Archive for Book Review
Book review: Dynamic Stretching and Kicking by Bill “Superfoot” Wallace
Posted by: | CommentsBook review: “Dynamic Stretching and Kicking” by Bill “Superfoot” Wallace
Bill Wallace is one of the big names in American martial arts. He was a successful Karate point fighter and then turned to full contact competitions. He’s most famous for using only his lead leg to kick with and doing so with great success. You can also see him in a few older martial arts movies, usually playing the bad guy.
This book is another one of those “oldies”in my library (first published in 1981). I used the information in it to enhance my kicking skills when I just started competing. As a heavyweight, I often fought opponents who were perhaps strong but not that skillful because they relied on their strength too much. I wasn’t the strongest fighter around, but I often managed to be a bit faster than the others, especially with my kicking techniques. Part of the success I enjoyed in these competitions is due to this book. As time went by, I was confronted with the limitations of this method, but more on that later.
The book starts out with a short introduction to basic anatomy, physiology and kinesiology of stretching. These topics are covered very briefly, but they do give some useful background information. At the end of this chapter, some useful pointers are given: Keep your back straight, don’t bounce, etc.
Bill "Superfoot" Wallace
Next are some warm-up exercises covering the major joints and muscles. The format in which they are presented is one of the best I have seen so far, but it has sadly not been copied much in martial arts books. Each exercise is presented with several pictures. On the opposite page is an explanation of the physiological benefits, the number of repetitions to be performed, Martial arts benefits and some pointers. This way, you know exactly what to do, why it is important and what mistakes to be attentive to.
Even though most exercises are good enough, there are some that would be considered advanced or not good for you these days. E.g.: certain hip rotations, lower back stretches and bridging exercises. Besides these few, the exercises certainly have their use. Read More→
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Book Review:”Training and Fighting skills” by Benny “The Jet” Urquidez
Posted by: | CommentsBook review: “Training and Fighting Skills”
Benny “The Jet” Urquidez is somewhat of a legend in the USA. He is one of the pioneers of full-contact fighting and to his credit, one of the first to fight with leg-kicks. He started his study of the martial arts at the age of 8 and had a successful competitive career in the traditional (non-contact) Karate tournaments. Full-contact fighting emerged in the USA in 1974 and Benny switched to this type of competition. He continued to have a long and prosperous career with many world champion titles, before retiring as a professional fighter. He has also worked in motion pictures as an actor, fight choreographer and trainer of actors.
Here’s an old fight of his:
This book is actually quite old (first published in 1981) but is still sold today. It was one of the first books on full-contact fighting I bought and at the time, my impression was largely positive. These days, I have a more nuanced opinion, which I’ll explain in a bit.
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Book Review: The Way of Kata by Lawrence A. Kane and Kris Wilder
Posted by: | CommentsHere’s another book review for you: “The Way of Kata”
Lawrence A. Kane
Kris Wilder
The book starts with two forewords, one by Dr. Jeff Cooper and the other by Iain Abernethy. Next is a short preface and introduction, in which the format of the book is explained.
Chapter 1 gives the background fundamentals. This covers some history of martial arts and their forms, for the most part Japanese ones. Then we move on to the different types of applications and sparring, why you can’t immediately find the applications in kata, hidden moves and more.
Chapter 2 explains strategy and tactics as they are found in the movements of kata. The authors first give some interesting context and perspective on this topic and then explain the main strategies of the art they practice, Goju ryu karate: Close distance, Imbalance and Use physiological damage to control. This strategy is then expanded upon by a list of 9 principles that both illustrate and clarify them. These are invaluable for deciphering kata and making the movements functional. After this comes a short overview of the tactics Goju employs to follow its strategy.
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Book review: Meditations on Violence by Rory Miller
Posted by: | CommentsHere’s the book review I promised: “Meditations on Violence” by Rory Miller:
The book starts with a foreword by Steve Barnes, followed by a short introduction and preface.
Chapter one covers “The Matrix” but Keanu Reeves doesn’t show up anywhere so don’t worry. Instead,Rory explains a tactical and strategic framework that helps you determine what your martial arts is best suited for.
The next chapter covers “how to think” and gives you some interesting concepts on how to approach learning and training for self defense or martial arts. Rory talks about how you can fool yourself easily, even if you’ve trained for a long time. He also takes a critical look at the different sources knowledge can come from and how to think in the moment when you’re smack in the middle of a fight.
Then we move on to the different types of violence where he describes the common characteristics of real-world violence and the human body’s reaction to it. Another topic is how violence is time-related and happens in specific places.
The fourth chapter goes into detail about the criminals you want to learn to defend against. This chapter is very interesting as Rory gives several examples from his experience with them as a corrections officer. He explains how they think, act and feel in relation to the violence they commit.
Read More→
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Q&A with Loren W. Christensen on “Fighting in the Clinch”
Posted by: | CommentsI reviewed Loren Christensen’s book Fighting in the Clinch here and he graciously agreed to do a quick follow up interview. Here it is:
Q: “Fighting in the Clinch” came out a little while ago. How has the feedback from readers been?
A: All positive – so far. But there is always someone in the martial arts community who feels compelled to say, “Well, your heel is up in that photo,” or “A better way to do that move is…” But so far everyone likes how we laid out the book with Mark Mireles showing his grappling moves for half of it and me doing my tearing, clawing and ripping techniques for half. Mark is an amazing grappler with over 30 years experience training and 20 years using his stuff in the street as an LAPD cop.
Q: For which audience did you write the book? The average martial artist? Grapplers? LEOs?
A: We wrote it for everyone because it’s been our experience – we have 50 years of police street experience between us – that there is a moment in most (not all) physical encounters where there’s clinching. I’m not talking about a nice Gracie jujitsu type clinch, although that does happen, but rather a desperate moment where both fighters are trying to dominate the other as they clash body-to-body. A broad definition of clinching includes grabbing/holding/clinching the side of the body, grabbing from the back, grabbing in the classic bear hug, tackling around the waist and tackling around the chest.
Loren calls this the "Mike Tyson technique" to use against clinchers. Chomp deep into the gristle and shake your head like a dog does with a rabbit.
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Book Review: “Fighting in the Clinch” by Loren W. Christensen and Mark Mireless
Posted by: | CommentsAnother book review for you: “Fighting in the Clinch“ by Loren W. Christensen and Mark Mireless:
The book starts with a foreword by Big John McCarthy of UFC fame and then goes right into the nuts and bolts of clinching. The authors briefly cover clinch models for Greco-Roman, Freestyle, Judo, Sambo, Western Boxing, Muay Thai and what they call “Street Slop”
Next up is the fighting stance and some footwork drills. Chapter three goes into the outer-perimeter clinch and goes into detail on concepts like the tie ups, controlling the box, the post, clearing his arms, inside control, hand fighting, set ups and much more.
Chapter four is a big one, it covers a variety of takedowns for the street and how to get them. The chapter starts off with an interesting section of “do’s and dont’s” and then delves into the techniques: double leg, single leg, high C, lift and slam, they’re all there.
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Lost Victories by Field Marshal Erich von Manstein
Posted by: | CommentsI read this book a while ago and wasn’t sure I’d review it here. I’ve always had a fascination with history, which is why I read it book in the first place. But as it’s not directly related to the usual topics of this blog, I wasn’t sure to publish this post. I’ll cover why I did so anyway in a bit. Here’s the review.
Field Marshal Erich von Manstein
Field Marshal Erich von Manstein was one of Hitler’s most brilliant commanders and a keen strategic mind. He had a distinguished career and played a crucial role throughout WWII: The Battle of the Bulge, the Crimean campaign, The battles of Leningrad and Stalingrad, Operation Citadel, to name but the most notorious. Given the many victories he obtained, it’s safe to say he was one of the key commanders of the German forces throughout the war. He was later dismissed by Hitler, served a prison sentence after the war and acted as senior adviser to Western Germany after his release. For a bit more information, check out his Wikipedia page.
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