beaten up by drunk men within the train station, raped by her guardian, chased by the police, shot by her father, and buried alive by her half-brother… and he or she is in a position to do all this alone, without the assistance of anyone — man or woman.

In accordance with Amnesty International, “in america alone 700,000 women are raped annually.” It also cites the next examples for violence towards women:

In Bangladesh, 50% of all murders are of ladies by their partners
In Britain, there may be a call for help from victims of domestic violence every minute
In accordance with the World Bank, at the very least one in five women and girls has been beaten or sexually abused at some stage in the life.

Stieg Larsson was progressive enough to create a heroine that each one women could look as much as and learn from — especially since his three books are all framed around the topic of female strength, female warriors, and the incontrovertible fact that the world openly castigates and attempts to victimize them. Listed here are a couple of suggestions with which to follow Lisbeth Salander’s variety of self-defense — sans the photographic memory and hacking skills that Larsson endowed her with:

Mace or Pepper Spray: Lisbeth carries a bag stuffed with interesting objects, and one among them is Mace — which might temporarily blind your attacker for as much as 60 minutes –rendering him powerless and providing you with enough time to get away. Women’s Law is an important site for girls that informs you on the difference between Mace and pepper spray in addition to your rights if you find yourself being targeted.

Taser Gun: Because she’s so small, Lisbeth must first subdue her “victims,” and I place this word inside quotation marks because they usually are not really victims — they’re often gangsters, rapists, and murderers –although they do cry once they find themselves at her mercy. When aimed toward someone, an electrical current disrupts control of his muscles, rendering him yet again — powerless. This permits our heroine to tie them up in very creative and resourceful ways in order that she will interrogate or punish them. Not a nasty little weapon to put in our bags — just in case.

Boxing: Lisbeth doesn’t only use weapons to render her attackers immobile long enough to get away from them — she has also acquired boxing skills, which is revealed to us within the second book The Girl Who Played with Fire. Of her own volition, she walks right into a boxing club stuffed with guys and stubbornly insists that she be taught to fight the boys — and he or she does. She takes their punches, falls on her face, and gets right back up to fight some more. She is just not afraid to get hurt, especially while she is learning necessary self-defense tactics that she will use to save lots of her life and protect herself against greater, stronger men.

Trust No One: There are only a few those that Lisbeth trusts. She trusts her girlfriend/lover to whom she entrusts her apartment; Mikael Blomkvist, the journalist who rallies in her defense through his writing; and ally hackers whom she knows only by name. With great rigidity, she refuses to trust cops, lawyers, or Doctors — for they’ve all proven themselves to be hypocritical and shamelessly vile — barring a couple of exceptions who exit of their strategy to prove themselves to her through their actions. Truth be told, we must always trust sparingly — not everyone has good intentions.

Protect Your Secrets: Because she trusts nobody, Lisbeth is a woman of few words — and her secrets — well, they belong only to her. She is a dark, quiet, thoughtful, and suspicious person — and these qualities serve her well. The one time her secrets come out, it’s to nail shut the coffin on the lads who took advantage of and abused her. Secrets are called secrets because they shouldn’t see the sunshine of day — and since we trust too easily, we allow them to spill from the dark chasms of our lives — our inner yearnings to be understood and seen and recognized by others — but they fare higher once they too are nailed shut contained in the coffin of our minds.

Poker Face and Outer Shell: Lisbeth hides her real self behind a poker face and an outer shell. Her face, pierced and painted — her body covered with a dragon tattoo — her flesh concealed beneath dark grunge clothing — are all combined to attract a portrait of self-control and detachment. She loves, she feels, she hates and hurts, but nobody would understand it. She hides every little thing that she is, believes, and knows beneath an exaggerated and socially unacceptable caricature of a persona that almost all people wouldn’t feel comfortable approaching. Her garb and her outward appearance make her unapproachable, and thus, protect her from intentional attacks which might be normally targeted towards women. Her face — stone cold and unyielding to smiles and wiles — offer much more protection from emotional and psychological assaults. She is well-guarded, in and out, and only the necessary people in her life — few and much in between — see the true her. It is a little bit of an extreme, but those that have poker faces are often not taken advantage of. For those who wear your heart in your sleeve and your feelings throughout your face — people are likely to know learn how to get to you and at you.

Self Defense

The Self-Defense Potential Of Kokondo Karate

Amit Gaikwad Mar 25, 2023 Leave a comment

If you happen to’re going to have a look into the world of Kokondo karate, you are probably going to be tempted to also investigate Jukido Jujitsu. As you are going to discover, Jukido Jujitsu is the sister form of Kokondo, which roughly translates into “the best way of the past and the current.”

Nevertheless, for now, let’s focus entirely on Kokondo karate. That is some of the formidable types of karate that’s currently being practiced on the planet. When taking a broad take a look at the world and history of karate, it’s inevitable that you’ll eventually find out about Kokondo. Even a basic understanding of this style can serve to provide you a solid foundation into the world of karate as a complete.

History And Background

It’s value noting that Jukido Jujitsu was established in 1959. It wasn’t until 1970 that the Kokondo approach to karate was established. You will find that each styles are taught all throughout the world. Nevertheless, each styles are primarily present in the U.S. An exceptionally high variety of dojos offering instruction in these areas may be found throughout the South Windsor, Connecticut area.

Each styles fall under the protection of the International Kokondo Association. Any instructor in these fields that you’ll come across are going to be directly connected in some technique to this organization. The IKA stays the definitive global entity with reference to Kokondo.

Each Kokondo and Jukido Jujitsu have origins that may be traced back to a single founder. Paul Arel established Kokondo karate in 1970, having spent the years beforehand teaching, in addition to learning from among the finest martial arts minds in the whole world. By the point Arel established the principles of Kokondo karate in 1970, he had already created a powerful status as some of the formidable martial arts instructors in recent history.

Although Arel has since passed on, Kokondo karate continues to take care of popularity in North America and across the remainder of the globe.

Three principles serve to define Kokondo karate, in addition to Jukido Jujitsu. These principles are Jushin, Kuzushi, and Shorin-ji. It is usually value noting that Kokondo is a closed-off system of karate. Which means that a student who wishes to coach in Kokondo will need to take into account that they’ll not be allowed to coach with another type of martial arts.

The Bottom Line

Over the past few many years, Kokondo has established itself within the U.S. and elsewhere.

Standing United We Pack A Punch.

Self Defense

Bujinkan Ninjutsu: The Art of Breaking Balance within the Ninja’s Self-Defense System of Ninpo Taijutsu

Amit Gaikwad Mar 25, 2023Mar 25, 2023 Leave a comment

Picture a martial arts fight in your mind; what you are prone to “see” are loads of kicks, punches and blocks, perhaps locks and throws, too; but what you’ll likely miss are the underlying principles that make each of those techniques and moves practical and effective. Considered one of the basic principles of Ninjutsu is easy to explain, difficult to perfect, but potentially devastating once it’s mastered: the principle of Breaking Balance, or because it is understood in Japanese, Kuzushi.

Why is it so effective?

Simply answered…

Because breaking balance limits your attacker’s mobility.

So? What’s going to that do for you when he’s attempting to beat, break, or kill you?

Good query.

Listed below are three (of many!) the explanation why balance breaking is vitally vital within the ninja’s self-defense method:

1) Breaking balance severely limits the power of an opponent to defend against a follow-up, possibly conflict-ending counter-attack from you.

2) Breaking balance effectively limits the reactive options, possible defense or counter-attack options, that an opponent might decide to employ.

3) Breaking balance can shock or disorient an opponent right into a momentary lapse of focus, allowing the victim – you – to flee from the situation.

This doesn’t mean that breaking the balance of an opponent is just a set-up for further actions. No, breaking the balance of an opponent can itself be the end-goal of a violent encounter because it might be enough to interrupt the boldness of an assailant, causing them to flee the scene reasonably than you!

Considered one of the interesting things concerning the principal of Breaking Balance is that it underlines the wealthy vein of strategy that runs throughout Ninjutsu. Ninjutsu doesn’t aim to pit strength against strength, reasonably it seeks to undermine the benefits of the opponent and create openings that play to the strengths of the victim. In this fashion, a “weaker” opponent can beat a “stronger” one!

Imagine a thug’s surprise when he finds himself losing control of his own balance and unable to do anything about it as every move he makes brings him closer to defeat!

But how will you break the balance of an opponent?

Imagine that there’s a line drawn between his heels; for those who move him perpendicular to this line, he can be forced right into a desperate backwards stagger, fighting to regain his balance!

Sounds great, huh? But perhaps difficult, too?

YOU can learn this theory and how you can effectively apply it through the study of Ninjutsu. But, within the words of an awesome martial arts master…

“Learning is straightforward, but motion is difficult. And motion is straightforward, but true understanding is difficult!”

The query is:

Self Defense

Use Your Perfume As Self-Defense

Amit Gaikwad Mar 25, 2023 Leave a comment

We have all heard of carrying around mace or pepper spray in our purse for self defense. But have you ever ever consider using the cosmetic products you have already got as a safeguard? In case you leaf through your medicine cabinet or cosmetics case, you’re sure to search out a lot of things that would fend of an attacker. Take perfume, as an illustration. Sure, it might leave your attacker smelling good, but are you able to imagine what it appears like to spray it in your eye?

Perfume consists of many ingredients. Besides the plant or animal essence that the fragrance is derived from, alcohol is a serious component in perfume and cologne. Perfume can also be stuffed with chemicals that might be extremely dangerous if inhaled, ingested or put in the attention. Take a bottle of Bvlgari perfume, for instance. Don’t be concerned, it won’t harm you when you’re spraying it on yourself the way in which it’s meant for use. The most important ingredients are Acetone, Benzaldehyde, Ethanol and Methylene Chloride. Don’t be concerned, these products won’t hurt you when you just spray your perfume the way in which it’s meant for use. But it surely could really hurt someone if it gets of their eye. It won’t do any everlasting damage, but it can definitely startle an attacker and provides you sufficient time to run for help.

One other advantage of carrying around your perfume bottle as self defense reasonably than mace or pepper spray is that it looks completely normal. You’ll be able to carry a small bottle in your purse and when you go to a club and wish to get your bags checked, you usually are not carrying anything out of the unusual. Also, you’ll have your perfume with you in case you get sweaty dancing and you possibly can just spray slightly on. It isn’t all the time convenient to search out something like mace or pepper spray, so it’s good to know the best way to protect yourself with the every single day items that you just do have.

In case you are walking by yourself late at night, all the time pay attention to your surroundings wherever you go. In case you notice something suspicious or someone following you, take out your little perfume bottle and walk while carrying it, keeping it firmly grasped in your hand. In case you are attacked, all the time aim directly within the assailants eye. He’ll get startled and take a look at to guard himself by covering his face. This will provide you with enough time to run away. All the time keep your mobile phone readily available when you find yourself walking alone at night.

Self Defense

5 Ways to Smash Your Self-Defense Training – Conclusion – Becoming Invisible

Amit Gaikwad Mar 25, 2023 Leave a comment

First: A Word on “Street Sparring”

There are vital explanation why we do not spar. If we’d like to enter, we utilize John Perkins’ version of WWII Combatives since it’s faster, easier to learn and provides much better protection than Western Boxing and all other variants of sport fighting. Sarcastically, this is useful whether you may have the physical advantage or not.

This shouldn’t be the stage of Roman Gladiatorial games where two men battled in front of 1,000s of spectators for the dignity and glory of winning. We only care about surviving.

Sparring is for sport and doesn’t simulate an actual time, violent attack. In the event you are circling around someone on the streets as they do in a 23′ x 23′ ring, while using eye-hand coordination to strike your attacker with kicks and punches, it means you may have enough distance to run. If that is not a possibility and also you carry a concealed weapon, you may have enough space and distance to attract your weapon and shoot your attacker in the top.

It’s ridiculous to fight someone in a sparring manner in the event that they have superior strength and reach, which is the rationale why they’ve weight classes during these sporting events. You might take the best possible welterweight in existence and put him against an untrained man the dimensions of an offensive lineman and he’ll get completely destroyed if he tries the methods taught in sport fighting.

Someone will argue that no system would work…well, therein lies the misunderstanding. That is the rationale why we train to literally disfigure and destroy individuals with deadly strikes while utilizing the principles of the system because it is actually the one solution to overcome size, speed and strength in close quarters combat. Please don’t ever let anyone provide you with the mistaken impression that those physical aspects aren’t vital in a fight. Fortunately nonetheless, at extremely high levels, you’ll be able to achieve proficiency to the purpose that you just haven’t got to permanently hurt people.

Now despite all of that, let me be clear about something else. The systems that advocate sparring often have higher athletes and higher fighters than those that avoid physical contact or move from structured patterns. While KCD negates the physical benefits of the varied sportive systems, those athletic individuals will most probably absorb the principles of KCD even faster than the non-athletic. That is just the truth.

It Takes 2 to Clinch

Because we do not spar, which we view as any fighting where you might be at a variety when eye-hand coordination is the predominant factor, we’d like to once more think when it comes to our Sphere of Influence. To exert your influence, you either allow the attacker to enter your sphere or you progress your sphere into his. Otherwise there isn’t a fight. Despite the fact that we operate primarily in clinch range, the difference is that we depend on body unitized momentum and sensitivity to strike vital targets at any angle in relation to our sphere as a substitute of counting on clamping strength to regulate.

The clinch range for Jiu Jitsu employs the identical approach to strategizing for positional dominance as ground grappling, but is performed while standing. The concept is to put the opponent right into a position where his ability to defend strikes, takedowns, throws or submissions are greatly compromised.

Though this shouldn’t be a comprehensive description of each possible clinch, the first clinch and transition you see in MMA and even some street fighting is the over-under clinch during which each parties pummel to get to the double-under hooks position (chest to chest body lock). Over and under simply describes the position of their arms in relation to 1 one other. For instance, within the over-under, one in all your arms can be over one in all the opponent’s arms. Your other arm can be under the opponent’s other arm and around his back. Your head can be positioned on the identical side as his over hooked arm.

The Fatal Flaw of Clinching

Most fighters, expert or not, don’t yield on this range. Fairly often, you will see each parties attempting to strike one another from the clinching position, even in the event that they haven’t got positional superiority. The strikes are often weak and really ineffective because they sacrifice their dynamic balance and skill to take care of a fluid root by entangling themselves in a single position and counting on their attacker’s balance. They don’t have any ability to create real space or movement, which is a necessity, especially for those who lack short power. At the top of the day, lots of times they’re merely bumping into each other as they try to regulate and avoid by utilizing attachment or pure strength.

Along with leaving you entangled, clinching is extremely inefficient in addition to energy consuming since it involves sustained tension. Except for that, it also leaves your eyes and throat completely exposed. You possibly can’t protect your head from a determined attacker by turning it sideways and placing it against the attacker’s body either.

Cung Le, who I discussed within the Attackproof FAQ, was probably the most dominant fighter within the history of San Shou. We recognized that he either developed the next level of sensitivity through a keen understanding of internal training concepts or through extraordinary natural ability. In lots of his fights, as he and his opponent would clinch, he’d simply utilize his sensitivity to feel the strain of his opponents, which he would immediately use as handles to throw or slam them to the bottom. While that is the goal of San Shou Shuai Jiao, he’s capable of perform these movements in a way more effective manner than his opponents due to superior sensitivity.

Though we completely disagree with Cung Le’s approach to fighting since we oppose any type of entanglement for self defense purposes, it underscores a vital point. Having just just a little bit more sensitivity in any arena, whether it’s competition or street, gives you an enormous advantage over your opponent. The truth is, grappling in and of itself develops a level of sensitivity, nonetheless the responses that it programs are once more, inappropriate for self defense, though perfect for competition.

You Cannot Grapple a Ghost

When entering clinching range, you must be almost undetectable, as for those who are a ghost; you must be completely unavailable to the attacker’s strikes and grapples, yet completely unavoidable as you utilize dropping energy to inflict damage. That is the rationale why Ki Chuan Do translated means, “Way of the Spirit Fist” or why it is usually called “Ghostfist.” In fact we’re speaking figuratively, but that’s the dichotomy that we are trying to perfect after we train. Here’s an elaboration on this method from newsletter #16 by KCD Master Lt. Col. Al Ridenhour USMC:

Ghost Entry– as described by Musashi– that is striking from the void in its truest form. Grand Master Perkins has up to now referred to this as “hitting people together with your spirit” [this is wild!]. With the ghost entry you just wish to get an impression of the opposite person’s body. As I enter, I launch myself attempting to remain as graceful [unitized] as possible and with the “lightest” of contact or “perception” [spatial awareness] of where they’re in relation to my body I quickly move to a kill strike dropping and penetrating on contact. In the event that they adjust their position, irrespective of, I adjust. I imagine myself moving just like the wind and striking like lightning. The lightness of my contact whether physical or mental is predicated just as much on my perception of contact in addition to what I actually feel. While this could be very esoteric it is a totally learnable skill but it surely requires much practice.

Once more as with most of the techniques I’ve described I do know there are going to be those that will remain skeptical about this form of thing, for many who have felt this you understand exactly what I’m talking about! This movement when applied against you has an eerie feel to it because you think that you understand where the opposite person is coming from nonetheless you truly don’t see the strike coming even when looking right on the person, and if dropping energy is applied to it, “fa-gedda-bout-it”, it’s the Ghost Fist in its purest essence…

On the chaos levels we’re engaging in, the one way you’ll be able to achieve this level of combativeness is by mastering the 5 Principles of Combat (Balance, Body Unity, Looseness, Sensitivity and Freedom of Motion) with a special emphasis on the fifth. In the event you are deficient in even one in all the 5 Primary Principles, you’ll be able to never utilize any of them in high speed, high adrenaline motion in an efficient manner.

Actually Working the Principles, Not Just Talking About Them

There are practically no other schools that teach these principles in a scientific and proper manner so that just about any dedicated student can absorb them without spending half of their lives (30+ years) in training. The truth is, we do not know of any. Nonetheless and just so I’m clear, many faculties speak the identical language as us and we recognize that the vast majority of them will properly train 2 and even 3 of the principles.

The issue is that they often fail even with those because they’ll train their minds for patterned movement or another stylistic nonsense (i.e., static, pigeon toed footwork and even body hardening) to preserve lineage on the expense of effectiveness. Fairly often, they’ll discover one or two principles and go on to stylize their entire system around these principles on the expense of others. To be clear on what I mean, I’ll give several examples.

There are those that could have the power to display a high degree of speed or looseness in demos, but then won’t have the sensitivity and freedom of motion of their delivery systems to put it to use in a dynamic, non-choreographed environment where they should use it while concurrently attacking an actively resisting opponent.

Looseness as a separate component is useless when applied without the opposite principles to combative motion. It’s the manifestation of all of the principles working together without delay that makes your body pliable, yet and still extremely powerful.

Or perhaps, they’ve some Iron Palm training and have developed a point of dropping energy, but they’re unable to put it to use in an actual fight from any angle because they have not developed the looseness.

There are systems that may advocate the principles, but then will completely undermine all of them by performing some absolutely ridiculous techniques that only probably the most athletic and coordinated could pull off in the event that they get lucky.

Devotion to Style Limits Freedom of Motion

Greater than likely nonetheless, they simply don’t have any approach to developing the principles, although they could be consciously aware of them. So often you’ll be able to go into a faculty and only the trainer/s can actually fight, while the scholars don’t have any combat proficiency by any means. The goal of Guided Chaos is to take you to the extent of mastery of those principles which can robotically provide you with the power to filter out incorrect methods and evaluate your personal training, no matter system, style or body type.

Here’s one other take from Lt. Col Al on this matter:

As for the inner arts, in fact they’re by far superior in every way so far as body development compared to external arts. Nonetheless, where people go unsuitable in lots of internal systems similar to Tai Chi, Wing Chun and Ba Gua is that they ignore fighting and deal with flowing or the developed pattern movements as in Wing Chun, which restricts their freedom of motion. I think you wish each and here is where KCD has a bonus over the inner systems. A lot of their practitioners may develop good body unity and sensitivity but they never learn easy methods to apply it in an actual fight because they do not know easy methods to transpose the abilities into their fighting arsenal.

The Grease That Makes All Your Other Training Work Higher

In these articles, except for a reference or two, I purposely avoided the discussion of weapons or multiple attackers for 2 reasons.

1. Grappling/Clinching intrinsically sets one as much as fail in these situations. Nonetheless, the vast majority of their practitioners are aware of this. The sensible amongst them will simply adapt KCD style movements for street defense and save the grappling for the ring. One shouldn’t be higher than the opposite; they simply serve two different purposes.

2. Even at best, no matter what your skill level or training, these variables introduce elements that will not be survivable even under the very best conditions. Period! Nonetheless, because KCD is built upon the principles of Freedom of Motion and avoiding Entanglement, it robotically gives you your best probabilities for survival.

As stated before, to various degrees the inner principles of Guided Chaos might be utilized to reinforce the movement of any system, even sport fighting and it already has. The difference lies within the proven fact that the tools we utilize are from WWII Combatives and end the fight as soon as possible because our focus is self defense. This also where most Tai Chi training falls short (except in certain select schools) because there is not the relentless deal with destroying the enemy using the inner energy that’s so conscientiously developed.

At all times Keep an Open Mind

Even in KCD, we’re very careful (not less than most of us are) concerning the assumptions that we make because it might be very easy for us to fall into the identical trap as so many other schools. That’s the reason we adhere to principles versus “this” technique or “that” technique because while techniques come and go, the principles apply to each form of fighting no matter who you might be. I try to emphasise that we’re never satisfied with what we all know and are continuously searching for recent experiences to be able to expand our knowledge base.

Because of this we still give folks the time of day even when we disagree with what they’re doing if for no other reason than to know what “doesn’t” work. As Thomas Edison once said, “…90% of genius is knowing what doesn’t work.” What he (Edison) doesn’t inform you unless you study his quite a few experiments is that for his most successful inventions, he failed hundreds of experiments before developing the sunshine bulb. When asked why he required so many experiments he replied something along the lines of “…well now I do know 1,000 things that do not work…”

Like Edison, we feel it’s just as necessary to know the logical reasoning of why something does or doesn’t work. Nonetheless, we attempt to focus our energies on developing good purposeful habits that are rooted within the principles of combat. This is predicated on what actually happens and never what we would love to occur. This same attitude is something that I also consider truly separates KCD from other arts and is one in all the explanation why we still proceed to enhance with time. We aren’t afraid to fail in school and challenge the validity of what we all know and teach because we all know there are not any second probabilities on the road. The purpose is that if we knew all of it (and we do not), we would not must train, because we’d have already got all of the answers but the reality is that even in KCD we’re only scratching the surface and have much to find.

Self Defense

5 Ways to Destroy Your Self-Defense Training

Amit Gaikwad Mar 24, 2023 Leave a comment

The 5 Levels of Cooperation: A Prescription for Failure

That is the primary of a 5 part series of articles analyzing popular training paradigms which inhibit the flexibility to be creative via non-choreographed movements in high speed/high adrenaline fights. The five levels are, “The Set Up”, “Structuring the Fight”, “Wearing Protective Equipment”, “Disregarding Vital Targets” and “Providing Structure”.

99% of sport fighting, traditional martial arts and self defense systems fail at training the body’s subconscious reactions for real fighting because their primary focus is wrongly based upon techniques as an alternative of enhancement of the body’s natural delivery system. As well as, they teach you how you can develop combative tools but fail at teaching how you can utilize them in an uncooperative environment. Worst of all, they propagate techniques filtered through the prism of competitive fighting which is a natural out growth of the restrictions imposed upon the fighters. They fail to grasp that these techniques were developed as a work-around because of the prohibition of using potentially or completely lethal skills for competitive bouts. While practical in competition, these techniques haven’t any basis in life and death combat.

Sport Fighting is Great–But Not for Saving Your Life!

This isn’t successful against sport fighting. Quite the opposite, we recognize that it takes an incredible amount of skill and physical talent to be able to make techniques work in competition, indicating why so few people can fight effectively at its highest levels. Nonetheless, there are some fundamental differences between the goals of self defense and competitive fighting that have to be addressed.

Throughout this series of articles, I’ll quote liberally from various sources including electronic mail I actually have had with Guided Chaos Master Lt. Col. Al Ridenhour USMC who sums up the differences below:

When discussing true combative skills or techniques, we usually are not discussing merely choking people out, submission holds or boxing people into submission. We’re talking about crushing wind pipes, blinding people, snapping necks if possible, stomping skulls and the usage of weapons, any of which can lead to death or everlasting disability. This isn’t something that we openly discuss for quite a lot of reasons that I won’t get into on this email, but suffice to say, these folks who think that real life and death combat is about sparring, forms or making people say “Uncle”, as Master Gichin Funakoshi, founding father of Shotokan Karate would say, “are playing around within the leaves and branches of an ideal tree with none conception of its trunk…” I may also add that those that fall into this category haven’t any concept of the forensic reality of the variety of violence that visits people on a regular basis on our streets, and I’m sorry but what they’re talking about and what we’re talking about usually are not the identical thing Lt. Col. Al continues:

Lethal techniques usually are not only effective but most significantly, so easy to make use of that proficiency in a few of these skills could be measured in training hours versus months or years as demonstrated in WW II. This acknowledged fact is why such techniques are specifically banned from competitive fighting and why training in such skills will also be problematic. There are those that will say “well anyone can strike to the eyes or other vital areas, etc”. That is true; nevertheless the distinct difference I’m discussing here is whether or not you possibly can deliver the strikes to the vital areas with power before your opponent can. Also, are you able to make it work when it is advisable to make it work. Furthermore, are the abilities being taught in concert with the true dynamics of the utter and brutal chaos of an actual fight? Training in even one among 5 various kinds of cooperation not only ignores this fact but completely suffocates “aliveness” because it applies to self defense. On this series of articles, I’ll use John Perkins’ system of Guided Chaos (Ki Chuan Do) as a benchmark to check these differences and explain how you possibly can enhance your fighting system’s potential for realistic self defense purposes.

Level 1: The Set Up Grappling As a Self-defense Strategy

“Moving spontaneously is a purely subconscious kinesthetic skill. Anyone can develop it, because it relies on mastering looseness, body unity, and balance, not mechanical techniques. The one thing it is advisable to learn is how you can develop and use your spontaneous movement so it’s unified and powerful for mortal combat.” –– from the book Attack Proof: The Ultimate Guide to Personal Protection Grappling is a questionable self-defense strategy. In his book Jiu Jitsu Unleashed, Eddie Bravo makes profound arguments about training solely and not using a gi for MMA tournaments and the streets. His rationale is that it’s best to learn and not using a gi so that you simply won’t need to unlearn bad habits when you should use Jiu Jitsu within the ring or on the streets, where nobody wears a gi. He speaks about being opposed by many within the Jiu Jitsu community with an almost religious zeal. That being said, while I love his evolutionary spirit, I completely disagree with Eddie in regard to his belief that the bottom grappling aspect of Jiu Jitsu is a viable self defense system that may prepare you for non-competitive situations.

Jiu Jitsu can be my primary example for this section. Nonetheless, this also applies to any fighting system whose practitioners need to arrange in a stance as a platform to get their techniques off. My argument here is that learning to grapple as a type of non competitive self defense is unnecessary because it presents a dynamic that simply doesn’t exist outside of the sector of competition, primarily since the arrange process makes it entirely too slow and methodical to be effective in the customarily brutal and chaotic environment of life and death combat.

Contemporary Jiu Jitsu has evolved into a technique of fighting whose strength lies in its practitioners taking their opponents to the bottom where they strategize to ascertain and maintain some type of superior positional dominance (control) from which the opposition is allegedly offered less opportunity to counter. From here the practitioner can apply a break, leverage, choke hold or sometimes punches to finish the fight. The more advanced practitioners leave less room for movement of their opponent in between transitional points as they maneuver for superior position.

The issue is that in case you’re not cooperating, it is very difficult for them to get to the stage where they’ll get positional dominance. Just as essential, they absolutely cannot do these items without exposing their eyes and throat, which I’ll discuss later in this text. In later sections and particularly the fifth and final article, Providing Structure, I’ll talk concerning the psychology behind why this hasn’t been exploited and in addition concerning the breakdown of mobility on the bottom.

Mixed Martial Art fighters preferring the Jiu Jitsu method often throw a fake, kicks or punches to be able to set the opponent as much as defend himself or move backwards, giving the Jiu Jitsu player a gap to go in for a clinch or takedown where they proceed to take the fight to the bottom. Sometimes, they’ll simply shoot in through the middle of an exchange of strikes between the 2, especially if there’s overextension, which happens almost as a rule for fighters who don’t understand Guided Chaos Dropping Energy, as they need to totally extend their arms to generate any amount of appreciable power.

In the course of the ’90s, Mixed Martial Art competition began to flourish throughout North America and Japan. The first commentary was easy. Traditional Martial Arts had been watered down so severely that the product had little ability to defend against a take down or fight inside the clinching range. It became obvious that many traditional standup practitioners had such little control of their very own equilibrium that easy football tackles and clinching body locks from grapplers easily slammed them into the bottom, thus negating their techniques.

In a desperate rage they’d lock up, powerlessly flail their arms, or reach as much as push the grappler away. In all cases their tension could be giving their attacker handles to simply manipulate them and apply breaks, leverages or chokeholds. Unfortunately and most vital of all, they’d no idea how you can cope with a fight that did not fit their idealized structures despite the indisputable fact that a lot of them were actually strong and in addition well conditioned.

This same phenomenon is seen on the “Gracie Challenge” video and mainly every other clip floating on the internet where a grappler fights a standard stylist. This has given rise to the prevailing train of thought that you might have to learn some variety of grappling to be an entire fighter and this belief has only strengthened with time.

You may’t expect a 110 lb woman to adopt a self-defense strategy of grappling or putting a submission hold on a 200lb attacker…even for a second. Nor can you might have a grappling strategy against one attacker…while his friend kicks your head in. And grappling against a knife is essentially the most silly of all. Guided Chaos groundfighting involves evasion and attack without entanglement. More on this later.

The Sphere of Influence: The Proper Approach to Thought

In Guided Chaos (KCD), you improve your sub cortical vision and sensitivity by doing various esoteric free-form balance drills, one among the first being Polishing the Sphere. This serves two purposes. It enhances your proprioceptivity, which from a physiological standpoint is the interactivity of the nerve receptors within the skin, muscles and joints. This offers your objective mind the flexibility to look at the actions and placement of your body’s weapons in relation to your attacker from a 3rd person’s perspective. In other words, it permits you to operate without conscious thought as that process could be far too slow in an adrenaline raging conflict.

It also enhances your interoceptivity, which is awareness of the subjective senses which offer feedback in a largely subjective manner akin to seeing, hearing, etc. In fact, this process occurs from a largely first person’s perspective. The final result is that your mind should have the opportunity to handle operating from a largely proprioceptive state while fighting, but in addition have the flexibility to rapidly process subjective senses as well. To all of you individuals who think you possibly can “out think” your opponent or pull off that “cool” technique in a high speed fight, you might be mistaken because we fight in a primarily subconscious state, especially when moving at warp speed. I’ll discuss this more in the subsequent article on this series, Structuring the Fight.

The opposite thing it permits you to do is master your body’s ability to counterbalance and maintain equilibrium around your root without overextending which an cause you to lose balance and power. Dropping Energy (an instantaneous, non-chambering approach to delivering power explained within the book Attack Proof) utilizes the body’s myotic stretch reflex together with perfect skeletal alignment in order that you must have the opportunity to strike with power at any time, from any angle, and from any position.

Guided Chaos Slam-Bag training is one among several methods designed to boost your tendon strength, timing and hand striking ability so you possibly can tear, gouge and shred with tremendous power. That is John Perkins’ Dynamic “Iron Palm Training” which trains you to hit with the load and power of your entire body from the ground to your weapon. This obviates the necessity for excessive movement and maximizes Dropping Energy which is your “short power”, or what Internal stylists seek advice from as “Fa Jing”.

As a substitute of pondering by way of ranges, you must consider fighting in relation to your individual Sphere of Influence, which is the utmost extension of your weapons where you possibly can still strike with power without losing control of your equilibrium. Because you only train to fight inside your individual sphere of influence, this training gives you the flexibility to “attack the attacker” from all angles with extraordinary power, while not leaving you liable to fakes. You consistently move your sphere ever so barely offline so that you simply remain unavailable– yet unavoidable.

Nevertheless, despite all of this, going to the bottom continues to be a possibility. Nonetheless, moving your sphere to the bottom isn’t an issue and I will be going into detail on this throughout these articles.

To be continued… next level: Structuring the Fight.

Self Defense

Metsubishi – Using the Ninja’s Principle of "Sight-Removing" For Modern Self-Defense

Amit Gaikwad Mar 24, 2023 Leave a comment

One among the issues with learning ninjutsu, whether you train in a dojo, or learn through online ninja training programs, is that it could possibly be easy to get caught up within the so-called “classical approach.” That is where the traditional museum pieces grow to be the main focus of the training, slightly than the applying of the traditional principles and ideas for self defense in today’s modern world.

One among the Ninja’s weapons that tends to stay on this “classical” sense is the shadow warrior’s metsubishi (also pronounced: “metsubushi”). Often called “blinding powder” – the stuff that makes the “smoke screen” effect – the word actually means “sight-remover.”

This text offers 5 common items you could use for contemporary self defense as substitutes for the Ninja’s so-called “blinding powder.” So, as a substitute of carrying a concealed eggshell crammed with an ancient mixture, the next are some quite common, on a regular basis things that may be used strategically to attain the identical results that the metsubishi was originally designed for. They include.

1) Beads. In case your wearing a beaded bracelet, you might break it and permit the beads to slide off of the string and into your hand. Then the loose objects, including the string, may be thrown at your attacker while you’re able to make your move.

It could be difficult to destroy your personal jewelry, especially if it was expensive or holds a certain sentimental value. But, in a self defense situation, you’ve to determine, within the moment, if the thing that would save your life, has the identical value as your life itself.

2) Flashlight. While you might use a regular flashlight, I find that those tiny key chain lights make perfect little weapons for this tactic. Are you able to imagine what it appears like when a sudden vivid light hits your attacker’s eyes after they’ve fully dilated to regulate for the darkness of night? Not only will you surprise them, however the trauma to the eyes, now forced to a pin-point, will blind the attacker for greater than the several seconds it is going to take you to flee to safety or turn the tables on him!

3) Snow. Obviously a tactic reserved for a certain time of 12 months, in addition to for those of us who actually get snow. But, I desired to add this to the list to ensure that you simply didn’t ignore the bottom or such an obvious self defense aid simply because the bottom, dirt and grass that I discussed earlier was covered.

4) Aerosol Spray. This may very well be anything from cologne or perfume, to hair spray, and even insect repellent. In actual fact, considered one of the suggestions that I give students as an alternative to pepper spray is bug spray – specifically the kind designed to spray wasp and hornet nests.

Using chemical irritants at all times creates an extended window of opportunity, but it surely also requires a greater awareness in your part as to each the wind direction, and the direction the nozzle is pointing. The last item you wish while attempting to protect yourself from a crazed attacker – is to shoot yourself within the eyes together with your own spray!

5) Your individual hand. In our try and master the techniques, tactics, and techniques of self defense, we are able to overlook the best of things. As an alternative of merely punching or grabbing together with your hands, you need to use them at various points in a self defense situation to cover your assailant’s eyes when you execute one other damaging technique. The sudden blindness will draw his attention to your hand and mean you can effectively do whatever you wish in that moment.

Contrary to popular belief, the concept of metsubishi, “sight-removing,” will not be limited to the mixture with the identical name. In actual fact, the physical powder is itself, just a mirrored image of the greater concept. Just as there are a lot of ways to effect someone’s ability to see, so too, there are a lot of objects and methods for making it occur.

The Ninja’s magic doesn’t lie in his weapons and “tricks.” The critical element within the Ninja’s art that makes it perfectly suited to modern self-defense is in it’s ability to mean you can adapt it to the time and placement where you end up.