- This topic has 130 replies, 20 voices, and was last updated 18 years, 3 months ago by
.
-
Posts
-
Hello, my name is Trish and I am a Serrada practitioner. I donít think it really matters which form of martial arts someone practices, as long as they find one thatís suitable for them and fits the purpose they intend on using it for. Iíve practiced martial arts since I was little: my father is a 7th degree black belt in Kajukenbo. I didnít learn the art traditionally because it wasnít all that interesting for me. Instead, I learned parts of the art thru self defense techniques. And even though I stopped training for a long time, some of the techniques stayed with me. I started learning Serrada Escrima over a year ago. I found that it was perfect for my size and abilities and it was easy for me to pick up. Although Serrada is now my core system, I have been able to take things Iíve learned from other systems and apply it to my current training. Krav Maga helps me with my fighting spirit and increases my physical abilities. Systema helped give me the ability to flow smoothly from one thing to another. Kajukenbo started me in thinking to fight dirty and look for opportunities. Serrada refined that thinking as well as gave me many concepts and principles (tools) to work with. Small Circle Jujitsu furthered my understanding of how to manipulate small joints like hands, fingers, wrists and neck. All of these things put together help me to defend myself whenever I am training/sparring/wrestling with opponents who are larger and stronger than I am. I am 5í1î and my training partner is 6í3î. Sparring and training with someone larger than me helps me to figure out what things I need help and more work on as well as finding out what works for me. My training partner is a black belt in Serrada, Level 4 in Krav Maga and also trained in other fighting forms, to include grappling. He doesnít let up on me or ìgive inî when we are training. In other words, he wonít just fallÖ. I have to make him fall or bring him down using the skills I have. This is important. It doesnít give me false hope that something I do will work when in reality it may not. I have not had to use any of this in a real situation yet, but I feel that if I do find myself there, I am quite capable of getting myself out safely.
My point in sharing all of this is that you should try many different forms of martial arts and take from each one the things that help you to become a better fighter. As Bruce Lee said, ìAbsorb what is useful, add what is specifically your own, and disregard the rest.î
I really doubt there’s any laws on the books about registering your hands as weapons. I’ve read several books that say otherwise, but there is a chance it may be the case in New Jersey. The whole idea is strange- regulating martial arts is just too big of a task. There’s a big difference between the training methods and techniques of judo, tai chi, krav maga, etc. It wouldn’t make sense for a kendo or fencing expert to register his hands as lethal weapons. If someone was a serious fighter, they would most likely get up to black belt level and then not test. The other fundamental problem is that there would have to be demonstratable evidence that the martial artist could kill the opponent- you could look through some martial arts and not find anything that meets that description (aikido, for the most part). And what about wrestling? They could kill as easilly as a boxer (probably easier). If a wrestler, how about a pro wrestler, who can slam someone but does not really compete and puts on a fight-like show using techniques designed to be safe? If that’s the case, how about a surgeon? He’s trained to operate a really sharp knife and knows all the best places to attack (although that’s a bit off topic because that’s a weapon). These issues make the martial arts very difficult to regulate.
But I have heard that there has been some effort towards martial arts regulation. In some ways, they are regulated- if you have an unsafe place, you can get sued. Mas Oyama probably couldn’t teach as he liked in modern America. Somewhat relevant to the thread- the Dog Brothers have been active defending against martial arts legislation, which makes a lot of sense because they would be among the first to come under government attack.
Even though you don’t have to register your hands as weapons, your training can still come into play if you’re in counrt after a confrontation. I’m sure a god lawyer could put it in a very bad way.
And would you have to renew the registration periodically? Would you have to go to the Department of Lethal Hands to pass a lethalness test, where you have to kill somebody (or perhaps an equivalent mammal)? The whole thing would be a huge waste of taxpayer money.
Wearing the armband is also strange. Why would you want to do that? It seems the most logical answer is so that the guards know, but with the intent and a box cutter or improvised shank, any prisoner could be a threat.Haha, I hadn’t really thought about it, it does sound kinda stupid. I dunno, I just believed my boy when he told me the story.
Well, I watched the Kali Tudo DVD set. Basically it was trying to convey the rhythm, footwork and angles found in kali to MMA style fighting- technically it focuses on \”triangular striking crashes\”. I thought it was a pretty cool production, and gave me some interesting ideas to try out when sparring. It seemed a bit over-hyped and expensive, but its still cool. The material seemed like it would work in with krav pretty well, because it assumes a muay thai like stance for most of it (similar to krav) and is all applied to freestyle fighting as opposed to stylized compliant techniques- and its not weapon fighting.
Some of the stuff was similar to the stuff in Attack Proof by John Perkins- the dracula/drac, tool destruction the neutral self defense stance (also known as the Jack Benny stance), and some of the footwork is similar. I found it interesting, because the Attack Proof approach is that sportfighting is totally unrealistic so drills and scenarios are emphasized, while the Dog Borthers emphasize \”the duel\” and hardcore sparring with or without weapons.
There’s some cool extra footage of Dan Inosanto and some really old boxing footage to support Marc Denny’s argument that the modern guard structure was influenced by panatukan.Read Perkins’ author bio \”He has trained in Native American fighting principles since the age of 5\”
Native American fighting principles? Politically incorrect jokes abound.
Seriously, has anyone else EVER heard of learning anything related to Native American fighting? I’ve always wondered about how they trained, since they tended to do well against Europeans despite the extreme difference in technology.
I think the early Native American success against the Europeans had more to do with tactics, mindset, and \”home field advantage\” than anything else.
Re:
\”The material seemed like it would work in with krav pretty well, because it assumes a muay thai like stance for most of it (similar to krav) and is all applied to freestyle fighting as opposed to stylized compliant techniques- and its not weapon fighting.\” – CLFMak
I believe FMA concepts and principles can easily be applied to any martial art you are practicing. A majority of our students are primarily KM students ranging from levels 1-4. All of them have used Serrada in combination with Krav when they are in fight class and found it to be extremely useful. When asked at what point in their fighting they found themselves using Serrada, they all stated that it was when they felt \”stuck\” after using a Krav technique. They also mentioned that they like combining the two styles because Serrada works great in \”filling in the holes\” and helping them to flow from blocking to striking easier and quicker. Although the system is very capable to be used on its own, it creates an extremely fast and much more destructive fighter when combined with another style, such as Krav… even without weapons.
Weaponwork in Serrada can easily be translated to empty hand fighting. Many of you are saying that FMA(Kali) is all about sticks and fighting with weapons. Look at the traditional style defenses…. now take away the sticks and perform the same move. It can be done and can be just as effective as if done with the sticks. The stick is simply an extension of your arms. When you train with sticks, switching over to empty hand becomes so much easier.
\”While Filipino stuff is highly effective and very well-thought out, it’s also very intricate and complex. One would have to train for years and years before the training would significantly help with self-defense. Those years are what most people aren’t willing to commit to.\” – KravMDjeff
We’ve used \”Filipino stuff\” to teach self defense classes using improvised weapons to people with little to no martial arts training and they were able to pick it up and apply it easily. If you have an instructor who can explain the concepts and principles in layman’s terms, they can break down this \”intricate and complex\” system into one that can be used quickly and by anyone. When taught correctly, the \”Filipino stuff\” can be used immediately.
So, getting back to whether Kali or any other FMA is effective for self defense, I believe it is. It’s easy to learn, uses natural body movement, and works well with improvised weapons. Try this…. learn one of the stick defenses. Then take away the stick and pretend your arms are the sticks. Now perform that same defense with either an open hand or closed fist. It’ll still work. Try it… combine it with Krav or whatever style you favor… I do.
kilap…I know there is FMA content that I have not been exposed to. But, what I HAVE been exposed to, was extremely intricate. I’m relatively quick to catch on to things, and the one from whom I learned it is a pretty good teacher…and I had to continuously go back to the video of his seminar.
I was speaking from my limited experience.
I train in Boston.
I guess all I was trying to say is you can’t judge a system by watching a few videos. Especially when it comes to large systems like the Filipino Martial Arts. There are many different types of FMAs and not all are the same.
On Native American fighting: I’ve seen a couple different things, all that seem like the \”ninja\” approach- you’ve never heard of it before because its a secretly passed down style. This is by far the best example of the whole super secret martial art crap:
http://www.trsdirect.com/product.php?sku=IF-77If you read Attack Proof, the style of groundfighting is really not that complex. Since the idea is to stay spontaneous and loose, it details how to kick and move on the ground. Its simple stuff, but it does look pretty cool when somebody really good does it. I don’t know what the connection is to Native Americans, except that John Perkins says he learned the principles (not techniques) from his native american father and uncles. Maybe his dad just taught him to roll around on the ground and kick. I don’t know. Either way, its a pretty fundamental approach in martial arts to point the feet at the opponent and kick when they get close- you even see this in MMA now. They chose to specialize there, but they still make a note that you dno’t want to go to the ground.. This clip details what it can look like.
http://user21165.websitewizard.com/files/unprotected/AlPoliceMilGround.movhttp://www.apacheknife.com is a site that claims to teach Apache knife fighting. It looks like a pretty generic style, and it also seems somewhat suspect. Looks like Cold Steel’s stuff but with groundwork and fake blood.
There’s also a guy named Adrian Roman, who teaches kempo and some Native American stuff (that probably looks a lot like kempo…) and you can buy a black belt online from him.
On FMA- I was referring only to the Kali Tudo set. As I mentioned, I don’t know if its really worth it for the price. I enjoyed it, but it seemed a little pricey for how much material it had. Although I haven’t tried everything out in sparring, it all seems like technically sound stuff. Its main focus is on how you can use footwork and certain entries to achieve favorable angles.
Cool…it was more of theoretical and historical interest, because my dad did extensive work with the Navajo.
i could see someone being familiar with the principles of a certain tradition of fighting without sticking to the techniques themselves. I assume Krav Maga, because of the principles, will still be training people how to defend themselves when people are using laser guns, simply because, whereas techniques are confined to a context and thus become irrelevent when taken out of their context, principles transcend and can be reworked, reapplied endlessly.
I’ll have to ask my KM instructor about KM principles. I’ve only been taught KM thru techniques. By learning the principles of Serrada, I’ve been able to better understand the other systems I’ve trained in. Concepts and principles are used to make your own techniques. Principles don’t change. The techniques that are created based on principles are what changes. I’m pretty sure all forms of martial arts will still be around when we’re defending ourselves against laser guns or whatever type of weapon will be around in the future.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
