Comments

Episode-1114- Jeremy Lesniak on Martial Arts, Conflict Avoidance and Fitness — 19 Comments

  1. Jack, just wanted to thank you (again) for having me on. TSP is a wonderful community that has brought me so much, and I’m honored to have been able to contribute something back.

    ~jeremy

  2. Can anyone tell me more about the types of shoes discussed towards the end of the episode. I’ve been looking for shoes for a long time that don’t hurt my feet legs or back.

  3. I think you are totally correct about never starting anything if there is a way out. You will never know whether that guy or his friend has a handgun, knife or other weapon. The unknown is ever-present. Sooner or later the odds can run out on anyone no matter how well trained they are. I think martial arts is all about when you have totally run out of any and all options other than fighting.

  4. Having trouble commenting with links – but I have reviews of the boots and barefoot shoes – Merrell Trail Gloves, New Balance Minimus, Zem Gear and Vibram FiveFingers at my blog, mentioned in the links above.

    Thanks for the feedback, and keep the comments coming.

  5. I agree buy the aggressor a drink, two drinks, three drinks, etc.. and by the end of the night, if they still wanted to fight, it makes it much easier to kick there ass…

    lol….

  6. what jeremy said about schools/instructors and money is so true, at least in my experience.

    i took martial arts for a few years when i was younger and my instructor was amazing. he was head of maintenance at the local high school and taught lessons in the evening. he did his lessons one on one. he barely charged anything, in fact i think he charged enough to pay his rent, maybe a little more, and that was it. he focused on the student completely and cared so much for the discipline or kenpo, not how many students he had or how much money he made.

    i wish i lived closer to his dojo because i would go back there in a heartbeat to continue taking lessons and learning.

  7. I know almost nothing about martial arts, but I know enough that I would prefer something like Krav Maga over any ‘monkey dance’ martial art.

  8. The shoe thing is absolute truth. I had debilitating lower back pain and sciatic problems for as long as I can remember. When I was young (and pain free) I did Shotokan Karate for 15 years attaining the rank of Nidan and was constantly barefoot not only in the dojo but in life, hiking barefoot, walking on crushed gravel to build callus, etc…. Well, as I aged and life/work got in the way shoes became a necessity (workplace safety anyone) and the lifestyle changes ensued. Well a year ago I had the same revelation as Jeremy and started with xeroshoes.com huaraches. They were OK but not “workplace acceptable” (I’m a commercial driver)… Then I found the vibram five fingers and bought the KSOs off ebay… All I can say is WOW! It’s the closest thing to barefoot without actually being barefoot. One side note on the vibrams though… If you don’t like funky smelling shoes they might not be your choice. Usually you wear them without socks though you can buy injinji socks for them but if your feet sweat these things reek very quickly and require cleaning at least once a week to keep them smelling acceptable. But definately, if you have foot, ankle, knee, back, hip or even neck problems try going barefoot for a minimum of a month and see what a difference it can make.

    Also one final note, your feet will have a “break in period” if you haven’t been regularly barefoot for extended periods of time. Your feet WILL hurt for a week or two until the muscles figure out what’s going on and adjust to the new/old foot usage dynamics.

  9. Good show.

    One thing that I was disappointed to hear Jeremy imply was that a full-time martial arts instructor would not be as good of a value. (I’m not one, BTW, so I have no dog in the discussion.)

    People who love their work and are good at it have something to offer. And most likely, a full-time instructor has real expertise. I think you evaluate them as you do anyone else: the trial class, the options, the ability, the teaching skill…. basically any other capital purchase in terms of what you get for your money.

    It is possible that an outstanding instructor may not be able to make ends meet in a small town without either taking on another job or pushing the limits of ethical business.

    I see it as many other service industries: if they provide good value, their reputation will provide them good returns.

    • People are so sensitive, he never said that was an absolute, in fact he said he knows a few good ones. His point is a person trying to keep food on the table may sell a bit harder to get a new sign up. You know what, I have seen it myself.

      • I didn’t say he said it was absolute. Don’t be so sensitive 😉 (And I’m smiling at you Jack, not starting a fight )
        You can make the points about value, oversell, pushing sign-ups etc without suggesting it is inappropriate for someone to make money from quality instruction.

        And still… good show overall. I find the increasing success with “barefoot” types interesting also.

        • You said,

          “You can make the points about value, oversell, pushing sign-ups etc without suggesting it is inappropriate for someone to make money from quality instruction.”

          My response is where the hell did you get that from?

  10. I am a Chiropractor and work a lot with feet and i think the important thing to remember when looking at the barefoot approach is the surface you are standing on. Our ancestors were on grass rock dirt and many uneven surfaces that made you use those muscles they did not go running on flat concrete roads or stand all day on a very flat hard surface. In my experience bare foot is the best but only in more natural environments. I hope this saves some people some injury. love the show. Tyler

  11. Hey everyone, I can 100% testify that running barefoot does work. After I read the book Born to Run, I made my own sandals from a kit I bought at http://www.lunasandals.com/ . Up until this point, I rarely worked out, never ran more than a mile, and weighed 300 pounds. In April 2010, just after my 30th birthday, I started a program called Couch to 5K, and over a 9 week period worked my way up to running a 5K, all in those homemade sandals. After running a few 5Ks, I decided to try a half-marathon in May 2011. After I finished, I weighed 198lbs. That’s right, I lost over 100lbs in 13 months, weighed less than I had since 10th grade, and felt better than I had in my life! With the homemade shoes I had ZERO injuries despite running in them over 1200 miles.

    While I can’t give all the credit to running, burning the calories was one of the biggest factors in my weight loss. I gave up eating out for the first 6 months, and ate only fruits, vegetables, and turkey sandwiches made from low calorie bread. Here is a before and after pic, and one of the homemade sandals:
    http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v58/bigal7997/before.jpg
    http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v58/bigal7997/after.jpg
    http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v58/bigal7997/IMG00240.jpg

    Al in Illinois