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One of the in-person Liberation Martial Arts practitioners, New Guy in our Discord, shared a video with us of his first and last day of boxing club. He didn't try striking again or martial arts in general until recently with LMA.
A point we often bring up is how, despite the similarities between what we do and what some commercial gyms might do, the pedagogy makes all the difference.
We employ dynamic and unpredictable training right away, but with the boxing club, the sparring is not a learning game: it's unguided, unscaled, unconstrained, and the objective is humiliation.
Under closer inspection, you'll see New Guy is also making contact with punches, but he's punching lightly, whereas his opponent is going hard. It's mismatched intensity. In this example, sparring isn't used as a dynamic way to learn through exploration and wayfinding but as a toxic and punitive entrance exam. If your pedagogy has participants giving up on martial arts, it's a failed pedagogy.
In LMA, we employ dynamic guided games so practitioners can develop game sense and discover their own personalized techniques. Rather than a filtering system, gameplay allows learning to be the most things for the most people. Not only is everyone allowed to develop their own game theory, it's encouraged. The old adage "You can learn from everyone" only works if everyone develops their own unique style. If everyone is rigidly the same, then it only makes sense to learn from the person we are all mimicking.
This video compilation is of New Guy, then and now. It's also a progression from then to now, with a decade-long gap in between and only thirty hours of LMA training. The two versions of sparring couldn't be more different. There's safety equipment in both scenarios, but the differences in how they are used and the vision for safety are stark. For us, safety equipment is the last measure, not the first and only. We also explain how to properly use equipment, including how to use a mouthguard. (The mouthguard isn't just designed to protect your teeth but also your neck. It's not effective until you actively bite down on it.)
Even in the final kick, New Guy's training partner was not hurt. He was jokingly congratulating him on a clean technique. In the boxing sparring, the round ended with a body shot KO delivered by an adversary rather than a comrade.
Them: "We do the same thing."
Us: "Yeah, but completely differently."
In a short time, New Guy has progressed. Rather than rigid and predictable, he's dynamic. He looks at his opponent and then responds with a solution. Progress isn't nebulous; it means improving your ability to perceive and respond. That requires relaxedness and composure, which New Guy now exhibits.
Though this video only highlights New Guy's redemption arc, everyone is having fun, everyone is relaxed, no one is hurt, no one is having a panic response, no one is intimidated, and no one is feeling shamed or humiliated.
Our practice has no mismatched or lopsided games because everything is scaled to keep things on a level playing field. This allows everyone to learn and have fun because you can only effectively learn if you feel safe and calm. You can't have fun if you are anxious or self-conscious. Progress is a byproduct of consistency, and you will be consistent if you are having fun and don't fear going to practice.
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New Guy's Redemption Arc