A question

[Juany118]

While I do not study JKD, rather Wing Chun and Lacoste-Inosanto Kali, I think L-IK teaches me the philosophy of JKD, where Bruce Lee came from a WC/Chinese Martial Arts starting point Guro Dan came from an FMA/South Pacific starting point. That said I wonder if you can apply JKD concepts to any "well rounded" martial art.

What I mean is this. All Martial Arts teach you to understand and listen to your body. If they are well rounded they teach you not only one range, but to strike but all ranges (yes WC has a "kicking range" contrary to popular belief). They teach you weapons, even if only a select few (such as again WC with "only" the Butterfly knives and long pole.)

Now L-IK teaches me weapons from the get go along with empty hand, I still have to reach the WC stage where I am introduced to weapons so there are some differences in the order of teaching. However I have worn a Green uniform or a Blue one for over 25 years now, perhaps this gives me a different perspective on fighting? I will Use WC as the example as it is often seen as more "limited".

When I WC I am confident in a kick to the chest and not a "simple" front kick because I know and listen to my body. L-IK didn't teach me that, I just know I can make it work. I equally know my WC won't permit a "proper kick" to the head in a real fight because my body doesn't permit that (I am old with bad hips after carrying to much gear for too long lol).

This is not to disparage JKD, I know people that have studied it and are AWESOME fighters. I just wonder sometimes whether or not the real idea behind JKD is to study any well rounded Martial art, that lets you learn your strengths and weaknesses, and then open your mind to the possibilities of what that understanding has brought you.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

While I do not study JKD, rather Wing Chun and Lacoste-Inosanto Kali, I think L-IK teaches me the philosophy of JKD, where Bruce Lee came from a WC/Chinese Martial Arts starting point Guro Dan came from an FMA/South Pacific starting point. That said I wonder if you can apply JKD concepts to any "well rounded" martial art.

What I mean is this. All Martial Arts teach you to understand and listen to your body. If they are well rounded they teach you not only one range, but to strike but all ranges (yes WC has a "kicking range" contrary to popular belief). They teach you weapons, even if only a select few (such as again WC with "only" the Butterfly knives and long pole.)

Now L-IK teaches me weapons from the get go along with empty hand, I still have to reach the WC stage where I am introduced to weapons so there are some differences in the order of teaching. However I have worn a Green uniform or a Blue one for over 25 years now, perhaps this gives me a different perspective on fighting? I will Use WC as the example as it is often seen as more "limited".

When I WC I am confident in a kick to the chest and not a "simple" front kick because I know and listen to my body. L-IK didn't teach me that, I just know I can make it work. I equally know my WC won't permit a "proper kick" to the head in a real fight because my body doesn't permit that (I am old with bad hips after carrying to much gear for too long lol).

This is not to disparage JKD, I know people that have studied it and are AWESOME fighters. I just wonder sometimes whether or not the real idea behind JKD is to study any well rounded Martial art, that lets you learn your strengths and weaknesses, and then open your mind to the possibilities of what that understanding has brought you.

I've always seen the philosophy behind JKD as being something along these lines. Lee referred to it as a system without a system (or something of that nature), and I think this is what he meant. You learn what you can wherever you can, and you apply what works best for you in any given situation, regardless of where it came from. In my opinion (not necessarily the "rightest" one out there), this is a natural end point for any training. I studied a bit of FMA last year, and that led to some adaptations in my own JMA-based teaching. I've incorporated a couple of things I learned from Tai Chi (yes, the "old people" version), Yoga asana (sp?), and other sources fairly distant from my art's roots. Yet they all fit nicely, and my students have no notion where each point came from, so it never confuses them.