"Punch Bags": Fitness for Purpose Punch bags aren’t what they used to be. Once viewed narrowly as boxing equipment, today’s punch bags are designed for a variety of focuses, including aerobics, stress relief, and martial arts training equipment. Selecting the correct product for your needs requires some knowledge of the different types of punch bag designs ... read the full article “Cross-Training in the Martial Arts: The Anatomy of Combat” – Bob Sykes of “Martial Arts Illustrated” Interviews Jamie Clubb about his New Ground-Breaking DVD Where did the concept for the DVD “Cross Training in the Martial Arts” derive?   I have always been what the quasi-traditionalists affectionately call a dojo-hopper or martial whore. I suppose that stems from the fact that some of my earliest martial arts books and therefore influences were of the comprehensive variety. I’ve just always had a very eclectic nature. For a while I hunted for the elusive martial arts Holy Grail, but it was only in very recent years, when I found myself training with so many different instructors that I realised just how similar certain concepts were. This was the same for both the good and the bad instructors. The good instructors, irrespective of their style shared a few commonsensical base principles, whereas the bad instructors often seemed to be talking the same rubbish but ... read the full article

Martial Arts Sparring and Real World Fighting Flipping through any martial arts equipment magazine will yield a bombardment of advertisements claiming to greatly enhance one’s odds of winning a street fight. Of course, no method will work if the student doesn’t spar. Now, some may say that martial arts sparring is not a street fight and that is true, but, sparring is the bridge required to develop solid skills and attributes. In order to understand this connection, one needs to understand what martial arts sparring ... read the full article