"And" Martial Arts
We had a roda yesterday at the Berkeley Flea Market that lasted until sundown. What was most notable for me was that for the first time the lights came on.
Generally when playing in rodas or in class I'll do the basic movements and apply what I've learned in capoeira and in other arts in order to know when to attack and defend. Until yesterday, that was all my playing was about. Attack/defend, in/out, on/off, 0/1.
Although I haven't quite put my finger on it, I felt myself managing the transitions much more gracefully. I think this discovery process started with my kicks being countered with sweeps at a roda a few weeks ago. I've since changed my game so that doesn't happen anymore. To my surprise, that little adjustment was exactly what I needed to keep my game flowing.
For me, finishing every kick with an escape of some kind was the "and" that I needed to make a compound sentence with my movements. A bananeira, aú, or role to the side or backwards as I finished a kick (before my kicking foot touched the ground) was all I needed. I realized I could do this AND that AND this AND so on, ad infinitum. I was now able to move without losing speed and momentum. Man, that felt good. Someone even came over to me and said "I didn't know you had game like that". The truth is, neither did I.
Just like when brazilian jiujitsu finally clicked for me, this was a real turning point. With jiujitsu the "Aha!" came when I figured out how to use my legs to do kali-like arm bars and chokes.
In the larger scheme of things I'm still trying to figure out what this means. In jiujitsu it took me 3 months to figure out avoiding arm locks and creating arm locks well enough to keep up with more experienced students. This same type of discovery in Capoeira took about 11 months. In kali, discoveries like this come on a regular basis. The frustrating part of kali for me now is remembering to apply them all when fighting.
Is kali easier, or harder to learn than capoeira? Where does jiujitsu and judo fit? Does karate still offer advantages. Hmmm. Of all these styles, capoeira has the most difficult and demanding mechanics. Kali, by design, has the least demanding mechanics in terms of energy output, but requires far more precise muscle movement than the other arts. Both styles are very fluid and share the philosophies of managing the three elements of distance, timing, and speed, more so than the others, to gain an advantage. They both generally frown on force against force unless it's for a decisive strike.
My capoeira enlightenment, or with any of the other arts I've studied, is like realizing I can speak another language fluently enough to get by. There are still a lot of far more demanding movements to learn and master, but I finally feel like my body understands the game.
Generally when playing in rodas or in class I'll do the basic movements and apply what I've learned in capoeira and in other arts in order to know when to attack and defend. Until yesterday, that was all my playing was about. Attack/defend, in/out, on/off, 0/1.
Although I haven't quite put my finger on it, I felt myself managing the transitions much more gracefully. I think this discovery process started with my kicks being countered with sweeps at a roda a few weeks ago. I've since changed my game so that doesn't happen anymore. To my surprise, that little adjustment was exactly what I needed to keep my game flowing.
For me, finishing every kick with an escape of some kind was the "and" that I needed to make a compound sentence with my movements. A bananeira, aú, or role to the side or backwards as I finished a kick (before my kicking foot touched the ground) was all I needed. I realized I could do this AND that AND this AND so on, ad infinitum. I was now able to move without losing speed and momentum. Man, that felt good. Someone even came over to me and said "I didn't know you had game like that". The truth is, neither did I.
Just like when brazilian jiujitsu finally clicked for me, this was a real turning point. With jiujitsu the "Aha!" came when I figured out how to use my legs to do kali-like arm bars and chokes.
In the larger scheme of things I'm still trying to figure out what this means. In jiujitsu it took me 3 months to figure out avoiding arm locks and creating arm locks well enough to keep up with more experienced students. This same type of discovery in Capoeira took about 11 months. In kali, discoveries like this come on a regular basis. The frustrating part of kali for me now is remembering to apply them all when fighting.
Is kali easier, or harder to learn than capoeira? Where does jiujitsu and judo fit? Does karate still offer advantages. Hmmm. Of all these styles, capoeira has the most difficult and demanding mechanics. Kali, by design, has the least demanding mechanics in terms of energy output, but requires far more precise muscle movement than the other arts. Both styles are very fluid and share the philosophies of managing the three elements of distance, timing, and speed, more so than the others, to gain an advantage. They both generally frown on force against force unless it's for a decisive strike.
My capoeira enlightenment, or with any of the other arts I've studied, is like realizing I can speak another language fluently enough to get by. There are still a lot of far more demanding movements to learn and master, but I finally feel like my body understands the game.
posted by moluv at 4:20 PM
2 Comments:
Hello! you dont know me (i dont think), but i'm a bellydancer/dancer/performance artist in the bay area. I just performed @ Unmata's Blood Moon, and while i was looking up past BMR's online, I found your blog. The funny thing is - I recognize you. I see you all over the place - brazillian stuff, bellydance stuff, on BART, too, i think. So i figured that it was a cosmic sign saying that i should say hello =)
-cera
Hi Cera. I hope your performance went well at the Blood Moon. I heard it was a great show this year. Make sure to say hello in person next time. :-)
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