when to learn jkd.

[Drunken Monkey]

something came to mind whilst reading another thread.

 

when do you think it is best to train jkd style?

 

is it good to go straight in with no prior experience in martial arts and learn from scratch or is it better to learn after you have a few years of something under your proverbial belt?

 

let's take what seems to be the trend in jkd schools.

 

from what i've heard, many places still teach as the core, wing chun elements, and then supplement with things from muay thai, kali, escrima

 

(or whatever else the instructor knows-please correct me if i'm wrong).

 

now lets assume that these guys are second generation from bruce lee and well, unlike the first generation who all had a good basis in martial arts beforehand, these guys trained in the already mixed-curriculum of modern jkd.

 

what i mean is, they only have experience in the moves that works for them, right?

 

isn't this exactly the thing bruce lee wanted to avoid?

 

and because these guys didn't have the first hand knowledge of the styles from which moves are taken from, doesn't imply that they automatically have a shallower understanding of the moves?

 

so back to the original question.

 

is it better to learn jkd from the word go?

 

or

 

learn a style then go into jkd?

 

anyway, this was what was going through my mind and i just wanted an opinion from you guys.

[tommarker]

i've always felt that JKD should not be approached as a "style" since that essentially confines it into a set approach that Lee always seemed to go against.

 

Conservative answer: JKD can be used to your advantage upon becoming a black belt. This way, you have a good base.. You know how to do things more or less in the "way" of your style and can take them in different directions.

[delta1]

when do you think it is best to train jkd style? ...is it good to go straight in with no prior experience in martial arts and learn from scratch or is it better to learn after you have a few years of something ..they only have experience in the moves that works for them, right? isn't this exactly the thing bruce lee wanted to avoid? ...and because these guys didn't have the first hand knowledge of the styles from which moves are taken from, doesn't imply that they automatically have a shallower understanding of the moves?

 

JKD was Bruce Lee's philosophy, not just his style. From all I've read, he advocated learning a system and tailoring it to yourself. You can't trim away what doesn't work until you've learned it well enough to know what doesn't work. You can't graft from other styles until you have a base to graft onto. And learning what works for someone else will probably never work that well for you.

 

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying you can't learn from more than one style at an early stage in your training. But you need a good base art to bring everything back to. And you won't be nearly as successful bringing the principles of different styles together early on as you will later when you have a good understanding of those principles.

 

As to your question, I'd say that if you find a very good JKD school with a varried enough but cohesive carriculum, and instructor(s) who really know and understand the principles of what they are teaching, then that should be as good as any other MMA. But the concerns you raised in your post are extremely valid, and all good things to keep in mind when judging a prospective school. And if it is an option, consider staying with your WC school, at least for a while, while you try out JKD.

 

Oh, and as with all advice, consider the source. I'm probably the worlds worst fence jumper when it comes to getting extra training! But it allways comes back to Kenpo (even my current TKD class).