Bridging The Gap for Adaptive Martial Arts (A few tools to help in the process)

 Ever since I was a kid, watching my dad teach martial arts in his garage. It had always been a dream of mine to both be an instructor and one day have my own school. 

 

As such I immersed myself in the martial arts, any style that, in my mind, could be adapted to fit my body and others similar to me. If it was a weapons system like Kali, I streamlined it to be more one sided with a singular weapon. If it was a system like Thai Boxing, everything had to be up close and personal.

 

When it came to grappling, I used every system that was deemed helpful, aikido, finger locks, judo , wrestling, BJJ etc. nothing was off limits for me. And having instructors that embedded the Bruce Lee philosophy of having no concrete way or limitation was a joyful Pandora’s box if you will.

 

I started teaching and helping my dad at the age of sixteen or seventeen, working with kids. And the moment I was awarded the rank of instructor in Jeet Kune Do. There was an excitement in me to go share my knowledge with others. Being an instructor meant so much to me. It wasn’t merely a piece of paper, the same way a belt is not merely a belt to me.

 

They each meant that in a way, I conquered the impossible. Further with my skills in the martial arts, I was able to apply them in ways very few others could. Especially as it applies to people with disabilities, there is almost always a way for them to learn to defend themselves and improve their lives. 

 

I’ve personally never lost sight of this way of thinking, one of Bruce Lees gripes with traditional martial arts, was it was too rigid and set in stone. And as I step deeper into the realm of something like Jiu-Jitsu, it tends to seem like it’s setting back into that fixed position of thinking.

 

At least in my opinion, as mentioned earlier, with my background. I’m very willing to blow the lid off the can if you will, but it seems as if thinking (in modern BJJ especially) is that is has to be done “this way “ or it’s not the right technique and maybe not even Jiujitsu. 

 

I believe this is because, some have become so profoundly married to a sport, and or points that we forget, similarly to Jeet Kune do, that it can be molded to a person. Even if it looks different from the realm of technical perfection and how things are traditionally done.

 

The technical and intricate parts of learning how to sweep someone are great. However, if I’m working with someone, who lacks the mobility in their body, to perform said movement, I’m not going to force them to do it that exact way. No, I’m going to find something similar, or discard it all together.

 

Jujitsu to me is an all-encompassing word and art, hence why the traditional spelling of the word was chosen, due to its originality and purpose. Though the Helio Gracie adaptation of Jiujitsu is very blended into my personal adaptive martial arts system.  At present, I’ve been a one stripe purple belt since 2021. Chasing my brown belt has been a huge goal of mine. 

 

That brown belt, in my eyes, is the steppingstone that I would need. In the name of embarking on the next part of my dream. The hardest part, however, is how I see myself as a martial artist with a disability, or rather how others view me as a martial artist with a disability.

 

Sometimes it seems as though the outside world (of the martial arts world) automatically assumes that because there is a disability present in my life, that somehow I’m unable to teach. Mind you, there are certainly things that my body cannot do, but one’s physical ability or speed should not be a determining factor as to whether one can be a good teacher or coach.

 

A few years ago, my attention was brought to a story of another young man with my same disability, and he was a black belt in BJJ. On one hand my heart rejoiced because of what he accomplished. As I watched the video dedicated to this man’s accomplishments, there was something that my eyes couldn’t help but notice, the other black belts in the gym were leading the class, while he sat on the side.

 

Sure, there could certainly be more going on than what my finite eyes see, however the question comes to mind, why isn’t he a more intricate part of the class? Even if he cannot teach certain moves physically speaking, he is still a black belt and can help improve the lives of students in the gym.    

 

If martial arts schools desire to open their doors to the adaptive community, there must first be an understanding of what one's disability is, even if the understanding  does not possess a level of depth it is still a starting point. This will help a student to feel understood and even seen by the teaching staff. Secondly, active listening will help an instructor see the totality of one's physical context and help them better adapt to the students biggest needs. For example, when working with one of my coaches at my gym, as I’ve gotten older in life, on certain days things on my body hurt or ache a bit more than usual. Perhaps on that day, doing something like butterfly guard is not the best option, so then one would simply put it aside (if but for a moment) and train another method.

When I have personally worked with my own students, my first line of action is to do an assessment of how their body functions, getting a sense of their mobility, dexterity and so on. This does not solely extend to only adaptive students but abled bodied students as well. Even for an able bodied, it’s very informative to know if they have had a life long injury in their back, shoulders and so on. This provides a better aim if you will, to further present them with skill sets to fit their body.

Thirdly, be able to absorb from different methods, stemming back to the JKD mindset of absorbing what is useful, and setting aside what is not. This is the very heart beat and focus behind the name “adaptive martial arts science” because there is no one way, it isn’t set in stone and often it is a science, in the sense of trying to figure out what fits an individuals needs.

Much of the time, it requires being full of love and patience when working with the adaptive community. Other times, it’s simply the joy of getting a person with a disability to move their body, smile and become healthier, happier and whole as a human being. For within the arts, resides the ability to help one conquer the self, through love, joy and perseverance- and even allowing them to discover who they are and their God given purpose in life.

Lastly, as instructors or even those who aspire to work within the adaptive community. One must also take on the task of developing adaptive minds throughout their own community. This again, for me was outside the bounds of what we know as modern MMA, as there was also influence stemming from “traditional” martial arts as well. Going further, it can also mean placing students in situations in training that they may not be comfortable in.

My prior professor would sometimes have some of my teammates tie their legs up with a few belts. This was to simulate not having much use of their legs, at first it would be very shocking and confusing to the mind, but after a while they themselves found ways to adapt to the experience. It also provided insight as to what it was like to grapple while living with cerebral palsy, this is a very valid experience, because it will allow students who are able bodied to welcome and include members of the adaptive community into their own.     

   

I do believe that there is an expanse of work to be done in this area, but AMAS is proud and honored to help further this mission, while equipping others with the tools to do so themselves. If you have any further questions, please feel free to reach out.