As a martial art developed by the Russian military, Systema focuses on relaxation and breathing techniques in addition to hand-to-hand and weapon combat. On the Russian Martial Art website, Vladimir Vasiliev describes the secret of systema and its unique method of combat.

His first piece of advice is to always be on the move. It is a lot more difficult to attack a person moving around than a person standing still. Constantly moving around adds another level of complexity that an attacker has to deal with. This is also the case for multiple attackers. When an opponent is relaxed and spontaneous, the attacker not only has to think about how to attack but also where to attack. Vladimir describes this kind of fighting as “chess-like,” in that every move is calculated to confuse the opponent or use a group of attackers against themselves.

The difference between the relaxed movements that Vladimir is speaking about and the more typical jerky, tension-filled movements is a major aspect of the art of systema. When an opponent fights with jerky motions that are basically just position changes with small stops, it becomes a lot easier to guess their next move. In systema, fighters are trained to fight in completely relaxed and smooth, both in body and mind. This is done through exercises in consistent combative breathing techniques and internal control.

Systema focuses a lot on the mind as well as the body. Vladimir says that when someone is fighting with tension, they are really taking power away from themselves. Fighting with tension is an illusion of power when really they are fighting with fear. Tension and fear are negative emotions that take away from the true reality of power. Power, flexibility, speed, and accuracy are qualities that humans contain a large reserve of but need the proper training to successfully unleash these qualities.

For more on the secret of movement in systema, visit Vladimir’s article on the Russian Martial Art website here.