Groundfighting Seminar Review #25

This past Saturday was the Groundfighting Seminar Part 2. For a variety of reasons, this may have been the best Guided Chaos seminar I've attended yet.

The plan was for Lt. Col. Al to do most of the teaching and demonstrating, as John had a bad back triggered recently by (of all things) bending to pick up his little dog. However, John still managed to get in some extremely enlightening and dynamic demonstrations and explanations. I don't think anyone in the audience could have perceived that John was injured, based on how he moved!

The seminar was, in my opinion, a perfect balance of review of material from the Groundfighting 1 seminar and material that hadn't been covered in the first seminar. This balance was critical, as there was a large number of students present who hadn't managed to attend Groundfighting 1 last year (including some out-of-state students and some experiencing Guided Chaos for the first time).

The seminar began with a short introduction by John, explaining the origins of what we'd be learning. Al then gave a short introduction, in which he emphasized that because no one could expect to completely master in a single day any of the ideas presented in the seminar, the goal was to give everyone the knowledge and drills necessary to go back home and continue to improve on what they had learned. He and John also made clear the distinction between the all-out survival groundfighting and ground avoidance we would be learning and the sportive grappling most people are familiar with. The two methods have completely different goals: demonstrably taking down and dominating the opponent for an extended period while unarmed and barefoot without causing serious injury in modern sportive grappling, vs. doing whatever is necessary while wearing shoes/boots and accessing weapons to avoid going to the ground and, if there, doing whatever is necessary to escape a lethal boot party in survival groundfighting.

I then took everyone through a warm-up consisting of some dynamic stretching and the basic Guided Chaos groundfighting exercises. These can be seen on the Guided Chaos Groundfighting DVD. We then reviewed the rolling and kicking drills from the first groundfighting seminar, where the student learns to spot and kick focus mitts while rolling across the ground. These skills would prove essential in the more dynamic drills to follow.

Al then taught a series of drills emphasizing the importance of dropping and drop-hitting in stopping any takedown attempt. We were very fortunate to have Steve, a relatively new Guided Chaos student and very talented and well-built wrestler (and a very nice guy), available to assist Al and John with the demonstrations. The distinction between the right way and the wrong way to execute the Guided Chaos methods was made very clear by the fact that every time Al demonstrated the "right" way, Steve was stopped cold, and every time Al showed the "wrong" way, Steve without hesitation slammed him to the ground or lifted him way up in the air with no discernible effort! It's a good thing for Al that the "wrong way" demonstrations took place on mats (and he still whispered to me later that he "hurt all over" from those "wrong way" demos).

Al showed the folly of the standard wrestling sprawl for real survival fighting, as it's easily countered by the wrestler who knows what he's doing (like Steve--it was scary how quickly and easily he could switch around Al's sprawl to slam him down from a different angle) and completely gives up your balance and striking and moving abilities. Assuming we were not able to attack and stop the shoot before it began, Al taught us to move forward and stuff the takedown attempt with a heavy, well-timed drop-strike. We drilled variations against a training partner using drop-strikes against the back of the head and neck, to the front and side of the head (leading into possible neck breaks), and while box-stepping offline in a single drop to gain a more advantageous position. John gave several dynamic and insightful demonstrations illustrating the importance of timing, alignment and body unity in making these ideas work. He also showed the importance of striking to penetrate and damage the attacker, as opposed to playing the grappler's game by merely pushing him away or grappling back. The key to everything John and Al were showing was not the actual strikes and kicks themselves (which by themselves have failed countless times against grappling attacks, e.g. in the first few Ultimate Fighting Championships), but the extreme balance, alignment and dropping energy behind them. This was reinforced to me as I was going around helping the less experienced students "get it" while they drilled with each other. To show Steve (the dangerous wrestler in the demonstrations) the difference that dropping and rooting makes, I hit his shoulders lightly as he moved in, first with the dropping and rooting, then without. He stated that moving into even my light drop-strike was like "running into a concrete wall," while my attempt to stop him without dropping didn't even slow him down (but did knock me off balance!). Fortunately, he didn't do to me what he did to Al when I showed him the "wrong" way!

Al then presented a series of drills using a heavy bag resting on the ground to improve full-power drop-striking ability. These were very useful drills I had not seen before. The drills with the bag resting upright on the floor improved the basic drop to stuff a takedown, the straight drop-knee and drop-kick, and the drop-knee and drop-kick while moving offline. The bag was then laid on its side on the ground to allow drilling of the knee drop to a recumbent adversary or to stop a very low shoot, and nasty dropping elbow strikes. The emphasis in these drills was on maintaining your own balance while delivering the full energy into the target, as opposed to simply falling on the target, which could get you into big trouble.

After much practice on the heavy bags by the students, Al called a 10-minute break. During the break, Matt Kovsky asked John and Brian (an extremely tall 2nd Degree Black Belt Guided Chaos student and law enforcement officer) to do a quick demonstration on video for the soon-to-be-released Attackproof Companion Video Part 3. The demonstration involved John explaining how to get in close against an adversary with a far superior reach without getting pulverized on the way in. One aspect of this demonstration captured the attention of several of the seminar students watching the filming: John's admonition NOT to key off of or wait for the adversary's punch or technique, but to simply move (forward and offline) at the initiation of any movement whatsoever. This was hard to grasp for several of the students, who were used to the conventional martial arts mindset of seeing and countering a specific technique, such as a jab. John demonstrated that if he waited for the jab to actually be launched, even when he knew it was coming, he had little chance, especially against the quick and far taller Brian. However, when John began to move immediately, not waiting for any specific attack to be launched, it was relatively simple for him to get offline and prevent Brian from landing anything before John took his balance and finished him off. This is referred to in the book I believe as "reaching out with your sensitivity" or "making contact with the opponent's intention." It involves the use of subcortical visual sensitivity or subconscious visual perception to drive your motion even before physical contact is established. It requires not only some level of sensitivity, developed during contact flow, but also a mindset shift away from consciously "defending against techniques" to subconsciously "dealing with movement." I explored these ideas further with a couple of seminars students, including how this relates to all the Guided Chaos principles. More on that in a near future blog post. . . .

After the break, we moved on to aggressive methods of going to the ground, both with and without a weapon. Al had the students practice several variations of rolling or falling to the ground while kicking and/or striking with a cane or other object against a standing heavy bag. Interestingly, a couple of students new to Guided Chaos but with extensive previous martial arts experience were immediately able to execute fast, picture-perfect rolls into kicks--but were at first unable to get them even close to the target! By contrast, some more experienced Guided Chaos students may not have looked as good in the roll, but were able to precisely and deeply fold the bag every time. With some practice, the new students will doubtless be doing the same very soon. Al and I pointed out the importance of falling loosely and adaptably to the ground rather than having some sort of braced or stiff position or fixed breakfall technique. Rather than treating the method as some sort of gymnastics routine that you must "set up" or concentrate on the appearance of, it's important to simply drop loosely to the ground while allowing the momentum to naturally power the strikes and kicks wherever they're needed.

Then next block of instruction focused on ideas that had been briefly demonstrated at the previous seminar and in the Groundfighting DVD, but not practiced extensively by the students. Al explained how to deal with an attacker who has gotten past your legs and is trying to hold you down in order to ground-and-pound, apply a submission hold, or keep you still for a stomping from his buddies. Al emphasized the danger in attempting to grapple back or do anything that similarly keeps you in one place for any amount of time. Because of the always present danger of multiple stomping attackers, it's essential for you to do something that gets you free and moving as quickly as possible. To that end, you must "bring the chaos" on the ground just like you would on your feet, going for vital targets (primarily the eyes, throat and groin) with looseness, sensitivity and body unity while moving to bring your feet back into the fight to finish him off. Al pointed out a couple examples of pocketing on the ground: pocketing the abdomen to create space to get to the groin of a mounted attacker, and expanding and pocketing the upper torso in order to slip out from under the pressure of an attacker trying to pin you. Al reiterated that we shouldn't be trying to grab and control the enemy, but we should move like ticked-off bobcats to damage the enemy as quickly and ruthlessly as possible. Also, Al and John pointed out that although we were practicing such things as getting out from under an attacker who has mounted us, a LOT must have already gone wrong in order for us to get into that situation in the first place.

While the students were drilling these ideas, I noticed that some were still so attached to conventional grappling methods that they were missing many opportunities to ensure their survival. For example, when working against an attacker mounted on them, many of the students resorted to reaching stiffly for the eyes, bumping with the hips and pushing on the attacker's torso in a futile attempt to throw him off. I even saw some attempts to grab the attacker's arm in order to create leverage to roll him off. I asked them why they would try such things against a bigger and heavier attacker. Rather than trying to heave his mass off of you, let him jump off himself when you crush his testicles! It's imperative that you continue to move quickly, loosely, sensitively, chaotically and ruthlessly with your whole body when on the ground, rather than getting locked into making a particular strength move work.

We then moved on to the part of the seminar that many were surely anticipating with excitement and maybe a little fear. Hung up on one side of the room was a tight triangle of "Paulies"--90-pound man-shaped striking dummies wearing boxing gloves and duct tape cervical collars (to keep the heads from being ripped off--a frequent problem with this crowd). After setting up mats underneath the triangle and assigning three big guys to aggressively manipulate the Paulies, Al explained that each student would have to fight like hell from a standing start in the middle of the triangle to keep the Paulies away as they tried to crush and punch him. After a few seconds, Al would call "DROP!" and the student would fall to the ground, kicking on the way down. He would then immediately kick out and move to avoid getting stomped and find a way to roll out of the triangle. This drill truly drilled home the importance of remaining disengaged, mobile and aggressive when on the ground in a real shitstorm--and it gave the students some not so subtle reminders to protect their heads while on the ground. For the second round, John added a crash mat underfoot and flashing lights to further challenge the students' balance and add to the disorientation.

Finally, after everyone was thoroughly tenderized by the Paulie drills, we got a taste of doing contact flow on the ground, with the legs as initial contact points. Here, all the same ideas apply as when you do contact flow on your feet with the arms as initial contact points. It was a new experience for some of the students to be fully sensitive and loose with the legs while keeping the speed constant, rooting through the hips, shoulders, back and other areas, and moving the whole body together so as to keep it behind all movements of the legs.

Some closing remarks, and the seminar was over. Everyone who made it through the whole thing (some came in late, and some sat out some drills) was satisfyingly exhausted.

I'm sure there's plenty I'm missing here--it was a seminar jam-packed with useful information. Check out the Attackproof forum for other people's responses and reviews.

Of course, Matt Kovsky was there, video taping the entire seminar for a possible future DVD release. I'm not sure whether it was Matt's idea of a joke or if he really needed additional shots, but he made Al repeat five or six times his demonstration of exactly how best to grab an attacker's balls. By the third or fourth take, Al's demonstration partner was beginning to insist that Al buy him a drink before he'd be allowed to go that way with him yet again!

An extra bonus for me and many others was having Bob Miller at the seminar. He's a corrections officer and Guided Chaos instructor from out west. Bob continues to train hard on his own and with his crew, and his efforts were evident in his great improvement since his last visit to NYC last year. It's always a pleasure to hang out and train with Bob.

For that matter, it's always a pleasure to see all the long-distance Guided Chaos students who come in for the seminars and other periodic visits. There were several first-timers at the seminar, and they certainly seemed satisfied and thrilled to finally experience Guided Chaos first-hand. I strongly encourage anyone interested to make it to NYC for one of the upcoming seminars, or even for any weekend class. If you're on the fence about it, don't worry. I can't imagine a more open and welcoming group.

Lucky for us, the next seminar is only a little more than a month away: The Five-Second Fight, June 30. I'm not sure exactly what it's going to be about, but if past experience is any indicator, these seminars just keep getting better and better. . . .

. . . See you there!!!

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #24

Guided Chaos Close In
Sorry I haven't posted anything in a month. Been very busy--not much time for private lessons. However, I've still managed to make it to some regular classes, and as always, the learning continues. . . .

Here are some ideas I've been grappling (or Keeching) with lately:

John has mentioned in the past that one unique aspect of Guided Chaos is effective grappling-range striking, made possible by dropping, body unity and the ability to create space to strike in extremely close quarters via pocketing. A skilled Guided Chaos practitioner can be so close to an enemy that the enemy can't generate effective power, yet the Guided Chaos practitioner can destroy him. This is frequently illustrated to me when a) Matt Kovsky closes in and pulses to the point where I start tensing up and pushing to get space, giving him energy to work off of to smack me silly; b) Lt. Col. Al subtly moves in and drop-strikes with his torso, freezing and off-balancing me to allow his weapons to go to work; and c) John ghosts his entire body into the perfect close-range position to effortlessly take my balance and/or strike with finality.

Even when a Guided Chaos master is not actually at very close range (e.g. when I work with Tim, who rarely allows things to get very close), his body is usually still moving towards that position, however subtly. This is what allows him to take away space and cut off angles while bringing massive fully-body power to bear on the enemy. Even when Tim hits me from long range, toward the end of his reach and far from his body, his body is still moving as if to penetrate to close quarters. All the power of this body movement is condensed into his strike, the impact of which makes any further advance unnecessary.

Of course, one has to be able to do this while not getting impaled or stopped by the attacks of the enemy. This is where pocketing, turning, moving offline and subtle changes in the body come into play. The practitioner moves as little as s/he needs to in order to avoid obstacles to his/her body's forward-moving penetration. You cannot be stopped from closing in on the enemy if you give the enemy nothing solid to push or hit against to keep you away.

Your ability to feel the relative positions of your and your enemy's center of gravity also comes into play here. I was shown how subtle and powerful this can be when I got the opportunity to do ULTRA-slow contact flow with Lt. Col. Al, then watch Al do it with John. This is contact flow done so slowly that you can literally hardly see any movement at all. We started with the hands touching, then began slowly moving. The scary thing is, within very little time (maybe 10-15 seconds) and with very little overt movement (again, hardly observable), someone has already "won." "Winning" here means that one person, through subtle shifts in balance and alignment, has moved into a position whereby he can penetrate and take the other's balance before the other can readjust to survive without speeding up. Much of the movement could be considered "internal," in that it cannot be easily seen because it involves extremely small shifts in weight and the alignment of the joints in relation to the training partner. This has to be felt intuitively--it's too subtle and minute and involves too many variables for the conscious mind to completely control. John said that if in several minutes of this kind of practice, you're able to achieve even ten seconds of pure "mushin" or no-mindedness, you're off to a good start.

Beyond a basic level, so much of Guided Chaos really is mental. The key to functional looseness, for example, is not just the ability to free up your joints and move through your full range of motion without excess tension, but REACTIVE looseness: the ability to maintain your full freedom of movement in response to whatever other people are doing to you. I can be "loose as a goose" on my own, but when Matt pulses me, I suddenly feel hard as a rock. I need to jump that mental hurdle to allow myself to go with whatever comes, regardless of what it is--indeed, not to consciously attach to it and judge it to be anything in particular. There's nothing physically preventing me from getting reactively loose. It's just a mental block.

Likewise, you can never truly be "stopped" or hindered except by your own tension or attachment to whatever's "hindering" you. If you're blocked in your forward motion, it's because you're pushing against whatever's in your path, rather than going around it. Again, a mental thing: there's nothing physically forcing you to push against or remain attached to whatever's hindering you.

Anyway, enough ramblings for now. Hopefully I'll be able to do more private lessons soon. . . .

Stay tuned!

IN THE EYE OF THE STORM--update (Attackproof Companion DVD Part 3)

IN THE EYE OF THE STORM (Attackproof Companion DVD Part 3)
Progress report: Looking at a late May release. Here's the Chapter Index for the video as it stands now:

Intro to Contact Flow
Looseness
Balance
Taking Balance
Balance, Kicking & Over-commitment
Body Unity
Sensitivity
How to Ruin Your Sensitivity
Applying the Principles While Changing Range In Contact Flow
Sub-principles: Move Behind A Guard, Always bring A Weapon On Line
Always Form Weapons
The Spike In the Sponge
Shadowing and Molding
The Closer You Get, The Looser You Get
Sliding and Skimming Energy
Blocking Is a Waste: The 3 Part Insurance Policy
Folding Energy
Weaseling Energy
Tool Replacement
One-ness Hitting
Blocking Is a Waste: Make Them Miss
Why We Flow Slow
Loading the Spring
Grabbing & Over-commitment
Suspend and Release
Pulsing: Directing and Exploiting Responses
Leg Pulsing
Vibrating Energy
Multi-Hitting
Multi-Hitting As a Function of Sensitivity and Balance
Applying the Sphere of Influence Against Larger Attackers
Using Box-stepping, Long Stepping and Drop-kicking
Close Combat to KCD: Taking Space on Larger Opponents
Training Lethal Blows with Dropping Power
Using Soft and Hard Energy While Avoiding Double-weightedness
99% Yin, 1% Yang
Ride the Lightning
Multiple Attackers
Fixed "Animal" Forms vs. Free Human Motion
How Do You Begin Contact Flow? With Chaos
Studies In Contrast: Boxing vs. KCD
Some Contact Flow Analyses
Specific Contact Flow Variations
"The Coin Dance" Flow
Super-Slow Flow
Fixed-Step Flow
"Stalker" and Multiple Attacker Flow
The "Melee" Flow
Set-up Attack Flows
Typical Contact Flow Errors

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #23

Excellent lesson with Al last Monday...

Notable tips:

--MOVE IN around pocket! Staying in one place while pocketing allows Al to do whatever else he wants.

--Tool replace, penetrate and/or smother with shoulder while moving in, rather than staying out and trying to free arms if arms feel blocked.

--Don't second-guess yourself! Al punishes you (grabs arms, hits, etc.) primarily when you stop moving because you hesitate when things don't go as planned. Trust your sensitivity and keep moving!

--Allow arms to "fall" in when being suppressed (i.e. swing below obstruction) while using body to tool replace, penetrate and/or smother.

--Subtle pulsing: just a change in contact point from fingertips to palm (no pushing!) allows opponent to feel your structure. From there, no matter what he does (e.g. yield, push or go somewhere else), you're ready to take advantage.

Matt Kovsky, after watching part of the lesson, commented that I tend to stand too tall (i.e. straight-legged) when working with Al. Gotta remember that for next time!

Also, Matt implored me not to allow even much more experienced training partners to build pressure at the beginning of a contact flow engagement. Patrick, a fellow student, pointed out that he sees in me a bad habit that he deals with himself: When he begins contact flow with Al or Matt, he finds himself observing and thinking about what they're doing, as opposed to simply moving with the initial contact as he should. This allows the more experienced person to pulse or do whatever else he wants with the initial contact. The solution to this for the less experienced person is to simply not think about the fact that your training partner is more experienced, so that instead of watching/worrying about what he's going to do, you just trust your sensitivity and move normally. As it says in the book, you should be "reaching out" with your sensitivity in order to engage his intent and begin to move with him even before contact is made. Matt's and Patrick's diagnosis actually makes a lot of sense, and is something I'll work to correct--even if it may "feel" slightly disrespectful to do to people like Matt and Al. But hey, "respectful disrespect," according to John, is the way to go.

Looking forward to the Master Class with John this coming Sunday. . . .

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #22

COMBAT KNIFE SEMINAR REVIEW...
This past Saturday was an excellent seminar about Guided Chaos Combat Knife methods. Far from being a "knife fighting" seminar where everyone would learn techniques for dueling, the seminar was focused on the real-world use of and defense against knives and similar weapons.

The seminar began with an introduction by John. He discussed different types of commonly carried knives (small straight blades, folders, push daggers, etc.), their advantages and disadvantages, carry and concealment methods and accessibility issues. Emphasis was placed on the carrier's ability to bring the knife into play amidst the chaos of physical violence. John also demonstrated various ways of using a closed folding knife in those cases where you may be able to unclip the knife from your pocket but don't have the time/space/stability to open it. This is very important information, as real-world fights involving knives rarely begin along the lines of the "West Side Story" dueling paradigm (he pulls a knife and shows it to you, you pull yours, then you circle and fight with graceful movements as people snap and dance around you).

John and Lt. Col. Al then covered the use of the Dog-Dig motion (described in the book "Attackproof") to gain distance and run when someone is attempting to stab you up at close range, or even if you've already been stabbed. This presentation began with a demonstration of why most martial arts methods advocated for use against dynamic knife attacks (e.g. X-blocks, wrist locks and throws, grabbing the knife-wielding limb and other grappling methods) fail miserably when attempted against real attacks with knives. When an attacker is moving unpredictably to cut and stab you up at maximum adrenaline speed, using all weapons at his disposal, it becomes almost impossible to man up and control his movement to the point of avoiding getting stabbed and cut in vital areas. The Dog-Dig method is intended to keep the knife away from your most vital organs long enough to allow you to build distance and momentum to escape. My right (knife-holding) arm got severely abused while helping Al and John demonstrate this, as their "dog-digs" pack a hefty wallop thanks to internal dropping and hand conditioning with the slam bag! It was demonstrated that attempting to simply run from a close-range knife attack is a recipe for failure. Everyone got to practice Dog-Digging and running from close-range attacks with foam rubber knives. John also touched on the importance of kicking if you have more distance but can't immediately escape. Despite the advocacy of kicking as an unarmed method of defending against a knife attack by such close combat experts as Fairbairn, Applegate and others, many martial artists seem to doubt its effectiveness (often while supporting clearly ineffective methods). John pointed out that in order to have any chance of success, you have to be able to thrust kick HARD and FAST while maintaining good balance, and footwear can make the difference.

The next drill involved using a knife to survive an attack by multiple people. The drill began with the participant, foam rubber knife already in hand, standing on a crash mat surrounded by three hanging man dummies controlled by big guys standing behind them. On John's cue, the guys controlling the dummies would make them "attack," closing in and swinging to crush and hit the student in the middle. The student had to keep moving, spinning and striking with the knife and anatomical weapons to maintain space and balance and destroy the attackers as quickly as possible, minimizing damage to himself. The crash mat forced the student to lift his knees and stomp to protect his groin and maintain balance. Rapid, full-body movement and dropping power were necessary to avoid being crushed and immobilized between the dummies. John emphasized effective, powerful, gross-motor use of all parts of the knife (point, edge, butt) in the melee, and the need to BUTCHER the attackers (rather than merely stabbing or cutting) in order to achieve adequate stopping power with the knife. This was an extremely chaotic, exhausting, screaming wild drill. The lesson was not lost on the students that the skills needed to survive such an attack are NOT necessarily those developed for dueling, and are in fact similar to those needed to survive such a situation unarmed (e.g. balance, dropping power, efficient mobility, looseness, and the ability to adapt to chaotic motion) plus the coordination and knowledge to effectively employ the knife (and not stab yourself in the process!).

After a short break, we moved onto demonstrations and drills in the Hellevator. Technically, this is the "Hellevator II," the portable second-generation version of the structure featured in a couple of the video clips on the www.attackproof.com website. The Hellevator II is slightly bigger and has three instead of four walls so that students can easily observe demonstrations performed inside it. (Big thanks to Wayne for designing, building, transporting and assembling the Hellevator II!) John, Al and Big Mike demonstrated how using the walls in a confined space to enhance your balance can increase the effectiveness of your kicks for keeping away and damaging a knifer. They also showed how confined space can hinder many grappling attacks, as there may not be sufficient space to allow the victim to fall or be overextended or driven off-balance. Each student had a go at keeping a knife-wielding Big Mike out of knife range in the Hellevator by kicking away at the kicking shield he was holding while balancing against the wall. An important point was to STAY against the wall, rather than allowing yourself to bounce off of it in between kicks.

Next, Lt. Col. Al demonstrated the usefulness of "knife sparring" with foam rubber knives simply as a reflex and movement exercise. He and John showed how Guided Chaos concepts such as drop-hitting, body unity and isolation can be applied to the blade. Everyone squared off and sparred for a little while, with John and Al going around to give advice and point out interesting situations. Al gave me an idea about how to integrate kicking with knife use. John pointed out the ultimate futility of standard "knife dueling" by making "clean" hits impossible simply by wiggling the knife around in a "silly" (albeit unpredictable) fashion and advancing. Several times, I ended up on the receiving end of Native American-style killing entries by Lt. Col. Al. Even with the foam rubber knives, these were VERY scary, as they involved Al's whole body diving in. They felt impossible to resist or escape.

We then drilled countering static knife threats from all different angles, using the method of simultaneously drop-hitting the knife arm, moving the body offline and attacking the attacker, all in one motion, while controlling the knife arm with sensitivity. John and Al were quick to point out, however, that the methods typically used by criminals to threaten with a knife made countering and escaping extremely difficult, if not impossible. For example, it's typically not a "static" threat at all, as the attacker will usually violently jerk the victim off-balance with a semi-choke from behind, and/or continuously move the knife unpredictably between different targets while shoving and/or pinning the victim from the front. Frequently, a second attacker severely complicates the situation.

This led into a discussion of the behavioral aspects of hold-up scenarios. Matt Kovsky wanted me to present this part because he'd seen me cover it fairly thoroughly before in class. I went through the possibilities of a real attacker's goals. An attacker who threatens you with a knife may want your property, in which case, give it to him and immediately run away. However, he may want to take you to a second location, in which case you're probably best off attacking him to get free and escape as soon as any possibility of success presents itself. With John's help, I went over how saying the right things and acting in certain ways can facilitate escape. This presentation went fine . . . except for the fact that my voice was still rather hoarse from all the screaming I'd done in the multiple attacker drill earlier. One attendee compared the sound of my voice to that of Peter Brady of the Brady Bunch when his voice started changing! Don't worry: for the DVD, we'll either re-shoot the scene or Matt will digitally modify my voice to be less distracting. This could be funny--Darth Vader teaching self-defense. . . .

Oh yeah, did I mention? Matt Kovsky filmed the whole seminar for a future DVD release.

The last tactic covered in the seminar was going to the ground in a last-ditch effort to gain distance between your vital organs and the blade, as seen on the Guided Chaos Groundfighting DVD. Everyone got the chance to try this against a fast, close-range attack. The idea was to fend away the knife with your hands as you fell back, simultaneously kicking out the knifer's legs. As the "attacker" for this drill, I can say that a few people got this down very well, as my legs were saved only by virtue of the fact that I knew what was happening and yielded to all the kicks.

John showed how extremely high-level Guided Chaos skill--being able to stick and flow around anything with complete freedom of motion while maintaining perfect balance, moving in and taking the attacker's balance while striking with killing power--can help in dealing with a knife attack. However, he reiterated that there are certainly no guarantees, and the slightest mistake can get you killed. Further, stating explicitly what had been increasingly evident throughout the seminar, John pointed out that real knife attacks by committed criminals are rarely as predictable and easy to defend against as those demonstrated and trained against by even realistic-minded martial artists. The frequent cooperation of multiple armed attackers and the fact that recidivists practice specifically to allow victims no warning and no wherewithal nor opportunity to escape expand the already great advantage armed attackers always hold. As ever, awareness and acting to escape as early as possible are the keys to surviving such attacks. Also, as an aid to defending one's self, a knife can certainly be a useful weapon, but it is far from being a magic self-defense wand. Knife selection, carry method and training for deployment and use under any circumstances are key, and unarmed combat skill and the attributes involved are still paramount.

Al capped off the conclusion of the seminar by demonstrating some ideas regarding the integration of knife combat into contact flow. While he demonstrated, a group of students gradually bunched up on one side of the room, blocking John's view of the door. As John observed Al's demonstration, a big birthday cake, sodas and snacks were brought into the room and set up on a table behind the human screen that blocked John's view. Yes, it was John's birthday! As soon as everything was set up, Al ended his demonstration, the human screen parted, and the room broke out into just about the sorriest rendition of "Happy Birthday" I've ever heard. A great time was had by all! A few people took the opportunity to work with Big Mike. I would have beaten him up had I not just eaten, of course.

Incidentally, the party was NOT filmed for the DVD.

Overall, great seminar and party! Again, Happy Birthday John!!!

Kicking yourself for missing this seminar??? Get thyself to the next one! See the "Seminars, Events and Announcements" section of the Attackproof.com website for details.

Next time, some excellent lessons from Al, taught during a private lesson the Monday following the seminar. . . . Stay tuned!

P.S. Very relevant info: http://attackproof.com/laws-regarding-knives.html

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #21

Had another great lesson with Al on Saturday. A few tips:

--Move the body in so that the arms feel like they simply float in with no effort.
--For your own development, pulse minimally. Don't constantly counter-pulse or get too heavy with people who pulse a lot, even if it seems to work.
--Feel and work off of the skeletal structure.
--Penetrate when tool replacing or smothering with the torso so that he can't readjust in time. You have to shock the body to momentarily hinder movement.

Looking forward to the knife seminar this Saturday. . . .

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #20

You've Got to Be In It to Win It.
In the Monday night class, John went over some important stuff for everyone to keep in mind.

He pointed out that as many people get lazy or complacent in their training, contact flow devolves into a medium-range hand-fighting game, with the training partners basically standing in front of each other while looking to hit and not be hit. Granted, it's fun, and Guided Chaos principles may be involved, but such training dangerously misses the point.

John showed that in order to deal with a bigger, stronger, faster enemy, you have to be able to close the distance and smother his movements while controlling his balance. Simply standing and trying to deal with his hands will get you killed quickly. Key skills to cultivate in contact flow, therefore, are getting offline, even if only a little, while closing the distance to smother his attacks and end things quickly. Instead of just hitting through an opening, you need to pour your entire loose, heavy body into it while feeling and adapting to his motion. This enables you to disrupt his balance and bring your whole body to strike with finality.

Further emphasizing why standing face to face while practicing contact flow is a bad mistake, John asked how often one can expect to be attacked head-on. The possibilities of getting blind-sided or being attacked from multiple directions simultaneously are too great and too dangerous to not keep them in mind while training. In such situations, the ability to slam the whole body into heavy dropping strikes that arrest motion and disrupt balance as well as do damage, while using these full-body steps and drops to keep yourself moving unpredictably, "bouncing" among and around assailants while staying loose enough to not get broken and covering your head, will do much more to save your hide than trying to play with incoming hands.

It was a very interesting class, replete with lots of high-impact demos with some of the biggest guys.

Lots of food for thought and training. . . .

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #19

Recently, I've gotten to experience some of John Perkins' "Combat Boxing" method.

In my view, despite the title "Combat Boxing," the method really has very little to do with Western Boxing. It's basically Guided Chaos applied exclusively through clenched fists and impact, as opposed to the "regular" Guided Chaos that uses the whole body in any way possible to destroy the enemy via impact as well as other modes such as pushing, pulling, breaking, off-balancing, gouging, ripping, etc. In other words, the "delivery system" is Guided Chaos, but the tools are limited.

From being on the receiving end, I can tell you this: Combat Boxing HURTS!!! Every impact, be it on your arms, body or head (lightly in training), involves an internal drop delivered through any part of the fist, forearm or elbow. It's not slow nor particularly flowing. The body remains "yin" to evade and generate force from any position through a solid yet mobile root, but every instance of contact is "yang," causing pain, knocking guarding limbs out of the way, disrupting balance and blasting through jaws and ribs. Incoming limbs are destroyed with hammerfists, forearms and elbows. Especially when John is doing it, there is no typical boxing stance or lead, as the whole body drops instantly from one lead to the other to thread collosal shots into tiny openings. Often a fast series of short, chopping punches and hammerfists paves the way and sets up the opponent (getting him off-balance and knocking his guard wide open) for a huge head-busting punch or three. Virtually every shot delivered with the internal drop to any target (even the arms) effectively "freezes" the recipient's body for a split second, allowing the next shot (and many thereafter) to come in unopposed, unless the recipient can remain very loose and "bounce" off the impacts to maintain balance, protect himself and counterattack. Combat Boxing is not about long-distance sniping, sticking and moving, but about blasting in quickly for the knockout.

John has begun teaching this method to Andre, a very talented Guided Chaos 3rd degree black belt whose experience as a boxing instructor makes him a Combat Boxing natural. It's very frustrating for me when Andre transitions into Combat Boxing during contact flow, because at my present level of skill, I'm left with nothing to work with. Every contact hurts and sets me up to fail. John demonstrates that the only systematic way to "defeat Combat Boxing" is to use high-level Guided Chaos to immediately smother the Combat Boxer's movements, sticking so closely that he is unable to pull off even the shortest shots. From there, the Guided Chaos practitioner can disrupt the Combat Boxer's balance, move in and end it. (Of course, I usually don't have much luck dealing with Andre's "plain old" Guided Chaos during contact flow. Even so, at least then I'm not in CONSTANT pain!)

With Andre's help, John is working on training methods to teach Combat Boxing. The August 25 Combat Boxing seminar promises to be something very special. . . .

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #18

Personal Reflections...
No training tips or lesson recaps this time around. Just some personal thoughts about martial arts, real-world-applicable training, and life. . . .

People often discuss the character-building and life-enhancing aspects of martial arts training. But I doubt that many of them have the same idea about it that I have.

Some may be referring to the discipline martial arts training is supposed to develop, particularly in children. But this has less to do with the martial arts themselves than it has to do with the traditional authoritarian Asian didactic system simulated in most mainstream martial arts schools. Similar sternness applied to all aspects of a child's life will produce the most effective results in that vein. Western children who would not normally accept such an atmosphere of authority due to the relative permissiveness with which they are raised are more prone to accept it in a martial arts school specifically because of the air of exoticness and excitement that surrounds the Western stereotype of the Asian martial arts. It is debatable whether this type of training for children develops true internally motivated discipline and work ethic, or a tendency towards obedience and a deep desire to please those in authority. For adult students (emotionally adult, that is), beyond the personal preferences of the individual, any improved discipline gained from martial arts study could be gained at least as well through the intensive study of any art form, such as calligraphy, dance, etc. In any case, for most adults, gains in discipline would likely remain specific to the chosen activity itself, overall work ethic and life habits having been ingrained earlier in life.

Some people emphasize the health aspects of martial arts training. However, Western-standard physical fitness, to include cardiovascular fitness, strength, strength endurance, flexibility and appearance, is better and more safely achieved through exercise methodologies not to be found in most martial arts training (e.g. aerobics, weight training, gymnastics, etc.). Most martial artists who are serious about physical fitness owe their physiques and high levels of conditioning to activities other than martial arts practice. Even the internal, Eastern-standard health often associated with Tai Chi practice can be achieved more directly through the practice of Chi Gung, Yoga, etc. In fact, most Tai Chi practitioners today practice Tai Chi exclusively as Chi Gung, not as a martial art, just as many today practice kickboxing exclusively as aerobics training.

Real martial arts training is MARTIAL, i.e. having to do with war or combat (Mars being the Roman god of warfare). To discount or relegate to secondary the martial aspect of "martial art" is to turn it into something else, such as an inefficient method of exercise or a way to get kids to listen to authority figures.

Only by studying and practicing the martial arts with the martial aspect foremost in mind can the life benefits unique to the study and practice of the martial arts (as distinct from any other art form or physical activity) be realized. Further, these benefits are most easily accessed by focusing martial arts training on the life-and-death dynamic of real all-out combat and protection of the self and loved ones, as distinct from a competitive or arrest-and-control focus. Brutal honesty and realism are key.

This is how it works for me:

Training with an awareness of the reality of all-out human violence, with instructors who know of this first-hand, and with a focus on keeping myself and my loved ones alive in the worst circumstances, ingrains in me an intimate understanding of my own fragile mortality and the fragility of all life. When you study the dynamics of real violence honestly, you realize that no matter how hard you train and no matter how good you get, virtually anyone and anything can still take you out at almost any time. A little bad luck can go a long way, as can the tiniest mistake in awareness or movement. We train to maximize our chances, but there are no guarantees. Working with instructors highly skilled in lethal violence allows you to feel your own life's fragility in a uniquely clear way—and the more skilled you become, the more clearly you understand this.

With such awareness comes a certain clarity of what is most important in life, and a heightened appreciation for the true gift each additional hour of life represents. This may sound fatalistic to some, but in my view, it is realistic and healthy. I never travel far from my wife without first telling her that I love her. I understand that I may not get another chance. I make a huge effort never to part with someone I care about on bad terms. Even if not every argument can be resolved before going to sleep, a truce must at least be reached, along with acknowledgement of true feelings and apology for any inflicted hurt. Treat those you care about as if each time you see them may be the last—because you understand that it might be. Granted, you can't control other people's emotions and thoughts, but you can do your best to shape their impressions of you through your words and actions. I'm not saying that I live only for the moment and neglect any planning for the future, but I try to remember while planning for the future that if it arrives, it's a gift, and appreciation of the present should not be completely sacrificed for it. All that's guaranteed is where you are right now. How will you be remembered by those who matter if this moment were your last? Live well, and enjoy it.

It may seem dumb to quote a Hollywood movie in reference to such a heavy subject, but The Last Samurai actually has a good line that pertains to this:

Katsumoto ("The Last Samurai"), trying to explain to Captain Algren the ideals and mindset of the samurai, says, "Like these blossoms, we are all dying. To know life in every breath . . . every cup of tea . . . every life we take--the way of the warrior. . . . That is Bushido."

Now, there is certainly more to Bushido than this. However, this quote captures much of what I'm getting at—only the samurai's understanding of such things came from actual experience of life-and-death battle combined with a philosophical prism through which to view it.

For us civilians who do not regularly go in harm's way, honest, realistic training for life-and-death combat is the best means I know by which to understand life in this way. I don't think one can so easily get there by training only for competition, health or entertainment.

It's one of the most important gifts that Guided Chaos has given me.

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #17

If You Can do All This...
This post will be a training tips/notes bonanza--no narrative, just important stuff I've learned (or re-learned, or been reminded of) over the past couple months from Tim and Al. See if you can guess which tips came from whom--a prize for anyone who can get them all right! Enjoy!

--Never stop nor be stopped!

--No one can control you. He can control you only so far as you allow him to through your resistance.

--Be GHOSTLY with your torso so that your arms always have plenty of space to maneuver.

--Pocket your ribcage so that your elbows have space to slip by. He is able to pin your arms against you only if you give him the solid surface of your torso to pin against.

--Change your side-on L-stance to the outside while fading the upper body to the outside to create HUGE angles (for e.g. chops to the back of the neck) with little movement.

--Apply internal dropping to every contact. This involves subtle muscular control, requiring you to start with maximum Yin in order to apply maximum Yang at only the point of contact for only a split second. This freaking HURTS when done right, and you can't figure out why. Perhaps this is the beginning of that liquid/solid body John gets when he does "pure Keech.". . .

--"Balance on ankles"/"Put energy from upper body into feet" so that full range of motion with full body is available--this makes SUCH a difference!

--PURE KEECH--ridges, targets, what the other guy does, it just doesn't matter--everything comes from everywhere with internal dropping.

--Disrupt his legs with your steps to cut off angles and take balance.

--You can't try to deal with each individual punch, and you can't disconnect offense and defense or different parts of your body. When one thing moves or you feel one thing change, EVERYTHING changes! Deal with whole thing at once! Keep everything connected! (This is VERY powerful--must play with it more!)

--There's NOTHING WRONG with applying pressure or moving the other guy's limbs! Being loose means having complete freedom in all the joints, being unhindered by your own muscular contraction. It does NOT mean being wimpy!

--"Ghostliness" is the exact same thing as moving with contact, only at a far higher level of sensitivity.

--Box step: drop weight onto rear leg, keep hands up and forward, always keep head up (always).

--Beyond a certain point, advancing in Guided Chaos is all mental. You have to learn to "think differently."

Until next time . . . stay tuned!!!

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #16

First Master Class...
Last Sunday morning, John taught the first of what will be a bimonthly series of "master classes," open to Guided Chaos 2nd degree black belts and above.

It gave all who attended the unique opportunity to work with a variety of people without ever having to fall back into "teaching mode." Everyone was able to work on what they had to work on for themselves with skilled training partners, never worrying about the possibility of bruised egos or what their training partners could handle.

John began with an introductory explanation and demonstration of the goal of the class: to get everyone on their way to being able to apply pure Guided Chaos like John does, having complete control over balance and generating colossal power with absolutely no stylization or preconceived motion. He then assigned us to practice a couple interesting variations on contact flow that necessitated the exploration of certain kinds of motion.

As we worked, John went around and gave each person important tips for improvement. He showed me how aspects of my training partner's build could put me at a disadvantage, and how I could negate that disadvantage by keeping my training partner consistently off-balance through deeper stepping. In turn, he showed my training partner how moving in a more "engulfing" manner could help him negate my natural advantages over him. Very insightful stuff!

Definitely looking forward to future sessions! All you 1st degree black belts out there: Kick yourself in the ass and get training so that you can someday soon attend these sessions!!!

Next time, more tips from Tim and Lt. Col. Al. . . . Stay tuned!!!

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #15

Extreme Balance seminar...
Lt. Col. Al went over a bunch of different exercises that are not in the book, such as the Atomic Leg Crusher, the Indian Walk, the Hackey Sack, Puppeteering, Long Stepping, Advancing Kicks, and a heretofore unnamed drill that I'll take the liberty of dubbing the Relationship Of Body Movement And Rooting drill (ROBMAR). Also covered were advanced variations of the Ninja Walk, Vacuum Walk, Gorilla Walk, Rolling the Ball and Box Step using various forms of added weight (such as dumbbells, weighted bars and medicine balls), and various uses of the wobble board. Emphasis was placed on achieving what John calls "hydraulic legs," driving all motions of the body directly from the ground through a solid root.

But the seminar was definitely not just about solo drills. Al and John gave several high-impact demonstrations of the importance of balance and a mobile yet solid root in combat. We all got to experiment with doing contact flow on the flat sides of BOSUs, as well as a melee (free-for-all contact flow with everyone at once) on a field of round-side-up BOSUs with medicine balls being passed around. Then came a long session of "Long Keech," or contact flow emphasizing very long, low steps and big motions for the ultimate balance challenge. The seminar concluded with hands-on training in how to generate a powerful drop to either launch a person away or crush his insides, as well as how to use looseness and balance to prevent being launched.

As usual, the seminar was peppered with lots of personal insights and tips from John and the other instructors, as well as "side-lessons" by Lt. Col. Al about such subjects as moving against multiple attackers.

A great time was had by all, including a few new faces, one of whom came all the way from Texas just for the seminar and a private lesson with John!

As good as the Extreme Balance seminar was, I'm sure the one everybody is looking forward to most is the Combat Knife seminar coming up March 31. . . . THAT one promises to be awesome, with training in Guided Chaos knife use as well as dealing with a knife-armed attacker while unarmed, plus I'm sure plenty of other tidbits that always happen to pop up at Guided Chaos seminars. . . . Don't just "stay tuned," BE THERE!!!

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #14

"Keechy" Close Combat Vs. Pure Guided Chaos...
Two Mondays ago right before the Hastings class began, John, perhaps responding to some of the questions that were coming up on the Attack Proof forum, presented a thorough explanation and demonstration of the difference in application between Guided Chaos Close Combat ("Keechy Close Combat") vs. pure Guided Chaos.

John explained that most of what you see in the current videos and demos is really Keechy Close Combat. He demonstrated that even when he gets very dynamic, gyrating and contorting to evade and land strikes from crazy angles, so long as the strikes he lands materialize as defined striking weapons hitting specific areas (e.g. a yielding motion leads to a chop that winds its way into the throat, or a palm strike targeting the jaw), it's still "Keechy Close Combat," not "Pure Guided Chaos."

He also showed that the dropping method he usually demonstrates, no matter how small he makes it, is still the "external" drop of Keechy Close Combat. This is the drop where you can see certain muscles tensing explosively for a split second, accelerating the striking weapon and bringing at least part of the body to an abrupt split-second stop before the flow continues.

As he demonstrated these ideas on me, I got the impression that everything he was doing that was "Keechy Close Combat" was in fact "evadable." I'm certainly not saying that I was good enough to actually evade his strikes, pulses and drops, but the pressures and impacts seemed linear and unidirectional, penetrating exactly where they hit. I felt that IF I were loose, sensitive and balanced enough to move in time, I could stay out of the way of the Keechy Close Combat movements and survive.

Pure Guided Chaos was a different feeling entirely!

I'd seen John briefly demonstrate "Pure Keech" before, but had never gotten the opportunity to observe and feel it for an extended period of time.

Quite frankly, it was pretty freaky!!!

John first showed that Pure Guided Chaos is non-specific and truly formless in weapons and targeting. When he moved on me (I can hardly say "attacked me" because it looked like he just slowly walked through me while raising his arm), his body and limbs did not assume any sort of form or position one would associate with striking, such as a fist or ax-hand. Nor did his limbs seek out any particular target. His whole body simply went forward loosely and made contact with whatever was there.

Here's where the really freaky part began. I remember in maybe sixth grade, in science class, we combined water and cornstarch to explore the simultaneous solid and liquid properties of magma. (Please don't take me to task here on the actual science involved--it was a while ago and I don't have time to do a lot of research! Suffice to say that the right mixture of water and cornstarch produces a "non-Newtonian" liquid that flows and pours like a typical viscous liquid but resists and breaks like a solid when and where agitated.) Seeing and feeling John move reminded me of this. John appeared to be moving completely freely and loosely, flowing like water with no strength or resistance. However, wherever I touched his arm or vice-versa, it felt solid and unyielding as a rock, even though he did not appear to be stopping or bracing against the contact at all! When he told me to try to evade his touch (which, again, LOOKED effortless and light as a feather but FELT extremely heavy, dense and irresistible), I found that I could not. Wherever and however I moved, the pressure from the contact followed with no delay and penetrated completely, immediately taking my balance.

When he hit me using Pure Keech, he did not go for any particular target with any particular striking surface. He just walked through me while raising his limbs. There was no sudden acceleration nor stopping as he hit. His limbs just seemed to penetrate right through me with no effort. The Keechy Close Combat strikes certainly hurt where they hit and felt like they could do real damage with additional depth, but the pure Guided Chaos hits (or more appropriately collisions--instances where John's relaxed limbs happened to intersect with my body) seemed to just cave in everything, collapsing my whole body and balance. Simple pocketing wouldn't help me, as I would still get penetrated. I felt like I had to move my whole body out of the way in order to survive--but this was impossible because my balance was completely thrown with the first contact, and the pulse followed my center perfectly through any point of contact no matter where I moved. The impacts came with absolutely no warning because they were all just part of John's loose movement through me. There was no detectable lining up nor acceleration as there is in Close Combat.

John showed how unimpressive pure Guided Chaos dropping looks when done without a target. His whole body just appeared to soften a bit and his hand went forward a few inches like a puff of air. There was no visible explosion, no sudden acceleration or stopping of the motion, no STOMP to shake the room. It became obvious why he normally demonstrates the more intimidating "external" drop, as the Guided Chaos internal drop really looks like nothing special. In fact, when you see its effect on a human target, the demonstration looks FAKE, because of the apparent lack of effort on John's part combined with the devastated reaction of the target person. All I can say is . . . FEEL it yourself before ye judge!

As John applied Pure Guided Chaos on me and on a few other people present, it looked impossibly simple. John simply walked toward me while lazily lifting his arms. Any punches, grabs or other arm attacks I tried were immediately slammed out of the way by his flaccid, slow-moving arms. With any speed added, I have no doubt my arms could have been broken, despite my moderate level of looseness. His limbs then continued to reach or fold in, his body following smoothly behind them, to slam any random part of my torso or head with knee-buckling shock. Often his arms would happen to slam, or unbalance and slam, my body in multiple directions simultaneously, calling the integrity of my neck and spine into question. He seemed to have no concern about the striking surface used, slamming with equal effectiveness with all sides of the shoulder, upper arm, elbow, forearm, wrist and open hand. Whenever I tried to lift my leg to kick outside of range of his arms, one of his legs would simply come forward in a slightly extended yet still perfectly balanced and controlled step, immediately throwing me way off-balance and into yet more effortless slams. As he advanced through me, his hips and knees created similarly devastating impacts.

When John demonstrated on one of the bigger and sturdier, albeit less experienced students, he commented that he actually had to hold back more when hitting the bigger student because he isn't as loose as I am and therefore couldn't safely absorb as much impact. This was clear as John rocked the student's whole body with what appeared to be little pats to his arms.

John pointed out that because it takes many years of proper training to produce and apply such devastating power, for self-defense purposes, he teaches his students to target particularly vulnerable areas of the body with the most suitable striking weapons, a la Keechy Close Combat.

The longer I study and practice this stuff, the more I realize how much further I have to go!

My next post will be on the recent Extreme Balance seminar. It was awesome!!!

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #13

More Tim and Al Tips...
This blog post (and probably all future ones) will be more concise. Less background and filler, more training info. Hope you like.

This past Saturday, I had another lesson with Tim.

During the physical portion, I was generally too tense. Tim also pointed out where my excess movement was opening me up to his shots. He showed me how changes of less than an inch could completely turn the tables. Talk about economy of movement!

His advice during the physical portion of the lesson was as follows:

--I have to be one with what's going on.

--I have to think differently, not so logically and literally. Being intellectually "smart" is not an advantage with this stuff.

--I have to do away with the concept of an "enemy." Tim demonstrated that when he treated me as a "friend," it was easy for him to beat me up. With a broad smile and an advance towards me that at first looked to be a pat on the back, he loosely and easily destroyed me. I felt nothing at all threatening until the loose barrage of shots landed. He then "attacked" me as if I were an "enemy," with a glare and clear determination. I was able to feel his intentions a mile away and avoid almost everything. Very interesting!

--Tim commented, "You have to lower your energy into your legs. It's not just an elevation thing, it's not just bending your knees. You need to get all that energy out of your upper body and put it in your legs." As I did this, my upper body seemed to get looser and freer, and my balance was thus no longer as challenged. Tim said, "Good! You had about four good seconds in there. Good job, lesson's over."

I experimented more with this on my own the following day, putting all the energy, movement and pressure in the lower legs while moving and hitting, rather than moving from the waist or the upper body. It offers greater range of motion and looseness in the whole body, along with better balance. I found I hit harder, and with less effort, when I concentrate on this feeling. DEFINITELY something to work on! It goes along with John's comments about having "hydraulic legs," Gary Abatelli's comments about "balancing on your ankles," and indeed the instructions given in the book "Attack Proof" for many of the drills. Having Tim say it the way he said it helped me finally understand it in a new way. Go figure.

Now, as promised, some tips from my last lesson with Al:

--Al usually grabs your wrist when it stops moving. So . . . don't stop! Conversely, Al practically "dares" you to grab him, as it just sets you up for punishment . . . because it doesn't matter whether he's grabbing you or you're grabbing him, it's a connection he can exploit. Stop him from grabbing by a) being sensitive and moving with the whole body away from grab attempts, b) KEEP MOVING, c) HIT immediately!

--Drill during contact flow: Penetrate center with uprooting. Application: that's how Al takes up slack (penetrating to center through the arms) to get MEAN positions.

Coming next time: An extremely educational lesson from John about the differences between "Keechy Close Combat" and pure Guided Chaos! This one blew away everyone who was present! Stay tuned. . . .

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #12

He Knows What You Need...
I wanted to post what it's like to train with John Perkins, the creator of the Guided Chaos concept and training method. One would think I've had more than enough exposure to write such a post, as I've taken at least a couple classes per week with John, as well as a few private and semi-private lessons, over more than two years. However, I've found it very difficult to put these experiences into writing.

First of all, it's impossible to say, "A class/lesson with John is like this or like that," because no two classes/lessons with John are ever the same. One semi-private lesson with John might consist of his silently observing the students' contact flow, then silently doing contact flow with each student himself. Another might involve doing endless footwork and kicking drills while John points out every little flaw. A class may consist of non-stop action in the form of close combat drills with dummies and striking pads or medium-speed contact flow, or most of the time may be spent standing and listening as John discusses a movement concept or explains the realities of violence through stories from his experience. (If you think the stories in the book are harrowing, you ain't heard nuthin' yet!) The course of events in a class depends largely on what's been on John's mind lately or what he feels are the greatest weaknesses of most of the students.

One thing that John is most certainly a master of (besides this fighting stuff, opera singing and general gregariousness) is intuitive teaching. While he can explain an idea as well as anyone (provided he doesn't get sidetracked by another interesting point), it is truly amazing how adeptly he can transfer information directly to students' subconscious minds, often without their even realizing they're learning! He does this visually (through modeling certain concepts of movement in various situations), aurally (through telling stories and repeating key points to inculcate proper mindset), and especially tactilely. During contact flow, he gives the student's body pressures and challenges that subtlely force correct reactions and build correct habits. He designs drills with equipment that force the student's body to learn to do things correctly in order to succeed in the drill. Examples of this include stopping a swinging heavy bag with strikes and kicks while standing on a wobble board, forcing the student to drop internally, and putting down thick crash mats for close combat scenario drills, forcing the student to stomp and lift the knees to maintain balance and mobility.

One of the most impressive examples of John's intuitive teaching ability I've seen was a private lesson he gave to a beginning student in which I and a couple other black belt students assisted. The private student had previously had only one private lesson, during which he learned self-defense strategy and tactics and a few basic close combat strikes. John intended in this second lesson to teach him some new skills, namely groundfighting and upright kicking, and to hone the skills he'd already learned. The student was reasonably athletic, but had no previous martial arts or fighting experience.

John had me take the student through the basic groundfighting exercises (as seen on the Guided Chaos Groundfighting DVD) as a warm-up. Then he had the student watch for a few minutes while I modeled (slowly at first, then faster) some groundfighting maneuvers against kicking shields and pads held at various positions and angles. No instruction was given as to "how" to perform the various kicks, rolls and other maneuvers. Then the student got down on the mat, John directed the pad holders where to go, and after just a little self-guided experimentation, the student was moving and hitting the targets like a pro! John suggested a couple things for the student to experiment with as he moved, prompting the student to get more creative and discover for himself faster and more efficient ways to move and hit the targets with maximum power as quickly as possible while keeping his head safe. It was by far the fastest I'd ever seen a student get proficient with anything combative.

John then presented the student with the scenario of being attacked by one or more knife-armed attackers in a confined space, such as an elevator. One useful tactic in such a scenario is to use the wall to enhance your balance and power to rapidly kick to damage the attackers and prevent them from getting close enough to use their knives to damage your vital organs. (An example of this tactic may be seen in one of the video clips on the Attackproof website.) John had me demonstrate for a few seconds. Holding one or both hands against the wall, I kicked out with rapid-fire front, side and back kicks to keep two other black belt students with kicking shields from closing the distance. Then, with no further instruction (not even pointing out the names of the different kicks or going into details about positioning or dropping), John had the private student give it a try, at first against only one attacker. After just a couple minutes and a couple simple tips from John, the student was successfully keeping away two pad holders with powerful, rapid-fire kicks. The student was then told to use just a light touch on John's arm for enhanced balance. He then progressed to stopping a charging shield holder with a kick from a free standing position. Again with little instruction, the student adapted quickly, dropping and adjusting his balance to compensate for the lack of external support.

The rest of the lesson consisted of improving the student's body mechanics for basic strikes and introducing him to contact flow. What was most impressive to me, however, was that John was able to make this individual with no previous martial arts or fighting experience fully functional with kicks from the ground and from his feet in less than an hour, with hardly any direct instruction. At first, I was actually flabbergasted at how little John explained to the student before making him try the drills! You couldn't argue with the results though. This is a testament to two things:

a) What John teaches is completely natural for the human body, thus enhanced under fight-or-flight stress rather than degraded.

b) No matter how natural the movements, John's intuitive teaching method is extremely effective.

The ease and speed with which he can coax a student to subconsciously teach himself or herself the best ways to move to deal with combat situations is uncanny. Unfortunately, this method cannot be simply laid out in a step-by-step syllabus for other instructors to use. It depends on John's vast experience, sensitivity and talent for reading people physically and psychologically and drawing out their strengths while compensating for their weaknesses. What John says and does and the situations he sets up to elicit responses vary greatly depending on the student. This is one reason why writing the "Attackproof" book was such a challenging undertaking. It was an effort to standardize, based on the root principles that do not change, a way of moving and a method of instruction that is in practice highly individualized. The success of distance learners who have made the effort to truly understand and internalize the basic principles of Guided Chaos as laid out in the book shows that the the authors did in fact accomplish their goal. A firm grounding in the basic principles of Guided Chaos combined with a bit of guidance and challenge from a master instructor (ideally in person, but even from a distance) can truly allow students to "teach themselves" subconsciously how to best utilize their own bodies to survive violence.

Thank you John!

Had an excellent private lesson with Lt. Col. Al this past weekend. Some great tips from that to come. . . .

Hopefully I'll have another private lesson with Tim within the next two weekends, so stay tuned!!!

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #11

My Third Tim Tune-up, Part 2...
Tim started putting me in various awkward positions in contact flow, asking what I'd do. When I hit upon the most efficient and easy ways out, he'd say, "Okay, I'll buy that." Alternative solutions got me lightly struck, locked or off-balanced. Tim was critical of how quickly I moved my feet to get out of bad situations, so he had me stand against the wall so that I couldn't move back at all. As he started slowly attacking, I lost my balance a couple times, but finally got it right and managed to deflect his attack. At that point, he laughed and shook his head and said, "Good! Lesson's over, and I'll tell you why."

We pulled up chairs in the front office and proceeded to discuss a LOT. Here are some (not all--we covered a lot) highlights:

--Tim explained why he was amused by my final actions during the lesson. He said that I had ended up doing what he and John had been discussing the last time they worked out (a week or two previously). It had something to do with "bouncing" the energy Tim gave me. When he put me against the wall, I couldn't move back or out to dissipate the energy he was giving me, so my body channeled it in the only direction available: back into Tim. It has something to do with pulsing. I did not fully understand his explanation of what I had done--I must remember to ask him about it again next time. He pointed out that this phenomenon--a student's spontaneously doing something that John had discussed with Tim previously--happens often, for some reason. I suggested that there may be some weird chi floating around. . . .

--On the subject of chi, Tim showed me a small book about Cheng Man Ching (famous late Tai Chi master) that his wife had given him and that John had recently discussed with him. Tim admitted that such books usually turn him off within the first few pages, when they talk about chi and esoteric stuff to explain combative phenomena. According to Tim, it's all purely physical, having to do with subtleties of the nervous system. Then again, why name it a "nervous system"? Why is "red" red? Names are just labels people use to get on roughly the same page. "Nervous system" might as well be "chi."

--I pointed out that Tim was absolutely correct about my being distracted and preoccupied. The previous day, I'd had a business meeting and lunch with a client way out in Long Island (far from Manhattan, where I live and where my office is). The meeting and lunch went well . . . except that I got so involved in the conversation over lunch, I forgot my briefcase in the restaurant! I didn't realize I had forgotten it until I was already back in Manhattan, with no time to go get it before a dinner obligation with some of my wife's friends. Fortunately, when I called the restaurant, they said they had the briefcase and I could pick it up the next day. So, even during the lesson, in the back of my mind was the annoyance that right after the lesson, I'd have to drive out to the restaurant to pick up the briefcase. Were the directions I had accurate (I'd taken the train from Manhattan the previous day, never driven there from Yonkers)? Would I hit bad traffic? Would it take so long that it would kill the evening? How much gas and time was this costing me? Stupid--why did I even bring the briefcase into the restaurant in the first place?!? Tim pointed out that when you're troubled by something, you should 1) identify the problem, 2) identify the solution, 3) identify what you have to do, 4) identify what you're willing to do, and 5) LET IT GO. To dwell on problems and let them disrupt other areas of your life (like training!) is unhealthy and a waste of energy.

--I told him that I felt another thing that was messing me up during the first half of the lesson was that I was being too "controlled," trying too hard to do everything "right." I had been determined going into the lesson to try to "do" everything that Tim had told me to do previously (good L-stance, keeping safe arm positioning, moving body to evade and attack, shoulders low, not focus on single points, etc.). However, in TRYING to do all these things, I completely messed myself up. I was attempting to control my own movements (and therefore trying to control Tim's movements--good luck!) instead of simply allowing my body to react to whatever happened. This actually goes against the absolute basics of Guided Chaos theory, which I've written about--go figure, gotta remember my own advice! Certainly not the first time that has happened. The "control" thing was interesting though. The feeling I had midway through the lesson when Tim finally set me straight was one of "letting go" of any control over my body's motion. It felt like the weight of my arms and body, plus Tim's energy that moved them, were enough to accomplish everything, like a pendulum. I had to LET GO with the whole body, and just let the arms float and do what they will with the lightest of contact. Tim concurred with my observations about the dangers of "control." He pointed out that control was a frequent problem in training cops, which a lot of his students are. It is understandable that they have a tendency to be controlling, because of their occupation. However, it's their "control" that can get them killed!

--Work slowly, but train to cut time and distance in order to reduce the time it takes to accomplish things. Working with only one arm against your partner's two helps in this regard.

--When I mentioned that I find it difficult to keep things slow and trusting with some training partners, Tim pointed out that there's no such thing as a bad training partner. It's up to you to figure out what you can learn from each. He gave me examples of training situations from his experience that at first glance were bad or frustrating situations. However, he learned extremely important lessons from each of them by simply figuring out how to work around the problems. A couple of the skills he learned from these experiences are ones he is "infamous" for to this day. Always try to work a little slower than your training partner, to make you more efficient--accomplishing things faster at a slower speed by cutting time and distance. You may get hit more at first when you force yourself to remain slow, but the long-term benefits are worth it.

--Tim advised me to eliminate my habit of taking quick sidesteps to escape bad situations. He said there's nothing necessarily wrong with stepping, but that I tended to step with my feet faster than the pace the hands were setting. I must be sure to move my feet as slowly as my hands, lest they become uncoordinated and set up unrealistic situations in contact flow.

--Generally, most students' hands are not bad. They can use them with some skill. It's the body unity, the coordination between the hands and the feet and everything in between, that most students don't seem to get.

--Tim used a slightly off-color joke (that he learned from Bob Alexander) to make a point about learning. Sorry, can't repeat it here--the joke or the point!

It seemed like we might have gone on talking for hours had another student not come in for his lesson.

Immediately after the lesson, I felt a bit dismayed that I had "wasted" the first half of it being "not myself"--trying too hard and being too controlling. However, upon further reflection, the lesson I took away from that was very important, and I'll remember it well. I also have a LOT of new food for thought. So, great lesson!

And in case you were wondering. . . . I drove from Tim's place to the restaurant in Long Island, picked up the briefcase (contents intact), and got home without difficulty. The directions were good (Yahoo Maps--I think I like it better than MapQuest), traffic was on average reasonable, and I got home early enough to have an enjoyable evening. The day's travels, from Manhattan to Nanuet (10:15a - 1p Guided Chaos class) to Yonkers (Tim's studio) to Long Island and back to Manhattan, 9:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., used up less than half a tank of gas. Go 2000 Camry!

Next post will be about . . . well, you'll just have to wait and see (i.e. I have no idea yet)! Stay tuned!!!

P.S. The new Guided Chaos Slam Bags are great! Even though I have and use one of the old steel shot-filled bags, I bought one of the new tan bags on the spot. It's much better for extended workouts. You can drop on this thing full-power until the cows come home and never have your hands go numb. Highly recommended!

"MY LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS..." Ari Kandel's personal training blog. #10

My Third Tim Tune-up, Part 1...
A note about these lesson recaps:
My normal procedure after a lesson is to jot down some notes on the computer as soon as possible after I get home, before any important details leave my memory. (Of course, sometimes this must come after the execution of important husbandly duties, such a paying bills and making dinner plans.) I jot down the notes in the order in which I recall them, usually starting with the details of the lesson that made the greatest impression on me. The result is that once I'm done with the notes, most of the details have been captured, but the exact order of events has been lost and must be pieced back together. Therefore, please excuse any liberties taken with the order of events in these narratives. I'm doing the best that my memory allows.

I had my third lesson with Tim. While perhaps less action-packed than the first two, it was nonetheless extremely educational--and not just from a Guided Chaos perspective.

The lesson started out very relaxed and jovial. Tim vented good-naturedly about some of the tribulations of his photo business. In contact flow, he initially applied hardly any strikes at all, but continuously locked up my arms and chuckled at my misfortune as I cracked jokes about not wanting to get caught in a particular type of lock more than a dozen times this time. Not sure whether I was successful in this (lost count amidst several other types of locks), but I tried. After a few minutes of this cat-and-mouse fun, Tim started applying some light strikes to the body. I tried, mostly unsuccessfully, to stay out of the way. I felt like all my movements were just a split-second too late. The jovial atmosphere continued until after I failed to get out of the way of several light shots in a row. Tim cut off my laughter by grabbing the back of my head and slamming a palm strike to my face (not injurious or painful--but it got my attention) as he said, "Just a reality check."

I took the hint, buckling down to get more serious about trying to stay out of the way. I asked Tim after a few minutes if I was stiffer than usual, as I felt . . . not right, like I was exerting lots of pressure against his arms even while trying not to. Tim said not to worry, to just do what I wanted. I continued to try to move properly, turning the body to stay out of the way while sticking with the arms in advantageous positions. He started giving occasional pushes and pulls to my arms and elbows, from my perspective coaxing me to react properly by letting the body turn loosely in response to his inputs and bring my weapons on line. However, it didn't feel right. My reactions felt jerky and uneven, and unconnected--like my arm would move in response to his push, then the body would try to catch up.

Tim commented that I wasn't myself today. I'd seemed pretty relaxed for the first two lessons, but today was different. He asked if I'd had a bad day, or a rough week, or if something was on my mind. He added that he didn't need to know what it was, but whatever it was, I had to separate it and leave it outside. He asked what I drank, and I told him mostly water and orange juice. He suggested I start drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes and cigars! I mentioned that I'd eaten an entire bag of potato chips in one sitting earlier in the week, and he approved. He then related his philosophy on nutrition: "They say 'you are what you eat,' right? And you want to live a long time, right? Well, how long do fruits and vegetables last? What's their shelf life? A few days! Now, what's the shelf life of potato chips and processed foods? Maybe 25 years??? Which would YOU rather be???" Now THAT's a different take on things! He did concede that his doctor had a reasonable rebuttal to this theory.

In an effort to get me back to my usual self, Tim slowed things down, had me hang my arms loosely from his, then he held my arm against his while slowly moving to strike. I suddenly felt how truly "easy" it should be to get out of the way of strikes, and at that moment, my movement completely changed. Everything suddenly felt effortless and nonchalant. I had no idea where my arms were going, but I wasn't getting hit and my body did not feel separated from my arms. Tim said, "Ah, HERE we go!" A minute later he added with a smile, "Ah, and now you're hitting me!" This actually surprised me, and I looked to see my chops and elbows slowly and lazily floating past his chest and neck. Go figure.

Now that I was "back," we got back to business. Tim said, "Okay, now fix your feet." This I did, refining my L-stance. We continued to flow for only a few minutes before a customer came in with a photo restoration project. Tim said that I could hang out until he was done with the customer. He said he would suggest that I go out for a coffee break, but I don't drink it! I hung around and learned something about photo restoration. Interesting stuff. Tim must have a LOT of patience!

After the customer left, we got back to the lesson. To be continued...