In regards to the martial arts, actions often speak much louder than words, especially since body language or movements and actions, makes up well over 70% of our total human communication skills. In every encounter we have with someone, especially a potential opponent, their movements and actions speak volumes to us, if we are receptive and analyze them accurately.

In sports, most practitioners of various sports have no idea that the components of the martial arts are extremely similar and can be very beneficial to them in developing their prowess in whatever sport they might be involved with. Several of my legendary world class martial arts mentors have coached many of the world’s most famous teams and athletic sport standouts, sharing with them the various components of the martial arts that are applicable to their respective sports.

For years in my classes at the Indy Kali-Silat Association International, I have shared simple Action methodologies with my students that assist them in acquiring razor-sharp pinpoint accuracy of their various techniques, with and without handheld weapons. I suggest to them a very simple, but extremely difficult, method of enhancing their sensory acuity to unimaginably high degrees before deemed totally unattainable by them.

When I was a youngster growing up, one of the very few somewhat affordable toys I was permitted to have and play with, was a paddle ball, which consists of a small handheld paddle, very similar to a ping pong paddle, that had a long rubber band attached to the paddle at one end, with a small 1” to 2” rubber ball attached at the other end of the rubber band and the idea was to bat the small rubber ball with the paddle.

The hand and eye dexterity to be able to keep the ball bouncing farther and stronger away from the paddle, over time, really heightened your visual acuity combined with body, arm and hand motion really helping to develop hand and eye coordination.

This hand and eye coordination dramatically enhanced my students ability to hit virtually any moving target with the lead rim or point of their Kali bastons, obviously making them a force to be reckoned with, whether they were using Kali sticks, knives or other ancient hand held weapons and of course accuracy striking with empty hands.

My uncle Bruce, (who I was named after), was an avid ping pong player and tournament champion and he introduced me to the extremely involved art of “TABLE TENNIS” or better known as “PING PONG” and I have to tell you, there is a whole lot more there than meets the eye there.

Just like COURT TENNIS, table tennis is an extremely physically active sport that really helps your total body acuity, especially hand and eye coordination, but also your bodies total mobility and reactions.

All of these attributes COURT TENNIS and TABLE TENNIS require extreme acuity with are also extremely required in various aspects of the martial arts and just like pistol or gun shooting, you absolutely have  to be able to hit your target and place your projectile exactly where you want it with extreme accuracy and in regards to the martial arts, whether your utilizing a handheld weapon or placing a punch, elbow, knee, or kick, accuracy is of paramount importance.

The martial arts have throughout history been utilizes as entertaining sport competitions and exhibitions and today’s modern martial art practitioners compete in tournaments and exhibitions everywhere today and that is really great for today’s active youth.

Many martial artist today are unaware that the great BRUCE LEE was a ping pong table tennis champion in Hong Kong and he often gave demonstrations of his amazing speed and hand and eye coordination, playing table tennis using nunchaku, instead of a paddle.

In my early martial art training days, long before I had ever heard of the great BRUCE LEE, to perfect my accuracy and hand and eye coordination, I would connect a small rubber ball to a length of string and practice hitting it with the rim or very tip on my kali stick and the harder I hit the ball, naturally the faster it would fire back at me, similar to table tennis.

I also used this same idea with exacting my accuracy with various type of punches, elbows, knees and kicks, assisting me in becoming extremely effective with deadly accuracy when forced into vicious aggressive combat, especially against multiple opponents, making my ACTIONS count relatively effortlessly, after years of accuracy training.

Remember, as martial art practitioners, students, teachers and mentors, our “ACTIONS” speak volumes about us personally as individuals, so always be aware that very often the things we do, in and out of the class room, tell observers far more about us than we are often aware of, as “ACTIONS” really do very often speak much louder and far more accurately than words, as all “ACTIONS” have REACTIONS and all “ACTIONS” have often far reaching consequences.