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Can anyone tell me what the main differences are between western boxing and JKD ? I am a bit confused on that. For example, I know that in JKD, you stand with your strong side forward, so if I am a right-handed fighter, my right foot is forward, whereas in western boxing, it is not. My question is, can I do both these arts, or don't they combine well ? Which is better for self defense, and which is better for working out, etc. Please help. Thanks.
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JKD has most of the boxing handwork in it. It is based on several arts which include boxing. -
JKD Boxing
The other day, Pat Strontg and I were talking and he discussed how Bruce Lee was totally changed and inspired by watching Muhammad Ali beat Sonny Liston for the heavyweight championship.
His JKD was forever to be changed as a result. The footwork and elusivity that Bruce witnessed in Ali had a huge influence on his training and teaching after that.
However, although western boxing is excellent to learn footwork, combinations, evasiveness, leverage in punching etc. it is a sport and therefore is bound to such rules whereas JKD is unbound and limitless.
A JKD workout "should" be much more demanding and inclusive than a straight boxing workout because it should include the boxing regimen of jump roping, shadowfighting, bag work, medicine ball work and focus glove drills but adds much more to it such as kicking, ground fighting, more ranges and more potential weapons and techniques and for some people weapons training.
Good luck in your training.
William "The Mongoose" Holland
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As far as getting a good workout that will depend on you. They both use similar training tools (heavybag, focus mitts, jump rope etc.)
Remember Western boxing is straight punching. Typically a right handed fighter will go left lead. The left lead jab is used as a probing tool/jabbing tool to set-up for the big right hand cross. Also, obviously there is no kicking in western boxing.
In JKD you use your strong side forward. The weak side is put back as the cross. But since both are used and trained extensively a JKD practioner will view both hands as being strong. Also, JKD uses the lead leg for Stop kicks stop hits, and foot obstruction. JKD's primary goal is to use the strong side first and hit with your hardest weopen first. A JKD person typically will not try to work his way in to set up for punches. Although similar tactics can be used. A JKD person doesn't want to take the time to probe or set-up but rather attack right away and end the fight as quickly as possible. Also, JKD doesn't limit itself to just punches but also eyejabs, low line kicks to the knees, shin, and groin.
It gets a little deeper than this with trapping etc. but that just the basic differences in my humble opinion.
Ok there it is folks feel free to bash me.Comment
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JKD is in a mess. It is not the case that a club training JKD is necessarily offering anything of quality at all, whereas boxing has, in the main, kept a certain minimum standard. Go to a boxing club and you will learn to box. Go to a JKD cub and you may well learn to fight, or you may learn nothing but dead patterns and stick twirling.Comment
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JKD Lessons
I have been studying JKD since 1976 and granted, there are many JKD practitioners/teachers that would not fare well in a dark alley.
However, for me personally, I survived a 23 yeare career as a Private Invetigator/Bodyguard,Bounty Hunter in some of the meanest streets of Southern California. I used JKD not only physically more that 50 times in the heat of battle, but also used the tactics, concepts, principles and mentalics to overcome many opponents on the business battlefield, athletic field and in the ring.
And as a student of Western Boxing since the age 5 who has trained with and around some of the best, the stuff that happens in a dark alley, boxing is much less ill prepared to deal with as compared to a "Properly" and "comprehensively" trained JKD Fighter.
Boxing is Great, But not complete for the street. JKD is Superb but only as good as the teacher and the student doing it.
The MongooseComment
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Jkd
I have done about 3 years of krav maga, and have a green belt. I feel it would be very effective in a dark alley, maybe the best sytem out there for that. Krav also has a lot of boxing-type stuff in it, and kicks. Actually, krav maga is like dirty boxing (with elbows, eye gouges, head butts, etc.). But I feel that JKD is very similar to krav in its overall mentality (attack, don't defend, etc.). I know that boxers can do well on the street, because I have heard of many who have won on the street. But they sometimes break their hand, like Tyson when he hit Mitch Green.
One thing I would criticize a bit about krav maga vs. JKD is that krav maga doesn't focus enough on the centerline.Comment
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Krav Maga
As a martial artist since 1962, I find that Krav Maga is a very good, realistic approach to street self defense.
It dispenses with the traditional, archaic and un-realistic stances, postures and basic drills that serve to condition but also to give a false sense of functionality.
However, for me, as one who competed in Kickboxin, has trained many world class fighters for the Ring and Cage, JKD is more applicable for fighting against skilled opponents rather than common assailants without honed fighting tools.
My experience with Krav Maga is that the training is focused on assaults, mugging, etc. And as such, it does that very well.
As opposed to having to "spar" or fight a "gold glove boxer", "Muay Thai fighter", Black Belt Martial Artist. And for me that is where I focus. Mutual combat with a truly skilled and experienced opponent.
I know that some JKD people focus more than I do on common street situations and "self defense" technques such as what to do against a push, grab, etc. In fact, I need to do a little more of that with my students who do not compete.
Kawabunga and Aloha,
William "The Mongoose" HollandComment
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True
You are right, krav maga is more for standard assaults, and it is very good against those, but other arts are better against trained opponents.Comment
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But Krav Maga is in as big a mess as JKD, with all kinds of commercial studios opening up that attract customers by showing them flashy nonsense.
I enquired into Kav Maga and was told that I could take a quick course and open up my own club! How sad is that?Comment
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Komercial Krav
Ha ha. Just like so many, including JKD Instructor certifications by seminar attendance, you can "buy" a black belt if you want and feed the kitty of the "master"
I have been teaching JKD since 1978 and have taught literally hundreds of students. Those that I feel are truly qualified to teach rather than assist I can count on one hand.Comment
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Good. It is nice to know that quality counts over quantity still, even if it is getting rare.Comment
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Credentials
How anyone can get certified by attending 5 or 10 seminars or some other ridiculous standard is mind boggling.
Bruce would be furious yes?
William Holland
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They are not learning fighting without fighting.......
THEY ARE LEARNING FIGHTING WITHOUT TRAINING!Comment
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Paper Tigers
Kareem Abdul Jabbar once told me that the best things he learned from Bruce
were "how to learn" and "how to teach himself"
Wow, once I step outside my kwoon and see what the JKD 2nd & 3rd generation are teaching, . . . very discouraging.
I asked Pat Strong yesterday what will happen to JKD when 2nd generation people are leading the pack. He scratched his head and said "were in trouble"
Where do you train/live?Comment
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