Recognize the Flaws

Flaws and violence, a dangerous combination. The comfort zone is one of those things I feel relate to flaws in training. We get comfortable with the routines we do in the dojo. We become use to the patterns and drills and kata and basics used as fitness exercises and that promotes a false sense that we are doing something that will provide for something other than a physical fitness routine for health and strong bodies.

If your martial arts training is geared toward sport, fitness or the mindless dance similar to jazzersize then know it and leave all expectations it will serve you in a fight of when in a violent encounter cause it will not do it for you. Don't take my word for it, there are pro's out there living that life and will gladly let you know it won't work that way.

One of my pet peeves is self-defense in the dojo. It conveniently slips by all the really important and hard stuff and goes directly to the "if a guy does this, you do this in response" scenario's. It feels good, it works well in a controlled training situation and it just might fail completely in a real encounter with a real threat intent on doing damage.

There is so much more that must be known before you enter into the physical responses to attacks. Most that will avoid the physical responses, they are important. The pro's I mention in this and other posts have the experience, the data and the drills that will help you reach that place but you have to start at the beginning, the knowledge - like, "Meditations on Violence, Facing Violence, Drills by Rory Miller" and "Secrets of Effective Offense, Ending Violence Quickly, Becoming a Complete Martial Artist by Marc MacYoung." [forgive me, these are the two recent and dominant folks I prefer to read but there are many others who contribute to martial systems application such as Dave Lowry, Kris Wilder and Lawrence Kane, Iain Abernathy and more.

My chief goal here today, yesterday and tomorrow is to provide my views and insights related to this stuff in the hopes the readers will become inspired to move toward this adjustment. It is just an adjustment. As Mr. Miller states the MA stuff is good, it just needs some adjustments so it will work when you need it the most.