As I know there are a few practitioners of Rapid Arnis on here including the chief instructor. I'd like to know, if I was to practice rapid arnis 3 times a week plus one two hour private lesson how long should it take for a beginner make his arnis functional in a self defence situation? Also would training this system overtime instill the confidence needed to apply what I learnt in self defence? I cant fight to save my life i'm hoping to improve this now seeing as im a 26 year old man with people under my care. Im not sure if its the lack of confidence within my own skillset or if I actually cant fight. But whenever I play fight with my family or friends I always lose. I think its time to sort it out now. Fortunately for me I have an intimidating look which usually keeps trouble away. But I cant rely on just looking scary. I do tend to have very gentle giant personality dont like fighting but Ive now come to realize through recent events I cant carry on living my life unable to fight or not having the confidence to apply what I know. So im looking for a system that will teach me functional self defence and the confidence to apply what I know, also a system which emphasizes sparring so I can build my confidence I'm hoping rapid Arnis has this. Sorry for the long post.
Hi mate, Progress in martial arts is like any other art-form - it all depends on the individual and their situation. In theory, a full set of functional skills/techniques can be introduced in less than a week. With daily practice, partner drills, and a conditioning routine, we could see consistently good application by the 4-week mark. Give it another 2 solid weeks of free-sparring against a range of different opponents and scenario training and you'll have developed some decent skills in perception to facilitate the application of those techniques. There you go - in 6 weeks, job done. But then you've got to ask yourself what the hell i'm basing the above conjectures on? It's all well and good saying it'll take x amount of time, but if you have problems finding the necessary equipment, personnel, location and time-windows to operate with, you are unlikely to achieve those goals in the desired timeframe. At the moment - in addition to my role as a Rapid Arnis instructor - i run courses for professional units and training candidates. In every case, i have a sizeable budget to work with, training facilities, and students who are motivated, fit, and dedicated to the course as a primary focus every hour of every day for a specific period. And i will be there with them every step of the way. It is therefore much easier for me to predict their "exit speed." When it comes to the development of a self-sponsored individual, you might well have all the kit, a venue to train at, and time to train. But what about instructors? They don't come cheap. Also, what about your training partners? Are they tough and capable and reliable - or are they lacking? Injuries? Real-life distractions? Family? Job? Changing goals? Changing emotions? Changing perceptions? The list goes on... So when someone asks me how long it'll take for them to reach their goals, the only truthful response i can give is "as long as it takes." In your specific case, the only thing we can do is help to accelerate the progress is to deliver a modified program - optimised for self/third-party protection, and including lots of sparring and full-contact drills/exercises. Short answer? Get yourself booked in ASAP and crack on
Your confidence is your issue and it's an issue that's unique to each individual. I've seen people become over confident in martial arts with out the skill to back it up and I've seen highly talented martial artists who never seem to be confident in their abilities. The only way you're going to find out if they will give you confidence is to try them and see. No one else can answer that question for you. As for how long it will take you to get good that's also unique to each individual. You may be naturally coordinated and athletic or you may be extremely awkward or any where in between. It's another question no one can answer for you. I can tell you that you won't start to get good until you actually sign up some where and start learning.
