Let’s be honest: in a real fight, no one’s going to let you finish your beautiful kata or poomsae. That’s why many in the self-defense world dismiss traditional forms as outdated or even useless.
But here’s the truth most don’t talk about: Forms weren’t originally created for show—they were created for survival.
The Real Origin of Forms
In ancient times, warriors didn’t always have sparring partners. Forms were solo blueprints to train deadly techniques—strikes, grabs, takedowns, escapes—against multiple attackers. Every move had a purpose. It wasn’t choreography; it was coded combat. They were once powerful training tools meant to preserve and transmit real fighting techniques.
The problem? Over time, martial arts became sports and performances. Forms got watered down, stylized, and stripped of their original intent. Flash replaced function.
A Brief History of Forms
The history of forms stretches back centuries:
In China, styles like Shaolin Kung Fu developed elaborate Taolu to preserve their systems. These were influenced by military drills, animal movements, and battlefield tactics.
In Okinawa, Kata evolved under the influence of both Chinese martial arts and indigenous fighting methods, later forming the basis of Karate.
In Korea, Hyung and later Poomsae were developed post-war as part of national efforts to unify martial arts systems like Taekwondo.
Each culture used forms not just as training tools, but as a way to codify knowledge, especially in times when oral or written instruction was limited.
So, Are They Still Worth Learning?
Yes—but only if you strip away the fancy stuff and train them the right way.
In Reality-Based Defense, we don’t perform forms—we extract from them:
Practical moves for real-world violence
Fast responses under chaos
Response memory training under pressure
Drills that simulate real threats
Conclusion
Forms were never meant to be performance pieces. They were living libraries—preserving the knowledge of warriors who fought for survival. While modern interpretations have diluted their combat value, the original essence still remains—waiting to be rediscovered by those willing to look deeper than the surface.
When it comes to self-defense, there is a plethora of martial arts styles to choose from, but the question is whether Wushu, Jiu Jitsu, Karate, Taekwondo, or any particular style is effective for self-defense. Let’s explore this topic further. Throughout my years of teaching self-defense, I often come across questions such as, “Is Wushu good for self-defense?” “Is Karate good for self-defense?” “Is Jiu Jitsu good for self-defense?” “Is bjj good for self defense?” and “Is boxing or MMA better for self-defense?” Although these are valid questions, the effectiveness of any martial art style for self-defense depends on various factors.
Training Objectives
Martial art styles are like any other form of exercise or sport. They have techniques, training methods, and objectives, but what matters most is the application of these techniques in a self-defense situation. As Bruce Lee famously said, “Styles separate men. It’s a process of continuing growth.” This quote highlights the issue of people sticking to one style and ignoring other forms of martial arts. Styles may differ in their approach, but the end goal is the same – self-defense.
Superiority
Having particular style does not make one superior or weaker than another. No style is superior to another, but the learning objectives can make a difference in a person’s skillset. WE just need to ask ourselves, what are my learning objectives? Is it to win in competitions, to perform, or strictly defend oneself during times of crisis? Once we can identify our reason for picking up a particular martial arts, then we have to see whether that particular style is training you to achieve what you wanted to achieve.
Expectations Vs Reality
For instance, my primary purpose for learning self-defense is to protect myself and loved ones. However, the training school I enrolled in focuses 80% of the curriculum on teaching memorization of Forms and patterns, primarily for winning competitions and achieving higher ranking belts. Consequently, this emphasis may cause me to neglect the practicality of the techniques in real-life situations, rendering my learning objectives misaligned with the training school’s approach. Therefore, this training approach is unlikely to help me achieve my ultimate goal and objectives.
Another example. Mr. Alex’s goal for learning self-defense was to win a competition that was bound by fixed rules. However, his school taught techniques that were not bound by rules. Despite this, Mr. Alex went ahead and participated in the competition, only to lose to an opponent who had been training specifically for years with those competition rules. In light of this situation, can we say that Mr. Alex’s school taught a less superior style than the other?
Based on the given examples, it becomes apparent that the effectiveness of self-defense training is not dependent on the style but rather on the alignment between the individual’s objectives and the focus of the training school.
Category based on training objectives
Therefore. training schools can be categorized based on their focus into four types:
Performance-Based – Training focuses on the aesthetic aspect of the martial art. It involves choreographed moves, displays, and exhibitions.
Art-Based – Training emphasizes the history, culture, and philosophy of the martial art. The objective is to learn the art form and appreciate its values.
Sports-Based -Training involves competition and rules. It is more geared towards winning tournaments and medals.
Reality-Based – Training focused on practical self-defense techniques that work in real-life situations. Most of the training will be stress tested based on how real situation will happen. The objective is to train for scenarios one may face in the streets.
Conclusion
After gaining insights from this article, if someone were to ask you, “Is jiu-jitsu the best self-defense?” Will your answer be a simple YES or NO? The effectiveness of any martial art for self-defense depends on how the training school focuses on training its students. If a BJJ or jiu-jitsu training school solely emphasizes grappling techniques on the mats, it may not be practical in real-life street attacks. It is unrealistic to think that one can roll around on the pavement during an attack. Not only can this result in serious injuries, but the attacker’s accomplices may also kick or hurt the person on the ground while they are focusing on a single opponent. It is crucial to find a style that suits your needs and tailor your training accordingly. Remember, no style is superior to another, and the ultimate goal is to learn practical self-defense techniques that work in real-life situations.
The difference between “Early Stage JKD” and “Latter Stage JKD”.
Jeet Kune Do (JKD) is a philosophy or better known by the public as a Gung Fu system founded by the Late Bruce Lee. JKD system is a combination of mostly Western Boxing, Fencing (footwork), Savate kicking and selected Wing Chun concepts.
Firstly, JKD was developed by Bruce Lee to show the world that an Old Art need to evolve through time, otherwise it will eventually lose its effectiveness.
The latter stage JKD was developed by Bruce Lee during his final years before he passed away, and was handed down to his private student, Ted Wong.
JKD was never meant to be completed
Jeet Kune Do (JKD) was never meant to be a finished product, but rather a continuous process of improvement and breakthrough. If we are so fixed in a certain way of learning, then we will never improve.
The History
During the early years, Bruce Lee started learning Wing Chun with Yip Man and his Si Heng (Wong Shun Leung). He picked up the art quickly and achieve proficiency in the system, however he left Hong Kong to America on April 1959, therefore he did not complete his journey in Wing Chun.
Early Stage JKD (A.k.a Jun Fan Gung Fu)
Upon arriving at America, he began researching, modifying and formed his own fighting methods. He mainly modified the Classical Wing Chun art that he has picked up in Hong Kong, and named it as Jun Fan Gung Fu.
The modifications include:
Forward weight placement — for further reach and forward pressure
Removing impractical / unrealistic techniques
Center Line Dominance
Emphasize on Close Quarter Combat
Reliance on Touch Reference (Sensitivity through touch)
Most JKD practitioners / JKD observers / JKD lovers tend to understand JKD in the form of The Early Stage JKD. One way to spot them is their level of understanding or their over emphasis on touch reference and close quarter combat, such as Chi Sau, Pak Sau Da, Lap Sau Da, Bong Sau, Siu nim tau form, Bruce Lee’s Um Moon form (5 gates) & etc.
Latter Stage JKD
The latter stage JKD were mainly based on science of combat (physics, body alignment and combat strategies). This stage of JKD turned towards the scientific approach of Western Boxing, Fencing, Savate and modified trappings. The common misconception by most people is that one can add anything into the art and named it as JKD. If that is true, then everybody is a JKD practitioner. JKD system itself is unique, without understanding the history, the fundamentals and the science behind it, one cannot claim that they are a JKD practitioner.
One can identify a Latter Stage JKD school / practitioner through the following:
A strong distance control, just like how a trained fencer manipulates the space between him and his opponent
A strong timing on when to strike
Further simplified footwork and striking methods
Rapid Recovery from movement to movement
Emphasize on Response Training Based on Reality Combat Situation
Emphasize on Explosive and sudden movements and strikes
Emphasize on striking first before an opponent (Identifying opponent’s telegraphic moves and motives)
Emphasize on Combat tactics and strategies
Non-reliance on touch reference
In Summary:
Hack away at the unessential
Simplification
Absorb what is useful
Discard what is useless
Partiality
Fluidity
Emptiness
Reference: The Latter Stage Jeet Kune Do by Kenneth Pua & Andy Kunz, 2018 (ISBN: 1979463131), United States of America.
During Raya Festive Season, most of us will head back to our hometown, looking forward to visit our loved ones, and re-visit some places that bring back good or bad memories.
For me, as I was travelling back to my hometown, not only did I re-visited some places in my hometown, I re-visited my past and the origins of the formation of The Women’s Self-Defense Community Program. I reflected on what triggered the idea and passion within me to form the Women’s Self-Defense Community and specially tailored program that continues to develop the community.
More and more reasons began to unfold, as I revisited my past and met up with my friends and relatives.
Some may be curious about the motivations and reasons behind my efforts. If you are curious enough, I encourage you to read on. It is a common thing to hear from my family members and friends about their relatives, friends or even family members who were victims of crimes at some point in their lives. Crimes such as snatch theft and robbery in broad day light. But among all the crimes, the most common cases are wives being abused by their own husbands, both physically and verbally. Physical & Verbal Abuse usually come in one package and the consequences and impact on the women and family is great.
Every time I hear of these incidents, a surge of anger will rise within me but at the same I feel helpless as I could not do anything but to just pray. For the past 2 years, I have heard of increasing incidents happening to the people around me, I even witnessed a few incidents which involved road bullies and snatch thefts in front of my very own eyes. A lady driver being bullied with insulting words, yet another lady was screaming for her life as she was dragged along by a motorcyclist as her hand was still holding on to her bag. Her hands and face were scarred. It may be temporary but the emotional effect can be permanent. On another occasion, a group of robbers managed to robbed one of my neighbor’s car. I rushed out and tried to stopped the robbers but it was too late. The car was no where to be seen. They escaped.
Apart from the above, my worst encounter was a wife that has fallen victim in the hands of her own husband, experiencing and bearing the pain of physical and verbal abuse. Husbands are supposed to protect and love their wives at all costs, and not become headlines for domestic violence. In fact, no man should ever hit a woman. The feelings of injustice and anger are indescribable.
There are two incidents I wish to share here. Case #1: A man owned a business, and whenever his business was not doing well, he will then return home to lash out his anger and disappointment by beating up his wife and verbally abuse her. It eventually became a frightful routine. Despite all the sacrifices the wife had made for the home, this man thought he had every right to throw his temper on her, just because he was the sole provider for the family. Worst of all, he encouraged their son to abuse the mother together. The wife, being a foreigner, had no relatives or family to turn to for help. Sometimes, the husband will just throw her belongings out and command her to get out of the house. Where do you expect your wife to go to in the middle of the night? At wits end, she sought shelter at the nearest Motel, not knowing what her future holds. Overwhelmed by fear, anger, injustice and at the same time torn by the love any wife or or mother would have for her husband and child, she just could not comprehend why all these are happening to her. Abandoned by her husband and her very own flesh and blood, she had no where to go, no one to turn to. Despite all odds, she knew that she must stand up and fend for herself. Eventually, with the minimal resources she had, she took up the challenge to set up a food store selling noodles and was determined to earn her own living expenses. When her husband came to knew about this, he started to demand money from her to sustain his business. She refused and the beatings started again with her precious belongings often thrown out onto the streets. It has then became a norm for her to head back to the same motel to stay for the night. But I admire this woman, because of her courage to step up and start a business of her own and having the endurance to overcome the struggles she faced, and despite the painful circumstances that she has been subjected to by her own beloved family, yet she remained strong. Physically and emotionally bruised, but her spirit was not beaten. Case #2: A man with criminal record was released from jail, and currently living with his wife and child who is in his early teens. Despite serving time in jail, his lazy and undisciplined attitude remained the same. Not willing to search for a proper job, always seeking the fastest route to earn a living with the least amount of effort. It didn’t take long for him to return to his old ways of distributing drugs and gambling. He often gambles off the money he took from his wife, and ends up beating his wife whenever he feels like it. Left with no options, the wife took up two jobs, one in the morning, one at night to make ends meet. There was once they were unable afford a place to stay, one of her friend willingly offered to help and manage to find a temporary place for free for a duration of 6 months.When it was time to move out, her friend took the initiative to find another suitable place for the family. Eventually, by God’s grace they found an owner that was willing to take them in.
Due to their financial constraints, her friend offered to pay for their deposit and some minor repair cost for the house. To the wife’s astonishment, the husband not only did not appreciate the effort, he REFUSED to move out from the previous house he enjoyed for free. But this is not for him to decide, he was forced to pack his bags and shift to the new place.
On that very day when they were due to move in, the husband had a heated argument with the wife. He complained that the house did not have air condition, and his family is not fit to be staying in such a house. Consumed with anger, the husband slapped the wife’s face several times until it was was swollen. He then had the guts to drive the wife to the police station, challenging her to make a police report, because he knew that her love for him was so great that she will surely not press charges against him. With a swollen face, tattered clothes and slippers torn apart, she was left abandoned and stranded at the police station by her husband. She then approached the police officer to lodge a police report, but the officer told her that this station does not take in husband and wife cases. She was told to report at the Headquarters which was quite a distance away. Armed with grit and determination, she walked for 40 minutes under the scorching hot sun all the way to her friend’s house to seek help. Her friend immediately took a cab with her to the police station HQ to lodge a report, followed by medical check ups and all the tedious procedures she had to patiently go through.
Eventually, the husband was called back to the police station. When he arrived, again he and his wife were hurling insults and blaming each other for causing the arguments. The police lady officer stepped in and stated that regardless of who is at fault, under the eyes of law, as long as a man hits his wife, the wife has every right to press charges against the husband. The man then retaliated that his wife would not dare take such drastic action as she loved him so much. And yes, sadly, the husband went free. His wife did NOT press charges against the husband. As a wife and a woman, to protect your own dignity and your future, would you not make a stand ? The choice is yours.
So, why did I bring up these 2 cases? From these 2 cases you can see and appreciate the differences of their characters, their response and the choices they made in life. The stark contrast in these cases had greatly impacted me to continue my efforts and work in this society.
One of the main reason for the existence of the Women’s Self-Defense Community is to build up women’s confidence, increase their ability to defend themselves and also EMPOWER other women to do the same. I cannot do this alone, I need more women to step up against violence.
I am not concluding that physical self-defense or learning martial arts is the solution to all abusive relationships or crimes involving women. But it is part of a necessary skill that is able to condition the mind and body to step up and stand firm on your ground in life, without fearing and allowing anyone (not only men) to take advantage of you and abuse you (whether physically or verbally). Everything starts from the mind, and it flows to the way we present ourselves to others. Confidence begins from your mind.
If you think that you are one of the women who supports the Mission and Movement of the group, please come forward by messaging me on my Facebook account : Urban Street Defense
Thank you for reading my blog thus far.
This blog is written on: 7th July 2016 (Transferred from my old blog website)
