The Roles of Step Sparring

[DWx]

My Sensei mentioned a principal for one step sparring in our dojo tonight; he calls it ABC; Avoid, Block, Counter. He had to make it simple for the juniors; but I will keep it in mind.

I'm borrowing that! Great simple mantra to teaching this stuff

I'm surprised that TKD doesn't teach that. Hhhhmmmmm?

The principle? Well yes as I described above. But not said as in "ABC". As Gareth says it's a nice little saying especially for kids to remember.

[bushido_man96]

Great points, Danielle, and great descriptions of how your step-sparring training changes as rank goes up. I also like the different styles, as in block counter, evade counter, and intercepting. Very nice, and a very good program that builds.

That's how I'd like to do it. I also like how you use it to break apart the material learned in the forms. It would make it fun to pick apart and apply the moves, as is, in the patterns.

What I do like about it is, at Blackbelt level, because you don't know what your partner is going to do, you have to learn to get really good at reading the signs. Broadly I tell students to classify attacks into:

- straight, such as front punches, front strikes etc.

- outward, anything coming across the body like a knifehand side strike, back fist

- inward, such as ridge hands, swinging haymaker type punches

- downward, downward strikes, getting hit with a beer bottle or something

- miscellaneous

Roughly speaking you can usually tell which class the attack will fall into based on how they shift their weight and start to move their hips/body. This gives you a split second heads up to start your block or evasion or whatever and then react further enroute. But if in doubt, always dodge.

I like your classifications, and working towards learning the tells the body makes when attacking.

When you do your higher ranking step sparring, do you do it all from the typical down block, front stance starting position, or do you change it up? One thing I did like Sang H. Kim's book Taekwondo Step Sparring is that for more advanced step-sparring, he shows the use of sparring stances as opposed to the down block/front stance typically used.

[bushido_man96]

Bob, when you do your bunkai and oyo bunkai, do you ever present it in a step-sparring fashion, like what Danielle alluded to in applying forms applications?

[Harkon72]

Most of our one step sparring is done Left Front Stance v Left Front Stance with a Knife Hand lead block, (Classic Shukokai Style.) But we do teach One steps with the receiving person in ready stance too. (Yoi Dachi). I think we should do more of the second as it is just as important.

[sensei8]

Bob, when you do your bunkai and oyo bunkai, do you ever present it in a step-sparring fashion, like what Danielle alluded to in applying forms applications?

Yes! That's how students learn said applications; one movement/step at a time. No matter the simplistic and/or the complexity of said Bunkai/Oyo, it must be broken down to its most basic movements so that said applications can be learnt, understood, and mastered.

Even more so, resistance isn't futile. Therefore, we then turn up the intensity by drilling said Bunkai/Oyo in a live fashion. Reason it's that way is because things don't always happen in the streets as they do when one's training in the safety of the school.

Step-Sparring is the most rudiment training form because it leads to live training. I don't and can't see Bunkai/Oyo being taught without Step-Sparring within its midst. Movement at normal speed is too difficult to comprehend in a learning atmosphere; the elements must be broken down to its individual steps, in this case, Step-Sparring, otherwise what's being shown/taught is nothing more than a blur.

[sensei8]

Most of our one step sparring is done Left Front Stance v Left Front Stance with a Knife Hand lead block, (Classic Shukokai Style.) But we do teach One steps with the receiving person in ready stance too. (Yoi Dachi). I think we should do more of the second as it is just as important.

Solid post!!

[DWx]

When you do your higher ranking step sparring, do you do it all from the typical down block, front stance starting position, or do you change it up? One thing I did like Sang H. Kim's book Taekwondo Step Sparring is that for more advanced step-sparring, he shows the use of sparring stances as opposed to the down block/front stance typically used.

In 3-step, the majority of the time we start from the low block front stance position, unless the attack is something like a kick. Then we'd start from L-stance daebi makgi. But 3-step is a little more tightly controlled.

In 1-step it all tends to start from a parallel stance ready position although again the L-stance guarding block can also be used.

We do also have a training practice that I guess you could say is mid way between sparring, step-sparring and self defense. We spar and take it in turns to attack each other but we can include grabs and sweeps. Defender has to avoid all attacks and then finish their opponent, I guess slighty similar to ippon kumite??

You wrote an article on step-sparring didn't you?

[bushido_man96]

In 1-step it all tends to start from a parallel stance ready position although again the L-stance guarding block can also be used.

So, in your one-step sparring, your attacker doesn't start from the downblock position? Interesting. I like that.

We do also have a training practice that I guess you could say is mid way between sparring, step-sparring and self defense. We spar and take it in turns to attack each other but we can include grabs and sweeps. Defender has to avoid all attacks and then finish their opponent, I guess slighty similar to ippon kumite??

I've never done this before, but I remember reading about it in Choi's encyclopedia in regards to training for sparring. Its basically a pre-set sparring set, isn't it? I do see the value in this training as a step in "ramping up" step sparring training.

You wrote an article on step-sparring didn't you?

I did, on how I felt that it should evolve from the more basic motions and learning to read and react to attacks, to more active self-defense scenarios. Shameless plug here: Step-Sparring and Self Defense

Even more so, resistance isn't futile. Therefore, we then turn up the intensity by drilling said Bunkai/Oyo in a live fashion. Reason it's that way is because things don't always happen in the streets as they do when one's training in the safety of the school.

I am in agreement here. I feel that it is important to introduce resistance with step-sparring as time goes on, in order to be able to learn how to react to the chaos of combat.

Most of our one step sparring is done Left Front Stance v Left Front Stance with a Knife Hand lead block, (Classic Shukokai Style.) But we do teach One steps with the receiving person in ready stance too. (Yoi Dachi). I think we should do more of the second as it is just as important.

To the bold, I agree, it is a very important way to train. I would even go a step further and add an element to it by having the defender start out in a "fence" position, working a scenario where the defender attempts to de-escalate, and then defends if needed based on the actions of the attacker.