Are Your Martial Arts Classes Like a Bond Film or a Space Odyssey?

How does every James Bond film start?

With a bang!

Typically, a Bond movie opens with a heart-pounding action scene—a dangerous chase or some high-stakes showdown that grabs you by the throat and holds you on the edge of your seat.

You're watching, wide-eyed, wondering, "How on earth is he going to escape?"

After 10 minutes of breathless action, Bond wins.

You’re exhilarated, ready for the rest of the movie.

Now, contrast that with the opening of Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey.

The first 12 minutes show landscapes and apes. There’s no action. No music. Just long, slow scenes.

Boring, right?

If your martial arts classes start with 10 to 15 minutes of stretching, your students might feel like they’re in 2001 instead of a Bond film.

An action film pulls viewers in with an intense start that makes them say, “Wow! This is awesome!”

After 10 to 15 minutes of adrenaline, they’re ready for a breather and some story development. That’s when the movie introduces the hero, the conflict, and the bad guys.

You should design your classes the same way.

Start fast, keep the energy high for the first 12 to 15 minutes, then slow down for the technical teaching.

The James Bond Lesson Plan Structure

1. History or Life Skill Lesson (Under 1 minute)

2. Warm Up (30 seconds each with a 10-second break to explain the next exercise)

  • Jumping Jacks
  • Banana Twisters
  • Coordination Jumping Jacks
  • Clappers
  • Bear Walk-Up
  • Crab Walk Back
  • L-Crunches
  • Crossovers
  • Ankle Grabbers
  • Banana Rolls (10 seconds Jack Knife, roll over and back)
  • Bouncing Knees
  • Crescent Kicks
  • One-Legged Mountain Climbers
  • Ditch Hoppers

3. Review Blocks
(1 minute)

4. 5-Count Ab Routine

5. 1-2-3-4 Review
(1 minute)

6. 1-2-3-4 Drill in Air
(Mix up the combos and call them out for 1 minute)

7. 5-Part Stretch Routine
(Stretching comes at the end of the warm-up, not the start)

Learning Skills

  • Front Kick (10 each side)
  • Back Kick (10 each side)
  • Front Kick–Back Kick without setting leg down (10 each side)
  • Touch Drill (1 minute)
  • Plank
  • Target Movement Drill (1 minute)
  • Mountain Climbers (2-count)
  • Position Movement
  • Jab vs Front Leg Round Kick
  • Plank Knee Strike
  • Skip Front Leg Round Kick (1 minute)
  • Skip Front Leg Round Kick vs 7 Block (1 minute)
  • Sucker Punch Drill (Use open hand with wide hook)
  • Skip Side Kick (1 minute)
  • Skip Side Kick vs Distance (1 minute)
  • Splits (1 minute)
  • Learn Cutting Kick
  • Cutting Kick Slow with a Partner vs Leg Check
  • Cutting Kick Slow with a Partner Leg Check Counter Right Hand

Cool Down

  • 5-Part Stretch Routine
  • Crunches
  • Back Stretch
  • Table

The 2001: A Space Boredom Lesson Plan

  1. Opening announcements (3 minutes)
  2. Bow in
  3. Stretch for 10 minutes
  4. Walk through new kata for 10 minutes
  5. Do a kick in the mirror for 1 minute
  6. Do a traditional blocking series for 5 minutes
  7. Line kids up 10 deep to wait in line to throw one kick on a pad held by the instructor and go back to the line (This is just stupid)
  8. Split up for a game
  9. Play game
  10. Bow out