THE GROUP    During my time training abroad I found that more often than not I was training with partners or in small groups rather than in the big school environment I was used to. While there were some shortcomings to this kind of training the advantages were many and so when the dojang schedule was not really working for me I thought of putting together small groups like the ones I found most productive abroad. In fact this is the traditionally proven method for developing a small number of students to a high degree of excellence. With newcomers I am quite sure that I can bring them along in this manner much faster than I myself learned. With those with a considerable amount of experience in the arts I welcome the opportunity to share our knowledge together. Typically a new inexperienced student will be taught privately until they gain the experience necessary to contribute to training with one of the more experienced groups. The private training is designed to speed up this process considerably. Unlike in the usual school setting the beginner will spend most of the time performing the techniques while the team leader serves to facilitate their training. The beginner, for example, will spend more time throwing their instructor rather than being thrown by the instructor. After all, the teacher already knows how to throw and is much better trained to take the falls than the beginner. Because this method is time intensive, and time is precious, only those with a real enthusiasm for training and consistency in their efforts will be allowed to continue. This is not really as severe as it sounds. We just want to spend our time training those who make the time to train. Also undue chattering and poor use of the time on the mat is frowned upon and those who do so may find that they aren’t getting called back for training sessions. On the other hand, asking questions about technique is certainly welcomed. While we are on the mat we should be trying to be fully engaged in what we are doing there. The current members’ strengths are in the areas of striking (both punching and kicking) and standing joint-locks. Although we also have experience in these areas we would like to attract more individuals who are skilled in these areas; wrestling, Brazilian jiu jitsu or grappling and judo-style throwing. If you don’t have this kind of experience, no worries. If however you do have experience in these arts you might find yourself a welcome addition to our team. If are interested in joining our training group here in Scarborough or if you are just curious and would like to know more about some aspect of our training please give a call to our team leader, Matt at (416) 442-6254.