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Fairbairn on the Fairbairn Method
Something for our shooting "enthusiasts" -PRELIMINARY STATEMENTBackground:"Prior to my association with the armed forces of Great Britain and the United States I served as Assistant Commissioner in Command of the Riot Squads of the Shanghai Municipal Police Command from 1925 to 1940. During this period, our force handled over 2000 riot calls of all types and descriptions, including shooting affrays, many of which were against armed robbers and kndnappers.

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Basic Drills
We all have a good foundation in the basic blows and combinations.Think about adding the following drills to your basic syllabus.

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Generating More Power from Hip Rotation - Lessons from Martial Arts
One of the important lessons of Martial Arts training is the ability to use hip rotation as a way to generate power and speed for maximum impact.Martial artists know that the hips are where the body's 'center of gravity' is located.

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Fight Simulator Theory for Reality Based Street Defense
This is such a powerful tool that it should leave no question unanswered for you and allow you to create an infinite number of techniques and drills. As this is a principle rather than a technique based system, here are the principles:PRINCIPLE1: you get what you train forPRINCIPLE2: if you want a specific answer, ask a specific questionWhat's the problem with martial arts and artists? Why do they argue so much? Why cant we find one style that is the best? After all we all only have two eyes, two arms, two legs and one head.

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Things to Know About Learning Tai Chi Chuan (Tai Chi Boxing)
For Easterners, particularly Chinese, this MAY not be an issue. Tai Chi Chuan is deeply rooted as part of the Chinese culture.

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The Rebels Guide to Cultivating Vitality
Many Taoists recluses and Buddhists monks dwelled in mountains and forests to observe, listen, and meditate in order to gather deeper understanding and greater knowledge of nature than is possible when living in the milieu of human society.Often in search of extraordinary longevity and treasures of life, these extraordinary men (and a few women) moved from observation of nature to experimentation and development of the body.

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So You Think You Train Hard
"Tokio Hirano (1922-1993) 8th Dan The Man Who Revolutionized Judo" By Jim Chen, M.D .

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The Acronym That Saved My Life
Frequently, I get asked about certifications, systems or methods. We made a decision a long time ago of purposely staying away from things like this.

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Martial Arts and The Zone
On the occasions you delivered the perfect strike; blocked without the need to think or performed a near flawless kata, did it feel difficult? Or did you get the sense it happened by itself? The 'zone' is a place where athletes describe this sort of experience. Studies suggest its a state of 'effortless merging of action and awareness'.

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The Test
"Will this work so that I can use it instinctively in vital combat against an opponent who is determined to prevent me from doing so, and who is striving to eliminate me by fair means or foul". ~ Rex ApplegateIt really does NOT matter one iota what style, system, method, or technique you MAY wish to apply to your personal survival training.

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Samurai Sword Facts
The first samurai swords we're actually straight bladed, single edged weapons imported from Korea and China known as chokuto, which were later replaced with the curved blade variety at the end of the 8th Century. The name of the curved blade swords which replaced them was Tachi.

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What To Expect When You Least Expect It
The time you will be attacked you will most likely be:Distracted Out numbered Alone There will be no back up You will be in the fight of your life. Specific Defenses don't work.

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Sensing Intention
One of the 'mystical' aspects of the martial arts has always been the ability to feel another persons intention.Sensing intention gives a person the ability to be in instant control of a potentially violent encounter, and it's one of the ways we use the martial arts to test our energy work and meditation skills in Hoshin.

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Im Soooo Confused...
I was going to write about the BASICS of "practical unarmed combat". Things like a solid and productive core of strength training, development of real speed and power.

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Women in the Martial Arts
1st Lady Assistant to Sensei Henry Ellis Ellis Schools of Traditional AikidoI was born in West London in 1963, my father was very involved in the martial arts and a dan grade in Karate he was also a dealer in ancient Japanese arms and armour, although my father has an antiques shop in London's Bond Street, my home was more like a samurai warriors dressing room, with original suits of Japanese armour complete with very frighting face masks that would frighten the life out of my friends when ever they came to visit, there were also very many valuable swords yari and naginata spears.The MastersMy father would travel around the world searching for the best quality weapons, what intrigued me the most as a child was all these strange visitors that would come to my home, the famous Otani family were regular visitors with Sensei Matsuro Otani 7th dan Judo the UK National Coach, Kenshiro Abbe Sensei, Tomio Otani Sensei the UK National Coach for Kendo, his visitors were like the who's who of martial arts, as recently as two weeks ago I was pleased to meet with Sensei Kazuo Chiba 8th dan when he came to see my father.

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Real Life Self-Defense Starts From...
"Nicky Bats" was an "old school" kinda guy. He was "street" thru and thru.

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Do You Take Yours Trained or Untrained?
If you ain't pissing anyone off, you're not doing anything worth while. Like religion and politics, martial arts are not for a lack of its zealots.

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Samurai Swords - Choosing a Sword to Buy
It's undeniable that a well placed and mounted samurai sword or samurai sword set looks fantastic and an ads character to any room of the home, but is it worth spending upwards of $650 on such a sword or sword set? This all depends on your reasons for buying a samurai sword.If you are merely purchasing a samurai sword for display purposes and positioning it as a focal point in a room then you certainly don't need to spend anything like the amount suggested above, you can just go for a relatively cheap manufactured replica with the necessary sword stand.

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Bogu Training
About four years ago Carl recommended we start using the Bogu during our kumite (sparring practice). This method was developed in Okinawa and then found its way into mainland Japan and eventually to the U.

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Content, Are We?
I asked a simple question at the last seminar:"How much has everyone improved in the year since we last got together?"I've practiced the same basics everyday for decades.Everyday Rain or shine.

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