In most, but not all, martial art classes, training with various traditional weapons will always be something that is included to varying degrees, however, ask yourself a very simple question - what are the odds that you will face someone in a street fight who is also carrying a stick, (Bo Staff), Sia, Nunchaku, Tonfa or a Katana as yourself at just the right time?
Countless years of training using a stick, for example, against a fellow student that is also training with a stick is all well and good but what are the odds of that ever happening for real in a street fight situation? What are the odds of you going to the local shop for a bottle of milk and someone attacks you with the very same martial art weapon that you are carrying on that day? In some parts of the world the need to carry a weapon is more than valid but what type of weapon for self defence reasons is a practical one under such conditions? A knife of course does tend to spring to mind but how often do you think someone will attack you with a sword, as a perfect example, and more to the point how often will you carry a sword for the sole reason of self defence yourself when you are out and about? Maybe you are carrying a knife for self protection, and have spent years mastering the art of knife fighting against someone also carrying a knife. Under those conditions your skill at knife fighting may come in very handy but what if your attacker is carrying a Katana or a stick? In that unfortunate situation then for sure your skills at countering a knife attack will be somewhat limited or even pointless at the very least against a stick or sword attack. Of course being very skilled in defending against all sorts of weapons will come in very handy but what are the odds that you will face someone carrying the same type of weapon as yourself on the very same day? The ideal way of doing things of course is to train with someone who has a different weapon to the one you are using so as to master all situations but the question still remains with regard to what are the odds of ever finding yourself in such a situation? What would you do if your assailant was not carrying a weapon at all? Now that for sure is also something else to think about. You may have a Katana strapped to your back for self protection but to use such a weapon against an unarmed man will not look good for you when armed police officers turn up and see you with a weapon but not the other guy who is only using his or her fists. In that situation you would be far more at real risk than the unarmed assailant when it comes to facing deadly force by the police. Maybe learning empty handed fighting skills rather than time spent on weapon practice would be far more practical under those specific conditions? Many within the martial arts will of course say a weapon is a vital extension to empty hand blocking and striking methods, and rightly so to a degree, but blocking strikes and counter striking with a weapon as an extension to empty handed combat methods is not the same in most situations. For example blocking a punch is one thing but blocking a bladed weapon, with or without a weapon of your own, is totally different. For sure you will end up reacting very differently. Bad enough facing someone in a fist fight but the fear factor will be far higher when facing someone with a knife, sword or a blunt weapon that has at the very least the real potential of killing you if you make just one simple mistake. Something else to think about when it comes to a deadly weapon fight is that you will need to cut and kill without hesitation or end up dead yourself. Could you kill someone? Well of course you will say yes to that one. Even if you do have the confidence of standing your ground and have the confidence that your training with weapons will work you still have to ask yourself if you could go all the way and inflict deadly harm on someone that could even result in killing them? Doing such a thing for real is for sure not the same as practising such skills in the nice safety, and fun, environment of the Kwoon, Dojo or gym. The real thing really is on a whole different level. Under that specific situation avoidance methods and counterstrike techniques will be somewhat different unlike a bare fist fight. Or to put it in a more simple way the mindset will be somewhat different with direct regard to being involved in a physical conflict when a weapon is being used against you. Unlike many years ago when being trained in all those various weapons was of a vital necessity in the field of battle, or for protecting yourself constantly from armed bandits, these days many include weapon practice as just a simple way of keeping the traditional combat arts alive or as a sideline hobby in addition to the main part of unarmed combat training. Weapon practice I hasten to add at this point is ideal when it comes to developing good eye and hand coordination and fast reflexes in addition, however, most martial art based weapons are not that practical in a modern day street fight situation for many various reasons. In the case of living in a war zone or a very violent area with the all too real risk of being attacked with a weapon then the need to learn how to use a weapon for defensive purposes is vital, however, not really needed that much these days, or at all, if you live in a somewhat normal safe area. However having empty handed combat skills will always be useful regardless of the area you live in, and you don’t have to worry about it being illegal to carry a weapon or a knife if such strict laws are in place where you are when it comes to empty handed self defence. Martial art weapons will always be part of the combat arts, moreso for competition events and display purposes, but when facing an armed assailant for real then that in every sense of the word is a whole different ball game. When facing someone with a bladed weapon fear will naturally take over and the only thing in most people's minds at that point in time will be to escape, and not stand their ground, and hope they do not get cut and killed while trying to get away. For a related article on the subject of knife fighting click >HERE< Site author >Dave J. Lomas< Comments are closed.
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