| "In our peacetime tactical training we should use | | | | those responses and you can look pretty |
| difficult, highly imaginative situations and require | | | | impressive. But what happens if you vary the |
| clear, concise and simple orders. The more difficult | | | | attack? Most students freeze. Why? Because |
| the situation the more simple the order must be. | | | | they were never taught to fight! Nope, they |
| Above all, let us kill everything stereotyped; | | | | basically were taught to 'dance' and as long as |
| otherwise it will kill us." Adolf von Schell, Battle | | | | everything went according to the 'routine' you |
| Leadership, 1933. | | | | could do okay. But we all know things never go |
| I saw a commercial for one of those dance | | | | exactly as planned. |
| instruction programs that guarantees you'd be | | | | Fighting is no different -- whether you are on the |
| able to dance as well as any member of the | | | | mat at your training center or on the street |
| most popular boy-bands. The program showed a | | | | locked in mortal combat with the other guy(s). |
| group of students following the instructor | | | | The only variation is that when you fight with |
| step-by-step to learn some pretty complex | | | | your training partner you don't actually maim, |
| moves, choreographed to perfection. The result | | | | cripple or kill. You still focus on hitting weak areas |
| was that by memorizing the steps and combining | | | | and simulate those exact strikes, just at a pace |
| the moves you could mimic the formerly difficult | | | | your partner can handle. |
| routine. | | | | If, however, you're operating in a 'training' mode |
| It reminded me of watching a Wushu team | | | | where you are memorizing a 'set' response to an |
| practice their show. For those of you that aren't | | | | attack, you are learning nothing but a 'dance' |
| familiar, Wushu is a Chinese martial art that is | | | | move. That's why your learn principles. "Bunkai are |
| delivered via a stage performance. The fights are | | | | illustrations of the principle. Always remember the |
| very elaborate and it takes a great deal of | | | | principles. Full intent, weak area of the body, use |
| practice to put on a convincing show. | | | | all your body weight and drive in and beyond the |
| As I watched the team practice it was interesting | | | | strike zone. |
| to note that whenever someone wanted to | | | | In Bubishi such training is viewed as "coordination |
| screw around all they had to do was execute a | | | | training" not fighting. If you don't know the |
| move different from the routine. Literally you | | | | difference, you can easily fall victim to the "now |
| would be watching a fight scene you'd swear was | | | | its for real syndrome". That's where you face an |
| pitting two highly trained fighters in mortal combat | | | | imminent attack yet hesitate... as your brain tries |
| when all of a sudden one of the guys would | | | | to accept the fact that "this is for real". Contrast |
| move differently... maybe slap the other guy in | | | | this to the well-trained fighter who simply sees all |
| the face like the Three Stooges used to do. | | | | this as merely fighting and proceeds to: 1) Find his |
| Everyone would laugh, and then take a break. But | | | | targets 2) Strike. The only difference to the |
| that slap also woke me up out of the dream | | | | fighter is the fact he can now strike with full |
| state I was in as I watched the performance. I | | | | power. |
| realized that this was exactly the method in which | | | | That's because the well-trained fighter never sees |
| most martial arts or combat sports are instructed. | | | | himself as 'training' -- he's always fighting. |
| Especially when they train "self defense". | | | | Understand this concept and you'll always be |
| Basically there are set patterns you memorize in | | | | prepared... no matter what the situation. Hence we |
| response to various staged attacks. Memorize | | | | do not "train karate"; we just "do it! |