If you go back to Bruce Lee and jeet kune do, it’s all about attributes. I rely a lot on speed. I’m fast, and I can couple that with movements that generate power. I weigh only 159 pounds, but I can do things that a 250-pound guy might not be able to. Similarly, that 250 pounder is going to be more powerful than I am, so it’s unlikely I can rely on strength. So I never say, “You have to do exactly what I do.” That’s ridiculous. Bruce Lee had it right when he threw out all the stuff that was meaningless and boiled it down to “Less is more.” He accepted that there are different body types and ways of thinking. People who don’t do that are part of what’s wrong with combatives. There are traditionalists who learn World War II combatives verbatim, and then there are guys like me who believe in some of it but who also believe in the Philippine martial arts and jiu-jitsu—in an eclectic mix. It’s simply not about “My sensei can beat your sensei,” or “Your Korean style isn’t as strong as my Chinese style.” None of that matters. In the end, the only thing that matters is that you believe you’re training hard and the right way and that you’re capable to a standard acceptable to you. It is, after all, your life. No one can say empirically that this is more devastating than that or make outrageous claims about whatever it is they teach. But if I’m going to deploy with you and your physical ability may directly affect my safety just as mine does yours, then we’ve got to talk. Otherwise, we don’t have to agree. —Kelly McCann, Kembativz Civilian Training Center - CTC former U.S. Marine special-missions officer (Read his Mil-Spec column in every issue of Black Belt.)
Posted on: Thu, 13 Jun 2013 14:18:30 +0000
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