Seattle Wushu Center

For any friends on the Eastside or general Puget Sound area, my Teacher, Master Hong Yijiao of Chinese Wushu & Taichi Academy LLC , will be holding a few beginners public Tai Chi session next week. If interested in learning more about Tai Chi, feel free to show up!

I won't be there due to my teaching schedule at my Kwoon, but tell Master Hong that "Rusty" recommended you.

𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘃𝘀. 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝘀: 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗜𝘀 𝗮 𝗗𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲
By Restita DeJesus

(These thoughts may differ greatly from what my other colleagues teach. However, please remember that these are my thoughts and observations based my own training, experience, and observations, and I am not claiming these as "cut in stone" rules or dogma.
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Martial artists often use the words “training” and “practice” interchangeably. While they certainly overlap, thinking of them as two different parts of skill development can make us better students—and better instructors.

A simple distinction is:

𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭. 𝘗𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘵.

𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴
Training has an objective. We are learning something, developing a capability, or challenging an existing skill.

An instructor teaches you a new punch combination, takedown, lock, form movement, or Eskrima drill. You learn the mechanics, understand why it works, receive corrections, and gradually add elements such as movement, timing, resistance, speed, or decision-making.

Training can therefore include both learning new material and learning to apply material you already know.

Training asks questions such as:

What am I trying to learn?
Why does this technique work?
When should I use it?
Can I perform it against movement or resistance?
Can I adapt when my first choice doesn't work?
Training isn't necessarily about doing hundreds of repetitions. It's about developing capability with a purpose.

𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲: 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴
Once you've learned something, practice keeps you from merely knowing it intellectually and turns it into something you can actually do consistently.

Practice is repetition—but it should be purposeful repetition.

You practice your basic strikes so they become cleaner. You practice footwork until you no longer have to consciously think about every step. You repeat a form to improve transitions and body mechanics. You practice an Eskrima pattern until your hands move naturally instead of stopping to remember what comes next.

But simply doing something over and over isn't necessarily good practice.

That's where something that I call "P.A.C.E." comes in.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣.𝗔.𝗖.𝗘. 𝗟𝗼𝗼𝗽
P — Perform
Do the technique, movement, drill, or skill.

A — Assess
What worked? What didn't? What needs improvement? What do I need to improve this?

C — Correct
Make a specific adjustments. Ask Teachers if unsure.

E — Execute Again
Repeat it with the corrections.

Then P.A.C.E. starts again:

Perform → Assess → Correct → Execute Again

This turns repetition into deliberate practice.

Doing a technique incorrectly 100 times doesn't magically make it correct. It may simply make the mistake more deeply ingrained.

Training Gives Practice Something to Work On
Think of the relationship this way:

Training: “Here's what I'm learning and how it works.”

Practice: “Now I'm going to repeat it until I can do it reliably.”

Then we return to training:

Training: “Now let's see whether I can use it while moving, under resistance, or when I don't know exactly what's coming.”

That experience exposes new weaknesses—which gives us something else to practice.

So martial arts development becomes a continuing cycle:

TRAIN → PRACTICE → APPLY → EVALUATE → REFINE → TRAIN AGAIN

A student might train a new defensive combination in class, practice it repeatedly during the week, and then return to training where the instructor adds movement, resistance, timing, or unpredictable attacks.

If something falls apart, that's useful information.

Go back to P.A.C.E.

Perform. Assess. Correct. Execute Again.

𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗡𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗕𝗼𝘁𝗵
Training without practice can produce a student who has been shown a lot but has developed very little.

Practice without training can produce someone who is extremely comfortable repeating familiar movements but rarely challenges those skills or develops new ones.

Martial artists need both.

Training expands your abilities. Practice sharpens them.

Training gives you something new to work on. Practice makes it better. Training challenges it. Practice fixes the weaknesses that challenge reveals.

And over years of martial arts study, that cycle never really ends.

Learn it through training. Own it through practice. Test it through training. Refine it through P.A.C.E.

Mighty Mites classes (7 to 9 years old) are now enrolling! Great afterschool activity! Enhance strength, self discipline, teamwork, motor skills & coordination, confidence, awareness, and more! Seattle Wushu Center seattlewushu.org [email protected]

𝗖𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗕𝗶𝗮𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝘀: 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗖𝗮𝗻 𝗕𝗲 𝗪𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴
By Sifu Restita DeJesus

More subjects on my blog "Don't Fight The Tao"
https://dontfightthetao.blogspot.com/

Martial artists often pride themselves on discipline, honesty, and the pursuit of truth. We spend years refining techniques, correcting mistakes, and testing our abilities. Ironically, one of the greatest obstacles to improvement isn't a lack of physical skill—it's something happening inside our own minds.

That obstacle is 𝗰𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗮𝘀.

Cognitive bias refers to the mental shortcuts our brains use to make decisions quickly. While these shortcuts are useful in everyday life, they can also distort how we interpret evidence, evaluate training, judge other martial arts, and even assess our own abilities.

Understanding cognitive bias doesn't make us weaker. It makes us more objective, more adaptable, and ultimately better martial artists.

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𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁'𝘀 𝗕𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝘁
Every martial artist has opinions.

"This style is superior."

"That technique would never work."

"Our lineage is the most authentic."

"I know this works because I've done it for thirty years."

Experience certainly matters—but experience alone doesn't make someone immune to bias.

In fact, the more invested we become in a particular system, instructor, or philosophy, the harder it can be to recognize when our own thinking has become selective.

The best martial artists aren't those who never make mistakes.

They're the ones willing to discover that they've been wrong.

___________________
𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗶𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗕𝗶𝗮𝘀
Perhaps the most common cognitive bias in martial arts is confirmation bias.

This is our tendency to notice evidence that supports what we already believe while ignoring evidence that contradicts it.

Imagine someone convinced that their style contains the "best" self-defense techniques.

When they see videos where those techniques succeed, they proudly share them.

When they see failures, they dismiss them:

"The practitioner wasn't trained well."
"That wasn't real."
"Our version is different."
"The opponent cheated."
Notice what happens.

Every success confirms the belief.

Every failure gets explained away.

The belief never has to change.

___________________
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴-𝗞𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗘𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁
Another common bias is the Dunning-Kruger Effect.

People with limited knowledge often overestimate their understanding because they don't yet know what they don't know.

Martial arts social media has amplified this dramatically.

Someone may attend a seminar, watch twenty YouTube videos, spar for a few months, and suddenly begin declaring entire martial arts systems "useless."

Ironically, experienced instructors often sound less certain.

Why?

Because deeper knowledge reveals complexity.

The more you learn, the more you realize how much remains to be learned.

___________________
𝗦𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗶𝘃𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗕𝗶𝗮𝘀
We often remember spectacular successes while forgetting the many unseen failures.

For example:

"I knocked someone out once using this technique."

That's impressive. But how many times did it fail? How many variables existed? How many other techniques were attempted first?

Judging a system solely by its highlight reel is like judging a baseball player only by home run compilations.

You never see the strikeouts.

___________________
𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗕𝗶𝗮𝘀
Many martial artists assume something must be true because a famous master said it.

Respect for instructors is an important part of martial arts culture. Blind acceptance is not. Even legendary instructors disagree with one another.

Many great pioneers changed their methods throughout their lives after discovering better ways of doing things.

If the masters continued learning...Why shouldn't we?

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𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘂𝗻𝗸 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗙𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗰𝘆
Imagine spending twenty years practicing a particular method.

Someone presents compelling evidence that another approach solves certain problems more effectively.

Accepting that evidence may feel uncomfortable because it seems to diminish decades of work.

Instead, people often reject new information—not because it's wrong—but because admitting it would be emotionally expensive.

Time invested should never become a prison.

Your previous training isn't wasted if it becomes the foundation for continued growth.

___________________
𝗧𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗺 𝗶𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝘀
Humans naturally form tribes.

Karate.

Kung Fu.

Kajukenbo.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Muay Thai.

Krav Maga.

Eskrima.

Etc.

The problem isn't belonging to a tribe.

The problem begins when loyalty replaces objectivity.

Suddenly every success by your group proves superiority.

Every success by another group becomes an exception.

Healthy pride becomes unhealthy certainty.

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𝗦𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗕𝗶𝗮𝘀 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲
Algorithms reward confidence more than nuance.

Statements like:

"This is one hundred percent wrong."

"This technique never works."

"This style is fake."
..generate more engagement than:

"It depends."

"There are contexts where this works."

"Let's examine the variables."

Unfortunately, certainty often sounds more convincing than accuracy.

The loudest voice isn't always the wisest one.

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𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗧𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗘𝗴𝗼
Good martial arts training should include opportunities to challenge assumptions.

Ask questions like:

Can this technique work against resistance?
Under what circumstances does it fail?
What adjustments improve success?
Does this apply equally to different body types, ages, and skill levels?
What happens if my opponent doesn't cooperate?
Testing should be viewed as learning—not as an attack on tradition.

A technique that survives honest testing becomes stronger.

___________________
𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗛𝘂𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗜𝘀 𝗮 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗦𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹
One of the highest levels of martial arts isn't physical.

It's intellectual.

Being able to say:

"I was wrong."

"I hadn't considered that."

"That's a good point."

"I need to learn more."

Those aren't signs of weakness.

They're signs of confidence.

A fragile ego protects beliefs.

A strong martial artist tests them.

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𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀
The goal of martial arts has never been to prove we're always right.

The goal is continual improvement.

Cognitive biases affect beginners, instructors, grandmasters, and world champions alike. None of us are exempt.

The question isn't whether we have biases. The question is whether we're willing to recognize them.

The next time you evaluate a technique, criticize another style, or defend your own, pause for a moment and ask yourself:

"𝗔𝗺 𝗜 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆... 𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗺 𝗜 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗲?"

That single question may improve your martial arts more than another thousand repetitions of the same technique.

🌱 Don't let slow progress fool you.

"Some quit because of slow progress, never grasping the fact that slow progress is progress."

One of the greatest lessons Tai Chi teaches us is patience. Improvement doesn't happen overnight. It's built one practice at a time, one movement at a time, one day at a time.

Some days you'll feel like you're making great strides. Other days, it may seem like nothing is changing. Keep showing up. Every practice brings you one step closer to becoming a little better than you were yesterday.

💬 Have you ever looked back and realized how much progress you'd made, even though you didn't notice it at the time? Share your experience in the comments!

Congratulations to my Teacher, Master Yijiao Hong, on the 30 year anniversary of Chinese Wushu & Taichi Academy LLC. I had the pleasure of starting at CWTA in 1996, not long after she opened her school. The Wushu experience was incredible, as well as her Certified Teacher Program (2 years of everyday training): Arduous, intense and you had to dig super deep to get through the sessions. Then I got serious about Taijiquan, where Master Hong introduced us to hew own teacher Grandmaster Chen Zhenglei. Incredible journey, incredible 30 years with CWTA.

𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗦𝗼 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗣𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗢𝗯𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗢𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗿𝘁 𝗜𝘀 "𝗕𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘀𝗵𝗶𝘁"?

Spend enough time on social media and you'll notice a strange trend. It doesn't matter whether the topic is Karate, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Boxing, Kung Fu, Taekwondo, Wrestling, Aikido, Krav Maga, Wing Chun, Kajukenbo, or any other system. Someone inevitably shows up to declare that the entire art is "fake," "useless," or "doesn't work."
Ironically, many of these critics aren't interested in learning about the art they're attacking. They've already made up their minds.
And it seems all the "Reality Experts" have come out of the woodwork.:...The ones that talk as if they've trained in every style and researched ways to beat every single of them. ...The ones who watch a video of a demonstration and criticize it becuase it doesn't look like what they do at their own gym....The ones that rally as many people on social media so they appear supported and feel they've been proven right.....The ones that have nothing better to do than troll the internet for videos to critique, yet never post any footage of themselves.
So why has this become such a common phenomenon?

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘁 𝗥𝗲𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗖𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘆, 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆
Social media algorithms don't reward balanced opinions.
A video titled, "𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘵𝘩𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘹𝘵" will probably receive far less attention than one titled:
"Why Kung Fu Doesn't Work!"
"The Truth About Karate!"
"This Martial Art Is Dead!"
"Stop Wasting Your Time Training This!"
Outrage generates clicks. Clicks generate views. Views generate followers.
Unfortunately, nuance rarely goes viral.

𝗜𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗕𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗔𝘁𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝘁𝘆𝗹𝗲
For many practitioners, their martial art isn't just a hobby—it's part of their identity.
If someone spends ten years training in one style, hearing praise for another system can sometimes feel like criticism of their own.
Instead of asking: "What can I learn from this?", They begin asking "How can I prove this is inferior?"
The conversation shifts from learning to defending tribal loyalties.

𝗟𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝗯𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝗔𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗿𝘀
People naturally like simple answers.
They want to believe there is one perfect martial art that solves every problem.
Reality is much less exciting.
Every system was developed for particular purposes, under particular rules, in particular environments.
Boxing excels at developing hands.
Wrestling develops balance, pressure, and takedowns.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu develops ground control and submissions.
Judo develops throws and clinch work.
Karate develops striking fundamentals, timing, and explosive power.
Traditional Kung Fu often develops body mechanics, structure, coordination, and movement principles.
Filipino Martial Arts emphasize weapon awareness and transition skills.
Kajukenbo was literally created by combining multiple systems because its founders believed no single art had every answer.
Different goals create different training methods.

𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗥𝘂𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗲 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻
One of the biggest mistakes people make is assuming success under one rule set automatically determines effectiveness everywhere else.
MMA is outstanding for testing a broad combination of skills under its rules.
Boxing is exceptional under boxing rules.
Judo is exceptional under judo rules.
Olympic Taekwondo is exceptional under Olympic Taekwondo rules.
Each environment rewards certain tactics while limiting others.
That doesn't make the excluded skills worthless—it simply means they weren't part of the game's objectives.
A firefighter isn't judged by a swimming competition.
A swimmer isn't judged by climbing mountains.
Different jobs require different tools.

𝗕𝗮𝗱 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀 𝗗𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗘𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝘀
Nearly every martial art has poor instructors.
A bad karate school doesn't invalidate Karate.
A poor Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu academy doesn't invalidate BJJ.
A fake kung fu instructor doesn't invalidate centuries of Chinese martial development.
A terrible Krav Maga program doesn't invalidate realistic self-protection training.
Unfortunately, people often judge an entire system based on the worst example they can find online.
Imagine judging all restaurants after eating at the worst one in town.

𝗘𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗜𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗔𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗘𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻
Many viral videos are produced primarily for entertainment.
They feature exaggerated attacks.
Cooperative demonstrations.
Students with little resistance.
Clickbait titles.
Then viewers conclude:
"See? The whole style is fake."
What they're often seeing isn't representative of the art.
They're seeing poor demonstrations, inexperienced instructors, or content designed for views rather than education.

𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗶𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗕𝗶𝗮𝘀 𝗜𝘀 𝗣𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗳𝘂𝗹
Once someone believes an art is ineffective, they begin collecting evidence that confirms their opinion.
Every bad demonstration reinforces it.
Every failed technique becomes proof.
Every success by that same art gets dismissed as luck or attributed to the individual rather than the training.
Psychologists call this confirmation bias—our tendency to notice evidence that supports what we already believe while ignoring evidence that challenges it.
Martial artists are just as susceptible to this as anyone else.

𝗠𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗕𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗢𝗽𝗲𝗻-𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱
Interestingly, the longer many people train, the less likely they are to dismiss entire systems.
Experienced instructors often recognize that every style has something valuable to offer.
They ask questions.
They cross-train.
They borrow ideas.
They adapt.
Rather than saying:
"My style has all the answers."
They say:
"What problem was this system trying to solve?"
That's a much more productive question.

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜𝘀 𝗠𝗲𝘀𝘀𝘆
Violence doesn't care about style labels.
Under stress, success depends on many factors:
Awareness
Timing
Distance
Decision-making
Fitness
Experience
Emotional control
Adaptability
Technique matters—but so do the person using it and the circumstances surrounding the encounter.
No style can guarantee victory.
No style guarantees failure.

𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗗𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗕𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲
Respecting another martial art doesn't require pretending every technique is perfect.
Critical thinking is healthy.
Testing techniques is healthy.
Pressure-testing training methods is healthy.
But there's a difference between honest evaluation and dismissing an entire martial tradition because of a handful of videos online.
One approach seeks understanding.
The other seeks validation.
𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀
The martial arts world has always been diverse. That diversity is one of its greatest strengths.
Every system represents generations of practitioners attempting to solve the challenges of combat, self-defense, sport, personal development, or cultural preservation. Some emphasize striking, others grappling, weapons, movement, competition, or philosophy. None are perfect, and none are entirely without value.
The strongest martial artists are rarely the loudest critics. They tend to be the ones who train consistently, remain curious, and recognize that skill is built through effort—not through belittling someone else's path.
Instead of asking, "Which martial art is bu****it?"
Perhaps the better question is:

"𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄?"
That mindset has built better martial artists for centuries—and it still does today.

Dynamic Dojo TV is BACK! today Sunday 7/5/26 at 3:00 PM Pacific. Restita Dejesus is back with Dynamic Dojo Talk TV! Today she talks about whats been going on in her world lately, and looks at Grandmaster Bram Frank's knife series brand, the Abaniko 2.

Come back to Restita DeJesus's personal profile page at 3 pm to chat! (not this page)
https://facebook.com/live/producer/schedule/