The Filipino Martial Arts (FMA) Training Club is where everyone interested in art and anyone familiar with art can visit and experience the history, techniques, and discipline that has come to be known as Filipino Martial Arts. It is known as FMA, Arnis, Kali/Eskrima, and is a native Filipino martial art about stick fighting, knife fighting, bladed weapons, and empty hands. The club pledges to maintain and continue this ancient art in a way that benefits modern self-defence and training.
A Unique Martial Arts Approach
FMA also differs from most martial arts in that it picks up weapons first and adds hand techniques. This new freedom of movement renders FMA suitable for real-world self-defence. Team arm training begins, and more students are aware, more coordinated, and more capable of defending themselves against all types of attack from the ground up.
The FMA Training Club has sessions that teach the student’s weapon skills, movement, and drills that require speed, precision, and timing. Training is 100 per cent practical, and the techniques are taught to be employed with and without weapons, which makes FMA a very eclectic skill. Through intense drills, partner exercises and sparring, club members gain the agility, coordination and confidence required to perfect the art.
An Emphasis on Cultural Heritage
It is not just a club for martial arts but also a club where one can experience and share Filipino culture and heritage. Forms and movements, not just forms and movements, are philosophy and lifestyle, not martial arts, which are respect, endurance, and flexibility. Every practice session is choreographed to etch these values into the learning space, a space that is itself festive in its celebration of FMA history and its tradition.
In addition to training, the club organises cultural events, workshops, and seminars with visiting teachers to help students learn about the origins of art forms. Experiences like these give students a sense of FMA’s history, its roots in ancient combat, and its current form. They build community, too, forging lifelong friendships and alliances with others who care about Filipino culture and martial arts.
Structured Training for All Skill Levels
The FMA Training Club is open to anyone, regardless of experience or training. The newbies could begin with light drills, such as single- and double-stick drills, footwork, and light strikes, while the more experienced can do more technical combinations. The club offers a structured curriculum that allows students to advance at their speed in an environment where nobody has to feel intimidated by others’ abilities.
Every class is taught by an expert who takes students one-on-one and teaches them how to master their technique. Training sessions cover a variety of areas, including:
Single Stick and Double Stick Fighting: Learning stick drills improve hand-eye coordination and defensive skills.
Knife Training: Knife cuts are taught in hierarchical order, emphasising accuracy and safety.
Empty Hand Techniques: FEMA’s empty-hand stuff is good for close-quarters battles and reasonable self-defence outside the fantasy world.
Flow Drills: Paired drills enable pupils to practise open movements and develop reaction time.
They also have sparred in the club, where the students get to hit each other, but of course, it’s all controlled and whatnot; if they ever have to defend themselves in real life, they’re prepared.