modern arnis- simply effective

>AK)RLD'S L E A D I N G IVIAGAZINE OF SELF D E F E N S E !
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19. NO. 9
Contents
FEATURES
22
MODERN ARNIS: SIMPLY EFFECTIVE-Widely known as Filipino stick fighting, amis offers a
witde range of techniques of particuiar vaiue to persons seeking a quick course in seif-defense.
28
0-SENSEI: AIKIDO'S UYESHIBA—A master of many of oid Japan's martiai traditions, a capabie
philosopher and theologian, and founder of aikido.
36
BIOMECHANICS FOR THE MARTIAL ARTIST—Researchers from the University of iiiinois Biomechanics Research Laboratory offer the karateka important information on response and reaction time.
40
CHOKES AND SLEEPERS—Street techniques that quickiy render an attacker unconscious have
become all the more important due to the growing popularity of the body-numbing, strength-enhancing drug PCP.
48
JUDGING: A PRACTICAL SOLUTION TO AN ON-GOING PROBLEM-A look at the Amateur
Athletic Associatioh's solution for producing fair and impartial judging at tournaments.
54
HOW TO ORGANIZE A SELF-DEFENSE COURSE—A common sense approach to physical and
psychological conditioning aimed at giving the non-martiai artist a fighting chance in the
streets.
58
THE SECRET OF MOMOCHI (Part II)—Rebuffed by Fujibayashi and Momochi, Jintaro Sato approaches Mitsuhide Akechi with a method for "killing two birds with one stone."
62
RYUKYU KEMPO—With roots in Okinawan bushi, ryukyu kempo features a unique biend of
empty-hand and weapons techniques particuiariy weii-suited for fuii-contact sparring.
68
KING OF THE HILL: A STUDY IN ORGANIZED BRAWLING-Aithough the results are far from
conclusive, the current rash of "cross discipline" fighting events poses an interesting format for
the controversy over what tighting style is best.
DEPARTMENTS
ABOUT THE COVER: Remy Presas defends
nimself m n-.ock battle against assistants
Bruce J u c ^ " i C k ifo'eground) and Michael
Replogle ibacKg'oundi, See page 22. Photo
by Marcia MacK.
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EDITORIAL
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
INSTRUCTORS' FORUM
BLACK BELT TIMES
READERS' SURVEY
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And All You Have To Do Is . . .
Act Naturally
by John Hanson
robably the most universal truth
in the martial arts is that no one
can agree on anything.
If there is an exception to this
iron-clad credo—a concept on
which most everyone could safely
stamp their embossed seal of approval—It would be that the primary
goal of any self-defense training is
the ability to react without thinking
22
in a life-threatening situation.
Although each art has its own
stylized blueprint for achieving this
goal, the basic idea is to somehow
convince the student that he really
can defend himself.
For the most part, this is accomplished through the theory that
the student must first master the
basics and become natural with the
often unnatural movements of a
particular style. Through endless
repetitions and hours of practice,
the student will —somewhere down
the line—become comfortable with
his new-found self-defense system.
This traditional "building block"
concept of instruction has indeed
proven successful with students
who are totally willing to invest the
required time, interest and gut commitment to their art.
"The problem," according to
modern amis founder Remy Presas,
"is that many students are not
ready to commit themselves so
thoroughly to a self-defense program. Many people need quick
results, or at least a reasonable
system of rewards where they can
actually see the results of their
labor. This is where amis training
differs ffom most traditional con-
cepts of instruction. Basically, amis
deals with the simplicity of a person's natural movement. Instead of
reprograming a person's natural
movement to fit the art, amis is
adapted to fit the student's natural
movement. The idea here is to give
the student an immediate sense of
accomplishment—to give him
something useful that he feels confident with. If the movement is not"
natural, a person will have to stop
and think, 'Alright, if he grabs me
here I do this, but if he punches me
there I do that.' With amis, the goal
is to develop an individualized system of self-defense based on a person's inherent physical characteristics."
If amis is so personalized, so
easily adaptable and subject to individual modification, is there such
23
a t h i n g as true a m i s ? Is there a
classic or pure form of the art? The
answer, according to Presas, is that
there is an essence
of a m i s , a common d e n o m i n a t o r of c o m b a t principles that weaves Its way through
the more than 100 different styles
of Filipino martial arts. These principles are based o n a pattern of attack angles c o m m o n to all f i g h t i n g ,
regardless of style. A l t h o u g h a m i s
is probably best k n o w n for its use
of rattan sticks and native broadswords, it is actually a c o m p l e t e
martial art system w h i c h features
both weapons and empty-hand combat. Thus, a biock/parry/throw/jab
t e c h n i q u e will utilize the same
basic angles whether the defender
is armed or unarmed.
"The key to any f i g h t i n g is in
learning how to defend against
s p e c i f i c angles of a t t a c k , " says
Presas. " U n l i k e most other martial
arts, a m i s does not so m u c h concern itself with learning specific
defensive moves, as it does w i t h
developing an internal sense for
what your opponent is a b o u t to do.
A l t h o u g h t h i s flow is akin t o the
concept of ki or c h i , it really is
nothing m y s t i c a l . The practical application is to understand the
angles of attack and avoid t h e m by
using your own natural movement
and rhythm. As w i t h a n y t h i n g
physical, once a student practices
long enough, he begins to transcend the obvious m e c h a n i c a l chara c t e r i s t i c s of reaction. He is suddenly able to feel what his opponent is about to do and he can ant i c i p a t e , react and c o u n t e r a t t a c k in
a single m o t i o n .
" B u t w h a t ' s nice about a m i s is
how quickly most s t u d e n t s are able
to pick it u p , " Presas c o n t i n u e d .
"Over the last few years I've been
c o n c e n t r a t i n g primarily on seminars
at universities and s t u d i o s all over
the United States. Usually I'll run a
two-day, eight-hour-a-day program
of c o n c e n t r a t e d i n s t r u c t i o n . The
idea is to get the s t u d e n t s immediately involved in the 12 basic
angles of block and slash techniques. After one session the student will have learned the basics In
single stick and double-stick patterns, as well as a few d i s a r m i n g
techniques. Best of ail, he will walk
out w i t h a t a n g i b l e piece of selfd e f e n s e — s o m e t h i n g that he can
take h o m e and practice on his own
and even teach his f a m i l y and
friends, i encourage people to take
24
the seminar and then just practice
on their own with various partners.
It's really amazing how adept a
first-time student can b e c o m e if he
(pardon the pun) sticks w i t h it."
Presas insists that because a m i s
is so s i m p l e t o learn and requires
no special physical c o n d i t i o n i n g or
raw physical strength, it is particulary well-suited for senior
citizens or persons who are only interested in self-defense. T h r o u g h
federal CETA and state grants,
Presas has c o n d u c t e d s e m i n a r s for
seniors a i m e d at discouraging muggers.
ARMED DEFENSE against an armed
attacker begins with a parry-like block on
the Incoming, overhead attack. Presas
then slides through the block, catching
the attacker's forearm with a downaround-and-upward circular motion.
Catching the attacker at the base of the
neck, Presas has his opponent twisted,
off-balance and on the mat In one
smooth motion.
He points out that a l t h o u g h conventional karate training is great, it
could do elderly persons more harm
than g o o d , since their bones tend
to be brittle and their reflexes considerably slower than a younger attacker.
" A m i s is smoother and less rigid
than karate and it is therefore less
of a strain on an older body," explained Presas. "Plus, a m i s teaches
you t h a t anything can be a w e a p o n .
An umbrella, a cane, a purse or a
pen can give you the added advantage of e x t e n s i o n — a n extra reach
and degree of leverage that c o u l d
be the difference between life and
death."
Presas has been a student of
Filipino martial arts for 20 years. He
holds a bachelor's degree f r o m
Manila's National College of
Physical Education where a m i s has
been offered as a major c o u r s e
since 1969.
EMPTY-HAND technique against an
Incoming punch Incorporates the same
motion as Is used with a weapon. A
forearm block catches the attacker's
punch. With an Inside/out circular
motion, Presas swings the outstretched
arm down, around and upward, sliding
through to grab and twist the attacker's
head for the takedown throw.
A c c o r d i n g t o Filipino history, arnis (also k n o w n as kali or escrima)
dates back t o the seventh century.
In 1521, the Islands were invaded by
Spanish forces led by Magellan. On
the small island of Mactan in w h a t
is now the province of Gebu,
Magellan was slain by the c h i e f t a n
Lapu Lapu, t h u s marking the Philippine's first successful s t a n d
against a foreign invader.
The Filipinos were impressed
w i t h the Spanish sword-and-dagger
style of f i g h t i n g and modified it t o
employ a long and a short stick.
The s y s t e m , k n o w n as espada y
daga (meaning sword and dagger in
Spanish) became one of three
classic f o r m s of a m i s f i g h t i n g ,
w h i c h include solo baston (single
stick) and sinawall (two sticks).
W h e n the Spanish returned and
finally conquered the Philippines,
they o u t l a w e d stick fighting altogether, forcing practitioners to
25
study their art "underground," much
in the same manner that the Okinawans carried on their art during
Japanese insurgence.
"Today, close to half-a-milllon
Filipinos are actively involved in arnis as sport, and it is required study
in all public schools In the Philippines," says Presas.
"The amis you see today has
evolved from centuries of outside
influence. On close examination
you can see elements of tai chi,
wing Chun, aikido, judo, jujitsu,
karate and kendo. Like kempo, it incorporates techniques from many
arts. I think that part of the reason
why it is starting to gain in
popularity is because it can be
readily adapted as a training supplement by most other styles
without contradicting what a student has already learned.
"I'm not trying to change the
way people think or the way they
train," concluded Presas, "and I'm
not concerned about turning out a
lot of clones who do everything exactly the way that I do. What I
teach is that the foundation of the
art is in the individual, and through
amis, anyone can reach their own
potential as a martial artist, simply
and effectively."