In martial sports, competitors are awarded points for practices such being able to demonstrate complex techniques and flawless katas (choreographed movement), or for fighting with strict safety rules to avoid permanently disabling one’s opponent.
The martial sports such as taekwondo, Brazilian ‘jiu jitsu’ (BJJ) or karate teach important skills of course, and those who love participating in them absolutely benefit from that involvement, but in a street fight, following a set movement or abiding by the rules is not how a fight unfolds. Since the rules are non-existent, the participants scrap it out based only on what’s happening in the moment.
That’s where Gendai Jujutsu comes in, it being designed purely and only for self-defence, to disable an opponent in order to survive.
It’s better not to need to use self-defence skills of course, but after so many years of teaching, it is always very gratifying to see someone grow so much in self-assurance because they now know how to look after themselves if necessary; lack of confidence becomes more and more incidental as skills grow.
With the growth of skills also comes strengthening self-discipline, so crucial for any kind of success.
Our students, as with our amazing instructors, are an especially nice group of people to be around. We believe it’s because we provide an environment in which they feel safe with and respected by us and their fellow students, with simple but equally defined boundaries for everyone—students and instructors alike. And we also ensure our students know the difference between someone who is just being silly as opposed to someone who really means them harm, and then what to do in each circumstance.
We also have a lot of fun, and we make sure that everyone else is having fun with us. Laughter is mandatory. When thinking about your own experiences with learning, it is probable that the time when you learned the most was when you had the greatest fun. Being talked at, or having to repeat mind-numbingly boring exercises without any kind of light relief, shuts down the brain quicker than a comfy bed on a cold night.
Moreover, we believe that there is more than enough pressure already on children and teenagers, without adding to the exams, eisteddfods, competitions for tennis, football, cricket etc etc etc already in the mix. (And what about leaving enough time for sleep?!!) While we monitor student progress in the form of grading, our students know that this is also our way of both validating that they are learning what they need and that we are doing a good job of teaching it.
We believe we have an exceptional product, taught by exceptional people with a passion for what they do and great affection for those who come to them to learn—without the added pressure of having to compete.
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