An Eternal Student said:
This is something I've been thinking about recently, and I wanted to run it by a few other people and find out what they think.In general, martial arts training is desgined to fight mutliple opponents.Our forms and katas are constructed with this specific aim.Whne we perform these, we keep moving, going from each threat that presents itself to us and dealing with it.There's no standing around and testing the opponent, no back and forth exchange of blows just attack,defend and win.
However whenever we do sparring training we're not really doing that.You have two people line up against each other, probing and testing each other, shuffling back and forth, having way more time think about it than you you're going to have in an an actual fight.
So are we creating a conflict or hesitation in ourselves by doing this?We practices movements for fighting mulptiple threats, constantly moving and not getting a chance to really think.(Because if you do try and think too much it screws up your movements anyway)
Then we try and put this training into practice by focusing on a single threat, which isnt properly committed to attacking you and taking you down, and so we shuffle back and forth and inevitable think about things too much.
Any thoughts?
Depends on the mindset behind the training.
The simple reality is that it's impossible to train for real fights. You're training or you're fighting. There's a line between the two. The closer you get to that line in training the more dangerous your training becomes. It's good to push that envelope and test yourself but if that's all you ever do then all you're doing is testing and not developing and you're playing russian roulette with a revolver that has three rounds in it ... eventually someone's going to get hurt (i.e.: be forced out of training and/or work for a time) and that's counterproductive to the whole endeavor.
The intention behind training should be to develop our tools. Once we've developed them as far as we can in a cooperative environment - which doesn't mean the same as a "coddled" environment - then it's time to push that envelope and start testing the material. Some material reaches a point of testability sooner than others.
It's true that we will, to a large degree, fight how we train. But it's impossible to train how we fight. The
only way to do that is to go get in real fights.
Yes, the boundary between sparring and fighting can be pushed. Some prime examples are the UFC, NHB and Dog Brothers. All of these take sparring to a place where it's right on the edge of being a
fight. But they're still toeing that line between sparring and fighting.
At the other end of the sparring spectrum you've got point sparring. Point sparring has its place. If you can control the range and the fight and remain aware of your surroundings (i.e.: where the refs are and what they can and can't see) then those are useful attributes in any confrontation. Yes, it will be harder to remain aware of your surroundings in a real fight. But if you've never trained it in any way, shape or form, then your chances of doing so are even slimmer.
Training - developing our tools - just increases our odds in a fight.
The problem comes in when people think that sparring - of any type -
is fighting. It's not. Even at the most extreme levels like UFC and Dog Brothers, it's still sparring.
Some things that, to me, define the line between sparring and a fight are:
A known environment
A known number of attackers
Knowledge of weapons involvement
There are rules - written or not
... i.e.: eye gouges and biting aren't commonly allowed
Knowing you're about to mix it up
... with someone else who's ready and trained to fight
... who knows they're about to mix it up with you
And these are just a few of the items that separate sparring from fighting. Of course, these elements can be fudged with to a certain degree. You can, for instance, put a group of unknown people around the fighters and some of them can jump in whenever they want. Or toss random weapons into the mix. Or cause distractions (a glass of cold water tossed on a fighter will usually give his opponent a few openings). You might even set up ambush scenarios. But, as I said before, the closer you get to a
real fight, the higher the chances of someone getting hurt.
These distinctions are important to recognize and remember. But I've found that training with
intent is vital.
In the Filipino arts, we regularly hit each other's sticks in training. We tell people that our intention is to hit the hand or forearm. I've met people who didn't train with that intention. They did get into the habit of hitting the stick and even when they'd put on gear and go full contact, they'd hit the stick. I've always kept that intention in mind. I'm aiming for a specific point on the stick. I'm hitting that point intentionally and always thinking about where I'd want to hit their hand/forearm. I find that when I put on gear or have a padded stick I hit their hand/forearm with no problem or stutter.
I compare it to target practice with a bow or firearm. If I train to hit the target with accuracy then it doesn't matter whether the target is a spot on a stick, a hand, a head or anything else. I hit it with accuracy when I aim for it. Keeping my intention in mind during training means that I'm not allowing my body to program a reflex to hit the stick but rather I'm programming my body to hit where I aim.
I hope that made sense.
I compare sparring to a wind tunnel for testing aircraft. Does it simulate reality? No. But it adds elements that are guaranteed to be present in reality while keeping the exercise in a controlled and safe environment where it can be analyzed for problems. Then those problems can be ironed out in the lab.
In martial arts, we spar to find problems that we need to isolate. Then we isolate those problems and develop them farther. Then we spar again and isolate new problems.
Slow sparring or point sparring can also be useful as part of the developmental process. If, for instance, you find yourself always using a particular technique as a finisher but you want to develop another finishing technique then you can restrict yourself to that technique during light sparring. You're
not going to go to your comfort zone. You force yourself to work with a handicap. This can also be done by only using one hand, not allowing yourself to use kicks or punches, only allowing yourself to you kicks or punches, only allowing yourself to defend, etc. But I consider these methods to be most effective for higher ranks who've already developed a solid foundation.
Overall, I think sparring should be used for testing material that's already been developed. The testing should lead to isolation of problem areas that can then be taken back to regular training to be analyzed and developed further.
Mike
). Personally, I believe that the most valuable things you're training when you spar with a single opponent is your sense of timing, and how to control distance.
) respond as your training has thus far taken you. Mine has and I continue to train whenever/however I can. 
