FMAs seem to very diverse. No surprise I guess, considering the diversity of the Philippines. Something like 7,000 islands in the cultural crossroads of the South China Sea. So not surprisingly, FMAs may use the same names, such as Eskrima, Arnis or Kali but be very different not only in their appearance, but right down to their conceptual root.
For example, even when practicing with the same kind of weapon such as a single stick, you may encounter differing approaches. The two FMA systems I've had the most exposure to tend to stress simple direct movements that are very compact and economical. Strikes are typically short and explosive. Most often they are delivered without a "wind-up", that is to say that they are not retracted before delivery, and they do not "follow-through" past the target. Instead the movements are kept tight, and redirected into a follow-up, sometimes changing direction pivoting on a pin-point.
Some other FMAs I've seen often seem to favor much larger movements, with considerable retraction or "wind-up" and a complete follow through past the target, with the weapon often wrapping around the practitioner's waist before flowing back into the next movement.
Here's a good clip of some polished single-stick work showing some larger movements, involving both "wind-up" prior to execution and strong "follow-through":
I had a bit more trouble finding a good clip showing more compact movement without a lot of "follow through" but this seems to fit the bill. I stumbled across the second clip and thought it was pretty cool. It shows the same kind of demo in super slow-mo like how they photograph bullets. You can see the hard rattan stick bending with the force of the "short-power" acceleration. And the guy demonstrating this is in his sixties!
Different guy, coming from the same system. Not a very good video, but shows some very compact movements (with a variety of weapons) used to shut down the opponent:
What I do now has a lot of this compact stuff and some of the longer movements with more follow through. IMHO each has it's place. Just wish I could generate power like in those Latosa clips! So How about you guys. What do you favor?
For example, even when practicing with the same kind of weapon such as a single stick, you may encounter differing approaches. The two FMA systems I've had the most exposure to tend to stress simple direct movements that are very compact and economical. Strikes are typically short and explosive. Most often they are delivered without a "wind-up", that is to say that they are not retracted before delivery, and they do not "follow-through" past the target. Instead the movements are kept tight, and redirected into a follow-up, sometimes changing direction pivoting on a pin-point.
Some other FMAs I've seen often seem to favor much larger movements, with considerable retraction or "wind-up" and a complete follow through past the target, with the weapon often wrapping around the practitioner's waist before flowing back into the next movement.
Here's a good clip of some polished single-stick work showing some larger movements, involving both "wind-up" prior to execution and strong "follow-through":
I had a bit more trouble finding a good clip showing more compact movement without a lot of "follow through" but this seems to fit the bill. I stumbled across the second clip and thought it was pretty cool. It shows the same kind of demo in super slow-mo like how they photograph bullets. You can see the hard rattan stick bending with the force of the "short-power" acceleration. And the guy demonstrating this is in his sixties!
Different guy, coming from the same system. Not a very good video, but shows some very compact movements (with a variety of weapons) used to shut down the opponent:
What I do now has a lot of this compact stuff and some of the longer movements with more follow through. IMHO each has it's place. Just wish I could generate power like in those Latosa clips! So How about you guys. What do you favor?
Last edited by a moderator: