Training Methodology
Approach
What we train for is serious, the concept that someone would want to hurt you or your loved ones is a grave matter, however our training for that eventuality should be challenging but fun. We aren't masked ninja assassins going to storm a castle next week, with a few simple precautions, most people can go their entire lives without running into a situation where they will need to bust out the kung fu. Members train for many different reasons; for fitness, for a personal challenge, for stress release, or maybe they are in a career where "interpersonal incidents" are common. Regardless of the reason, what will keep a student studying long enough to develop high level skill is the fact that they are being challenged and that they enjoy the learning process. Our classes are informal, but do not mistake laughter for a lack of respect, nor a lack of uniform for a lack of discipline.
Our focus is on training adult students, we do not train students below 18 as practical instruction in the use of deadly weapons demands a certain level of maturity.
Introductory Classes
All prospective students will go through a one hour private lesson with an instructor. This is an opportunity for both the student and instructor to get a feel for each other. The classes will cover an overview of the two systems taught at the school. Once this introduction is completed, if the instructor feels the candidate would be a good addition to the school, he or she will be invited to join the school as a student.
Private Instruction
Personalized instruction allows the student to progress at their own rate without being held up by slower students or being ignored in favor of faster students. It also allows the instructor to tailor the instruction for the individual, to focus on the weak aspects of that student's skill set.
All students begin instruction in one-on-one sessions with an experienced instructor until they have reached a point where the fundamental movements of offense and defense are ingrained. Once the student has a good understanding of the basics the student is invited to join the group classes. If a student is interested in sharing their private lesson with another student, it is permitted. This is a highly effective way of increasing instruction time without a loss of individualized instruction, however private lessons with more than two students is discouraged.
Group Classes
The group classes allow the student to experience energies from training partners of various sizes and experience. Group classes are where drilling, combat scenarios, and sparring will occur. Only after the the technical skills are ingrained is sparring used to challenge and test that skillset. Sparring is not required, but very very few students get to a high level of skill without this experience. Sparring is not simply getting on the training floor and trying to hit each other, sparring should be for training certain parts of your fighting "game" against a resisting opponent. The level of contact during sparring depends on the skill of the participants and what level they are willing to play at.
Cross-training
We fully support cross-training in other systems after a decent proficiency in a base system has been established. We only ask that if in your cross-training you come across something useful, you bring it back to the training group so that we all benefit from the new material.
