Training - Experience

So whats superior? why do you think what you think?

Training is training, its not fighting and doesnt teach you how to fight, it prepares you for a figth but fighting actually teaches you how to fight.

Training doesnt give you experience but experience, in my opinion, is the most important fact of becoming a better fighter, without expeirence you may loose to the more experienced.

Training is good in many ways but if training doesnt teach you how to fight then why is fighting neglected by so many "fight enthusiasts"

what is more important for you as an individual becoming a better and more skilled fighter, is it training or experience?

without experience you will not perform like you train, remember that, that is a very true fact of fighting, however as you gain more experience you then start to perform like you train.... understand?

sorry to sound like an arrogant fool but just thought I'd start a thread on this as it seems some people cannot understand experience.

I would agree experience is a good teacher. But due to not being a great fan of any kind of confrontation my fight experience is very limited, other then sparring in training.
But I'm not going to pick a fight with the first tough guy I see to see how well i could fight!
I don't even enter competitions but then a lot of Martial Arts don't such as Aikido and I have heard of people being succesful with this Art!

You can't be a fighter without experience, even if you train very rough.

In the end even the way JKogas trains - it is still in a controlled environment, although it is about as rough as you get!

Obviously both the ring and the street have their differences but if you think you can go to your club and become a great fighter without pressure testing yourself you are going to be in for a shock!

Ring fighters get better when they go in the ring more.

Street fighters get better with more street fights.

Obviously training will greatly help - but without that experience you just can't know.

Obviously I am not advocating getting into street fights to test yourself (I've never been in one, although talked my way out of quite a few). I have been in competition and I can tell you that the guys I have fought are no where near as talanted as fighters in my club - but the pressure is much higher.

So, yes you will become a better fighter with experience, but to be honest I'm not that bothered about it now - as I'm not interested in competition and I am not planning on getting into a street fight - I suppose I am just not a fighter, just a guy who knows how to throw a punch.

Last point though - I don't think you can become a good fighter without the backup of solid training. The training allows you to fight, the experience makes you a fighter.

[This message has been edited by UKfightfreak (edited 02-02-2004).]

An actual street fight (once you're trained) will certainly be a benefit for your overall fighting experience. I would never say otherwise. I just say that the street is not the place to LEARN how to fight. It would only be a place to TEST yourself.

However, such tests CAN get you killed. It's not worth your life to test yourself and see how much of a badass you are. Want to really test yourself? Test yourself against quality opponents who are skilled, even if it IS a controlled environment.

That way, you can go HOME at the end of the night instead of the morgue (such as when the guy you decide to "test" yourself against, realizes you're a better fighter, and pulls a weapon).

I've heard of fights that happened in bars where, one guy beat the MONKEY out of his opponent. What happens next? His opponent goes to his car, grabs his gun, comes in and shoots him full of holes. Now the fighter "winner" has found himself leaking vital fluids.

What's it worth to you to chance it? Is it that important to risk someone sticking a gun to your chest and blowing you away, such as what happened to Alex Gong?

You decide.


-John