Why Should I Train Kajukenbo Instead of Going to an MMA Gym?
Advice for the Reddit crew looking to start martial arts...and Kajukenbo 'ohana wary of mma.
So, you want to jump into the world of martial arts! What should you study? The number of options can be intimidating. Are you an anime weeb with an unhealthy obsession with Son Goku’s Kamehameha? Karate! Do you like wearing short shorts and showing off your hairy legs? Muay Thai! Do you like the idea of rolling around with strangers in pajamas? BJJ!
Every art has something to offer. In Japan a high number of people pick up martial arts as an exercise-hobby, with no intention of ever using it realistically. Like, they know it’s not realistic and don’t expect to ever fight someone. Tai Chi is great for health and has thought-provoking applications, but it’s not something you focus on if you’re getting ready for a UFC championship. I was once attacked by a Tai Chi gang in the park - it took hours to defend myself.
Believe it or not, there are lots of valid reasons to do any martial art in the modern world, even if it’s not realistic for self defense and fighting. But if you’re looking for a realistic, physical self defense system, the list of credible styles starts to shrink. When schools started becoming actual businesses trying to maximize student retention and kids’ classes, a lot of great fighting systems got watered down.
BJJ is one of the credible fighting arts still around, and I recommend everyone learn what BJJ they can, but do you remember when Matt Hughes beat Royce Gracie at UFC 60 by TKO? The sport had evolved but Gracie hadn’t, and we learned that you can’t rely on one “style” anymore. If you’re gonna rely on wrestling, you need to at least be able to defend against strikers who know how to wrestle.
If the goal is realistic fighting and/or self defense, you have to mix the kicking, and the boxing, and the wrestling, and you have to practice it all with uncompliant partners that you’re not going to find at most McDojos. If that’s the path you’ve chosen, I recommend you go to an mma gym…or a Kajukenbo dojo.
So why should you pick a Kajukenbo school over an mma gym? Two reasons.
Reason Number 1: We do what mma does.
Well, we’re supposed to anyway. Kajukenbo is not just a list of techniques that you have to check off to get a belt. From the beginning, it’s been about “taking what works and getting rid of the rest”, which is exactly what the sport of modern day mma did, making it the “great proving grounds” of today, as Hoch Hochheim has long called it.
A problem lies in Kajukenbo traditionalists who refuse to accept that fighting has changed, and there are Kajukenbo schools who just don’t give sport mma the proper respect it deserves for producing capable fighters in a very short time. The thing about a good Kajukenbo school though, is that your coach should be encouraging you to learn everything you can. If your school has no knowledge of modern-day mma, your coach should be pushing you to go out, learn what mma you can, and bring it back to your dojo to share with your 'ohana.
John Hackleman is proof that Kajukenbo and mma work together because we’re already doing mma in our art. The recent creation of a new mma branch of Kajukenbo, which I talked about here, is the embracing of reality we should all be joining. Kajukenbo 'ohana like Bobby Seronio III have shown that the heart of Kaju was already in mma.
And embracing mma is not like teaching it at a Tae Kwon Do school. You can teach mma there and the TKD people can learn the basics of mma, but at that point it’s no longer Tae Kwon Do. If you bring mma teachings to a Kajukenbo class, you are still doing Kajukenbo. Kaju is a philosophy, not a list of rules.
Reason Number 2: We do what mma doesn’t.
As mentioned in my book (here), I love forms, but I’m of the opinion that Kajukenbo should start with being able to defend yourself first. The forms should come last. In the same vein, once you’ve learned to fight, there are all kinds of ways to raise your fighting skill to an “art”, and Kajukenbo is a way to take what mma offers and then build on it.
Multiple opponents. Illegal strikes. Weapons. Verbal Jiu-jutsu. Learning what self defense you can use without ending up in jail. Fighting outside of your weight class. Women fighting men. Sucker punches. And that’s all just some of the physical stuff. As I’ve said many times, mma doesn’t penalize you for being an asshole; but simply being part of a good 'ohana can naturally make you a better person in itself.
But there’s more. Learn to box, how to move, how to wrestle. Get the confidence to defend yourself in general situations. Then learn the history of war. Learn about the real bushido found in the revenge story of the Ako Roshi, and the grit found in the true story of the 300 Spartans (both described here). Learn the thinking process of ancient warriors, who studied various ways to hurt people, like the Shaolin monks. Then learn a 400-year-old Kung Fu form like Lohan.
Perfect the dance that is Lohan. Perfect the yoga-like stances and thrive on the workout they give your legs. Embrace the flexibility and posture training. Have fun with the animal poses and funky hand positions. Seriously. Stop being a dull, lifeless hack and just have fun. Drill the form like you drilled your mma. Then do this 400-year-old form with all the heart you throw into an mma championship fight. Step back and look at the painting, the piece of art, you just created. It will change the way you look at life.
Start your training with real self defense and mma. Then explore everything the world of martial arts has to offer. Kajukenbo is a window to this path. If you’re a Kajukenbo instructor, encourage your students to step out and bring back all the knowledge they can.
You may have heard the following legend - it’s hard to know if it’s true or not, because everyone in the martial arts world loves to say “I have personal knowledge about this famous person…”
Bruce Lee used to keep his kicks low because kicking high was unnecessary. Lee also believed in “keeping what works and getting rid of the rest”. The rumor is that Chuck Norris asked Lee “But why limit yourself?”, which caused Lee to start working head kicks. You don’t have to like head kicks to have access to them in case you need them.
Norris’ question should be in the minds of all the Kajukenbo 'ohana and every mma superstar. Ask yourself that now.
Why limit yourself?