A quote that bugs me the most: “It has to be done this way.”

In martial arts, an instructor usually says this in the context of a prescribed self-defence technique or sequence.

Again, it depends on the context. If this statement relates to proper structure, then I can understand the reason for uttering this statement. However, as pointed out above, this is usually said in the context of a self-defence technique or sequence.

Often, this statement can be applied to weird body mechanics.

Recently, some videos on Facebook showed several black belts from the New York City area “sparring” with each other. One of these videos is below.

If you are not able to see this video, click here.

I’ve said on Facebook and elsewhere that if they enjoy doing what they are doing, all the more power to them.

It’s interesting that 95% of the comments on FB were negative and focused mostly on their stiff movements.

I’m willing to bet that the instructor has preached, “It has to be done this way!” to justify his teachings.” Form, function, and structure all seem sacrificed for this stiff version of power.

The likely result is to rule out other ways of generating power. Chinese martial arts, particularly the neijia (internal) arts are well known for their tremendous power generation.

Generally, they are opposites to that demonstrated in the video above. The body is relaxed until explosive power is discharged at the point of impact. The students have likely convinced themselves that “it has to be done this way” and don’t realize other power generation options exist.

In their universe, the instructor has closed off all options. Regarding power generation, “it has to be done this way!”

Do you see why this phrase is so problematic for me?

The Chinese internal martial art principle of relaxation can be seen in Filipino Martial Arts. The late Professor Remy Presas often exhorted “You must relax!” For him, that was key to optimizing the flow and the ability to counter.

In addition, whenever he taught a technique, he often said, “You could do is, or you could do that.” If he felt a split second of stiffness in an opponent, he would brutally exploit that and finish him off.

Hearing “it has to be done this way” is like being told to abandon critical thinking and drink the Kool-Aid.

I’m usually wary whenever I hear this phrase, especially when it contradicts common sense. This should be a “red flag” for any martial arts student.

This phrase asks you not to consider other options and restricts your outlook. It doesn’t even approach “binary thinking,” where there are at least two options. Here, there is only one option.

“It has always been done this way” means that there is only one way, and it must be followed to the letter.

On the other hand, a good instructor should give solid reasons for his lessons. He should articulate why a certain drill is being done as prescribed. “This move constitutes one of the  basics of this martial art and introduces the concept of the checking hand.” Starting with that basic move, the instructor may move on to variations of that basic move. Further, he can show how it can be applied to different scenarios.

The instructor should articulate the technique’s hows, whys, and whats. He should not say, “You must do the technique this way.” That would not be satisfactory, would it? It’s a sign of laziness and an absence of critical thinking on the instructor’s part.

The bottom line is that “you must do the technique this way” or “we’ve always done it this way” should be treated as a possible red flag without any explanation in a martial context. You wouldn’t want to look like the black belts in the above video!

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