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| Advanced martial art (2) | ||
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New
starter?
If you are new to martial arts
training and seek to begin with an 'advanced martial art', you may want to think
about that some more.
There are many martial arts systems that work very well in
combat without claiming to be advanced.
Any of these would be easier to learn than tai chi.
Be realistic
Starting your martial arts
journey with an advanced method brings with it certain considerations:
Weekly attendance
Prepared to practice at home between classes
Not studying another martial art (no time)
Point 2 is particularly pertinent. If you are
unwilling to train at home between classes, your progress will be
exceptionally slow.
The basics
The basics are not
especially difficult but few people manage to learn
them thoroughly.
Indeed, most beginners quit without completing the
preliminary training.
Without these basics,
nothing will
work.
Nothing can substitute for
serious practice. Practice seriously, correctly and patiently. Use your
brain, not just your body. Don't hide weaknesses in your training. Don't lie
to yourself. If you cheat, you only cheat yourself.
(Adam Hsu)
Drilling
The best way to get the hang of the basics is to drill them every day. The
more time you commit during the early stages of practice, the more progress
will be made long-term.
Drilling literally entails doing the movements again and again; slowly,
mindfully and carefully.
Partial artist
An advanced martial art cannot be trained just once a week. Beginners who
only train weekly in class may enjoy the class but they will never learn
tai chi to a functional level.
Even a student of judo trains 2-3 times a week in class.
McDojo mentality
Modern students often expect high-level skills
to emerge almost immediately. In any martial art this is improbable. For an
advanced martial art it is certainly not realistic.
Progress cannot happen overnight. Your rate of progress is entirely
contingent upon how much time and effort you invest.
Insincere
Our modern age accepts insincere talk as part of our culture. People lie,
excuse, exaggerate and evade responsibility - and we accept it as being just
part of life.
This kind of attitude will never lead to advanced martial arts skill.
Lazy
Almost every problem facing the beginner can be whittled down to laziness.
In a transparent attempt to save face, a beginner will manufacture almost
any excuse to hide their indolence.
The solution is practice. It is the answer to virtually every question.
External
The lower kung fu grades are not advanced. How could they be? They
are introductory. The student is training 'externally' because they lack the
physical skill to be internal.
Internal takes time. It requires years of careful work.
Foundation skills
Certain skills must be practiced extensively:
• A wide variety of standing and moving qigong exercises
• Skill with form
• A diverse grasp of form applications; how they operate and why
• Internal biomechanics
• Thorough and convincing combat skill
• Whole-body movement
• Pushing hands
• Weapons drills
• Stretching exercises
• Self-massage
• Sensitivity, stickiness and pressure
• Excellent balance
• Impact/striking skill
• A good sense of jing
• Comprehensive knowledge of shuai jiao
• Strong ability with the different aspects of chin na
You will begin to feel that your tai chi practice
goes beyond simple form training, and you will be able to perceive things as
energetic combinations, rather than as static physical objects. Your
training partners will appear to your senses as dynamic patterns of energy,
rather than as clumsy physical bodies. When this happens, you can skilfully
switch strategy and tactics in any situation.
(Yang Jwing-Ming)
3 methods
Our students study 3 kung fu
methods:
Chin na (seizing)
Shuai jiao (take downs)
They all use the body in an internal way. Chin na and shuai jiao are fighting methods rather than a separate system.
Page created
21 May 1998
Last updated
30 November 2023
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