Mr. Mike

Pankration Ancient Greek Combat Sport Modern Mixed Martial Art Pankration, pronounced in its modern derivative as "pan-cray-shun" as opposed to the classic "pan-grat-ee-on", is an ancient Greek combat sport dating back over 2500 years. Modeled after an earlier battlefield form called panmachia (Gr. "total fighting"), it was the cornerstone of the very first Olympic Games. It would vanish over time due to various factors until its revival as a mixed martial arts system geared to both street-fighting and competition in the late-1960s by Grandmaster Jim Arvanitis. World recognized as the "Father of Modern Pankration", Arvanitis made it his life's work to rebuild the concepts from what little remained of Greece's legacy. One of the earliest advocates of cross-training, Jim combined his extensive background in boxing and wrestling with techniques he extracted from other styles. The integration of these conceptual and technical elements became the foundation of Modern Pankration. The rebirth would find its way to its native homeland in the mid-1990s as well as to many other parts of the world. Pankration is translated to mean "all-powers" and consists of all methods of striking and grappling including open hand blows, punches, kicks, elbows, knees, takedowns, throws, sweeps, and submission holds (joint locks and chokes). Equal preference is given to both upright fighting (ano pankration) as well as ground combat (kato pankration). History shows that many of the martial arts styles practiced today such as karate, kung-fu, jujitsu, etc. may have been influenced by this combat form of antiquity due to the conquests of Alexander the Great. The Spartan Academy is an exclusive palaestra (Gr. "school") specializing in both sport and battlefield (street) pankration. It offers both short-term and continuing programs in Jim Arvanitis' system of contemporary Greek combat. Key Points of Modern Pankration Tactical positioning both upright and on the ground. Elusive Mobility: Light, shifty footwork and body maneuvering to bridge the gap for explosive attacks and providing a difficult target to hit or grip. Emphasis on attack. Totality: Fluid integration of striking and grappling techniques. No stylized partiality as to one method over another. All ways and means are employed to terminate the conflict. No rigid, passive defenses. Subtle parries and evasions rather than hard blocks. Efficient techniques based on simplicity and economy of motion. There are no wasted, complicated movements. Low-level kicks (below the waist). High kicks expend more energy and jeopardize balance. Penetrating strikes: Hit through the target, not just at it. Fights often end on the ground! In this position, one must be able to effectively defend and attack with strikes and submission skills. Adaptability: The ability to instantly adjust to all possible angles, ranges, and circumstances encountered in combat. The use of leverage and body force in all striking and grappling techniques rather than mere arm or leg strength. No "fixed" forms. Applicability as opposed to memorized response. Productive learning is spontaneous and requires complete freedom of expression!! No formality or rituals. The hereteesmos (salutation) is used at the start and end of class, or prior to sparring. Continual promotion of physical fitness through scientific exercise and diet. Use of specialized equipment to develop the striking tools. Realistic interactive drills including ground grappling and sparring with contact to closely simulate actual combat conditions. ___________________________________________________ Course Content ANO (UPRIGHT) SKILLS Readiness Position (thesis machis) Combat ranges Footwork and Mobility Precision Strikes Punching Tools (pymis) Kicking Tools (laktisma) Elbow Strikes (agkohnizein) Knee strikes (gonatizein) Clinch Fighting (hamma) Throws, Takedowns, and Sweeps (rassein apaly) Joint Locks/Destructions Chokes/Cranks Defensive Blocks Parries Evasions Leg Shoot Defenses Combat Strategies A. Combinations B. Setups C. Counters D. Transitions (standing to ground) Training Methodology A. Conditioning Exercises B. Skiamachia (shadow-fighting) C. Equipment 1. Heavy bag (korykos) 2. DEB & speed bag 3. Focus gloves 4. Impact pads 5. Grappling dummy D. Sparring (contact and protective gear) KATO (GROUND) SKILLS Top Control Positions Ground Strikes Leg Scissors Techniques Submission Arm and Leg Locks Joint Dislocations Finger Locks Chokes and Neck Cranks Throws and Sweeps Spartan Tactics Passes, Reversals, and Escapes Training Methods A. Conditioning Exercises B. Breakfalls C. Spinning Drill D. Partner Drills E. Free Rolling F. Sparring "CORE" TECHNIQUES Includes all classic skills of original Olympic pankration such as klimakimos, gastrizein, piheo anhin, saroma, systasis, parathesis, etc. _______________________________________________ The Spartan Academy of Greek Martial Art (941) 685-2079

blue in IKCA Chinese Kenpo. I used to be in a rush to rank, but have settled in and really started "realizing" some of the advanced concepts.

That would be Hillary Swank and she played in "The Next Karate Kid". It was actually the fourth movie featuring Miyagi-san whoops...sorry. I guess I need remedial 80's training. also, If I'm not mistaken, they are practicing Miyagi-do karate. I think somebody asked that...

I'm with you on this one.

the phenomenon of XMA is interesting in the same way a good martial arts hollywood flick is interesting...sure it's rooted in the fundamentals, but it is pure flash. It is not intended for Self Defense. If you want good self defense, try a karate school. This is sport martial arts at its best.

not bad.

try to keep your weight off of it as much as possible. Get some cruches if you need to. This might take a bit to heal.

lots of fruits and vegetables...preferably raw. Water...lots of it. a good multi vitamin/calcium supplement. fish or chicken for meats.

both are pretty cool, but I wonder if anybody will ever see the 2 in 2005 change?

how about a loyal, honest, compassionate, nurturing, loving, intelligent, decent woman with good strong values and upstanding morals, regardless of race? just wondering.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/hampshire/dorset/3790037.stm the above was from http://www.thisisbradford.co.uk/bradford__district/body_soul/tom92.html oh, that is exactly what killed houdini.

that was a good suggestion to go and watch the classes...if at all possible, watch some of the advanced classes to see what the upper level students look like when they train. That will give you a better idea of what the art is about than watching a basic/drop-in class with large group warm-ups and nto so much one on one. shop around before you decide...check out all options. good luck, and stick with it.

unless one or the other is being a complete idiot, I don't think you would have to worry about a fight between experienced martial artists. in any case, iof you don't think joint locks are effective, have one put on you and try to break free or hit back...ask your instructor to help with this

you could try combat hapkido...maybe aikido

gerber model 460 keyslinger

just have a banana or two a day. I'm plagued with HORRIBLE leg cramps at night, and sometimes during our warmups, my hips cramp. Two reasons for cramps are 1. dehydrated 2. underused muscle. I drink alot of water, make sure my minerals and electrolytes are in balance, drink a rehydration beverage after hard workouts, and am still hit hard with cramps. After talking to my doctor, he perscribed me Quinine Sulfate. 1 pill an hour before my workout, and no cramps all night. very nice.

because because because, kara, empty + te, hand: karate = empty hand. all the styles you listed are based on empty hand self defense, hence "karate".

tomorrow I'll be a blue belt in IKCA Chinese Kenpo. I've also studied american freestyle karate, TKD, and some Muay Thai.

we don't charge on a fixed time basis...we charge per class and sell them in blocks of 100(freshman), 150(sophmore), 250(junior), 475(black belt club). The classes get cheaper when you purchase more of them. Example, the freshamn class is $12.44/class, and the BBC is $8/class. So the more you buy, the more you save... I've always hated buying in time blocks...if I were to buy a three month membership where you can go 3 times a week for an hour each time, and go on vacation for a week, I would lose the opportunity to take as many as 12 hours of instruction in that time slot. That just doens't suit me. With our setup, if you have to go on injured reserve, LOA, vacation, whatever, the classes are still there. The students still pay monthly for the tuition, but it's calculated with the downpayment and payment time for the program...ex., freshman program- 100 classes at 12.44/class= $622, over 6 months(half of the time for the program) is $102/ mo.(less depending upon the downpayment) The Black belt program is $8/class at 475 classes=$3800, spread over 4yrs is $79/mo. So you can see the savings benefit frm choosing the BBC, but there are other benefits, like discounts in the pro shop, you can take unlimited classes whereas the regular programs you can take a max of 3/wk, and a BBC class every week where extra curriculum is taught and is voted upon by the students at the beginning of each yr., such as knife fighting, knife throwing, grappling, throwing/judo, weapons, etc. uh, I tink I rambled on a bit there, but I hope it helped you...I'm on 3 hours of sleep in 3 days, so sorry for the loquaciousness.

another issue is if it is part of the curriculum. Ex. Our school is predominately Kenpo, but the instructor has BB's in Combat Hapkido, TKD, Okinawan Kobudo, and Freestyle Karate...most further than shodan. Most people in our school are enrolled into the Kenpo program. Would it make sense to teach them Kobudo theory with the Kenpo program? Most likely no. He also has Bushido, Iaito, Budo, etc. Experience...again, just sticking to the curriculum makews alot more sense here than trying to teach everybody all of these concepts...now there are the BB club members who partake of some of these other classes as well as the Kenpo advanced classes where advanced concepts and theories are taught, but the vast majority of students just don't want to bother. I would imagine that a few of the parents would completely freak when watching the sword class and hearing "...so the way to do this step correctly is to slice cleanly through the neck, and then cleanse the sword by bringing it to your forehead and flinging the blood off...wipe the bohi, or blood groove clean with your thumb and first finger..." and "...this was considered dying with honor...if you lost to your opponent, you would hve your head cut off and thereby ensure that you have died in the most respectful way..." yeah...that would send some parents over the edge...

6'2" 285lbs of pure all natural manmeat.

I would use sideways force on the jaw to break it...you can't really pry the mouth open because it's designed to clam shut, but not slam side-side. Eyeballs are vulnerable, ribs, testes, whatever...jsut mess the damned thing up...I carry a combat folder that I would gut the thing with if it came to me and locked on...yeah, I w2ould be in excruciating pain, but it's the classic case of 'you will bruise my heel, but I will crush your head'

what area did you move to, and what school are you looking at? we may be offer advice...also if you can. try to get what association the school is. I train IKCA Kenpo which is Chinese Kenpo as tuaght by Ed Parker. It is highly adaptable to every situation, and for every practitioner. We use locks, throws, ground skills, soft and hard technique, linear and circular, basically whatever works and in the most efiicient manner. If it doesn't work, we don't use it...if it is stylized, we save it for competition. I think you will really enjoy the Kenpo art. I find myself more and more every day.

I got 4, then read what you said aboiut six and counted agani...damn 4 again...what the heck? then carefully...yup...there's 6 there.