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Tae Kwon Do is Great For All Ages
Tae Kwon Do is Korean Karate. It means The Way of the Hand and Foot (punching and kicking). There are basically four sections to the art: Toning, Sparring, Forms and Self Defense. It is a well rounded exercise program that encompasses muscle...
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How To Choose A Self Defense Product
Let's face it, martial arts and other physical self-defense
courses aren't for everybody. They can be time consuming and
expensive for some - and others may not be able to handle the
physical strain of them. It is quite a commitment to learn...
How to Get Certified In Scuba Diving
The first two steps in getting certified in scuba diving is to make sure that you are a reasonably proficient swimmer and you get medical clearance from your doctor to take up the sport. As for the swimming, you don't have to master every type of...
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Yoga Teachers, Prepare for the New Year's Rush - Part 1
The doors will fly open on January 2nd with enthusiastic mobs of
Yoga students. What can you do to prepare for the busiest
stretch of the year? How can you keep their interest all year
long?
If there was ever a time to clean up your Yoga...
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8 Technical Aspects of the Martial Arts
In the past Japanese samurai, Mongolian horsemen, Manchu
bannermen, and European knights spent a lifetime learning the
highly complex art of fighting. It took many years of discipline
to master the techniques of unarmed fighting and fighting with
weapons, and training was honed by close-quarters combat that
resulted in real fatalities. Although soldiers continue to be
trained in these arts today, given the advanced technology of
modern warfare they are less likely to engage in unarmed
fighting. Unarmed fighting has become more of a civilian sport,
and the techniques practiced are less lethal. Many practitioners
study only a limited number of fighting techniques within a
single system. Others like to gain diverse skills, and most
martial arts schools include the study of techniques from
different systems. In some systems, advanced study is not
offered until a practitioner has been studying and training for
many years and gained a certain level of skill.
Types and features of fighting include: long- and short-range
unarmed fighting, armed fighting, grappling, the use of pressure
points, self-cultivation, single- and multiple-opponent
fighting, fighting without injuring the opponent, and avoidance
of fighting.
In long-range unarmed fighting, participants have time to react
to visual stimuli, which allows the execution of both powerful
strikes as well as subtle feints. In short-range unarmed
fighting, practitioners must react quickly to tactile stimuli.
Feints are difficult to do, as speed and reflex assume
importance.
When using grappling techniques, leverage and physical strength
are important. Participants wrestle each other to gain
submission of the other or find a weak spot for striking. At
this range, pinching, biting, and spitting may also be used if
not forbidden by the rules.
In armed fighting, the reach of the practitioner is
increased
and strikes are more destructive. Each weapon and range has its
own techniques, and several weapons are generally studied. For
efficiency and simplification, a well-designed teaching system
will emphasize similarities in technique.
Incorporating the knowledge of pressure points can increase the
effective use of traditional techniques and add a new range of
options. When striking the body, for example, the target point
can be chosen to bring about a specific effect.
Self-cultivation techniques enhance moral, emotional, and
physical development. Some martial arts schools have character
development as a main goal. Acquiring skill in a martial art
form takes patience, dedication, and persistence, all of which
benefit the practitioner in developing strength of character. A
school focusing on self-cultivation emphasizes techniques and
training that encourage and support this development.
Traditional duels and modern sparring matches consist of
single-opponent fighting. Expert fighters are pitted against
each other and must follow a definite set of rules in fighting
until one is declared the victor. In this type of fighting,
footwork can be simplified, as quick turns are rarely needed. In
such matches, opponents tend to be equals in skill.
Some martial arts systems, especially those that focus on basic
self-defense, teach avoidance of fighting altogether. Techniques
include instruction on how to become aware of potentially
violent confrontations and situations, defuse them before they
arise, and de-escalate them if they occur. In these systems,
fighting would be engaged in as a last resort when it is
unavoidable.
About the author:
Steven Gregoire has been training in the martial arts since
1986. Currently he operates Tigerstrike.com A martial art equipment and
supply store.
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