When I watch two fighters training, one of the first things I see is their technique and movement. Usually they will spend a lot of time focusing on these areas. Once they have started to develop a game and their style starts to come together, I will start to watch the level of tension in their body.

One of the reasons for paying attention to this is because if there is a higher level of tension in the body, the fighter's natural timing will never develop. I usually use the term “frozen” to describe this - the level of residual tension will freeze their body and they will be unable to move and react smoothly.

Due to the nature of the training it sometimes takes time to learn to relax while under the stress of environmental training. It also takes a very good training partner that you can trust not to try to kill you when you start to work on it.

I usually notice that natural timing will start to develop for some students naturally after they gain a high level of confidence in what they are doing at a technical level and they can trust that level of skill to protect them. That's when they begin to relax on their own. But not all students reach this on their own, which is why it is important to recognize it in yourself so it can be addressed when the time comes to do so.

I had a question this week on how i broke down the study of footwork

Footwork and positioning of the body in combat is one of the few things that will combat speed and power. I usually break down the study of this subject into three areas;

1. basic footwork study
2. Transverses and
3. Stalking/Play

Basic footwork study is the ingraining of basic foot placement and movement in various patterns to propel the body. This level of study trains the student to move their feet in a manner so they will avoid crossing or tying up the feet to stall their movement.

Transversers is the term i use for the intelligent combination of footwork that has a purpose of good placement or position of the body. it is true that You can combine the basic footwork into combinations but until the student starts to break down an intelligent plan for where he is going to end up and how he will place himself into a better position around the opponent I do not consider it a higher level of study, it is just a bunch of footwork connected together. Usually Transversers usually consist of two to three foot movements that will draw a reaction and place you in a good angle of attack. the student will also begin to see that it is more about the placement of the body and not necessarily where the feet are that is most important.

Stalking is another term i use for an environment designed for the student to play the "game" of footwork. To reach a level of mastery in any area the student must have an environment to play and improve strategy, timing, ETC. I call this game Stalking, it is set up like a chess game of body placement and footwork, through continued play/training the student will forget about where his feet are placed and begin to focus on where he needs to be to put his opponent out of position and have an effective attack, they will also begin to ingrain all the previous training into the body so it will become more of a reaction based response to what the opponent is doing. after there is a good understanding of movement the student will add breaks in time and fakes to throw the opponent off, draw them out of position and increase the possibility of a successful attack.

I had a question this week about the Warrior's Path Program here at the school. The whole reason I created Warrior's Path is to address the need for a maintenance program for the aging and hard training martial artist. Most martial art schools teach martial arts, but they do not have organized programs for keeping the body loose and open, methods of developing strength or improving the diet. That is what Warrior's Path is all about. It focuses on the body machine one system at a time and teaches the student how to intelligently approach Joint Opening, Physical Strength, Breathing Methods, Diet, and much more.

This is important because after a certain age everyone needs to start thinking about ways to maintain the body. We all want to be training and enjoying the martial arts for many, many years to come. Taking it a step farther you can train harder and longer using the same knowledge. I believe a martial artist should know this level of knowledge about the body and they should be some of the most knowledgeable people in this area. After all, we study the body everyday in class.

"When you choose your friends, don't be short-changed by choosing personality
over character." – W. Somerset Maugham.

Hey guys, just a short note to get you motivated for the week! Remember to surround yourself daily with people who share your same dreams and aspirations or who, at least, have only your best interests at heart. Stay away from the negative influencers who wake up every morning thinking of ways to throw you off your best game and get in the way of your progress to your next highest level. One of the overall themes promoted at the school is that we pull together as a team and help each other to reach the goals we set for ourselves. So next time you are at the school, let your training partners know what you are working to achieve. Just knowing someone is holding you accountable for your positive life changes can help you stay on track.

One of the systems taught at AMAC is the Keysi Fighting System. One of the philosophies of this system is very similar to one of the personal codes I have personally followed in my life. In KFM it is called "the never ending stair case". It is the concept that life is a continuous climb toward personal improvement and betterment. It is a struggle up the never ending stairs of growth.

I am a strong believer in this philosophy and strive to exemplify it as well as promote it at the school, regardless of the system or art being studied. I believe that the path of martial arts is a higher calling for you and I - we have decided to commit ourselves to following a code and hold ourselves to a higher standard than the norm.

If you happen to be a part of the Eagles Group here at the school, this is not that new of an idea for you.

See you in class!

When training with a partner, the first and most important thing to remember is to train in a friendly manner and share techniques and principles. When a student is "scored on" in Kickboxing, or is made to "tap" in Jiu-Jitsu, they should be encouraged to ask the partner what they did wrong and spend a moment reviewing it so they can learn from the experience.

Another very important way students can be good partners is by giving the appropriate amount of resistance during training drills. A very common error that students make during practice of new techniques, is to either resist their partners too hard - which does not allow their partner to practice the move, or to provide too little resistance - which deprives the partner of any sense of the reality of the move. A good grappling partner will provide a small amount of resistance so the student can have the sense of applying the technique against a real person, yet have success with the technique - which in truth, they do not yet know well enough to make work. As they practice, the partner will increase the resistance just to the point that the student can still make the technique work properly. In this way, a good partner acts like training wheels, helping the student learn until they can go 100% on their own.

One of the great things about AMAC's Cross Training Program is the motivation from the team environment. I like to see students share their goals with one another in order for the group as a whole to hold each other responsible for those goals.

Just in general, If you notice that your classmate has been missing class for a week, touch base with them and check in. It may just be what they need to get re-motivated. If your training partner is working towards weight loss, make it a point to ask them about their progress. Just knowing that someone is keeping an eye on your goals with you tends to keep you focused as well.

This kind of support will sometimes just happen between friends, but as a part of the CTP team, I like to see us step it up a notch. Become aware of your training partner's goals and share your goals with them and as a team, we will help each other reach higher goals at the school.

So what is your goal? What changes are you looking to achieve?

One of the questions I had this week was about building strength. It is my experience that most people only have use of about 15-20% of their muscle capacity. With this in mind you have two basic ways to increase strength: 1. Increase the size of the muscle (or the size of the 15-20% you have access to) 2. Increase the percentage you can use.

Since excessive muscle size can get in the way of a martial artist, I prefer the 2nd method. One of ways you can achieve this is with what I call unitary tension.
Unitary tension requires that you contract all your muscles with as much force as possible while performing an exercise. Try it with a dumbbell curl. Start by gripping the weight as if your life depended on it. Pull your shoulders down and squeeze your shoulder blades together as if you were trying to squeeze a tennis ball in your armpit. Contract your abs and butt as hard as you can and maintain your entire body this tense. Begin to squeeze the weight up and use the entire contraction to exhale out. When you reach the top squeeze your bicep as hard as you can then slowly lower the weight focusing on flexing your triceps so that it feels like you're pushing the weight down. This creates maximum muscle tension in the body that, with training, will make you stronger and harder. This method of training also trains your body the way it's actually used in the martial arts, as one unitary unit.

As a teacher of Martial Arts, I have the awesome responsibility for motivating students to achieve their personal goals and it is one of the things I love about my job.

I want to talk about our school and where it, and it's students, fill roles as part of the overall team. I look at the whole student body as a family that can draw motivation from its members. The purpose for all of us at the school is our search for personal improvement on various levels. The things we learn and the life changes we make outside of Martial Arts are some of the most important lessons learned at the school. I get to see students change their diet and eating habits, change their training and exercise habits, and then see the tremendous benefits that result. But as a team, if we hold each other accountable for the goals we each set, we will have more support and can draw motivation from each other - from the team as a whole.

If you are planning to make some changes for the better, let your classmates know. We are all here to support each other and work to improve.

See you in class!

On the mountains of truth you can never climb in vain: either you will reach a point higher up today, or you will be training your powers so that you will be able to climb higher tomorrow.”
-Friedrich Nietzsche

Happy Monday Everyone,

Just a quick note on training environment.  It is imperative in martial arts to have a good training environment, and most of the time the people you train with will determine that environment.  Finding good partners that have the ability to train safe and at a certain level of intelligence is not always easy. Most of the time egos and pride become overly evolved and it becomes more of a “look what I can do” show than an actual training session. You know the guy who in his mind is much better at what he does then he actually is on the mat and wants to prove it to everyone on you.

One of my primary goals at AMAC is to create GREAT training partners. Partners that know how to work at an elevated level and still maintain a level of safety for everyone. Partners who understand this will create an outstanding training environment for everyone involved. A good partner will elevate you and himself through intelligent training. Working as a team, and training smart, we will achieve greater levels of physical, mental, and energetic skill.

It takes a true warrior to leave his pride and ego at the door, find the true weakness in his game or person, bring it out in the open on the training floor in front of everyone and work to improve it.

Thanks for the great team environment you all help to create!