Would you like to approach your training in a multifaceted way by learning the Calasanz System Combined? Depending on your learning ability and experience this could be better for you. Or would you prefer to learn something in a more specific capacity? Such as: Boxing, Karate (Goju Ryu), Wing Chun Kung Fu, Chinise Boxng, Recreational Boxing, Cheng Chuang Long Fist, or Pau Fa-Yoga.
Regardless of what you choose to study or how you decide to approach your own training we always give as the core of our training and the #1 method that is unique to our training and our school, Physical Art. This is a unique and all inclusive approach to elite fitness ability and training designed to improve the body in a multitude of aspects through the movements and exercises. Physical Art has proven effective in improving balance, breathing, coordination, strength, power, grounding and flexibility. It is what makes our school unique. All of our students regardless of their program learn to some degree these methods of training. Improve your ability on all levels and reap the benefits of an all inclusive exercise regimen.
He was born with a gift all based on the logical understanding of the human body, that is based on the core, the power of the core and movements all used for their different purposes.
How much do you want to work out? It is very important to understand that Calasanz as a trainer teaches you how to work out, and how to do it smart. Come to Calasanz because you want to take something home with you. This is a place of 15,000 square feet. We have a huge space for people to come train whatever they choose. We welcome all styles and schools of training. Come here to learn something, to be yourself and most of all to take something home with you!
You are exhausted but you have so many problems that you cannot afford to be exhausted, so what do you do?
It’s very simple, flip the switch to the “mental” part of your brain. Now that the mental part is active you must tell yourself four things: “ - I am a determined person
- I have desire
- I can make decisions and
- I have the passion to do what I do best. ” Besides the mental, another thing must be on your mind and that is the "physical". If you only turn on the mental, you will probably be able to function for a while but eventually you will crash at some point because that physical part is turned off.
When the physical is turned off it means you are weak, unhealthy, and you are going back to being exhausted or easily exhausted. With this it is all getting worse and it is getting so bad that it is bringing you down into depression.
We do not take depression as seriously as we should, it is one of the worst illnesses a human can have.
When a person is depressed, life means nothing to them.
A depressed person couldhear about another person jumping off a bridge; to the depressed person it is just something that happened and it has no effect on them at all. That is because their brain is not functioning the way it should. There is no mental control, they are still unhealthy, they are still eating bad food, and they cannot look and see forward; that there is life ahead of them. If a very depressed person could see just a small sample of their future they would not do anything to cause themselves harm but usually by the time they realize they made a mistake, it is too late.
For example, if a depressed person decides to take his or her own life by jumping off a bridge, that feeling in the air must be a terrorizing one. If someone could freeze time and suspend that person in mid air and give them the choice again that person would choose to go back and not jump.
You can be a very determined person with desire, talent and lots of passion, but if you are unhealthy because you do nothing physically sooner or later you will crash and burn. Crashing is like going into depression, besides, when you crash it means that a hint of depression already existed in you to begin with.
But that's okay! Depression is very common and it manifests itself in different ways and can crop up for many different reasons including through something as simple as inaction! And if you are suffering, or think you might be suffering from depression please don't hesitate to seek professional help! Remember, seeking the help you need is a sign of strength, not weakness! It is popular now for people to correct the imbalance through chemical medication and it is a testament to the creativity and brilliance of the human mind that such a development in the field of medicine is even possible. Some might even say a miracle. While it may be a necessary, helpful and a 100% proper solution for some it is not a blanket solution and should not be taken lightly! Mind altering drugs are just that and the full extent of their impact is truly hard to judge keeping in mind the existence of unknown unknowns on top of all the scientific evidence that may or may not be available.
In the end one must weigh the pros and cons for themselves and act accordingly.
Under the Calasanz General System which we call the Pressure Points Program, it does not matter where you are located, far from his local center, another State or internationally you can still train and learn from him through our video archives by watching and absorbing the information we have to offer. You can come to train privately, semi-privately, as part of a class, take a camp, under a supervised program etc etc. All of this is based on the fact that many already have heard about the Calasanz System, especially towards the purpose of studying it. Studying under the Calasanz System means that you are doing it in order to “Take something home with you”, this is the real purpose of this system.
Let us give you an example, lets say you know somebody who is very fit, works out everyday and has done all sorts of private training. Now this person comes to Calasanz to learn and he notices he is off or out of sync with regard to his breathing, his flexibility, his coordination, and his body alignment. His posture is wrong, his core is very weak and so on. Now, Calasanz takes this student for one month and as is often the case he is not really sure what he is getting into, but after learning and doing the exercises catered to him he cannot believe how he looks and feels. His posture improves, his core strength is up and he finds himself better coordinated and more in tune with himself. Calasanz has seen and done this thousands of times for thousands of people over his long career as an instructor. There are countless examples of clients coming to Calasanz with sports injuries, sustained injuries from car accidents and from other sources only to find their range of motion, strength and ability improved drastically after learning and following some of his movements and exercises.
Calasanz allows his students to divide his system into items by learning certain, very specific skill sets or movement techniques from different systems to give the student exactly what he wants and what he needs. All of them come together to be a system where you can get what we call a Black Belt Equivalency or Certification. BLACK BELT EQUIVALENCY is based on the main items, of which there can be as many as 400. Understand, certifications are nearly infinite in this system. The meaning of everything is the fact of being able to challenge a student for a life time, yet still you can train more specifically in what you enjoy the most. Calasanz' skill and knowledge allows him to challenge you for life. All of this falls into the most important item which is called Calasanz Physical Arts. It is designed to tailor a training regimen to anybody regardless of age, physical ability, injuries, size, disability ect...
Let us make it simple here. 98% of those who go to a gym or do any other sort of training are not in touch with their age.
If you are 18, 20, 23, etc... you can do anything, but still young people can get hurt if they do not do it right or are careless. What happens here is the fact that there are many people over 40, 50 and 60 years old. If you are older you cannot do all the things that young people are doing here.
Just for you to know, learn how to do it right. Learn about your body. Then remember and don't forget, there is not age. Just train properly. Learn to know your limit. Learn to do it right and take it home with you. It is in fact very important and it is what makes Calasanz and his system so unique. Come to Calasanz because you want to take something home with you.
The first link on this post, I can never get enough of it or her. I can watch it her all day. Why? She is the type of person that listened. She respected what she was learning, she wanted to learn it and she knew how much it did for her. Many others did the same, but she was unique in respect to style and character. She is remembered at Calasanz forever.
Today there are many who have learned and continue learning the skill and concept of Physical Art under Calasanz.
Long ago men started also training and doing these movements the same as the women I trained. Physical Arts for a while was done mostly by women, primarily on the 90's. Today physical art is being done by men, women and children.
"Come to Calasanz because you want to be coordinated, you want to be strong, balanced, poised, grounded etc. Come and Learn Physical Arts under the Calasanz System"
When it comes to developing a style or more accurately when it comes to developing YOUR style we are not talking about a certain school of thought or training regarding Martial Art. We are talking more broadly about expression.
As you undertake, for example, the study of a traditional Martial Art such as Karate you will learn how to express a punch in a certain way. Someone who is learning from a boxing coach will also learn how to throw a punch but it will be expressed differently according to the rules and norms of boxing.
Students of any Martial Art can show you a leading hand attack within the realm of that Martial Art be it a closed fist punch of Karate, open hand strike of any particular Kung Fu or the darting finger of Wing Chun. Each strike has its purpose and usefulness in any given scenario yet the core movement and basics of each strike remain the same while the differences are expressed in the delivery into that space to be occupied furthest from the body. That means that 98% of the movement is the same. The difference is the hand or structure that is breaching that open space and initiating contact.
Strict adherence to a particular style is necessary when formally learning Martial Art and should be followed if tradition is where you place value. After all, many schools and masters have been training within certain parameters for quite some time and their practice and knowledge is not to be brushed away without thought. However, it is important to separate formal learning from the reality of a fight. A formal Karate practitioner would have a great time getting his teeth kicked in if he were to go into a fight and expect to win by going through the specific set of movements executed in the specific order he learned in training. Remember, traditional forms are simply the building blocks and tools to be used during a fight. It is up to the practitioner to put the proper movements and techniques in their proper place and in proper time during those fleeting moments of combat to become victorious.
But this still begs the question. How do you develop YOUR style? The best advice I can offer is that you start with something that interests you. Start with something that you like. Don't get hung up on the usefulness or lack there-of of a particular style. If you like it and you are practicing with focus there are more personal benefits that come with regular practice than can be written here. Master something. It takes time, patience, drive, discipline, determination and consistency; all of which are necessary in order to express something well and all will be useful qualities when/if you do decide to branch out to other styles or schools.
One pitfall that is very common, especially within those formal traditions, is the strict adherence to said tradition. You cannot develop a style within a person unless they want it. Yes, you've been perfecting your boxing punch for years and it is phenomenal. But that does not discredit or devalue the expression of a Karate punch. It is not a question of one being wrong and the other right. They are both right within their own realms. Despite their being at least 80% the same they are just different punches.
So when you go developing it is important to use what you've learned and apply it to anything else you might take up. You meld them. Can you be a great boxer and go through a beginner Karate form? Yes. It doesn't make you any less of a boxer, it just means you have more tools at your disposal mentally and physically. If you take boxing lessons and close your mind completely to the possibility of another style being valid or valued it is like a self inflicted lobotomy and only limiting development.
Taken From an Audio Recording from one of Calasanz' Students.
(names removed for privacy)
==========
"Calasanz' knowledge... Calasanz has so much knowledge in the Martial Arts man. He told _____, 'You're not ready for the tournament. You're not going.' See he didn't want to take no for an answer. He insisted. Even the day before the tournament I was sparring with him. He was going crazy trying to kick me and trying to... you know. And I was there just blocking. Calasanz got mad at me and gave me ... I think it was 50 push-ups because I didn't want to counter punch. I didn't want to hurt ____ to stop him from going to the tournament. It was crazy man."
"Spinning roundhouse kick... I saw the kick coming miles away. I could have called him on the phone and said, '____, you got a spinning roundhouse coming. Get your hands up.' But it was too late. I mean I saw the kick coming when the guy was lined up and then the first spin.... I like the guy, but... if you can't walk the walk don't talk the talk. You understand?"
"When did you go?"
"When? Ehhh ... What year was it? 1996.
"It was nice man. I was fearless. I didn't care. The fights were pretty much easy 'cause the system and the way we fight and in tae kwon do, the way they fight it's different you know. They rely a lot on their kicks. I tried to play their games for the first 2 seconds. The guy started jumping around.
The first one started jumping around and I just countered him. He went with a spinning kick which is very popular in tae kwon do and I hit him with a counter round kick. Boom. I knocked him out."
"To the head?"
"Yeah."
"The second one was the same thing. The second one I move up to him, I shuffled. I shuffled. We used to do a lot of shuffling here. I shuffled and hit him with a round kick. He went down."
"The third one threw a kick at me. I blocked it. Then I hit him with a round kick. It was all round kicks. It was 3 round kicks. 3 knockouts."
"The 4th guy I was supposed to fight was a guy from here because he was beating everyone from his end and he bowed out to me because Calasanz didn't want us to fight. So I ended up with the first place. The gold. He got the bronze medal. Excuse me, the silver. Yeah, [the forth guy was a student from Calasanz and he bowed out to me because we had a rule that whenever we end up facing each other at a tournament, the student who had been training the longest gets bowed out to and get the points.]"
"That was the trial, did you end up going to the Olympics though?"
"I didn't go because I tore my ACL playing soccer. I had to have a surgery on my left knee."
"Did anybody else go (to the Olympics) from here?"
"I was the guy with the first place. The other guy won the silver medal.. you know what's crazy I think they found out that he was from here, they didn't give him the medal. They said they ran out. If you know you're supposed to have so many fights how can you not have enough medals? It's all bullshit."
"Was it because they didn't like the fact he was training here?"
"Well they knew we were students from here. But we didn't go to the tournament under this school because it was a strictly Korean tournament; Tae Kwon Do tournament."
"But there is only one direction that is going to be done and delivered and that is the simple way."
- Calasanz
==========
This is uh... something that I want to talk about first of all to bring it to the attention of Frank Dux even if I don't mention his name I just want to be able to tell him, "Read it."
Just like how ________________ has written before about me as a kid, I knew probably Martial Art since I was born but didn't know that it was Martial Art or Boxing that I was doing until I got to the city when I was 14 or 15. That was the time that I first went to a school and took my first class. As I was watching, everything that they were teaching did not make sense to me because it was just brutal. They were just hitting each other. The first day I remember sparring and they would throw a front kick or round kick at me and I was using techniques of closing the gap to block them. Lifting my leg and blocking the kicks. For me it was nothing new. It was something that I realized later on that I was born with.
I did not go back to take a class at the school or to train with Rafael Martinez their Master / head trainer or any of the other trainers there for about 3 months. After I came back from 3 months I could beat anyone there, but I could have beaten anyone there even on my first day.
You see, on my own I was already doing movements within the traditional forms and katas. I remember including some of those movements in a kata I put together in 1987 for a form we call "Bojitsu Ni". I remember Matellen Coves was performing a weapons kata put together by Tameyoshi Sakamoto, Bojitsu Ichi, but traditionally it was just too short. He was performing it perfectly but it was just too short and he was not winning. So I took that same form or kata that was related to kobudo and I elaborated on it to put together the Bojitsu Ni. In less than one year, or probably 3 or 4 tournaments he was number one in weapons Nationally and number one in New England for many of the other things that he was doing.
Now, Belts.
So, belts are not so important for me, but it is important and I do use them in our system. You want to have a black belt in Physical Arts under our system. Why? Because that is just a little taste of what is the most well balanced system in the world. Anything that we do we can divide a belt into whatever; 14, 300, 400... we can divide our belt system into any number of different levels by using our skill to bring people to the equivalent of a black belt and that could be in Karate, Kung Fu, Chinese Boxing, American Boxing, Wing Chun Ground Fighting... even for Boxing we have a black belt equivalent over here.
So belts are more of a respect for me. I respect the Martial Arts more than anyone out there. I spent a fortune in Martial Arts just out of respect for the teacher. "Here you are Moy Yat. I'm gonna give you a lot of money because you're teaching me the Wing Chun system. Then I am going to teach it." We had worked it out such that I knew that after three months of training under Moy Yat I would be certified to teach, and I did. And Moy Yat did not care because he knew what was the skill that I had. He said, "No, no, no. Why put Calasanz in a class to pay $50 and spend 10...15 years doing 小念頭?" No. Somebody sent me to 梅逸 (Moy Yat) and in 1 year I had the system of Wing Chun. Even myself, I had many students teaching 3 months after learning Wing Chun, Patrick Wilson, Pamela and many others. So belts are important for me as a respect. So many instructors like Mr. Chow in Wing Chun. Frank Dux in all that he did. Lee... in reality I retract that word, I don't want to mention that guy... but many others.
Whenever I went to a new school I had a way of talking with and working with their head instructors and owners. They would say, "Oh, Calasanz, why don't you get a black belt in our system?" You see, I can be a black belt in one day. My obsession was so excessive and my skill was so beyond that I could reach that level in a very short time. I remember when I went to Lee, I talked to George and taught him some of my skill and then he gave me in just one week all of their forms of Tae Kwon Do. It was easy for me because I did TKD in the DR and I knew how to deliver all the kicks as TKD as well as in the style of Goju Ryu karate.
So when I went to this guy on the Post Road to learn Hapkido the first thing I said was, "I want to do this because I came to this country to be Bruce Lee. I want to be well balanced. I am good at Goju Ryu but I don't want to confuse what I learned. I want to be at least the equivalent of a brown belt." But I could be the equivalent of a brown belt of any system if I wanted because that was my skill. I was born with it. I spent a lot of time in school but I devoted to this after my formal study for the love of it. I have 24 diplomas in all sorts of different fields. But I devoted myself to Martial Arts because its what I wanted to do. It was my obsession and my passion over anything else.
Now, all these writings and recordings that I am doing here are related to one thing. Respect. I love to have a belt from many different systems just to have it out of respect. But the fact is that belts are not so important for me, however, I like the respect of it. And that is one thing that I want people to understand. If someone offers me a belt, I want it. But at this moment I have a system. I have a system that I need and for me to accomplish my system and to leave it here; to give it to the world before I am gone I would need probably... easily, 10 lives. If I am going to be 90 years old then I need another 90, another 90, another 90 and so on in order to leave it.
Calasanz and Tameyoshi
So I am concentrated on what I am today and on what I know today and this is the skill that I want to leave in the world. Then to the world I leave those names that I respect and there are many of them, but one of them is Frank Dux. Another, Moy Yat. Another, Tameyoshi Sakamoto. Another, Victor Lillianao and of course ____________. But anyway, this is the fact of belts. I don't mind getting a belt from anyone. I don't mind learning today. Today is June 12th 2014. I do not want to learn a new self defense technique. I have so much already that if I could leave behind at least one percent I would be so happy in life. I want to talk about skillful people like Frank Dux for example, who is for real. Moy Yat if he would be alive. Tameyoshi if he would be alive. Rafael Martinez. Rafael Alvarez and many others. I love to share. I love kata. That I want to learn a new form or a new self defense technique or a new elbow.... look, I can portray an elbow strike in 20 / 30 different directions. But there is only one direction that is going to be done and delivered and that is the simple way.
We created our name by delivering 1 punch and 1 kick. A side kick that no one, no one could block and no matter who it would be, an MMA fighter in the UFC... we could apply that sidekick to any fighter beautifully. The System Kick we called it. A kick coming from a short distance with lightning speed and power with the heel. My guys just made people... you could call it shit. Maybe there is a different word that Alan can find but... that just made them... it was a kick delivered to the gut that just made them... you know. This is how we created the name. So we don't need so much about that, but again, respect.
Anybody tomorrow that contacts me, "Oh let me get a belt in your system." and I will spend 1 hour with you and give you a belt. But the belt is really not what is helping you. It is of course the time spent and what gets retained that is really important. Anyone can wear a belt, not everyone can throw a good kick. I don't have to do that but I respect those that love the Martial Arts. I respect those that love the Martial Arts and do the Martial Arts for real. No bull-shit.
Still I expect that this be written in a way that does not offend anyone. Bull-shit could be misinterpreted as someone who is not too good as a fighter but is good at teaching and helping kids to be confident at something. We don't criticize anyone. And certainly teachers such as that are not bull-shit. Martial Arts can be a lot of things.
It's like I told Kenny Lamara who said to me, "Calasanz, my kid goes to this school. I don't know why I didn't send him to you."
I said, "Kenny if you sent him to me he wouldn't be with me." He wouldn't have stayed with me because in those times I was tough on them. I was tough an anyone. It didn't matter their age or anything. So those schools over there that take their time to teach a kid just how to feel it. It's okay. Its okay. Good luck. It's like Bas Rutten said, "I respect you." You have a 3rd degree black belt in ____________, and I respect that. But I wouldn't respect you if you say now you're gonna step into the UFC or if you want to step into the ring with me because that would be an offense. You don't have to be a killer in order to have a black belt and have another Martial Art as a hobby. You don't have to be a killer. You can just be. You can enjoy. You can enjoy the Martial Art. You can do the Martial Art soft but you must be careful when you open your big mouth. [jokingly] You know, don't say that. But yes.... You know, this is what Bas Ruttan said. Alan, the minute you see and follow him you will be inspired by him. Every word that comes from his mouth is something that you want to save. He is one guy that is the same type as me. That is just logical. Everything works. Don't criticize some school because the guy just throws a kick and didn't do anything with the kick. No. They are enjoying that. You see? That helps them. That is what makes TKD today. That is why there is the big killer TKD and the other ones. Okay?
So that is related Alan, that is what I want and probably I give you some time tomorrow, I want that you write that and even words can come even from your own development; your own skill.
I respect.
I don't want belts. I do not want to learn anything. I just want to see if I can leave before I am gone to the world 10 to 15 percent of the most simple Martial Arts in the world. This is all I care about today. But I do care about respect. I do care about sharing with people and so on. This is what I want.
