How many times have you heard the phrase it's always good to get more
tools for your toolbox? Honestly, in martial arts I hear it all the time but is
it actually true? Well, the honest answer is it depends.
Before I get into all this I want to talk to you about context first. If
you’re getting into martial arts to study a martial art then more tools doesn't
hurt. Some people are basically technique collectors and that's what they like
to do. If that's what you like to do then more power to you I hope you find a
bunch of stuff. I'm also not talking about groups of arts. For the purposes of
this article and historical fact, unarmed fighting is its own art. Knife
fighting is its own separate art. The same will hold true for sword fighting
and the like as well. For the purposes of this article we will be focusing on
this phrase applied to a single art.
So to get to the point quickly do you need to always be adding more
tools to your toolbox? The correct answer is an emphatic no! You simply need
the right tools for that box.
Let's look at a little science here. In another article we talked about
Occam's Razor, also known as the Law of Economy. When it's correctly translated
it means that when two answers solve a problem a third one is irrelevant. Try
taking that and applying it to martial arts. You’re gonna piss off a lot of
people, as I'm probably about to do.
Have you ever been in a class where you had to learn 5 or 6 escapes for
something and it was obvious some of them would never work for you but they
made you learn it anyway for a belt rank? That doesn't make a lot of sense does
it? Wouldn't it be better to learn a concept that everyone could apply that
worked for all? If so then why are you forced to learn a bunch of crap? Well
the most common answer you'll get is that it's tradition and it's always been
done that way. But is that even true? The answer is no.
Let's look at the Toda samurai family in the 17th century. How many
techniques did their low level soldiers learn for combat as far as unarmed self
defense? A hundred? A thousand? Try 8...yeah that's right 8. They were taught 3
strikes, 1 throw, 2 armbars, and 2 wristlocks. They would also learn a short
kata that taught body mechanics but that was it. They won a lot of battles too
because they could take 8 techniques and modify them for any situation they
would find themselves in. They would master those 8 techniques and could adapt
under pressure easily because they weren't trying to pick between a hundred
techniques and figure out what in the hell they needed to do.
On top of that look at all the old Karate masters. They didn't learn a
bunch of kata they spent their whole lives dedicated to one kata because it
gave them everything they needed to defend themselves. So, was it always done
that way? Umm… no sorry that argument isn't true or valid in any way; you see
in the modern age a lot of traditional systems put all this stuff in there to
preserve their history and culture and there is nothing wrong with that
whatsoever. The thing is they were very honest about it and respectable. It's
the western world that has gotten it so twisted around. It had nothing to do
with teaching you an ounce of self defense.
Does that mean these guys that teach all this stuff can't fight? No it
doesn't mean that at all some can and some can't. What it means is that if you’re
going to them for self defense you’re learning in a way that is inefficient and
unnecessary for your immediate goal. Sure if they are a good teacher in time
you can get really good but what are you going to do until then? If you get
attacked ask the guy to come back in a couple years when your skill set is
better developed? Yeah I don't see that happening.
On a darker side of the issue you also have instructors that are only in
this for the money. They are always adding techniques and requirements for you
so you will have to stay there longer and pay them more money. They will tell
you pretty much anything to keep you subservient. The most common trick these
days is to get you to sign a huge long term contract and pay them a lot of non refundable
money up front. That way if you catch on and leave then they have your money
and couldn't care less. There is a lot of that but thankfully that isn't always
the case.
Martial arts are fun as they should be. More often than not (hopefully)
what you actually have is someone confusing need with want. They want to do
more things because its fun and they enjoy it but want and need isn’t actually
the same thing now is it? Unfortunately even though they are well meaning they
confuse their own want with what you need and this can get you hurt. I know
instructors all over the world that teach 1 and 2 day courses where people can
learn to defend themselves against basic attacks.
Ironically enough, if applied correctly courses like these could be of
great benefit to "traditional" schools. They can actually co-exist
together. It only requires 1 thing...innovation. The first thing that needs to
happen is a change in the curriculum. Take all the basics for the types of
techniques you teach and put them all at beginner levels. Do stress drills
early on and troubleshoot and work fail scenarios. Make everything flow
together and have continuity. When that
foundation is firm and the fundamentals are sound you can actually add things
to it without damaging your students. Then you could actually add tools to your
toolbox and they would know where every tool went and which tools didn't work
for them. You gotta stop making them learn techniques they can never use on
belt promotions. If it's useless they shouldn't have to learn it. There's
nothing wrong with upgrading a curriculum and making it more efficient and
conducive to learning.
If you’re part of some money hungry organization that requires you and
your students to learn things that aren't in their best interest then leave
that organization. Your loyalty should always be to your students they are the
ones that put faith in you. Your goal should be to strive to prove that you
earned that faith. If you’re just teaching a bunch of stuff and you know some of
it won't work for a student but you make them waste their time and yours
learning it anyway then you’re unethical and immoral. As an educator you should
always hold yourself to a higher standard or risk becoming a hypocrite as well
as other things.
I love martial arts and want them to always be relevant. When old
outdated logic isn't thrown out then a martial art can become a museum piece
and lose its relevance. I don't want to see that happen. If you don't want to
update then I have some news for you. The public is getting smarter and your
days are numbered. You’re slowly turning into a dinosaur as we speak. People
run from dinosaurs not towards them because they are smart enough to know
dinosaurs can hurt you. Your dinosaur logic can do the same to the very people you’re
trying to help.
I've been around this a long time. Time is precious to me and I hate to
see people waste it. I certainly don't want to bash anyone; I would just like
to tell you… Put your students first. You may not know the science behind the
things you say or even know you’re doing something wrong. You could have the
best of intentions. I would ask that you look at your curriculum and go to your
libraries or even on the internet and research what you are doing. If you find
something isn't right change it. Life is too short and your students deserve
the best you can give them. So be the person that deserves the faith you
receive. Don't confuse need and what. That's all I have to say.
To find out more about Stonewall Tactical Defense Systems visit http://www.stonewalltactical.com/index.html
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