San Diego -- Recruits lined together in a mass formation and punched, kicked and countered together as one. This wasn’t by chance but rather by design.
Recruits of Company A, 1st Recruit Training Battalion, learned various techniques of the Marine Corps Martial Arts Program, tan belt syllabus.
MCMAP is a five belt program, with tan being the lowest of the five—tan, gray, green, brown, black.
Recruits are taught level one to give them a foundation to work upon in the Fleet Marine Force.
Some of the techniques practiced were the leg stomp and vertical knee strike, however, the focus of the class was learning to counter the rear hand punch and rear leg kick.
Drill instructors walked down the ranks, ensuring proper form as recruits practiced the leg stomp. The formation and synchronization made it easier for drill instructors to spot discrepencies.
Moving to their next segment, recruits paired up and took turns being the attacker and defender. One would throw a punch and the other would block with his hands and counter with knee and elbow strikes. Each punch and counter was done at half speed for safety.
They practiced the moves over and over again, to try and induce muscle memory.
Recruit Aaron J. Spring, Plt. 1010 said his martial arts knowledge was very limited prior to learning MCMAP. Though now he feels confident in his ability to counter an attack.
“Before this, if someone tried to punch me they’d probably hit me and it would be a brawl,” said Spring. “But now I feel confident I could counter and subdue.”
Drill instructors explained the recruits were not only learning moves that could save their lives in close quarters combat but could also be used stateside to defend one’s self.
“It makes me happy to see these kids learn MCMAP because I know some of these kids were bullied in high school and now they know how to defend themselves,” said Staff Sgt. John A. Delgado, drill instructor, Platoon 1010.
Although the moves are technical and can be tedious to learn, recruits expressed MCMAP is one of their favorite things to learn in recruit training.
“I think it’s pretty cool,” said Recruit Joseph G. Kangethe. “I’m learning something that I can use to defend myself in the Marines and civilian life.”
Kangethe said he believes practicing the techniques is very important to building their confidence.
“MCMAP is building my self-esteem,” said Kangethe. “So that if I have contact with the enemy I will have courage from knowing I know techniques that can take him down.”
As their class came to a close, recruits were gathered in a school circle, giving them the opportunity to ask questions about anything they did not understand. Following this, recruits were given a class on honor, courage and commitment. When class concluded, it appeared all recruits had enjoyed learning hand to hand combat skills.