Importance of cross training

[Flying Crane]

Cross training can be extremely important, or not important at all. It depends on what you are doing, how well you are doing it, whether it meets your needs and desires, and simply whether you want to.

There can be nothing wrong with cross training. However, don't let crowd think convince you that you MUST do it, if you don't really want to.

 

[crazydiamond]

I will be honest - my marital art is all about cross training (mixed art) - and it is both good and bad. I am practicing so many different arts in any given week - from so many cultures and languages - I find it both informative and confusing. I guess a common comment on Jeet Kune Do Concepts (Inosanto JKD/Kali).

Even just basic stances - we have several to choose from, and I (and my child who studies there) get confused which one the current instructor of the day is asking us to get into.

 

[JowGaWolf]

Young kids can speak multiple languages because they acquire them instead of learning them, but I agree that a person can train in as many styles as they have time to train. It'll just take longer to get good at any of them.

I think kids learn better because they "empty their cup" When adults have the tendency of trying to learn new stuff by relating it to something they already know. For example, if I try to learn Chinese, my brain wants to compare and reference how I speak English in an effort to use that knowledge to help me learn Chinese. When children learn they just learn. They have no reference to "guide them" on learning something new. They learn new stuff as new stuff.

 

[Buka]

I will be honest - my marital art is all about cross training (mixed art) - and it is both good and bad. I am practicing so many different arts in any given week - from so many cultures and languages - I find it both informative and confusing. I guess a common comment on Jeet Kune Do Concepts (Inosanto JKD/Kali).

Even just basic stances - we have several to choose from, and I (and my child who studies there) get confused which one the current instructor of the day is asking us to get into.

Yes, it must be confusing at times. Then, at some point.....it all comes together. Oh, happy day.
You go, bro!

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

I find it both informative and confusing.

When you move to your side, one MA system tells you that you should move your leading leg first while the other MA system tells you that you should move your back leg first. No matter how long that you may have trained both systems, you will always be confused.

 

[Pittsburgh Arnis]

How important is cross training? When is the best time to begin cross training? I have been taking Tae Kwon Do for about 15 months. I was looking into taking some boxing lessons, I took two lessons last year and I enjoyed them because they were so out of my element. Is it too soon to start cross training, or should I wait until I feel I have mastered the basics of Tae Kwon Do?

I once visited a TKD school were the instructor had also spent some time doing boxing. Based on my interactions, I thought this was a good strategy to improve overall fighting ability.

 

[Tony Dismukes]

When you move to your side, one MA system tells you that you should move your leading leg first while the other MA system tells you that you should move your back leg first. No matter how long that you may have trained both systems, you will always be confused.

Only if you are still at the stage of moving one leg or the other just based on what the system "tells" you to do. Once you understand why you would do it one way or another and what the advantages and disadvantages are to doing it one way or another in different contexts, then you can train to move in whichever way is appropriate for you in a given situation.