It's obvious I have a love-hate relationship with martial arts. Hell, I have 3 black belts so there has to be something there. The problem that I have is when martial arts put "self defense" as an added benefit to their bullet point sales pitch. Truth is, my martial arts training almost got me killed. Until I stated training in the SDTS methods, I depended on my combat sports training in wrestling to save my ass. All of the self defense techniques I studied in Tae Kwon Do, Aiki Jujutsu, Bando hindered my ability to survive. Point sparring made me pull my punches and I never got attacked they way we practiced in the dojo. No one ever grabbed my wrist or came lunging at my throat with both arms extended. In fact, if it wasn't for my instinct and aggressiveness, I would have been crushed.
Getting back to our keyboard expert on Facebook, I asked him why he studied Aikido? He said it was because he wanted to get in shape, be a part of a group and it had the added "perk" of self defense.
The perk comment pissed me off.
But before I jumped to conclusions, I wanted to see if he had any other experience in any other martial art, tactical training or with real life confrontations? I was looking for anything that would have put him in a position to identify an effective method of self defense. He tried to deflect, but the answer was a big fat "NO". Other than what his Aikido Sensei told him, he had no idea what he was talking about.
Now the "perk" comment REALLY pissed me off.
The self defense "perk" has been listed as a benefit from Tae Bo to P90X. It seems like every time someone starts throwing kicks and punches, they are learning to defend themselves. When two middle-aged white guys practice wrist locks, they're learning self defense. Anytime you do something that resembles fighting, you're doing self defense. Self Defense has become the punchline of the martial arts world and THAT'S where you're getting ripped off.
What's typical about my Facebook friend (and I know a lot more about him than I'm letting on) is that he's a somewhat typical guy and he is exactly what is wrong with the martial arts.
He is smart, I would say an elevated IQ. He has never done a sport or much of really any other physical activity. He has never been in a real fight and would prefer to acquiesce before fighting. In fact he would probably NEVER be pushed to a point of fighting. He is middle aged and reached a point in his life of exploration. He has seen movies and documentaries about martial arts and chose Aikido because the thought of not having to hurt or get hurt appeals to his sheltered life of non-violence. In fact, the thought of him having to defend himself is an impossibility.
Yet in spite of his lack of experience, his intelligence and his inflated ego won't stop him from trying to justify his investment. He can't help it. So he posts of facebook and forums and makes statements he has no basis of reality to make. He does this because he is scared and deep down he knows the truth...he's a pussy and he will crap himself if he was ever faced with any sort of physical violence.
But this doesn't stop him. He continues to train and perpetuate the myth that what he's doing will work. With out any personal experience or historical fact he continues to make claims based on rhetoric and urban legend. Just as his instructor did and all the instructors that came before him. It is a culture based on bullshit designed to exploit your willingness to avoid conflict, pain, injury and any legal ramifications. It lies to you and banks on the fact that you are middle aged, middle class white guy who will always back down from a fight at whatever the cost. Knowing full well that the chances of you ever getting a life or death struggle are slim and none, but if you do the last thing on your mind will be blaming your style, you will be sucking lunch through a tube, or dead.
This is the martial arts rip off. In the end you're much better off training in a system that requires you to fight a 100% restive partner. BJJ, wrestling, Judo, Boxing, Muay Thai, Olympic Tae Kwon Do, Kyokushin Karate, MMA, or anything else that requires you to fight an opponent on equal ground is light years better for self defense than Aikido or any other cultural fighting art. The only reason cultural fighting arts still make any money is because of they perpetuate the self defense "perk".
Self defense is not a perk, it's a purpose. And if that's what you are looking for than that's what you need to focus on. It's not 15 minutes at the end of class or random moves thrown together. It's a tactical response to violence that requires a certain mindset and specific skill sets. It needs to be treated as a separate entity and NOT squeezed in between sparring and forms. It's the most important segment of your training and deserves a certain amount of respect.
FYI: Aikido defense vs. Two handed Grab From the Front
SDTS vs. Two handed Grab From the Front
Any questions?
Damian Ross
The Self Defense Company
The Self Defense Company Global Network of Resources
Free Resources
Up to the minutes Self Defense News from around the World
SDC Corporate Site
SDC Training Forum
The SDC on Face Book
SDC Blog
Free SDC Videos on Youtube
SDC on Twitter
Tactical Training Programs
SDTS Lethal Use of Force Training
Family and Community Safety
Basic Adult and Teen Tactical Training
Police, Military and Security Tactical Training
Instructor Certification
Damian Ross is CEO of the Self Defense Company and developer of The Self Defense Training System, the most lethal and effective self defense system in the world, The Guardian Defensive Tactics Police Combatives Program, 60 minute Self Defense and the Family Safe Program. Mr. Ross also founded the Self Defense Instructor Program that helps people develop their self defense careers from the ground up. Mr. Ross is originally from Ridgewood, NJ where he was a High School Hall of Fame Athlete in football and wrestling as well as a varsity wrestling coach. He then went on to Lehigh University where he was a varsity wrestler and football player. Mr. Ross has 3 black belts, 4th Degree in Tekkenryu Jujutsu, 2nd Degree in Judo, 2nd Degree in Tae Kwon Do. In addition to his martial arts experience, Mr. Ross spent 8 years in the professional security and personal protection business. He is internationally recognized as one of the foremost authorities in reality based self defense.
No comments:
Post a Comment