Q&A

[Mark Jakabcsin]

This morning I received the following question from a budding study group in the Hope Mills, NC area. I think it is an interesting question with many possible answers. I also think that many groups have experienced or will experience the same situation, hence I thought to post it here. You can see my response below and I hope others will add in their experiences and thoughts.
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Hey Mark,

Things are going good. The cohesiveness of the group is growing stronger and we are moving better. But I have a question about some training. We have been doing a lot of sensitivity training and push training and now whenever I try to perform a take down on one of the faster learning guys he is beginning to flow and go and evading pressure to the control points. I am also doing the same. I can still take him down, but I have to almost "set him up" or wait for the right time in order to bypass his evasiveness and take him down. Any thoughts?

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Trip,

Back in 1990 when I was stationed in San Diego I had a buddy that I played racket ball with every day. We were fairly evenly matched. We played at least 4 days a week at lunch and sometimes after work as well. We both improved quickly as this was the first time either of us played so consistently.

Even though we both improved we started to notice that our points took longer and longer to score. Unless one of us hit the perfect kill shot a volley would last a long time. Eventually one of us mentioned it to the other and we both felt it was strange but had no explanation. Both of our skills were improved, it should be easier to score not harder.

Then one day when playing I realized that I was running to the spot Brian would hit the ball long before he even hit the ball. I also noticed that Brian was doing the same on my shots. Based on the circumstance he knew exactly where I was going to hit the ball and he got him self into place. Sure sometimes he or I would be wrong but we both subconsciously knew the other persons shot preferences and decisions making process and were reacting accordingly.

Being competitive I did not share this information with Brian, I simply started to change my decision making process and take shots I would not normally take. For the next 2 days I crushed him. But Brian was a very smart guy and not shy so he asked me what was different, what had a changed. I wasn't suddenly better than him, I was simply playing unpredictably. Once I explained it he understood immediately and our games were instantly back to even but the volleys were a lot shorter as now one had to play the ball off the opponents racket instead of knowing where the ball was going before hand.

The smaller the training group the more likely this is to happen. When we learn what works well for us we tend to repeat it over and over in the same situations. Hence a training partner you train with regularly will learn, subconsciously, what you are going to do and react with that knowledge. This makes it difficult to execute your take down as your partner is reacting before you or at the same time with the knowledge of what you are attempting. Hence the first possibility is your reactions are known by your partner before you even do them. Slow way down so you can a) study what your responses are & b) try new stuff.

Another possibility is that everyone's form is getting much better. Taking someone down with poor form is pitifully easy and requires minimal skill. This can make us think we have good skills but in truth it is a reflection on the poor form of our partner. Funny thing is once our partner starts to understand good form and how to move with good form reality sets in and this partner becomes far more difficult to take down. This often leads us to question our skills (good if done in a positive manner) and to try harder (bad as this creates tension).

The training answer is to slow way, way down and look to see why things are not working as you like. There is a good chance you are forcing when you feel him escaping, instead move with him and use his escaping motion to take him down. These situations are dynamic so the 'right' answer in one-second is the 'wrong' answer the next second. Systema is about letting go of right and wrong and simply working in the second at hand. By doing so you are working 'with' your partner instead of against your partner. Vladimir was pointing this out to me the other week in Manassas. Several times he came over and told me my physical motion was good but I was working against my partners which was making it much more difficult and reducing the chances of success. On the occasions that I was able to muster the proper mind set I could feel the difference, it is vast. Move/work 'with' your opponent EVERY fraction of a second, knowing that every fraction is very different from the one before and needs to be handled in that light.

At the workshop in December you will have many more people to work with. Some of them will have very good form and good movement. Some of them are new and will be easier to work with. Take advantage of the new bodies and work with as many folks you do not know as possible. You get to work with Dustin and the boys regularly so during the workshop work with as many different people as possible.

Take care,

Mark J.

[Bradley Scheel]

Marc: very nice post.
If the situation presents itsself, do not want to take your opponent down. The wanting creates a blindness in us. A tension too, I suppose.
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Live your life in such a way that when your feet hit the floor in the morning, Satan shudders & says..."Oh sh&t*....he's awake!!"

[RachelKlingberg]

Thank you for sharing your correspondence, Mark. That was very helpful and informative to read.

I would suggest the 'ballroom dancing' drills because the outcome is less predictable and therefore harder to avoid than a takedown. No doubt you are familiar with them, but I will describe them using the generic third-person 'you' for the benefit of anyone reading this forum.

Stand at a natural distance from your partner, and push or pull him as you would for a typical Systema yielding warm-up drill. Each push or pull should correspond to one step by both you and your partner as you move around the room. Your partner should not move until he feels your push or pull. If your partner begins to move before rather than after the push or pull, slow down and push or pull less frequently until the rhythm is restored. To an outsider, it will look very much like dancing. Both partners should remain inside the 'hula-hoop'-sized imaginary area that encompasses them so this will involve turning, pivoting, and relaxing the axis of the hips and shoulders. This is not the same as the 'grab-and-escape' drill; it is for developing sensitivity.

Once you have mastered that, try the same exercise with one or both partners' eyes closed. When you are both confident that you can remain within the imaginary area with only your sense of touch and intuition, try the foot-stepping drill, which is more like a game from childhood than a drill. Stand at a natural distance from your partner, and raise your hands above your head. Your partner should raise his hands, too. This will help keep your eyes up. Relax your eyes with an unfocused gaze. Then attempt to step on your partner's toes, while he attempts to avoid having his toes trodden upon. This is quite difficult. The idea is not to see if you can break your partner's toes. If you are stepping on his toes over and over again, slow down to the point where he is escaping most of the time. If you are unable to step on his toes, try going a little faster or use false visual cues, such as looking off to one direction and stepping in another, or dropping your right shoulder but stepping to your left.

I find these drills useful for developing better timing and sensitivity to movement, which are helpful in physical conflict situations. These recommendations are not based on my expertise with Systema but rather upon my extensive collection of Systema drills in my training notes from the last five years.

*Vsego nailuchshego* (best wishes),
Rachel
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There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact. - Sherlock Holmes