Commentary

Are weapons useful? People train in martial arts for a plethora of reasons: as a hobby, to stay fit, to learn how to fight, etc. A lot of traditional martial arts include some sort of weapons training. Some, like Filipino martial arts or Koryu (old school Japanese martial arts) focus [Read More]

My job is to teach people how to be safe. That’s how I earn a living and the central focus of my study. I know even if I won the lottery tomorrow, it’s still how I would devote my time.  That doesn’t make it any easier when the world around [Read More]

Toxic Masculinity. Cancel Culture. Addiction to food, drugs, social media, etc. Martial arts training is more relevant and needed today than ever before. But not necessarily in the ways of the 70’s through the 2010s. That was the era of martial arts as a means of dominance either over another [Read More]

I’m not here to talk about myself, but a short bio will give what I’m about to say some context. After 37 years of training, 13 years of journalism, and 21 years as a dad, I started a podcast. Safest Family on the Block is where I take that experience [Read More]

This is the fourth in a series of six articles on things I have learned from High-Intensity Resistance Training that have influenced my approach to martial arts. If you missed the previous articles in this series, you can find them here: High Intensity Resistance Training and Martial Arts – A [Read More]

Listening to What I Already Heard Even though I have been following Iain Abernethy for many years, it was my friend and great martial artist and physical therapist David Wallace who made me aware of this fundamentally important teaching of Mr. Abernethy’s. It was during this fascinating conversation with him [Read More]

Whenever we think of the Filippino martial arts, the first thing that comes to mind is the stick, one of the weapons often used. We are all acquainted with the rhythmic click click click of stick on stick. The baston normally is 28” 26” or 24” 3/4-1inch in diameter. It [Read More]

Creativity to Stagnation If you have read any of my previous articles, you know that I always encourage martial artists to find what works for them and to create their own art. In so doing, I am careful to emphasize the continuing search aspect of creating one’s own art. This [Read More]

Many of the survivors I have worked with over the years have asked me: “when will it stop?” When I ask them what they mean, they say, “when do you stop seeing everyone as a threat?” I survived physical abuse as a child; I understand the question. My Krav Maga [Read More]

After the army, I transitioned back to becoming a civilian instructor. It was not exactly a smooth transition. I was forged in the military Krav Maga that was geared to take teenagers and turn them into warriors. Now, I was back to teaching regular civilians. Gone was the discipline and [Read More]

If I did a good job last time talking to the hosts and instructors, hopefully before long there will be a Martial Arts Seminar near you. Hopefully you’ll know about it.  Hopefully you’ll be interested and able to attend it. If no one attends seminars, seminars tend to not happen. [Read More]

This is the third in a series of six articles on things I have learned from High-Intensity Resistance Training that have influenced my approach to martial arts. If you missed the previous articles in this series, you can find them here: High Intensity Resistance Training and Martial Arts – A [Read More]

“Be a calm beholder of what is happening around you.” ~Bruce Lee Here’s a hypothetical dialogue between two friends. One that, though hypothetical, represents something that happens to every one of us almost daily at work, at home and throughout the various interactions of our day. A: “Let me show [Read More]

I’ve been training for nearly 40 years at this point, and have never tired of it. I love getting on the deck and learning/practicing/refining ways to ruin the day of some miscreant who intends harm on me, mine, or some bystander I can protect. Most martial artists (and most people [Read More]

I’ve left and returned to taekwondo three times in my life: Once as a pre-teen when other interests eclipsed taekwondo. I returned at age thirty-three as a desperate wreck looking for a fresh start. Once as a jaded black belt leaving a toxic environment. I returned a few months later [Read More]

As a martial arts teacher, it’s our job to sometimes be the bad guy and give a little taste of harsh reality in a controlled environment. The mat is a safe place to learn lessons that would keep them safe in the real world. Those lessons can sometimes be very [Read More]

This is the second in a series of six articles on things I have learned from High-Intensity Resistance Training that have influenced my approach to martial arts.   When it comes to exercise, martial artists have a tough question to answer: “How can I fit exercise into my schedule when [Read More]