Martial Vitality

Fellow martial artists: do you train your mind for violence as much as you train your body for violence? This was the question I pondered last week at the Krav Maga Global Combat Mindset and Mental Conditioning class taught by Mr Eyal Yanilov at First Defense Krav Maga in Herndon, VA. This was a three-day class that combined mental and physical drills with lecture. We shared part of the time with the Combat Fighters Instructors Course practitioners, who somehow endured a separate, unbelievably intense eight day class. The CFIC candidates called our group the "Mentals" and we joked that we were busy staring at goats  while they hammered each other into the mats. In this post I will share five take-aways from the mindset class. 1. Three elements comprise mental training to enhance self-defense, fighting, and third party protection . These three are 1) courage (alternatively: determination, persistence, aggression, and confidence); 2)   focus (or concentration); and 3) re...

On Saturday I tested for the Practitioner level 2 in Krav Maga Global , at the regional grading event at First Defense . The test came a little over five months since my P1 test . It was my first experience testing with students from other schools. It was cool to meet other Krav practitioners and see how they interpreted and expressed Krav culture and technique. The event featured testing opportunities for all Practitioner and Graduate ranks. There were so many participants we occupied space in the First Defense school and the nearby dance school! In this post I want to share five tips that helped me pass the P2 test. By writing these tips I do not intend to portray myself as obsessed with rank. Rather, I want to share some thoughts to consider if you are interested in progressing through the KMG levels. 1. Approach every practice session with the next test in mind.  I did not implement this suggestion until July. Previously I was happy to soak up whatever knowledge I could gain i...

Used martial arts gear. Serious person not included. How does your school manage its inventory of used training equipment? In  How Super Was the Martial Arts SuperShow?  I promised to share more martial arts business  tips that I picked up at the SuperShow in July. In this post I will share a brief note on managing used training equipment. When I train, I don't place a lot of emphasis on the condition of the equipment. So long as it still performs its intended function, I am fine with seeing signs of use. Newer students might not think this way. They have not yet developed the cues of quality that a more experienced martial artist might use. For example, I am much more interested in watching how the more senior students move than I am in the condition of a kick shield. Nevertheless, all equipment can degenerate to the point where it's not effective, or potentially even unsafe for use. As an instructor, I believe you have a duty to your students to train them in a safe man...

Iain Abernethy's Martial Map For the last month I've been listening to the outstanding Iain Abernethy Podcast , starting with the first episode from 2006. The January 2011 edition was titled The Martial Map , and it introduced Iain's model for thinking about what he calls self-protection, martial arts, and fighting. He argues that these are three distinct disciplines, but they do overlap. The graphic depiction of this concept appears in the figure at left, and Iain's podcast (which he describes as an "e-book" due to its length), explains what the seven areas mean for those of us doing combat-related practices. I really enjoyed learning about this model because it helps me better understand my own journey. However, it does introduce some problems. For one, is there an overall term that captures all three elements? Naturally I would expect the term "martial art" to include self-protection, fighting, and the activities Iain labels "martial arts....