One, two and three step sparring

[thesandman]

One step sparring is a common drill for many martial arts styles. Back in the day I did 2 and 3 step sparring as well, but these days that seems to be more rare. Do any of you do 2 or 3 step sparring in your schools? Do you know of any good links to video?

 

[Makalakumu]

We did a lot of ni bon on and san bon kumite in Shotokan, but we never did that much in Tang Soo Do. The Federation we belonged to only required Ill Soo Shik. In their book, they talk about two and three step sparring, so it must have been part of the system at one time.

 

[thesandman]

It really seems to have fallen out of favor. My own school hasn't required it in years. We used to do it fairly regularly as I recall. I certainly learned plenty of it, but now it's hard to find any reference to it all.

I can find plenty of one-step sparring videos and descriptions but hardly any for 2 or 3 step. Just seems odd to me.

 

[Gi1]

We do 3 step sparring in our federation Tang Soo(Soo Bahk) Do Moo Duk kwan. It is taught to lower ranking as it gives them more time to think as they are stepping back. Basically many of the one step techniques can still be used in 3 step.

 

[JT_the_Ninja]

In name, we only have one-step sparring, at least at my level. However, most of the black belt "one-step sparring" drills really require multiple steps, from both people involved. In fact, the only one that doesn't is one that used to have more steps but was simplified.

Do I think I would ever use any of these drills exactly in a fight? No, but that's not really their purpose. They teach basic applications of some sections from the pyung ahn forms, which give you a lot of practice using some things you could definitely use in a fight, if not in that exact sequence. They also teach reaction, distance, and control, allowing you to focus on a target, rather than thin air, as well as giving you a controlled situation in which to practice, so that you can focus on improving specific moves, which is limited in sparring (although I certainly don't want to seem like I'm belittling sparring practice).

 

[Kacey]

We do 1, 2, and 3-step sparring in Ch'ang H'on TKD, along with semi-free sparring. If you'd like more detail, let me know.

 

[thesandman]

Any information/details you can give would be great. Or links to video. I'm trying to get an idea of the general culture of the drill across all systems