I smell bullshido! July 19, 2006
Posted by Niels in : Life, the universe, and everything , trackbackI spent four and a half hours today at a pressure point school. My brain feels like it’s going to explode from frustration.
It’s not that pressure points don’t work, but in the adrenaline rush of a real fight, you lose your fine motor skills. It’s even worse than the people who say they’ll just gouge the eyes and end the fight. Do you have any idea how hard it is to get a clean shot to someone’s face, let alone target the eyes? Do you know how many hours a day boxers train in the hopes of landing one solid shot to the face? How are you going to hit the fifth small intestine point under the left nostril in the chaos of a bar fight?
About half the stuff the instructor said was really good info, stuff that totally aids a lot of my Brazilian jiu jitsu moves. But the other half was complete bullshit. I must have stood around for half an hour while he poked and prodded various pressure points on my head, neck, and legs that just “didn’t work” on me. Dude, I’ve had 350 pound fatties lay their entire weight on my windpipe. Feel free to keep poking if you like, but it’s not going to get you anywhere.
The instructor went around to each of the students in the class. First he had them lift him off the ground. Then he touched a pressure point in their neck and told them to try again, only to watch them whimper in pain and fail miserably (including a 400 pound power lifter!). When it was finally my turn, he relaxed and I lifted him off the ground. Then he poked me in the neck and I lifted him off the ground. Then he poked me harder and I lifted him off the ground again. Then he poked me in the throat and I lifted him off the ground. “But look how hard his pulse is going!” he said. Dude, I just squatted your weight like five times in a row!
Later he asks me how I pass the guard, so I show him a standing guard pass. That’s all well and good, he says, but check this out. And he drives his elbows into my thighs. How many white belts have I laughed at for trying that shit on me? I was nice enough not to try and choke him.
Of course, then he drove his fingers into my femoral crease and my legs popped open like a Pringles can. That was cool. 50% good stuff, 50% bullshit.
The problem is the students don’t train again resisting opponents, so the bullshit never gets weeded out. If they actually tried sparring, they’d realize how hard it is to catch someone’s hand off a punch, to crash the line and poke some pressure point under the nose.
Oh, evidently the nose, the neck, and the jaw are all pressure points, so you should try to hit them. There’s a newsflash.
Again, lest my point be missed, some of the pressure points are good stuff! I was shown some really cool things today that I might even be able to incorporate into my game. But I have a delivery system. Muay thai, Greco-Roman wrestling, and Brazilian jiu-jitsu are super-effective delivery systems for standup, clinch, and ground. They allow you to control your opponent’s body and put him in uncomfortable situations. Once I’ve locked in a tight side control I would happily use a pressure point to lock in an Americana more easily. But if the students never train with resistance, they’ll never develop the timing and distance necessary for an effective delivery system.
And fighting is all about timing. It’s not about knowing more techniques. Muhammed Ali wasn’t a great boxer because he threw spinning hurricane backfists. He threw a jab, a cross, a hook, and an uppercut. But he had really, really, really good timing. And he developed the timing by sparring fully resisting opponents day in and day out.
The instructor claimed they train with resistance and gave me a quick demo. I almost laughed. He was playing open handed slappycake with his student, who responded by backing up, cowering, and covering his head. I put the student’s odds of crashing the line at slim to none. Not to mention that the students in the class didn’t even know how to throw a punch. Instructor says “hook” and they throw a wild haymaker with their rear hand.
The low point of the evening, the point when I realized things couldn’t possibly get any worse, was when the instructor came up to me in front of the class. The instructor holds his hands up in front of his face. “This is how boxers stand.” Then he moves his hands way out to the side so his face is wide open. “Now what would you do if I held my hands like this?” I tell him I’d throw straight down the middle and punch him in the face. “Exactly!” he says. “See, now I’m dictating the terms of the fight! I know exactly what you’re going to try to do and I can plan accordingly!” I hope he’s planning to smash my fists with his face, because he’s not about to have a whole lot of choice in the matter.
So you have a class full of students who can’t block a punch practicing pressure points, defending themselves at half-speed from their classmates who can’t throw a punch. No wonder they think this might work on the street. This is the kind of shit that gets people killed.
Comments»
Amen brother. Very well put. there are a million “parler tricks” like those you discribed that work wonderfully as long as some one hands you his arm or stands there while you jointlock them into submission but try those things on a moving target. Ive seen all the exotic systems go to full contact competitions and when the ref says fight, they all go back to kicking and punching. Unfortunately the public doesnt want what works. They want what looks pretty and real life aint pretty. Sorryt about the s[elling. Im a fighter not an english major. Mustafa
Thanks for the support. Maybe we’ll see some change if Hollywood ever comes to our side.
Here’s to more “Ong Bak” and less “Karate Kid”.
I wish I had a way of agreeing even more strongly than I do, but it’s impossible. People who don’t fight simply don’t understand fighting. And as long as these people are out there, there will always be someone looking to take their money by making them think they can.
I remember recently hearing about a fighter getting kicked out of a fighting club for hurting the other members. The immediate response from the crowd was of course ” well, if he tried that sh** with me…” He would easily succeed and you’d cry??? Because that quite literally is what would happen. But ‘ces la vive
Kudos! I’m so glad you blogged about this =) For the most part, I agree with you. I’ve had many pressure point sessions where I’m almost certain that a point will never be used in fighting/demo/competition/etc (save the exception of healing). It’s a disheartening experience sometimes because in some sense, it seems non-practical. But the truth is, the arts are full of information that we must learn the application of (hint hint: din mak + martial arts + acupoints).
Anyway, on the topic of fine motor skill loss in a real fight: I disagree. I’ve had cross training in kick boxing and traditional Japanese arts for over 14 some years. For my particular styles, we have to be focused on perfect technique and execution of those techniques because in them (usually taught in katas) lies the secrets, striking locations, and capabilities of pressure points. When one trains sufficiently, he/she is able to have an almost automated response even in the case of an adrenaline rush because the muscle and neurological systems have practiced so much that it’s second nature (techniques/knowledge) to the perpherial system. When the body recalls a striking region and pairs it with technique–it’s bound to strike a crucial pressure point situated in that location. I can assure you, I’ve see those type of people in sparring: they always gracefully hit their marks. No matter the speed, ability, or size of the opponent.
Haha, ever since the workout episode with your “Jab Jab Cross” idea, I’ve been wondering about what kind of fighter you were. First though, I just wanted to address… how the hell would JennyLee find “jab jab cross” confusing when she’s been a UFC ring girl? haha. Fighting is something that’s always interested me, because it runs in the family. I currently study Wing Chun under, of all people, my dad. He currently shows me, my bro, and our friends some moves and we just practice in a friend’s garage, free of charge. He grew up in Hong Kong in a semi-poor family, and his mother didn’t give him money to waste on martial arts. So instead, he saved his lunch and breakfast money to learn. As a result, he developed stomach problems. So now, he teaches anyone who wants to learn because he doesn’t want money to be an issue, for anyone. Some of the best fighters can be hidden… maybe they just can’t get a class, right? That’s his mentality.
We work on mainly stand up game, but also work on take down defence. We have come to find that many of our ideas and techniques can be applied on the ground also.
I laugh at a few classes that call their training “practice for real life” because it’s unrealistic. Almost no training partner will throw a full speed full strength hit at their partner… haha… I think our system has one of the best training for actual situations because we train our sensitivity, a lot. We don’t rely on being strong to overpower opponents, and instead concentrate on guiding and controlling an opponent, enabling even the scrawniest smallest people to make effective use of it.
Ah but you’re probably sick of hearing me rant about my style, I’m not here to promote it. Many instructors will dominate their students by telling them or making them not react. Once you take it onto the street, I guarantee you that it’s completely different… and that’s what we prepare for.
If you’re ever interested, feel free to email me x] although I doubt you’ll find time in your busy schedule to. But I’m a huge fan and would love to meet you. (Hmm, perhaps that last statement would actually drive you away… oh well)
Take care!
The sad thing is that I totally have to agree. I spent about 4 years of studying Wushu, and it’s gotten me nowhere. It’s just a bunch of flashy movements, and people can see right through that. I know if I ever pulled what I learned out in a real life situation, the person I’m fighting against would probably just laugh…and then proceed to beat the crap out of me…how depressing. :(
Hey Neil!!!
i ve done boxing for some year, now i m doing JKD and Kali… and taichi :-)
i do agree with above people.
in a real fight ( or also just an “warm argument”) most stuff does not work if it s not conditioned in the body.
in my JKD gym you start full impact from 3rd year.
and you wear kendo mask and body armour so you can use max force… but still, i m not sure that is THAT near to the real thing..
just my two cents
MVA
HAHA… I know PizDoff (the guy who is 2 posts above). We used to train at the same Muay Thai gym. BTW, super cool that you train BJJ Neils. Do you train with Gi or No-Gi? What belt are you? (or if no-gi, what belt do you consider yourself).
Muhammad Ali wasnt a great boxer? WTFBLASPHEMY!