Post by KenBelmont on Jul 11, 2014 23:53:07 GMT
BLAST FROM THE PAST
Traditional Weapons Skills Into Contemporary Self-Defense
You work out for hours, practicing staff, sword, spear and short
stick patterns that have been done that same way for centuries. You
force yourself to learn intricate sequences and complicated
techniques as you strive to make your body one with each weapon.
Then one day frustration sets in and you begin asking yourself, Why?
You wonder about the benefits of training with traditional weapons
because you know you'll never use one for self- defense- and that's
the reason you took up the martial arts in the first place.
Like so many facets of the Asian arts, traditional weapons training
benefits you in the numerous ways. On a physical level, it builds
hand-eye coordination, strength and balance. On a mental level, it
trains your mind by introducing unique challenges- such as how to
wield a heavy implement as an extension of your arm. On a cultural
level, it links you to the roots of your art. On a practical level,
it gives you the knowledge you need to use tools that can save your
butt on the street.
Wait a minute. We're talking about swords and spears, right? How can
a sword be associated with practical, modern-day self-defense? I'll
explain.
Exposure To Variety
When studying traditional weapons to develop self-defense skill,
variety is the spice of life. Variety increases the depth of your
understanding so you can transition from traditional forms to modern
applications. The techniques and theories that govern each weapon
are different, but no matter the implement, they share certain
characteristics that are useful in developing self-defense ability.
That's because within any given art, the skill sets needed to wield
it weapons reinforce one another-which is one of the reasons most
teachers will require you to build a foundation in empty-hand form
before you progress to more complicated weapons form and techniques.
Traditional weapons training is designed to benefit you on a number
of levels. One of the primary payoffs is increased wrist and grip
strength. In the Korean art of kuk sool, for instance, training
builds muscles and tendons in the wrists and forearms, which boosts
the effectiveness of many joint locks. Any kuk sool student who's
spent time with the nunchaku or staff- the fundamentals of which
include 15 stationary spins and 3 moving spins- can attest to the
effect such practice has on limb strength.
Variety also enters the picture with respect to the types of
techniques associated with each weapon. From deceptive spinning
moves and powerful jabs and strikes of the staff to the sweeping
blocks, cuts and parries of the sword, they enhance your ability to
perform more self- defense- oriented moves.
Short Stick
While its true that the techniques of some traditional weapons forms
may have been effective on the battlefield hundreds of years ago,
its also true that they don't transition to modern-day use with
adaptation. The kuk sool short stick, or dan bong, is a good
example. It's one of the first weapons to which students are
exposed, usually at brown-belt level. Not to be confused with the
longer kali stick, the dan bong is a piece oh hardwood about as long
as your forearm your forearm, and it's used primarily for blocking
and striking. The strikes are unique in that they're done while the
stick is held loosely, controlled by the ring finger, middle finger
and thumb. And they're delivered with a snapping motion. Once
learned, the techniques can be adapted to a flashlight or even a
rolled-up magazine.
Staff
Many instructors claim the staff is the most useful self-defense
weapon- because you can always find a stick laying around. The
statement is correct, but the premise isn't. While you certainly can
find plenty of sticklike objects in the environment, to think you
can easily transfer staff techniques to such implements just because
they're of similar lengths is wrong.
The staff techniques you learn in a traditional art are based on
having access to a relatively straight and balanced weapon. In all
likelihood, however, a substitute staff you can pick up in the
kitchen or on the street will have a different length, be unbalanced
and be somewhat less then straight. Imagine trying to do staff form
with a tree branch, and you'll get the picture.
Does that mean staff techniques are ineffective for self-defense?
No. It just means that a little imagination may be required to use
them with an improvised weapon. It also means that the modified move
with the object you've picked up might be more effective then the
traditional staff move it can come from. Consider how deadly a
garden hoe, for instance would be in the hands of a martial artist
who's trained with the staff.
Sword
Many types of swords are used in the martial arts- from the Chinese
straight sword (jain) and broadsword (dao) to the Japanese katana to
the Korean long sword (gum). All of them teach techniques that can
be readily adapted to self-defense.
One of the reasons traditional sword work is so applicable to modern
self-defense is the similarity between cutting with a blade and
striking with a sword like object and between stabbing with a blade
and poking with a sword like object. Generally speaking, any cutting
technique can be adapted to a strike, and any stabbing technique can
be converted to a poke. Combine that knowledge pressure points, and
the results can be devastating. Numerous found objects can be
wielded effectively using cutting and striking moves- for the most
part, anything from an umbrella to a stick to a length of dowel, as
long as it fits into your hand. Just as many can be used to poke,
assuming they have a pointed tip.
Best Weapon
No matter whether its attack or defense, sport or survival, your
most effective weapon is your brain. That's a lesson all good
martial arts masters teach. Using your imagination to adapt to an
improvised weapon or change the way traditional techniques are
strung together in a combination is the key to success. Just as
empty- hands forms are virtually worthless for street fighting,
traditional weapons forms will do little to boost your effectiveness
in a dark alley – unless you get creative with them. What's the best
way to develop your ability to do that? Select individual
techniques from your forms and break them all down into the
fundamental patterns that pertain to the weapon. Study the angle of
attacks or defense. Learn how your body supports the technique in
which direction your strengths and weaknesses lie. Identify the most
important characteristics of long, short, flexible, rigid, striking,
stabbing and trapping weapons.
Once you've done that, play with each weapon to learn how you can
translate its movements into self-defense. Note that this
methodology applies as much to defense as it does to offense.
Chances are slim that anyone will attack you on the street with a
samurai sword, but your likelihood of being accosted by a thug with
a baseball bat or a two-by-four is much greater. If such an event
were to occur, you'd have to immediately determine which classical
weapons techniques you can and to what you have at hand- be it an
umbrella, a belt, a necktie or a cellphone- then use it. As you
progress in your traditional martial art, you may decide that you
want to focus entirely on its links to the past, and that's fine.
But if you determine that you'd like to master the old ways and be
able to adapt them to modern self-defense, it's even better. With a
little imagination, you can transport 17 th century weapon into the
21 st century.
Traditional Weapons Skills Into Contemporary Self-Defense
You work out for hours, practicing staff, sword, spear and short
stick patterns that have been done that same way for centuries. You
force yourself to learn intricate sequences and complicated
techniques as you strive to make your body one with each weapon.
Then one day frustration sets in and you begin asking yourself, Why?
You wonder about the benefits of training with traditional weapons
because you know you'll never use one for self- defense- and that's
the reason you took up the martial arts in the first place.
Like so many facets of the Asian arts, traditional weapons training
benefits you in the numerous ways. On a physical level, it builds
hand-eye coordination, strength and balance. On a mental level, it
trains your mind by introducing unique challenges- such as how to
wield a heavy implement as an extension of your arm. On a cultural
level, it links you to the roots of your art. On a practical level,
it gives you the knowledge you need to use tools that can save your
butt on the street.
Wait a minute. We're talking about swords and spears, right? How can
a sword be associated with practical, modern-day self-defense? I'll
explain.
Exposure To Variety
When studying traditional weapons to develop self-defense skill,
variety is the spice of life. Variety increases the depth of your
understanding so you can transition from traditional forms to modern
applications. The techniques and theories that govern each weapon
are different, but no matter the implement, they share certain
characteristics that are useful in developing self-defense ability.
That's because within any given art, the skill sets needed to wield
it weapons reinforce one another-which is one of the reasons most
teachers will require you to build a foundation in empty-hand form
before you progress to more complicated weapons form and techniques.
Traditional weapons training is designed to benefit you on a number
of levels. One of the primary payoffs is increased wrist and grip
strength. In the Korean art of kuk sool, for instance, training
builds muscles and tendons in the wrists and forearms, which boosts
the effectiveness of many joint locks. Any kuk sool student who's
spent time with the nunchaku or staff- the fundamentals of which
include 15 stationary spins and 3 moving spins- can attest to the
effect such practice has on limb strength.
Variety also enters the picture with respect to the types of
techniques associated with each weapon. From deceptive spinning
moves and powerful jabs and strikes of the staff to the sweeping
blocks, cuts and parries of the sword, they enhance your ability to
perform more self- defense- oriented moves.
Short Stick
While its true that the techniques of some traditional weapons forms
may have been effective on the battlefield hundreds of years ago,
its also true that they don't transition to modern-day use with
adaptation. The kuk sool short stick, or dan bong, is a good
example. It's one of the first weapons to which students are
exposed, usually at brown-belt level. Not to be confused with the
longer kali stick, the dan bong is a piece oh hardwood about as long
as your forearm your forearm, and it's used primarily for blocking
and striking. The strikes are unique in that they're done while the
stick is held loosely, controlled by the ring finger, middle finger
and thumb. And they're delivered with a snapping motion. Once
learned, the techniques can be adapted to a flashlight or even a
rolled-up magazine.
Staff
Many instructors claim the staff is the most useful self-defense
weapon- because you can always find a stick laying around. The
statement is correct, but the premise isn't. While you certainly can
find plenty of sticklike objects in the environment, to think you
can easily transfer staff techniques to such implements just because
they're of similar lengths is wrong.
The staff techniques you learn in a traditional art are based on
having access to a relatively straight and balanced weapon. In all
likelihood, however, a substitute staff you can pick up in the
kitchen or on the street will have a different length, be unbalanced
and be somewhat less then straight. Imagine trying to do staff form
with a tree branch, and you'll get the picture.
Does that mean staff techniques are ineffective for self-defense?
No. It just means that a little imagination may be required to use
them with an improvised weapon. It also means that the modified move
with the object you've picked up might be more effective then the
traditional staff move it can come from. Consider how deadly a
garden hoe, for instance would be in the hands of a martial artist
who's trained with the staff.
Sword
Many types of swords are used in the martial arts- from the Chinese
straight sword (jain) and broadsword (dao) to the Japanese katana to
the Korean long sword (gum). All of them teach techniques that can
be readily adapted to self-defense.
One of the reasons traditional sword work is so applicable to modern
self-defense is the similarity between cutting with a blade and
striking with a sword like object and between stabbing with a blade
and poking with a sword like object. Generally speaking, any cutting
technique can be adapted to a strike, and any stabbing technique can
be converted to a poke. Combine that knowledge pressure points, and
the results can be devastating. Numerous found objects can be
wielded effectively using cutting and striking moves- for the most
part, anything from an umbrella to a stick to a length of dowel, as
long as it fits into your hand. Just as many can be used to poke,
assuming they have a pointed tip.
Best Weapon
No matter whether its attack or defense, sport or survival, your
most effective weapon is your brain. That's a lesson all good
martial arts masters teach. Using your imagination to adapt to an
improvised weapon or change the way traditional techniques are
strung together in a combination is the key to success. Just as
empty- hands forms are virtually worthless for street fighting,
traditional weapons forms will do little to boost your effectiveness
in a dark alley – unless you get creative with them. What's the best
way to develop your ability to do that? Select individual
techniques from your forms and break them all down into the
fundamental patterns that pertain to the weapon. Study the angle of
attacks or defense. Learn how your body supports the technique in
which direction your strengths and weaknesses lie. Identify the most
important characteristics of long, short, flexible, rigid, striking,
stabbing and trapping weapons.
Once you've done that, play with each weapon to learn how you can
translate its movements into self-defense. Note that this
methodology applies as much to defense as it does to offense.
Chances are slim that anyone will attack you on the street with a
samurai sword, but your likelihood of being accosted by a thug with
a baseball bat or a two-by-four is much greater. If such an event
were to occur, you'd have to immediately determine which classical
weapons techniques you can and to what you have at hand- be it an
umbrella, a belt, a necktie or a cellphone- then use it. As you
progress in your traditional martial art, you may decide that you
want to focus entirely on its links to the past, and that's fine.
But if you determine that you'd like to master the old ways and be
able to adapt them to modern self-defense, it's even better. With a
little imagination, you can transport 17 th century weapon into the
21 st century.