IMAS Magazine

Welcome Friends!

I would like to start with a big thank you to all of my students (and the ones coming over from other instructors) for putting their trust in me (and my team) and continue their martial arts career with The Integrated Martial Art System. IMAS was formed out of necessity, trust, hard work and one vision - to help the students (and ourselves) on a path to personal mastery. This is the main purpose of the website and more importantly this magazine and the forum. The IMAS Magazine is meant to be a reference tool, a place to keep everyone involved and up to date in the world of IMAS with announcements etc.

The Magazine will get bigger and better (as the organisation does) and always remember your opinion and input count!

Yours in the arts ,

Sifu Vik

Team IMAS consists of like minded and hard training instructors (and assistant instructors) who unlike many are still very interested in their own development as well as others. All instructors are highly qualified; follow ONE syllabus to ensure the quality of instruction does not differ from class to class. The team includes:

Sifu Vik Hothi, Chief Instructor (Escrima, WingTsun, Integrated Fighting System )

Dai Sihing Sunny Riyat (Instructor in Slough, Assistant to Chief Instructor in the Windsor headquarters class, Senior Kids Coach)

Sihing Allan Cook (Instructor in Farnborough, assistant to Chief Instructor, Senior Womens Self Protection Coach)

Nav Khara (Assistant coach to Sunny in Windsor and Kids Coach in Windsor/Slough classes)

Gav Khara (Assistant coach to Allan in Farnborough and Kids Coach in Windsor/Slough classes)

Pete Lall, Chinese Medicine. Read Pete's online articles here.

What does it take to acquire skill?

Fitts and Posner (1967) suggested that the learning process is sequential and that we move through specific phases as we learn. There are three stages to learning a new skill:

Cognitive phase - Identification and development of the component parts of the skill - involves formation of a mental picture of the skill

Associative phase - Linking the component parts into a smooth action - involves practicing the skill and using feedback to perfect the skill

Autonomous phase - Developing the learned skill so that it becomes automatic - involves little or no conscious thought or attention whilst performing the skill - not all performers reach this stage

The learning of physical skills requires the relevant movements to be assembled, component by component, using feedback to shape and polish them into a smooth action. Rehearsal of the skill must be done regularly and correctly.

This is evident on your programme cards, but we have gone a step further and refined this with the introduction of the static, fluid and dynamic drills designed to get you form the cognitive stage to the autonomous stage quicker then the traditional method of countless repetitions of a single technique. You can now acquire skill in a matter of hours instead of months with this method; this doesn't mean its not hard work - just time better spent! Just look at the current batch of 1st and 2nd graders – scary!

Who are a Sihing and a Sifu?

Sihing means a senior fellow student in a Chinese martial art school. Si means teacher. Hing means elder brother. The seniority is not based on the student's age or level of skill, but on the chronological order of following a particular Sifu. The master's first student is always the most senior Sihing (Dai Sihing or first student). The less senior students are called sidai (younger brother) among their peers.
Sifu is a Chinese term for a teacher . Si means teacher. The meaning of Fu is father. These terms are commonly used in a martial arts to denote an instructional relationship.

IMAS is a modern approach to training traditional martial arts and we respect the origins and traditions that go with them. As you would call a doctor by his title or your school teacher Sir we use the correct and respectful terms (as do I) to address everyone. Martial arts are a way of life to us - not just something you learn to do twice a week for an hour at a time.