Martial arts

About four years ago Carl recommended we start using the Bogu during our kumite (sparring practice). This method was developed in Okinawa and then found its way into mainland Japan and eventually to the U.S. where only a few clubs still do this. And even in those clubs, only a few members do it. I know there is other equipment out there that looks similar and I have used most of what’s available. But it does not provide you with nearly the same overall effect that the bogu does. Rules in bogu training - Any punch, any kick, save foot stomps, a strike to the spine and to the back of the neck. Throws and leg kicking is certainly allowed. Use, dare I say, your commonsense.

What is the training like?

When you fight, you just go and beat the crap out of each other. This is the point. Sure, you look to get that “One Shot One Kill” but you have to train in a way that prepares you for reality. If you train to stop after that first shot- you are developing a habit that will come back to haunt you. You always train three techniques ahead.

Immediately, you will find out what works and what doesn’t work. Depending on the drill, sometimes we do rounds, sometimes 10 second bursts. There’s a little stalking- but when you go, it’s like two freight trains smashing into one another. You hit, you get hit, you lock up, you knee and you throw- great stuff. One of the first things you will notice is that when you punch or kick the hard surfaces of the bogu- it hurts. A body will feel like a feather bed compared to a bogu. But, after a while- it doesn’t hurt. Then you can start really throwing some lead!

You will also see what strikes have an effect and which ones do not. If you can back a guy up with the bogu on or ring his bell a bit- chances are it’s a good shot. If you graze him, he keeps coming and you have to keep fighting.

The bogu also teaches you to keep fighting! Lesser equipment will cause you to slow down and stop when things get critical. Or stop when one person scores the point. Scoring a point does not mean the fight has ended. It’s only a symbolic representation of it. It’s not literal.

Wearing the bogu allows you to take punishment without being seriously hurt- save the fat lip, sore legs, fingers, toes or sore jaw. You will get used to the shock of being hit. This will enable you to operate in that harsh environment of combat and it will allow you to absorb as much damage as possible. I have seen people develop other things that allow you to feel nothing. This isn’t really good either. It takes away the risk factor and all you have is two supermen running into one another with out any fear of pain. Plus it takes away the body conditioning element. As always, exercise caution and work at a level you can handle. When starting with people who haven’t done it before- take it a little easy so they can get used to it. After a couple times- then you can blast ‘em.

The MEN (Head Piece) of the bogu is extremely claustrophobic. This is an excellent way of replicating the effect of tunnel vision and frustration you feel when you are the hormonal stress of combat. Don’t talk to me about something for MACHO or even Shureido- unless it’s got the grill, it ain’t cutting it.

The head piece also provides neck and chin protection that modern head-gear do not. Again, the chest protector is HARD. This is important to develop power and condition your weapons.

Can you tell who wins and who loses? Well if the guy quits you win. If you quit, you loose. But that’s not the point. IT’S THE TRAINING. It’s the befit of fighting like this that you want; the overall training effect NOT winning a game. Sure there are tournament rules, but that will force you to stop when you should be fighting!! It’s the feeling of the fight, the punishment and the impact that counts. It’s dealing with the confines of the bogu. Just the simple fact that your training partner no longer has a face and is replaced by this samurai from hell is worth the price of admission.

Is it cheap, no- but do you value good training or do you want to used that foamed dipped crap. It’s up to you. This stuff will last you a life time.
If you can sucker I mean convince some people to invest- take the plunge. Go to
http://www.bogubag.com/Bogu/Karate_Bogu/karate_bogu.html. Get the traditional “Do” and “Tare”, a set of grappling gloves a good cup, knee pads, the good old white, cheap shin and instep pads and a hachi maki or a bandanna. You don’t need a mouth piece- the bogu will keep you mouth shut. I don’t think Bogu bag knows I am recommending the link- but, it’s good stuff.

Copyright 2003 http://www.thetruthaboutselfdefense.com ©

Damian Ross is the owner of Zenshin and instructor of Tekkenryu jujutsu and Kodokan Judo. He started competing in the combative sport of wrestling in 1975 at the age of 7 and began his study of Asian martial arts with Moo Duk Kwan Tae Kwon Do at the age of 16 in 1984. In 1989, Shinan Cestari gave a seminar at Sensei Ross’s dojo. Sensei Ross has trained under Shinan Cestari’s direction ever since. In addition to Tekkenryu Jujutsu, Judo and Tae Kwon Do, Sensei Ross has also studied Bando. Sensei Ross continues his study of Judo under the direction of 8th degree black belt Yoshisada Yonezuka and Tekkenryu Jujutsu under it’s founder, Carl Cestari. Below are is a list of some of his title ranks
Yodan (fourth degree black belt) Tekkenryu Jujutsu under Carl Cestari
Shodan (First degree black belt) Kodokan Judo under Yoshisada Yonezuka
Varsity Wrestling Lehigh University under Thad Turner
2nd Degree Black Belt Tae Kwon Do

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One of the things you will never learn in the average dojo around the world is that, no matter how often you train a certain “technique“, if it’s complex — if it’s not “monkey simple” — it will almost never work in a real life fight.

And this has nothing to do with your intelligence, either. You can be the smartest guy in the world, and you still won’t be able to pull off complex moves in a real fight.

Why?

Because when you get tossed into a stressful situation your whole body changes. There are natural bodily reactions which affect all of the systems in your body — including all your organs and chemical processes which keep you alive and breathing. Emotions and adrenaline rage out of control. And it becomes very difficult to think on anything but a primal, instinctive, “animal” level.

So what does this mean?

It means, if you’re trying to be fancy in a fight — trying to perform flashy kicks, strikes, throws or joint locks and manipulations — instead of using gross motor movements that are simple and fast — such as throwing an elbow to your attacker’s face or putting your knee into his testicles — you’re probably going to end up eating the pavement and getting beaten to a bloody pulp.

I’m not saying traditional martial arts won’t help you out. They will. But don’t bet your life on them. Don’t expect an attacker to fight like people spar and train in a dojo. It just doesn’t happen that way. People fight dirty on the street and there are no rules or respect for tradition.

Bottom line:

In a real fight, when your honor, your safety, your very life is on the line — focus on simple, non-complex motor movements that are easy to perform and require little or no thinking.

Leave the fancy stuff for the stunt guys in Hollywood.

Sifu Matt Numrich is one of only a few instructors in the world with Full Certification in Bruce Lee’s Jeet Kune Do, and also the Filipino Martial Arts. His students include everyone from Federal Air Marshals and military elites to small children and 65-year old ladies. Matt also offers free weekly street-fighting lessons by email at http://jkdondvd.com

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I was recently reading a message board in which the topic was whether Kata had a place in modern Karate. As you might imagine, there were opinions both for and against. Most of the opinions in favor only focused on the external benefits of Kata, and the ones against tended to focus on the inflexibility and lack of practical application of Kata. While I agreed with most of the positive comments, even some of the negative ones had a point, but they both missed some essential benefits in the diligent practice of Kata.

In addition to strength and technique, experience is one of the most important factors in a physical confrontation. It is difficult to obtain experience in street fighting while maintaining the ethics of Karate. This is where Kata can fill an essential gap.

As I was taught in Intro to Psychology, strong mental visualizations can create a physical reaction. This is why excessive worriers often experience as much physical stress by worrying about a catastrophe as experiencing one. The creators of Kata discovered how to use this phenomenon to their advantage. Practicing Kata while tricking their minds into believing they were in a real fight allowed them and their students to attain valuable experience in applying proper form and focus under the mental stress of a real fight without the physical risks. No other form of training can accomplish this.

While other forms of training are of course useful and key elements to a well-rounded training regimen, they also miss some of the aspects gained through Kata training. Kumite is great exercise, improves the spirit and gives us a chance to experience people throwing punches and kicks at us. However, in Kumite, the first thing out the window is form. This of course is due to the nature of Kumite. Kumite is two trained individuals, fully prepared, with artificial rules and in an artificial environment. I’ve been in and seen a few scuffles over the years, and not one of them resembled a Kumite match.

Self-defense drills also lack some of the benefits of Kata. By facing a set attack, these drills allow us to apply good form in the face of a real attacker. However, with two people involved, safety is always a concern. Often the attacker will not give a true attack for fear of hurting the defender, and even if they do, the defender must hold back on their defense or risk running out of attackers not to mention friends. While all these training tools are important and have their place, only Kata allows you to try and “kill” or “maim” your opponent who is trying to “kill” or “maim” you, and to do so with correct form.

Lastly, it is said that diligent practice of a Kata will reveal its secrets. I believe one of those secrets is how to extend our Ki or Qi. For the reasons stated above, it is rare in other types of training for there to be an intent to strike your opponent. As the Ki follows the mind, it will stop short when there is no intent behind a strike. Kata allows you to add that intent. Since the person you are striking in Kata is in your mind, you can fully visualize your strike connecting with and going through your opponent. Visualization is the key to extending Ki. Therefore, Kata is a very useful tool in learning to extend your Ki while striking. Meditation or Qigong practice before practicing Kata can enhance this effect.

Of course, talk is useless unless you’re willing to give it a try. If you’re serious about getting the full benefit of Kata training, the next time you’re training Kata, try this exercise. Go through the form a few times to make sure you’re completely familiar with both the form and the bunkai. The bunkai is essential, or you won’t be able to fully visualize the attacks. Next “psych” yourself up. Imagine yourself in a dangerous environment, surrounded by your most feared enemies. Imagine they’re threatening your family, girlfriend or whatever you hold dear. When you really feel their presence, you’re ready to begin your Kata. When going through the Kata, forget about the form, if you’ve practiced the Kata enough, the form should come naturally. Instead, concentrate on what the attackers are doing and react. If you mess up a move, forget about it, put that attacker down with whatever technique is appropriate and move on to the next. In this frame of mind, the feeling you’re going for is not anger or fear, but a feeling of animal necessity. By animal necessity I mean the same kind of feeling a predator has towards its prey. A leopard doesn’t kill a gazelle because it hates or fears it; the leopard kills because it has to in order to survive. When you’re done, you should feel as if you’ve been through a real fight. It is said that when the masters used to practice Kata, it was not uncommon for them to develop bruises where they had blocked their opponents.

Karate has a large number of Katas. There are also different bunkai interpretations that can be applied to each technique in those Katas. This means there are virtually infinite numbers of fight scenarios you can practice. In the end, Kata is an imaginary life or death struggle against multiple opponents, and performed with enough intensity and visualization, your mind won’t know the difference. So, does Kata have a place in modern Karate? I submit that Kata is the soul of Karate. Without Kata, training is not Karate at all, and you can never attain the skills the masters intended.

Bart Scovill trains in Shuri-ryu Karate-do. You can visit him at Warrior Pages, to see videos, reviews, articles and terminology. He is a lawyer by trade, but a martial artist at heart. Bart has been training in the martial arts since 1978. He currently trains and teaches under the legendary Shihan Donna Judge at the Suncoast Karate Dojo in Sarasota, Florida. One of the best things about training with a legend is you are surrounded by other legends and legends to be. He has previously trained in Shorin-ryu, Wado-ryu, and Matsubayashi Shorin-ryu. In addition to Shuri-ryu, he also participates in jiu-jitsu (both Japanese and Brazilian), bagua-zhang, xing-yi quan, qigong, aikido, kali, kobudo and yoga.

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