IN THIS ISSUE Russian Fist Fighting Seminar Part II

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May 11I Vol: 3 I No: 3
IN THIS ISSUE
:: Russian Fist
Fighting Seminar
Part II
:: Dealing With
Multiple Attackers
Seminar
:: Russian Combat
Manual Part II
:: New Fee Schedule
Russian Fist Fighting Seminar Part II
I would like to thank all those who were able to come for our
last seminar on fist fighting. As you can see from some of the
photos everyone had a great time.
Dealing With Multiple Attackers Seminar
One of the most difficult and dangerous scenario you may have
to face is a confrontation with multiple attackers. In this seminar
you will learn the techniques and exercises that will prepare you
both physically and mentally for the toughest fight of your life.
Some of the topics the seminar will cover include:
• Delivering and avoiding multiple strikes using all parts of the
body
• Understanding timing and distance
in relation to multiple
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attackers
• How to effectively set up pre-emptive strikes to finish the
fight before it starts
• How to avoid common setups used by street smart attackers
Please note in the interests of hygiene and safety all participants
will be required to bring their own protective mma style gloves.
Seminar details
Date:
Time:
Location:
Cost:
Sunday 12th June 2011
10am – 4pm
18 Catherine St Coburg North
$30 (Melbourne Systema members)
$50 (Non members)
Russian Combat Manual (Part II)
Continuing from the last issue here is the next excerpt from the
Russian Combat Manual by Vladimir Vasiliev. Hope you all enjoy.
CONSTRUCTION OF THE SYSTEM
In view of this system one of the characteristic features of hand
to hand combat is the symmetry of movements. If we look at any
punch or kick we would always find that the return of movement is symmetrical to it in space and in time. That is in the
sequence of performance (as if we filmed a punch on a videotape and then played it backwards).
The paths of many punches lie inside an elliptical shape which is
formed by movement of a maximally relaxed limb with a maximum speed of returning movement. Arms and legs not only
hit, they whip the opponent, partly tensing only at the point of
contact. In other words, "waves" take place. Punches originate
from the body and come back into it just to set off another
wave.
The ellipsis is not flat, but three-dimensional. From the moment
when the punch begins, the tension of the acting muscles gradually increases and during 'the return gradually decreases down to
zero by the middle of the return which is also the second punch.
The momentum of the returning arm works as an attacking one.
The power of the return almost always exceeds the power of the
punch itself. There is practically [email protected]
loss of energy, just as there is
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no stopping between the punches - that is where we have the
guarantee of victory in time.
The following advantages of such work are evident:
• Maximum possible speed leads to maximal power as a result
of mass multiplied by speed.
• Stable emotional state. There is no need for so-called "con
centration of power" that brings unnecessary feelings.
Another important characteristic of the elliptic kicks and punches
is that all of them (whether done by a fist, an elbow or a foot)
during their return, move towards the centre of gravity. And
since breathing in and out often happens once during the whole
combination and not with each punch, the energy leaving the
solar plexus through the limb always returns there. This allows
the fighter not to get out of breath in the processes of a real
fight or training.
It is interesting to note that the "oriental breathing" (with releasing the energy at every punch), does not allow for training for
fun or as a game. Laughter and jokes are not common on the
"tatami" (Japanese for mats). Their faces often take a tense and
even stern expression. While a game allows us to work with your
intuitive thinking.
Let us talk about inner energy and its sources. In the area of your
belly button, there is a point called D'an-T'an. In the East it is
considered to be "the sea of inner breathing". They say it is an
accumulation of inner energy.
In the Russian style such a point is the solar plexus. This area is a
powerful interconnection of many nerve endings often called by
physiologists the "brains of the abdomen". These nerve endings
are a part of the sympathetic nervous system and they transmit
impulses to the inner organs. They have their own access to all
these organs. The solar plexus is like a provider of electrical
energy to the inner organs, blood vessels, glands and control of
the smooth musculature.
The Eastern techniques show that D'an-T'an represents the
centre of gravity of the person. Fighters in the oriental schools
sort of approach the ground. Their centre of gravity is set closer
and connected with the ground. One can observe a tendency
towards fixed stable stances. There is squatting, sitting with the
legs crossed, and the absence of chairs in everyday life. Physical
body structure of the person living in the mountains not only has
defences from intense ultraviolet sun rays and piercing winds, it
also provides extra strength for certain body parts in view of the
general movement patterns. Living in the mountains contributes
to the principle of the lower centre of gravity – a natural search
of stability, represented so well in the
idea of specific stances.
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Thousands of years of having the physical biofield of the person
formed the genetic model with this energy active centre of gravity.
As we have discussed in the last seminar, geography and climate
form tactics of martial arts and biophysical qualities of people.
European conditions led to the development of an important
martial arts principle - mobility. Lower centre of gravity provides
stability whereas higher centre of gravity provides one with
greater mobility. As you noticed in this System, it is constant
movement that makes you effective.
Another characteristic of the Oriental martial culture is imitating
animals. It is considered that if a person imitates with his movements the behaviour of animals, it will bring him closer to
nature. The world of people, however, is very different from the
world of animals. So the movements in this style of fighting are
artificial to the human movement patterns. They impose on the
natural ways of movement. It is not even the case that it is hard
for a person to imitate the ways of a snake or a dragon. In
nature every being is what it is. A rabbit, for example, can never
play the part of a wolf. From many points of view, this is disruptive to the paths of nature.
The main problem with the imitation is believed to be interference with the human movement scheme. We all have a tendency to move in a certain way passed on to us from the previous generations. Survival practices of the past and surroundings
form the predisposition to particular actions. Consciously we can
play any role including that of an animal. But spontaneously and
instinctively we will perform the actions that we were born with.
This way by imitating animals we create another powerful contradiction to ourselves.
It was originality of interpretation in the oriental martial arts that
in the 1960's got the interest of the world. The followers really
multiplied in numbers. But it is possible that what had the main
effect was the aesthetics of a fight.
Bruce Lee wrote "real application of the techniques themselves
has little use in the street fight. It is hard to apply the principles
of classical Kung Fu or Karate to real life. In a confrontation with
opponents that have no knowledge of the right techniques of
classical martial arts those opponents had the reactions and
behaviour that were completely unpredictable".
"Too much time", continued Bruce Lee, "is spent on doing
unimportant things, learning unrealistic poses, classical moves,
that have long lost their meaning and on rituals. It is artificial,
mechanical and does not prepare the student for a fight".
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Still, the aesthetics of a fight is a strong argument. It brings the
actions of the participant to an expressive order, to internal and
external structure and organization.
Martial Arts - is a special part of culture in our world. And
undoubtedly every nation has its own ways of expression and
original forms. For example, it would be foolish to assume that
the world of music to every nation means an image of a group
of violinists. All nations would form an image with their own
components. Although a violin is in some ways similar to guitar,
and a guitar has something in common with a cello, no one
would ever consider them equivalent, or be right to claim one to
be superior to the others.
One of the particular qualities of the Russian fighting style is the
mobility of the body. The principle used here is the so-called
flying centre of gravity. The body sways up and down, spinning
all three dimensions simultaneously and at the same time swings
like a "pendulum". The point of "suspension of the pendulum"
is somewhere above the head - this way the pelvis in the fighting
moves is always ahead of the shoulders. Moreover, during
punches both pelvis and shoulders spin around their own horizontal axes, and form the so-called "figure eights".
As for transferring the body, we can talk about sliding into the
pendulum as in skating without taking the feet off the floor. And
on the hard ground - hitting with your feet into the ground
transfers particular power up into the moves of the arms and
legs.
A leg should be light and mobile, arms should not depend on
the support or stance of the legs, and legs should not depend on
the fixing of arms. The energy of hitting comes from the pelvis.
The art of fighting is first of all the ability to control the distances
- to change direction hiding the action, to move to the right line
of attack, to use the manoeuvres of the opponent, etc.
At the stage of learning, one of the main goals in fighting is
entering the axis of the next punch of the opponent during the
return of the first punch.
You should not think about the strike or the defence; or about
the person you are working with at the moment. The work
itself-should be completely subconscious. It is impossible to prepare all the techniques for the potential situations of a fight or of
life beforehand, but it is possible to teach the body to "think",
i.e. to spontaneously find the solution out of an unexpected
situation. For example, during the training sessions not to prearrange with your partner which punch
to defend from.
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The movements should be dynamic and multi-functional. There
should never be movements just for the sake of moving. At the
moment of any action the whole organism should be involved
like a complete system.
The Russian Martial Art includes various types of work:
For example in one type the preference is given to evasions. The
fighter here escapes from the plane of attack. While moving
away from the punch or kick, one should not step or lean far
away, but rather get closer to make it easy to respond.
Another method is "fencing" with the arms and legs, when they
hit intercepting the strike of the opponent. It is not a block but a
way of one movement doing both the strike and the interruption
of the attack. Also intercepting are so-called "props your elbow,
knee, fist, and so on - they meet the attacking movement and
break it up.
Another kind of work is gunfire like strikes at the opponent from
all directions. The speed of movement here is very high. A master
in this kind of work delivers his strikes in all four directions forward, back, left and right. This work also intercepts the moves
of the opponent. Any of his actions are simply prevented in the
very origin. This is one reason why there are no blocks in the
traditional Russian fighting.
When we look at the defence, there is a combination of following three stages:
1. You saw the strike at the stage of preparation - you can then
move away, prevent the strike, or wait for it and use its
energy. (Of course this preparation stage does not necessarily
happen.)
2. You noticed the strike as it is being carried out - you can
proceed in the defence or in moving away. It is hard to
counterattack here.
3. You have not seen the punch coming at all - your success will
depend on proper relaxation of the body, on the right
manoeuvre, on knowing how to take the punch into the
body, and how to prevent the next attack.
At a high level of training the third stage becomes the first - you
prevent the strikes that you see and those that you do not.
A very important issue is the way you look with your eyes. The
level of your look or gaze will determine the level of your energy
relationships in the fight.
Looking below the eye level of your
opponent (especially below
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the waist line) sets off the level of animal emotions. Fear and
anger prevent the fighter from looking up and it is psychologically suppressing which also suppresses the energy field making
the fighter work a lot weaker.
Looking straight in the eyes of your opponent brings more challenge and threat into the confrontation; it means there is clearly
a desire to overpower your, rival and to intensify the situation.
And finally, looking above the heads of the opponents indicates
a high professional level of fighter. The energy contacts then sky
with the ground, there is therefore more positive energy and
more power.
In this case there is a certain estrangement from the fight, less
dependency on the person and better perception of the situation. The body becomes lighter and it is easier to use the circular
movements. The radius of extrasensory awareness increases up
to three metres. Looking above the heads also widens your horizon. In addition to the side peripheral vision, there is also the
lower vision.
However, it is very hard to look this way. One thing that can be
said is that if you are in a group fight and cannot take your eyes
from the arms and legs of the opponent, or from his weapons,
the fight will not end well for you.
New Fee Schedule
As of July 1st 2011 the new class fee schedule will be:
Basic Package (1 class per week)
1 months training
3 months training
$50
$140 (save $10)
Standard Package (up to 3 classes per week)
1 months training
3 months training
$100
$265 (save $35)
Premium Package (unlimited training & monthly 30min private appraisal session)
6 months training
12 months training
$525
$960
Casual pass (expires after 1 year)
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10 Class pass
$150
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Private Classes (per hour)
The Buddy System Pricing allows additional people to train with
you for only an extra $5.00 per person.
1 person
2 people
3 people
4 people
$55
$60 ($30 per person)
$65 ($21.67 per person)
$70 ($17.50 per person)