The Way of Least Resistance

Introduction In my recent article “ Rhythm and its importance in developing situational reflex ” I discussed the need for martial arts drills to take place in a “ dynamic context ” – namely a context in which a rhythm can be established so that situational reflex can be inculcated. But what do people usually do when they wish to practice a technique? They isolate the movement into a “standing start” drill . What is this? A “standing start” drill is where one side is the attacker, the other side is the defender. The attacker will start from a stationary position and launch an attack - often on a count called by the instructor, but sometimes of his or her own motion. Sometimes the attack will involve a step (eg. “ippon kumite” or “one step sparring”), sometimes it will involve just a lunge and sometimes it won’t involve any substantial movement off the spot. The most analogous drill in a game like tennis would be practising a return of serve; each serve is its own distinct play with n...

Introduction In my previous article “ Situational reflex: the key to martial effectiveness ” I discussed the need for martial artists to develop “situational reflexes” – ie. appropriate reflexive reactions for the potential situations we might face. To do this, I think the first (and most pressing) issue is to identify the situations that we are likely to encounter . These include what Patrick McCarthy has described as “Habitual Acts of Physical Violence”. However a martial artist might also want to include other, less common, situations – whether for civilian defence , for use in the ring or on a mat, or simply in dojo sparring. Once we have isolated the relevant situations, the next step is to identify any “ situational reflex blind spots ”, other deficiencies that we wish to rectify or tactics upon which we want to improve. For example, in my article “ Dealing with circular attacks ” I recounted how a Traditional Fighting Arts Forum member, Emero , was seeking to find a way to de...

Introduction In a recent post I discussed a query from a Traditional Fighting Arts Forums member, Emero , about how to deal with circular kicks such as roundhouse kicks, spinning kicks and crescent kicks. In particular Emero wanted to know how he could improve his responses to his master’s use of those kicks in sparring. Clearly, the goal for a martial artist is to develop reflex reactions. Emero’s goal is to do better when sparring with his master. Specifically, he wants to move forward, at the right angle and at the right time, into his master’s circular kicks so as to negate their effect. He’s tired of “eating” them. How can he get his body to do this in sparring? Reflexive response Clearly, Emero doesn’t have time to “think” about each kick as it’s happening. He needs to act subconsciously, reflexively, automatically - pick your own adverb. There simply is no time for logical “planning”. In this regard Emero is no different to a tennis player who is trying to de...