Warrior Fundamentals - Week 2

I have pledged to do better this week. I am inspired by my latest Cornwell book, as well as by the lovely bottle of mead I was presented with by one of my shield mates. He offered it in exchange for a promise that I would not overly bludgeon him during our training. Day Three…

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Beginners' Courses July 2015

Just like the sun, we are coming back with our beginner's courses! Enjoy your summer with three different ways to approach to Western Martial Arts. Bartitsu is a complex martial art with many interlocking skills and is still very useful for learning practical self-defence today. Its introductory course, Fight Like Sherlock Holmes, runs once a week for four weeks.…

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Book Review: "Deeds of Arms" by S. Muhlberger

“They are stories about stories.” [1] It does my heart good when I hear competent people say that they’ve recreated the essence of some medieval martial art event to the best of their ability, because they followed the descriptions of medieval combat "exactly" from period texts. It’s a good ... start. But what if the…

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Warrior Fundamentals - Week 1

The following is the first in a four-part series from a student contributor.  If you enjoy this and wish to read more from Angella, you can start with her four-part series on her experience taking another one of our introductory courses, Taste of the Renaissance. Day One It feels great to be back at Academie Duello…

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Book Review: "Self-Defense for Gentlemen & Ladies" by Col. TH Monstery (Ben Miller ed)

In about 1877, Colonel Thomas Hoyer Monstery wrote: “I hold that every gentleman should be able to protect himself from insult and violence, with or without weapons.” [1] Words as true now, as they were more than a century ago! [2] But why listen to Col Monstery? In Self Defense for Gentlemen and Ladies, Ben Miller…

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Why you should wrestle, and everyone throughout history thought so as well!

There is a fallacy that is often presented in martial arts (and physical culture as a whole) that for people on the outside looking in there is no point to practicing. Why learn to fight with a sword, choke a person out, or lift a heavy weight if those things do not translate to a…

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Don't Get Hung Up on Perfect Practice

There is an interesting phrase pair I have been hearing from a lot of instructors recently. I hear: “Practice makes perfect." Then an admonishment: “No. Practice makes permanent. So make sure you don’t practice poorly!" The first is a message of hope and resilience. If you practice and stay the course, you can find mastery.…

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A Taste of the Renaissance - Week 2

I watched no martial arts movies over the weekend, which would be unusual except for the fact that it is hockey season. Now there’s some interesting martial arts for you -- I wonder if those hockey sticks are as well balanced as my rapier! I find myself really looking forward to Class 3. The only…

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Book Review: "Warhammer, the Forgotten Weapon" by James Roth

♪"Stop, Hammer time!"♫ (Apologies to MC Hammer.) What is a cultural ‘artistic’ reference in our time, was an invitation to ‘bring it’ in medieval times. For nearly two centuries, the warhammer was a weapon of choice for mounted medieval armoured combat. However, there seems to be a distinct lack of (recorded) knowledge of the fighting techniques…

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Sociable Sword Press: News for April 2015

"It's everyone from everywhere in one place." --Bruno Ramos, Knight's Blade HEMA Fresh from flying home from VISS at the end of last month, the statement above really resonated with my experiences with the Vancouver International Swordplay Symposium, and with my modest exposure to HEMA events internationally. Peers from all over the world fly across continents…

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Fighting Like a Mom

As I write this, my baby daughter is currently asleep in her crib, beside my bed. Behind her, leaning against the wall, is my longsword. I started swordfighting in February 2014. I wanted to learn, but I also wanted to improve my health. My husband and I had been trying for a baby for almost…

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Keep Solo Practice Effective by Not Over-Focusing

One of the main errors I see people making in solitary practice is over-practicing a single action. Generally this comes in the form of practicing a complex, multi-part action, without the needed external stimulus (meaning an opponent/partner) to give the technique its contextual relevance, timing, and feeling. The negative outcome I have seen, for many,…

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Special Guest Instructor: Bob Charrette

  March is underway which means that the Vancouver International Swordplay Symposium is almost upon us.  We have a  star-studded list of HEMA instructors and lecturers coming in from around the world.  One of the guests is particularly near and dear to my heart and that would be Bob Charrette.  Not only will Bob be offering…

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