Martial Arts under the COVID-19 Lockdown: The Pragmatics of Creative Pedagogy

Abstract

Martial arts organisations increasingly blend online and offline activity in order to cultivate specific qualities, skills and virtues. Students and instructors use blogs, chat fora, videos and podcasts to supplement their self- and shared cultivation, and this expanded with the COVID-19 lockdown in Britain. Martial arts schools have been closed and even disbanded while governments control people’s physical interactions through social distancing measures. This article draws on case studies of two British martial arts schools (Taijiquan and historical fencing) in order to examine how they have adapted to the lockdown. It offers these case studies to narrate the developments of how teachers and their localised communities have been creative during this moment of international crisis – from instructor-led online, live training sessions and lectures to student-led chat fora and movie nights for continued sociability and identity construction. In so doing, this article makes use of martial arts theories: Shared Cultivation (Jennings, 2010) and Martial Creation (Jennings, 2019) to explain how martial artists continue to develop through creative online endeavours and through their moving bodies within the confines of their homes. Finally, I argue that this creative martial arts cultivation during the COVID-19 pandemic might be extended to wider physical culture.

Cultivating Health in Martial Arts and Combat Sports Pedagogies: A Theoretical Framework on the Care of the Self

“…For instance, certain Taijiquan (Tai Chi Chuan) and historical European martial arts (HEMA) schools in UK have implemented online classes, film nights and fitness regimes (see Jennings, 2020). This illustrates the specific responses use to maintain physical fitness and muscle mass for distinct combat sports advocated in Spain, as in wrestling and Judo (Herrera-Valenzuela et al, 2020).…”

Looking East and South: Philosophical Reflections on Taijiquan and Capoeira

“…The class is divided up into levels of attainment, enabling students to maximise the large rented hall in order to work on standing postures, moving sequences and the Short Form, which is often broken into small segments of four to five movements repeated over and over again. This coincides with a shorter online class working on the core principles on Zoom, which is, in part, caused by restrictions in space and lessons learned for best practice during teaching martial arts during the COVID-19 lockdown [33]. There are another two forms within Malcolm's organisation, including an advanced Long Form from a different Taijiquan lineage that David and some senior students are working on, along with two kinds of weapon: the sabre and Xian straight sword.…”

Martial Arts and Quality of Life of Trainors: Basis for The Design of Reconstruction Program

“…However, martial arts are generally believed to be good for health. Thus, in 2020, in the wake of the COVID-19 virus outbreak, certain Tai Chi Chuan and historic European Martial Arts (HEMA) schools in the UK have implemented online classes, movie nights and fitness programs (Jennings, 2020), in order to help people improve their health. On the other hand, Spain It also promotes specific responses to maintain physical fitness and muscle mass using different combat sports such as wrestling and judo (Herrera-Valenzuela et al, 2020).…”