A first hand account of Systema from a 3 year student

[Robstafarian]

Brought to you by the Firefox extension "Ubiquity." I know this isn't perfect, but you can probably understand what he meant.

[Jeff C.]

[SFGOON]

Has vistado que esto es un forum angloparlente, no? Como fuera que puedes contestarnos sin noticando el ingles?

Fucking babelfish.

[rw4th]

Great article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/04/sp...ay-talent.html



Imitatsiya is the main Systema training methodology - and Spartaks record clearly indicates it works for producing hot Russian tennis players.

The Systema community, IMO, does a lousy job of communicating the value of ideas like slow training to the larger MAs community even when places like Spartak have material, measurable success using them. The best Systema trainers are just like Larisa Preobrazhenskaya (the trainer mentioned in the article).


Anyway, time to tune my E-Meter. See you boys at the big Clearwater seminar....

I'm pretty sure the hot tennis players are still practicing real tennis moves that look like actual tennis.

I'm willing to buy the training methodology, but how do you explain the horrible techniques that are practiced (see especially any knife and gun defense videos with the person doing suicidal shit).

[Laga]

[tashi]

There is one person that does verbalize the Systema Pedagogy well.
Montreal Systema Instructor Kevin Secour's Free Book:

http://www.montrealsystema.com/uploa..._THE_RONIN.pdf

Kevin uses NLP perspectives to explain systema concepts and approach. Offers some amazing simple drills.

I've been doing Systema for 6 months. I have to say I've learned a GREAT deal. I have one issue with the way Vlad trains (he is a master teacher, no doubt about it): He is so non-technique focused that if you're a total beginner in ground work... it's tough to pick it up! perhaps standup work is different since anybody knows basic punching principle: fist hit something, hurt someone. ground game is different.

6 months of systema: My kung fu improved alot (I cross train). My health improved a lot. My over all tension level DRASTICALLY decreased (reason I started systema anyways). I am more confident in my ability to pull off my skills prior to systema.

Systema is like any other art, you need:
1. good instructor.
2. hard work.
3. understand what your doing! (as in spent time make the art yours).

The original poster might be missing #3. I didn't bother to digg through the 60+ posts to find his background prior to systema. At least with my ground game, it didn't improve much in 6 months (then again, I don't care that much about ground game).

[Yperite]

In the Golden State. Usually with an authentic Russian. Episodically.

Your right about the pedagogy. And isn't really surprising because in general Russian educational pedagogy makes fundamentally different assumptions about cognitive style and learning strategies than do American theories. They tend, like Systema, to be learner centered and to push the instructor to a role more akin to that of a facilitator than a traditional MA instructor.

While I'm thinking of it, another great Systema idea that reoccurs in Russian training literature is to learn ballistic movements by starting at the end position. You learn the snatch by locking out your KB, BB, whatever at the end position....thus teaching your body where to go, and you learn to punch by placing your fist on a body...thus teaching your fist where to go. The idea (with solid science behind it) being that the body will not allow a movement it doesn't understand.

You can use this idea to punch better, but you can also apply the principle to help a kid throw a football or kick a soccer ball. I.E. start at the release and work backwards. Maybe that isn't Systema, but then again maybe it is...after all it is a principle based art.

[SFGOON]

Very interesting article. And I do agree that most systema practitioners have trouble verbalizing the pedagogy of systema.

Where and with whom do you study?

[Yperite]

Great article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/04/sp...ay-talent.html

She looked as if she were still a member of the Little Group, so much so that, watching from the bleachers, I was momentarily unsure whether it was her or some beginner. Dementieva did imitatsiya; she practiced each stroke in slow motion. Then, when her male sparring partner showed up, she proceeded to hit the ball so hard, accurately and consistently that it seemed she was playing a sport I'd never seen before. Again and again, her body rose to the ball in a twist of ballistic force, the power betrayed only by the snakelike rise of her thick blond braid. The ball hissed.

Imitatsiya is the main Systema training methodology - and Spartaks record clearly indicates it works for producing hot Russian tennis players.

The Systema community, IMO, does a lousy job of communicating the value of ideas like slow training to the larger MAs community even when places like Spartak have material, measurable success using them. The best Systema trainers are just like Larisa Preobrazhenskaya (the trainer mentioned in the article).


Anyway, time to tune my E-Meter. See you boys at the big Clearwater seminar....

[SFGOON]

Ah Ha!
There's my smoking Gun.

I knew it was a cult!

:icon_joke

It's not a cult!

It's a religion, and you're a bigot!

BTW serge, you owe me $10,000.00 for that last post. Be clear! :toothy10:

[theotherserge]

f*bomb! Thanks for outing us Goon!

[rw4th]

Don't you guys agree that everyone who doesn't like systema need level IV - BQ auditing?

Ah Ha!
There's my smoking Gun.

I knew it was a cult!

:icon_joke

[theotherserge]

Don't you guys agree that everyone who doesn't like systema need level IV - BQ auditing?

too many thetans! Maybe systemiology?

[SFGOON]

Don't you guys agree that everyone who doesn't like systema need level IV - BQ auditing?

[theotherserge]

well hell, I WAS gonna put it to rest but then you jumped in :)

I've had alot of Sambo-dabblers show up, train some and then vanish. I'm sorta curious if they went online and posted something like this:

"I trained in Sambo and though I liked some things about it, there were some other things that didn't make sense and blahblahblahspewspew..."

It says more (hopefully) about the student than it does about the style/teacher. I mostly find these threads entertaining and occasionally I learn something that I didn't know ("like I should read a book?")

There are an awful lot of keyboard jockeys out there, when they're bored with this, they'll pick up "Battleship Earth" and get back to what really matters...