Our “Silver Lions” program is one of five different programs of Lions Martial Arts Federation. It is optimized for older students (we have other programs for younger students). It’s curriculum targets the needs of 35 to 64 year olds, but ages 18 to 100 will be accepted into the program. It encompasses elements of Taekwondo, Hapkido, and Tang Soo Do, but deliberately chooses elements of those styles for best ROI, balancing ease of learning and technique effectiveness with the inevitably changing needs of the older body.
Many elements of this program come from Grandmaster Mark Shuey's "Silver Dragons" curriculum. GM Shuey also graciously offered to let us also use the "Silver Dragons" name if we wish, but we are Lions, not Dragons.
Our Mission:
We believe that one of the greatest losses of this generation is people dying before their time. The mission of this program is therefore to add years to your life, and life to your years.
Consistent Warm Up:
In any physical program, people inevitably pace themselves. One day you feel great and push hard, while another day you feel a bit worn and want a slower pace. In order to judge your own pace, we want our Silver Lions class to know what's next, and how long that "next" thing is going to last. That way they can adequately set their own pace. In contrast, the classical martial arts class often employs various psychological tricks to push the student harder, with the result that the student never quite knows exactly what is going to be next, or how long it’s going to last. This class does not do that.
This means that the Silver Lions warm up routine is very predictable, because it (mostly) is the same each time. This aspect might feel boring to some, but we think most older folks will appreciate the consistency. We have an alternate Taekwondo program for the younger folks that want to mix it up more.
Our warm up routine also has specific stretches that are more closely aligned with the needs of older people.
Modified Kicks:
Because of excessive joint shock while practicing their art, Martial Arts Grandmasters are succumbing to knee replacement surgery and hip replacement surgery at a rate that exceeds the "non-obese" general population. It is true that controlled and limited joint shock brought about by proper exercise can strengthen the joints, but it is also true that pushing too far does the opposite.
Consequently, this program has:
Spinning and turning techniques are deemphasized in this program (seniors get dizzy easier than youths do). Also, this program teaches “ball of the foot” front (snap) kick before “top of foot” front kick because it is a more effective kick, and we believe adults can readily learn it even if kids might have difficulty. This program delegates “top of the foot” front kick as the niche kick that it is, with limited practical use.
Hook kick is also not generally practiced in this program.
Bone Conditioning:
Impact conditioning is very common in most martial arts. They work by deliberately developing micro bone fractures that then heal to be stronger, or by traumatizing the hands causing them to scar up to become tougher. We don't think that is what seniors generally should be expected to do, so we don't do that in this program. Thus, there are no wooden dummies, makiwara boards, sand buckets, or striking boards in this program. Also no practice with an opponent of repeated bone striking techniques for the purpose of bone conditioning. Also no knuckle push-ups.
Reduced Need for Memorization:
Karate means Kara (empty) + Te (hand). The way is do. Thus, karatedo is the way of the empty hand. Taekwondo is the way of the hand and foot. The word judo consists of two Japanese characters, ju, which means "gentle," and do, which means "the way." Judo, therefore, literally means the way of gentleness. These martial arts all have a "do" component, which is the life philosophy or spiritual way associated with the art.
Older people generally have greater difficulty memorizing complex patterns than younger people, making it difficult to “teach an old dog new tricks”. They are also already pretty set in their life philosophy (their "do"). Attempting to change their already ingrained "do" is probably not going to work, and if their existing “do” is not compatible with your organization, you have deeper problems to solve.
This program therefore eschews teaching the typical martial arts "do", and avoids long memorization of tenets and philosophies, and loaded memorization rank requirements.
Kata (Poomsae):
"Kata" was never meant to be used as a standalone solo exercise, nor as a medium of expression for competition. Those are modern inventions. Originally, kata was created as a memory tool – so you could practice various self-defense techniques used against a violent attacker on your own. This particular philosophy of Kata is known in Japanese as "Bunkai". When used in the context of Karate, Bunkai symbolizes the process of breaking down the movements of a kata to understand how the techniques can be applied in self-defense. If you are not visualizing an attacker during your kata practice, you are not doing "Bunkai". You are doing something else.
If you don’t know the purpose of the technique, what’s the point of doing it correctly? Kata without "Bunkai" is just a dance. This program is not a dance class, nor is it an exhibition class. It focuses more on practical application of the kata, and avoids long memorizations of complex patterns.
Thus, this program de-emphasizes (but does not discard) kata. When kata is taught, foundational pieces that are in harmony with our other programs are taught, so that these different programs reinforce each other. This program also includes a Bunkai analysis of any kata taught.
Distance & Ranges:
There are five "ranges". Sorted by distance, they are:
1. Weapons range
2. Kicking range
3. Punching range
4. Grappling on your feet
5. Grappling on the mat or ground
Notice there are two grappling ranges. When you are grappling on your feet, there is less of your body in contact with their body than when you are grappling on the ground. Thus, grappling on the ground is a "closer" range than grappling on your feet.
Our Silver Lions program mainly focuses on the first 4 ranges. For the first range (weapons), the emphasis is on the cane, with techniques borrowed from Hapkido. We chose the cane, because a cane can be carried anywhere (including airplanes), and can be quite deadly in the hands of a skilled practitioner. Other weapons, such as nun chucks, spears, swords and Sai’s can look flashy, but we don't think older people are as interested in "flashy" as they are in getting the job done.
Also, older people generally want to avoid wrestling (grappling) on the ground. It is never a position you want to be in if you are up against multiple assailants, regardless of how old you are, or how good you are. You want other options. Thus, for the 4th range, emphasis is on "control", via joint locks and pressure points, again borrowed from Hapkido.
An oft-quoted statistic is that most fights end up on the ground, but this statistic is biased. It is taken from police records where the entire goal of the police officer is to take the person to the ground. Also remember that the fight always starts standing up.
Thus, this program trains for standing. It doesn't train for mat grappling. If that is the skill you want, our Jiu Jitsu program is the program for you (taught by our instructor John Pratt).