Meet Vincent Benitez

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Vincent Benitez a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Vincent, so glad you were able to set aside some time for us today. We’ve always admired not just your journey and success, but also the seemingly high levels of self-discipline that you seem to have mastered and so maybe we can start by chatting about how you developed it or where it comes from?

I always feel that motivation from different sources (memes, quotes, people) comes in waves. It is why I feel that when motivation fails, discipline will always prevail. However, you cannot just obtain self-discipline with a snap of a finger, it is developed over time. The key is to be consistent. It may sound ordinary but it is the truth. From the beginning of my martial arts training, my teacher would be my greatest motivator but he can do so much. Training at the school is one thing but training on your own is another. Where does my self-discipline come from? Me, hence the word “self”. I am the only one who will take accountability for my actions if my abilities are not up to the level of proficiency. To maintain peak functionality and effectiveness, I dedicate two hours a day to Jeet Kune Do. Training never stops and learning never ends.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

In Cantonese, “Jeet Kune Do”, translates to “the Way of the Intercepting Fist”. Jeet Kune Do was developed by the late martial artist, Bruce Lee! I am a Jun Fan (Bruce Lee) Jeet Kune Do Instructor under Sifu (teacher) Richard Torres. My Sifu’s teacher was Ted Wong, a direct student of Bruce Lee. I’ve been studying and training in Jeet Kune Do close to 20 years (still training ’till this day). I was promoted “Instructor” in 2014 and was given permission to teach on my own in 2016. I’ve been teaching martial arts and self-defense since I opened my school, Fist Of Interception Institute, in Northern New Jersey for almost 9 years. My focus is to help non-martial artists and seasoned martial artists prepare (and even prevent) against unarmed and armed combat. The most unique part of this martial art that it is non-traditional. We do not have “katas” (forms), we do not compete… we train for real life physical altercations. We use protective gear and go all out. Our goal…survival. Even when subjected to the intense pressure during our simulated confrontations, survival remains rooted in fundamental skills, which we train consistently.

Besides running a martial arts school, I also teach online. Since 2020, I’ve taught Online Jeet Kune Do Training to many people around the world. On the internet, many martial arts websites only provide instructional videos. The problem with that is, there is no feed back from anyone if you have a question about certain lessons. Using the Zoom app., I teach live and instruct the student on how to punch, kick, defend, etc. Yes, there are difficulties teaching online, however, I enhance the learning process by demonstrating each movement alongside verbal explanation.

Ever since I’ve opened my school, every year in September, I hold a FREE Jeet Kune Do seminar. This seminar is open to the public. It is how I celebrate my school for providing quality martial arts and self-defense to the community. I have many participants who travel locally and internationally to learn Jeet Kune Do at my yearly seminar. Many benefit the realistic approach to self-protection, raising the percentage of survival.

In the age of podcasts, I have a podcast of my own, “The Nucleus Initiative”. Although, it is not a weekly broadcast, I release episodes on certain topics concerning Jeet Kune Do, Bruce Lee and at times Martial Arts in general. Occasionally, I interview special guests who are teachers and students within the Jeet Kune Do community. At times, I share recordings of my lectures as podcast episodes, allowing listeners to experience my classroom teachings.

Out of everything that I’ve done, my main goal is to make sure whoever I am teaching, have the ability to defend themselves in the streets. I see Jeet Kune Do as a life skill. Just like swimming, if you happen to find yourself in the water, you should learn how to swim or at least, tread. Same difference, if you happen to find yourself in a situation where you have to defend yourself, then you should learn how to use your weapons of protection. I find it fulfilling to see students reach their potential, becoming confident to prevent a threat from ever happening.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

The three qualities that were (and still are) impactful in my martial arts journey is this…

Simple, direct, and non-classical.

Simple because everything should be not complicated.
Direct because everything should not take long to execute.
Non-classical because tradition limits our ability to get things done.

I’ve understood the importance of these three words right away because it changed my point of view of what fighting truly is and it allowed me to become adaptable to any situation.

My advice to those who are starting their martial arts training is to take your time. You cannot learn everything in one day. In order for you to be skilled, you must put in the work and by that I mean, you must consistently put in “reps” (repetition). Reps will allow you to refine your abilities. It’s not how many techniques you know, it’s how you can use your tools of protection functionally.

Thanks so much for sharing all these insights with us today. Before we go, is there a book that’s played in important role in your development?

The book that has played an important role in my martial art development is the “Tao of Jeet Kune Do”. The “Tao” (for short) is a collection of notes Bruce Lee written for self-defense. Even though, Bruce Lee did not personally release the book himself (The “Tao” was released years later in 1975 after Bruce’s death by his wife Linda Lee Cadwell and editor, Gilbert L. Johnson), his notes are relevant ’till this day.

Martial art methodologies, constrained by tradition and rules, often prove ineffective in real-world physical confrontations. In contrast, Bruce Lee’s “5 Ways of Attack”, rooted in The “Tao”, offers a proven strategic approach to self-defense, provided it is consistently incorporated into training.

There two passages in the book that have been valuable to me:

“The mastery of proper fundamentals and their progressive application is the secret of being a great fighter.”

“One cannot function freely and totally if he is ‘beyond system.’ The man who is really serious, with the urge to find out what truth is, has no style at all. He lives only what is.”

Look into yourself and find the truth. You’ve always had the answer.

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