10 Questions With Luke Holloway

The Combative Corner is proud to introduce you to a guy that is (and has been) making a big name for himself in the field of close quarter combatives, security, crisis response and risk management (Law Enforcement / Military / Special Forces).

The Combative Corner became aware of Mr. Holloway through his many channels on YouTube (TeamWuJin, RCI Japan, Raw LEO Combatives, and more!).  Luke Holloway is the founder of Raw Combat International and is now in 24 countries.  Find out more about this extraordinary teacher at his websites Luke-Holloway.Com and Raw-Combat.Com.

Now… for our exclusive interview!  Enjoy.

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What brought you to teaching tactical self-prtotection?

I was simply sharing tactics based on my experience in my job (event/club security, protection, investigations and risk management consulting). I guess I just attracted a bunch of like minded people who saw it necessary to develop and maintain such skills. I never meant to create a ‘system’ or anything like that but people just started watching me on youtube (which was up for local students benefit in the beginning) and then I started to get asked to share things in many places (19 countries in the past couple of years).  As certified by the Australian Government in Risk Management, Security, Protection, Crisis Management, Sports Coaching and Work Place Training & Assessment (etc) I was able to structure things pretty easily.. things kinda just.. fell into place.

You’re currently in Shinjuku, Japan.  Where did you grow up and what brought you to Japan?

I’m in Japan because of a circumstance which I won’t go into for protection of my own privacy & personal security if that’s ok.  But I’d worked here before and spoke the language before I re-located here after doing a bit in Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong, China and Taiwan.  I am originally from Queensland, Australia and grew up hunting/shooting and doing not much-else then that and martial arts.. hahaha, a sheltered childhood maybe??  lol.. just wasn’t into football or anything like that really…

What’s the biggest obstacle for you as a self-defense instructor?

Training civilians with ‘too’ much experience.  I think every instructor knows what I mean.  Although I just see myself as sharing what I got, people need to understand that martial arts and tactical training are two COMPLETELY different things! I don’t care if you put the words ‘Tactical’ or ‘Commando’ or ‘Combat’ or ‘Extreme’ or whatevers goin’ on these days, you can take one look and know it’s shit! Most of our members or active operatives in Security, Law Enforcement/Customs or Military including Japans newest Special Forces Group (CRF). I know what backgrounds, what training they have and what training they need to be able to respond to incidents effectively in a professional manner and therefore it’s easier to ‘train’ them.. but civys with a chip on their shoulder about doing a krav maga seminar and 2 kickboxing lessons I don’t have much time for to be honest. Too many shit dribblers! Talking about how they do ‘military martial arts’ or some shit how they are a ‘bodyguard’ yet don’t know the first thing about personal security concepts as they just mentioned their wife’s name, their kids names, where they live and where they’re from.. (displaying the fact that they don’t have a clue about any of the BASICS of protection on a professional level) I got all I need now to find them if I need to, lol.. just a waste of my time!

The fact is professionals, as in cops/military don’t need to know the style’s master, a bunch of foreign terms and how to wear pajamas and act as ‘in character (asian dress up party) as possible to learn how to survive the streets! They don’t need Jurus/Katas they need drills to become skills that they can employ immediately! Don’t get me wrong, I love martial arts, but I accept it for what it is and even though I live in Japan, I got no interest in trying to become the last Samurai! lol, but on the other hand I’m not one of these guys that loves to sit there and talk about how shitty martial arts techniques are but have no real answers myself..Trying to ‘prove techniques wrong’ is a waste of time I think, especially if you haven’t learned the foundational elements nor had to adapt and employ it in the field… other than that, yeah I got no time to talk about shit cos I’m too busy training! Feel me?

What would your reason for the “Streetfighter”/RBSD practitioner to learn a softer art such as Tai Ji Quan?

I don’t see myself as a ‘street fighter’ or this or that, my name’s Luke, I’m from the land down under and I don’t cop shit from anyone! That’s how it is, in my world; Respect is the only currency! I give everyone a dollar in the beginning, they sit there and expect the world and don’t show any real appreciation, gratitude or consideration but when it comes time for them to ask me for that dollar back I say ‘Sorry mate, but you only got 10 cents left in your account’.. and leave it at that!

I’ve dealt with armed attacks on myself and clients/patrons in public and also in private and I am training tactics that rely on assertiveness with committed, controlled aggressiveness and intimidation! That’s how I am, I made up my mind in the beginning that I refuse to be the victim!

As for Taiji, if you train push hands you learn to move/deal with any line of force/tension and or ‘energy’ (without being cosmic about it, let’s just say ‘gravity’).. So the expression of the ‘technique’ is irrelevant if you are truly ‘listening’.. not waiting but LISTENING (what you technicians like to refer to as ‘ting-jing’) which is making use of your hightened sense of awareness to expand that awareness through your own structure and into your opponents.. Now, I know I’m probably loosing more than half the people reading this by now so I can go back to being gutter mouthed sharp shootin’ Aussie! It’s simple: Control yourself and you can control your opponent (if you TRAIN how to).. knowing how is one thing but maintaining your skills and awareness levels is another thing! In short Taiji has helped me BIG TIME in shooting, grappling and restraining, contain & removal in the field; Simply because you train to deal with anything in an instinctive, natural/fluent and appropriate manner! The biggest misconception about taiji is that it’s some sort of spiritual cosmic bull shit and that you need to try and be more asian then the next fella to be able to do it/teach it. I stopped wearing the pajamas (guilty but I admit I once did, come on.. we were all brain washed at one point lol) once I started push hands and found that it saved my arse more than a few times in the field wearing gear and all!

What is one of the hardest things to teach (in your opinion)?

Kids classes!

hahaha, I’m a parent my self so I’m very passionate about kids becoming self reliant and making the right choices in life and of courses making their personal security a priority a long with training self protection (self defense is just not being pro-active enough as they train to wait for the attacks). I started teaching in the year 2000 and I’ve found that doing kids classes is very rewarding and enjoyable but hard to maintain your personal life/space as parents try and get involved or try and get you involved in their shit fights etc.. it’s quite hard to maintain a balance sometimes..

The other hardest thing to share with people is Taiji, it really just takes patience and commitment like no other art, but the mental, emotional and of course physical benefits are like no other.

What are some of the things you’d want every woman to know about personal self-protection?

As I work a lot as a security consultant advising corporations and most recently even regiments on risk management/crisis responses and prevention planning it is quite easy to give advice to women because most of them don’t know to start.. You can see it when they walk.. put yourself in a stalkers shoes, does she walk with intent? Does she look like she’s off with the fairies (day dreaming)?  Any other indications of being an easy target such as: Ipod, mobile phone being used, dark street she has chosen to take, etc?

The main thing is not setting a pattern and preventing stalkers (who have the potential to become kidnappers/rapists and other scum that just haven’t stepped over the line yet but are heading towards it with intent). Making privacy protection a priority ie – not adding people you don’t know on facebook (etc) when you put up your whole life on there including where you are at what time (like anyone gives a shit).. actually it’s funny cos a lot of these dudes who are ‘Tacti-coool’ trainers don’t obey basic principals of privacy protection/personal security either.. again, jokes in my book! But yeah, it’s not about learning mad martial arts skills it’s about using your head! Martial arts requires maintenance where as personal protection requires simple common sense, sometimes you just gotta show them how to develop that.. Can I leave that one there for now?  I think it’ll go on way too long! hahaha, sorry..

We’ve noticed from your videos that you enjoy knifeplay.  What is the draw?  And do you feel that knife drills are important for every “serious” self-protection student?

It’s like this, people in the UK ask my why I bother with it and people in the US ask my why don’t I show more of the ‘tactical stuff’ on youtube (free)?   Well, it’s the situation and the impacting factors (as always!) but think about this, even if you aren’t carrying a knife and you do disarm it/one and you don’t have a clue about survival tactics (with the knife, I’m not talking about martial arts – screw that for the time being)/ Weapon Retention it’s probably more dangerous to you than it is the assailant. Plus, our knife work is adapted to house hold utensils, pens, screwdrivers you name it, we’ll use it when necessary! Don’t get me wrong, again, I love martial arts but I’m a big white guy in the line of work who needs urban survival skills for myself AND others! I’m not a little asian guy and I don’t try to be! I don’t play dress ups anymore, I live in the real world and have had to deal with real shit.  Anyone else seeing what I see has woken up to them selves!

What has your experience (thusfar) as a full time trainer taught you?

Shit, I don’t know where to begin, off the top of my head (like the rest of these answers) I guess just being able to deal with different people..

I have taught security, law enforcement, customs and military/SF in more countries then I ever imagined visiting and when you look at different people in different jobs from different countries you get a pretty good variety. A lot of positive things have come of it; Patience, Tolerance, Flexibility and I guess another big thing is not giving a shit anymore.. by that I mean I used to care what people think about me/my material and now I’ve got bigger things in my life to be concerned with. Kids talking shit on the internet doesn’t mean much to me, they’re the one’s loosing sleep over it all! hahaha

What are your thoughts regarding Traditional Martial Art form work?  In your opinion, do they help or hinder a practitioner’s ability to react spontaneously with the proper intent?  If so, do you feel there should be a short, CQC (close quarter combat) form or kata?

No.

I do not believe that Kata/Jurus helps you with that at all! Not only is there no-one in-front of you, there’s no situation/incident which is spontaneous/random/intimidating/un-fair etc.. However, it’s like pad work.. it just develops a certain skill. In Chinese arts we do forms (Taolu) and in my southern training a lot of it was based on developing intrinsic energies within the body which create explosive power, in Japanese arts it’s kata and all about basics being reliable (however in my jujutsu training here in Japan there was never kata) in SE Asian (Malaysian/Indonesian/Filipino) we have Jurus and to me they are much more realistic (as they are more savage when the Buah ‘application’ is trained) but still are limiting.  And this is why we do a lot of scenario based simulation training with no rules/limitations (mind you I’ve lost the same tooth twice doing it recently haha) but it’s worth it, well worth it! I sometimes still train my tonglong forms/drills cos they rip the shit out of you and develop and insane amount of energy but I don’t bother with Jurus much anymore, I’m not a muslim nor an asian so I don’t pretend to understand the ‘cultural benefits’, when I’m in SE Asia training Silat I simply follow and of course appreciate whatever is shared with me, weather it be ‘the deep dark secrets of jungle blade arts or a nice meal and tea, but my own personal training has a different objective. Today, I’m still training taiji, regardless of what anyone says – it’s the real deal.. unfortunately it will take most people until they are in there 50s (no longer to do what they can now and have to look at an alternative) to realize/appreciate that.

Where does Luke Holloway see himself 10 years from now?

Everyday brings new things/beings and situations into your life that will effect you, I try and make the best out of every situation.

So I’m just crusin’ along seein’ what’s goin’ on… make sense? As long as I have the health and safety of me and my family, I’m not too bothered about what I’m doing. Of course I’m passionate about it, but I’d be just as happy to be doing other things that are positive and productive for me – it’s not about leaving a ‘legacy’ or ‘being remembered as this or that.’ I couldn’t care less! I’ve have met wonderful people and had a wonderful time appreciating everyday and making the most of it, if it ended tomorrow I’m still content, if I’m still doing it in 10 years and we are still happy and healthy we are blessed.

Bonus Questions: We just recently had a Roundtable Discussion.  The question was “What’s your favorite (martial art/inspirational) book that you OWN, and why?”

I collected martial arts books in high-school/college and realized they were all B.S. when I started in my profession, that was even further supported when I saw a lot of those clowns on youtube. In a book, you can say what you want and show what you want in slow motion and make yourself out to be anyone, from anywhere doing anything… same in MA mags which are total B.S. these days, they have ‘Halls of fame’ Bwhahahaha, what a joke! The ‘famous’ guys are the ones who have spent over 10 grand on advertising with them. I advertised in a magazine once and before then no matter how much I tried they wouldn’t put my material in their news or do a story or anything.  If it’s not profitable, they are not interested, which is fair enough. But I went home earlier this year and I don’t have any idea why but I brought a magazine (MA) and it’s still got the same fat guys in pajamas talking the same shit about how ‘samurai’ they are or how their lineage is more ‘correct’ or how ‘scientific’ their techniques are.  It’s all a big joke to me and so are books in most cases! I would rather read someone’s story and get into the guy’s head if I wanted to learn from him.  A recent book I have is called ‘The Art of Deception.’ It is full of case stories about one of the worlds best hackers and manipulators of the human element of security through social engineering.  It re-enforced that I am on the right path as a consultant & active operative but also gave me the chance to see it from another point of view, the criminals.

I’m sorry mate, that’s probably not really what you wanted to hear and I know a lot of people may be offended by some of the things I’ve said.  In my experience it usually means I’ve hit the nail on the head and that nail was on their weak spot!  But nothing is mean to be in vain or offensive, you asked my opinion on things and I gave it, I hate preachers and shit dribblers so I refuse to be/act like one.

Anyhow, I’d like to say thank you and the Combative Corner for giving me the chance to be heard.

Bless you all.

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10 Questions with Geoff Thompson

Geoff Thompson is one of the world’s leading self-defense experts [Voted by Black Belt Magazine USA as the number #1 self-defense author in the world] and my (Coach Joyce’s) most influential teacher when it comes to self-defense.  Thompson has a FREE podcast that you can subscribe to on iTunes (&blog), in which he chats with host and good friend Richard Barnes.  The CombativeCorner highly suggests everyone give them a listen as there is much to learn not only in the realm of the martial arts and self-defense but Life in general.  Being a man of multiple talents, Geoff is a prolific writer of books (30 published), and has several scripts that have been made into film (Bouncer [BAFTA award winner for Best Short Film 2004] & his first full length feature film, Clubbed).  Visit Geoff Thompson’s website to learn more by clicking on his picture (above) and visit this link [here] to listen (and subscribe) to his wonderful, educational and always-insightful podcasts either on iTunes or from his blog.

Now for The Combative Corner’s exclusive interview with Mr. Geoff Thompson!

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(1)    How young were you when you started training in the martial arts? (and did you study one system only?)

GT: I was 11 years old, so that makes just about forty years now of continuous training. I started in aikido, went onto to Gung Fu, then started studying Japanese Shotokan and western boxing. Much later I went into lots of different systems, everything for Greco right through to a little qigong.

(2) Did you always have a desired goal of teaching self-defense professionally or did you have a different career path?

GT: I always wanted to be a writer as a kid, but at the time I was too scared and too insecure to attempt it, and also I was a writer with nothing to write about. It wasn’t until I was in my late twenties with a plethora of colour behind me that I found my voice and published my first article with Terry O’Neil in Fighting Arts International magazine and then a couple of years later I wrote my first book, Watch My Back and it all escalated from there.

(2)    How do you divide your time day-to-day between all that you do (books, workshops/lecturing, screenplays, training)?

GT: I pretty much let the work dictate, if I have a writing commission then I am on that pretty much as a full working day (at the moment I am doing  a rte-write of a feature film), I only do a small amount of teaching now, my masterclass sessions and the odd course with Peter C. I am also running a black belt course at the moment too, but I work the teaching around the writing. As for my own training, I work out every day, weights, bag, yoga, running, grappling, meditation according to what my body dictates.

(4)  How has your training evolved over the decades?  Are any significant changes that you’ve made to your own training?

GT: Less concussive these days, all my early training was based around KO or submission, it was hard, honest training where there was no hiding place. I learned a huge amount from that, but you have to evolve in your training so these days I concentrate much more on inner development and health. I still like to power train but I have invested so much over the years that I can now keep everything polished with tight intensive sessions.

(5)    What is your feeling about sport competition?  (Do you encourage your students to test their skills in this manner?)

GT: I think it is great, I admire anyone that can enter an arena and place it on the line. But I have never been a very good sports martial artist, it never really attracted me (although I had to do a lot of competition style fighting to win my judo black belt) so I have never really felt qualified to teach it to others. I don’t encourage it or discourage it with my students, I just let them follow their own way, if they want to do sport I try and direct them to good sports teachers.

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(6) As a self-defense instructor myself… I employ a great deal of fight de-esculating techniques/communication.  I’ve noticed in your masterclasses, you use shocking, colorful language and strong body posturing to dissuade a potential encounter.  Males particularly can see the benefit of this at times… but when is it advisable to use more passive or non-confrontational communications/language?

GT: The core of my self defence is about managing fear, avoidance strategies, escape, verbal dissuasion, posturing, understanding attack ritual and violent body language, loop-holing and – if necessary – the pre-emptive strike. Post assault I teach about the law.

Posturing is just one aspect and I teach it as a method of avoiding physical conflict if it feels intuitively right. I also teach de-escalation because sometimes that is the better option. I teach physical self defence only as a last resort. I think there are many better options. Knowing when to fight, when to run and when to talk a situation down are very difficult skills to teach, because it is only your intuition in the face of an assault that will tell you definitively which is the right choice. My job as a teacher is to offer people options that work, their job is to choose which is right according to the situation. What I do know is that most people are not really prepared or trained, physically or psychologically, for a physical encounter, so I tend to concentrate my self defence teaching on something that will work, avoidance.

(6)    I’ve learned quite a bit about you through your podcasts and books, but what does Geoff Thompson like to do when doesn’t do the teaching/training/writing stuff (you know, “business”)?

GT: Ah, now you’re talking Michael. I like to watch films and theatre – I have a passion for words –  I love going on cruises and reading for two weeks solid (I have an extensive library), I love attending lectures (I have seven to go to this week at BAFTA by seven of the worlds top screen writers) and I love visiting cafes. I do all of these things with my wife Sharon. We work together and we play together. I feel really blessed to be able to enjoy such a privileged life with the girl of my dreams.

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(8)  A century from now, when people remember Geoff Thompson, what would be the main thing you’d like people to remember about you?

GT: That he did not let his great fear get in the way of his great potential.

(9) Has there been a martial art style that has intrigued you, that you never had the opportunity to train in or learn more about?

GT: Not really. I have pretty much explored all the systems that I wanted to. But there are a few personalities that died before my time who I’d love to have sat with, just to be in their aura. Don Draeger is one, he was a real MA pioneer. My friend John Will was lucky enough to have trained with him, and I believe that my other friend Bob Breen also met and trained with him as did terry O’Neil. I am very envious. I’d love to have met George Hackneschmidt, he is my all time hero, he was a wrestling genius who was prominent at the beginning of the 20^th century. Also Carl Pojello, another wrestling hero of mine. And of course I would have loved to meet Ghandi; they say that simply being in his company had a life changing affect on people.

(10)   What’s on the plate for the great Geoff Thompson (besides the cake that Richie sent your way to do this interview)?  Any upcoming events, books, films that you’d like to unveil?  [obviously you can opt to keep us in suspense]

GT: MA wise I have just spent the best part of 2010 putting together my 100 Hour Masterclass Home study course. Writing projects can be a bit of a moving feast as you probably know, but at the moment I have three feature films on the go, a TV series treatment in development and three stage plays optioned by two different directors. And can I just say (and I am not bitter or angry in any way): if there was a bit of bartering cake knocking around I didn’t see it. it must have gone into Rich’s orbit like a plane flying through the Bermuda triangle.

Thank you for the opportunity to share this with your readers.

You are very welcome Geoff!  But it is we who should be thanking you! Cheers my friend and we’ll all be listening to the next podcast!

FOR ALL THE UPDATES….

 

PART 2: Richard Dimitri Interview

HAVEN’T READ PART ONE? — CLICK HERE

Richard Dimitri is one of the foremost authorities in reality-based self-defense and hand-to-hand combat.  Recently, the Combative Corner had the honor of asking Mr. Dimitri “10 Questions.”  He was so generous with his words that we’ve decided to separate this particular interview into Part1 and Part 2.  For more information on Richard Dimitri and the close-quarters conceptual tool know as The Shredder™, please visit his website at Senshido.Com (or click on the picture).

PART 2

(6) How is the best way to exercise/employ psychological self-defense into your training sessions? [How does one become “mentally tough”? … do you have a trick/method that you practice?]

That’s very hard to define or explain in an interview brother. There are so many ways and variations and methods depending on the individual’s perceptions, beliefs and state of mind, it cannot be applied generically and therefore requires a variety of examples, drills and methods in order for the general public to “absorb what is useful, apply what is specifically your own and disregard the rest.”

That’s the thing, there is no solidified best way, all I can do is give you an opinion like anyone else as everyone’s different, if there truly were a ‘best way’, wouldn’t we all be gravitating towards it as a species? People are much more complex than we have made ourselves believe. There is no black and white or absolutes when it comes to the human mind, its belief’s and its perceptions to reality, if there is such a thing.

Obviously, there is a standard and guideline, formulas and the like and one has to be pliable and yielding when working with those in groups such as seminars, workshops, group classes etc.

(7) If you could pick one aspect of what you do…. what are you most passionate about or what is your greatest “hope to achievement” in your profession.

Senshido has shifted from being what has come to be known as one of the top Reality Based Self Defense Systems (RBSD) in the world, to also becoming a worldwide Movement for betterment and human evolution. 2005 Was a defining and monumentally significant year for both Senshido and I. My world as I knew it then, had collapsed from under me (much of course to my doing as well as being a blessing in disguise). I was to undergo tremendous life change between 2005 & 2009…. going through 2 divorces, a few business & personal ‘setbacks’, loss of 2 homes, 2 lawsuits, an intense rekindling, 6 moves, the sale of the Senshido School itself, a shedding of an old skin & soul and a final move leaving North America for an indefinite period of time. Quite a bit for a 48-month period…

Through out these trials & periods of growth, I began to see the world from an entirely differing perspective; I let go of my egocentricities and began focusing on the collective-centricities. I began seeing the bigger picture. I started to understand that humanity, is not a mass of individuals but a collective… and through that shift, Senshido began to change with me. I saw life as a singular energetic entity and not a vast sea of individual lives, species and races… but one single, driving energy lead by love.

Senshido the RBSD system is now and has always been the vehicle we use to reach people. Senshido has expanded much, much beyond the RBSD/martial arts realm. Consider RBSD Senshido’s roots but the stems and leaves that have grown from these roots have become Senshido’s focal point. Going from the perspective of Self Defense for Self Development, our testimonials went from thank you for the skills that helped survive a violent confrontation to thank you for changing me and my family’s life. This set me off on a new direction again. I wanted to reach people way beyond the Shredder.

The movement started long ago and lead by people like Jesus Christ, Mother Theresa, Gandhi, John Lennon & Yoko Ono, Bono, Angelina Jolie, Lady Diana, Martin Luther King etc. We all live in this world, someone once said to me, you are either moving towards love or away from love… by every word, every action, and every intention. I took those words directly to heart and so a legacy project had begun on April 11^th 1994. I just needed to define it and focus on the ripple effects of it all. This is because legacy work differs greatly from other good, solid and valid work. If you want to do or create something that will provide tremendous value to others and outlast your own life, you have to be able to clearly answer the question, “How will this really help humanity?”

So I created a cause that was greater than myself. Hope resides in each and every one of us… but as long as we all simply wait for the other to take action, nothing ever gets done… this is why we invite people to unite worldwide and begin living the changes they want to see, becoming those changes regardless of adversity or perceived threat from the ego and the status quo. Senshido International would like to offer a platform, a venue, and a way for those like-minded to unite, express and spread that message as there is power in numbers and as Pink Floyd prophetically sang on their “Wall” album in their song “Hey You”… “Together we stand, divided we fall.”

We also appreciate the fact that we are far from perfect, that we have and will make mistakes along the way and that we will learn as we go along. Some may look at this and think or feel, too big a goal, impossible… why even bother? Or, I have no time to contribute, no money to contribute… etc… but I have seen the changes, I have felt the ripple effect of our movement and the lives that it has saved, empowered and enriched from the simplest of acts…

Help us network regardless of where you are in the world or what you do… share your stories with us, with others, spread your love as a little always goes a long way with the right intention and energy behind it. Be a part of this massive positive ripple effect.

And so I am still in transition with all of this, I am still developing this ideology more and more as days, weeks and months go by and everyday there is a new revelation, every day I discover or rediscover something that shifts my focus and evolves the direction in which I and Senshido are going… I understand this maybe and is definitely frustrating to some and so I thank you for your patience during this transition. I Thank you all for reading and understanding, I offer my apologies to those that disagree or maybe disappointed in this new direction, however, like I stated earlier… this is much bigger than you and I. ;`)

(8) Do you follow the popular sport combatives, such as UFC, Pride, or Extreme Cagefighting? [if so, what’s your opinion of it and are there any athletes that you pull for/are impressed by?]

No, I don’t, I haven’t since maybe the 8^th or 9^TH UFC. I honestly haven’t watched television since 2005. Good one!

(9) For all those that don’t know, what is “The Shredder” and principles behind it?

Since the Shredder has becoming such a revolutionary and misunderstood concept, I will explain it as detailed as possible.

The Shredder has been tried and tested in real violent confrontations the world over with an incredibly high success rate, from cops to soldiers on duty to women using it to defend against violent rape; as a matter of fact, we’ve only had 2 testimonials in over 15 years so far that stated it didn’t work for them compared to the literally hundreds, perhaps thousands we’ve received stating it not only has worked, but with incredible success and ease as well. There is always an exception to every rule and stated prior, nothing’s black and white.

Testimonials come from people from all walks of life, from law enforcement officers, military personnel, security, corrections officers, SWAT, businessmen, nurses, doctors, trained martial artists as well as men, women & children the world over. Though definitely not the end all and be all as nothing ever is, the Shredder is a notoriously controversial concept in the martial arts world because of its utter simplicity. Though there are no guarantees is life, we, along with thousands worldwide consider it to be the easiest, quickest and most efficient tool the average civilian can learn to protect and defend themselves in almost any and all close quarter situations.

Why the colourful “Shredder” name?

Frankly, it was publicly decided and coined after one of our then long distance students & good friend from Brooklyn New York, Warren Ng was taking a private lesson with one of our Team, Marc Ste. Marie. Marc was going over Senshido’s 5 Principles of Physical Retaliation on the heavy bag, specifically the economy of motion/non telegraphic principles, and as Warren was going over his assault on the heavy bag, he said “Oh, like a Shredder MP?” to which Marc jumped up and said exactly, “like a Shredder, now Shred the damn bag!!!”

Warren gets back to NY and gets on our forum and begins to explain how he learned the Shredder concept at Senshido Head Quarters and presto, everyone who’s understood Senshido’s approach and methodology at the time all began calling it the Shredder… so did we and the rest as they say….

The Development of the Shredder:

One of the factors of the development of the Shredder concept were the instant reactions the Shredder had on those it was used on, even at its early development stages and later, in full out demonstrations in seminars. I would do this live demo countless times; challenging myself mainly in front of what must have been thousands of people the world over from 1993 to present date in my last Australian and Belgian seminars last March 2010.

As per the UK’s own Lee Morrison of Urban Combatives after attending our London 2004 Shredder seminar:

“The thing that impressed me the most about Dimitri was the way that he put forward his instruction and then put it under pressure by calling out one of the biggest and strongest looking guys in the crowd, who was in this case a very capable striker and grappler and told him to attack him with anything he wanted as hard as he could. How many instructors have you ever seen do that? This will give you an indication into Dimitri’s ability and belief system in both himself and his material. Needless to say his opponent was dispatched quite rapidly with his ‘Shred’ & even though it went to the ground Richard was dominant throughout.” ~ Lee Morrison Review on 2004 UK Shredder Seminar on UrbanCombatives.com

As Lee stated above, I would invite anyone in the room regardless of skill or size, and there have been all kinds of takers, from BJJ Black Belts to pro boxers, to cage fighters to a 400 +pound bouncer and everything in between attack me as hard and as fast as they wanted over the last 15 +years, anyway they wished in front of countless witnesses worldwide no less. It didn’t matter, the second the Shred was engaged, the threat was instantly controlled and eliminated. The reaction was always the same, instant panic and attempts at defensive disengagement. Something occurred on a psychological level though, it wasn’t just the reception of pain but a complete predator to prey shift. Senshido’s physical retaliation principles dictated its path. We have 5 principles of physical retaliation; they are (in no particular order)

1. Economy of motion
2. Non-telegraphic movement
3. Opportunity Striking
4. Tactile sensitivity
5. Primary target acquisition.

These principles dictated that when striking, it was logical to make sure that the time frame between strikes was as short as possible in order to offer your opponent less of a chance to reflexively & defensively react to the attack. Because the startle to flinch response is a reliable physiological process that acts as an effective protective mechanism (we utilize it in terms of a launching pad off an ambush or surprise attack), I deemed it necessary to come up with a retaliatory concept that bypassed this phenomenon.

As I analysed this process and realized its validity as a defense mechanism which is not only quicker and much more reliable than any memorized technique but also non perishable and impossible to bypass when it overrides cognitive processing, I began to design a concept of attack that bypassed this ‘involuntary’ triggered response.

The Science behind the Shredder:

Real violence will more often than not begin with an attack on the mind, which triggers an emotional response. Our survival mechanism is connected to what is called the autonomic nervous system; this system controls all voluntary and involuntary functions. It is also divided into 2 systems, one being the parasympathetic nervous system and the other being the sympathetic nervous system.

The parasympathetic nervous system is the one that controls our actions and thoughts in non-stressful environments. It controls fine motor skills, cognitive processing and a host of other functions related; however when threat is perceived, the sympathetic nervous system takes over which triggers the survival mechanisms or ‘fight or flight’ response. The release of adrenaline by the sympathetic nervous system increases blood flow and arterial pressure causing a large amount of blood to be pumped into the larger muscles resulting in gross motor functions and applications.

The sympathetic nervous system hinders the functional use of cognitive processing, visual performance and fine motor skills. Modern scientific research and studies have shown us that under the influence of the sympathetic nervous system, only gross motor skills are performed optimally.

Consequently, the ambush or immediate threat introduced quickly and with minimal or no prior warning will trigger the sympathetic nervous system. Understanding that these physiological rules preside during high stress situations, these scientific facts became the corner stone for the concept of the Shredder.

For starters, each tool used had to be based on gross motor applications due to the very fact that the cognitive brain’s overriding by the mid brain restricted access to finer motor skills found in most martial arts. Therefore the tools had to be instinctual and primal in nature but simply fine tuned in a way that allowed its delivery to be more acute then if one were to ‘just go berserk’. The ‘beat’ in between the delivery of each strike had to be shortened from the traditional ‘half beat’ to a quarter beat, meaning, the time frame in between each tool finding its intended target was much shorter and therefore quicker then, for example, the usual jab/cross combo in boxing.

Although a real fight is arrhythmic in nature, it still functions in ‘beats’, a frame of time between blows/strikes. The very nature of the retraction of a tool (fist/foot/knee/elbow etc.) creates a beat as the time frame between each strike triggers the ‘victim’s’ amygdala (a small almond shaped portion of the brain which triggers the protective/defensive flinch) to kick into action creating a defensive reflexive response. You see it in murder victims, defensive wounds in the hands and arms. The reason being is there was a time frame there caused by the threat of the attack (the gun being drawn or the knife being cocked back to slash or thrust) that permitted the victim’s arms to reflexively come up and instinctively protect their vitals (eyes, throat, facial area, head etc.). Therefore creating the defensive wounds often seen on murdered gunshot and stab victims.

With the Shredder however, because there is no telegraphing, like a gun being drawn for example, the attack is launched off of a deceptive posture while your opponent is either still mouthing off or has decided to strike you first instead, rendering it non-telegraphic (one of the 5 principles that make up the Shredder concept) and allowing the primary part of the assault to successfully land making the rest almost impossible to stop. Hence, the strength of the Shredder.

The ‘primal regression’ to gross motor skills and a lack of cognitive processing occurs without a choice. We cannot cognitively process this response and choose to adopt it. Much like when driving a car, if a child or a dog all of a sudden jumped 5 to 10 feet in front of your moving vehicle, you do not have time to process this information. Your brain and body takes care of that for you, the stimulus is introduced too quickly and the startle to flinch response kicks in causing you to swerve out of the way while hitting the brakes as hard as you can hopefully missing the child and not killing them.

Only once the situation is over do we regain access to cognitive thought process and realize what just happened and we feel the sudden blood rushing into our feet, the heart palpitations and the realization that we almost killed someone. We cannot choose to regress to that state; it is an automatic hard-wired process and response.

Why is it so different than regular striking or eye gouging?

What makes this approach so different to conventional striking or ‘dirty tactics’ such as the proverbial eye gouge or the throat strike etc. is that striking requires three integral elements to make it functional:

1) Distance 2) Grounding and 3) Torque.

These 3 elements requires proper positioning, a certain level of strength & athleticism as well as clarity in the moment; a luxury, as stated above, we do not possess when facing threat and danger. The Shredder requires neither of these elements. It can be applied in any close quarter position, whether lying down, grappling, wrestling, while falling (being taken down), at extreme close range etc. It’s comprised of tools that create maximum damage with minimal effort. Its uniqueness is to be found in its delivery and the science that backs its success.

Conventional methods of attack are all so common that through the media, the martial arts, being exposed to real fights, entertainment etc. that we have come to accept and expect a certain ‘way’ of fighting. We are to a certain extent, desensitized and so our minds are somewhat ‘prepared’ for a certain kind and type of assault, a certain beat in rhythm, etc. Conventional methods are designed for distance tactics (kicks, punches, elbows, knees, head butts etc.); or grappling tactics (clinch, takedowns, submissions etc.)

What makes a grappler so devastating is the fact that a striker no longer has the range, torque or grounding to make his strikes effective enough to intercept or hurt the grappler. Therefore everyone figured, correctly might I add, that they also needed to learn to grapple. The Shredder however works best in extreme close quarter situations, grappling, ground-fighting and especially the dreaded clinch. The closer to the opponent you are the better. The Shredder is the equalizer, or as it has been referred to by most of those who have been exposed to it including other self defense experts such as Sammy Franco of Contemporary Founding Arts, “The Missing Link in Martial Arts/Self Defense Training”.

Can anyone learn and use the Shredder Concept?

The advantage of the Shredder is that it is a concept and tool that was designed especially for those who didn’t have great physical strength or athleticism, for those who could be perceived as victims, for those who truly concerned about self-defense. The Shredder can and has been used by one and all regardless of age, gender, size or athletic ability. Although this comes across as a ‘marketing ploy’, I assure you, it is absolutely not.

The very nature of the Shredder’s creation is for it to be used by those who truly need it, those who do not possess the strength or stature to “knock someone out”. It is ‘user friendly’ and requires no memorization of techniques, no necessity of repetitive training, no need for high levels of athleticism and is in accordance with the mind and body’s physiological rules.

This offers enormous value and is a tremendous asset to any teaching and training curriculum as it can only pragmatically enhance any person’s survival skills regardless of their past experience. As stated, there are hundreds to thousands of people worldwide who have successfully used the Shredder to survive violent confrontations and martial artists and law enforcement officers worldwide have adopted this concept into their training curriculum since its conception.

The Shredder is a scientifically supported, physiologically based and behaviourally driven concept. It is not a technique or a system, it is a conceptual close quarter tool and in our and hundreds of thousands of others opinions; By far the most successful self defense tool any individual can use with the highest probability of success rate compared to anything else, and this we stand by.

(10) How has your system* evolved since you first began? And what’s in store for the next decade (any changes/additions/progressions that you foresee) in your system’s evolution?

I think I pretty much answered this one in the question previous to the one above, I’d honestly be repeating myself :`)

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10 Questions with Richard Dimitri

Richard Dimitri is one of the foremost authorities in reality-based self-defense and hand-to-hand combat.  Recently, the Combative Corner had the honor of asking Mr. Dimitri “10 Questions.”  He was so generous with his words that we’ve decided to separate this particular interview into Part 1 and Part 2.  For more information on Richard Dimitri and the close-quarters conceptual tool know as The Shredder™, please visit his website at Senshido.Com (or click on the picture).

PART ONE

(1) Could you please tell everyone a little bit about how you got into teaching Self-Defense? Did you start via the “traditional martial arts?”

I started at the young age of 6, my father after seeing “Enter the Dragon” immediately enrolled me at the closest Karate school, at the time, it was the style of Kyukushinkai which was to be the beginning of a life journey in the martial arts. As every kid at the time did, I too idolized Bruce Lee and fancied starting my own martial arts style one day, little did I know then it was exactly what I was in the process of doing.

Teaching the self defense portion of it came from my own personal demons. I battled with guilt, anger and frustration over what I perceived to be ‘the injustices of the world’ due to personal traumatic experiences in childhood years. I also grew up in the day and age of Stallone, Arnold, Mel Gibson, Clint Eastwood, Van Damme, Seagal, Bruce Willis etc. and the characters they portrayed in their higher grossing films. I grew up with this ideology and belief system spawning from my traumatic experiences combined with the role models I acquired for myself in the movies and presto… you get an angry teen thinking he’s a super hero out to right the world’s wrongs thinking, believing he’s indestructible. I learned the very hard and painful way.

As all my heroes were action and martial arts heroes, I never stopped training in the martial arts, researching them passionately and with vigor, absorbing all I could find, modeling myself after Bruce Lee wanting to own as many martial arts and books on fighting I could get my hands on. I would go through these books with a fine tooth comb, I would test out everything I learned on training partners, with friends, anyone I could find who would participate. Eventually, as I grew older, as a young adult, the fantasy remained but it transformed, it hid, it wasn’t an actual super hero fantasy anymore, I had an ‘out of the box’ lifestyle working jobs in security, bouncing, bodyguarding etc. I was living the fantasy, I was protecting the innocent against the evil doers in my own way.

All this eventually lead me to creating my own self defense system, my experiences, the inspirations in my life, the experiences in my life at this point made my primary focus to create a functional self defense system which is catered to those that actually need it: Housewives, children, the elderly, the disabled, those who are perceived as victims and preyed upon in our society. And so, Senshido was officially conceived on April 11 1994.

(2) What’s one thing that you wish everyone understood about self-defense?

That self defense begins with the self, first and foremost. We all heard the cliché “No one will ever hurt you more than yourself.” Well I fundamentally believe that to be true from personal experience. As ego is the primary motivational drive of all confrontations, Senshido began primarily addressing the individual’s own emotional state (fear, stress, anger, hatred, insecurity etc) as the springboard of self-defense. Anyone harbouring any or all of these ego based emotions, should be more concerned about the damage they are causing themselves and their loved ones, be it directly or indirectly, for it will always be worst than anything any “bad guy” or criminal will ever do to us. The simple understanding on a higher level of this concept alone is empowering enough to change one’s entire life for the better.

(3) What particular system, in your opinion, is the most “Combat ready” “Street Adaptable.” [Just on what you’ve observed]

There are many that are “Combat ready” and street adaptable and many of these systems are excellent. It depends on the system though as well as the practitioner. Not every system is designed or can be adaptable to everyday people, the general population. There are systems that were created by ex bouncers, by ex special forces or military, by ex cops etc. and they are all fantastic systems but if you take a close look from an average individual’s perspective, they are not marketed nor designed for their needs whether living in modern or third world societies for that matter. They are geared much more towards those in the protection field, be it military or civilian. A bouncer will greatly benefit from such systems, so would a cop or soldier or most read blooded young males between the ages of 15 and 40 depending on physical attributes and such.

I don’t know if there is 1 particular system which is the best, that wouldn’t make any sense really as there are so many differing beliefs and mentalities out there. I believe there is a need for all these systems as they all have something valuable to offer and important lessons to be learned, it is up to the “consumer’ to decide which system suits their present needs best based on their lifestyle, environment, beliefs, etc.

(4) What’s the difference between teaching self-protection to women versus men? [What changes do you make and/or what principles do you emphasize?]

Well, for starters, women get attacked differently. Both physically and behaviorally. When Mike Tyson allegedly raped Desiree Washington, I doubt very much that he handled her the same as he did Mitch Greene when he knocked him out with 2 punches.

The psychology is vastly different, the reasons, the motivations, the ego levels, everything really. It is possible and doable to teach a generic personal protection program where the fundamentals are covered to a mixed group but it is preferable to specialize depending on one’s concerns and situation.

(5) Who are some of your role models in your profession and in martial arts itself?

In life, I have many role models, the first being my father, a truly great man with a heart of gold. In his light, he is who I aspire to be. I also am inspired by men like Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, Lennon, Mother Theresa, Nelson Mandela and the like. People who with all their fears, al their insecurities and flaws, still managed to rise above mediocrity and take a powerful, world changing stand regardless of repercussion. MLK was jailed 123 times in 12 years then shot to death. So was Gandhi and Lennon while Mandela spent most his life in a prison. Regular men and women who stood for peace, unity and co-existence.

And I know, no; no one is perfect. No one is pure and even those people put up on a pedestal are flawed and plagued by both sides of the human emotion coin. Regardless of an individual’s faults, and we all have them to one extent or another, it doesn’t automatically dismiss the good they also brought. MLK reportedly beat his wife, so did Gandhi, everyone’s got their demons to deal with. This doesn’t mean I condone the behavior or would allow it to go unpunished, but it still doesn’t change the fact that they changed humanity for the better as we know it. They improved the quality of life for millions world wide as well as inspired countless others to be better people. Key word here is better, not perfect… perfection doesn’t exist and if we are to condemn every great man or woman who managed to changed the world as we know it because of their personal flaws, then there will never be anyone out there worth being inspired by if all we do is concentrate on their shortcomings.

In the martial arts world, I am currently inspired by men like Geoff Thompson who faced his demons and changed thousands of lives worldwide for the better, mine included. I know he is facing much criticism from many circles, and that to me states that he is further ahead in the game than most as truth always goes through 3 stages: Criticism, violent opposition, acceptance. Most get stuck in the first 2 and never evolve beyond and that is fine as they are necessary for those that do to remember where they were once at and to accept and understand the position the others are still stuck in.

I admire guys like TJ Kennedy who is up and coming in the industry who is full of passion and heart. The brother’s at a great stage, he’s turning 30 or has by the time this comes out, and he is in full personal evolution, a beautiful road to self discovery with much to share.

Christopher Roberts, another name people might not have heard about. That’s because he works with High schools all across Canada teaching teens self defense and violence prevention, something that isn’t as glamorous as teaching the special forces but in my most humble of opinions, much more important and honorable.

CONTINUE TO PART 2

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