Premature Celebrations

As students are permitted to begin sparring/fighting in martial arts classes it is good to keep in mind that you are there to learn as is the person you are paired with. The best way to do this is by checking your ego at the door and walking in with a clear mind. Too often during my 20 years of teaching have I seen someone land a strike during a fight and completely stop the fight with their celebration. This premature celebration is unnecessary and unproductive with negative results.

What you accomplish with this celebration is:

1. Embarrass your training partner...not a nice thing to do to a friend.
2. Escalate the fight as the opponent now would like to have his/her own celebration.
3. Potentially hinder the training of your opponent as well as yourself because your opponent becomes overcautious to avoid another embarrassment.
4. As an experienced student, make yourself look silly...come on, act like you have done it before!!!! Yes, I am giving the OK to celebrate a bit if you have never landed a strike in sparring in the past.
   
5. Show that you assume that you are so powerful that your strike would actually end the fight...what are the chances that your jab to the chest would actually knock the person out?

I do not believe in point fighting as it assumes that all fights end once someone is hit. I believe sparring should be continuous and if you are cornered, you should find a way to get out of the corner. Since I do not teach full contact fighting, the next point is very important - acknowledge when someone's technique is so clean that it would knock you down...congratulate your opponent for a good technique and figure out how to prevent it in the future.

A few other pointers for eager sparring participants. If you successfully land a technique, make sure to keep your guard up and continue the fight...stay in the habit of being on guard. No premature celebrations that assume that the fight is over. Respect your opponent...martial arts has no place for those that enjoy hurting someone. Aim to learn...don't worry about how many times you hit or got hit, worry about improving your precision and proficiency.