DISCUSSION

Examples of things to do if you are early

• Warm-up – Do a quick warm-up before class, since we won’t be doing it together as a group. You should already have warmed up a little before leaving home so that your body is ready for anything. A short warm-up helps you transition smoothly into training and prevents injuries.
• Partner drills – Since class time is often used to cover new material, take advantage of the opportunity to practice with a partner when you can. Use this time to refresh your memory and test your reactions so that your responses become more instinctive and automatic.
• Different partners -Each person’s height, weight, strength, and reactions are different. The more people you practice with, the more varied your experiences become, and the better prepared you’ll be for real-life situations.
• Ask questions – If you have questions, ask them! Make the most of the time when I’m available to clarify techniques or concepts.

LRT (Listen, resources, target) – 3 pillars of self defense

Story: When I was coaching young kids, I noticed that I have much better success with them during class if I play some “listening games” right at the start. Once you can grab their attention through their urge to win the contest, half the battle is solved. By listening to their teacher / coach / parents willingly, you not only keep them safe, they are actively learning through listening better.

The SkyTrain’s original planning name was ALRT (Advanced Light Rapid Transit) or sometimes simply LRT. As an aid for memorization, we use the acronym LRT to represent the three major pillars of self-defense.

• L – Listen / Look / Learn – These represent the tools you use to detect and anticipate danger. Always stay aware of your surroundings.
• R – Your conditioning, training, knowledge, awareness of your environment, physical strengths, time, understanding of the opponent’s weaknesses, and even nearby strangers or traffic passing through—all are resources you can use. Effective self-defense is about maximizing your own resources while minimizing those of your opponent.
• T – Target – This involves changing the WHO or the WHAT is targeted. For instance, pretend to have a conversation with a total stranger, redirect attention, or maintain a confident posture to make you a less appealing target. Ask yourself: What is your opponent’s likely goal or intended target? Can you alter or hide the target? Can you cause them to hesitate, reset, or redirect their focus?

Managing distance

If you are too close to a potential threat, you won’t have enough time to react or defend yourself effectively. When you notice someone suspicious, maintain a safe distance before anything happens. Staying aware of people and things around you—without being anxious or panicky—is an excellent habit for situational awareness.

SCENARIOS

Experiment: Strong support line vs perpendicular line

In the bow-and-arrow stance, the “strong line” runs heel-to-heel. Force applied along this line can be resisted more easily. However, pushing from the perpendicular line (relative to the heel-to-heel line) is much harder to resist and therefore has greater effect. Understanding this helps you control direction and stability.

Note: While the concept is “perpendicular (to the line of support), things doesn’t have to be exact. There is an tolerance of deviation base on your physical attributes like strength.

EXERCISES

Push the wall

This exercise develops a powerful push that comes from your whole body—not just your arm muscles.

Common mistakes:

• Arching the back when you meet resistance, forgetting to engage your core for support.
• Leaning in with straight arms, relying only on body weight instead of muscular strength.

Correct form:

• Bend your legs slightly to engage your legs and glutes.
• Keep your arms bent so your triceps can assist in the push.
• Maintain a firm, supported spine and active abdominal engagement.

Arch the back / Pelvic Tilt / Normal relaxed position

Learning to control your tailbone and hip movement is essential—not only for martial arts but also for protecting your hips and groin during falls.

Posterior Pelvic Tilt:
Known as “tucking your tail under,” similar to a dog lowering its tail after losing a fight. In this position, the “bucket” tilts backward and the groin moves slightly forward.

Anterior Pelvic Tilt:
Commonly described as “sticking your butt out.” Imagine your pelvis as a bucket tilted forward when your tailbone sticks backward.

Practice Tip:
If you have trouble isolating your hip movement, place a cushion against the side of a table and press your hip into it—without moving your upper body. You’ll feel how the lower abs help move the hips forward or backward.

DISCUSSIONS

We don’t always have the luxury of having an extra 10–15 minutes before class to warm up or ask questions. However, we are fortunate that no one is ahead of us in the program. I encourage everyone to take advantage of this opportunity. Ultimately, fighting and survival are about the ability to see and make use of opportunities as they arise.

Structural versus muscular power

When you perform an action such as standing or lifting, you are of course using muscles—but the focus should be on the intent or function you are trying to achieve, not on the muscles themselves.

Bodybuilders, for example, tense muscles on both sides of a joint. This makes them look bigger but actually limits speed and fluidity of movement. Our goal is not to show off muscle size but to make movements effective and functional. This is called technical relaxation—using only what is necessary for the task without unnecessary tension.

A few key comparisons:

• You don’t tire easily when relying on structural power. When relying solely on muscular power, fatigue sets in quickly unless you’ve trained specifically for endurance.
• Structural power requires no reaction time when your body’s shape and alignment are already positioned to handle force from that direction.
• As seniors, if you lack muscular strength, you must substitute it with power generated from other sources, as discussed below.
• Muscles are still essential for daily activities such as standing, balancing, climbing stairs, and carrying groceries. Keep exercising to slow natural deterioration.
• Those who bully you at your age are likely bigger and faster. Competing through muscle alone is not the best strategy—structure and technique are your advantage.

Escalate only when it is absolutely necessary

An ethical approach is paramount to acquiring fighting skills. You must understand the responsibility that comes with the skill. Any physical action, like punching someone, has repercussions. The mindset should be to start with the ‘gentle side’ rather than escalating a situation. This philosophy is a core part of the training, taught to prevent misuse of the skills learned.

Wavering between ‘fight-or-flight’ will guarantee a bad ending. You need to think ahead where your red-line is. Even if you decide not to fight, you must position yourself strategically: for example, maintain a good distance between you and aggressor; furthermore, are you repositioning yourself to a safe spot after every effortless skill? Can you redirect the body angles to something less aggressive?

Functional focus vs muscle contraction focus

When you stand, you don’t really know you are using muscles but you are. You don’t need to focus on naming the specific muscles or the contraction of any muscles. Any focus on tensing up any specific muscles is over doing it and may be applicable only if training those muscles is the purpose.

How to get yourself stronger?

Remember this phrase: “Bruce Lee Made Me Cry.”
(The first letter of each word represents one of the key categories.)

• B – Big muscles: These major muscles do most of the visible work. When training alone, people often focus only on these large muscle groups.
• L – Little muscles: Smaller stabilizing muscles engage when the large ones tire out. Because they’re weaker and less coordinated, fatigue often shows as shaking in certain parts of the body.
• M – Mind: We demonstrated the power of the mind through the firehose projection experiment. Changing what or where you focus dramatically alters the outcome.
• M – Mechanics: Familiar principles such as leverage, angles, and structure all influence how efficiently you use your strength.
• C – Coordination: The difference between a trained unit of soldiers and an unorganized group is coordination. When an order comes, trained soldiers act cohesively. Likewise, a trained body functions as a coordinated team—each part working in unison toward a single goal.

By projecting your intent and structure together, you force the opponent to deal with your entire body’s mass and alignment, making your technique far more effective.

SCENARIOS

“Being shoved from behind (or pulled from front)”

• Go with the flow to absorb the force
• Push the butt backwards to counterbalance the forward momentum of the upper body
• DO NOT start with bending your leg as that accelerates the descend
• Each of the following help reduce the impact of the fall: 1) going with the force helps reduce the force forward 2) pushing the butt back help reduce the weight on the front of your support 3) halving the body helps reduce your height 4) the net of the velocity backward and the upper body pushed forward is a lot less

If you have trouble distinguishing between pushing your butt back and leaning your upper body forward, stand about eight inches from a wall or similar obstacle. Then, gently push until your buttocks touch the wall—without leaning into it. Your upper body should lean forward just enough to counterbalance the backward motion of your hips.

“Two hands on shoulder” – We used this scenario to show how you can neutralize a much stronger opponent’s grip without direct resistance. The key mechanic here is similar to a door stopper or a pebble in the track of a sliding door—a small but strategic action that disrupts movement.

“What if it change to grabbing your shirt?” – When a conflict escalates to a point where an effortless solution is no longer possible, you may need to respond more assertively. For example, I might reach out and press on the opponent’s throat while stepping toward them to regain control and space.

EXERCISES

You don’t always have a partner feeding you pushes or grabs. So it is important to be able to work independently as well as work with a partner when you have a chance.

Reference points and projection – When discussing leverage systems, there is always a pivot point—like the center of a seesaw. The pivot remains fixed, and the board must be straight and strong. We simulate this by projecting a line of force from the belly button through the fingers. In some cases, such as the door stopper example, you need to prevent the opponent from moving with you to create an opening for escape.

Isolation and integration of different body parts – Work on moving individual parts of the body independently. For example:

• Draw circles with your shoulders, both forward and backward.
• Try arm circles—one arm forward while the other moves backward.

Caution: Move slowly and mindfully. Don’t hurt yourself.

Squat – Stay in a squat position until your legs start to burn and shake, then sustain it for an additional count of eight. This builds both strength and mental endurance.

Do you know why we keep the back parallel to the ground in this squat?

DISCUSSION

What if I don’t see the attack coming?

As we always say: “You cannot defend against what you cannot see.” While that’s generally true, there are still important things to keep in mind.

First, you must focus on surviving the initial attack. This often means enduring some pain, since you may get hurt during the conflict—hopefully nothing serious. Only after that can you look for opportunities to respond.

Most of the techniques I teach in this class are designed for seniors. I don’t expect you to step into a cage to compete. Real-life situations are very different: there are no mats, no referees, and no rules. The aggressor is often a bully who may be larger, stronger, and faster than you. They may shout, try to intimidate, or suddenly shove you off balance. Fortunately, there are strategies to help you anticipate and minimize these risks, and we’ll cover them in upcoming classes.

There are so many things to remember…

Learning something completely new is always challenging. The good news is that this provides valuable stimulation: it exercises your brain, sharpens your awareness of your body, and increases your alertness to your surroundings.

Over time, it will get easier because all techniques are built on a set of common principles. For example, last week we talked about relaxation and projection. These ideas form the foundation for most of our skills. With practice, they will start to feel natural, and the techniques will begin to make more sense.

Let’s enjoy the learning process together—it’s all part of the fun ride!

SCENARIOS

Practical Fall Prevention: The “unhook” technique

Pavement is often uneven, with cracks, tree roots, or raised surfaces that can catch your foot. This technique helps you recover from a trip by focusing on how to quickly free a foot that has become caught on an obstacle.

The Principle of Moving the Target in Self-Defense

Instead of trying to block an incoming attack—which is often ineffective—the priority should be to move your body or head (the target) out of the attack’s path. Avoiding the strike is far more effective than trying to stop the force, especially when facing a stronger opponent.

The Role of Relaxation in Absorbing and Redirecting Force

When pushed or attacked, our natural instinct is to tense up. However, tensing makes you less stable and more vulnerable. The correct response is to stay relaxed, which allows you to absorb and redirect the force, maintain balance, and even catch the attacker by surprise.

Techniques for Rebalancing and Stabilizing the Body

When your balance is compromised, the key is to use your hips and butt to counterbalance the force and regain stability. With practice, this can become instinctive—especially useful in situations where you don’t have the space or time to take a step.

The Psychology and Decision-Making of a Self-Defense Encounter

Self-defense is not only about physical techniques—it also involves understanding the attacker’s psychology and making conscious choices. You must decide whether engaging physically is worth the risk. The goal is always survival, not “winning.”

EXERCISES

Correct Hamstring Stretching Technique

• The bending motion should come from the hips, not the spine.
• Keep the knee of the stretching leg locked straight.
• Square the hips.
• Sit tall with your chin extended forward.
• Pull the toes of the stretching foot back toward the shin.
• Push the tailbone backward to intensify the stretch.
• Hold the stretch for at least 10 seconds, or until the sensation eases.

Low Squat

How long should I stay in the squat position?

• Everyone has a different starting point. Stay in the position until your body tells you to stop.
• Don’t quit just because it starts to “burn” or feel uncomfortable. Avoiding challenge over time reduces your capacity.
• When your legs start both “burning” and “shaking,” push through for a little longer—about 8 seconds. This builds not only strength but also mental toughness.
• As seniors, we often live within an arbitrary “box” of self-limitation. You must learn to push boundaries—without pushing yourself to extremes.
• If you’re getting stronger and can hold for over 5 minutes per session, that’s plenty. There are ways to make the exercise harder without increasing the time. Since time is also limited, come talk to me for adjustments if you’re ready to take it further.

DISCUSSIONS

Introduction

This is the first day back. We have 13 participants, with about half returning from last season and half joining for the first time. This is a great mix because it creates opportunities for you to learn from and help each other. Teaching or explaining to others helps reinforce what you learned last season. If you find you cannot clearly explain something, it may mean you don’t fully remember the key points—so don’t hesitate to ask questions.

Each time we revisit material, you gain a deeper understanding and appreciation of the subtleties that make a technique work. Over time, instead of remembering details as steps in a technique, you begin to see them as broader concepts. These concepts not only apply to different techniques but can also carry over into everyday life.

For returning participants, we won’t repeat everything from last season. You will learn new skills, but we will also revisit some “old” material when relevant. I want you to notice how a technique feels slightly different each time you try it with a new partner. The key is to make a technique—or the idea behind it—work against anyone, in any situation.

This season (September to December), the focus will be on learning how to generate more power with the body you have now—without relying on being able to do 100 pushups or sit-ups. My goal is always to make things practical and relevant as soon as possible, not 10 years down the road.

What to look at and feel?

When you watch me demonstrate a skill—or when you experience it directly as part of the demonstration—it’s important to ask: What should I be looking at? How does it feel?

When you watch a demo, do note which body part is passively being moved, which body part stays static and which body part initiates the movement. For example, imagine someone sleeping on a bus. Many would conclude that both the person and the bus are moving. In reality, the bus is moving, while the sleeping person is being moved passively. This distinction changes the mechanics completely.

When practicing getting out of grabs, pay attention to what you feel through the point of contact. Which parts of your body remain free to move without any restraints? In many wrist-grab situations, your fingers, elbows, or feet remain mobile. The solution almost always comes from using these free-to-move parts rather than struggling directly against the grab at the point of contact.

SCENARIOS

I like to use “getting out of a wrist grab” as the gateway to understanding effortless power. It’s simple, yet it demonstrates how effective techniques don’t require muscle strength or speed. Just as important, I want to show you how to position yourself strategically afterward—remaining relatively non-aggressive while guiding the situation with calm words and body language.

Wrist Grabs

1. To escape a wrist grab, don’t yank. Instead, relax your fingers and draw your hand out over the opponent’s wrist using a gentle, non-forceful motion.
2. For an overhand grab, identify the weak point of the grip—where the thumb meets the fingers. Press toward that spot. This “inside pressing” works because of the natural weakness in that part of the grip.

Some Key Mechanics

Power of intent – Many have heard about the connection between mind and body, but it often sounds abstract. In class, we experimented with the “firehose method” and directly experienced how intent can change outcomes.

Leverage – Trying to fight someone larger using only arm muscles at the contact point won’t get far. Leverage amplifies your strength and makes techniques work more efficiently.

Move your whole body – When moving, take confident, purposeful steps instead of timid, small ones. Project your center of gravity through your arm so there are no “leaks” in your movement.

De-escalation – After applying a technique, position yourself strategically and use a calm voice to redirect the person’s attention. Ideally, they’ll forget about you as a target.

EXERCISES

Stand on one leg – For seniors, I don’t recommend kicks during self-defense, as standing on one leg reduces balance and increases risk. However, since falling is a major everyday risk for seniors, practicing one-legged balance exercises is very important.

Isometric chair exercise – Sit with your hands placed on a chair beside your thighs. Lift your knees off the floor while pressing your hands down. This works your pushing muscles as well as your abs and hip flexors.

Hamstring stretch – This simple, on the chair common hamstring stretch is often done incorrectly:

• Keep your foot flexed (toes toward shin/ceiling).
• Lock your knee straight—don’t let it bend.
• Instead of rounding your back by pushing your head down, extend your chest and chin forward.
• Avoid bouncing; slowly extend and focus on feeling the stretch.
• Extend your tailbone backwards and up to maximize the stretch

DISCUSSION

Last class until September

Today is the last class until September. The focus of today’s session was to teach some important exercises that will help establish a solid foundation for the new season.

During the session, we emphasized the efficiency of movement—generating maximum effect with minimal effort. However, this doesn’t mean training isn’t required. You still need to practice in order to program your nervous system so that responses become automatic.

You need muscles to carry groceries or help lift others. You need resistance training to see if you can maintain sustained pressure against an opponent. You need to bear weight to strengthen your bones, joints, ligaments, and more.

Summer is a great time to enjoy the sun—and also a great time to keep up with relevant training.

SCENARIOS

We did not have time to do scenarios. Do read all the notes available on this website.

EXERCISES

Consistency is key with all of these exercises. Try marking on your calendar the days you complete your workouts—it’s a form of positive reinforcement when you see your calendar filled with check marks.

The plank is a great exercise for training most of the muscles in your body to work together, helping you generate whole-body power. A common challenge for beginners is that when they execute a skill, they only copy the outlook of the move and forget about maintaining suitable tension for the rest of their body. Gaining control over your entire body is fundamental in all martial arts styles.

Here are some common mistakes to avoid when doing a plank:

• Core not engaged, causing the belly to sink or the lower back to arch.
• Hips raised too high, forming a triangle shape. Your body should form a relatively straight line from shoulders to heels.
• Shoulders behind the hands instead of stacked directly over them.
• Arms locked out, relying on skeletal support rather than muscular engagement. Keep a slight bend in the elbows to engage your triceps and better connect to pushing/punching mechanics.
• Elbows flared out instead of close to the body. In a guard position, elbows should protect the ribs. Keeping the elbows in also allows the shoulders to relax more naturally, improving endurance and form.

At first, holding the plank position can be challenging. The body weight pressing onto the wrists might feel uncomfortable—but this discomfort is necessary training if you want to develop the ability to deliver powerful palm strikes, such as into an opponent’s nose.

Leg Raise Exercise

Stand with your back flat against a wall. Keep your body upright and your support leg vertical. Slowly raise one leg in front of you while keeping it straight. When you reach your maximum height, pause—and then try to lift it just one more inch. You’ll feel your quads burn almost immediately. Once your leg starts to shake, begin counting to eight, then lower the leg in a controlled manner. Repeat with the other leg.

Key points to keep in mind:

• Your entire body must stay vertical against the wall. Avoid leaning back or tilting your torso to help lift the leg.
• Toes can point outward and stay relaxed—this isn’t a flexibility or stretching exercise.
• If your quads or hip flexors cramp up, perform the runner’s stretch, extending the cramping side behind you to release the tension.

Shift and slide

We did the prep moves which simply bend the knee and lift the heel up. We activate the calf muscles by bouncing on the ball of our foot and landing on the ball of our foot.

• With chest facing sideways (east) and head looking (north) over your shoulder, you shuffle both legs simultaneously backwards. Then you practice shuffling forward
• With the left leading leg, move your right leg sideways first, dragging your left leading leg sideways in the same direction. Remembering which leg goes first may be too hard to remember, simply think open wider and then drag to follow versus using the numbers as in the illustration..
• With a left front leading leg, use the hip to move the entire body around so that the right leg becomes the leading leg.

Common mistakes

• Simultaneous shuffle becomes a step-step two beat stepping.
• During the alternate leg slide, the front leg over stepped and the legs get all crossed up
• During the lead leg switch. only the foot moved, the body remains static. The chest should switch WITH the hip. The head remains facing North.
• You should not be jumping up and down, you should instead be sliding at the same level using mostly your calf muscles.

Prep for mobility

You may notice that the illustration above includes dotted lines in the heel area. This is to emphasize that the heel is slightly off the floor, with most of the weight resting on the ball of the foot. If you watch high-level sports like tennis, where quick movement is essential, you’ll see that almost every player moves on the balls of their feet. This positioning allows for faster and more agile movement.

If you’re learning to jump, start by practicing landings on the balls of your feet after a small hop.

To develop explosive power in your calves and feet, in addition to standard drills like calf raises, try hopping directly upward from a straight-legged position, pushing off using only your feet, calves, and toes. This exercise is excellent for developing quick, non-telegraphed movements. However, you have to land on the ball of your feet. If the landing still create a shock to your legs, you are allowed to add the landing with bent knees.

DISCUSSION

Why self-defense or fighting arts can be a lifetime journey

Our bodies are made up of many muscles and joints. With so many possible combinations, tasks can often be accomplished in more than one way. During our session, we also observed that a person’s intent can affect how a movement is executed. Add to that the external variables—your opponent’s dimensions, body weight, speed, thoughts, knowledge, intent, and more—and it becomes clear that success isn’t about fixed formulas. What matters most are the relative factors: your strengths and weaknesses compared to this specific individual.

Additionally, your ability to adapt and respond improves over time as you face different stressful situations—much like the difference between a seasoned lawyer and a rookie. That is the reason why training with different partners is important. Experience shapes not just what you do, but how effectively and confidently you do it under pressure.

In a video game, if a move doesn’t work, you usually have more chances—and in the worst case, you can just restart the game. But in self-defense, the stakes are much higher. Sometimes, you only get one chance—and you must capitalize on it when it comes.

SCENARIOS

Two hands crossed over – low

You begin to understand why it’s so important to adapt a technique to the situation at hand. Blindly repeating a skill without considering context can actually get you into deeper trouble. In order to make effective adaptations, you must truly understand both the mechanics of the technique and the specific situation you’re facing. Only then can you choose the method that is most efficient and effective for you in that moment.

Necessity of Follow up

Despite our good intentions, there are rare moments when the aggressor simply won’t stop—and in those situations, you must inflict pain or damage to force them to cease their aggression. This is what I mean by follow-up.

When you complete a technique, you’re not pausing for a picture-perfect moment—you’re actively repositioning yourself to limit your opponent’s ability to continue the attack. If they keep resisting, you must be prepared to cause pain. This isn’t a game—it could be a matter of life and death. At that point, you cannot hesitate.

We introduced the 3/4 turn and demonstrated how it can be used as a follow-up after escaping a grip. It’s crucial to keep your opponent engaged throughout the movement. A common mistake is to reposition each body part sequentially without affecting your opponent—this gives them opportunities to recover or counter.

EXERCISES

3/4 Turn adhoc notes

• When learning a new skill, it’s important to start by practicing on just one side.
• I usually recommend starting with your dominant side, as it tends to make the learning process smoother. However, once you’ve learned both sides, shift your focus to the side you struggle with the most—this will help build confidence and improve overall ability.
• Use a fixed reference point for your starting position and another for your end position. This helps avoid confusion, especially when learning turns, where it’s easy to lose track of how many degrees you’ve rotated.
• For the 3/4 turn, your back foot must step past the front foot from behind to complete the turn in a balanced stance.
• Throughout the turn, maintaining your balance is essential—you should not be wobbly or unstable at any point.
• Use a rubber band to add resistance during practice—this helps train your body not to falter when encountering real-world resistance.

DISCUSSION

There are so many pieces to each move—how can we possibly remember them all?

Who says riding a bicycle is easy? Learning it when you’re young is much easier because you’re not overwhelmed by fear. As a kid, you’re eager to learn because it looks like fun. Plus, if your friends are doing it, you want to do it too. From riding a tricycle to transitioning to a two-wheeler, then to an electric unicycle—from being pushed on a bike to finally pedaling on your own, going uphill and downhill, and even experiencing your first fall—it’s all part of the journey of learning and growing. Learning is fun and exciting.

When it comes to your body, there’s no owner’s manual. There are no warranties, and absolutely no return policies. You must learn to use it in the best way possible. Many martial arts teachers present self-defense skills as absolutes—you’re supposed to trust and imitate without questioning or understanding how and why each technique works or fails. This approach does make teaching easier. However, blindly imitated skills may not be adaptable when the assumptions behind them change.

We aim to teach and explain the principles of each skill. Eventually you will see we’re applying the same core principles repeatedly. The number of principles is limited, but it takes time to learn and apply each one successfully. The good news is, once you’ve learned a principle, you can apply it again and again in many different situations. This will make it more useful in real life situations.

If I develop dementia later in life, will I lose everything I’ve learnt?

You need to invest enough time and repetition so that the movements become automatic and effortless. In a real encounter, there’s no time to think or analyze—you must react instinctively. That’s why training until a movement becomes a natural reflex is essential. When you reach that point, the skill becomes truly yours, and it will emerge automatically when needed.

Speed versus more muscles

Functional use of the muscles is essential—not only to create movement but also to maintain a standing position. However, a common mistake is shifting the focus from functional intent to simply contracting muscles. Indiscriminate muscle contraction often slows down movement.

Speed matters. The ability to deliver without telegraphing—i.e., without showing your intent through unnecessary preparation—gives you a natural head start. Reducing the distance also gives you an added advantage. We all understand that having more time to focus and prepare can generate more power. But more power is meaningless if it doesn’t arrive in time. In that case, it’s just wasted effort. The priority must be getting there first—not hitting harder.

Furthermore, if you target softer and more sensitive areas, even a relatively light strike can be more effective. For example, try slapping your palm against your thigh—it might sting a little, but it’s no big deal. However, apply that same force to your nose, and it will likely make your eyes water and cause you to flinch the next time something comes toward your face.

SCENARIOS

Two hands crossed over – low

If you think the two hands version is too complex to remember, do try the following approach:

• reduce the level of complexity by taking away one hand and focus in on one arm.
• so think through what you need to do if you have limited space to work with and which direction is the most vulnerable side of your opponent’s grip. Hint: It is always the direction of where the fingers are pointing. Or imagine what is being gripped is not your hand but a pole, the direction of the length of the pole should be the general direction of your counter.
• If you attempt to move the arm in the direction you aimed at, you will find that it won’t do much because your opponent can neutralize your movement by simply moving along the same direction. To solve that. all you have to do is to use any part of your body to block him from moving with you. (e.g. use you hand to block, use his own hand to block, use any part of your body to block, reversal of direction of movement, etc.)
• When the above step works, then find a way to create a solution that can work when both arms were gripped.

EXERCISE

Flicks

A typical whip-like motion may cause pain, but it usually lacks penetration power. For self-defense, we want our strikes to be destructive.

To achieve destructive impact, you need to generate maximum pressure. This means minimizing the contact area—so the force is concentrated. For that to happen, the strike must land perpendicularly to the surface of the target.

To make this possible, you must adjust the motion slightly so that the final few inches of the strike travel in a straight line toward the target.

A common mistake is to think that “leaning in” adds body weight to the strike and therefore causes more damage. Another myth is to tense up the muscles. Our experiments show otherwise. Staying loose and relaxed allows your body weight to flow naturally to the endpoint of the movement. Muscle tension actually disrupts this transmission—resulting in a strike powered only by muscle speed. “Leaning in” during the hit suffocates the hit instead of helping.

What we want instead is an end speed that accelerates exponentially, producing a much more explosive force. The key is relaxation, not forceful effort.

(Do review the notes from last week about how to avoid “whipping of the head”)

DISCUSSIONS

Warmups – what you need to cover?

For the purpose of self defense, warmups have two goals, either avoid injuries from falling or protect yourself from straining some muscles while trying to exert power. The other thing that you need in self defense is reflex and movement speed. Your mind and body need to be fully awake and alert.

Short Power – The ability to generate short, explosive power is of strategic importance in our system of self-defense. Since we cannot compete in terms of raw or absolute speed, we must rely on relative or smart speed. The first simplest way is to always find the shortest path possible. A large, swinging punch—like those seen in old John Wayne movies—will likely never land, whereas a short, explosive flick targeting sensitive areas of the body may be far more effective. The ability to use short, explosive power means that even if you miss, you can continue your attack or flow without needing to pull your punch back to strike again. Resetting requires covering more distance, which takes more time.

SCENARIOS

Cross-arms two handed grips – low

One way to determine which direction to escape is by looking at the direction the fingers are pointing. In this specific case, the grip—and therefore the fingers—is facing downward. Thus, the escape direction is also downward. Although this may seem like a difficult grip to break, all you need to do is use any part of your body to stop the grabbing arm from following the hand that is trying to escape. In class, two or three variations of this technique were demonstrated.

General principle of all of the escapes

Notice that there are multiple elements at work for each of the escape skills.

• Direction of escape – Moving into the palm is usually the wrong direction. Instead, follow the opening or the direction the fingers are pointing.
• Projection and leverage – You need to project force to create a rigid structure, allowing your arm to function like a crowbar.
• Movement of body parts other than the part being held – Typically, you do not move the body part being gripped. Instead, you move another part of the body that has room to maneuver. This helps avoid direct, point-to-point resistance against the opponent’s force.
• Amplification of movement through twists and bends – Twisting the wrist during the technique amplifies its effectiveness. A bent arm can also act like the “lip” of a crowbar, adding leverage without needing more space..

EXERCISES

Flicks

Sometimes I refer to it as a whip or a wave. The physics behind this movement rely on the conservation of momentum. With more weight at the end and less at the tip, this principle ensures that the tail always moves the fastest. Speed is a crucial factor when it comes to hits or impacts. A strong person can push or lift heavy objects, but it’s speed that causes pain on impact.

One common challenge is learning not to tense the muscles. Another key aspect is ensuring that the “whipping” motion propagates through the arms and hands—while also controlling the head to prevent it from being “whipped” along with the arms. The solution is to slightly tense the neck, allowing the force to travel cleanly through the arms without disrupting head control.

DISCUSSIONS

Exertion of force – Our first choice is always trying our best to navigate some else’s aggression by diverting it and using all possible effortless methods assessable at the moment. However, there are always that one in a hundred individual that don’t know when to stop and you have to apply force. Right now is just the start of a whole series of discussion related to this topic and we start with the most simple technique of a push. Common mistakes:

• Leaning into the push thinking that adding body weight adds to the push – when you lean-in and tense up your body, you actually halved the weight of your body. The tension of the body converts the system into that of a hand-dolly.
• Tensing up the entire body as the means to provide power.
• Body doesn’t work together as a unit, causing leakages.
• Directing power into the aggressor’s support leg

SCENARIOS

We went through most of the one or two handed grips. We try to match people with different partners so that they understand the need to adapt. The following questions were raised:

• How to manage distance? Seems like when someone grab and pull, the techniques don’t seem to work.
• What can you do if the other person turn in the same direction as you?
• What is meant by “the power leaked away”?

How to manage distance? If the aggressor grab and then pulled and walk away, most people’s instinct is to tense up and resist. However, if you walk in the same direction matching his steps, you can maintain the same distance. Then, the techniques that you learned in stationary pose will work.

What if the other person go in the same direction as you, neutralizing the crowbar? – When you learn the technique, you are the one who is moving to get out from the grab. If the aggressor move in the same direction as you, all you have to do is to stop rotating or go the opposite direction. Remember the technique’s key requirement is that you need to change the relative angles between the arms of the aggressor and you. Of course, one of the option is for you to move. However, it will work just fine if “the mive” is initiated by him to while you stay static. Similarly, or if both move in the opposite direction, the prying effect is retained.

What is meant by “the power leaked away”? – the human body consists of many parts. Delivering power from one end of the body to another requires tight cooperation between all parts of the powertrain. Failure of any of those parts to connect properly will cause a huge lose of power. We call that “leakage” just like a leak of a pressure cooker.

EXERCISES

We identify the major muscle groups that power the stride. Furthermore, we added active action of the leading leg to help improve explosiveness to the move.

DISCUSSIONS

Practice by yourself

I’m very happy that one of you showed me how she practiced on her own at home. She stood facing the mirror, placed her hand and wrist on the ballet barre, and practiced the “crowbar method.” Here are a few things that can be improved:

• If you are perpendicular to or directly facing the mirror, you can only turn a maximum of 90 degrees. However, if you stay close to the barre on one side, you can achieve nearly a full half-turn (180 degrees). This increased range of motion helps in applying leverage.
• Your wrist and hand must move together with your body and steps—not before and not after. The entire side should work as a single, solid steel bar.

What Do You Gain by Reading the Class Notes?

When I teach in a live class, I don’t always have the opportunity to check whether any of you missed key points—whether due to something I accidentally left out or a moment of distraction on your part. Some ideas might even go over your head the first time you hear them.

By listening to or reading the notes, you can revisit the ideas, concepts, and key points as many times as you need—until they truly become your own.

Question: “I tried a technique on my friend, but because I did it slowly, he was able to adjust before I finished.”

The step-and-turn, when done correctly, creates enough amplification that your single movement can force your opponent to take three or four steps in response. Watch out for the following common mistakes:

• Taking small, hesitant steps instead of one big, decisive step.
• Separating the body turn, step, and arm twist into a sequence. These movements must be initiated and completed simultaneously—as one unified action.
• Lacking stability. You need to practice the step and twist repeatedly to eliminate wobbling. Your whole body—from your feet to your fingertips—should be firm and controlled, but not stiff.

Notes on Speed and Use of Muscles

When a student asks me to hold her wrist so I can give feedback, I often notice the following issues:

• She has to pause and think hard before recalling which technique to use.
• She tends to rush through the technique, relying on muscle strength and speed.

Trying to overpower or outpace me during practice doesn’t help you learn. Realistically, I am stronger and faster than you—just as a real aggressor would be. Competing using your weaker attributes doesn’t make sense. More importantly, your current goal is to improve your technique. Excessive speed or force only makes it harder—for both you and me—to identify what needs improvement. A correct technique feels almost effortless.

The Concept of “Perpendicular”

When force is applied in a straight line at 100%, a sideways force—applied perpendicular to that line—can deflect it, shifting it off target.

This concept of the perpendicular is extremely important. To maximize impact when striking, the blow must land perpendicular to the surface of the target. Otherwise, part of the force will be deflected and the impact reduced.

The same principle applies in defense. When a strike or push comes straight at you, simply changing the angle of the surface receiving the force can significantly reduce its effect.

SCENARIOS

If You Have to Think Before You Act, You Haven’t Practiced Enough

You need to practice on your own at home. With six days between classes, even practicing just once on your own doubles your weekly training time—a 100% increase. This can help you absorb the material in half the time.

Practicing with people outside of class also introduces different body types and situations, which builds adaptability and confidence.

If you’re unable to physically practice, reading the notes and mentally visualizing each scenario can still help reduce—or even eliminate—that “let me think” hesitation.

Common Mistakes in the “Two Hands to Two Hands High Grip” Practice:

• The sink in “relax and sink the palm” was done using muscular force. Signs of this include lifted shoulders or the feeling of actively pressing down. This might work if you’re stronger than your partner, but if you’re physically similar, you’ll get stuck. The movement should be relaxed and natural, not forced.
• The direction of the sink was aimed toward the open center space, instead of over the forearm of the gripping hand. It should go into your partner’s structure, not just downward.
• The step and turn should move toward the center of the opponent—not to the outside. Turning away leads to less control and leverage.

EXERCISES

Remember, you need to train not only your body but also your mind. Learning to stay relaxed under stress is very important. Take time to figure out what kind of training works best for you to develop that calm focus.

You also need to train your body to move as a single, unified whole. So the question is: how can you train that?