Training for Sudden Violence: 72 Practical Drills

234 Pages·2016·5.21 MB·English

by  Rory Miller

TRAINING FOR SUDDEN
VIOLENCE
72 Practical Drills
Rory Miller
YMAA Publication Center
Wolfeboro, NH USA
YMAA Publication Center, Inc.
Main Office:
PO Box 480
Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, 03894
1-800-669-8892 • [email protected] • www.ymaa.com
ISBN: 9781594393808 (print) • ISBN: 9781594393815 (ebook) All rights reserved including the
right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.
Copyright © 2016 by Rory Miller
Edited by T. G. LaFredo
Cover design by Axie Breen
Photos courtesy of the author unless otherwise noted Publisher’s Cataloging in Publication
Names: Miller, Rory, author.
Title: Training for sudden violence : 72 practical drills / Rory Miller.
Description: Wolfeboro, NH USA : YMAA Publication Center, [2016] | Includes bibliographical
references and index.
Identifiers: ISBN: 978-1-59439380-8 | 978-1-59439381-5 (ebook) | LCCN: 2016941588
Subjects: LCSH: Self-defense—Handbooks, manuals, etc. | Self-defense—Psychological aspects. |
Violence—Psychological aspects. | Violence—Prevention—Handbooks, manuals, etc. | Crime
prevention—Handbooks, manuals, etc. | Martial arts—Handbooks, manuals, etc. | Martial arts—
Psychological aspects. | Fighting (Psychology) | Criminal psychology. | BISAC: SPORTS &
RECREATION / Martial Arts & Self-Defense. | SOCIAL SCIENCE Criminology. | SOCIAL
SCIENCE Violence in Society.
Classification: LCC: GV1111 .M557 2016 | DDC: 613.6/6—dc23
The author and publisher of the material are NOT RESPONSIBLE in any manner whatsoever for
any injury which may occur through reading or following the instructions in this manual.
The activities physical or otherwise, described in this manual may be too strenuous or dangerous for
some people, and the reader(s) should consult a physician before engaging in them.
Warning: While self-defense is legal, fighting is illegal. If you don’t know the difference, you’ll go to
jail because you aren’t defending yourself. You are fighting—or worse. Readers are encouraged to
be aware of all appropriate local and national laws relating to self-defense, reasonable force, and the
use of weaponry, and to act in accordance with all applicable laws at all times. Understand that
while legal definitions and interpretations are generally uniform, there are small—but very
important—differences from state to state and even city to city. To stay out of jail, you need to
know these differences. Neither the author nor the publisher assumes any responsibility for the use
or misuse of information contained in this book.
Nothing in this document constitutes a legal opinion, nor should any of its contents be treated as
such. While the author believes everything herein is accurate, any questions regarding specific self-
defense situations, legal liability, and/or interpretation of federal, state, or local laws should always
be addressed by an attorney at law.
When it comes to martial arts, self-defense, and related topics, no text, no matter how well written,
can substitute for professional hands-on instruction. These materials should be used for academic
study only.
CONTENTS
Foreword
Introduction
Evaluating Drills
The One-Step
OS1: The One-Step
OS2: Four-Option One-Step
[Redacted]: The Baby Drill
OS3: Slow Man Drills
OS4: Three-Way Coaching
OS5: Dance Floor Melee
OS6: Frisk Fighting
OS7: Environmental Fighting
OS8: The Brawl
Interlude #1: Biases and Assumptions
Blindfold Drills
B1: Blindfolded Defense
B2: Blindfolded Targeting
B3: Core Fighting
B4: Blindfolded Infighting
D: Dynamic Fighting
D1: Dynamic Fighting
D2: Sumo
D3: The Hole against the Wall
D4: Moving in the Clinch
D5: French Randori
Interlude #2: Sources
F: Fundamentals
F1: Maai with Weapons
F2: Off-Lining
F3: Targeting
F4: Lock Flow
F5: Initiative
F6: Advanced Ukemi
F7: Pushing
F8: Core Defense
GM: Ground Movement Drills
GM1: Rollover
GM2: Rollover, Phase 2
GM3: Rollover, Phase 3
GM4: Rollover, Phase 4
GM5: The Wax On, Wax Off of Ground Fighting
GM6: One Up, One Down
GM7: Blindfolded Grappling
Interlude #3: Social and Asocial
PM: The Plastic-Mind Exercises
PM1: Animal Styles
PM2: Fighting the Elements
PM3: The Other
IW: Internal Work
IW1: Centering
IW2: Eating Frogs
IW3: The Game of the Stones
IW4: Lists
IW5: Slaughtering and Butchering
IW6: Ethics and Glitches
IW7: To Save My Children
IW8: The Predator Mind
IW9: Articulation
Interlude #4: Training Open-Ended Skills
C: Combat Drills
C1: Takeouts
C2: Multiman
C3: Breakthrough
C4: Bull in the Ring
C5: The Reception Line
Scenario Training
WW: World Work
WW1: The Clothespin Game
WW2: Ten New Things
WW3: Stalking
WW4: Escape and Evasion
WW5: Counting Coup
WW6: Say No
WW7: Dog Handling
WW8: Global Awareness
WW9: Legal Articulation
WW10: World Building
WW11: Personal Threat Assessment
SC: Sparring and Competition
SC1: Kumite and Variations
SC2: Judo Randori: Nage
SC3: Free Grappling and Variations
SC4: Jujutsu Randori
SC5: Full Contact
SC6: Mixed Martial Arts
SC7: Competition
Interlude #5: The Violence-Prone Play Group
T: Tricks and One-Offs
T1: The Touchstone
T2: “Hit Me as Hard as You Can”
T3: The No-Touch Parry
T4: Action/Reaction
T5: Gush
Real Superpowers You Can Have Today
Acknowledgments
Glossary
Bibliography
Index
About the Author
FOREWORD
Wim Demeere
Before I talk about this book, I need to mention a couple of things.
First of all: mankind is violent. It always has been, and it probably
always will be. As a species, one of the few constants in our history is the
presence of violence. Be it one on one or between tribes, cities, countries,
or coalitions of nations, we’ve been fighting among ourselves for
thousands of years.
At a personal level, there are varying reasons or pretexts as to why they
come to blows:
Bashing somebody’s head in to steal his money, clothes, or other
valuables.
Defending a real or perceived insult to your honor or the honor of your
wife, family, or clan.
Your emotions get the better of you in a heated argument, and you let a
punch fly.
There are many more, but for the most part, these reasons have not
changed all that much throughout time. What has changed is society.
In the average Western country, violence is actually much less prevalent
than it was a mere hundred or two hundred years ago in that exact same
place. To put this in the proper context, ask yourself these questions:
When was the last time bandits raided your town to loot, plunder, and
rape?
When was the last time you had to shoot or kill somebody to defend
your family from being murdered by robbers?
When was the last time you lost a family member to a lynch mob?
Once again, the list is much longer, but for most Westerners, the
answer to these questions is “Never.” Just the questions themselves seem
absurd to them, even though these things were a part of daily life not that
long ago. This doesn’t mean violence is nonexistent in today’s societies—
on the contrary. It is still a part of life, but in many cases you can avoid it;
in only a very few instances will an aggressor follow you all the way home
if you successfully run away from him.
As a consequence, very few people have any actual experience with or
accurate knowledge of dealing with violence. For the most part, they get
their information on this topic from television shows and movies.
Unfortunately, those are perhaps the worst possible sources you can turn
to for realistic information on this subject. As a result, people no longer
have the skills to cope with violence, regardless of what form it takes.
This informational void has given the opportunity to countless experts
to offer their advice on this problem via books, videos, and training
programs. Sometimes they offer worthwhile information; more often, the
opposite is the case. But the average civilian no longer has the means to
separate the good from the bad, as he lacks a realistic empirical framework
to do so. This, in turn, has allowed a large number of unrealistic and
inefficient teachings to flourish. Along with that, there is the omnipresence
of the internet, which allows every single person with a computer to spread
the most outlandish ideas on violence.
Just as the glossy magazines have indoctrinated women worldwide to
strive for a size four regardless of their body type, this avalanche of faulty
information on violence has become part of the collective unconscious.
One of those erroneous ideas is that training drills are useless for self-
defense. Though there are indeed some popular drills that offer little of
value, nothing could be further from the truth. Warriors, soldiers, and all
those who routinely engage in violence have always used drills to hone
their skills:
Roman soldiers started their sword training by relentlessly drilling
techniques on a wooden post. They were not allowed to practice
swordplay with a partner until they had mastered those drills.
“Tent pegging” (piercing and picking up a ground target with a sword
or spear while riding in gallop) was practiced by cavalries in Asia and
Europe since at least 400 BC.
The sport of polo originated from another ancient drill for cavalries to
practice sword techniques while on horseback.
Friedrich von Steuben insisted on bayonet training drills during the
American Revolutionary War, and they proved decisive on the
battlefield.
If warriors from those times, when life was significantly more violent
than today, understood the value of training drills, then we should
probably do the same today. The only question that remains is, which
drills should we use?
That is where this book comes in.
Having trained, sparred, and talked with Rory, I can state from
firsthand experience that he definitely knows what he writes about. He has
a unique blend of formal and informal training in both martial arts and
law enforcement, vast experience in handling extremely violent conflicts,
and a sharp analytical mind. All these factors combined make his
knowledge and insight invaluable when creating drills or adapting existing
ones so they become more effective. With this book, he has done exactly
that.
Some of the drills are tried and tested; they’ve stood the test of time,
and many instructors use them because they work so well. Others are
variations of these drills where Rory made some changes that increased the
benefits you derive from them. Many others will be brand new to you, as
they are not commonly used in most schools or dojos. But the most
valuable thing you will get out of this book is the drill that blows you
away and that creates a lasting paradigm shift for not only your training
but also for how you view violence. I’m confident you will find at the very
least several such drills here.
What is perhaps just as important is how Rory explains the drills in
such a way that you can tweak them for your own purposes and specific
circumstances. This is the hallmark of powerful training tools: they are
versatile enough to be adapted to each individual’s needs. This also means
you can continue to get more and more out of the drills in this book as
your own skills increase because of your training.
Violence is a huge and complex topic. Training to handle violence is the
same, perhaps even more so. The information in this book is a practical
guide to help you on that path. I hope you can get just as much out of it as
I did.
Enjoy your training,
Wim Demeere
Former Belgian sanda champion, personal trainer, author … and
about 220 pounds of solid muscle and skill we lovingly refer to as
the BBBB (the Big Blond Belgian Bastard)