They Thought The World Was Flat

"I've trained in martial arts from 26 years and you don't know..."

Spare me the rhetoric. Just because you're doing something for a long time doesn't mean it's correct. They thought the world was flat, they thought the sun revolved around the earth and they still think martial arts is self defense.

Like the earth being flat or the sun revolving around the earth, martial arts may appear to be self defense. After all a punch is a punch and a kick is a kick and if you punch someone hard enough you will get the desired result.

But it's much more than that.

The mentality of time in training equal proficiency is ridiculous. That would be like saying a 60 year old gymnast is better than a 20 year old gymnast. Imagine what would happen if a retired NFL football player in his 50's went up against an active player in his 20's. The results wouldn't be pretty for our middle aged friend.

Yet martial artists still boast proficiency at any age. Sorry to burst your bubble but if you're in your 50 and you can still beat that 30 year old has been training under you for more than a couple of years either he's really bad or he's letting you win.

Every martial art has a fundamental skill set and the majority of those skills are taught in the first year. The same holds true for any sport as well. The majority of the techniques you will ever use, you learn in the first year. Now there comes a point in your life where that punch and kick start to loose power and speed. Age and injury like death and taxes will eventually take their toll. At some point your skills will deteriorate and it doesn't matter how many stripes you put on your belt. You will get older, slower and weaker.

The problem martial artists face is that they have self imposed an impossible expectation to use the same skill set over a lifetime. They may try to vary a technique or two, but the real issue is in the principles they learned. You're expected to use the techniques of your style under conditions that are designed for one on one, "fair fight" combat between two able bodied players. Look, if you don't specifically train to pick up a rock and bash a homicidal maniac in the skull you're not going to do it when it really happens. If you spend your time sparring and doing forms, that's what you're going to do because you've conditioned yourself to do for decades.

The root cause is that ALL martial arts are method driven. They have a specific agenda as to why they were created. Martial arts were created for national pride, sport and entertainment. Martial arts for lack of a better term are like a brand, each seeking it's own identity in the market place. Judo wants it's own identity so it makes sure it differs from wrestling. Tae Kwon Do wants to be different then Shotokan so they focus on kicking, MMA wants to be different then boxing so they combine sports and BJJ wants to be different than Judo so they focus on the ground. Trying to make your martial art method the answer for EVERYTHING is like trying to build a house with just a hammer. It can't be done.

Combatives on the other hand is different. Combatives is results driven. Combatives doesn't have a country of origin, a flag to fly or a hidden agenda. It's only purpose is to survive and conquer by whatever means fair or foul. That purpose transcends time and method and it enables you to adapt. If today you use and edge of hand, tomorrow when you can't hit so hard you may want to use a black jack and 20 years from now when you can't lift your arm so well, you may use pepper spray to diffuse a situation.

Being tied to a method restricts your adaptability and limits your options. While being focused on a result allows you to open your mind to adapt and be resourceful. The only hitch is, you have to train for it, and not just think about it. In the SDTS Combatives we use specific drills that force you to use your environment along with gross motor movements that work with empty hand, edged and impact weapons.

Train Honestly,
Damian Ross
The Self Defense Company








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Damian Ross is CEO of the Self Defense Company and developer of The Self Defense Training System, the most lethal and effective self defense system in the world, The Guardian Defensive Tactics Police Combatives Program, 60 minute Self Defense and the Family Safe Program. Mr. Ross also founded the Self Defense Instructor Program that helps people develop their self defense careers from the ground up. Mr. Ross is originally from Ridgewood, NJ where he was a High School Hall of Fame Athlete in football and wrestling as well as a varsity wrestling coach. He then went on to Lehigh University where he was a varsity wrestler and football player. Mr. Ross has 3 black belts, 4th Degree in Tekkenryu Jujutsu, 2nd Degree in Judo, 2nd Degree in Tae Kwon Do. In addition to his martial arts experience, Mr. Ross spent 8 years in the professional security and personal protection business. He is internationally recognized as one of the foremost authorities in reality based self defense.