Can you learn from video?

[Flying Crane]

---Not intentional at all. As I said, even if it was meant as a test, after Flying Crane has so strongly spoken out against this approach it seems he would be doing Guthrie a disserve to even recommend it as a test. And now he admits he knew that there were no videos of Tibetan Crane available anyway. Is not that a bit "disingenuous"?

Hmmm... Except for the fact that I didn't suggest the idea. Guthrie did. He said maybe he would give the video learning thing a try and see what happens. He proposed an experiment, to evaluate the truth in the pro and con positions on this issue.

Since he suggested the experiment, I simply said if he tried it with my art, I could then evaluate the results, um...because it is an art that I do know something about and could evaluate. But guess what? I also said from the get-go that I doubt he would find any instructional videos, I am not aware of any that exist.

This is sad, quite frankly. You are so upset that some of us have continued to challenge your ideas that you are roping any tenuous statements together to manufacture an imaginary argument in support of your position. You know you are doing it, I don't really need to explain this to you other that to let you know that it is obvious what you are doing.

You are pathetic. Your ethics are questionable at best.

 

[KPM]

^^^^ And take a good look in the mirror. The same thing applies to you. You have maintained over and over that I have said something that I didn't and that I reversed my opinion when I didn't despite my best attempts to show otherwise. Is that not pathetic? What is your usual response here...let's see.... Meh! So let's drop it now and move on, as I have already suggested several times.

 

[Flying Crane]

^^^^ And take a good look in the mirror. The same thing applies to you. You have maintained over and over that I have said something that I didn't and that I reversed my opinion when I didn't despite my best attempts to show otherwise. Is that not pathetic? What is your usual response here...let's see.... Meh! So let's drop it now and move on, as I have already suggested several times.

Done. Meh.

 

[Red Sun]

Question: Is there a consensus on whether it's a good idea to train in a dojo if you can only make it out there once or twice a month (or even less often?)

...is this a thing?

 

[Dirty Dog]

Question: Is there a consensus on whether it's a good idea to train in a dojo if you can only make it out there once or twice a month (or even less often?)

...is this a thing?

Training with a good instructor is your best bet. Full stop.
Being able to do so on an infrequent basis will slow your progress, especially in the early stages of training, but any training is better than none.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

Question: Is there a consensus on whether it's a good idea to train in a dojo if you can only make it out there once or twice a month (or even less often?)

...is this a thing?

You go to school to learn. You then come home to train. Sometime if you go to a good workshop, you can learn 3 years training material within 3 hours.

 

[KPM]

Question: Is there a consensus on whether it's a good idea to train in a dojo if you can only make it out there once or twice a month (or even less often?)

...is this a thing?

You find a training partner or two...preferably people from your area that are making the same trek to train with the same instructor....you get a good video camera and tape the instructor's lesson, or whatever homework he/she gives you, or however they want to work it....then you train with your partners with the video as reference material as often as you can between trips to train with the instructor. Definite "thing."

 

[Argus]

So... I'm going to comment here without having read the last 18 pages. Forgive me if I'm totally missing context or am presenting an already well argued point. However, I think I can offer some insight.

I believe that you can learn from videos, for sure - even without prior experience. Why? Because, actually, as much as I fear to admit it, this is exactly what I did as a beginner.

When I showed up to my first class, I already had my stance, punches, and a few other techniques squared away. I tried to hide the fact that I had practiced them, but the teacher was impressed and surprised that I was doing them correctly from the get-go.

Before going to that class, I was expressly told on this forum that I couldn't possibly learn anything from videos, and that I'd be doing everything wrong, but that wasn't the case. I did a lot of things right, and corrected any small errors quite easily, and I think it gave me a good head-start and overall understanding when I did get out to a school and start training there. It also has continued to help as a supplement to my training, as my school was more than 2 and a half hours away. I also recorded my lessons, which helps significantly.

That said, I do not think one can usually learn an entire art from videos. One can do that with something such as HEMA with historical sources along with videos of other practitioners, and a proper, scholastic mindset and approach, however, so it may be more plausible than most would imagine.

It does take, however, very good discernment and self-awareness, and this discernment is not something one gains from experience, but rather from adopting the proper attitude and being able to re-examine one's self. It's a skill/mindset that is not very common among most people.

I think it helps also to have broad experience learning many things before. I am very much a "multipotentialite," or renaissance man, if you will, and have spent countless hours teaching myself everything under the sun. As such, I've gotten very good at being a beginner and know how to go about learning things, forming and reforming habits, and accurately evaluating my progress, ability, and weak points. This kind of experience is something that a lot of people are lacking, as it's common for people to have gone through life just having been spoon-fed everything in school and college, never (or rarely) having ever taken it upon themselves to teach themselves something.

 

[kakkattekoi]

In my opinion....yes!

First, why would so many instructors put out nice instructional DVDs for the general public if they didn't think people could learn from them? Why would people put out youtube videos with detailed explanations if they didn't think people would learn from them?

Second, someone with a good foundation in any martial art should be able to learn something new from video. An absolute newbie that has done nothing martial arts related in the past is likely to have more trouble, but as long as he or she has any physical talent at all they should be able to benefit.

Third, plenty of people have learned that have had limited exposure to the instructor. Maybe they travel or the instructor travels and they received one on one instruction sporadically. Now imagine you had video of those lessons that you could refer back to at will! That is essentially what DVD instruction amounts to.

Granted, nothing beats hands on instruction! At some point the person learning from DVD will have to seek out an instructor for some quality training. But his or her feet should already be firmly on the path compared to someone with no previous exposure at all.

You are not going to learn advanced material very well from a DVD. But most DVDs don't contain the system's advanced material anyway!

If you are already studying a specific martial art, then having instructional DVDs is great to help you remember things and review things multiple times, maybe pick up on things you missed in class, maybe see how a different instructor from your same system explains and does things a little differently, etc.

If you are interested in a specific martial art but don't have an instructor in your area, then DVD can help you decide if this is really what you want to learn prior to traveling some distance to the school you are interested in. But you have to have a partner. Martial arts do not work well when only practiced solo! So grab a friend that is also interested and start working through the instruction on the DVD a little at a time. And have fun! That's the important part!

imo, yes
but need to have a basic understanding of the martial art or someone you can ask when in doubt