Many people think the way to relax is to go somewhere that is idyllic and free of stress; but this is only a temporary escape and the world quickly rushes back. Here we work purposefully with stress and learn to coach the body to use its natural mechanisms to work in peace. Then these tools become part of ones life and are ready when required -for even the highest stress situations like a physical attack.

The typical martial arts program is usually a boot camp approach with students doing lots of repetitions of kicks and punches in the air. It is mostly designed to give cardio exercise and get one “in shape”. Unfortunately it is not a useful method for gaining many of the other attributes necessary for dealing with violence. It will gratify the ego to feel pumped up, but it encourages a stressful approach to solving physical problems. Furthermore the type of movements usually learned may aggravate an attack due to their reliance on violent posturing and emotional outbursts. The sheer exercise of training in many programs is also not very interesting. It does not engage the brain much and so is hard to maintain over the long term.  Plus, students are generally given techniques to solve various attack situations. This approach has limited use because it is difficult to apply under stress. As a consequence many who train in the martial arts are left with a nagging suspicion that their knowledge may not work under pressure…and they are likely right.

Systema is very different. It is not competitive or athletic. There are no belts, no rules, no katas or stances. There are no formalities or rituals. No tests and no performances. We use a huge variety of drills to cultivate fighting attributes in a non-aggressive atmosphere. We focus on simple and natural things: breathing, movement, relaxation and posture -and use these four pillars of Systema to work with stress and violence, learn movement and body mechanics, and develop a strong posture. Drills are usually done in slow motion so that they can be fully learned by the body. Body knowledge easily becomes spontaneous and does not require calculation to work. So this is a very reliable and useful method for learning. You will become stronger but it will not be from mindless movement. And the biggest benefit to your daily life is a spiritual attribute: that you will become less afraid and more deeply peaceful, more substantial and less blown about by fears and the energy of those around you.

You do not need to be flexible or “in shape”. We believe that if you need to defend yourself then you will be forced to work with what you have …it is the same for class. We do not rely on athleticism or flexibility …these are things that tend to fail with age, fatigue and injury. So everyone starts right where they are: and everyone has natural tools that can be released once they learn to relax and move. 

Other classes are often predominately men but this class will be exclusively for women. We will meet on Saturday mornings from 8:30-10:00 AM. The cost will be $15 per session or $150 for three months if prepaid. (We accept cash, check or Paypal.) Our training center is located at 1795 Desoto Rd, Sarasota. For clothing, there are no uniforms. Sweatpants and t-shirt or any comfortable street clothing is recommended.

Email me at marcbresee@gmail.com if you have any questions or concerns.

The renowned lecturer goes on to describe the need to float, and to move the arms and legs in unison, this way and that. He discusses in passing how to breathe and what water temperature may do to the technique. He discusses warm water and cold water swimming methods, and he shows films of swimmers, and analyzes their techniques.

Finally, after discussion groups and several written tests, the class understands the concept of swimming.

Then they retire to their respective swim couches and practice their strokes carefully and incessantly. After a while they very good at this and can whip out a back stroke or breast stroke or even a dog paddle like the expert in class. They are given Swimmer Diplomas and sent out ready to swim, or teach others how to swim....should the need arise.

Eventually these would-be swimmers begin discussing the merits of pumping the arms more than the feet, or of holding the breath or the theoretical need to get the head up out of the place the water would be, if in fact they were actually swimming in water, in order to breathe. Minutia upon minutia are analyzed and discussed to perfect "the couch swim".

But the problem is that nobody ever gets into the water. You see, the water is a fearful place. One actually gets wet. "There be dragons" seems to be the attitude. "The water is not safe", some say. Others say that the mere suggestion that one would have to test the Master Swimmer's Theory Of Swimming, by actually swimming, to be a disloyal and unfaithful act.

"Analytical swimmers do not need to get into the water", others murmur as they grind through their swim kata every day.

The discussions on minutia and the unanswered questions persist. Yet if one of them dared to wander into the murky wetness, all the questions that they have spent hours and hours bemusing would be answered in one instant flash of sudden understanding.

I'll let you in on a secret. It is a dark and ugly secret that has been kept hidden like a national security issue for decades.

The master swimmer does not, in fact, know how to swim.

(be sure and click on the link below to read the rest)

The new best-selling book The Survivors Club : the Secrets and Science that Could Save Your Life by Ben Sherwood does not mention Ryabko-Vasiliev Systema even once. It’s not about martial arts. And it isn’t published by Systema Headquarters. But never mind all that – It’s going to be one of the most compelling, motivating, and informative books you ever read about Systema or martial arts. If you do read it, that is. I’m betting that by the end of this piece, you’ll be running out to get it. If not, I’ve failed you as a writer, but more importantly, you may have failed yourself, at your most important task – staying alive.

‘The Survivors Club’ explains why some people live through things that creep your flesh even to read about – mass drowning events, horrific fiery infernos, metal spikes through the heart, and beyond. Sherwood makes the crucial distinction between “surviving” and “living”. The idea being that you need to apply the same calm awareness and rational sensitivity which have probably served you well in the calmer waters of your daily life, to the maelstrom of a life-threatening emergency. He thoroughly explains all the recent cutting-edge survival research, and spices his narrative with incredible anecdotes that will make you proud simply to count yourself one of the same species as these “ordinary” people who walked (or swam, or fell...) through hell and back again.

Training is never like boot camp. Strengthening exercises are primarily breathing exercises.

Vladimir: Multiple strikes give you multiple opportunities to take action by ways of: Breathing , Movement , Capturing the force. Let’s look at each one briefly.

1. Clearly, the importance of Breathing properly becomes even more important during multiple striking. No matter what, try to maintain exhaling upon every contact. If you are faced with quick consequent strikes, keep up by making your exhales very short. If two or more strikes land on you simultaneously, make a longer exhale. It becomes very apparent how to do that when you experience it yourself. Begin with pushing and practice by having two or three partners deliver pushes with their fists to various parts of your body. Start slowly and gradually increase the speed.

2. Breathing will help you avoid the tension and if tension is not holding you back, you will be able to move. The more mobile you are the less pain you will experience. In Systema, we often practice moving different body segments such as shoulders independent of the rest of the body. This drill will allow you to put forward less vulnerable body areas to meet the strikes. With multiple punches, you will also realize that preplanned and pre-rehearsed techniques will not work. Whereas, your breath patterns and your free movements can be adapted to any unpredictable attacks and challenging settings.

3. An additional alternative in dealing with multiple hitting is capturing the force. You would take the strike onto your body and redirect it towards your own fist to give your punch more power. You can transform the energy of each punch you receive to go into the force of your own strike. This training requires an experienced instructor and we do it in class and in seminars.

Vlad says, "We have received many questions on this topic. Some very good ones and some questions only show that people have not read LET EVERY BREATH book carefully, and that is a shame. The book contains many answers and most valuable information. It is entertaining and tremendously well put together by a skilled writer Professor Scott Meredith.
Life goes on so quickly and we should try not to miss the treasures on the way.

Please visit Vlad's website when you get a chance. And contribute to the forum there if you are able.

         The actual movie title is “On any Sunday” which is an older motorcycle race/crash movie that my friend Ben Chassen just brought over...Perfect!

         As some of you are aware, I decided not to turn left on the road when it was prudent to do so.  We were in a relatively inaccessible canyon area, East of San Diego.  It was totally makeable, I was just stupid.

         Unfortunately I didn’t have a helmet camera on my motorcycle for do*****entation when I left the mountain to test the validity of my gravity theories in the local area. If there is any lingering doubt, I am here to say that gravity works quite well in this particular canyon....In fact, even without proper do*****entation, in my mind it’s beyond theory at this point, and I’m leaning toward it’s a scientific law at this point....At the very least, gravity is exceptionally consistent in this area....I also confirmed that granite boulders generally win when your back hits them at normally back-breaking velocities.

         I do remember flying through the air after my bike impacted the first set of boulders, thinking “relax and breathe” ala Systema principles, (which I did) like I have told countless people in our combatives training, but I did not expect to be having to tap that bit of knowledge for such a moment as this.  I was wearing full protection during my reunion with terra firma.
See: http://www.motostrano.com/bionicjacket1.html  Note the back protection on this system.

        When I hit the next set of rocks, I was actually surprised that I lived, then I was even more surprised that I could move my extremities.  Based on the scientific “thrash index”, I was thrashed on the upper end of the scale and thought for certain I broke my back.
        My best word picture to describe the wonderful sensation was it was like getting hit with a free swinging 2-ton steel girder concentrated in one area of your body but you are trapped against something hard when it makes contact.
       Granted, some of you on my email list can punch extremely hard, but I am here to tell you, ya got nothing on Mother Nature!

       My friends later told me later, that they had never seen such ash white and dark green on a human face before....I attribute it to the secret chameleon training I went through in the Navy...The ability to change colors on demand can be useful in stressful situations...But I digress.
       Although I almost lost consciousness several times over a 2-hour period on the ground, I kept control of my breathing as best as I could.

I remember kinda snapping back into reality and looking up and admiring the blueness of the sky, the beauty of the clouds.  Then my son walked by.  I thought, “Man he is a good looking kid....He looks like his mother...” I was chuckling at the ridiculousness of the entire scene... I remember hearing Molly pray from me and the first responders.  Regardless of your beliefs, this is good stuff in times like these. The clarity of the moment was pure.  I am actually quite grateful for it.

        Alas, all I have to chronicle the adventure is the helicopter lift out of the area taken from a cell phone camera (mine)....They were already re-allocating my belongings! In the 1st video you can hear me say, I am getting claustrophobic.  What happened was I was on the hot ground for a quite some time.  De-hydrated and in a bit of pain.  These guys bundle me up on back board, belt me in, tape everything down, neck brace, head brace.....I can’t move anything but my hands...It takes time....Not a fun feeling even in the best of cir*****stances. Then they spend about 10 minutes wrapping this lift bag around the whole thing....It’s thick....I immediately got exceptionally HOT inside that bag...Several times the material is draped over my face and mouth.   The neck brace is constricting my blood flow to my head, because it was too tight around my neck.  Think mummy sack, but you now know you cannot move.....Then 3 guys step over me....I had an immediate, powerful psychological reaction to it.  I calmly state, I am getting claustic....My friend Ben tells me to hang in there....I breathe and try to put my mind somewhere else...Then I ask my friends if they can pour some water over my head....They did.  As soon as the cold water hit my head and chest, I was fine.....

           In the 3rd video, in what appears to be the sun is me actually taking the opportunity to show the power of our HID lights during an emergency situation. You don’t always run across marketing opportunities like this and I wanted maximize time on target while the resources were there.

           Overall damage report:  Cracked Sacrum that should heal in 6-weeks and slightly beat up YZ250...I am walking on my own power today with no pain meds.

           In the final analysis:  I am exceptionally grateful to be alive, not in a wheel chair for the rest of my daze, and the my wife Francine is not real happy with me right now!!!  Yahoo Honey! - I am sorry Honey....

           I thank my son who found me, my friends who comforted me and prayed for me on-scene, the emergency response folks, and for Rick who managed to let me know he was personally grateful it wasn’t his $12K KTM stuck upside in the tree with smashed parts (which I was riding earlier).

As on “Oh by the way”, the 1st helicopter that showed up on scene, over-torqued during a low-level hover and almost crashed into the mountain....It was exceptionally close in terms of a another catastrophic event.  I talked to the crewman, when he did end up near me and he was visibly shaken from what just almost happened to them.
          What a day! The humor index was exceptionally high when you step away from being in the middle. I am also now thinking if I had a faster bike, I might have cleared the section....

Respectfully,

        Vladimir: There are training tips related to preparation for striking and the actual things you do while your are receiving the strike.
Most people have the primary fear of contact. Of course the degree of fear varies from person to person. I have met some who came to my school afraid to get hurt to such an extent that they were shaking even in a peaceful setting of the gym. Learning to take strikes should follow a good progression.

Student: We heard that you are currently working on a new book on STRIKES. One of the topics covered in that book will deal with the skill of taking strikes. It is of great interest to anyone studying martial arts, self defense or even human psychology. In Systema training, this skill is recognized to be very important, quite a lot of time is devoted to learning it. Why is that?

Vladimir: Why study this, you ask, but when they get hit, students also ask Why Me?... There are 2 reasons for training to take strikes. The practical-apparent one and the underlying-psychological one.

         In my experience with numerous martial arts and martial artists, fighters avoid getting hit by trying to be the first one to punch, by learning escapes, evasions and blocks. But they rarely talk about dealing with the strike that actually landed on you.

          I have seen how an unexpected punch can send a skilled martial artist into a state of disorientation, shock, panic, resentment, and many other counterproductive conditions. Moreover, I have never seen anyone capable of avoiding all strikes in a mass attack or crowd fight. You can easily verify it yourself in a group of 10 or more fighters.

       Unfortunately, most of us have an almost automatic response: when a strike touches us we immediately go to retaliate and hit back. This is caused by pride. Systema training of taking punches deals directly with pride.

     For me, this kind of work really draws attention to the small, internal things that get lost during excitement: wanting to sit and snipe with the illusion that I'm safe if I sit still; breaking posture and realizing that if someone gets the jump on me I am not prepared to move; uncontrolled tension causing my breathing, posture, movement, everything to go sideways.

      Something that I'd like to work in future seminars would be close quarters gun retention and perhaps some training involving both knives and guns in which an adversary has a weapon in close quarters and we don't know what it is. I know that if I know I'm training gun, I am sloppier with my movement on the lateral sides of the weapon than I am when I know it's a knife. If i know it's a gun, I immediately try to close distance, but with a knife, the fear that I've yet to learn to manage results in much different movement (not necessarily and probably not good movement in most cases).
      It's always good to train with folks at varying levels of training and to see how small the margins are that we are always working to shave away in our favors. The humbling aspect of such training is always good for me outside of the direct application of the techniques at work.