Monday, April 11, 2016

Training in Guadalajara with Sergey Kolyushenko

I finally found a few minutes to sit down and write about my training with Sergey Kolyushenko, in Guadalajara (Mexico).

Kolyushenko had been on my list of instructors I wanted to train with for a while now specifically after a friend of mine sent me his brief video about "eye gymnastics". Due to nerve damage in my occipital area, I began losing vision in my right eye within the last couple of years, which , combined with chronic migraines, clusterheadaches and age,my vision was the last thing I needed to lose. The video quickly led me on a trail of several other videos of Sergey's work.
I soon discovered that several of my peers in Russia attended seminars with Sergey and they all highly recommended his work. Of course, the minute I found out he would be teaching in Guadalajara, it didn't take long for us to book our flights.
In the meantime, I chatted with Sergey a few times, and he was more than helpful which made me look forward to training with him even more.

After our arrival to Guadalajara, we toured the city quite a bit and the day of the seminar, I was pretty exhausted. Upon arrival, Sergey immediately greeted me and began talking to me in Russian. This, my friends, is an incredibly nerve wrecking experience, but further reminded me that..I MUST LEARN THIS LANGUAGE. Besides that, Sergey was very stoic in appearance, and blended in with everyone else on the streets on Mexico. This, to me, was scary...however, when he smiled..he lit up the room. He is incredibly svelt in appearance, and once he began moving, I realized the quality of training we were about to have.
Much to my pleasure , the seminar started with an "eye gymnastic" type workout. Since I had been in the sun and was pretty tired..my vision was slowly failing in the peripheral of my right eye. I also had a looming migraine which begins with a flashing light on the lower right corner of the edge of my eyesight. Yes...it sucks, but this is also why I was there to train with Sergey.
The drill itself , for me, was pretty intense. Sergey had us focus on different objects in the room, while shifting our gaze between objects, then adding the objects back into our entire view all at once. It sounds easy, but it was quite complex as he picked objects similar in size in shape and then varied into larger pictures  and focal points quite out of range for most people. Eight minutes into the drill, I had a full blown migraine, which ironically, was a sign that the drill was working a little too much and causing vision strain. It further confirmed that my peripheral vision, which was perfect, had declined to something I had been in denial about for a while.
One of the preceding drills, consisted of meditation to hone in our environmental, spacial and situational awareness. For most people who are parents, or have been, you may be very in tune with this type of work. For mothers specifically, you are probably a pro at this(as my son will tell anyone I can hear him miles away, swearing under his breath). The drill consisted of sitting on a bench, with erect spine, focusing on breathing through the diaphragm, eyes closed and taking notice of sounds and movement that was happening around us. We focused on the direction of the noise, it's origin and recognizing what was causing the noise and or movement. Since this event was held in a rather busy area of Guadalajara, there were alot of "city" noises occurring. Sergey discussed the importance of doing this type of work in the woods, forest or park. He also discussed the practice of "scanning" an area without being incredibly obvious and how combining the "eye gymnastics" exercise and the acute listening work daily for two weeks, we would see a difference in our awareness level, and will be further able to avoid potential dangerous situation(s). By paying attention to everyday nuances, we could , ideally, sharpen our skills to actually avoid a situation as opposed to being directly involved in one.This was a common theme I've recognized with some of the better, more thought provoking instructors in Russia. They are calm and collected and never fear monger their students. In fact, quite the opposite; they train to mainly avoid situations, however, they practice on subjects like reaction time, flexibility, endurance and other deep work that is rarely discussed in the west.
Speaking of flexibility...Kolyushenko immediately discussed the importance of movement. Not only daily movement, but "natural" movement. He repeatedly steered us into a series of drills, one that built on a prior one, that expanded both our coordination AND physicality. Not one second was wasted on mindless pushups or squats, however, he lamented the importance of a regime of a hyper-slowed down version of these things, for joint control and range of motion. His demonstration of a slow push up and slow arm up, was quite impressive and I gather, not able to be done easily by most people. This was precisely the point. Sergey discussed that in reality, none of us practice "true"combatives at full force everyday, so we must find ways to adapt our daily routines (he used an example of switching on a light switch with three fingers and attention as opposed to randomly and non-chalantly). Adaptability and ability to move was , for me, a highlight of the seminar.

Much to my surprise, Kolyushenko also discussed Cossack work quite a bit. I had no seen or heard of him using this in seminars, but I was quite thrilled. Since I trained extensively with A. Karimov, I felt relieved that I knew exactly what he was talking about(even during a few of his anecdotal stories, I was able to relate how this pertained to overall combatives training). A few times, Sergey launched into a very controlled dance, that was both sincere and fully involved with several levels of coordination, yet flowed freely and precisely. He relayed how Cossack theory and movement were a driving force for Russian Martial Arts and how none of the work we had been learning was "magic" . It was all easily explained by historical trials and tribulations of the Cossacks, and the movement had evolved over time.
Even better, Sergey pointed to North, Central and Southern Mexican style dance for a frame of reference for movement and techniques. He discussed how in cultural artistry, including dance, there is almost always a traditional form of fight style training. This was also a highlighted part of the seminar for me, because it had been a topic I have researched for a while. He mimicked the hand movements of dance he had seen from the regions of Mexico and quickly transitioned it into Russian Martial Arts.

The next few days of the seminar were just as amazing as the first. Kolyushenko did what most really skilled instructors can do, which is, get everyone on the same page, for a better training environment. We worked our way through a series of coordination drills, awareness drills, striking patterns, drills to enhance our reaction time and much more. One drill , in particular, was especially complicated(video was not allowed per event host, otherwise I would have video'd all of these complex series of demos). The drill involved a small raquet ball or similar, and with one hand, you drop the ball and catch with the other before the ball hits the floor. Just was everyone was somewhat able to do this, he migrated the same drill to incorporate an alternate figure 8 movement with the opposing hand and then...incorporated the wall. All of these drills were quick to give the student a glaringly harsh reality that, if we are NOT taught methodology that includes ideals like quick reactive timing, or micromovements and spinal stability, that the rest of what we learn in regards to striking or defensive techniques, will virtually , not work. This is something that rarely is seen or discussed in the west(or even , if you watch any You Tube videos of the more mainstream schools of thought on Systema or R.M.A., you will rarely see this type of work as a main focal point in training). Personally,this is the exact reason I have decided to go to the direct source for information, because as much as you spend on training, if you cannot do equal and rapid precise and accurate reactional movements, what would be the point of the rest of the work?

After four days of training, and a variety of solid information, not only did Sergey's work and instruction point out a path of instruction that I needed to evaluate for myself, it further encouraged us to make the commitment to *hopefully* attend one of his intensive camps in Russia.
While I could have easily gone a few more weeks learning from him, the solid information he worked on was enough to give me a guide of more work I could do on an individual basis to further my skill set.

Even more so, Sergey is also an avid believer in equal training for women. I was more than elated to not be the only female in the class(the event host's mother was also training, and alot better than I was), but Sergey was extremely accommodating and understanding to everyone and if there was anything I had a question about, he graciously answered or recaptured the demo at a level that was highly detailed. I do however, wish we had more Q&A time with him, but like all great seminars, time seems to blow by quickly.
I am glad I took the time to take notes during the seminar, because his topics and discussions were extremely detailed and meaningful and helped tie in alot of techniques that are used in his methodology.
One topic I found particularly interesting was how Sergey described breathwork including diaphragm control. He rejoiced in a song that bellowed , and described how the Cossacks were able to control their diaphragm during long singing hours, which, in turn, helped build the muscle to control panic breathing during combat or attack. This was something very familiar to me, as A. Karimov gave a very loud and eye opening demonstration of this same concept while he was here in Texas. He stood on one end of a park , while the rest of us stood on the other, and he continuously shouted and paced himself backward, creating an echoing effect that we could not mimic , at all. When Sergey discussed the relevance of this technique he also demonstrated how to NOT show your opponent your "breath". Meaning, move stealthily without making your lung capacity fully noticeable by any opponent. I immediately thought of this video at 10:13, in which Kolyushenko is seen wading quietly through a lake area. I imagine that if this were done at night, and he was underwater, he would go completely undetected, and that is exactly how he moves on land. His movement and skill level, topped with his physicality, ability to articulate information and detail including proper form and technique, is exactly what is lacking in instruction in the USA(in my opinion).
Unfortunately, Kolyunshenko has very little video in a public format and you would be hard pressed to find a seminar outside of Europe or Russia led by him. This, however, makes him extremely important to get to if he is teaching near you. While even his background is not something I had a chance to ask him in person about, what I gathered from other schools and sources was the following:

  • taught fisticuffs(combatives)/ plastun for the Volgograd Recon "Scorpion" unit
  • learned with R.O.S.S. founder , A.Retuinskih 
  • fought in the North Caucacus-(internet source)
  • currently teaches law enforcement, civilians a variety of skills including H2H , pistol work, coordination and many other techniques 
  • has extensive training camps in the Ural mountains 
While it seems a bit difficult to attend one of his seminars, it is every bit worth the time and financial investment. Overall, our trip to Guadalajara ,including airfare and seminar fees, were still less expensive than a larger , and commercialized/generalized style of the seminars held in the US. Considering the seminar was to last for 6 days in total(we left early due to work schedules), I cannot say there are better values for the expense. The one on one attention, clarity of work and flow of solid material was enough to convince us to attend any seminar we can if he is on our side of the hemisphere before we get back to Russia to train with him(we may even trek to another one of his seminars sooner, if we can).

This type of work is very rare for this area of the globe, and there is no longer a reason to be stuck in training. Instructors are just as eager to travel and teach , as we are eager to learn this work. The take-aways I got from the seminar are the following :
  • Natural movement is essential to alot of the militarized and Cossack style instructors. If you display an inability to move, they will give you a variety of techniques and drills designed to HELP you move and work on fluidity, that not only include dance(Kolyushenko also did a Charlie Chaplin type move and discussed the importance of his work), but increased range of motion, joint and spine stability and more. Not one minute was spent on what I refer to as "sheep drills"-mindless and thoughtless drills that are time fillers in commercialized systems designed to exhaust students and take up a bulk of training. 
  • Coordination is key-while I had seen and participated in *some*coordination work in the States, it is NOTHING compared to the work I learned in Russia , and at Sergey's seminar. In fact, I would not even consider the two as comparable. Until you witness someone of Karimov's, Shehsukov's, or Kolyushenko's level of fast moving AND highly skilled coordination level, you will NOT understand what you're missing. 
  • Learn the language-for the love of all things chocolate..I have put this one off for quite some time. Karimov(an avid language learner) and I developed a system of intricate and awkward phrases in Italian, Russian, Spanish and English combined with hand gestures and animated movement when we converse. To an onlooker, it is I am sure, one of the most hilarious things to witness, however, communication is crucial to both of us and Karimov is literally a genius level learner-meaning he can learn, compute and regurgitate information at a genius level so language learning is rather easy for him. Not so much for me, so I got lazy attempting to learn Russian. Since I can understand 75% of Russian language(more specifically, "training Russian") I never considered it a true deficit for training purposes, however, there are gaps of time that I could have better used had I known the language. Luckily, his methodology and actual work, needs very little description(that's how clean and clear it is) but his insight and personal anecdotes are really crucial in understanding his teaching style.
  • Note taking is valuable- with an instructor as elusive as Sergey, I decided that taking notes would turn to be more valuable than actively participating through some of the drills(my PIC was fully capturing all of the physical and technical work and I feel together, we were able to put everything together for better understanding. There is no shame in sitting down and taking notes as long as the instructor is ok with it(which I asked before the seminar due to the fact that medically, I would not be able to participate in some of the demos)
  • Take pictures-this one, I absolutely dropped the ball on. While taking notes, extensively, I failed to try to take as many pictures of the drills as I could(video was not allowed per host). However, the pictures I did take, turned out to be blurry or failed to capture the MOI (moment of impact). Midway through the seminar, I found a setting on my camera that took a series of snapshots , but Sergey moves so well and without flaw, it was still difficult to capture on film. It's best if you train with him in person and see for yourself.
  • Ask questions-I always , always do this as much as I can and usually find nuggets of wisdom in the answers. Sergey has very interesting and thought provoking things to say like" always move forward", "stare through your opponent", "stand like you are sitting on a horse, with your feet firm in the stirrups", etc. These are key phrases that anyone can take away from a seminar and use in solo training drills
  • Dance- while some in combative arts laugh at this, others take this into high regard and consideration. Of some of the master level instructors I've talked to or trained with, ALL of them discuss the importance of the ability to dance AND to dance freely. Sergey was no exception. As I've stated earlier, he would occasionally break out into a Cossack style dance, a breakdance or a Charlie Chaplin like movement for a visual aid. He would immediately transition back into a strike, evasive or defensive technique with no gaps or apprehension. Suprisngly, the same instructors who demonstrate their ability to dance, also have very little to no training injuries at all. Ever. That, speaks volumes.Often times, their endurance outlasts the students, which speaks for itself.
  • There are techniques and methods- often times in the US, it is advertised that "systema" or "R.M.A." is a technique/method-free art. Over the past year, I'd 100%argue that theory. Not only are the techniques solid(wave movement was also thoroughly taught at Kolyushenko's seminar), but a master level instructor can teach the techniques to anyone willing to learn at any phase of their training. 
  • Practice on your own is just as valuable-Sergey discussed the importance of completing the coordination drills and working them daily for a minimum of 20 minutes, for 2 weeks straight. This doesn't seem like alot , however, once you advance into the more complex coordination work, you will find that the use of both sides of your brain can be taxing. I asked Sergey if there was a resource for this type of coordination building series(he demo'd several that kept us all in knots), and he pointed to the work of A.A. Gruntowsky and his published book(now possibly out of print). The problem is, the book is in Russian, and the pictures are 2-D drawings, which again, reinforces the need to train with these instructors in person
  • Question your training-if you aren't learning some of what seems to be obscure, then it's time you challenge your instructor for more. My instructor and mentor, A. Karimov, recommends that all of us, specifically instructors for his school, cross train with other instructors, as does Kolyushenko. If your instructor does not recommend this or does not understand the need for coordination and acrobatic type work, then it's time you evaluate what you are learning. Having an instructor who is active in the arts socially, physically, mentally and wholly and who actively lives through the work, is also something not seen in the US. Alot of these instructors travel to seminars, teach only on weekends or hold camps . Weekly training is not something seen out of the better(and hidden)schools in Russia. It is assumed you are doing the work on your own and seminars and camps is for tune ups and new information. Since I stopped weekly training, saved the money to travel to Russia or to see Russian instructors, my experience has expanded 100 fold. 
  • Plan ahead-to my detriment, I was not able to spend "down time" with Kolyushenko. This is usually where I can ask alot of questions, get answers and get a deeper insight of learning. This of course, I am sure, is something that could have been planned before the seminar even started, but would have been alot easier if I knew the language. Often times, Google translate didn't work, or our translators were not available. That , paired up with my site seeing exhaustion, proved ill-managed time on my part. However, in Russia, living on site of training, proved to be ample amounts of time for individual work, socializing, touring and communing with all of the instructors, which, in turn, made for the overall experience something more than I could ever expect. With the seminar in Mexico, again, the price we paid was nothing compared to the amount of material that was taught and the amount of work that was done. Taking sight seeing trips and meals aside, the overall experience was well worth the 6 days and the low cost of a flight , lodging and taking off work. Even if you can only train with Kolyushenko for two days, I promise, it will be a full two days of work that you will use the rest of your life.