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In the majority of martial arts training today the focus is mainly on the sports aspect and tournament style competition. While most schools emphasize self-defense as a byproduct of training, little if any time is devoted to learning true street fighting skills. Tournament competitions must abide by rules. The student is instructed and trains to pull a martial arts technique just prior to contact to prevent injuring an opponent. In this article I will discuss why this type of training will get one seriously injured in a life-threatening situation.

There are no rules in the street. Survival without being seriously injured is the only option. A martial arts practitioner will only be able to defend themselves by practicing a fighting defense that assures they can disable the attacker and escape. Going through the motions or "air guitar syndrome" training gives one a false sense of confidence in their abilities. Following completely through the intended target with self-defense techniques, such as a punch or kick, with full force is the only way to injure an assailant.

Biting, hair pulling, eye gouging, dislocating joints, pressure point manipulation, etc. is not allowed in competitions for obvious reasons. On the street any or all of these, and more, may be necessary to survive. There may be obstacles, people or things, to avoid. Or to use to your advantage as a self-defense weapon. Even if a single martial arts tactic has rendered the attacker unable to continue, there may be others to contend with.

Not understanding the pain that accompanies a real life self-defense encounter is also detrimental. If one has never been injured in the dojo they will not be able to know their pain threshold. Boxers prepare for a fight with several hours a day of full contact sparring. Without feeling the pain associated with a punch to various parts of their body they would never be able to handle the pain physically or mentally in a real match.

Many if not most martial arts instructors have never needed to use their skills in a life-threatening scenario. Most have been in competitions and may be very skilled and have won many trophies. Nevertheless, they may not be skilled in a street confrontation. Dojo training consists of partners going through the motions of a real attack. While this is very good exercise and training it will not mentally or physically prepare one for an attack without warning.

Self-defense training must prepare one for contact in a real-life situation. Proper breathing techniques can help focus on the situation and not on the pain. Conditioning with bare hands on heavy bags, focus mitts and other apparatus, using full force and striking through can give one a sense of the feeling of striking a living target. One may dislocate or break a bone in the hand, fingers or wrist when striking an apparatus hard. But then again, many times a bone is broken when defending yourself in the street. If one has never experienced pain while training the outcome could be disastrous in a life-threatening situation.

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Are you studying the martial arts for self defense, or for some other reason? This may sound strange but, your focus and goal will determine whether a particular style, school, or teacher is right for you!

I have been studying the martial arts for over two-thirds of my life. I began by studying Goju-Ryu Karate when I was twelve years old in 1975. I then progressed through other arts like aikido, jujitsu, Bruce Lee's jeet kune do, Shaolin kung-fu, and tae kwon do, before finding and concentrating on ninjutsu - the martial art of Japan's ancient Ninja.

Now, please don't confuse my intentions with that of comparing these other systems to the one I currently hold teaching credentials in. In fact, I have a problem with much of what is being taught as ninjutsu and budo taijutsu as well.

No. My focus in this article is on street readiness and the ability and suitability of any teacher, art, or program to teach you what you need to know to defend against and survive a real-world attack.

That being said, you should probably also know that my experience is not limited to my martial arts training. In fact, I learned much of what I know, and developed many of my perspectives and beliefs about real-world combat while working as a police officer, undercover investigator, private detective, and body guard.

So, when I say that most martial arts and instructors approach self defense backwards, I'm not doing so from a "my-way vs their-way" mentality. I'm saying it because I've seen way too many martial arts students get their you-know-what's kicked by completely untrained attackers on the street.

And the reason this happened was because, while they were learning the "official" step-by-step skills of their chosen martial arts system, they forgot to make sure that they were also learning how to defend against their most likely threats.

If you've ever trained in the martial arts, you will be able to associate what I'm talking about. If you haven't, the following should help.

You see, when a student enrolls in the typical martial arts program, he or she is typically introduced to that systems "basics." This includes the unique punches, kicks, blocks, and such that make up what we often call, the "style."

Unfortunately, many of these official techniques were designed to handle the fights and fighters...

several hundred years ago!

I'm not implying that you should not learn the techniques of the style you're in. What I am saying is that, if your focus is self defense, and your goal is to be able to defend against a brutal attacker - today, in the 21st century - who is bigger, faster, stronger, better skilled, and maybe even better armed than you...

you had better be learning those skills in the context of what your most common threats might be.

Of course, if you're studying for tournament fighting, asthetics, a love of Asian culture, or just to boost your confidence because you have something cool to show your friends...

you can ignore everything I just said!

If you're still with me, here's an example of what I'm describing:

My own students are learning the art of ninjutsu - sometimes called budo-taijutsu. They are learning this because that is what I hold a master-teacher's license in, and the art that lies at the foundation of my Warrior Concepts program.

In the basic levels of training of this martial art, their are sets of techniques collectively known as the "sanshin no kata," the "kihon happo," as-well-as varies fundamental skills like rolling, breakfalls, defensive postures, and the "traditional" striking, kicking, and grappling techniques.

However, the introductory forms, as they are taught in Japan, do not match the attacks that 21st century street attackers will throw at you here in the West. So, at the same time they are learning these basic "forms," my students are required to learn basic self defense techniques, designed to deal with the most common threats and attacks they might face today.

And, I don't mean "today," as in "this century." I mean "today," as in...

..."TODAY!"

Because you don't know when, or in what form an attack will come at you. So, you must be prepared from day-one, to escape from, avoid, de-escalate, or defend against an attack - not wait until you're a Nth degree black belt!

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Advantages of Using Soccer Patches and Star Patches to Motivate Players. The advantage of the soccer patches and star patches are that they can be seen, touched and held. Players really like them. If a player earns one, he or she will be proud. If they see another player earn one, most kids will also want to earn one. They quickly understand what they need to do to earn a patch. There are 2 main times to give patches: at the end of practice and at the end of each soccer game. At the end of the game, call your players all together around you ("Gather Round") and encourage the parents to watch while you give out the patches. If a player has to leave early, you can give that players his or her patches personally, but encourage them to stay while you give the rewards. Tell the parents it is an important part of motivation. For U4 and U6 players, give everyone at least one patch (like an attendance patch). At U8 and older you can still give an attendance patch if you want, but start to use the patches to motivate the behavior you want by making the players earn the patches. They could earn them for hustle, bravery, listening to the coach, effort, attitude, leadership, teamwork, improvement (it is important to constantly encourage improvement and to reward improvement), or specific achievements, such as great defense or following a shot to be in position for a rebound (even if they didn't score). If you are having a problem getting players to play a position such as Goalie, select a special Goalie Patch that you ONLY give to players who play Goalie.

Specific Ideas for How to Use Soccer Patches and Star Patches to Motivate the Behavior You Want. Some ways I like to use the patches are for hustle, bravery, listening to the coach, effort, attitude, leadership, teamwork, improvement (it is important to constantly encourage improvement and to reward improvement), or specific individual or team achievements, such as great defense, following a shot to be in position for a rebound (even if they didn't score), or the team not allowing a goal (getting shut-out). Some coaches reward every player on the team when goals are scored to reinforce the idea that goals are a team effort. If you can get your players to hustle, listen to the coach, to be brave and to do their best, then you are motivating them. Keep in mind that it is a process - it won't happen all at once. I like the idea of encouraging individual improvement, achievement and team spirit. I like the idea of letting every player be a "Captain" at one of the games so you can take a positive approach to Leadership. (More than one player can be a Captain at each game). Or, you could use the "C" patch for Courage. I think bravery, hustle, listening to the coach and doing your best are 4 of the most important things to motivate. If you motivate those 4 things, your players and team can achieve their potential, and you can be proud of them, win or lose. Those are also valuable life lessons that build character. If you are having a problem getting players to play a position such as Goalie, select a special Goalie Patch that you only give to players who play Goalie, or Fullback if that is the position you are having a problem with.

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There are many different types of martial arts such as judo, tae kwon do, aikido, mixed martial arts etc. However, one of the most famous and popular types is Brazilian jiu jitsu gi. This martial art is probably one of the most applicable and useful fighting methods that can help you in a real fight. It basically teaches you how to defend against an opponent that is bigger and stronger than you by using very little to no strength. This is an excellent self defense technique that can help both men and women.

The best part of learning jiu jitsu is that it teaches you how to fight against strikes as well as on the ground. Since the majority of fights end up on the ground, it is essential that you know how to defend yourself there. This martial art is one of the few that is practical to real life fights and many law enforcement agencies as well as military usually train their officers in the form.

There are many reasons why people want to learn this form of fighting and it is essential that you identify your reason before learning it. One of the main reasons why people start this martial art is to learn how to defend themselves. In this case, this martial art will definitely teach you a few excellent self defense moves as well as how to fend off an attacker. If you train for this reason, then you're probably not interested in competing on a professional level.

Those who want to learn for competitions can gain much by learning this sport on both a physical and mental level. There are usually many competitions that are held throughout the year and you can take part in these.

However, before you actually start, you need to find a good school to learn and train with. There are many ways that you can find ones in your area such as searching on internet, telephone directories or simply by referral and recommendation. You should make a list of schools that you can check out personally in order to determine which is the best fit for you. When you look at instructors, you need to make sure they are fully certified black belts and are certified to train and run a dojo. They should also be in existence for awhile so you know they are not a fly by night school.

You should only be trained by an instructor that has a black belt than someone with a lower belt. The reason for this is that they wouldn't have the extensive training and experience as someone with a black belt and would not be able to teach you properly. They would act as more of a training partner than a teacher.

The last factor that we will be looking at is the attitudes of the instructor and his/her students. If you find that they have poor attitudes or have inflated egos, then you should probably stay away from this school. Also, you need to pay attention to how well they teach and make sure that they do not use too much force when sparring with you.

Those were a few quick tips on how to choose a good Brazilian jiu jitsu gi school and get started learning this art form.

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In recent years we have seen an increase in the crime rate for most city's. In my city, Miami, there has been an increase in violent attacks. These attacks can be avoided if you know a few very simple and easy principles.

Principle #1: Walk with confidence- Predators seek out easy prey... when you're walking with confidence you give off a strong presence that wards off attackers.

Principle #2: Avoid secluded places- If someone wants to attack you... chances are high that they will strike when no one is looking. One easy way to avoid an attack is to avoid secluded places.

Principle #3: Learn some sort of self-defense- Knowing some sort of self-defense and engaging in some close combat training will not only increase your confidence level but it will also give you the tools necessary to survive and win against a violent attacker.

The first two principles are relatively self-explanatory. The last principle is one that requires a lot of decision-making. You see, the martial arts world is riddled with many people trying to shove useless techniques down your throat.

And most of the people you hear about are very limited in their knowledge on proper martial arts training... training that can actually be applied to a real life street fight scenario.

Before starting a self-defense training course or close combat training method of learning, you want to make sure that these courses and methods are based on reality in combat.

Very rarely does someone come after you with a "proper" knife attack that has good "form". It just doesn't happen. When you look at CCTV's and witness first hand accounts of real life violent attacks... you see that most of these attacks are sloppy, fast and many times, very effective.

It is dangerous to train for something that will never happen. It is dangerous to assume your attacker will be fighting you "one on one" and give you a warning before unleashing his fury.

When you are attacked... it is unexpected. Therefore, when you train... you must train for the unexpected attack. One of the keys is learning how to fight is to get a training partner and practice/role play what you would do if you were attacked on the street.

Then, make your training partner surprise you sometime during the day. When he surprises you, your goal is to convert your fear and submissiveness into a weapon of self defense.

As you can see, being aware of your environment is still a very important part of our close combat training.

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