Our academy finished out the month with self defense, and while teaching one of the students came up to me and asked what the point of all of this was: the purpose behind the movement. Really she was asking about a specific technique, but it’s a great question to ask: why we put our hands in certain places, move here, place our foot there- so on and so forth.
And the nice thing about jiu jitsu is that 9 times out of 10 there’s an answer behind the movement- the techniques we implement have to do more often than not with real, natural reactions from opponents that work with the mechanics of the body. Sure, there are some fancier techniques out there, but elements of the basics are rooted in sort of common sense, so to speak, which is something all jiu jitsu students should understand before they attempt the fancier techniques out there. Students should understand the key elements of an armbar before they attempt a flying armbar, a kimura before they try… Who knows what.
What I’m suggesting is don’t be afraid to search for the purpose in the movement. When you understand why you are moving and positioning yourself in a certain way, the better you will understand the technique and the “method behind the madness” so to speak. As I’ve mentioned before, you need to understand the basics before you can get to the fancy stuff.
That’s all I’ve got for today, folks- have a great day everyone!
A Skirt on the Mat 