Pressure Testing in the system
For a number of years some martial arts classes have offered what they describe as pressure or reality based testing. These sessions are the often the culmination of their training and purport to offer the chance to test the student’s skills under both emotional and physical duress. This is obviously advantageous, but where does pressure testing fit within Systema and does it need altering to include it?

Pressure can come from many sources and not just from an aggressive assailant. Working in a crowd or against a real knife bring out different pressures on the body and the psychology of the student. It is important to realise that it is impossible to test how we will react under every sort of pressure in one test. Drills that occur throughout every aspect of the system test various reactions to a variety of experiences and situations.

The first obvious example is our approach to exercise. Using breathing and will power we push ourselves to complete difficult physical tasks. As Vladimir is fond of saying, “We should not feel too sorry for ourselves.” This not only tests our physical and mental reserves to keep going under situations of physical exhaustion. It also allows us to realise that our potential is far greater than what we had previously believed possible.

Another drill that puts us under physical and psychological duress is where we lay on the floor with 5 or 6 people moving around on top of use. It is only with relaxation and correct breathing that we are able to survive situations where others would panic and get crushed. This can be very demanding for some people.

An exercise that tests and teaches us about the amount of pain we can deal with is the one where we lay on the floor and have 4 people apply joint locks to our arms and legs. While this happens another person can walk on us and slap our faces or hit and kick our bodies. The mind soon realises that it cannot concentrate on everything that is happening and learns that some of the sources of pain can be ignored or forgotten about.

In mass attack there are plenty of drills that push us towards both our physical and psychological boundaries. Try laying on the floor while 50 people stand fighting around you. Have those people walk on you and kick you while they do this. Stand in the centre of the crowd and join in the fight. All these things test our ability to carry out certain tasks whilst under pressure and push our understanding of what we are really made of.