For those that take up the arts for self protection, a main goal should be to train in a realistic way. This should include, but not be limited to resistance, as well as contact. We are going to rely on the techniques we do, so it'd be a good idea to know what works and be able to make it work under stress.
Now of course, no matter how 'real' we want our training, there has to be some limits. We can gear up in a red man suit and allow our partner to elbow our head as hard as he could. On the flip side, the 'dummy' isn't really getting the full effect of that elbow due to the protection. Most likely it'd result in a KO or some serious injury. But if we were to train w/o gear, we'd soon run out of people to work with.
Then of course we have certain things that regardless of gear, we still can't train them to their full extent. A choke for example. While we could choke someone out so we can get the effects, I can't imagine that its good to repeatedly do that. An armbreak...well, we can take it to a certain point, but we either have to stop or again, risk losing a partner.
So, all that being said, I have to wonder why so many people make comments along the lines of, "But if you can't practice it realistically, then why even bother learning it in the first place?" Now, sure, some things may be more complicated than other techniques, but still, while they're making the comment, they seem to be forgetting what I mentioned above.
Your thoughts?
Mike
Now of course, no matter how 'real' we want our training, there has to be some limits. We can gear up in a red man suit and allow our partner to elbow our head as hard as he could. On the flip side, the 'dummy' isn't really getting the full effect of that elbow due to the protection. Most likely it'd result in a KO or some serious injury. But if we were to train w/o gear, we'd soon run out of people to work with.
Then of course we have certain things that regardless of gear, we still can't train them to their full extent. A choke for example. While we could choke someone out so we can get the effects, I can't imagine that its good to repeatedly do that. An armbreak...well, we can take it to a certain point, but we either have to stop or again, risk losing a partner.
So, all that being said, I have to wonder why so many people make comments along the lines of, "But if you can't practice it realistically, then why even bother learning it in the first place?" Now, sure, some things may be more complicated than other techniques, but still, while they're making the comment, they seem to be forgetting what I mentioned above.
Your thoughts?
Mike