The Disrespected Basics!!

[sensei8]

So often the basics of the martial arts are relagated to be inferior to advanced techniques. Why? The basics seem to not be sufficient enough for the martial artists palete. No, they want to use only the most effective advanced technique at hand.

What have the basics ever done to any practitioner for that practitioner to hold them in such a discarded light?

Seeking out for the advanced techniques is appropriate, imho, just as long as the basics aren't ignored. My Dai-Soke was quite fond of reminding us all the time..."Advanced techniques are incomplete without the basics. Learn the advanced techniques, but not at the risk of the basics"

Building bridges that lead up to the what's considered advanced must set upon the foundation of the basic techniques of any and all martial arts. One can't climb Mt. Everest without having to have acclimated oneself at the lower altitudes first. Same thing in the martial arts, imho.

I've always felt that the white belt was the most important rank of them all because without the white belt, black belt can never ever have been achieved. Therefore, without a solid foundation of the basics, advanced techniques can't ever be effectively learnt.

Many, many times conversations regarding techniques seem to circle around what effective techniques are the advanced ones. So much so, that one forgets to mention the basics because they've summized the ineffectiveness of basics, and in that, they'd rather execute advanced techniques no matter what.

Then, when one observes a local tournament of the martial arts, nearly if not all of the practitioners in attendance don't throw not one advanced technique. Why? Because they're way to busy throwing the reverse punch, the jab, the front kick, the side kick, the downward block, and/or the rising forearm block...BASIC TECHNIQUES!!

Why? Imho, it's because the basic ARE effective in it's simplest form, and the other funny truth about the basics being effective is because they WORK just fine!

And if a black belt of any rank would truely think about it, and if that black belt could be honest with themselves, then that black belt would realize that they've been perfecting their basics much, much more longer than the ellusive advanced techniques that are at their disposal.

So, before you discard the basics techniques within your styles curriculum over the advanced techniques, please remember this...

In every advanced technique there lies an effective basic technique. Even more so; no basic techniques equals one thing...no advanced techniques!!

Your thoughts?

[isshinryu5toforever]

Matt Thornton said in an interview, "There are no advanced techniques in effective systems." Systems that have been consistently proven to work against other system in competition, whether in the UFC, PrideFC, or elsewhere, are simplistic in nature. A world champion level Judo player does the same ippon-seonagi that a brand new white belt does, he's just been doing it longer. If we're talking about being a competent fighter, then the simplest techniques are the ones that need the most refining.

I've seen people win Kyokushin matches with beautiful sacrifice techniques, but I've seen a lot more win with a high level round house kick.

[ps1]

Agreed. Your story harkens back to a story told to me by Saulo Ribeiro (very well known world champ in BJJ) about Rickson Gracie. It goes along these lines:

Rickson was teaching a seminar to very advanced black belts. Many of them were world champions. Saulo was in attendance, among others. When Rickson told them he wanted to work on the cross choke from the mount, many of the audience voiced disagreement because they felt the move was too basic. Rickson agreed that the move was perhaps too basic. So instead, they would spar. After sweeping, mounting, and cross choking everyone, he stated, "if this move is too basic, how am I choking all of you with it?"

Needless to say, they worked on the cross choke from the mount.

I should also mention that the cross choke is one of the first submissions you learn in BJJ, Judo, Aiki Jujitsu, and even exists in Karate.

[tallgeese]

I agree with what everyone else is said. In addition, advanced movements are nothing more than basic tactics applied at a very high level of competency.

[Jay]

Great post and very true. I have most definitely realised this myself going back to being a beginner in a different art. I guess this is the reason why I don't mind being a white belt because I can just practice the simple and basic techniques. To me anyway they are the advanced techniques. If I can do a basic technique well then there is no need for the more advanced technique anyway.

In most karate competitions I have seen the most common scoring shot is the reverse punch I mean how basic can you get .

[KarateGeorge]

Well put post, and as tallgeese said, many advanced techniques are just more advanced versions of the basic techniques.

For example, ask a black belt to perform anything off the white belt curriculum, such as a punch, kick, getting into a certain stance, or a kata. Ask a yellow belt to perform the exact same things. The yellow belt is no longer a white belt, so that means they've learned all those techniques and should be able to perform them equally as well, right? Not exactly. Even though that yellow belt has learned the techniques, the black belt has put in much more time and training and has refined the techniques, gaining power, speed, strength and improved form in the techniques.

Why do we practice advanced techniques if we'll rarely actually use them then? My opinion is that its a matter of setting the bar when training. If we train with a much higher standard, then when we have to put our skills to use either in a tournament or in the unfortunate situation of having to truly defend ourselves, then those basic techniques are so much simpler to complete.

[BDPulver]

had a good response with story and hit wrong button so Ill just go agree wholeheartdly with this quote I remember reading back in the day.

Must practice basics to get good at kata, without basics there is no Karate.

[DWx]

Great post sensei8. Basics are very important, not just for the techniques themselves but practice of them ingrains body mechanics principles that carry over into the more advanced techniques. A lot of advanced techs are just extensions and modified versions of the basics anyway.

You have to wonder though that if maybe you did some of the "advanced" techniques the same number of times as the basic ones and from white belt level, would it not just become another basic? What I'm trying to say is that, at least in my experience, some techniques which are labelled "advanced" aren't necessarily that difficult to do, they've just been withheld in the syllabus till higher grades.

Edited November 2, 2010 by DWx

[Jeffrey]

Solid post sensei8. I can't agree more.

[Ti]

I've been training solo for a while now, since I relocated and am no longer with my dojo.

I've noticed that my techniques have diminished. I stood there wondering. So I said to myself, I'll try basics. After one set, I realized, it was garbage. I lost all concept of basics. That's when I remembered something. Basics are the building blocks to all that other fancy stuff.

So since last week I have been drilling basics more to clean them up and giving less time to more advanced things.