Natural Mobility for Better Taijutsu

Bujinkan training wasn't developed for today's man and woman. It was developed in a time when the status quo of physical competency was well above what it is now. The problems we have to overcome in order to move well, are issues that the creators of these martial arts were not even aware of. It is a state that is unique to our generation.

Through my observation of many practitioners I have grown to realize that Bujinkan training alone isn't enough to break through the devolved state of the modern human body. Without specifically working to transform your physiology, how can you facilitate the proper movement? If you start from where you are, you are building skills on a weak foundation. That is why I integrate methods like MovNat and Functional Range Conditioning in my approach.

I have wanted to clearly convey this for a long time: Why I have chosen the modalities I integrate, and how they benefit my Taijutsu practice and teaching approach. Here is a list of core Bujinkan practices, along with an explanation of how MovNat training and other modalities uniquely affect the development of Taijutsu skills.

Ukemi Taihenjutsu

The science of passive receptive body movement. This includes rolling, breakfalls, inversions, climbing, leaping, running, and walking techniques. Bujinkan training approaches all of these movements from a lens of combative application, but learning the heart of the movement, with all extra contextual demands set aside, is a great place to start. Especially when it comes to improving the ability to perform a forward leap, roll, or other locomotive movement.

MovNat provides a "vanilla" version of every locomotive technique in our art, whereas ours is always a "combat" flavored version. Understanding the difference, can really shed light on the actually practical benefit of the combative application as well.