I received a very kind email about my review of “A History of Violence,” asking me about the martial arts styles that I detected in that fine film.

I replied that I saw a lot of my art, Kenpo Karate, present.

But as I moved from scene to scene in my discussion, I pointed out a number of subtle martial arts techniques that may have escaped the attention of everyday film buffs as well as martial artists.

Tom Stall, who is the main character, has three confrontations with bad guys.

In the first and second confrontations, perceiving the threats before they have turned overtly violent, he tries to clear the scene of innocent bystanders, who could be used as hostages or be hurt.

The ability to perceive threats and to calculate their magnitude and then to take swift but subtle action, is a very high act of martial artistry. No fancy hand strikes or spinning rear kicks are required.

Even more subtle, but no less effective is how Stall STALLS.

He slows time down, in order to put his adversaries in a semi-trance. You can see how he speaks and moves at a glacial pace, his facial expressions and hand gestures becoming languid, as he prepares to take action.

One of the problems with confrontations is that they seem to accelerate until they spin out of control. Like combustion, that ignites an entire scene, people burst into violence.

Slowing down the particles, reducing the heat, enables you to prepare ever so slightly for the blaze to come, if it is inevitable. A precious second or two, purchased this way, can be life saving, as you’ll see when Ed Harris’ character is about to plug Stall at point blank range.

Dr. Gary S. Goodman, President of http://www.Customersatisfaction.com, is a popular keynote speaker, management consultant, and seminar leader and the best-selling author of 12 books, including Reach Out & Sell Someone and Monitoring, Measuring & Managing Customer Service, and the audio program, “The Law of Large Numbers: How To Make Success Inevitable,” published by Nightingale-Conant. He is a frequent guest on radio and television, worldwide. A Ph.D. from USC’s Annenberg School, a Loyola lawyer, and an MBA from the Peter F. Drucker School at Claremont Graduate University, Gary offers programs through UCLA Extension and numerous universities, trade associations, and other organizations from Santa Monica to South Africa. He holds the rank of Shodan, 1st Degree Black Belt in Kenpo Karate. He is headquartered in Glendale, California, and he can be reached at (818) 243-7338 or at: gary@customersatisfaction.com

For information about coaching, consulting, training, books, videos and audios, please go to http://www.customersatisfaction.com

Psychology of Tenacious Resolve

tenacious (t-nshs)

adj 1: stubbornly unyielding; “dogged persistence”; “dour determination”; “the most vocal and pertinacious of all the critics”; “a mind not gifted to discover truth but tenacious to hold it”-

T.S.Eliot; “men tenacious of opinion”[syn: bulldog, dogged, unyielding] 2: (of memory) having greater than average range;From Latin tenx, tenc-, holding fast, from tenre, to hold. See ten- in Indo-European Roots.

resolve (r-zlv) n.

Firmness of purpose; resolution. A determination or decision; a fixed purpose. A formal resolution made by a deliberative body. [Middle English resolven, to dissolve, from Old French resolver, from Latin resolvere, to untie : re-, re- + solvere, to untie; see leu- in Indo-European Roots.]

What you are about to read are the state of the art techniques, tools and tactics you need to overcome all doubt and fear and take rapid offensive action.

The best defence is offence. Get inside your opponents space, keep moving forward. Your primary objective is to intimidate, confuse and overwhelm. There are some basic concepts of performance psychology and NLP that need to be covered first before you start hardwiring your neurology to reach your objective successfully.

Terminology: STATE: the combined subjective experience of the individual in the physiological, psychological, emotional spheres. That is whatever he or she is feeling and experiencing at any given point in time. The term state is much cleaner and more specific than mood or emotion because it doesn’t come loaded with preconceived notions and implicitly indicates the responsibility of the individual to manage and control their own state.

ANCHOR: any distinctive trigger or association to fire off the desired state. Anchoring is the process of creating a strong neural associative conditioned response to a particular state. The anchor could be from any sensory sub modality, ideally it should be something unusual and combine several sub modalities. SUB MODALITY: The sub modalities are the sensory coding which constitutes the individuals subjective experience of internal and external reality. Simply: visual, auditory, kinaesthetic, olfactory and gustatory. E.G.: You smell a particular type of food being cooked and it takes you right back to a certain time and place where you felt happy and relaxed. An olfactory sub modality fired of an anchor in your neurology causing you to change state and access a new state in which you feel a certain way. OR A physical confrontation is imminent, so you deliberately and consciously fire off a particular anchor which is: touching your fingers together in a certain way (kinaesthetic external), saying a particular phrase inside your mind (auditory internal), seeing a particular thing inside your mind (visual internal) and moving your body into an on guard posture (kinaesthetic external). This combination fires off a state in which you feel confident, are thinking clearly and are filled with tenacious resolve.

STATE MANAGEMENT The most important part of the whole process. Managing your state is the process of guiding and changing states from undesirable ones like confusion or stress to more desirable states like confidence and clarity. The quality of your technique and performance is directly proportional to the quality of the communication with yourself and your environment. (see ooda loop) Why should you manage your state? You want to be able to respond effectively to all types of assault? Do you want to be able to react with skill and intelligence in the pursuit of your objectives? Manage your state. If you can control and change how you feel, you can determine how you will think and act. Which is a very important point to make at this juncture. If you are reading this manual because you are a social recluse who would rather stay in your bedroom sharpening your weapons than going out and expanding your social circle, its time to manage your state. Go outside, smell the air and hear the birds sing. If you are paranoid, moody and aggressive and would like to get what you want out of life by scaring people, put this book down and invest your cash in some good counselling.

Sometimes the best defence is a smiling, confident demeanour.

In Zen Buddhist Thich Naht Hahns classic “Mindfulness and Psychotherapy” he points out:

“Smiling is very important. If we are not able to smile, then the world will not have peace. It is with our capacity of smiling, breathing, and being peace that we can make peace”

If you assume the world is out to get you, you will prove yourself right. If you are genuinely happy and experiencing good states (like euphoria, clarity, confidence, generosity, humour etc) regularly you will get in to far fewer physical confrontations. You get what you train for. If you practise feeling good more than you practise feeling bad, you will feel good more than you feel bad. Whatever you want out of life- learning to manage your states is essential to your success.

People in good states make good decisions and perform well. People in bad states… don’t! You must have had a training session when you were performing really well, when you were flowing from movement to movement with ease, when you were really seeing your training partner clearly and almost psychically predicting their next move.

Wouldn’t it be good if you could switch that state on every time you felt a confrontation was imminent?

Richie Grannon… bio at http://www.streetfightsecrets.com

If you ain’t pissing anyone off, you’re not doing anything worth while. Like religion and politics, martial arts are not for a lack of its zealots. Decide right now, you can either A. Continue to “sip the kool-aide” or B. Look to improve. One criticism about our training material is that it is simple and would work against some one who is untrained. What the hell does this mean, exactly? Does this pertain to the woman who takes muay thai or the serial rapist sociopath that has successfully applied his trade a dozen times? Does it apply to the mixed martial artists or a bag man on a pick up? Who do you want to fight for your life against, the martial artist or emotionally disturbed person (EPD) who gargles with pepper spray?

Personally, if I had my choice, I’d take my chances with the guy who thinks he has all the answers and not the guy who has nothing to loose. Is our stuff simple, you bet your ass it’s simple. It has to be. Anything that works is simple and straight forward. (Remember that thing; what’s it called…the WHEEL). Here’s a pop quiz, what’s the most widely used technique with the highest degree of success and knock out rate? (Drum roll please…..) The Over Hand Right! But that’s so simple, everybody knows that. You learn that your first day of boxing. Since it’s so simple and everybody knows it; why does it work? Because some one decided to seize the opportunity to throw it and it hit its mark. That’s the essence of a fight, timing, opportunity and luck. The techniques can’t be complicated. As we mentioned countless times before, anything can be blocked if you know it’s coming. But you will be approached in a way or by a person who is banking on the fact that you won’t do anything. So anything you do has a chance.
So you’re trained, great.

God bless you and congratulations. Now I heard Jon Bluming say something that I thought was right on the money. If you don’t know who Jon Bluming is, get your google working. He said that grappling and submissions are treated as “support systems” and he continued to say that you will spend more time training your support systems rather that your primary self defense. That doesn’t mean don’t train in these systems, because you will fall back on these if you, well- miss. Which happens more than you think; but you want a front line of defense.

This is where we come in:
Is it simple: YES.
Basic: YES.
Let me ask you:

Would you rather practice knocking some one out or dragging them to the ground? Would you rather practice for a 5 - 10 second blast or a five minute round?

Do you know when your next competition is? It could be in the parking lot tonight after work. Are you warmed up? Do you have your training equipment on? Is the ref there?

Now make no mistake, I am not advocating NOT practice other endeavors, I think they’re great. Competition and training are excellent character builders and will prove there own worth in the grand scheme of things.
But if you’re serious about realistic, explosive self defense, here’s the check list:

1.Arm your self to the teeth. Guns, knives, Sherman tank.
2. Pepper spray, Stun guns
3. Black jacks, sap gloves, spring kosh, asp
4. The environment: bricks, rocks, garbage cans
5. Hands, feet, teeth simple straight forward basic technique. Strikes, gouges.
6. Grappling, submissions.

Bonus: the better shape you’re in, the better all of this stuff works (yes, even shooting). The sharper you are, the better you will operate under stress.

So will this stuff “work” against someone who is trained- you bet, it has and it does.
It’s always good to have a back up plan, but first things first.

Musashi said, it’s regrettable to die with your sword still in its sheath. Personally, I get looks from other martial artists when the catch a glimpse of what I carry. They look at me like “why do you need that stuff”. My reply is, I’d rather have and not need it than need it and not have it. It also gives me a glimpse of how nave they are. Are you really going to depend on that when some street skel looks to put a hurt on you? If I can, I’ll work my way down from number 1 to number 6. Hey, don’t get me wrong, some days you start at 5.

The 3 to 5 year martial artist.

This is the person I get the greatest reaction from. They are very in to their training, which is great. But they believe they are in to end all, be all system. After they read the page at www.thetruthaboutselfdefense.com they feel compelled to write me and tell me how wrong I am (with out viewing the videos). First off, if you feel the need to write some guy on the internet to really show me something- get a life. The irony is, if they stay with there training, eventually they come back. Why? The men and women who have been in the martial arts for more than a decade realize the value of the material and just want to add it to there bag of tricks. These people have been to the show and realize that in a real fight, its what ever it takes. That doesn’t mean the a fifth degree black belt in tae kwon do is going to hand his dobok up and put on some combat boots (well, not permanently). What it does meant that this person can look into there own training and pull out what’s effective. Two, realize that they don’t have all the answers and they want to just get better. And three, they realize that there is a lot more to martial arts than just fighting. Here’s a secret learning how to fight is the easy part.

Carl and I are constantly receiving instruction. We are not “making this stuff up”. We learn this from real people who actually had to do this FOR REAL.

Making stuff up seems to be a trend. Some “expert” invents something and is going to tell you what’s the best and the ultimate because it has an Acronym attached to it with a cute name.

©2005 http://www.thetruthaboutselfdefense.com

Damian Ross is the owner of Zenshin and instructor of Tekkenryu jujutsu and Kodokan Judo. He started competing in the combative sport of wrestling in 1975 at the age of 7 and began his study of Asian martial arts with Moo Duk Kwan Tae Kwon Do at the age of 16 in 1984. In 1989, Shinan Cestari gave a seminar at Sensei Ross’s dojo. Sensei Ross has trained under Shinan Cestari’s direction ever since. In addition to Tekkenryu Jujutsu, Judo and Tae Kwon Do, Sensei Ross has also studied Bando. Sensei Ross continues his study of Judo under the direction of 8th degree black belt Yoshisada Yonezuka and Tekkenryu Jujutsu under it’s founder, Carl Cestari.

Below are is a list of some of his title ranks:

Yodan (fourth degree black belt) Tekkenryu Jujutsu under Carl Cestari
Shodan (First degree black belt) Kodokan Judo under Yoshisada Yonezuka
Varsity Wrestling Lehigh University under Thad Turner
2nd Degree Black Belt Tae Kwon Do
http://www.thetruthaboutselfdefense.com

Kickboxing is a sporting martial art very similar to boxing, except for the fact that it uses both arms and legs for striking. It can be practiced either as a full-contact combat sport or for general fitness. While the term refers to various forms of combat sports, it is generally associated with Japanese and American kickboxing. The term was introduced by Osamu Noguchi, a Japanase boxing promoter.

The History of Kickboxing

Kickboxing is a derivative of karate, boxing, taekwondo and other combat styles and it was created to compete against them. All styles of kickboxing have been first developed in Japan. However, similar influences were taking place in the United States as well and martial artists from toured both Japan and US, developing a common kickboxing standard.

Initial Japanese Development

As a specific form of martial art, kickboxing was inspired from Muay Thai, a combat sport originated in Thailand. Osamu Noguchi, a Japanese boxing promoter, developed it as a competitive style to oppose Muay Thai. He wanted to present to the Japanese people the fighting style that he had discovered in Thailand and in 1966 he took three Muay Thai fighters to compete against Japanese karate fighters. The Japanese won by 2-1. Noguchi and Kenji Kurosaki studied the combat style thoroughly and developed a combined martial art called kickboxing. At first, throwing and butting were allowed in order to distinguish it from the Muay Thai style. However, they were later eliminated.

A few years later, the Kickboxing Association, the first kickboxing organization, was founded in Japan. Kickboxing was broadcast on TV and became very popular in Japan. Back then, Tadashi Sawamura was an extremely popular kickboxer. After he retired, kickboxing started to lose its popularity and stopped being broadcast on TV. He hadn’t been on TV until 1993, when K-1 was founded. In 1993, Kazuyoshi Ishii, who was the founder of Seidokan karate, produced K-1 under kickboxing rules (no elbow or neck wrestling). Since then, kickboxing started to regain its popularity and became famous again. Soon it’s popularity started spreading through North America and Europe as well.

Spreading to North America and Europe

Jan Plas, a Dutch kickboxer, and a few Muay Thai pioneers, initiated Mejiro jym in Netherlands in 1978. He had learned kick boxing in Japan from the famous Kenji Kurosaki. In addition, he was also the one that founded the Dutch Kickboxing Association (NKBB) in 1978, which was the first kickboxing organization in the Netherlands.

Kickboxing & Fitness

Kickboxing has gradually become a fitness craze as well. Kickboxing classes are very popular in European countries also. They are attended by both men and women. It has become very popular among women of all ages who are always looking for new methods to lose weight or stay in shape.

As you walk by a kickboxing class, you will see that most times it is packed. It seems that all you have to bring is yourself and plenty of energy. Kickboxing classes are generally coregraphed to house or techno music. The whole class consists of a full hour of punching to the beat. It involves a lot of arm movements, squats, power movements and a good amount of cardiovascular workout. This is what explains its high popularity as a fitness activity. With all the fun, you even forget about the fact that you are actually working out.

Sue Taylor is the webmaster of a site dedicated to kickboxing. For more information, refer to http://www.kickboxingnews.info

Kendo, like most other martial arts, can only be learned with the help of a qualified sensei (teacher). There are many companies that sell kendo videos and kendo pictures, saying that it will teach a person how to be a samurai. This is completely false, a sensei will point out what is wrong with your technique and kata.

In order to learn kendo properly, you need to go to a kendo dojo (kendo school) where you can have lessons with someone who has been doing kendo for many years. Sensei aren’t the only people who can help you learn, most classes have many other students who can also help point out what you are doing wrong.

Why would a company blatently lie to you? A simple answer: they want money. Most of those companies that make the kendo videos don’t really care about you or kendo. However, dojo are only payed enough to keep running and the sensei are normally volunteers. Why would a sensei be a volunteer? Because he loves kendo; that is how you know you will be learning: if a teacher loves his subject, that love will pass on to his student.

Before join a dojo make sure you like it. Do not base your choice on things like distance from your house or price of membership. If you do not like your dojo, it will show in your kendo. Go visit five or ten kendo dojo and pick one that meets your needs the best. Some things to consider are the physical dojo, the sensei, the other students, the teaching style, and the ambience.

http://www.international-kendo.com is an up and comming kendo site with a wealth of information.