Please take a look at Articles on self-defense/conflict/violence for introductions to the references found in the bibliography page.

Please take a look at my bibliography if you do not see a proper reference to a post.

Please take a look at my Notable Quotes

Hey, Attention on Deck!

Hey, NOTHING here is PERSONAL, get over it - Teach Me and I will Learn!


When you begin to feel like you are a tough guy, a warrior, a master of the martial arts or that you have lived a tough life, just take a moment and get some perspective with the following:


I've stopped knives that were coming to disembowel me

I've clawed for my gun while bullets ripped past me

I've dodged as someone tried to put an ax in my skull

I've fought screaming steel and left rubber on the road to avoid death

I've clawed broken glass out of my body after their opening attack failed

I've spit blood and body parts and broke strangle holds before gouging eyes

I've charged into fires, fought through blizzards and run from tornados

I've survived being hunted by gangs, killers and contract killers

The streets were my home, I hunted in the night and was hunted in turn


Please don't brag to me that you're a survivor because someone hit you. And don't tell me how 'tough' you are because of your training. As much as I've been through I know people who have survived much, much worse. - Marc MacYoung

WARNING, CAVEAT AND NOTE

The postings on this blog are my interpretation of readings, studies and experiences therefore errors and omissions are mine and mine alone. The content surrounding the extracts of books, see bibliography on this blog site, are also mine and mine alone therefore errors and omissions are also mine and mine alone and therefore why I highly recommended one read, study, research and fact find the material for clarity. My effort here is self-clarity toward a fuller understanding of the subject matter. See the bibliography for information on the books. Please make note that this article/post is my personal analysis of the subject and the information used was chosen or picked by me. It is not an analysis piece because it lacks complete and comprehensive research, it was not adequately and completely investigated and it is not balanced, i.e., it is my personal view without the views of others including subject experts, etc. Look at this as “Infotainment rather then expert research.” This is an opinion/editorial article/post meant to persuade the reader to think, decide and accept or reject my premise. It is an attempt to cause change or reinforce attitudes, beliefs and values as they apply to martial arts and/or self-defense. It is merely a commentary on the subject in the particular article presented.


Note: I will endevor to provide a bibliography and italicize any direct quotes from the materials I use for this blog. If there are mistakes, errors, and/or omissions, I take full responsibility for them as they are mine and mine alone. If you find any mistakes, errors, and/or omissions please comment and let me know along with the correct information and/or sources.



“What you are reading right now is a blog. It’s written and posted by me, because I want to. I get no financial remuneration for writing it. I don’t have to meet anyone’s criteria in order to post it. Not only I don’t have an employer or publisher, but I’m not even constrained by having to please an audience. If people won’t like it, they won’t read it, but I won’t lose anything by it. Provided I don’t break any laws (libel, incitement to violence, etc.), I can post whatever I want. This means that I can write openly and honestly, however controversial my opinions may be. It also means that I could write total bullshit; there is no quality control. I could be biased. I could be insane. I could be trolling. … not all sources are equivalent, and all sources have their pros and cons. These needs to be taken into account when evaluating information, and all information should be evaluated. - God’s Bastard, Sourcing Sources (this applies to this and other blogs by me as well; if you follow the idea's, advice or information you are on your own, don't come crying to me, it is all on you do do the work to make sure it works for you!)



“You should prepare yourself to dedicate at least five or six years to your training and practice to understand the philosophy and physiokinetics of martial arts and karate so that you can understand the true spirit of everything and dedicate your mind, body and spirit to the discipline of the art.” - cejames (note: you are on your own, make sure you get expert hands-on guidance in all things martial and self-defense)



“All I say is by way of discourse, and nothing by way of advice. I should not speak so boldly if it were my due to be believed.” - Montaigne


I am not a leading authority on any one discipline that I write about and teach, it is my hope and wish that with all the subjects I have studied it provides me an advantage point that I offer in as clear and cohesive writings as possible in introducing the matters in my materials. I hope to serve as one who inspires direction in the practitioner so they can go on to discover greater teachers and professionals that will build on this fundamental foundation. Find the authorities and synthesize a wholehearted and holistic concept, perception and belief that will not drive your practices but rather inspire them to evolve, grow and prosper. My efforts are born of those who are more experienced and knowledgable than I. I hope you find that path! See the bibliography I provide for an initial list of experts, professionals and masters of the subjects.

Getting Hit

In SD it never occurred to me that getting hit would carry importance and when I first started teaching SD in MA I always preached that one had to “hit something” a third of the overall time spent in training and practice. In other words, about twenty minuted to each hour of training - if you are serious. I guess since sparring, etc., was a given that I didn’t need to address actually getting hit as an intricate part of a persons SD ability along with a lot of other stuff like reality stress adrenal training.

I just assumed that if you are hitting something that in all likelihood you are also getting hit. Now that I think of this it is very likely that many can hit a makiwara or heavy bag or speed bag while never getting hit. Kind of a big “boo-boo” don’t ya thunk?

First, if you have never hit or been hit there is no reference point for the thinking, monkey and very important lizard brain to reference and compare. Think freeze and emotional freaking out time. Then, as Marc MacYoung will convey in his book, “In the Name of Self-Defense,” if you have never experienced being hit you don’t know that those hits you have seen on TV and in the Movies is not a devastating and debilitating as you may think. In other words, “it won’t destroy you.” 

Part of the monkey might want to naturally fall into a state of “trauma-drama-esque and ‘triggered’ over having been hit in your past. Then there is fear, fear of being hit. When you have only a TV/Movie reference to being hit with all the dramatization that tends to go with that you really will fear being hit. When you are hit and find that although it hurts, you find that you are not completely and utterly devastated into submission and frozen, you can still act - ain’t that cool. 

Marc MacYoung states, “Your ability to handle being punched is a stable dat point on the spectrum of how bad things are - or are going to get.” You get hit, you learn that, “Hey, no big deal.” Then you learn that you can get hit and keep right on going. It is a bit like Marc MacYoung’s mini-book on getting shot that in reality you don’t just drop when shot and that in a lot of cases you can keep right on keeping on after. Taking the pain of a punch, hit or strike while continuing to act is really a huge thing in SD. 

Marc MacYoung goes on to say, “Our fear of getting hit is more debilitating than getting hit.” You don’t really want to freeze, drop and curl up in a ball or just stand there as a stationary target for an adversaries continued onslaught of punches, slaps and head-butts - do you?

If you can control your monkey brain and know in your minds deepest recesses that you can be hit and still function, to think and process with the thinking mind and lizard, then you are better able to apply SD and stay in Marc MacYoung’s square, the SD Square, where you really, really want to be in such situations. 

Marc MacYoung has more to say about being hit, the type of hits that tell you things of importance to SD and even mentions the female perspectives. Like:

1. Ability to assess people’s ability to punch.
2. Your assessment of being hit that allows you to walk away.
3. An ability to assess an adversaries abilities while knowing your limitations. 
4. Your ability to take a hit as it would apply to your ability to de-escalate the situation.

and a whole lot more. He provides us with a different perspective toward SD that, for me, has not been adequately addressed until INoSD. 

Oh yea, pain is a factor and now you know about it especially as it relates to being hit. So hitting something is important and the flip side of that is being hit. I am understanding it a bit more that in my first years my Sensei insisted we hit, hit hard and that we use a minimum of padding on the hands with none on the feet (except maybe shin guards). 

Note: remember, hitting and getting hit, using gloves, light padded protection or other type of hand and head protection is great but when being hit, it is different from being hit with bare hands, fists, feet, etc. Safety has to be paramount but be creative in the ways you “get hit and hit” so as to really know about “getting hit and hitting.” 

Bibliography:

MacYoung, Marc. "In the Name of Self-Defense: What It Costs. When It’s Worth It." Marc MacYoung. 2014.

1 comment:

Rick Matz said...

One of the things I appreciate about working out at an MMA gym.