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You enter your house, and the lights don't click on. You head for the garage and the circuit box, and you find out why the lights don't go on. A mugger flies through the darkness at you, swinging a club and screaming, you are down and out.
You think a fight is a stand up affair, on a good surface with good lighting so you can see everything? You think the mugger is going to turn on the lights and tell you to take your best karate stance because he intends to beat you up? You've been watching too many many bad movies, my friend.
The fight will happen on the worst possible surface with the worst lighting at the worst time. The fight will happen on the fresh watered lawn in your backyard under the stars. That mugger is going to pick terrain that gives him the best advantage, and the fight is going to happen when you least expect it
It is actually easy to fight in the dark, you just have to get used to moving in the dark. One of the easiest exercises to prepare you, no special equipment needed, is to just move around your house late at night. Turn the lights out and remember where the furniture is, and move around.
Do your forms, shadow box, pretend there is somebody there, and soon you will have an intuitive feel for moving around in the darkness. This matter of developing intuition is what it is all about. You must know where everything is without having to rely on your eyes.
Practice moving around your backyard like a cat, climbing trees, getting used to the dark, actually building up to rolls and gymnastics. You can also set up an obstacle course, climbing over the house, ladders up to short jumps down, learning how to navigate no matter how dark it gets. You can eventually have somebody else set up the obstacles, and the game will notch up and turn delightfully unpredictable.
Finally, you must get friends to play with. Have the fellows you train with doing this with you, and start having wars. Two teams, both dressed in black, playing in the dark, remember to wear mouthpieces and practice relaxing when you fall.
It doesn't have to be the end of the world if a fight happens in the dark. You can become more aware, train yourself, and all while having fun. Just think, having fun, playing games, and being the ninja...that poor mugger doesn't know what trouble he is about to get into!
You think a fight is a stand up affair, on a good surface with good lighting so you can see everything? You think the mugger is going to turn on the lights and tell you to take your best karate stance because he intends to beat you up? You've been watching too many many bad movies, my friend.
The fight will happen on the worst possible surface with the worst lighting at the worst time. The fight will happen on the fresh watered lawn in your backyard under the stars. That mugger is going to pick terrain that gives him the best advantage, and the fight is going to happen when you least expect it
It is actually easy to fight in the dark, you just have to get used to moving in the dark. One of the easiest exercises to prepare you, no special equipment needed, is to just move around your house late at night. Turn the lights out and remember where the furniture is, and move around.
Do your forms, shadow box, pretend there is somebody there, and soon you will have an intuitive feel for moving around in the darkness. This matter of developing intuition is what it is all about. You must know where everything is without having to rely on your eyes.
Practice moving around your backyard like a cat, climbing trees, getting used to the dark, actually building up to rolls and gymnastics. You can also set up an obstacle course, climbing over the house, ladders up to short jumps down, learning how to navigate no matter how dark it gets. You can eventually have somebody else set up the obstacles, and the game will notch up and turn delightfully unpredictable.
Finally, you must get friends to play with. Have the fellows you train with doing this with you, and start having wars. Two teams, both dressed in black, playing in the dark, remember to wear mouthpieces and practice relaxing when you fall.
It doesn't have to be the end of the world if a fight happens in the dark. You can become more aware, train yourself, and all while having fun. Just think, having fun, playing games, and being the ninja...that poor mugger doesn't know what trouble he is about to get into!
About the Author:
Al Case has studied martial arts for forty+ years. You can Sneak Up on him at Blinding Steel.
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