introductory booklet - yellow · this document is an introductory booklet that provides a basic...

Introductory Booklet

Systema CHCH – Systema New ZEALAND

Revision 1

2011

1 Discover yourself

Introduction

This document is an introductory booklet that provides a basic description of concepts and principles

of Systema and its learning process. All these should help you to develop your own Systema.

Contents

1. Notice/ Disclaimer........................................................................................................................... 2

2. What is Systema? ............................................................................................................................ 3

3. What is the history of Systema? ..................................................................................................... 4

4. Why should I train Systema? .......................................................................................................... 5

5. What to expect during training? ..................................................................................................... 6

6. What is required to train Systema? .............................................................................................. 10

7. What are the principles of Systema? ............................................................................................ 12

8. What are the principles of breathing? .......................................................................................... 15

9. Training recommendations ........................................................................................................... 16

10. Why Systema focuses so much on movement? ........................................................................... 17

11. Why Systema focuses so much on breathing? ............................................................................. 18

12. What types of training are available in Systema? ......................................................................... 19

13. What can I do before starting Systema and make the transitions smoother? ............................. 20

14. Who are the Systema masters? .................................................................................................... 24

15. Training Development Principles .................................................................................................. 25

16. Systema links and additional training material ............................................................................. 26

17. Systema New Zealand on the Internet ......................................................................................... 26

18. Feedback ....................................................................................................................................... 27

19. Information about the author and collaborators ......................................................................... 27

20. Booklet History and Revisions ....................................................................................................... 27

2 Discover yourself

1. Notice/ Disclaimer The information contained in this booklet is for general information purposes only and it has been

designed for free digital distribution. The ideas and concepts included in this booklet were put

together using Systema DVDs and books, internet material, and the help of the Systema instructors

and training partners.

Although we (the booklet’s author, Systema CHCH, Systema NZ, and the people involved in the

review, production and distribution of this booklet) endeavour to keep the information up-to-date

and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the

completeness or accuracy with respect to the contents of the booklet for any purpose. Any reliance

you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.

Always consult your physician prior to beginning any exercise or physical training program. If you

experience any strain, stop immediately and seek the advice of a licensed health care professional.

Note that Systema training sometimes can be difficult and strenuous and that injury to you or your

training partner may result if you do not execute the drills and exercises with the proper care and

precision. We, the fore mentioned people, assume no responsibility for any injury or damage

resulting from the execution or practice of any drill or exercise presented here or in the referenced

material, or during a Systema class. In no event we will be liable for any injury or damage resulting

from direct or indirect use of this booklet.

Through this booklet you are able to link to websites which are not under our control. We have no

control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not

necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them, they are just for

reference.

Always, if possible, avoid all physical confrontation using de-escalating techniques (not included in

the booklet). In the event of a hostile or life threatening event use only the necessary force to stop

the threat and remove yourself from danger. If you are in doubt of what may constitute “reasonable

force” and/or “excessive force” contact the local law enforcement agency. Note that laws vary

among countries, states or regions.

Now I wish you the best, and enjoy the content of this booklet and have fun training. Remember

that Systema, just like any other physical activity, cannot be learnt from videos or books alone, so

let’s get training!

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2. What is Systema? Systema (Система in Russian and translate as “The System” in English) is a complete set of concepts

and training components that enhance one’s life. Systema can be classified as a survival system, not

just a martial art. Systema comes to us in its modern form through various Special Operations Units

within the Russian military's elite/special forces (called Spetsnaz). After researching martial arts

through-out the world, the Soviets rediscovered their own heritage in the traditional Slavic 'hill-

fighting' arts to be practical, deadly and sophisticated. From this base in real-world application

Systema has evolved to what is taught today at the clubs all around the world. Systema gives the

student the ability to deal with daily life situations in a more efficient and calmer manner, and this

maximizes the chances of success.

Systema is also known as "poznai sebia" (Russian language: “discover yourself”). Everyone is unique

and should understand and apply themselves uniquely. During the training you will get to know how

you behave/react to different situations, and discover (or rediscover) the freedom of movement that

our bodies are capable of and how our minds can remain functional under various stresses.

Every Systema practitioner will have different reasons why they want to train Systema, such as being

able to deal with aggression, defend yourself, your family and your country, become a healthier and

stronger individual, or overcome fear and gain confidence. Some of you will have seen various clips

on the Internet and just want to emulate the movements of the masters of this art. But through

training you will discover your own movement and develop something that works on a very personal

level and it’s yours. In the end, Systema principles can be (and should be) used all the times to allow

you to live a better, healthier life. In Systema, the synergy of three components creates a true

warrior: Combat Skill, Strong Spirit and Healthy Body.

The practitioner objectives will be to achieve a body that is free of tension, filled with endurance,

flexibility, effortless movement and explosive potential; and a spirit or psychological state that is

calm, and free of anger, frustration, irritation, fear, self-pity, delusion and pride.

From the note TRAINING SUGGESTIONS from Vladimir Vasiliev:

“The emphasis in your training should be on understanding movements of all kinds - your own

movements, those of others and just movement itself.”

From the Systema Excellence DVD by Konstantin Komarov:

“In Systema we eliminate any ‘baggage’ to move freely, we unlearn more than what we learn.”

“Learning Systema works as a spiral, going through all this components and cycle again and again to

reach mastery of you. It is a discovery of a lifetime.”

4 Discover yourself

3. What is the history of Systema? The Russian style of martial art dates back to the 10th century and was practiced by the Bogatyr

(Russian heroes/knights). They are normally present in the Systema logos.

Throughout the history of this huge country, Russia had to repel invaders from the north, south,

east, and west. All attackers brought their distinct styles of combat and weaponry. The battles took

place on different terrain, during freezing winters and sweltering summer heat alike, with the

Russians often greatly outnumbered by the enemy forces. As a result of these factors, the Russian

warriors acquired a style that combined strong spirit with extremely innovative and versatile tactics

that were at the same time practical, deadly, and effective against any type of enemy under any

circumstances. The style was natural and free while having no strict rules, rigid structure or

limitations (except for moral ones). All tactics were based on instinctive reactions, individual

strengths and characteristics, specifically designed for fast learning.

When the Communists came to power in 1917, they suppressed all national traditions. Among those,

the practice of any old style of fighting at the risk of being severely punished. At the same time, the

authorities quickly realized how viable and devastating the original combat system was and reserved

it just for a few Special Operations Units (Spetsnaz). It was not until the end of the cold war that

Systema became known. So, it’s only recently that the Pre-Soviet Russian martial art heritage is

being rediscovered.

Military service was compulsory in the Soviet Russia, but most people went in to the Regular Army

where their martial arts training consisted of training in “Sambo”, a Russian martial art based on

traditional Oriental styles emphasizing jiu-jitsu or kick boxing. But very few in the Soviet military

even knew of the training Vladimir and other members in his unit received due to intensive

government secrecy.

The world got to know this martial art known as Systema through Vladimir Vasiliev. After he finished

his service he established himself in Canada and in 1993 founded the first school of Russian Martial

Art outside Russia (Systema Headquarters). Since he has personally trained and certified hundreds of

Russian Martial Art instructors and schools worldwide.

Bogatyr by Michal Ivan

5 Discover yourself

4. Why should I train Systema? Any strategy, philosophy and movement that might be great in any sports martial art could result

useful in the streets or on the battlefield. But Systema was purposely designed for those

environments, and it has been proven to be very effective in those arenas.

You could, for example, train for many years in a particular martial art and be an amazing fighter. But

if you were to introduce at least one more opponent into the fight, you might still prevail but mostly

you would not be ‘doing’ that martial art anymore. Most martial arts are simply not designed for

fighting two or more opponents efficiently at the same time. It is primarily structured to fight one

opponent at a time by following a set of fixed rules. Also, most of the other martial arts are not

spontaneous as they rely on stimulus-response techniques. For example, practitioners are taught

that when a strike comes at you from a particular angle, you use a specific response. This “if they do

this, you do that” type of training eliminates all natural responses and movement.

Systema's structure is intentionally designed to appear structure-less. It relies on the development

of natural, intuitive and creative solutions to problems. The Systema practitioner should ideally

remain calm during the execution and should have precision in problem solving through a highly

developed sense of relational timing. Efficiency and economy of movement are highly sought after

skills and paramount to the effectiveness in combative situations.

Systema is primarily designed for real life application, it works for unpredictable situations (such as

multiple opponents, various weapons, uneven terrains, poor lighting, confined space, etc.) for

professionals in the military, law enforcement and security, for someone who's got to fight while

injured or wounded or has to protect his family, for someone who is older or not in good physical

condition. Training in Systema is designed to avoid injuries (and even heal your old ones) and

prepare you mentally for unexpected scenarios.

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5. What to expect during training? The following are some concepts that can give you an idea of what to expect when training Systema:

Non-destruction / No harm: This is a fundamental rule for training. We all have to ensure

that training does not damage the individual physically or psychologically in any way. It is

fairly easy, in Systema everything that destroys is wrong and everything that strengthens,

energises, heals and builds is correct. For example, if you do exercises with proper breathing

you enhance your heart, circulatory system, nervous system, and your psyche to become

calmer and more efficient. In any activity, if training is done without breath work - it will

strain, damage and destroy every parameter of your physical health and will make you

unstable, fragile and psychologically weak.

Training variety: There is no set curriculum and no two classes, even by the same instructor,

are the same. The practice will include exercises and drills that will allow you to practice the

Systema principles and get to know your current mental and/or physical limits. This is

generally executed by way of progressions that allow the student to comfortably assimilate

the information quickly and thoroughly.

Deal with controlled stressful situations and fear: During training you will have to deal with

drills that simulate a particular situation that will test your body and mind in a safe and

controlled environment. This allows you to analyse how you respond to that stimuli and

then you can correct it, if required (for most people that is the case as they will use tension,

aggression and/or unconscious breath holding). This correction is not just from the physical

aspect, but you also have to free your mind from ego, preconceived ideas, or very often just

stop feeling sorry for yourself. Most people have fear of being hit, of falling and/or being

trapped. Systema will provide drills to address these fears and let your body recover its

natural movement under any situation no matter how stressful that is.

Use it all the time: Once you start training, you will see that the principles and concepts can

be applied to everyday life activities. Systema’s objective is efficient living, which increases

the survival of the individual.

No competition: As explained before, Systema is a survival system that originated from

military training; it does not rely on competitions to validate itself. The practical usage of

Systema is tested with ever increasing pressure as the student's ability to deal with any

situation grows. These aspects are explored in seminars that are run by Systema Instructors

all around the world, in addition to group training sessions at the club and solo training at

home. So, do not expect any medal or trophy to show your friends, the big prize in Systema

is to re-discover yourself and make use of your full potential in every situation.

No ranks: Systema has no ranks or levels of any kind. Normally in a class or seminar there is

an instructor or a group leader - who guides the training - and some practitioners. You will

not wear any sort of belt or hat to let people know ‘how good’ you are at this. Beginners

and the more advanced practitioners work together - each learning important lessons from

each other.

No uniform: in Systema there is no strict dressing code or uniform requirement. You should

wear comfortable clothing and shoes that you do not mind getting stepped on. Note that it

7 Discover yourself

is still trendy to wear military outfit (but the real benefit to these types of clothing is that

they are very sturdy and can hold up to the rigors of training), although any sports pants and

t-shirt will do. Some people like to train barefoot or use minimalistic shoes; this is preferable

to normal sports shoes, as this allow better mobility of the feet, which in turn increases your

body’s mobility and balance.

No protective gear: Other martial arts or self defence systems use protective gear, but this

will not teach you how to deal with real situations. Systema will focus on training in

scenarios that are as real as possible, but you will be exposed in a gradual fashion to more

and more complex drills so you can adapt appropriately. Also you will be executing rolls and

falls on hard mats or hard floors, these are excellent tools to teach you to be soft and

relaxed. An Old Russian saying is "a hard floor is like a good friend, a soft one is like a bad

one." This refers to the fact that you are clearly informed of your performance. Although

being a bit painful the information gained this ways is more helpful in the end.

Contact: This relates to the above - as you do not use protective gear you will subject to

diverse types of contact from your training partners, from punches, kicks, grabs, pushes,

twists, slaps, etc. Breathing has to be used to deal with any discomfort caused by contact. As

previously indicated this drills will be introduced in a gradual fashion so you learn to deal

with discomfort through breathing, without creating tension in your body and your mind.

Learn and apply the principles of Systema: The principles are the core of Systema; they

establish the building blocks of the system and they increase the odds of survival on any

situation. They will be introduced and explained later in the booklet. It is recommended that

you learn these and discuss them at the end of the class.

No rituals: in Systema there is no ritual or bowing of any kind. You may shake hands with an

opponent before and/or after a drill, but there is no formal greeting process. The Systema

class have a basic structure that includes a warm-up, drills, cool down and a quick review to

share what was learnt and what was the experience in general. Putting all the actions into

words, explaining what everyone understood during the session, will help everyone to learn

and to understand the principles quicker and better. Talking and examining the principles

makes you more aware of them and this will help you mastering them.

No pre-arranged movements: Systema uses relaxed, natural and free movements instead of

pre-established movement (known as katas or forms in other martial arts). Doing so, your

movements are unpredictable, spontaneous, fast and instinctive instead of being

choreographed and the results of a thought process. This allows you to move by feeling so

the cognitive part of your brain is available for increased awareness and strategic planning.

Diverse types of training: Systema training can be done solo, with a partner or multiple

partners. When training at the club, the focus will be on executing drills that require

partner/s. There are also many solo training drills that will be presented. It is recommended

that these are executed at home (as a kind of homework), as this will accelerate the learning

process. In all these types of training you must always follow the Systema principles.

Low speed training: Initially in your training or when trying new drills, the work is done very

slowly. The idea is to reprogram your brain to respond naturally without thinking about how

to move, but just move naturally, breathing and relaxing all the parts of the body that are

8 Discover yourself

not required for movement. Speed will come with time once the brain adapts to the newly

found way to move and learn to deal with the stress/fear associated with that particular

drill. If you speed up or use tension to overcome somebody else movement then you will be

cheating yourself and you will not learn from the event, instead you will be back to old

pattern of movements. Patience is vital during the first stages of training, and when starting

new drills.

Feedback: You will notice that everyone in Systema will be helpful and allow you to improve,

but you are also required to help the others students and instructors. In Systema everyone

respects each other and treats everyone the same. If at any time you feel that a particular

drill is overwhelming, then you have to speak up and let the others know; slowing down or

adjusting the drill to your level might be required to continue the training properly. There

should never be judgement associated to feedback provided by your partners. This is the

only way that you can improve when you are not able to perceive what is not right by

yourself.

Use of whole body: Systema uses the whole body for pushing, grabbing, locking and striking,

not just the legs and the arms. Head-butts, shoulders, elbows, chest, hip, etc. are all allowed

and encouraged as the training is always done in a controlled manner. Learning to move

properly is the one of the primary goal in Systema, and you must be able to move all body

parts separately and also integrate them when required.

Developing fighting skills: All drilling in the System (including the various health practices)

work to develop a strong and versatile fighter. Sessions cover a wide variety of subjects

centred on the staples of fighting: wrestling/grappling, striking and weapons (use of knife,

stick, chain, etc). Defensive and offensive skills are taught and used in a manner that allows

you to become interchangeable, creating a fighter that is truly unpredictable and adaptive.

As training progresses and skill is attained variations to the drilling add ever more stressful

situations to test yourself in.

No aggression: Systema training focus on eliminating any bad emotion and this includes

aggression. Even during real confrontations you should only impart on the attacker the least

damage possible to end a threat.

Have fun: You can smile or laugh during sparring. Systema training is very relaxed and you

can expect to execute some drills that will test you at many levels. As the human mind and

body are very adaptable and can learn many new things with proper training, soon you can

enjoy drills that at the beginning seemed too hard or even impossible to deal with. Having

an open mind, relaxing and accepting every drill will allow you to learn more and enjoy the

training. Remember to provide feedback to adjust the drills to your current level. At any time

that you feel overwhelmed, or if you have to rush your movements to deal with those of

your partner/s, then slow yourself, take a breath, smile and carry on working properly.

Also, training should be executed with positive energy in tune with the Systema philosophy,

so you should make your faults the object of your humour. Otherwise frustration, irritation

and embarrassment can lead to hostility and anger. Humour clears your mind from all these

emotions.

9 Discover yourself

If you take life and training too serious all the time, you will be unable or too fatigued to

make the change necessary to react on a really serious situation.

Self discovery and self control are hard work tasks but they are truly rewarding. When you

do things right, you get a tremendous feeling of joy both consciously and unconsciously.

Because of this, all the people practicing Systema have become happier and healthier.

10 Discover yourself

6. What is required to train Systema? The following are some of the requirements to have and/or develop during the Systema training:

Proper breathing: This is a basic requirement for life, not just for Systema. Breathing can be

accomplished using the three types/regions of breathing: chest or high breathing,

intercostals or medium breathing, and diaphragmatic or lower breathing. This last one is

essential as it relates to relaxed breathing, but many people are not aware of it as they hold

too much tension in their abdominal muscles limiting the expansion of the abdominal region

and by doing so they stop diaphragmatic breathing altogether.

On the other hand, you can breathe through the mouth or the nose. In Systema it is

essential that inhalations are executed through the nose and exhalation through the mouth.

Note that during normal activities both inhalation and exhalation will be executed through

the nose, but you can change to mouth exhalation when you want to relax more or require

to exert more force.

Mobility and flexibility: To master Systema you must be able to move so that your

extremities and the rest of your body can move in different ways simultaneously, this is a

sort of 3-dimensional flow of the body. So mobility and flexibility are required for free and

adequate movements. Also for movement absorption (blending under the application of

external movement/force).

Relaxation: While standing you should be (or learn to be) relaxed, as the weight of the body

is held upright by the structure, only some stabilising muscles will fire as required to keep

this position. Then when moving the required muscles will fire producing enough muscular

tension to generate movement. All other muscles should stay as relaxed as possible. Some

people, for example, when standing due to tense abs will present also tension in the back to

compensate. So, your job will be to find where you have tension that is not required and

deal with it using breathing (or other techniques to release residual tension, such as

massages, muscle shaking, rollers, etc). That is one of the reasons why we start training

slowly, so you have the opportunity to check your body and look for unnecessary tension.

Muscle strength: This is the capacity to use and control any muscle when required with the

intensity required, this also means that these muscles should be relaxed at the start of the

movement and those opposing ones should remain relaxed all the time. Systema training

uses bodyweight exercises for strengthening and these are often done in a slow and mindful

manner; this avoids the formation of knots in the muscle fibres and removes any existent

one, this also removes tension from your body. It is common to start shaking when the

movement is done slowly, this is your body adapting to weaknesses or dealing with residual

tension built up in your muscles and tendons. Systema makes you use all muscles in the

body, but they are worked together, instead of group by group like in bodybuilding.

Tendon strength: In Systema the tendons, the cord-like parts of the muscle attached to the

bone, are the focus for strength. As a result, you don’t end up adding bulk like a bodybuilder,

but you keep muscles limber and avoid stiffness. This way muscles are more ready to act

without warm-up if a sudden threat presents itself. Again Systema uses slow movements

using body weight


Patience: During the training there is a constant repetition of the drills in an un-

choreographed manner. Training Systema involves a quick learning curve, however to learn

the deeper aspects requires a lifelong mission of honest exploration. Results will depend

upon the mental state of the person and their capacity to deal with ever changing stressful

situations. But if you try to rush it and get the title of “master” then it will take longer.

As Systema is principle-based not technique-based, the training can be frustrating for some

people due to the seemingly haphazard methods of teaching. Those used to rigid guidelines

and point by point instruction often feel lost. Through a patient approach, improvements

are noticeable in the short term and you will often take small personal lessons from the

larger set of session information. This builds upon itself at each session attended and these

things will take on a 'second-nature' quality. Remember that no belts or trophies are given,

but you will gain qualities much more important than any title.

Desire and clear objective: motivation is required to learn and master any activity. Be

honest and answer the question: "Why do I want to start/continue Systema training?" Look

deep and find a ‘solid’ and meaningful answer, remember this when you feel any frustration,

doubts or you feel that you have to quit.

Not being afraid of observing your feelings in uncomfortable situations: You must be ready

to let go your ego and stop feeling sorry for yourself in the various situations you may find

during training (and in life). Every situation must be accepted as it is and dealt with it as it

comes; the objective of the training is to recognise when any bad emotion is emerging and

this allows you to control it from the start. Breathing is used to channel all your bad

emotions out. We use inhalation, in a figurative sense, to collect them from your body and

then push them out with exhalation. Breathing is the connection between your psyche and

the physical world.

Being spontaneous: If you are spontaneous and creative then Systema will be more

enjoyable and you will learn much quicker. Let things run without trying to control too much

every situation, enjoy the freedom of movement and let the body respond as required, this

will allow you to come up with more creative solutions for any situation. If you try to use any

particular type of movement then you will create tension in the body and frustration in the

mind when things do not go as planned.


7. What are the principles of Systema? Systema is based on a few basic principles, as you will notice they have been given names and

presented in a list format, but you have to understand that these principles in reality are all

integrated as a whole and must work as a whole to be effective, if you ignore any of the principles

then you will have a hard time trying to stick to the others.

During training you need to constantly check yourself and observe when you stop following any of

the principles. Ask yourself: what triggered that? How do I feel? Can I deal with it and stick to the

principles again? These and many other similar questions will help you to develop your OWN

Systema.

These are the principles of Systema:

Breathing: Breathing is the foundation of Systema. It should always leads movement (for

beginners it is normally recommended to lead with exhalation, but as you get more

conformable you can lead with exhalation or inhalation). Breathing also allows you to

‘absorb’ forces/movement in the abdominal and chest area, and can be used to release

tension and fear. You must learn and use proper breathing type required for every particular

situation. Refer to the next session for the principles of breathing.

Faith / Relaxation: This could be understood as relaxedness, confidence, mental fortitude or

the like. Every practitioner expresses this in their own individual way. This allows you to

reduce energy expenditure, increasing stamina and mobility. Also you can deal better with

movement and stress. Being relaxed will allow you to be more sensitive so you do not

provide support (If there is no support there is no strike) and then there will be no resistance

to any movement. Also relaxation will allow you to be ready for anything, accepting what it

is without thinking.

Form/Structure: Always keep the form; this is a position where the body uses only the

structure to keep you upright and stabilising muscles to keep the balance. Your body should

always be in the form and in balance, and when they are disrupted you will let your body

move and return to the form in a relaxed manner. Note that the whole body must be

perceived and used as a complete system, but although one part of the body can be moved

while others relax, they should never be physically or psychologically separated from the

actions of the other parts.

Movement/Flying centre of gravity: You must have and allow freedom of movement, and

make use of muscular memory; which is feeling of right movements, this is any natural

movements of your body. Systema teaches that only the natural response of the body will

provide a proper defence, and should not be any prior planning, memorized tactics or

anticipation. At the beginning when moving check constantly your body for tension and your

mind for negative emotions, and get rid of them through breathing. This will become second

nature the more you train.

Systema movement uses a principle so-called “flying centre of gravity’. The body can move

up and down, side to side, back and forward, spinning in all 3 dimensions simultaneously.

The body moves like a pendulum with the point of suspension somewhere above the head.


This allows the pelvis to move separately from the shoulders, this way pelvis and shoulders

can also spin on their own axis and allowing them to perform movements in the form of

circles, “figure eights” or ”infinite loops”.

Brevity / Minimum Effort/ Efficiency: Do what is necessary, no more no less. Eliminate any

extra movements and relax what is not required for that particular movement. This is also

known as efficiency, as it allows you to deal with a stressful situation for longer, which in

turn increases your chances of survival. You should always preserve some strength so you

can survive. Also if you create too much movement and tension this will overexcite the

nervous system and you psyche reducing your perceptual capacity and sensitivity.

Continuity/Completeness/Flow: Always execute continuous movements and also complete

those movements. This makes the movements really fluid, smooth and fast to the eyes and

other senses of the other person. If the movements are not completed properly, it will

create tension in your body. Also this applies to the opponent’s movements, as you can

make his/her movement yours, this way you follow the principle of relaxation or non

resistance and you can move with whatever the other person is doing without opposition.

You should not get stuck on anything (i.e. locks or fighting against force) or caught up in

particular games or response patterns, as doing so will seriously harm the freedom of

movement that Systema needs to work effectively.

Precision: Aim for precise movements all the time. To achieve this, you have to recognise

the following key factors: timing, speed and distance. Train slowly to achieve it, do not rush

or use force to compensate for lack of precision as that will go against the principle of

minimum effort and sensitivity. Remember that quality is more important than quantity.

During training this is true for both partners during the practice of any drill.

Most people are in a quest to develop power and speed. This is because power has strong

association with ego and speed with fear. On the other hand, precision is rarely considered

or even ignored. But you have to note that precision is the key component in any true

master’s work.

Being professional: Be aware and control emotions during training using breathing. Avoid

aggression, competition or any other negative feeling. Recognise and keep your ego under

control and always have fun (if you are not having fun you have to check what is causing you

to be in that mood). Being professional means that no emotions are attached to your

movements or your partner’s. Uncontrolled emotions are detrimental to effective work.

These feelings come in a subtle way and unnoticeably begin to dominate and eat away your

strength. You must be vigilant. Step one is to be aware of these weaknesses; step two is to

try to overcome them through breathing, understanding, changing the attitudes and the

movements. Then you gain true mental and physical strength and skill.

If you feel proud of yourself when you are praised and you feel some resentment when you

are criticized, this tells you that you are weak and that you can be easily manipulated. And it

is OK to see that you are weak because then you can work on it.

It is recommended throughout the entire class for you to try and identify what are your

limitations that prevent good work. Whether you are learning or teaching, always observe

your emotional condition. As soon as your emotions are unstable then you are not really

working/training properly any more. You might be disappointed with yourself or something


in class could be disagreeable. No matter what happens in a session, it should all serve its

useful purpose. The work of recognizing and facing your feelings and weaknesses is very

difficult, but such work is extremely rewarding, it creates true skill and allows you to survive

and succeed.

During training and in combat, it is best to look above the heads of your opponents. This is

generally regarded as demonstrating the highest, most professional level of fighting skill.

This way you avoid the pitfalls of eye contact and the low level gaze, and even worst to

watch the punch or kick that is coming to you. And at the same time, looking above the

opponent gets you more connected with the universe which also gives you a certain

detachment from the fight and increased consciousness that can be very helpful. You have a

better perception of the overall situation. Peripheral vision and vision of lower levels is not

hindered, and It may even be enhanced. It’s very hard to learn to keep your eyes up, as it

requires much practice during your training.

Sensitivity/awareness/Spontaneity: First you learn to be more aware of the information

that your body provides, not just the visual aspect. Systema teaches your body to think, not

your mind, so let the body use the information that continuously gathers for relaxed,

spontaneous and fluid movement. This will help you to learn the feeling of good movement

(efficient, precise and in balance). This requires starting the study of movement in a slow

fashion, so the body and the brain can cooperate to achieve good movement, instead of the

brain trying to dictate what to do, overriding the body natural movements. Then you have to

be aware of your partner’s body, form and balance. And lastly you need to be aware of your

surroundings at all times. This gives you an advantage over the others as you will be always

one step ahead of the game.

Intention: During training or any other time your movements should be relaxed and

delivered with intention. Once the ‘fight’ starts you have to continue with the same

intention applying the other principles. Being in a relaxed mindset with no emotions

attached to the events will allow you to judge the situation and deal with it appropriately.

You do not try or think about hitting, you just hit. You do not try to move, you just move.

Do not confuse this with aggression, as this is not a positive mind set. You are accepting the

situation as it is and dealing with it precisely as required. Beginners should not think of

intention as the final outcome - for example, put the other person in the ground - as this will

create tension in your body. You must think of the generic outcome of dealing with the

current situation following the principles. This way you do not create any expectations,

which in turn will avoid frustration when things do not go as initially thought or planned.

Remember that expectations of any kind can lead to discomfort, impatience, stress,

frustration, conflict, disappointment, and anger.


8. What are the principles of breathing? Breathing is the starting point of all energy in the body. With proper use of breath your own

body/mind can be trained to do what initially seems impossible.

In the beginning, it is essential that you start to harmonize with your breath. Most people breathe as

effort increases because their body is telling them that they need more oxygen. However, as you

become more aware, you breathe so that you can do more work and thereby gain more ability and

performance.

The following are the seven principles of proper breathing of Systema:

Pathway: Inhale through nose; exhale through mouth.

Leading: Let breath slightly lead physical action in time.

Sufficiency: Take as much breath as you need at the moment to execute a particular action,

not more, not less.

Continuity: Keep breathing, without interruption or holding, no matter what you are doing

(unless doing a special breath-holding practice)

Pendulum: Let every breath cycle complete itself and reverse naturally, as a pendulum

swings and reverses naturally without interference. Allow, and experience, the reversal

pause at the end of each cycle.

Independence: No specific type of action is invariantly tied to any particular phase of breath

cycle (i.e. you should be able to punch or roll as well on inhale as exhale).

No tension: Keep your muscles and your body overall relaxed.

If you use all these principles you will be able to reach great results in physical exercises, increase

your endurance, speed up the processes of restoration, and become a healthier person.

For more details about breathing refer to the Systema Breathing DVD and Let Every Breath book.


9. Training recommendations The following are some recommendations to be applied in training:

Respect physics: Normal speed physics apply to slow training. For example, no tracking, this

is, once the movement starts it will not change until it has been completed, that is valid for

straight or circular movements.

Aim to the target at the time: when attacking aim for a particular target and fire to that

target, do not be helpful (aiming where there is no target) or tricky (anticipate the partners

movement to get a hit)

Speed: Always move at the same or slower speed as the partner’s. Do not fool yourself; this

will not help in your development. Training slow will allow you to assess the options you

have got at any given time, instead of always responding with the same movement. Always

look for new ways to deal with each particular movement, as you become more aware of

your body and your mobility is increased then you will have more options available to deal

with movement.

Learn good movements: Both partners will always follow all the principles, as soon as you

notice that either one of you have breached one or many principles, provide feedback

indicating what was wrong. You should always learn the feeling of good movements; do not

focus on the movement itself but the feeling of it. Do not try to remember the movement,

and do not try to force a specific movement using the excuse that “it worked before” (In

Systema you will not learn techniques).

Move anywhere the same way: Move on the ground the same as while standing up, breathe

and relax with movements. There should be no difference on the ground. For Systema

practitioners being on the ground does not mean losing. Try all levels; work from standing,

kneeling, on the ground; and practice transitions between all these levels.

Avoid posting: When on the ground avoid using arm/s or leg/s to hold weight in a static

manner, normally called posting. This is common for people during transitions to and from

the ground, for example, when falling people will try to stop the fall extending their arms but

by doing so they are risking to break their wrists, and when getting up they will use an arm

or leg as a base to ‘climb up’. Posting is an inefficient use of the body, normally

accompanied by holding breath, fear and excessive tension. Always relax, breath, and use

correct and natural movements during transitions; you should practice mobility exercises

and re-learn the immense possibilities of movement that your body possesses.

Weapons: When training with weapons you must understand that It’s not the weapon that

does the harm but the person holding it. You should concentrate your actions on the person,

not the weapon. If you focus on the weapon you will not be able to deal with the person.

Avoid breaking contact all the time: when fighting at a short range and grappling range, the

tact is the sense that will provide your body the most information, as the eye will not be able

to process as quick. So if not required, avoid breaking contact with the opponent, and stay

close in contact with him. This gives you information of where the person is and what is

going to do.


10. Why Systema focuses so much on movement? From the functional point of view our bodies are designed to move freely. When we stop moving

“decease” starts to develop and in a sense we start dying. So we need to keep moving freely to

increase our survival.

From the training point of view note that grabs, punches, pushes, etc, all have some component of

movement. Systema uses movement to deal with every situation. In Systema we avoid working

against any movement.

When an object comes towards our body, such as a fist, if we deal with it using movement in the

same direction, then the force received when the objects impacts our body will be less than if we try

to oppose to it.

In physical terms this is expressed with the following formula:

Force = Mass x Acceleration

This means that the more time it takes for the punch to stop in the other person’s body (smaller de-

acceleration) the less force is provided. So, a person that takes the punch by flexing muscles or

holding the position will receive more force from the movement and this will translate into more

damage, such as superficial and internal injury, than a person absorbing with punch with movement.

But to be able to move in these situations we need to be relaxed. And this requires dealing with fear

reactivity, which is a form of reaction to “fear provoking situations” where you will tense a part or

your whole body when the situation is present. Once fear is controlled, natural movement can be

used in those situations and even anticipate movements by moving accordingly in a relaxed manner.

Reduction of fear reactivity is essential and many of the drills will deal with this aspect of

conditioning.

Systema also encourages mobility exercises that allow you to relearn all the possibilities of

movement that the human body naturally possesses, and this way you can methodically explore and

expand your current range of motion (ROM).


11. Why Systema focuses so much on breathing? Breathing is the link between our body and our psyche (emotions); this is between our minds and

the physical/material world. If we have improper breathing this connection is partial or very limited,

and we lose sight of what is going on out there, so our mind gets out of control and starts

introducing fears due to the lack of information.

Some people during ‘stressful situations’ will enter in panic and can even suffer hyperventilation,

which breaks the balance of carbon dioxide (CO2) and oxygen, as this reduces the CO2 in the lungs,

which in turn reduces the absorption of oxygen from the air. This can cause them to pass out, which

is not ideal on any situation and even less during life or death situations.

Systema has different types of breathing and drills to work with breathing and deal with emotions. It

also provides the principles of breathing to clarify how this should work.

Basically we should be able to breathe properly on any situation and adjust breathing to cope with

stresses of any kind (physical or mental).

When you inhale through the nose the benefits are numerous:

Forces air into the sinuses which do a more efficient job of filtering and conditioning the air

than the mouth.

The sinuses produce a gas called Nitric Oxide from the lining of the blood vessels. Nitric

Oxide (NO) is a gas that is produced by the endothelium, or lining, of these very small blood

vessels in the mucous membranes of the sinuses. NO is a toxic gas that is made in small

quantities and it is a short lived gas that has an life span of 4-6 seconds, thus it is present for

the duration of a typical breath, then breaks down. It is not harmful for the body but it kills

bacteria and viruses very quickly; keeping the sinuses from getting infected. NO is also a

very important signalling, or messenger molecule that affects smooth muscles around blood

vessels thus lowering blood pressure, bronchioles (the tubules that take air to the alveoli)

thus improving airflow, thus oxygen exchange into the bloodstream, and neurotransmission

(transmission of signals through the nervous system) as it helps to mediate synaptic

transmission, or communication between neurons (brain cells), possibly enhancing

communications in key areas of the brain and brainstem, which in turn may enhance

reaction times and decision-making during a stressful situation. Also it has been found that

humming increases 15-fold the amount of NO and help with sinus blockages.

When the air enters through the nose, it cools and ventilates the main sinus of the skull and

against the back wall of this sinus is the pituitary gland. This gland controls the production of

all the body’s natural hormones and it needs rhythmical cooling for proper function. This is

only obtained via nasal breathing. Without the cooling, the gland’s work is affected and this

can have harmful for the body.

Nose breathing imposes approximately 50 percent more resistance to the air stream than

the mouth breathing, resulting in 10-20 percent more O2 uptake. There must be adequate

nasal resistance to maintain adequate elasticity of the lungs.

The main benefit of exhaling through the mouth is relaxation.

For more details about breathing refer to Systema Breathing DVD and Let Every Breath book.


12. What types of training are available in Systema? Systema training is based on exercises and drills.

The following are some of exercises and drills executed in Systema:

Breathing exercises

Joint Mobility exercises

Ground mobility exercises

Wave movements

Fear conditioning drills (including contact drills)

Standing drills (pushing, pulling, punching, kicking and grabs)

Ground work drills

Transition drills: standing to ground (ground engagement) and ground to standing drills

Knife drills

Stick drills

Chain drills

Sword drills

Multiple attackers/Mass attacks

Confined space drills

As you can see some weapons are used in the training, but they are mere tools that introduce

different levels of stress.


13. What can I do before starting Systema and make the

transitions smoother? The following are some recommendation to make a good start in Systema:

Breathing exercises:

Learn proper breathing and also the different breathing patterns and holding breath drills.

For example:

o Breathing to the stomach

o Burst Breathing

o Breathing with movement

o Half Breathing

o Triangle Breathing

o Square Breathing

The following are some examples of breathing exercises for relaxation and recovery:

o Lie on your back, close your eyes, and inhale to ¾ of your lung capacity. Tense all

your muscles, make fists and pull your toes towards you, hold your breath, and then

exhale with complete relaxation. Repeat the drill 10 times.

o Then do the same exercise, but this time tense only separate body parts: the left

arm, the right arm, the left leg, the right leg, back, chest and stomach. Totally relax

on every exhalation. Repeat for 10 reps for each body part.

o Next do the breath holding exercise. Inhale to ¾ of your lung capacity and hold your

breath. Listen to your cells. Once they start demanding oxygen, resume calm

breathing until complete restoration. Repeat the sequence 3-4 times. Then slowly

open your eyes, sit up and stay seated for 1-2min, then slowly stand up.

You should feel total relaxation and restoration of your energy.

Another exercise is the Systema breath-walk exercise, which breaks up the breathing

process into step sections:

o You inhale through the nose over one step, and exhale for one step.

o Progress to two, three, four, five, six and more.

Then you can include the triangle breathing where you inhale one step, exhale on the

second step and hold the breath for a third one.

Once this is learnt, you can proceed to the square breathing where you inhale one step, hold

breath on the second, exhale on the third step and hold the breath for a third one.

In both cases, triangle and square breathing can be extended to two or more steps.

Also this exercise can be done doing other activities, such as squats, push-ups, chin-ups, etc.

The breath holding exercise is a basic one to deal with fear:

o Lie down on your back.

o Let the air out from your lungs, relaxing the muscles of your whole body, do not

expel the air, you allow it to leave the body without tensing yourself.

o Now just wait. Focus a 100% on feelings and bodily sensations. Soon your thoughts

might start to be negative and that is normal, do not give them any energy. Your

willpower should be collected and you should scan your body and find the place in

that is radiating fear, which later on could become panic. This feeling is not steady it

is wave like, it goes up and down. Just hold on to the successive waves. The fear will


normally travel from the lower part of the body and go to the middle part, even

producing shakes. Nothing bad will happen to you, this is not damaging. Note that

humans can hold breath for a few minutes.

o If you feel that the panic is taking over, then you start breathing using burst

breathing, but this should be a whole body burst-breathing not just a shallow one.

The time you have to use burst breathing should be double or even triple the time

that you hold the breath.

o You should not force the normal breathing and stop the burst breathing, you will see

that it will vanish by itself, and at that point you will have no desires, no fears, you

will be empty and the burst breathing will stop by itself and you will be breathing

normally again.

Remember to follow the breathing principles in all exercises.

Tension / Relaxation exercises:

These exercises are designed to work with breathing and tension of muscles. This will help

you to recognise when you have tension in your body and learn to release it. Also it will help

you to develop the wave movement in a more subtle way.

You can try the following:

Lie down on the floor and concentrate on tightening up each body parts one by one. Inhale

and tighten up the right arm, then exhale and relax it. Now inhale and tighten the left arm,

hold it very tight, and exhale relax it. Do the same with the right leg, then left leg and then

both legs at once and both arms at once. Then do the whole body. This tensing up and

relaxing will show you the difference between relaxation and tension and helps them be

more aware when tension is present. When breathing you can imagine that the air is leaving

or entering the tensed area, this visual aid allows you to reach a more relaxed state.

More advance exercises will deal with moving the tension from one extremity to another

going through the body in a wave like movement of tension. Also you will start this exercises

when kneeling, sitting or while standing.

Mobility exercises:

These exercises are designed to get the joints moving in the full range of motion (ROM).

ROM can initially be very limited in some joints for some people, but when combined with

relaxation these exercises will allow you to extend the ROM of every joint in your body.

Contact drills:

These drills are designed to get you used to contact and avoid unnecessary reaction and

tension in your body when contact is produced. Any discomfort should be dealt with

breathing, if discomfort or pain is felt then start burst breathing and slowly lower intensity

once the pain is removed. As a mental aid, visualise how breathing is taking pain away from

the area.

You can execute the following drills by yourself:

o In front of the mirror start slapping your face and body with an open and relaxed

palm. Increase the intensity when you can tolerate them.


o Make a fist and push into your stomach, try different locations and angles. Start

really slow and increase the pressure as you get used to it. If there is a point that is

painful, apply just enough pressure before it becomes too painful. If this happens

every time, then consult your GP as you might have some problem.

You can also ask somebody to help you with the drills. Repeat the previous ones with the

other person slapping and putting pressure in your stomach. Communication is vital and the

other person must start really slow and light. It is important that the other person do not

push you too hard, in the sense that training requires slow incremental exposure otherwise

you will not be able to focus on yourself and your emotions, and this will increase fear

reactivity to contact or the ‘appearance’ of contact (for example, somebody lift the hand and

you flinch with fear).

Ground/wall movement exercises

Systema uses drills were you engage the ground. As we normally train on hard or semi hard

surfaces, then this requires you to be relaxed and confident to do so in a safe manner. If you

have tension and hit the ground this will produce damage to that area and make you afraid

of going to the ground (and most grownup people are).

Some exercises you can do on a wall are:

o Look for a clean wall where you can roll standing. Stand at 20 cms from the wall and

just let your back touch the wall without moving your feet. Now roll from your back

to your shoulder and then to your chest, and from there to the shoulder and back.

Move your feet to allow you to stay in balance. Make it as fluid and relaxed as

possible.

o Walk towards the wall, fall into the wall and at the same time twist your body

around so you will get in contact the outer part of your arm, then your back then the

other arm and walk away. Try approaching the wall at different angles.

You can also start some ground exercises:

o Sitting on the ground let your back go to the ground slowly, so each vertebrae

touches the ground in a sequence, while doing this let the knees come up to your

face. Relax and let the legs come back and take your upper body up again.

o Lying on the ground, move your hip sideways to propel your whole body to a side

roll. Do this very relaxed. Try it where there are some obstacles so you have to adapt

your movement to avoid them.

o Walk like a monkey or a crocodile, even as Spider Man. This will be fun and be good

for ground engagement. Remember to start slow, relaxed and land soft as a cat.

Functional strength training:

Systema requires you to be strong but not bulky or tense. That is why the focus is on body

weight exercises done slowly. These can be combined with isometric exercises.

Some basic recommended exercises are:

o Sit-ups

o Push-ups

o Chin-ups

o squats


Remember to do them as slow as you can and breathe in and out during the exercises

(preferable burst breathing).

Continuous checks:

You must start observing yourself in everyday activities, ask yourself questions such as:

o Do I hold my breath when sitting? When excerpting force? Or when I am in a

stressful situation at home/work?

o What things trigger me? What things I do not like? How I feel about them?

o Is my ego involved or getting in the way? Do I have to show off all the time?

o Do I have to prove myself all the time?

o Do I get emotionally involved all the time?

If little things trigger you then you are not checking the state of your body and emotions,

and/or you are not accepting them as they are. You can always do something about any

situation, but you should not react emotionally. When this happen review the situation from

the very start, recognise that you acted this way and make a conscious effort to detect this

trigger next time.


14. Who are the Systema masters? The following are some of the most recognised masters of Systema:

Mikhail Ryabko

Colonel of the Special Operations Unit with the Russian Military, Chief

Instructor of tactical training for the Emergency Response Team, Advisor to

the Supreme Judge of the Russian Federation.

Mikhail Ryabko was trained from the age of five by one of Stalin's personal bodyguards, and

was inducted to Spetsnaz at the age of fifteen. He has been a tactical commander of

hostage-rescue teams, counter-terrorist operations, and armed criminal neutralization.

Mikhail resides in Moscow, he holds the rank of Colonel and serves as a Special Advisor to the

Supreme Judge of the Russian Federation. He continues to train his many students as the

Master Teacher of Systema. He has authored a textbook on Tactics of Special Operations. He

has been in numerous military campaigns and holds many government medals and awards.

Vladimir Vasiliev

Director and Chief Instructor of Systema Headquarters.

Born in Russia, Vladimir received intense training from the top Special

Operations Units (Spetsnaz) instructors and is the top student of Mikhail

Ryabko. Vladimir's work spans across 10 years of extensive service with the Spetsnaz. He also

served as trainer for elite units, SWAT teams, and bodyguards. Vladimir moved to Canada,

and in 1993 founded the first school of Russian Martial Art outside Russia - Systema

Headquarters. He has since personally trained and certified well over 300 qualified Russian

Martial Art instructors and schools worldwide, and has provided an Award-Winning

instructional film collection.

Konstantin Komarov

Sergei Ozhereliev

Sergei Borschev

Valentin Talanov

Also some of many recognised senior instructors and practitioners:

Adam Zettler

Brendon Zettler

Kwan Lee

Daniil Ryabko

Martin Wheeler

Emmanuel Manolakakis


15. Training Development Principles The following are some principles of development that you will help you with the learning process of

any physical activity including Systema:

Intuitive: your body knows best. Your body’s systems will let you know how things are;

you just need to pay attention.

Universal: everyone will develop. You just need to be patient.

Incremental: Start training slowly and light. Do progressive increments; do not rush to

complete all the different levels of intensity. Some parts of the body may take more time

than others to allow you to proceed to the next level of training, or even your mind

might not be ready yet.

Personal: everyone is different; every person will take its own time. Do not compare

yourself with other people, your must focus on your own development.

Increasing sophistication: to avoid plateau, boredom, and getting used to exercises,

increase complexity when the current level seems very easy and it is executed with total

relaxation.

Holistic: develop the whole body, not just parts in isolation. Integrate them to execute

more complex movements.

Integrative: integrate breathing, structure and movements to reach fluid mobility (or

flow).

Identify compensation: the body always tries to compensate when a part of the body is

under stress. Pain in one part of the body can be due to another part having issues,

tension or injury. Be aware of your structure and tension.

Symmetric: use complementary movements. Move to/around the tension not through

the tension (this applies to ones or the other person’s tension.)

Fun: enthusiastically explore movement. Motivation is vital for development of any kind.

These rules were taken from Scott Sonno’s Intu-Flow DVD.


16. Systema links and additional training material For Systema training information refer to:

Russian Martial Art Forum:

http://www.russianmartialart.com/forum/

Russian Martial Art training tips:

http://www.russianmartialart.com/main.php?page=articles&tPath=1

Schools around the world:

http://www.russianmartialart.com/main.php?page=map

Russian Martial Art DVDs and books:

http://www.russianmartialart.com/catalog/

For mobility training information refer to:

Intu-flow DVD by Scott Sonnon. Available on Amazon.com.

See a free introductory level of Intu-Flow: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1aLdYgfr3M

Encyclopaedia of Joint Mobility DVD Series for Total Joint, Muscle and Body Fitness,

Flexibility and Strength by Steve Maxwell. Available on Amazon.com.

See the demo at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ogtQ_GPhTg

Strength & Flexibility DVD by Kwan Lee. Search for this DVD on:


See demo at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz5Ixc3j5lc

17. Systema New Zealand on the Internet You can be part of Systema Christchurch in Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Systema-CHCH/149623668443583

Systema NZ group in Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=107180122653380&ref=ts

Also in Yahoo Forums:

http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/Systemanz/

http://www.russianmartialart.com/forum/

http://www.russianmartialart.com/main.php?page=articles&tPath=1

http://www.russianmartialart.com/main.php?page=map


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1aLdYgfr3M

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ogtQ_GPhTg


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz5Ixc3j5lc

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Systema-CHCH/149623668443583

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=107180122653380&ref=ts

http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/Systemanz/


18. Feedback All readers are welcome to contribute by providing feedback about the booklet’s content. This way

we can improve it by making clearer the included topics or even adding new ones.

Send your comments to [email protected]. Thanks in advance for helping the Systema

community.

19. Information about the author and collaborators This booklet was put together by Cristian Barnaba, a member of Systema Christchurch, New Zealand

for almost two years.

Cristian Barnaba is an Electronics Engineer from Argentina based in Christchurch, New Zealand.

Special thanks to the following people for reviewing the booklet and providing feedback:

Loren Clements (Systema Instructor in Training at Systema NZ – Auckland)

Daniel Schröter (Practitioner at Systema NZ – CHCH)

Justin Ho (Practitioner at Systema Australia – Sydney)

Neal Wilson (Practitioner at Systema NZ – CHCH)

Les Hayes (Practitioner at Systema NZ – Hamilton)

20. Booklet History and Revisions Revision A – Issued 10 June 2011 – First draft for review.

Revision 1 – Issued 30 June 2011 – First issue.

mailto:[email protected]

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