"The exercising of weapons putteth away aches, griefs, and diseases, it increaseth strength and sharpeneth the wits, it giveth a perfect judgment, it expelleth melancholy, choleric, and evil conceits, it keepeth a man in breath, in perfect healthe, and long life." – George Silver (1599)

October 26 2009

52 Blocks / Stato

So Miles mentioned 52 Blocks to me. Fascinating stuff. A truly American martial art. Combines the basis of boxing with the defensive tricks of Wing Chun (trapping hands/blocks), Silat (elbow destructive/”defanging the snake” techniques), Bagua (circling, a number of techniques I see mirror moves from the Bagua 64 Straight Palms set), Drunken boxing (random unpredictability/ openings as feints), etc.

One interest “origin” I heard was the development of the techniques in prison, like tight cell spaces for when you have handcuffs on. Particularly the handcuffs thing makes alot of sense as the elbows get thrown alot and 52 really seems to use them as the basis for defense and close-in offense. Powerful stuff.





Basic block #1 – Skull and Crossbones



Sparring vs a kickboxer


NYTimes documentary

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