Standing Your Ground - Castle Law for Kali
Sometimes you need to stand and fight, protect your domain, not by virtue of the domain being stationary, but because by necessity or circumstance you are stationary.
I've been afflicted with gout for many years. I used to take medication but I didn't like the side effects, so I stopped. Unfortunately that puts me at risks for more frequent and severe flare-ups. I've found that by managing my diet I can minimize those incidents, but they do happen once in awhile.
Here's a link to what gout is: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gout. Suffice it to say I wouldn't wish that kind of pain on my worst enemy.
For this post, what is relevant is that my foot swells to the point where it's difficult to walk and I often need a mechanical aid.
While I could certainly use crutches to take pressure off of my foot completely, I opt for a cane, and a homemade one at that.
I constructed a cane of the appropriate attributes (length, density, etc.) such that it's essentially the equivalent of one of the heavy sticks that I train with. So now my cane can be used as a weapon if need be, and in particular a familiar one.
The ability to defend myself with a weapon outweighs the inconvenience of having to get around a lot more slowly than I could with crutches. I feel it to be important because when in this condition I am now a more likely target. Predators go after the weak and infirm targets because they are easier. Just because I look like an easy target doesn't mean I actually have to be.
So having an ersatz heavy stick at the ready, not much changes there technique-wise. What obviously has to adjust is my strategy in this circumstance, because there is effectively zero footwork.
One of GM Leo Giron's styles is called de fundo. The principle of this style is that you establish a solid footing (with one foot) on, say, a rock, and you maintain that footing as an anchor while being able to move around with the other foot. But you're not stuck there; you can always probe with the moving foot to find another solid place to step and then switch to the other side. A use case for this would be someplace with poor footing like in the woods where the ground is uneven. You can't use regular footwork because of the likelihood of tripping and falling over something.
So what happens when you don't really have a mobile foot to move around? This is the conundrum I'm currently thinking about as I wait for my gout flare-up to subside.
Tactically, I would be pretty much limited to standing still. In any case I would still be waiting for the attacker to enter my space. He has to be close enough to hit me, so therefore he has to come to me.
I'm not even sure that I could necessarily adopt a fighting stance because the angle of the foot might put some pressure in a bad place. So let's assume that I would have to have my feet roughly shoulder width apart.
From a de fundo perspective, my good foot would be my anchor point. My bad foot would have to be allowed to move, but only if necessary.
Rule #1 is to maintain distance. In this case I need to increase my minimum allowable distance to the longest reach of my longest weapon (my cane/stick). My primary objective is to keep my attacker at this distance. This would allow for largo mano-type striking, one-side-of-the-X, etc.
If the attacker were to breach that perimeter, some techniques naturally get disqualified. All throws using the legs are out. All harimau-style takedowns are out (or are they, since I would no longer be on my feet?) All stick work would still be in play, but the closer range techniques are hampered by the longer/heavier weapon. So anything involving abaniko-style striking is out, or at least impractical and ill-advised. The way my cane is built gives me a punyo on either end, so that keeps those options open. All stick takedowns and lockups would also still be valid.
So for the subset of techniques that remain in play, there are adjustments that have to be made, and that lies primary in the disruption of the attacker's structure.
Disruption of structure is a principle that must always be applied, but when you can't move your feet, your upper body has to compensate. Your footwork often has a lot to do with disrupting structure; when that's not there then your manipulation of the attacker's structure has to be that much more robust.
One way to explore this is to practice techniques standing inside a circle, or otherwise with the restriction of not moving your feet. See what you need to adjust to still make your techniques work when you have to stand your ground.
I've been afflicted with gout for many years. I used to take medication but I didn't like the side effects, so I stopped. Unfortunately that puts me at risks for more frequent and severe flare-ups. I've found that by managing my diet I can minimize those incidents, but they do happen once in awhile.
Here's a link to what gout is: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gout. Suffice it to say I wouldn't wish that kind of pain on my worst enemy.
For this post, what is relevant is that my foot swells to the point where it's difficult to walk and I often need a mechanical aid.
While I could certainly use crutches to take pressure off of my foot completely, I opt for a cane, and a homemade one at that.
I constructed a cane of the appropriate attributes (length, density, etc.) such that it's essentially the equivalent of one of the heavy sticks that I train with. So now my cane can be used as a weapon if need be, and in particular a familiar one.
The ability to defend myself with a weapon outweighs the inconvenience of having to get around a lot more slowly than I could with crutches. I feel it to be important because when in this condition I am now a more likely target. Predators go after the weak and infirm targets because they are easier. Just because I look like an easy target doesn't mean I actually have to be.
So having an ersatz heavy stick at the ready, not much changes there technique-wise. What obviously has to adjust is my strategy in this circumstance, because there is effectively zero footwork.
One of GM Leo Giron's styles is called de fundo. The principle of this style is that you establish a solid footing (with one foot) on, say, a rock, and you maintain that footing as an anchor while being able to move around with the other foot. But you're not stuck there; you can always probe with the moving foot to find another solid place to step and then switch to the other side. A use case for this would be someplace with poor footing like in the woods where the ground is uneven. You can't use regular footwork because of the likelihood of tripping and falling over something.
So what happens when you don't really have a mobile foot to move around? This is the conundrum I'm currently thinking about as I wait for my gout flare-up to subside.
Tactically, I would be pretty much limited to standing still. In any case I would still be waiting for the attacker to enter my space. He has to be close enough to hit me, so therefore he has to come to me.
I'm not even sure that I could necessarily adopt a fighting stance because the angle of the foot might put some pressure in a bad place. So let's assume that I would have to have my feet roughly shoulder width apart.
From a de fundo perspective, my good foot would be my anchor point. My bad foot would have to be allowed to move, but only if necessary.
Rule #1 is to maintain distance. In this case I need to increase my minimum allowable distance to the longest reach of my longest weapon (my cane/stick). My primary objective is to keep my attacker at this distance. This would allow for largo mano-type striking, one-side-of-the-X, etc.
If the attacker were to breach that perimeter, some techniques naturally get disqualified. All throws using the legs are out. All harimau-style takedowns are out (or are they, since I would no longer be on my feet?) All stick work would still be in play, but the closer range techniques are hampered by the longer/heavier weapon. So anything involving abaniko-style striking is out, or at least impractical and ill-advised. The way my cane is built gives me a punyo on either end, so that keeps those options open. All stick takedowns and lockups would also still be valid.
So for the subset of techniques that remain in play, there are adjustments that have to be made, and that lies primary in the disruption of the attacker's structure.
Disruption of structure is a principle that must always be applied, but when you can't move your feet, your upper body has to compensate. Your footwork often has a lot to do with disrupting structure; when that's not there then your manipulation of the attacker's structure has to be that much more robust.
One way to explore this is to practice techniques standing inside a circle, or otherwise with the restriction of not moving your feet. See what you need to adjust to still make your techniques work when you have to stand your ground.