New Training Group Autum 2010

New Kali - Silat Training Group is now in process of being set up in Lurgan Northern Ireland. The group leader is Tony Mc Atamney and if you living in the area and want to take part in the classes or workshops than email guruliam@hotmail.com

Valencia Lameco Seminar 2 Dvd Box Set now Available

If you, missed out of Guru Felix 2 Day Seminar in Dublin (which many ranked as the best seminar they ever attended) you need to asked yourself why did you not go? Well all not lost the Seminar Dvd box set is now available, so now you have a chance to experience the seminar or to relive the weekend. Every single technique has been capture on film, so you can remember and practise what you learnt from one of the World Greatest Living Teachers. This two dvd box (approx 2 and half hours) set is available for €30 and price includes postage's world wide and can be order in class directly or through paypal (details below) Techniques cover - Warm Ups, Stick and Knife Locking / Trapping / Striking / Angles/ Disarms/ Takedowns. Empty Hands Entries, Striking, Groundwork, Dumog, Muscle Destructions, Defence against Weapons. Blending, Padwork and loads more. This box set is simply 100% one of the best overview of the Destructive and Unlimited Combat System of Valencia Lameco Eskrima !!!

Clip of back yard Lameco Eskrima Pad work with Guru Felix and Amanda. Padwork is great for developing cardio, co - ordination., timing and power

Valencia Lameco Eskrima : Stick Grappling

Short clip of Guru Felix in action showing basic stick locking/ grappling at end of class at Sheldon Park Gym in Walkinstown

Facebook

We have now got a new page on Facebook, so come along take part and join us and invite your friends. Just click Facebook logo near the top of this blog page.

Felix Valencia Seminar 2010 Dublin

A short clip of Guru Felix Valencia in action at the Dublin 2010 Seminar. The dvd of the seminar will be available from Wednesday 7th July. If you interested in learning Valencia lameco Eskrima and enrolling on the programe, or like to set up a training group in your area or country email guruliam@hotmail.com

Training Tip #5 - Control your ego

A week can be a long time in Martial Arts and the past 7 days was no exception to this rule. On one end was a teacher who is one of the greatest Martial Artist's in the World (Felix Valencia) who travel over to train us, and during his visit and seminar mixed and trained with everyone, no matter what level or ability. To the other end where a Junior student with a couple of grades, refused to train with another student and laying down ultimatums. What was the difference in theses two Martial Artists ?? A great big wallop of Self importance and Ego shown by the Junior !

Ego mixed with martial arts politics is a scrooge that go hand in hand with Martial Arts across the world. For some reason, some students are prone to this. In my belief all students no matter their religion, sex, age or level of ability or equal and everyone trains with everyone else full stop! This is one of my few cardinal rules in my Clubs and Association and if a student won't agree than they can find another teacher very quickly.

Ego is something which you need to keep in check as it can ruin your relationship very quickly with your fellow students and teacher. It also stops you ability to learn or to have empathy to understand a situation or the ability to forgive. Forgiveness along with theses other characteristics are not signs of weakness, but signs of strength and maturity. Having a ego stops you from learning or trusting as you start to believe what you know is better than what the teacher is showing.

When you look at another person, look for the positive things in that person and don't start comparing yourself. Enjoy the wonderful opportunities you have been allowed to experienced in your club and under your teacher. Work with the other students on a equal bases and you find threads of common goals that will help your continual development. And Finally stop worrying about the fragment of wood that caught in your friend eye, when there a great old piece of tree trunk sticking into yours.. otherwise you ain't perfect in fact No one is !! except me (ego speaking here lol) onto next time Train hard and Train well

Lameco Seminar Photos

Guru Felix Valencia

A few words from Guru Felix Valencia, one of the World top Martial Artist.

What students said after training with Guru Felix evening class in Lucan last night. So can you afford not to go?? Don't miss out on the weekend of the year !

Felix valencia is a real nice down to earth guy with amazing stick and knife skills...Loved the training and cant wait for more this weekend...Respect... Anto

Awesome!!!... Just had one of the most amazing nights training Guru Felix Valencia is a legend.....Mick

An absolute gentleman as well, looking forward to the weekend... Harry

OOOOWWWWWHHHH... Dan (If you were there you're understand)

See you all on the weekend, have loads off fun

Guru Jak

A short clip of Guru Jak who is a true Warrior teacher of Silat. Guru Jak was the reason I started doing silat and I have many very fond memories off him. I will always appreciate what he show me and the gift of silat he give me. Thanks Guru Jak...

Training Tip 4 - Understanding the Animals Mannerisms

"What is the purpose of the animal mannerism systems?" Is a question that is ask by a lot by beginners. In Pukulan Cimande Silat there is 4 main systems, Monjet, Ular, Blekok and Harimau now thou each of these systems is a animal name, for the moment I want you to look at it from a different viewpoint!

Each of these animal represents a range of combat for e.g. Harimau is the groundfighting range, which in this area students would learn how to fight and defend on the ground, they would learn how to lock, counter, wrestle etc.. either against an opponent who on the ground, or against a attacker who still standing. If you go to Blakok the complete opposite to Harimau, than you working in the Kicking range or the longest distance range of combat. Here footwork and striking that involves a lot of kicking and punching, which is design to either to keep the attacker at bay, or allowing you to crash into an attacker by closing the distance. It's important when closing the distance we move into Monjet (trapping range) which is Elbow and Knee range then to Ular which is very close range where you learn how to use your body to develop maximum striking power with extremely little distance (another training tip).

Each animal system is therefore name after a range of combat! But we need to aware as in Combat very few fights stay in one range, therefore for students to be successful he/she needs to learn to master how to fight in all ranges and to be able to blend all ranges together when needed. Pukulan Cimande is not when completed 4 different systems or ranges, its is one unlimited complete combat system! This system even has its own name "Raja Naga" A system which is completely your own personal system which uses your natural talents and abilities to the maximum and strengthens your weakness. This type of learning how to fight has been brought to forefront first with JKD, than Cross training and now with the rise of MMA who have been credit with given birth to this line of thought in Martial Arts, even though its been a silat concept for centuries ! Kinda like reinventing the wheel.

So next time your teacher mention a animal name, link that to the range of combat, and work on the techniques you can use in that range of combat and what you can do to make you a more complete fighter.

Class Test - July 2010

We going to be having a Buah Test last week in July for all students who have completed their first two Bela Diri Levels. The test will comprise of the following

1) Grappling Buah's 1 - 10
2) Striking Buah's 1 - 8

So over the next two months we will focus on these Buahs, so make sure you turn up for class, as I won't be going over material that I have already taught in a previous week.

New Training Class on Mondays

Over the summer months we going to make the Monday night our big cardio night with padwork and Buahs follow by Sparring / Pressure Testing. Each Monday night students will get the opportunity to pressure test their skills. Each week we pick a area so we could be doing knife sparring, stick sparring, Wrestling, Groundfighting or could be working on striking aspects. So if you want to take part than come along on Mondays and experience the "Burn" Please note only students training at least twice a week will be for health and safety reasons can take part in the sparring.

Bela Diri 1

A short clip of entry to Buah 1, taken from the Bela Deri 1 Dvd.
The entry of the first grappling Buah.
Buah's are combination of Martial Arts techniques which help students learn the basic of combat techniques. There are 18 empty hands Buahs on the first level, covering grappling, striking, locking, and groundfighting. Each Buah is divided into three sections entry, destruction and finishing. Each section can interlink with another section from another Buah, meaning a unlimited combat system. Each Buah should be practise both right and left side and all various counters and re counters would be taught for maximum combat efficiency.
For more details check out www.guruliam.blogspot.com or www.silateurope.com

Bela Diri Dvd #1

Bela Diri Dvd 1 is available from 1st June and covers all the techniques on the White Sash.

Dvd cost including postage €20

Stepping Through Drills 1 - 2

Sensetivity Drill 1

Speed Drill 1 - 2

Basic Pad Work

Buah Entries 1 - 6

Self Defence Techniques 1 - 8

Intro to 4 Steps

Trailer for Guru Felix Seminar June 26th - 27th

Places filling fast Don't Lose out - Book your place Today e-mail guruliam@hotmail.com

Long Distance Training

At long last we are please to launch the first stage of our unique "Silat Online Experience" on Friday 4th June. The first stage is aim at the Long Distance Students. For the first time you can now become part of our World wide Family. When you join our program you will get personal online support and advice, Monthly assignments, regular digital updates of whats happening in class, so you can be part of the whole training environment, and online gradings. You will be trained as hard as a class student and be expected to reach the same level. This will never replace a teacher in a class, but it will be the next best thing! So if you not living close to a teacher or club email guruliam@hotmail.com today for more details and start learning.

Felix Valencia Returns June 2010

Just 5 weeks to go to the Seminar of the Year. If you met Guru Felix in 2008 than you know how amazing this guy is! He is one of the top Combat Instructors in the World today and in 5 weeks he make his long awaited return to Ireland. Guru Felix will be teaching in Firhouse Sports and Community Center Sat 26th / Sun 27th June 11am - 4pm each day. Places going fast, so make sure you book your place today. E-mail guruliam@hotmail.com for more details

Training Tip #3 - Read the correct Instruction Manual

Martial Arts Training, is not something that takes a tremendous amount of intelligence to grasp. However, just like assembling your office furniture or your kid’s toys on Christmas eve, you do need to read and follow the instructions.

Most Martial Artist understand this, but this is exactly where the problem starts for the majority of them. Imagine you’re assembling a new desk for your office. And, instead of reading the specific step-by-step instructions for that particular piece of furniture, you took the instructions from several different pieces of furniture and started following steps from different sheets at random.

I’m sure you can see where this is going – you’d soon have a confused mess on your hands.
Without following the instructions that were created to build that particular piece of furniture, you’ll soon be lost. And, by following steps randomly or out of sequence, you’ll likely have to go back, disassemble your work, and start all over again at some point in the process. This usually leads to confusion, frustration and apathy. Which ends in them giving up in the art and leaving the training.

There was a recent survey done, where it said that people nowadays living in the era of Instant Information Super Highway (classes, seminars, privates, dvd, social media, emails, Youtube, webinars, downloads, skype etc..) only have to do something wrong "once", and they begin to question the value of what they doing, and there so much choice for us. So make sure you are reading the correct Instruction manual for what you want to learn and give yourself a proper chance for your journey and follow your teacher (if you lucky to have one) advice!