FEATURED AUTHOR
MARK HATMAKER

Mark Hatmaker is a Western martial arts and functional fitness expert with more than 23 years experience. He specializes in resurrecting all the roughest combat aspects of the American and British sports of pugilism (pre-ruled boxing) and all-in wrestling (freestyle and classical wrestling with submissions returned to their rightful prominence). He supplements these with a unique approach to fitness and training called "gladiator conditioning," which emphasizes specificity to combat, functional body-weight exercises, eccentric lifts, and a strict adherence to synergistic principles.

A renowned seminar and video coach, Mark is the founder and chief instructor of Extreme Self Protection (ESP), an instructional and consulting organization dedicated to promulgating the Western martial arts perspective and gladiator conditioning. He conducts seminars throughout the United States, most notably at the esteemed Karate College at Radford University alongside such luminaries as Renzo Gracie, Joe Lewis, Jerry Beasley, and Bill Wallace.

Mark is featured in the newly released Paladin Press videos Extreme Boxing: Hardcore Boxing for Self-Defense and Gladiator Conditioning: Fitness for the Modern Warrior. He is also the author of No Holds Barred Fighting: The Ultimate Guide to Submission Wrestling, to be released by Tracks Publishing this fall.

Q&A

Paladin: When did you first get into Western martial arts?
Hatmaker: I've always been a boxing enthusiast, but I came at it from a martial artist's perspective. My introduction to the idea of their superiority was a quote in Bruce Lee's The Tao of Jeet Kune Do: "A student with only one year's experience could easily defeat a martial artist of 20 years experience." I figured if such an influential figure as Lee had made this evaluation, why not take him up on his judgment and take the shortcut? I'm glad I did.

Paladin: What arts did you practice at first, and how did that evolve?
Hatmaker: Before the Lee quote set me off on my Western journey, I was studying Korean arts. Over the years, I've delved into and dabbled in many systems, both Eastern and Western, but have always found myself drawn back to the practicality and rough-and-ready nature of the Western martial arts.

Paladin: What sports were you involved in as a kid?
Hatmaker: Fighting, first, foremost, and always. I've never watched a complete ballgame of any sort in my life. Don't truly know the rules for any other sports. Just never cared. Fighting for me is where it's at. Put two guys in a ring, an octagon, a cage, on a mat, or in a parking lot, and you've got my attention.

Paladin: How did you come to specialize in functional fitness?
Hatmaker: Economics and ergonomics. Despite all the lip service given to Eastern martial arts with regard to efficiency and economy of motion, I have never found anything in the Eastern arts to surpass or even meet the pragmatism of the Western fighting methods. This concept of "Yankee ingenuity" and "t'ain't nothin' if it don't work" bleeds over into conditioning. I'm a fighter/fight coach. I don't have time for exercises that pay little rewards for my focus. The old-time fighters used to refer to many of the hardcore weight-lifters as possessing counterfeit muscle. I have found their evaluation to be on the money. Sports kinesiologists have borne the old-timers' wisdom out. All of the body builders I've had the opportunity to be around (and who were willing to give our fight game or gladiator approach a shot) have pretty much buckled, and quickly. Our approach may not get you big (muscle-wise), but it will put 500 gallons of gas in your tank and "can-do" in your heart. There is an overall improvement in physique that is a natural byproduct of our brand of training, but essentially we are about effectiveness over aesthetics. Specificity is the only way to train. Running prepares you for running, swimming prepares you for swimming, racquetball for racquetball, and so on. You wanna be a better fighter? Then you've got to fight and/or adopt a conditioning regimen that has direct analogies or parallels to the fight game. That's the underlying concept of our Gladiator Conditioning program.

Paladin: As a coach, what piece of advice would you give to the aspiring martial artist/gladiator?
Hatmaker: Don't waste your time with mindless cross-training. Forget exercises that were meant for elite speed-skaters. Why not use the methods touted by the old fighters themselves, who fought upwards of 70 rounds and wrestled matches over 5 hours in length in temperatures that broke 100 degrees? Ask yourself: What it was that made them so tough? Could you fight under such conditions? If not, then the Gladiator is your answer.

Paladin: What are some examples of the types of exercises you incorporate into your gladiator conditioning system, and how do these benefit a person who wants to be in fighting condition?
Hatmaker: The body-weight exercises used in the core resemble standard calisthenics routines. It's the technique, synergism (sequencing and interlocking exercises), specificity in duplicating fight movements, and "spice" that make this program what it is. The "spice" is a selection of more than 100 eccentric exercises that will stress your machine in ways you've never imagined. Many of our advanced exercises are practically impossible to define in print but have to be seen to be believed. We've got exercises such as "Leaning Towers" and "Falling Towers" that will leave you drenched with sweat and burning with lactic acid in every part of your body in less than one minute.

Paladin: What ARE the roughest combat aspects of pugilism and all-in wrestling?
Hatmaker: The roughest aspects are the ones that were eliminated to make our present-day incarnations of boxing and wrestling safer. So, if you can conceive of calling such grueling sports as boxing and wrestling safe, then I'm sure you can imagine the early days of evil, when head-butting, elbowing, and the cross-buttocks throw were not too frowned upon in boxing, and wrestling wasn't for the pin but for the submission. And mind you, these submissions bear little resemblance to jiu-jitsu ("the gentle way") that we see today. These moves are mean, mean, mean.

Paladin: Why do you think these methods are ideal for self-defense?
Hatmaker: They are both practiced in a realistic feedback loop. If you don't block a punch, whoops—there's a little reality with some bruise on it. If you turn the wrong way on the mat, BAM—there's a mighty neck crank or spine-lock to remind you not to turn that way again. Pugilism and all-in wrestling are ring-tested and mat-tempered. They are the real deal, playing in real-world ranges that you will encounter on the street.

Paladin: Why did you decide to specialize in resurrecting these?
Hatmaker: Bottom line: effectiveness. I've played with other striking and grappling systems. And with all due respect to their top practitioners (there are some great competitors out there), I've just never seen anything that comes even close to the practicality—and, yes, even brutality—of the Western martial arts. I mean, you've got to respect that. Who wouldn't be attracted to that if they've got a fighting bone in their body?

Paladin: What is an Extreme Self-Protection seminar like?
Hatmaker: We use a last-man-standing mentality. We love to teach. If we are scheduled to teach for four hours, we'll give five, six, or more. We will teach until they lock up the building. We love this stuff, and so far we have met with nothing but appreciation from the great folks who give us a shot. We hit people with conditioning up front to remind them of its capital role in fighting and to make everyone feel a bit more alive. From there, it's techniques, techniques, techniques. We've got submissions, takedowns and counterpunching chains to burn. So far no complaints.

Paladin: How does it differ from other self-defense seminars, such as Model Mugging?
Hatmaker: We approach it all from the professional fighter standpoint. We attract people who want to be tough with a capital "T"—people who want old-school work that gives present-day results.

Paladin: What sort of people attend your seminars?
Hatmaker: It is an amazing mix of folks intersted in what we do. We've got men, women, children, chiropractors, cops, nurses, graphic designers, contractors, poets, mutual fund managers, bouncers . . . you name it, we've probably got it.

Paladin: Why do you think these people choose your seminars as opposed to those of your competition?
Hatmaker: I'm not sure. I like to think that it's because I and my partner Kory Hays are decent human beings who have a passion for teaching, an undisguised appreciation for our students, and a laid back, regular-Joe demeanor. It's not a demeanor, it's a fact. We're just like everyone else; we just have some great information we want to share. And of course, the cherry on top is this stuff works so well. We can move people into effectiveness long before other systems can.

Paladin: Your involvement with the Radford University program and associated professional martial artists is pretty impressive. How did that come about?
Hatmaker: Dr. Beasley was kind enough to have us in—presumably on a trial basis—a few years ago, and it exploded from there. There are some great folks out there, both instructors and students, and we do our best to put on the best show that we can.

Paladin: What is your educational background?
Hatmaker: I earned my education in the self-directed method. Much of what is promulgated in the standard sports training field is a regimen of cross-training or flavors of the moment. Our approach is 100-percent fighter-directed, so our research is based only in the methodology and history of fitness, nutrition, and athlete psychology as it pertains to the fighter, not some faceless "cypher" athlete with a one-size-fits-all formula for success. My study is ongoing, and my teachers are all around me. Every mat or ring session hones an old principle or brings a forgotten or perhaps undervalued principle into sharp relief. I learn from my students, watching and observing their biomechanics. I learn from every match I see. I learn from old fight films and texts and from other present-day Western martial arts enthusiasts. The wealth of information in this area is vast. In my personal boxing master manual, the counterpunching section alone numbers a couple hundred pages. My master submission bible is more than 700 pages long. So it's safe to say I'm not even close to being through with my education.

Paladin: What do you have lined up for the immediate future professionally?
Hatmaker: I am already contracted to write the sequel (due out next year) to my book on submission wrestling. ESP is launching a long-distance training service on our Web site www.extremeselfprotection.com, so our remote students will never miss a beat in keeping up with our latest developments. And, of course, we've already got more tapes in the can with you folks there at Paladin. These will be on submissions, takedowns, and counterpunching flow drills.

Paladin: What are your other interests—the things that occupy your time outside of work?
Hatmaker: I'm also a writer. In addition to my book deals, I optioned a screenplay last year. I've written and produced 12 plays. I'm an avid researcher in the area of evolutionary and cognitive psychology, and I use this knowledge to strengthen the underpinnings of our fight instruction as well as conduct workshops: "Kinesics: The Art and Science of Body Language," "Creativity," and "The Science of Happiness." The latter covers all of the empirical data relating to human satisfaction. It's far from the self-help "rah-rah" approach. I deal in pragmatism, empiricism, and effectiveness in all endeavors.

Any questions? If so, please feel free to e-mail Mark. Also, be sure to visit his Web site.

EXTREME BOXING
Hardcore Boxing for Self-Defense

GLADIATOR CONDITIONING
Fitness for the Modern Warrior