QUESTION: Who can practice Systema?
ANSWER: Systema is a comprehensive martial art, regardless of age or gender, and focuses specifically on the abilities of each individual. Older and younger, big and small, experienced and beginners, both men and women, take part in the training, no special fitness training is needed at the beginning. The only condition of our club is age over 16 years.

QUESTION: What should I bring for my first workout?
ANSWER: Sportswear (long trousers or tracksuits are more appropriate), T-shirt, gym shoes.

QUESTION: Is Systema suitable for the street?
ANSWER: The term “martial arts” means that the system was developed mainly for one purpose, combat. It involves working without rules on both the physical and psychological levels, against multiple odds, against various weapons. Systema develops the key skills that are an essential part of street fighting.

QUESTION: What does training look like, is it very fit?
ANSWER: Much of the training is done in the gym with a variety of aids such as long and short club, knife (metal but not sharp), rope, ball, telescope, etc. However, training in other settings is not rare. We need to be able to work with the pitfalls of the forest and the city, whether in the dark or during the day, in the summer heat or the bitter winter, on land or in the water. Of course, fitness exercises are involved in training, but they form a smaller part of it, rather they are a guide to what one should practice at home.

QUESTION: I saw the Systemas video … would it work at real speed?
ANSWER: The vast majority of videos on the Internet are from various workshops or other tutorial videos where the instructor shows the pupils what to do and it is logical that they do not do it at full speed, of which pupils would not learn much. Another reason why slow speed is used in many martial arts is that one can feel every detail of movement, ornate your skills to perfection, concentrate on breathing, weight distribution, relaxation, etc. Of course, later he can practice at any speed, and in real combat, the fighter himself determines what speed he needs.

QUESTION: What is the difference between Systema and other martial arts?
ANSWER: Systema is a complex martial art, focusing on both stance and ground combat. Against one or more attackers. With or without a weapon. The main difference is that Systema’s way of teaching is different from Asian martial arts, but it is logically closer to Slavs. Another difference is that Systema teaches principles and not techniques, the trainee does not pursue one combination around, but tries to understand and learn how the principle works and apply it in different situations.

QUESTION: Are pads and mats used for training?
ANSWER: The purpose of training is to prepare a person for a real situation. For this reason, we do not use things that we do not normally carry (large gloves, tooth and joint protectors, washcloths, etc.). Exactly opposite. We learn to use the things that surround us, we train inside and outside.

QUESTION: Are there competitions in the Systema?
ANSWER: You won’t find competitions of any type in the Systema, this is a martial art, not a martial sport.

QUESTION: Can I combine Systema with other martial arts / sports?
ANSWER: Systemy’s principles are alive and can be used everywhere. But it’s always better to do one thing properly than two things in half.

QUESTION: Is there a strapping or other way of assessing the level of a trainee in the Systema?
ANSWER: At present, you may encounter different level ratings and certificates, but this is not in the original idea of Systema. We all work together and learn from each other. For this reason, we does not grant any belts or certificates.

Q: Are there more types of Systema?
A: In general, Systema has evolved into two basic directions: Systema Ryabko – Vasiliev and Systema Kadochnikova. Systema Ryabko – Vasiliev has a more playful and spiritual form. Systema Kadochnikova is more presented by the laws of physics. We trains in the direction of Ryabko – Vasiliev. 

QUESTION: How does contactless combat work, is it real or is it a fake?
ANSWER: Contactless struggle or another name of psychotechnology is the result of a long-term exercise of the “contact” way of fighting, in the order of decades. Contactless fighting is something like a “cherry on the cake” and it certainly should not be the goal of the exercise and it cannot be the beginning of the exercise at all. As the masters say, “You have to be in contact if it wouldn’t work without chance”. Just as the physical levels of warriors differ, so do their psychic, just that the physical is sometimes better to see.