Becoming a Balanced Fighter

Combat is a series of visible and concealed maneuvers whose goal is to destroy the opponent and bring victory. The visible maneuvers include planning, practice and the physical actions you take to attack the opponent and
defend yourself during combat. The concealed maneuvers are the psychological preparation and the covert strategies and tactics you employ in the fight.

A combination of both concealed and visible maneuvers is necessary to defeat an opponent. If you are physically very strong and well conditioned, but uninformed regarding fighting strategy, you will defeat unskilled opponents easily though brute force, but you will be outwitted by skilled tacticians. Conversely, if you have a brilliant tactical mind, but spend little time for perfecting your physical weapons, you will have trouble implementing your brilliant strategy.

In both cases, unbalanced training leads to defeat. To be successful, combine the tools of combat skills and physical training with a blue print of well-planned and adaptable strategy. Imagine having a blueprint for a beautiful house and not having any tools or lumber with which to build it. All you have is a drawing. It
has no practical function unless you act on it. Or what about having many tools and materials without knowing where to begin building. The chances of ending up with a dream house are small.

The same is true for combat skills and strategy. Know where you are going, how you will get there and what tools you will need along the way.