Changes may be coming to my school??!!

[bushido_man96]

I talked to the girlfriend of our instructor today at the gym, and they were at the annual TTA seminar this last weekend. I guess the GM had them working on some different things, and I guess one of them was the old style 3-step sparring. This could change things up a bit in class, depending on how it is done, though.

Also, there was talk about maybe bringing on a comitted sparring class, which we need very badly. A full class to work on drills, footwork, and sparring would help our school out so much, and help me, too. Its been talked about in the past, but never really has been done. I guess only time will tell.

[isshinryu5toforever]

I would take the sparring class over 3-steps. I don't really know what you gain from 3-step sparring. You're supposed to work on muscle memory, but no one throws three techniques exactly the way you see them in 3-steps. It just seems to use up a lot of time you could use working on other things. Like actual sparring. It's up to your instructor though, which can be the tricky part.

[DWx]

I think a dedicated sparring class was one of the things that really brought the standard up in our school. Just dedicating a full hour to pad work, drills and then free sparring really improved everyone because it was more practice time. Was so hard trying to fit it in a normal class and we'd never spend enough time in it.

Depending on how they change up the 3-step it could be good. Think you know my opinions on step sparring from that thing I wrong on forms a while back. They can be useful if used in the proper way.

[isshinryu5toforever]

If they can be done in an alive manner, sure, but I have yet to see anyone actually implement them that way.

[bushido_man96]

He mentioned last night in class that there will be some 3-step stuff for the black belts. Why just the black belts, I'm not sure. It sounds like they are preplanned, too, so it may just suck. We'll see.

I'm still hoping for a sparring class, but no word yet.

[DWx]

See with step-sparring I see them as bridging the gap between forms and actual sparring and the attacker is just a moving dummy for you do target practice on. Not really as useful if everything is pre-determined. Most we'll say is that the attacker will attack with a kick, or they'll attack with a certain type of punch and its up to the student to match a block and counter to that from the techniques they've learnt and to work out what distancing and angle they need to use.

Bit weird if its just a blackbelt requirement.

[isshinryu5toforever]

The problem is that it is pre-set AND it's static. You aren't moving in a realistic fashion. You wait for them to punch, they punch, leave it out there in the air, you counter. It's the same for three steps, but they throw three techniques. Once the first one is thrown, you might be a little late, but you can catch up because you know what the next two will be. They can try to throw you off with broken rhythm, but you already know what is coming. Especially if you say, OK right hand first, left leg first, etc.

This video on aliveness will demonstrate what I'm talking about:

Not everyone used is the cleanest, but the theory is sound.

[isshinryu5toforever]

See with step-sparring I see them as bridging the gap between forms and actual sparring and the attacker is just a moving dummy for you do target practice on. Not really as useful if everything is pre-determined. Most we'll say is that the attacker will attack with a kick, or they'll attack with a certain type of punch and its up to the student to match a block and counter to that from the techniques they've learnt and to work out what distancing and angle they need to use.

Bit weird if its just a blackbelt requirement.

The way you're describing it. I would agree with this. Movement, choose a few techniques, but don't make it specific, attack at will. Makes sense.

[DWx]

Good video, I agree with what he's saying. Although there is a little rigidity still in the way we do step sparring in the sense that the attacker remains static after they're finished. Having said that its not too big a deal as by they time they've completed their motion you should have finished your block/evade counter anyway and you should now be in a dominant position so if they were to come at you you could deal with it. The progression is to then build up to sparring drills (as in the video) and then ultimately free sparring.

I guess we use step-sparring as a application exercise. At colour belt level its usually the type of attack that gets specified and you can respond with whatever you want, but at advance colour belt and black belt, attacker can do whatever they feel like straight off and its up to you what you do in response. Or sometimes as a strategy exercise we say that the attacker can do what they like but the defender must end up doing something specific like they must end up finishing in a joint lock or must finish up by using a certain technique.

When I first started we had set sequences to learn but when I was a couple of belts in our master scrapped them and introduced this system which makes more sense to me.

[bushido_man96]

I hear what you guys/gals are saying, and believe me, you are preaching to the choir here. I want more alive, more realistic, less pre-set, and less "black belt only" stuff. But, we'll see what I end up getting. My guess, is more of the same, with just more talk.