A Mistake Most Martial Artist Make About Tai Chi Chuan

In many circles in the martial arts world there are people who do not believe Tai Chi is an effective fighting art. I admit, at one point in my life I didn’t understand how such a slow moving exercise like Tai Chi Chuan could possibly help a persons ability to defend themselves in a real fight.

Yang Style Tai Chi ChuanI think the biggest reason why someone would think Tai Chi isn’t an effective martial arts is because the truth is you don’t really know how to fight effective even after 5 years of taking a typical Tai Chi class.

These classes usually consist of some form of stretching then some Qigong training then doing the actual in our case Yang style Tai Chi chuan form. If you are advanced enough, then you can play push hands. Continue reading A Mistake Most Martial Artist Make About Tai Chi Chuan

Does Kung Fu Really Work?

Over the years I have come across many different people from different martial art backgrounds. My own personal training is a mixture of internal martial arts and external martial arts.

I would say when I first got involved with kung fu I was more influenced by external martial arts. However over the many years I have been training I have became more of an internal martial artist.

When I was younger I had my youth backing me up. You know when your young you feel like you can pull a school bus around all day.

As you get older you begin to realize your really not immortal. I think this is why internal martial arts is harder for younger people to learn. To gain skill in soft martial arts you have to have a lot of patience. That is something that young people don’t have much of. Continue reading Does Kung Fu Really Work?

Vitality The Elixer Of Life – Kung Fu For The Soul

Vitality The MovieI recently finished watching the movie Vitality on Netflix. In the movie they make the connection between Diet, Exercise, Mindset and Sleep.

What I found extremely interesting about this movie is it touches on a subject matter that is close to my heart.

Interestingly enough, I instantly made a connection between this movie and my martial arts training. For the past 20 years I’ve been study Kung Fu. To be more exact I have been studying Shaolin principles via Wing Chun, Tai Chi, Chin’na and Qigong.

In these martial arts, the practitioner strives to balance their mind, body and spirit. Which is also what a person of faith does. Continue reading Vitality The Elixer Of Life – Kung Fu For The Soul

Kung Fu Technique – Self Defense For When Someone Pushes You With Both Hands

There comes a time when you simply can’t keep letting someone push you around. This handy technique is a easy solution to this problem. Though I warn you advance…

In this kung fu lesson you will have to pay attention to some basic concepts. For instance when someone leans into push you, you need to take a step back.

Sounds easy enough right? Continue reading Kung Fu Technique – Self Defense For When Someone Pushes You With Both Hands

What Does 3 Floors Have To Do With Kung Fu

kung fu trainingAlright, one of the things I love about my Sifu is the terms he uses to explain different aspects of our kung fu training. In our most recent filming he mentioned the the phrase 3 floors.

I’ve never actually heard him say that before, but when he did I thought it made perfect sense.

Basically this video is about getting the energy to your wrist. If you notice one thing about what we talk about it’s how important wrist control is in our martial art. Continue reading What Does 3 Floors Have To Do With Kung Fu