Hello Everyone!

A post on another forum brought up the practicality and usefulness of sparring. I replied to that post, and thought I would share my reply with those on this forum. I hope that all of you get something out of reading it! Please feel free to comment!

One of the large JKD groups decided to do an experiment a few years ago using two different schools within the group. One group was to do nothing but drills of all kinds for one year. The other group was to do nothing but spar for a year. At the end of the year, the two groups were to come together to see which group got the most out of this. The group that had done nothing but drills for one year slaughtered the group that sparred for a year! The conclusion: If you know what you are doing, and do the right drills with the proper attitude, you are going to be hard to beat!

I definitely believe that sparring has it's place, but it is not the know all, be all, do all and end all of JKD as some may have you believe! The experiment discussed above proves this! Many Jeet Kune Do practitioners probably believe that if you drill hard enough to get everything firmly ingrained into your neuromuscular reflex system, and train to develop your "killer instinct", that is more important than sparring!

I believe that sparring is good for developing a better understanding of distance, footwork, timing, rhythm, defensive tactics and evasive tactics. But, if you suddenly get bold and do things differently than you would in a real fight, and try things that you normally wouldn't use (stupid moves that may get you killed in the street) just because of having protective gear on, then yes, it is hurting your ability to really apply your art when the time comes!

Also, sparring DOES NOT cause you to "gain real life and death combat mastery", unless you are going all out with no protective gear, no rules, and no concern for your opponent's safety! Oh yeah ... that's called a REAL FIGHT! Sparring is sparring and fighting is fighting. Don't blur the line between just training and reality and you'll be just fine!

Keep Blasting!
Sifu Lamar M. Davis II
Senior Instructor
Hardcore Jeet Kune Do
Sifu@HardcoreJKD.com
JKD@windstream.net
http://www.HardcoreJKD.com
Phone (205) 296-7070 (Incoming Only)

"Hit Hard, Hit Fast, Hit First - ALWAYS!"

"The REAL future of Jeet Kune Do belongs to US, the few, the proud, the HARDCORE! Now, what are we going to do with it?" _ Sifu Lamar M. Davis II

hi sifu lamar,

my point of view about sparring is that it develop aliveness to your tools and techniques for sure.

it is not easy to hit someone that doesnt want at all and sparring makes remember that.

i think that sparring is very important but praticing isolate techniques to.(drilling)

and isolate sparring is very useful to in my point of view to build up a strong understanding of how to apply your things in a alive environement when you dont know what the guy in front of view will do

of course drilling is easier , its not stressing but a person cannot know if he is able to apply what he know except in sparring .

i think the 2 are important but the drilling and techniques learning and drilling comes first ( how can you talk if you dont know any words)

its like if you do car racing you can build the best car in the world but if you never drive it you will not be an super driver

but of course sparring is like close circuit racing and not get away driving :P

its just important to remember that i think and that i think

i faver light sparring whit portective gear cause when you get injuries you have to rest and heal and during that time you cant train and have injuries kind of stay so its not so smart in my point of view.

long post :P i think its my longer ever

sorry for my bad english

take care , have a nice weekend

I have enjoyed many different forms of sparring over the years from point fighting in my early days to heavy contact sparring with protective gear. However over the last several years I emphasize drills and what I believe is a very realistic form of "sparring" I have a four by four sheet of plywood placed on the floor. You and your traing partner face each other on the board. one heel in the corner the other along the flat edge of the board. In this way you are facing in a natural stance in matching lead foot position if you will. You are now the approximate distance of a hand shake. You now may attack or defend from this distance with no preliminary on gaurd posture. This simulates of course the distance and circumstance that attacks often occur in. When sparring begins at this distance a whole new appreciation for timeing and space relation is gained. As you can imagine the encounter ends quickly. Your aim is to learn to defend in this confined space without stepping off the board. Normally a mouth piece is worn but no gloves. Strikes are controlled but light contact is allowed to the jaw, throat, body and groin. In this manner you learn to develop precision rather than wild strikes and you learn to defend rather than relying on the head gear and gloves. When the initial encounter is complete you each move to the next corner of the board. You are now leading with the opposite hand. One complete rotation around the board will provide eight sparring clashes each lasting only a couple of seconds. I have had many experienced artist with loads of sparring under their belts come in to train and have real problems with my mid level students. They are just not used to beginning at this close range. Nor are they ready for the intense forward pressure and lack of "sizeing up and feeling out process" that usually accompanies sparring sessions. I look at this type of sparring as just another piece of the training puzzle.
Thanks
Kimsut

Sifu,

I couldn't agree more with your post. I think sparring is good for developing the attributes already mentioned. However, I think too much sparring can be counterproductive. I feel it develops bad habits. For example, when you land a good shot in sparring you stop to let your opponent recover. Obviously this would be a very bad thing to do on the street. I also feel it can develop a false sense of confidence and too many people in the martial arts world use it as measure of an individuals fighting ability.

It is a shame so many martial artist do not understand the difference between sparring and a real fight. This is probably why a good number of martial artist get it handed to them on the street.

Andrew

Hi Sifu!

I like your post here. I know that you know
what works. Sparring is good for endurance
training and getting used to being hit (to a
degree), timing, etc.

But, I agree with you on the drills. We have
done several at your seminars.

Which JKD drills do you feel are the MOST effective
for real life combat training? I know Lin Sil
Die Dar is probably one, but I would like to get
your response on this and from any others under
you who care to respond.

Thanks again and God bless you.

Dick