Kickin' It!

American Fitness, Sept, 1999 by Sonja Settle

Approximately one year ago, while on tour in Oklahoma City, Pepper Von watched in amazement as Chuck Lucas, President of Defender Training Consultants, led an exercise class called "Cardio PUMP Kickboxing." Afterward, Von told Lucas, "This program is so far ahead of the industry, we'll have to catch up!"

After a year, the fitness industry indeed caught on to the martial arts craze. Now consumers everywhere can choose from a surplus of exercise videos featuring martial arts. As an instructor, however, it is difficult to master the technical skills required in a martial arts exercise class after only watching the video. In order to ensure safety for your participants, you need feedback about how you are executing your kicks and punches. Only then can you teach others how to punch and kick effectively and safely.

With this in mind, Lucas teamed up with Tony (former National Karate Middleweight Champion) to create a Cardio PUMP Kickboxing certification for aerobic instructors. "Our goal is to go beyond teaching instructors how to execute kickboxing moves," Lucas explains. "We teach them how to teach kickboxing to their participants."

Kristen McGill, an instructor at Jane Phillips Medical Center in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, says she was pleased with the amount of "one-on-one" time she and other participants received during the course of her certification. It was easy to ask questions and gain feedback because, as she says, "Chuck and Tony regularly moved around the room."

Pepper Von, who is now with the World Aerobic Kickboxing Association, says of Lucas, "I was very impressed with the structure of his class, his kickboxing technique and his teaching skills and abilities."

Lucas' and Georgiades' program is unlike any other because of the unique experiences they bring to it. Both of them serve full time as police offers in Oklahoma City. (Both were part of the disaster response to the Oklahoma City bombing.) As certified defense tactic instructors, they train other police officers in self-defense. Therefore, participants in their certifications learn "reality-based" cardio-kickboxing. The stances, movements and combinations are all modeled after real-life defense and combat situations. For example, participants learn the fighting stance which can be seen in any professional boxing ring. McGill explains, "After my certification, I watched a boxing match on TV. It was so cool to see them in the same stance that I learned from my certification. And, they were in that stance through the entire fight. Their back heels never touched the ground--just like Chuck taught us."

Although the movements, stances and combinations are reality-based, Georgiades issued a word of caution to instructors and participants: "Our certification is `reality-based,' but everyone has to remember they are participating in an exercise class, not a self-defense class. Learning to kick and punch does not mean you will be safe to take unnecessary risks."

Another unique aspect that Lucas brings to his certifications is a background in dance, which has been instrumental in helping him develop the format of his classes. His program teaches the kickboxing techniques to the eight-count. Typically, background music is played in cardio-kickboxing classes, but the movements are performed independently of the beat and the eight-count. However, Lucas asserts that music should be the foundation of a kickboxing exercise class, just as it is the foundation of most other aerobic classes. Using the eight-count allows instructors to create 32-count combinations, as most are already accustomed to doing. Accordingly, using the eight-count makes it easy for participants to learn the combinations and follow the instructor because the music serves as a guide. Finally, because actual boxing bags are used in this program, working with the eight-count serves to prevent injury. If music is not used as a guide, participants will punch and kick to different rhythms and tempos, which increases the likelihood accidentally punching or kicking each other. However, in this certification and class format, participants are taught to punch and kick "to the numbers" so they will all punch and kick at the same time.

As previously mentioned, Lucas' and Georgiades' program is unusual because it employs actual boxing bags, which warrants Lucas and Georgiades to have a primary focus on technique. Using the bags not only increases the importance of having proper technique, but it also enhances the learning process. For example, if a participant performs a front thrust kick on a bag, she will know if she did the kick properly because she will be able to feel what part of her foot made contact with the bag. In addition, using the bags makes the class more desirable than a class where participants simply punch and kick the air. Completed questionnaires from kickboxing participants at the Jane Phillips Medical Center consistently listed "bag work" as the favorite part of the class.

One anonymous participant wrote, "As a woman, I wasn't too sure about the idea of actually hitting something. But there is just something about kicking and punching a bag after work. It is such a fun way to release tension, and guys no longer get to have all the fun!"