No one has all the answers, right? After all, this is
why we cross train. And, nowadays cross-training has become accepted so much
that is almost kind of a norm. Although some thirty years ago it was seen by
many as the expression of humanity’s lowest impulses, MMA has become possibly
the most popular combat sport of our time, especially in terms of the
mainstream media exposure. It may even be fair to say that the success of MMA
has brought more attention back to the traditional Olympic fighting events such
as judo, boxing and wrestling.
So, the revolution that Bruce Lee was preaching almost
six decades ago is now a common state of affairs…or is it?
There is a segment of training in martial arts and
related disciplines that exhibits much more conservative attitude, and no, I do
not have ultra-traditional arts and systems in mind. As much as training in
several different methods is widely accepted, there is still a lot of frowning
upon the attempt to train simultaneously in two (or more) different schools of
the same system or style. For some
reason, if a person wanted to train in two different BJJ or karate schools, and
just the same for two schools of the same kung fu system, or even two boxing
clubs, they are deemed disloyal, back-stabbing, untrustworthy kind of
character.
While I might understand the sentiment if at issue is
a competitor jumping ship, it doesn’t make sense when talking about a serious
enthusiast who may not be focused on competition. What is wrong if someone
wants to see how different instructors and coaches treat the same situations? On
top of it, for the most part it is completely OK to attend seminars of
instructors from other lineages, but training regularly in different schools is
a no-no.
Granted, at lower, beginning levels of training such
practice may be counterproductive, as the trainee could focus on collecting
techniques and tricks instead of focusing on developing strong fundamental
principles, but after a few years? As a thought experiment, let’s say you have
8+ years in BJJ, with a lot of money and time at disposal. And you happen to be
equally close to the schools run by Marcelo Garcia, John Danaher and Mario
Sperry, who all have classes on different days and times. What is wrong by
visiting each (or two of them) two or three times a week, as opposed to staying
with just one four times a week?
Or, being a boxer of 10 years, and having both Teddy
Atlas and Freddy Roach within reach, with a similar set of circumstances as
above. Would you tap the knowledge source of both, or chose one to follow?
It bears saying that sometimes two instructors will
have approaches that really do not fit, or even contradict each other, and in
such case it is definitely better to opt for one. However, if one is looking to
get as well rounder view of a discipline as possible, it only makes sense to
learn from more than one source. Especially so if you are, or strive to be, an
instructor yourself at some point.
Or maybe the whole “problem” is endemic to the
place(s) that I have been frequenting, while entirely non-existent elsewhere?
