Systema For Life

Extended chat between Glenn Murphy and health and wellness guru Howard Jacobson (WellStartHealth.com) on the subject of striving for mastery.
Includes:

- is mastery something worth pursuing? 

- what does mastery entail, and what does it look like?
- what is the most practical and efficient path to mastery?

- Vladimir’s 10 Guidelines for mastering Systema (you may not have heard these before)

Many thanks to Howie for his regular contributions, and to Adrienne Harvey for her pro-grade editing and production.

Check out Howie's healthy exploits at www.wellstarthealth.com and www.plantyourself.com

"What is real life? My understanding of 'real life' is that it's the degree of tension you have within your body...What will change in a real situation if a guy grabbed (that kid) and threw him in a trunk? It's that his mind, his body, his internal state are going to be on a whole different level of processing."

Eye-opening interview with Tommy Floyd, owner and Chief Instructor at Systema Floyd, based in Palm Beach, Florida.

For more than a decade, Tommy has been teaching Systema to kids as young as 2 years old, and now has over 300 students attending regular classes and camps at his schools. He has recently garnered a lot of attention on social media, following coverage of his advanced level camps for kids - which included such hot-button topics as abduction escape and active-shooter survival.

Here, we talk about what motivates his focus on teaching kids; how he strikes the necessary balance between "serious" and "exciting"; how working with kids has taught him much about the concept of training for 'real-life'; and his plans and ambitions for the future.

Visit Systema Floyd online at www.systemafloyd.com.

"You can find anybody who's managing a company, and it's the guys who run towards problems, the people who run towards discomfort. And not because they crave conflict. But because there's a problem that needs (to be) solved."

Musings, obersvations, and hard-earned lessons from business manager, investor, CEO and NC-based Systema practitioner Bryan Johns.

Here, Bryan offers his vision of Systema for Business Executives, and how martial arts training - and Systema in particular - has helped him progress from ne'er-do-well kid to USAF engineer to President of a global engineering company. 

Why black belts and MBAs matter less than you think
The power of fast, iterative problem solving
The dangers of outsourcing responsibility, and the benefits of assuming it

And Bryan's 3 cardinal rules of Systema and Life (TM)

1) Practice the principles, and the techniques will take care of themselves

2) You don't have to go to every fight you're invited to

3) Where you're at (emotionally) matters

A long one, but a good one if you're interested in leveraging you training for all asepcts of life and work.

"You have to find an internal point of support for your work. The floor is a very obvious point of support...but if you're on one foot, or your heel is lifted, you have to find a point of support within the body somewhere."

Fun and enlightening interview with Rob Poyton, Chief Instructor at Cutting Edge Systema, based in Bedford, UK.

Rob became highly proficient in T'ai Chi and other Chinese internal arts before finding Systema, and is the former Editor of Tai Chi & Alternative Health, and of Tai Chi International magazine. His articles on martial arts have been published in Combat, Martial Arts Illustrated, Men's Health, Maxim, and elsewhere.

Rob is also the presenter and producer of an extensive series of Systema training DVDs designed for solo and group use, and teaches Systema workshops and seminars throughout Europe.

Here, we discuss his path into Systema; commonalities and differences between Systema and other "internal" arts, the value of form (vs formlessness), principles of grounding and mobility, and discovering freedom within structure.

Find out more about training with Rob - and order his solo training DVDs online - at systemauk.com. Tell him Glenn sent ya :)

www.systemauk.com

"Sometimes we do want to leverage our higher cognitive selves over these (intuitions)...But sometimes we need to get out of the way and trust them, because they're very, very good at making sense of, and flitering down, highly complex systems. As long as we're applying the right rules of thumb."

Glenn Murphy talks with health and wellness guru Howard Jacobson about the power of gut feelings and intuitions. An wide-ranging conversation that delves into:

why intuitions are generally underrated
how intutions can both help and hinder us in life
situations in which intuitions work better than anlaysis
how a core function of Systema is to remove or rewire unhelpful intutions

Mentioned in this episode:

Gut Feelings, by Gerd Gigerenzer
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000TO0T8U/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00555X8OA/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

The Gift of Fear, by Gavin de Becker
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0036Z9U2A/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1


Black Box Thinking by Matthew Syed
https://www.amazon.com/Black-Box-Thinking-People-Mistakes-But/dp/1591848229/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1528731049&sr=8-1&keywords=black+box+thinking&dpID=41cMiQ%252B%252Bw%252BL&preST=_SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=srch

Follow Howie's healthy exploits online at www.plantyourself.com

"The fight is not just about the fistfight. It's about how you perform, how you prepare, what are your feelings before you start the game - the psychological aspects."

Short conversation with martial artist, master coach, bodyguard and combat tactics trainer, Andrey Patenko.

A lifelong athlete, Andrey came to the USA from Russia more than 25 years ago, after training in competitive boxing and sambo, earning his degree in Physical Culture and Sport, spending several years in Special Opertions (Spetsnaz) Units, and becoming a combat tactics instructor for Russian army and police teams. He began training Systema in earnest after moving to the USA and meeting Vladimir Vasiliev in 1998, eventually becoming one of the strongest and most formidable Systema Instructors in the nation.

Here we discuss how Systema differs from other physical sports, how Systema has influenced his training methodology with professional athletes, and the importance of teaching Systema to kids, through play.

Learn more about training strength, conditioning, firearms, and Systema with Andrey at his private facility in Philadelphia, PA at http://www.russiansystemacombat.com

"The biggest gift that Systema, Vladimir, Mikhail have given to me is to know how to take a deep breath, exhale, and transform myself...What a gift that is."

Extended interview with Matt Hill - veteran martial artist and one of Europe's foremost instructors of Systema.

Here, we discuss his path from wannabe Robin Hood to Aikido pilgrim, to Captain of an army parachute regiment, to professional Systema Instructor. Along the way, his experiences training in Japan, his pivotal first experience of Systema with Mikhail Ryabko, and his enormously popular famliy class.

Find out more about training at Matt's Systema Academy, at http://www.matthill.co.uk/

Mentioned in this episode -
Living Systema, and Matt's other excellent books - available on Amazon.com here:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077S7Q3VN/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

Matt will be leading a 5-day Systema Fundamentals camp in Wiltshire, UK on the weekend of 4-8 July. Register online (space permitting) at http://www.matthill.co.uk/systema-fundamentals-camp-2018/

See Matt in action here:
https://youtu.be/wzIMkYqetfo

"The definition of habit is something that has worked in the past...in a fixed situation. Whereas real freedom means that you're in the moment."

Glenn Murphy joins health and wellness guru Howard Jacobson as they explore the benefits and pitfalls of habits and routines.

Here, we cover:

triggers, rewards, and habit loops
the futility of "fighting" habits
the connection between discipline and freedom
why all habits are - in some sense - bad

Mentioned in this episode:

The Power of Habit, by Charles Duhigg
http://charlesduhigg.com/the-power-of-habit/

Triggers, by Marhsall Goldsmith
https://www.marshallgoldsmith.com/product/triggers-creating-behavior-that-lasts-becoming-the-person-you-want-to-be/

Follow Howie's healthy exploits online at www.plantyourself.com

"What is scary to you?  You are affected by your fear of pain, or your fear of the situation...So when you say 'violence', I say 'no - you have fear of the emotional state of the other guy'."

Empassioned and uncompromising conversation with Josafath Herrera - veteran Systema Instructor, trainer to elite military and police teams, and founder of Systema Mexico.

Here, we discuss the concept of congruence in a martial art; the body-mind feedback loop; attitudes toward violence; the fallacy of "pressure testing" with protective equipment; the critical importance of finding the right instructor; and the (questionable) value of experience.

A lengthy discussion, but one rich with hard-earned truths. I hope you'll agree.

Follow Systema Mexico on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/SystemaMexico/

Find out more about training with Josafath at https://www.facebook.com/inkoga/

View a free video lesson on control and restraint here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBd9oqCmuxk

"Look - I'm not teaching you to be a badass. I'm teaching you skills that can help you to be a badass... What I'm really sharing is my own personal development, and tools that have helped me...let's see if those tools can help you..."

Conversation with Michael Jad Azkoul (aka Dr Koul) - musician, MC, social activist, and Systema instructor-in-Training.

Mike has only been training Systema since 2012, but found it so transformative that he was compelled to make a short film about Systema For Personal Development, which caught the eye of many practioners worldwide, including myself. He is also the co-founder of Systema Brighton (UK),  and the founder of World Wide Connects - an organization dedicated to improving the world & combatting inequality through peace, unity, creativity, and other core values of Hip Hop Culture.

Here, we talk about his motivation for making the film, comparisons between Systema and musical improvisation, and the many ways Systema has affected his life (including tolerance of cold, discomfort, and unfamiliar foods!)

Watch Mike's short film here:

Visit Systema Brighton at http://systemabrighton.co.uk/

Learn about World Wide Connects at http://worldwideconnects.org