I’m sure you’ve watched videos of real violence.
Have you ever noticed this:
- Trained people rarely display the complex motor skills from their martial training; technique goes out of the window and if they survived they resorted to and reverted to gross motor movement.
- Untrained people survived the same real violence. Of course, they didn’t use complex motor skills (because they weren’t trained).
This raises some serious questions…
How did the untrained people survive?
Does this mean martial arts don’t work?
Does this mean we shouldn’t train?
Fair questions but NOT the deeper point of this article.
The real value is if we can connect the dots…
Both trained and untrained people used fear and instinctive movements to survive true violent encounters!
It was this insight in the mid-1980s that inspired me to create a different way to think about self-defense.
I realized many of us, myself included, had confused the act of self-protection with the study of martial arts, combat sports, RBSD, etc.
That ‘ah ha’ moment led me to develop the SPEAR System® & KNOW FEAR® programs.
By using DNA-level hardwired survival systems — the sciences of neurobiology, kinesiology (biomechanics), and psychology — we can enhance anyone’s safety regardless of whether they’re trained or untrained!
We are human weapon systems!
Real self-defense must ALSO include principles of situational awareness, and verbal de-escalation, to go along with the fear management and primal gross motor movement.
Adding these elements will change your self-defense IQ.
Now back to the original questions:
How did the untrained people survive? In both groups, those who survived tapped into their natural survival instincts and movement.
Does this mean martial arts don’t work? Unfortunately, some martial arts are not well suited to handle real violence.
Does this mean we shouldn’t train? Noooo! We should 100% train! But if YOUR goal is learning skills to navigate real violence, then remember this:
“Be careful what you practice, you may get really good at the wrong thing.”
Coach B
How would you like to learn the SPEAR System® directly from me?
On January 8th I’m starting our next BTS90 training session. We will work together for 3 months and improve your confidence, fitness, and mindset.
The training is designed around the SPEAR System® and the KNOW FEAR® program but is also a complete transformation experience that helps with so many areas of our lives from posture to pain management, from tactical fitness to self-defense tactics.
This program is especially beneficial if you’re an aging athlete!
Open to all levels, regardless of style or experience.