Self-defense is literally in his genes. Phoenix native Richard Ryan Finley, known professionally as Richard Ryan, is the grandson of a Phoenix police captain who taught tactical defense training in the 1940s. Ryan's grandfather and father, both former wrestling coaches at Arizona State University, introduced him to the grappling arts when he was eight years old.

In high school, Ryan's focus turned to martial arts. After years of training, he earned black belts in Chinese Kenpo Karate, Korean Tae Kwon-Do and a third degree black sash in Wing Chun, a swift, close-range method of street fighting that traces its roots back to the teachings of a Shao Lin Monastery nun in 1645. This style, studied by Bruce Lee, is the precursor to Kung Fu.

Of his Wing Chun training, Ryan said, "I expected them to tell me the secrets to give me the thing that makes me Superman. But, I found out there is no such thing."

So, Ryan says he decided to develop a self-defense style that would be effective, practical and easier for students to team than traditional Eastern systems. He studied physics, anatomy, kinesiology and psychology and attended classes at Scottsdale Community College. During this time, to pay the bills, he spent 16-hour days training a handful of students. Word spread and the number of students grew.

Today, nearly 20 years later, he has approximately 70 students and teaches defensive tactics seminars to law enforcement, military and other combative professionals. He wrote Master of the Blade: Secrets of the Deadly Art of Knife Fighting, a book about the history and techniques of knife fighting.

Called "the hottest trend of the new Millennium” in the March 2001 issue of Black Belt Magazine, Ryan's Dynamic Combat Method, like martial arts forms such as Wing Chun, is a self-defense system that relies on form and technique rather than strength. The method is different from traditional styles of martial arts in that it incorporates modem combative encounters, including verbal, physical and armed attacks. Ryan claims it is not a fusion of styles, but rather a practical deviation designed from the ground-up.

Beginning students learn basic strikes and blocks, transitioning to sparring exercises the gradually become more challenging. According to one of Ryan's DCM instructors, Scott Shephard, the basics can be learned in a few classes, but students should commit to at least 10 it they want to become proficient. The cost is $30 for an one-hour lesson.

"Scott taught me strikes and stances based on the strength of bone alignment instead of muscle," said Amber Eubanks, a DCM student. "My faith in my ability to defend myself has increased dramatically.”

Ryan does not award belts because he asserts that they have lost their value. Many in the martial arts say that Americanized standards have made belts too easy to come by.

" When someone tells me they have a black belt, it means nothing to me. I know black belts my grandmother could beat up," says Ryan.

Ryan is the embodiment of the martial arts code of discipline and training of the mind and body. At 6'2', 210-pounds, he is 92 percent muscle, according to results of hydrostatic testing at Arizona State University. His weekly schedule includes 7 to 14 hours of skills training, six hours of hiking or cycling, and three hours of weight lifting. To build additional muscle and avoid plateaus, Ryan says that he kicks it up a notch four to six -Months out of the year with additional strength training and a strict diet of protein and vegetables.

"Over half the battle is diet," he said. “You can’t build muscle without protein.”
Following another martial arts concept – your body is a temple – Ryan abstains from smoking and drinking alcohol and avoids fats, sugars and processed foods. "You take your energy from food, eat live things,” he said.

In addition to the national martial arts magazine, Ryan's Dynamic Combat Method has been featured on KTVK-TV’s “Good Morning Arizona,” KSAZ-TV’s "Arizona Morning” and local publications such as the Paradise Valley Independent and Foothills Sentinel.

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