Have you ever trained bare-knuckle?

Hey folks,
I am back here to speak to all of the intermediate to advanced students for a moment. I want to ask you, how much of your time is spent training in actual sparring? Not 2 set drills, but actual sparring. And out of that time, how many times have you actually considered sparring without the pads? I know that for a lot of you that sounds crazy. But it really is not. Sparring without pads is not about trying to pound your partners to death. It is about a combative mindset that martial artists should have at all times. Not to say you have to walk around with your chest puffed out, and making mean faces at people. It just means that whether or not you have your gi, or your pads, you are ready to rumble at that moment. Like my pop used to tell me, you may be in danger the second that you leave your front door in the morning.

Now I am sure that some of you will chalk this up to paranoia and dismiss this blog entirely. And that is certainly your perogative. But think of it this way, in a real scuffle, you are NOT going to have time to get appropriately dressed and warmed up. You will have to suck it up, right then, and see what it is that you have to do.

I dont think that anything personifies that combative attitude better than those who train without gloves or pads. I mean, most people are not even willing to consider bare-knuckle training. I can hear the excuses as they are coming in telepathically: "But it is dangerous, it hurts, people can get injured". I say for sure that none of those reasons have ever kept us from driving our cars in the morning. Car crashes create far more casualties, and fatalities than martial arts training ever will. So be a martial artist, and a warrior, train without your pads. It will hurt at first. But like the saying goes" That which does not kill you...........

Back to the martial arts stuff

Hey folks,
I am sorry for my last few posts. I have been a little overwhelmed at all of work that goes into a new business. I have gotten off track a little bit, and would like to return to martial arts topics if I may :)

So here we are in 2005( 2k5 for all you cool folks) and it seems that the martial arts world is still floundering. NOT in the business sense of the word. There are more schools/mcdojos/baby-sitters popping up than ever before. Most seem to be in for the easy buck. They sell Black Belt Programs, take children from 3 years old, and have just seemed to generally ignore the tenets of traditional martial arts.

I am not going to scream at you guys, but just look around you. We live in a world where martial arts teachers are taking time in martial arts classes to read kids stories about martial arts. Ummmm....okay. But when do you train? I am seeing classes where children are being promoted to the next belt, and they cannot even tie their belts properly. Does anyone have a problem with this besides me?

I can understand that a parent does not want me transforming their kids into killing machines. I really do understand that. Truth is that likely as not, little Johnny 6-year old would be defending himself from another 6 or 7-year old. So eye-gouging techniques and throat grabs are NOT in the kids curiculuum. That only makes sense. But to see kids that are up 2 or 3 belts and cannot properly execute their basic movements is just sad. I implore all of you teachers out there, and the parents of martial arts students out there" Let's keep it real. Parents, know EXACTLY what the programs include, and how they will benefit your child. Teachers, let us not forget our roots. Make sure that your kids have crisp, sharp movements. Make sure that their gis are clean and pressed. Make sure that they come in focused to work out, and stay focused throughout the entire class. We owe it to them, don't we?

Oh man! Running a business is tiring!!!

Folks,
As a 6 week owner of a new business, I am WORN OUT! If small business is the backbone of America, I need a brace or something :) Nah, I am worn out, but loving every moment of it. Talk to you later folks.