Walk into any traditional martial arts dojo, and just observe. Notice how many middle-aged men and women that you see there over the age of 50. I would dare say very few. Have you ever asked yourself why? If you say that martial arts is only for the very young, then how do you account for the fact that most of the teachers who consider themselves as masters are in their 50′s and 60′s?  (By the way, to reach your 50′s and 60′s in the mastery of a martial art usually means that you started maybe as a teenager and because you are a teacher, you get to continue to practice and maintain your skill level by practicing hours each day. The average everyday person has a life and families and cannot devote every waking hour to the perfection of a fighting art.)

I am well into middle-age, but I have the body, strength and endurance of a 30-year old – not by accident, but because I take very good care of myself with progressive weight lifting, regular jogging and healthy eating. However, even for a “young” man in my condition, the typical martial arts program is not set up to cater at all to me and my age bracket.

I will reveal for you now as to how and why the traditional martial arts program unwittingly and maybe unintentionally, but definitely, discriminate against the middle-aged man or woman. (For abbreviated purposes, TMA will stand for Traditional Martial Arts.)

What Makes Jiu Jitsu Techniques So Effective?

First of all, although it may seem obvious it’s important to take note of the fact that Jiu Jitsu focuses on effectiveness, as opposed to other martial arts disciplines which focus on philosophy, perfect technique, or other highly specialized styles. For example, take Judo which is often referred to as the “sport version of Jiu Jitsu” and is also an Olympic Sport. Just like Olympic boxing focuses on a very narrow set of rules and a system of scoring points that would not necessarily be the most effective way to win a professional fight, so does Olympic Judo focus on style and points as opposed to the most effective way to subdue an attacker who intends to hurt you or a loved one.

An excellent routine for overall muscle endurance, same exercises as above

• Higher reps, 10-15 or more, so lighter weight of course.
• Follow this with as many pushups as you can do.
• Only rest for a maximum of 30 seconds, and repeat

Top Secret: I know you’re dying to find out what the bonus secret is:

Well… okay just kidding.

My advice is very direct and succinct. Forget about all of the Traditional Martial Arts programs, and enroll yourself in a Reality-Based Self Protection program which does not emphasize high kicks and extreme leg and hamstring flexibility, and instead of taking years to master can be taught and learned in a matter of a weekend

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My sword background is primarily with Japanese and Korean sword work, so I found Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming’s DVD “Sword Fundamental Training: Solo Drills and Matching Practice” different from what I’m familiar with, but very interesting and very well done for an instructional DVD.

I’ve been very impressed with Dr. Yang’s DVDs on Chin Na, especially since my primary art of Hapkido also consists of many joint lock and pressure point techniques. So I wanted to learn more of the sword fundamentals from the Chinese arts that Dr. Yang teaches. This is a very good DVD to introduce those concepts and training methods.

The DVD is divided into six main chapters: Intro, General Knowledge, Techniques, Solo Practice, Matching Practice, and the Conclusion. These six main chapters are divided into more than 60 chapters to help you skip to the section you want to review and study. The entire program is a little over three and a half hours long, so you will want to take notes and skip back to the sections as you progress. There are subtitles that go along with Dr. Yang’s instruction. I don’t think they are necessary, but having them there does not hurt. They do not match the exact words of Dr. Yang, but convey the general concepts he discusses.

The first portion of the DVD focuses on information and history of the sword. It was very interesting and informative. It’s a lecture on the sword that includes Chinese proverbs on the sword. This portion was very interesting if you are interested in all things martial as I am. Dr. Yang then teaches 27 fundamental techniques with the sword. The instruction is very clear, and Dr. Yang brings out students to assist him in showing applications of the techniques. So many DVDs would just show the movement once or twice and move on to the next. Dr. Yang provides so much more, and it is really refreshing to see an instructor who goes above and beyond while teaching.

Like a double-edged sword, each side is important if the practitioner is to be truly successful. The first part, your physical training should arm you with not just physical techniques, but an understanding of the critical principles and concepts that are being taught by the technique examples. This way, you won’t have to depend on the preset techniques themselves, but instead will be able to operate in the moment, not against a stylized attack but, against whatever your attacker is throwing at you. Some of these foundational concepts include:

1) Cover

2) Strategic angling and positioning

3) Timing and flow

4) Proper distance

5) etc.

The second relates to attitude, or “heart.” No matter how tough you are, or feel in class with your friends, peers, and junior students, what matters in a real self-defense encounter is how you act and deal with the raw, animalistic violence being thrown at you by someone who isn’t pulling their punches and doesn’t care about your well-being at all. Will you focus or fold? The only thing that will matter is what you do when the moment is on you.

The next step in solo practice is all Qi Gong. You begin to work different aspects of energy within your study both for fighting and for self defense purposes. There are approximately 36 different primary expressions of energy in Tai Chi. You use your mind to direct the internal movement and chi into an expression. That expression is known as Jing. Jing is an expression of Chi or energy hence it is energy work. A few jing expressions are well known and some are quite obscure

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