COMBAT PHILOSOPHY

 

 

Many believe that the way in which we train is more important than the style we utilize.

The principle of “last man standing’ still holds true in all theatres of warfare and in essence our current systems have been passed down to us by survivors. In this sense the modern athlete has replaced the ancient warrior in pushing the boundaries of mental and physical peak performance. The difference is of course that our lives are not necessarily at stake, unless involved in a street confrontation or as a member of the armed forces. Obviously there are large differences in the levels of threat and stress experienced by a solider in a battlefield and a student in a dojo or an athlete preparing for the Olympics.

There is also limited research into differences between such groups and how the increased levels of stress affect performance. Preparation mentally in each scenario must also be different.

The samurai in ancient times had to prepare their minds for the prospect of certain death, not only to face the enemy, but in order from a Buddhist perspective, to avoid accumulating Karma. As a result they attempted to enter battle in a “No-Mind” state where emotion was laid aside and where their opponent was a dehumanized target upon whom to practice and perfect their technique. Their training was based on the concept of allowing the “spiritual” part of themselves to time the outcome of the conflict, thereby avoiding Karmic accumulation. Most believed in reincarnation, regardless of whether they lived or died. Herrigel refers to this in his book “Zen in the Art of Archery” when he cites the use of sovereign technique as a pre-requisite of perfect performance and that “IT’ (Spirit) fires the arrow.

Modern day athletes refer to being “in the zone”, a heightened state of mental awareness and physical control, to deliver perfect technique and battlefield reports over the centuries have made similar analogy. However, as top performers will tell you, to achieve the zone or impeccable timing and sharpness takes effort and the willingness to train at high levels of intensity. But this is only one part of the equation. Mind set is the other and how often have we seen an underdog win against the odds because they were able to master their fears and body reactions.

As any experienced martial artist will know, when exposed to extreme conditions of threat it is very difficult to control the “fight/flight” mechanism of the hypothalamus, tasked with the job of making large amounts of adrenaline available for “combat”. Unfortunately this is a double edged sword and the main effect is to shut down the fine level motor actions in favour of the gross motor functions. Research has shown that at the cognitive level the response can produce anxiety and a change in our  brain-wave pattern to high beta, when what we require is an alpha brain-wave pattern (associated with “the zone”), coupled with a whole brain response that does not impair analysis of the situation, while allowing our highly practiced combinations to function instinctively.

This is as hard as it sounds however, and research from eye witness testimony highlights the distortions that can occur because emotion overwhelms the analytic functions, especially where weapons are involved. Perhaps this is one reason why there are so few elite athletes with the capacity to remain analytic and effective under maximum stress/threat.

The question becomes how should we, as martial artists, best train to achieve “the zone” and gain the emotional control needed to perform at a high level of efficiency, whether in the Dojo or confronted on the street? Intensity and realism must be part of every training session, getting close enough to physical harm, to raise the threat level thereby affording the right stimulus to condition a reliable and effective response at the physical and mental/emotional level. We owe it to ourselves and our students regardless of age to know that our techniques and combinations work under pressure.  So, what’s the answer? How do we best train to be mentally and emotionally controlled, under pressure and technically competent? How do we practice with intensity and realism without wiping out our “buddies’ and dispatching other students to A&E? Arguably this has to happen on two fronts. First our training has to be as close to reality as possible and should include body armour for protection. Secondly, time needs to be spent on developing the mental state and “ruthless execution” of technique on bags or suitably protected opponents and raising the threat level. Dojo based practice always has the “compliance” handicap and rarely elicits the adrenaline surge of real time street encounters. As a result a street attack can result in a frozen mind and impotence to defend ourselves should we fail to practice appropriately. Training must therefore threaten our ability to cope in order for us to practice control of adrenaline responses that impede performance and mental clarity.