Training to fight under stress

[delta1]

http://stickgrappler2.tripod.com/street/anatfear.html

 

Good article, by Darren Laur. Gives some good reasons why we should include training under not only force, but high stress. Also, makes a good case for simplifying some of our techniques.

 

One of the ways I ssimplify things is to rework most of my TKD moves to American Kenpo principles, but make them simple, direct, and brutal- useing mostly gross motor movement.

 

Comments on the article? Or maybe ideas to alter training to make it more realistic?

[delta1]

Hicks Law basically states the following: the average reaction time given one stimulus one response is about ½ second. If we now teach a student a second technique (response) to the same attack (stimulus) we WILL increase a person’s reaction time by 58%. On the street we want to DECREASE reaction time, not increase it. If we teach multiple defences to one specific attack, the brain will take time deciding which option to use. This increased reaction time could mean the difference between life and death.

 

This is why I look at my base, American Kenpo, as training to move under assault, rather than as specific/rote response to particular assaults. 154 techniques, sometimes as many as four for the same attack, pluss offensive moves and forms- and some people try to tell me they can bring up the right technique and run it verbatim in a real assault? It has happened, but those I've talked to that did it for real say it just came, they didn't 'choose' the technique. And it didn't happen that way for them every time, either. They did, however, train realistically, under force. And when the technique went badly, both dummy and defender continued until one got the upper hand.

 

Same with sparing. Every once in a while we need to put on the gear, and go at it with hard (but controled) contact. How hard depends on the experience, health, and desires of the combatants. More than that, we need to induce stress. Have other class mates rough up the combatants prior to the fight. Insult them, threaten them, yell, show them 'real' anger. This can get pretty personal, and can cause hard feelings, so if there are any questions about any ones character, use your judgement. Some people just don't respond well to this kind of training. Nothing is like a real assault/fight, except a real assault/fight. But the closer you come to simulating it, the better prepared you are.

 

Another thing to do is to trian and fight with other stylists. They will show you things you may not be prepared to defend against.

 

Training for avoidance and deescalation should be as realistic as possible, also. Most of my altercations have been over before they got to blows, fortunately. But this didn't just happen by accident. I train avoidance, positioning, watching for signs of trouble. Maybe I'm paranoid, but I know for sure of instances where this has saved my backside from dammage. Same with talking them down.

 

I'm on an extended period of downtime right now, and maybe I'm just getting a little antsy about getting back to training. But I've been spending some time on the computer and reading books, and a lot of this just confirms what I've said all along. If you expect it to work in the street, train it like you'll have to use it in the street.