The Right Martial for the Right Reason

/in /by

There has been a steady inclination of interest and promotion of the so called ‘killer’ martial arts that boast and promote devastating techniques.  Gouging eyes and striking vital parts of the head can be effective but how good will they be when you have to answer for your actions?  If these ‘devastating techniques’ are the only options then people better be prepared to defend themselves in court as well.  The legal system does not always take too kindly of people inflicting unnecessary injury even if it is self defence.

Inflicting serious injury, in a particular situation might end you in more trouble than you can ever imagine.  If all you know is striking, the excuse of ‘this is all I know’, might not always cut it in a court room.  Idiots who openly boast about doing MMA is like a waving a red flag at the legal fraternity who will have a much harder time trying to justify themselves because the public associates MMA with Cage Fighting, not self defence,.  Any idiot can claim to know MMA; they don’t need certificates, belts or anything else so students are going to be taught irresponsibly.

More and more schools will include Jiu Jitsu as part of their training to ensure students have access to passive techniques which may be more suitable in less hostile situations.  We also have a – ‘Duty of Care’ which means a legal obligation which is imposed on an individual requiring adherence to a standard of reasonable care while performing any acts that could foreseeably harm others.  In Jiu Jitsu choking someone out in self defence may be reasonable but care must be taken that the attacker does not hit their head on the ground which can lead to serious injury or death.

I believe all martial arts have a purpose and I take my hat off to anyone who wishes to indulge in their particular art but, in this day and age, it is becoming increasingly important that self defence involves Jiu Jitsu which may be more appropriate in many situations.  Also, another consideration is that a fight might end up close quarter or even on the ground; there is no referee to break it up.  Including Jiu Jitsu with your standup game is certainly going to increase your chances of survival.  One has to look at some of the hostile situations on Youtube then you will understand that we need to be prepared in more ways than one.
GA.              

Making Sense of Jiu Jitsu

/in /by

LONG TIME BETWEEN BLOGS – I KNOW
What do think would be going in the mind of a beginner Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) student when they are told to get on their back or knees?  The question is, when I first ever tried BJJ, why would I want to do that?  It does not make much sense to most people, especially to curious standup fighters, to start on the ground.  The truth is Jiu Jitsu has a combative aspect to the art which does not start on the ground.  The combative aspect is the missing link in Jiu Jitsu, most probably due to the art being popularised as a sport.  Jiu Jitsu without combatives is no different to getting somebody to read a book from half way and then expect them to know the whole story.

Jiu Jitsu Combatives are not the techniques you expect to find in Self Defence competition where techniques at these tournaments are usually unrealistic, choreographed and quite often ridiculous; I have never seen or heard anybody do handstands or cartwheels during a fight but I guess if that impresses some of the judges then they are on the right track (doesn’t say much for the judges though).

Whilst my school has always concentrated on the combative aspects of Karate and Jiu Jitsu, the Jiu Jitsu Combatives have been around for a very long time which have been developed by Jiu Jitsu experts over many decades.  Not all schools choose to practice or have the knowledge or are even aware of these combatives.

I get nothing but incredible responses when I set aside time teaching the combatives to Jiu Jitsu students, including karate students because these techniques are relevant to them as well. The combatives, to a new student, gives foresight of the journey they are about to embark on.  The story will then start to make sense.
GA