Often in my travels I find that many people try to teach Kickboxing without the knowledge of the sport. It has became popular to teach Kickboxing or Kickboxing Aerobics without ever being in the ring. Of course not all people who compete at a high level can become great teachers. However I do believe that in order to teach the sport properly you must understand many of the nuances that can be only gained from experience in the ring. For example there are many Kickboxing Aerobics instructors for that don’t teach students to hold their guards properly. And even worse are those who don’t teach to hold the guards up at all! It truly misleading to let students believe that they are learning Kickboxing in this way.

The instructors that properly teach the sport know that there are drills that are essential for learning proper Kickboxing. Lack of knowledge of these drills undermines a person’s ability to understand the sport. Not long ago I had a person join my kickboxing program. When I suggested that we go through some drills, the person responded with: “I’ve been doing TaeBo.” While TaeBo contains many wonderful movements and helps you to develop some techniques there are fundamental differences. It’s like comparing apples and oranges - one cannot be substituted for the other.

At Dwane Lewis Martial Arts Academy in the Kickboxing program we utilize the concepts of Tai Chi in the sparring class which raises the learning curve as much as 60%. Students begin by doing the drills slowly to learn proper neuromuscular response. As a person’s ability increases and movements are performed correctly the speed of the sparring is increased to match their level of proficiency.

At Dwane Lewis Martial Arts Academy we have a number of fighters who can maintain any speed with immaculate control. This enables beginners to learn without a fear of being hurt, gives them confidence which speeds up the learning process. We have many students that are not interested in the ring fighting. They receive much lighter contact than those who are training for a competition. Of course those training for the ring are not receiving undue contact, only enough to convey the necessary knowledge. You don’t have to knock out your sparring partner to let them know that their guard is down. I believe that the old-school mentality of teaching students to be tough by pounding them class after class has given way to more intelligent ways of teaching, and in my school we apply them to every aspect.

We all have noticed that there are not as many women kickboxers as men. I believe the reason is the excessive contact they receive while learning the sport. They are constantly being put in unsafe environments against less-than-skilled people. There is a tremendous amount of sexism in many schools as well. One sexist trainer can run off all female students in no time. My experience has shown that given a right training environment, most women learn faster than most men. An understanding that the learning process is safe helps to gain a trust in instructors and sparring partners. In Dwane Lewis Martial Arts Academy woman students are always welcome and we provide safe and respectful environment.

For more information please check out our website. Beginners and people with experience are welcome to join. Please stop by and check us out. You will find that Kickboxing and Kickboxing Aerobics done right could be exciting and rewarding.

Love and peace, Sifu Dwane Lewis II