On Leverage

When shifting a load, e.g., your opponent, it is important to properly exploit leverage. Essentials of this include:

• positioning yourself, your base, in the correct position with respect to the load.
• correct choice of a fulcrum (pivot point)
• correct choice of lever arm
• correct choice of position of load on the lever arm
• stabilization of the fulcrum, so that it does not give

Each situation is different, but some of the methods of doing this in OCIS are counter-intuitive at first. Once you have done the motion until it is internalized, you see that correct leverage is much more effective for delivery of power.

This really needs to be shown personally, on a technique by technique basis. After a while, you will be able to see the commonalities. Most of my deeper understanding on this comes from Chen Style Practical Method Taijiquan, which has turned it into a science. I have only scratched the surface in terms of understanding, but it still has increased my martial ability considerably.

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On The Varieties of Form

Two Perspectives

In this article, I discuss two perspectives on form, and the implications of this for training using my Optimal Core Integration Strength (OCIS) approach, and how it relates to my personal art, Kawayan Pangamut.

I want to consider form from two perspectives:

1 – The effect on the target
2 – The bio-mechanics used to generate the force.

The effect on the target

This is view of the interface, the effect of the technique. From this perspective, the tactical, we are concerned only with the size, direction and placement of the forces, over time.

Assuming that there is some workable technique that can be described in the language of physics, there are three levels that I want to consider:

1 – basic form: you can apply the appropriate physical forces at the right time and the right places and directions, when the attacker is predictable and uses a stereotypical motion
2 – ability to accommodate some variation: you can still make the technique work when the attacker varies some of the parameters such as the timing or the direction of the attack.
3 – ability to adapt to counters: you can either make the technique work or switch to a more appropriate one, on the fly, when the attacker attempts to counter your original defence.

Note that from this perspective, it is irrelevant how the forces are generated. As long as the placement, magnitude, and direction are correct, at all times throughout the motion, the technique is fine. The forces could come from someone with great bio-mechanics, or someone with a powerful body and less refined coordination. The forces could just as easily be delivered by an octopus or an android, and this analysis would still hold.

The bio-mechanics used to generate the force

This is a view of the body in motion, what we usually mean by form. It supports the first, the tactical, perspective, but there are many possible ways of moving that all support the first perspective for any particular technique. Some bio-mechanical approaches may work better than others.

Assuming that you have stabilized on a good form, there are three levels that I want to consider:

1 – Basic motion: you move more or less in the correct fashion, with the correct motion of the limbs and torso. There are no gross flaws.
2 – Refined alignment: the joint angles are all correct, in subtle ways, for instance, the shoulder blades are flattened, the hips are turned to generate power, and so on.
3 – Optimized muscle tension: at each point in time, the usage of muscle tension is optimized. Each muscle is tensed and relaxed to the appropriate degree at each moment in time. There is no excess use of energy, and no inappropriate tension. All muscles that should be used, are used. Any muscle that should not be used, is not used. This is the most refined level of skill.

The goal of OCIS training is to provide a meta-level of skill for helping to develop this sort of optimized motion. Certain exercises teach the body to move in a generalized well-integrated fashion. Then further exercises on the tactical forms must be done to specialize the motions. After the basic motions are sound, you must make sure that the joint alignments are correct at all times, and work on refining away unnecessary muscle tension. At some point in the training, you must apply the form to a partner who presents increasingly more difficult situations. For the most refined form, you must be able to accommodate an actively countering partner (or an opponent), while keeping as close as possible to optimized body integration. Getting to the highest levels in this enterprise is a multi-year study, but getting to a good level of skill should take much less time, given proper instruction, and dedicated practice.

The OCIS system develops power through the following approaches:

1. Static held postures, using correct alignment and tension balancing throughout the body. The static postures are derived from fundamental Balintawak Eskrima forms. They were inspired by the "held postures" of Taijiquan.
   
2. Dynamic abstract repetitive exercises for stick and empty hand, emphasing smooth power delivery at all phases of the motion, correct alignment, and correctly balanced tension. The repetitive exercises are designed to develop both ballistic, high kinetic energy motions, and external load bearing motions.
3. Resistance training, using cables, poles, weights, and other sources of resistance
4. Practice of my personal form, the Kawayan form, with attention to proper OCIS motion.
5. Everyday integration practice, so that well integrated motions are used at all times, e.g., opening doors, lifting objects, pushing shopping carts, working on manual jobs of all sorts.

The methods of the OCIS system are combined with the tactical aspects of Dom Lopez's Pangamut system, to create my personal system, Kawayan Pangamut.

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Flattening the Shoulder for Stabilization

There is a way of getting a better biomechnical linkage between arm and torso that involves changing the alignment of the shoulder blade, and changing the tensioning of the shoulder girdle. Although in this piece, I will concentrate on the shoulder girdle, keep in mind that the body should be an integrated unit, and under the principle of tensegrity, forces in one area can have quite remote effects, and tensions in one area can also have quite remote effects.
In order to get my Eskrima students to flatten the shoulder blades, I have tried various approaches to explaination. One of these is to have them stand in a relaxed, slightly slumped posture, feet somewhite widely separated, and tell them to imagine that they are picking up a barrel, that is about as high as they are. In order to do this, they must embrace it around the middle, about the height of their elbows. I ask them to hold this, keeping the body fairly upright, butthe knees flexed forwards. As they hold this posture, I tell them to relax to their utmost. This gets them started on the proper alignment. It is not enough, and I use a number of different approaches to try to make them understand what I am driving at.

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Two Models of Motion

I have found it useful to divide motion into two types, ballistic and external load supporting. The characteristic of the former is typically that you are throwing something, normally something reasonbly light, and looking for high velocity. The characteristic of the latter is that you are trying to exert force, a push or a pull, on a resistant object. There are somewhat different bio-mechanices required to deal with the differing situations.

Ballistic Motion
In order to pick up velocity, you need to have a relaxed body. The recruitment of the body must allow for an increase in speed at each stage of the motion. One of the key factors in this is the ability to tune the body's elasticity, so that the body can flex and extend with the right stiffness at each joint. The goal is to maximize speed in a particular direction, and also maximize kinetic energy. Kinetic energy is proportional to the square of the velocity, so anything you can do to up that quantity pays nice dividends.

Load Bearing Motion
If you are in contact with a large and resistant mass, you need to exert force. This is true regardless of whether you arrived there at high velocity or not. The force requires good body dynamics, but also the requirement for elasticity changes. In this situation, you need to take advantage of the cumulative power of the body, and accentuate it with the ground reaction force and with the force of gravity.

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Essentials of OCIS

In Optimized Core Integration Strength Training, I have developed some body connection/integration drills inspired by my studies of various disciplines, including:

• an observation of what Dom Lopez does in Balintawak Eskrima but had never been able to explain, including his uncanny control techniques and his 'swimming' exercises;
• Chen Taijiquan static and dynamic foundational exercise - since I am not qualified to teach these, they only serve as my inspiration for what is possible;
• Hsing Yi exercises - again, since I am not qualified to teach these, they only serve as my inspiration;
  
• bio-mechanics, most specifically the bio-mechanics of pitching and batting; and,
• physics in general, using the explanatory framework of basic Newtonian mechanics.

I call the body intergration discipline OCIS - Optimal Core Integration Strength. With my approach, I have a bio-mechanical model that I believe to be both corect and testable. I have exercises that help develop OCIS.

• Extreme relaxation is a necessary component.
• Another is correct form, including a good base, and proper alignment of the shoulder girdle, spine and hips - a modified Balintawak "slump".
• Another is good old fashioned resistance training.
• Another is lots and lots of practice with specific exercises, to retrain the body. Unless you are willing to put in the time with the exercises, you won't progress very far.
• A training form, that I call Kawayan (bamboo)
• Work with a light short stick
• The last necessary component is probably the practice of trying to make your everday body motions conform to the OCIS discipline, to really make it your natural way of moving.

Optimal core integration strength is a great asset for martial artists, but any person can develop these biomechanical patterns of movement for any type of physical work or play.

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On Structure and Alignment

A few years back I got to know some folks who practised Wing Chung Kung Fu. They were fond of using the term "structure", but I could never get a clear idea of what they meant, beyond the obvious meaning of the alignment of the joints. I thought that perhaps it was an idea fairly unique to Wing Chun, but one day I heard Dom Lopez, my Balintawak Eskrima teacher use the term. I asked him what he meant, and he ended up defining it as being just another way of saying that you needed correct form. Thinking back, I remembered that he had studied a little Wing Chun at one time, so he may have absorbed the term then. A little while later, I was in a Chen Taijiquan seminar and the instructor there used the term structure a few times. What does the term mean? In this article, I want to throw out some ideas.

It is pretty clear that the word "structure" can apply to the overall shape and organization of something. It can also be used as a term for something built by men, or nature. The term "alignment" is a little more specific - it really refers to the geometrical organization of something, and the angles of the varying pieces. The term "form" has the connotation of something more dynamic. As a body moves, it will continually change the "alignment" of the parts. The "form" in terms of movement usually includes some idea that there are more and less ideal approximations to some pure pattern of motion.

Given this, what added value do we get from using the term "structure"? I think that the connotation may be a little different - there seems in my mind to be an implication that the object has some solidity, as well as a correct pattern of motion.

It follows that we should be looking at how the underlying "structure" is supported, in both static and dynamic senses. You may have everything aligned correctly, and you may preserve proper form as you move, but you could still be inefficient, and you could still be weak. The movement must be correct externally, and must be correct in a subtle fashion as well. In addition, the tension, the usage of the musculature must also be correct. Relaxed, efficient, yet powerful. When these conditions apply, we can probably say that someone has "good structure".

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Optimized Core Integration Strength

Optimized Core Integration Strength is a set of practices for developing certain motor skills to give a more deeply integrated connection from ground to hand. It uses the concepts of:
1 - deep core connection
2 - optimized load and tension distribution
3 - core strength
Practices include certain specialized exercises adapted from the Philippino art of Balintawak Eskrima and inspired by some foundational training available in the Chinese internal arts.

Core integration strength is a great asset for martial artists, but any person can develop these biomechanical patterns of movement for any type of physical work or play.

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Introduction to OCIS

"People think core training is abdominal training "says San Diego–based trainer Paul Chek who's worked with surfer Laird Hamilton snowboarder Shaun White and volleyball legend Gabrielle Reece. "In reality the core is the functional link between the arms and legs. If you don't have the capacity to transfer force from your legs to your arms your performance in almost every sport fails."

This publication is my first attempt to systematically document the results of my studies in applied bio-mechanics. In it you will find a conceptual discussion of the biomechanics of the functional strength training that I have incorporated based on my researches, adapted from exercises in Balintawak Eskrima, and inspired by my examination of internal martial arts. This system, Optimized Core Integration Strength (OCIS), may be used as a training aid for any martial art, or in truth, any physical activity.

How I got started in this approach
In the mid 1990s, I read an ad for classes in “silk reeling”. These were exercises described as the best way to increase your “internal strength”. Now, it was clear that this had something to do with the martial arts, and probably with Taijiquan (T’ai Chi Ch’uan) but the term “internal strength” didn’t ring a bell at the time. I’m sure that I had encountered it before, in my several decades of martial arts training, but it had not stuck. Still, I was looking for something along the lines of a Taijiquan class, and had already learned a little bit (incorrectly as later became apparent). I decided to investigate the “silk reeling” classes, to see what they had to offer. I thought that some cross-training might complement my skills in the Filipino art of Eskrima, which I was teaching.

The visit to the “silk reeling” classes started me on a journey of exploration on methods of training the body that have led me to understand human movement in a totally different way. This has led me to re-study works on physics, biomechanics, Tensegrity, myofascial trigger points, anatomy, functional strength, Pilates, yoga, bodywork, stretching, Tajiquan (T’ai Chi Ch’uan), Hsing Yi, and other topics. In the end it has brought me to a deeper understanding of what my Eskrima instructor had been doing extremely well, but intuitively, for the many years that I have trained with him.

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