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HSSSS: Health, Stamina, Skill, Swiftness, Strength

Frank Maletsky 5 rules in practicing martial arts
HSSSS stands for: HEALTH, STAMINA, SKILL, SWIFTNESS, and STRENGTH
  • Health – Maintain a healthy body, mind and spirit. Eat healthy foods. Read good books, listen to good music and try to have good conversation with loved ones and friends. Meditate, share your knowledge and wealth. Do good deeds, share a smile, and follow the principles of universal stewardship.
  • Stamina – Do Calisthenics. Do katas. Work the bag or the wooden dummy. (The bag and the dummy are very limiting. Katas however, will not limit your motion.) Run when you can. Walk when you can't run. If you have a river nearby like I had, go swimming. Ride the bicycle. Do sprints. Do some hiking, this helps you calm down and stay in touch with nature. Stamina is not just about your body. Stamina is fortitude. You may have the other 4 but if you do not have the stamina to push through and to pick yourself up when you are down, your goals won't be achieved.
  • Skill – Spar. Work with a partner. Sparring keeps you sharp. Do controlled sparring but also do full contact sparring. Have someone watch over the two of you when sparring. Because accidents can happen. Do repetitive moves until it becomes muscle "memory". When you are training alone, do not forget the katas. Learn not only physical skills. Learn communication skills. Learn to talk in front of a crowd. Learn to talk your way out of trouble. It is not just about physical skills. Verbal skills or communication skills are also very important. Learn body language. You can easily offend or attract with a simple gesture. Preparation is in training, never during a fight or combat.
  • Swiftness – Learn jerky moves. Catch flies. Learn multiple and precise strikes. The quickness or swiftness you need to achieve is not how fast you can run the 100 meter dash but rather how quick you can move or respond within 3 feet (your body's peripheral distance). The mind needs this the most. A quick decision can save your life.
  • Strength – Work with weights. Do push-ups, pull-ups, sit-ups, work the wheel. Do stretching exercises. Do gripping exercises. Do isometrics. Climb. Do jumping jacks. Improve your vertical lift. The strength of your strike or punch does not simply come from your extremities (legs and arms). Strikes or punches coming simply from the strength of your extremities are not as powerful as when it comes from the opposing end of the point of contact. Never underestimate the power of a grip or a hold. Martial arts is not just about physical strength. We strive for physical, mental and spiritual strength. Write a letter, write an essay, and if you can, write a book. Writing strengthens your mind and helps build relationships. Good relationships strengthens your soul.

These are the 5 basic rules of Frank Maletsky in the practice of the Martial Arts. Use these 5 basic rules (HSSSS) to help attain your goals and to spice up your journey in life. Knowing these rules is not enough. You must have the discipline and focus to follow them. Focus will determine your reality. Procrastination is very sneaky. It can easily become habit forming. Be aware. Do not let procrastination creep into to your life. When you catch yourself saying; “I’ll do this later or I’ll take care of this tomorrow”, you have allowed procrastination to become a friend. Do not let this happen. This is an invitation to the path of conformity of standards which later leads to stagnation, then ultimately to failure. We all stumble and fall but each one of us also has the ability and the power to choose. Choose survival, choose growth, choose success, choose prosperity, choose to get up and fight. Combine your self-discipline with focus to accomplish all your goals which will lead you to a happy, prosperous and healthy life. Prosperity is threefold: Material prosperity, Intellectual prosperity, and spiritual prosperity. Strive to achieve all three.

Two moves and the opposites principle

The human body can only apply combat movement in two distinct ways—linear and circular—plus their opposites. This includes striking, grappling, throwing, and repositioning, whether armed or unarmed.

The punch or strike

In Tumaga where I grew up we fought a lot as children. My oldest brother Jim taught us (3 younger brothers) how to box. So I learned that a powerful fist can do the damage. Later after my training in Karate, I watched how the children with no training in boxing fought. They all naturally went for the head with open hands. Slapping and grabbing. Then also naturally using their legs to connect to the lower body. They were also using their elbows to deliver blows. This was a "hmmmm" moment for me....

I was trained to develop strong fists with the punching bag and punching board (makiwara). I hurt my knuckles in the past from street fights. Even with bag and makiwara training, my knuckles still hurt. Why? The human head (facial and jaw bones) is tougher than the knuckle. The tendons and ligaments in your knuckles are very tender and can easily be damaged.

Because of the injuries and pain I had sustained—and after seeing untrained children fight—I shifted my focus to open-handed strikes. I reserved closed-fist punches for the body, where my knuckles were less likely to be damaged. For head strikes, I used my palm, delivering slapping or snapping motions. A full open-palm strike to the side of the head targeted both the jaw and ear, capable of damaging the eardrum and jaw simultaneously. The tips of my fingers could also whip into noses, lips, and eyes to cause pain and disruption. These open-handed strikes to the head were executed in various forms: a lunge, a whip, a crushing cross, or an uppercut. Even the standard jab to the face was adapted into more of a whipping motion.

So use your hands to target the head, and use your legs (knees and feet) to target the body in conjunction with grabbing.

Muay Thai made an art out this form of fighting. But notice one thing that they do. They protect the knuckles at all times. Why? Because the knuckles are WEAK.

The jab

Knockdowns often result from sheer force. Knockouts may occur from a well-timed combination. But it’s the swift, snapping impact — delivered with speed, precision, and body mechanics — that causes the most severe damage: knockouts, broken jaws, cracked ribs, kidney trauma, deep facial cuts, and more.

Most boxers rely on the jab to score points, disrupt rhythm, and gradually wear down the opponent through accumulated hits. But a jab can be much more than that. A properly executed jab — fast, sharp, and powered by the full body — can end a fight instantly. And when delivered at an angle, the damage is often amplified.

The bottom line is this: Don’t train just to throw fast jabs. Train to throw fast jabs with explosive impact, using your whole body — from the legs and hips to the core and shoulders. Speed alone surprises. But speed with power changes everything. The leading hand (jab or lead hook), when thrown with correct mechanics, full body rotation, and perfect timing, can absolutely end fights.

The grip or the hold

Three of us Edwin, Alvin and I are about 1.5 years apart from each other. We grew up together. Always getting in trouble with Mama and our older siblings. We grew up in a small farm where there are a lot of mature trees. The three of us were like white monkeys up on the trees. Climbing and hanging unknowingly strengthening our gripping power. We also maintained a garden all year long and watering is part of the chore. Watering was via carrying pales of water. This did not just strengthen the arm but also strengthened the grip.

In a grappling situation, the strength of your grip can literally tip the balance of advantage to your side.

Weapons: Stick fighting

Stick fighting was part of growing up in Tumaga. It can't be avoided. Every kid in the barrio use sticks and some get good at it, specially throwing sticks to take down mango fruits from as high as 20 to 25 feet up. The game of war always involved stick fighting. We used coconut husks as hand guards. Most of my friends outgrew playing with wooden or bamboo swords. I didn't. I was intrigued with it and watching movies fueled my interest in "sword" fighting. At home we utilized several kinds of bladed "weapons". We had 5 different kinds of bolos. We used them on a daily basis. Practicing throwing bolos at a coconut tree is not a good idea. The handle can easily break if the wrong end of the bolo hits the coconut. So banana trunks became the favorite, specially those ready for harvest. Handling a weapon, became second nature.

Blocking: Hand or weapon

Blocking is fundamental in combat. However, a purely defensive block is a wasted opportunity. When trained, transform the block into a swift, damaging strike. Economize your motion: why merely deflect when you can disable? By integrating a 'maiming block' – a strike disguised as a defense – you capitalize on the attacker's momentum and vulnerable positioning. This swift, targeted strike not only inflicts immediate injury to the attacking limb but also creates an opening for a decisive follow-up. The psychological impact is profound: a defender who retaliates with such brutal efficiency instills fear and hesitation. It is more efficient to combine defense and offense into a single, devastating movement than to execute them separately. Be proactive, not passive. Turn every defensive action into an offensive opportunity. This is the essence of strategic combat: maximizing impact and minimizing wasted motion.
Yet there is a time when offense must yield to survival. When an opponent overwhelms you with relentless strikes, strategic retreat becomes essential. In those moments, covering or shielding your body and head is not weakness—it is wisdom. Shielding interrupts the opponent’s momentum, giving you a chance to reset, reposition, and reclaim initiative. In MMA, boxing, and other pugilistic arts, seasoned fighters instinctively cover when cornered or outmatched. It’s a calculated pause in aggression, not a surrender. The key is knowing when to absorb, when to evade, and when to strike. Ultimately, the essence of strategic combat lies in flow—combining defense and offense, aggression and restraint, into a single, devastating continuum. Maximize impact. Minimize wasted motion. Command both fury and finesse.

The power of the mind, Qi, Ki, Chi

Most masters in the martial arts believe that Ki is the vital energy of the human body. That this force envelopes every human. I agree that Ki is energy (corporeal and spiritual). But it is not just the energy of the body or an aura that surrounds the body.

Ki is actually the power of our mind or instinct derived from the energy of the corporeal and spirit world. A weak mind can’t utilize the power of ki. The more disciplined and focused the mind is, the more powerful the ki is to drive our thought processes enabling us to control gravity. Thought is infinite. Our thoughts resonate throughout the universe. Ki allows our thoughts to manipulate matter, time, and space. Ki is where the eternal energy of the universe touches the soul of the living being. Ki will ultimately allow us to go anywhere we imagine or think to be.

When we observe anything on anyone, we may think that we are not affecting anything of anyone, but in fact we are. We are in fact sending out thought waves. “Thought” touches everything. Thoughts resonates throughout the universe. It is in continuous motion. It gets bounced, absorbed, processed and expelled and the cycle continues.

The ancients did not have much of technology to rely on. Their daily lives where much more geared towards the spirit world. Day and night were precise and the rhythm of life had clarity. More time went to the development of the discipline of the mind. The mind that is disciplined, is clear from distractions. The human mind is the engine for our thoughts. The disciplined mind helps focus our thoughts. Momentary focus, concentration or discipline comes natural to all. However, trying to hold this discipline in your lifetime for the development of ki is very rare. Hence, now in modern society rarely can we find anyone who has the mastery of ki. There are however, many fakes out there and they bamboozle the gullible.

Two things can help an individual focus: Emotion and Tranquility. Emotion is split by love and hate. Purity of either one creates intensified focus. Tranquility which is the hardest to attain, disciplines the mind to achieve universality. Love can piggyback tranquility whereas hate stands alone. Tranquility allows the mind to experience clarity and makes it easy for the mind to focus with understanding. Hate on the other hand can create intense fury and focus without reason.

Love allows the advanced disciplined mind to focus with clarity and to wield its ultimate power of traveling beyond the dimensions of time, space, gravity and matter with the simple power of thought "energized" by Ki. Imagination is a complex thought process. It mixes reality with fantasy. However, imagination when tempered and forged with disciplined “will power”, can become a reality.

The conglomeration of our thoughts and instinct is our SOUL. When we die, our souls temporarily linger in this corporeal world; a one final look around so to speak. Depending on the power of the Ki, manifestations can be experienced by the living and the lingering can be extended and profound messages can be embedded in the psyche of the living. As our souls finally leave this corporeal realm, it is joined with God in the spirit “world” which binds the universe.

This I tell you all: “The power of the universe can be tapped by every man through Qi. Train and prepare yourselves not just to be “accepted”, but to be as one with the universe. Live your eternal life (corporeal and spiritual), love, share, prosper and be happy.”

Be the master of your universe.

Jumping double back kick with Ricky Lafrades
Jumping double back kick with Ricky Lafrades.
National Championship 1970
National Championship 1970
Frank and his students in his 1st Dojo 1971
Frank and his students in his 1st Dojo 1971
Ricky Lafrades(Student) and Frank Maletsky
Ricky Lafrades(Student) and Frank Maletsky
Frank Maletsky, Glenn Abrescy and his students. Walnut Creek Dojo in 1975
Frank Maletsky, Glenn Abrescy and his students. Walnut Creek Dojo in 1975
Frank Maletsky Sparring warm up with one of Max Pallen's Kempo Karate Student
Frank Maletsky Sparring warm up with one of Max Pallen's Kempo Karate Student
1975 Boys Club in El Sobrante
1975 Boys Club in El Sobrante
Arnis Demonstration inside San Quentin Prison 1975 as reported by Black Belt Magazine
Arnis Demonstration inside San Quentin Prison 1975 as reported by Black Belt Magazine
After the ARNIS demonstration inside the San Quentin Prison. Took this picture with Brian Giles (Brown Belt Student) with the tower as the background for posterity.
After the ARNIS demonstration inside the San Quentin Prison. Took this picture with Brian Giles (Brown Belt Student) with the tower as the background for posterity.
Frank maletsky with congressman miller and Boys Club director, 1975 fund raising for the construction of building in background
Frank maletsky with congressman miller and Boys Club director, 1975 fund raising for the construction of building in background
Congressman George Miller holding the bag and Frank Maletsky doing a jump kick. The background is the boys club building under construction. The picture was for a fund raising
Congressman George Miller holding the bag and Frank Maletsky doing a jump kick. The background is the boys club building under construction. The picture was for a fund raising
Punching the bag
Punching the bag

About Frank Maletsky in the Martial Arts

He first learned boxing at the age of 5. His older brother James Maletsky taught him the art. He and his older brother Al were partners. Although he could never beat his older brother. His brother had very fast hands. In 1960 James went to a tailor and out old blue jeans had two pairs of 8 oz boxing gloves made. These gloves were used extensively by both young and old in the barrio. The older brother James paid the neighboring kids 5 centavos to spar with Al and Frank.

The tumaga river ran through the Maletsky property. So swimming in the river was a backyard activity. Again, his brother James taught Al and Frank the correct way of swimming and diving.

Frank grew up fighting. He looked so much different from the local boys. So he was teased and he did not like it and his auto response was to fight. He became good at fighting.

Stick fighting was part of life. It was a game but also served as a weapon. It was taken for granted just as a bolo or sangud was taken for granted. These tools became part of life growing up in rural barrio of Tumaga.

In 1965 his sister Irma, introduced Frank to a karate teacher by the name of Jose David. Joe operated a dojo by the name of Beaux Brotherhood. Frank signed up. Lack of funds forced him to quit for 6 months in 1967, but he was promoted to 1st dan black belt in 1970. There was a national tournament in Manila in 1970. Frank participated and won the Kumite and Kata championship. Current grand master Louelle Lledo was kind to board the Zamboanga team in his apartment.

In 1966 there was this man from Pasonanca who would come by Frank's residence in Tumaga, his name was Jun. He saw Frank and his buddy Luis stick fighting in the back. Turns out that this man was a practitioner of Arnis. So at that time Frank was formally introduced to Arnis. Jun was a mango climber and harvester, so during the mango seasons, Frank would review arnis with him. This went on till 1970 when he just simply stopped showing up.

In 1970 Frank built a dojo in Tumaga. An extension to the kitchen. He and the master carpenter built it. It took almost 3 months to build it. He had his two brother-in-laws, nephews, cousins and neighboring friends as his students.

In 1970 Roger Mijares, green belt in Judo, introduced Frank and Jose David to Judo. Frank insisted that Joe should learn at least the basics of Judo. Roger was a good teacher. He was always smiling. He had two black belt ranking karatekas as students. Roger went on to become a Colonel in the Philippine Army and as of 2016 is a minister of "The Christian and Missionary Alliance" church in Zamboanga City.

Frank then left for the USA in 1972.

Back in 1972, While visiting the rose garden in Oakland, CA and waiting for his sister Irma to get off of work from Safeway on grand ave., Frank visited this hapkido studio across the street and recognized the difference between his style of Japanese Karate and that of the Korean Hapkido.

He introduced himself to Mr. Shin (8th degree Hapkido black belt) and expressed his desire to learn Hapkido. Mr. Shin asked him of his background in the martial arts and Frank told Mr. Shin that he had a rank of 2nd degree black belt in Karate. Mr. Shin quipped and said that Hapkido was superior to Karate and that rank didn't mean much when it comes down to the actual fight.

So he asked Frank if he would like to come back and maybe spar or try out some of the Hapkido red or brown belts because Mr. Shin said that the red or brown belts were equivalent to the black belts in Karate. Frank felt a bit humiliated by that statement. So he accepted the invitation.

The following week, Frank went back to the Hapkido studio and Mr. Shin was there. There were 2 brown belters and one red belt. Frank was in his Karate gi with his black belt on. Mr. Shin told Frank to remove his black belt and put on a white belt instead. Frank, a bit intimidated, followed the instruction and proceeded to spar with the red belt. Frank was only 5'7" and 165 pounds. The red belt was at least 6 feet tall. The sparring did not last long, it became very obvious to Mr. Shin that the red belt was no match for Frank. So the brown belt was called upon and again this student's skills were inferior to Frank's. The final sparring was with the second brown belt student by the name of Ron Hernadez. He had good skills and he was about 5'10" tall. He used his jumping techniques and sweeping techniques, they were good but did not work on Frank. Mr. Shin saw that Frank was worthy of his black belt in Karate. Ron and Frank later became good friends. Ron went on to follow Frank and became an assistant instructor in Frank's karate club in Walnut Creek in 1975.

Mr. Shin offered Frank free training in Hapkido which he took advantage of. Six months later Mr. Shin accepted Frank's rank in Karate and gave him the same rank in Hapkido and offered him the job as an instructor at the studio. Frank accepted the job and taught Hapkido for a year.

Frank lived in Alameda, CA in 1972-73 and there was a Jiu jitsu school there. He would visit the school and befriended the teacher. He learned Jui-jitsu that year.

In 1974 Frank bought a house in El Sobrante, CA. There were no dojos in El Sobrante and he wanted to learn more than just hapkido and juijitsu. So he found a place in San Francisco that taught the Tiger Crane Kung Fu style. Frank signed up and learned Tiger Crane Kung Fu from sifu Y.C. Wong in 1974. Sifu Wong had his class down in the basement on Clay St., San Francisco, CA....

In 1975 a man by the name of Bigoy Ledesma (5th degree black belt in Tang Soo Do) offered Frank a partnership in a dojo in Walnut Creek, CA. There he taught martial arts and started to promote the Filipino martial arts of Arnis. He also gave arnis lessons to the Walnut Creek police department. The California Department of Corrections in 1975 were looking for someone to represent the Filipino Arnis de Mano, so they invited Frank Maletsky to represent the Philippine art of Arnis in a Martial Demonstration within the walls of San Quentin Prison. Several other styles were represented. A part of this story was told by Black Belt Magazine titled: A Prison Experiment in Martial Arts.

Frank lived in his house in El Sobrante then. He worked with the local Boys Club and 3 times a week he would teach the boys the martial arts for free using the gym of the El Sobrante boys club.

Frank married Lorraine Simpson in 1976 and he stopped operating dojos as a livelihood. However, he never stopped teaching. He continued to travel back and forth from the USA to the Philippines. In 1998 a fellow Beaux Brotherhood member, Jaime Marshall, who was at that time an 8th degree black belt (note Jaime was a student of Frank), gave Frank an honorary rank of an 8th degree black belt. Jaime's 5th degree student, Jayson, went on to become Frank's student in the art of Arnis.

In 2001 Frank and Lori decided to retire in the Philippines. So off they went. Their 3 adult children stayed behind in the USA. However, in 2004 the middle son Paul Maletsky, decided to continue his college education. So he flew to Zamboanga City. While in college, Frank introduced him to a Rogelio Buenvenida, a judo instructor and the athletic director of Ateneo de Zamboanga, who coincidentally was a student of Roger Mijares. Frank asked Mr. Buenvenida to accept Paul into his class and to teach him Judo. Paul was not a beginner in the martial arts. He was taught since he was 3 years old. He knew boxing, karate and wrestling. Paul went on to become the Philippine National heavy weight champion in Judo 5 years in a row. He graduated in 2010 and is now a nurse in Reno, NV.

A little humor in life: In 2002 Frank hired the local guys in Zamboanga to build the fence around his house. The property was 4,000 square meters. That's a lot of fencing. He hired 11 guys. The work took almost 3 months to finish. three times a week in the afternoon, Frank would teach these 11 guys the art of Arnis. Each had a pair of Arnis to work with. These guys were naturals, quick to learn. Two months into the training, they were all proficient. Attempts at full contact was even dared by coconut husks and banana sleeves from the trunk as armors. This one Saturday, Frank paid the guys and gave them extra for celebration. They celebrated alright by the tubaan nearby to drink tuba(coconut wine). Monday came along and these 11 showed up for work, some limping, others with bruises and black eyes, and a few with lumps on the head. So what happened? Frank asked! They all got so drunk that night and decided to have a contest as to who the best arnis player was. According to the tenderas(workers) of the local tubaan(pub) it was like watching a karate movie where everybody was fighting with swords. Except here they were using whatever stick they can find.

One of these fighting mongrels, Kimby Cruz continued to come around the house to learn Arnis. He now has his own following in arnis.

Picture doing double back kick: Standing is one of Frank's black belt students, Ricky Lafrades holding a padded arm bag. Picture taken in 1975 by Alvin Maletsky (older brother of Frank Maletsky). Ricky Lafrades learned arnis from Frank. Ricky is currently a master in Arnis. He lives in Pittsburg, CA. As of 2015, Ricky is still very active in the Martial arts and still teaches arnis.

Frank was able to do those high jumping kicks because he had a respectable vertical leap. He could easily jump and hang on a basketball hoop with both hands (10 feet high).