TRADITIONAL MARTIAL ARTS

TRADITIONAL MARTIAL ARTS

Monday, September 17, 2012

DON'T CONCENTRATE OUT THERE, FEEL IN HERE!

     Just when you thought I was out of stories regarding my teacher, here comes another one! 
;-)  I've gots lots of 'em!  This one occured to me yesterday as I was teaching class and found myself repeating my teacher's words. 

     Once a student had learned to perform a number of fundamental techniques correctly, my teacher emphasized the movement and shifting of the body rather than the technique.  For instance, I recall practicing pengquan (the basic punching technique of Xingyiquan) with my classmates.  It was a basic technique we'd practiced many times before and we didn't really have to "think" much about how to do it.  We just fired one punch after another, trying to maximize the striking power of our fists.

     Sifu Chen walked over to us and quietly observed our practice for a short time.  That was usually a bad sign and this time was no different. 

     He held out his fist, pointed at it, and said, "Don't think of power out here!"

     Fine...so where do we concentrate our power???

     Chen then grasped his belly with both hands and said, "Power is in here!  Concentrate in here!  Feel in here!"

     I guess we all looked equally confused because Chen sighed (another bad sign) and walked up to one of my classmates.

     "Punch," he said.  "Punch strong."

     My classmate shot out a punch which I thought was darned sharp.  And strong.  Clearly, Chen disagreed because he shook his head and the look on his face was a bit sour.  He looked at his student as if he was a complete dunce.

     "No," Chen said. Grabbing the student's fist and shaking it, he repeated, "Don't think about power out here!"  Then, pointing to his pupils lower abdomen, he said, "Power comes from here!   Think of the movement in here!" 

     Even after they have acquired a fair measure of skill with the basic techniques, many students tend to focus their attention on the striking weapon/surface during practice.  That is, they concentrate on the fist when they punch or they direct all of their attention on the striking surface of the foot when they kick.  If they've learned the technique properly, there's really no need for this.  It's akin to looking at the accelerator, brake pedal, and speedometer once you have learned to drive.  You shouldn't need to.  You learn to "feel" what you need to do rather than looking at it. 

     In executing the various techniques, emphasis is eventually shifted to the body movement (In Yiliquan this is known as "body action" and there are eight of them) and feeling it...the technique is executed from there, from the soles of the feet and the core of the body rather than with the fist or foot. 

     This is how you learn to gradually "condense" the body's movements, making them smaller and smaller so that the power which is generated is more concentrated and hence, more explosive.

     If you spread a flammable or explosive substance out over a large surface it can be very dangerous when it's ignited...but pour it into a small container, light it up, and see what happens! 

     You need to pay attention to the pressure in your feet/foot when you execute your technique.  Feel the body action and strive to make it sharper and faster as you feel how it connects to your feet and legs and waist (and gua).  Feel how they interconnected, how the movement inside your body originates in the soles of your feet and how it moves up the legs (especially pay attention to the feeling in your ankles and knees), your waist, back, shoulders (are they rounded forward properly)....

     Feel the movement of your dantien.  Remember, it's like a ball which can turn and roll in any direction.  Learn to control its movement.  Don't let it just move willy-nilly on its own.  If you do, your movement will be unbalanced, sloppy, and uncontrolled.   

     And this should happen very quickly, like the snapping of a bullwhip.  
 
     Then look at your breathing and how it connects to your (internal) movement.  It's not just a noise.  It's much more than just exhaling so much air.  It's concentrated power! 

     Don't concern yourself with your striking knuckles, the ball of your foot, or whatever.  Those are just the surfaces that happen to make contact with your target.  If you focus your mind on these things, you'll likely "overpower" your technique, making it top-heavy (and thus, unstable), overly-tense and wooden (which kills much of your power), awkward, and even slow. 

     Learn to feel what's happening insideTrain to control what's happening insideTrain just one technique at a time, over and over until you get the feel of it...inside.

 

Monday, September 10, 2012

AN INCH OF TRUTH

     The last time you attended class, how many punches did you execute? How many front snap kicks or side thrust kicks? How many of each kind of block? I don’t know, either. I don’t keep count. So, with all of those repetitions…did you really pay close attention to your technique or did you just kind of lob it out there?  Yeah, I know. Everybody was paying very close attention to their techniques, right?  Let’s have a look.
     Pick a technique…pretty much any technique. A forefist thrust, sword-hand strike, high block, side thrust kick…almost any technique will do. Perform it slowly. Very slowly…like at “taijiquan” speed. 
     “So what?” you ask. “Big deal. I can do it in slow motion…so what’s this about?” Well, have a training partner do it. Pick just one or two techniques. Have him or her do it very slowly and watch carefully…especially the last inch or so of the technique
     Within the last inch of the technique is the truth of it…a snap, a twist…something. Is it there? Is it in the right spot…in the last inch or so? Or did it happen too early? Did it not happen at all? Sometimes it’s to be found in the wrist or ankle. Sometimes it’s in the hips..or shoulder(s), or chest and upper back. Sometimes it includes several parts of your body…all moving in perfect synch in the last inch of movement. But it’s there. Without it, the technique loses much or most of its power and effectiveness.
     Did you find it? If you did, that’s good! Now select a form and do it very slowly. Look at the last inch of each and every movement (not just the individual techniques). You may be surprised at what you find.
     And once you discover the many truths in the last inch, practice them when you go full-tilt boogie. It may well change the way you look at your techniques and forms…ny punches did you execute? How many front snap kicks or side thrust kicks? How many of each kind of block? I don’t know, either. I don’t keep count. So, with all of those repetitions…did you really pay close attention to your technique or did you just kind of lob it out there?

Yeah, I know. Everybody was paying very close attention to their techniques, right? J Let’s have a look.

Pick a technique…pretty much any technique. A forefist thrust, sword-hand strike, high block, side thrust kick…almost any technique will do. Perform it slowly. Very slowly…like at “taijiquan” speed.

“So what?” you ask. “Big deal. I can do it in slow motion…so what’s this about?” Well, have a training partner do it. Pick just one or two techniques. Have him or her do it very slowly and watch carefully…especially the last inch or so of the technique.

Within the last inch of the technique is the truth of it…a snap, a twist…something. Is it there? Is it in the right spot…in the last inch or so? Or did it happen too early? Did it not happen at all? Sometimes it’s to be found in the wrist or ankle. Sometimes it’s in the hips..or shoulder(s), or chest and upper back. Sometimes it includes several parts of your body…all moving in perfect synch in the last inch of movement. But it’s there. Without it, the technique loses much or most of it’s power and effectiveness.

Did you find it? If you did, that’s good! Now select a form and do it very slowly. Look at the last inch of each and every movement (not just the individual techniques). You may be surprised at what you find.

And once you discover the many truths in the last inch, practice them when you go full-tilt boogie. It may well change the way you look at your techniques and forms…


 

 

Sunday, September 2, 2012

EXTRA BAGGAGE

     I looked at the young man who had entered my training hall to inquire about classes.  We retired to my office so that I could explain something about the art I teach, and what is involved in training.  "I have a bad left knee," he explained.  "So, would it be okay if I don't do kicks and other techniques with that leg?"
     Ask any martial arts teacher and he’ll give you many varied versions of this same story.  Aspiring pupils come in and lay their "baggage" on the table straight away…
everything from bad backs to tennis elbow to arthritic hips to poor eyesight.  They all seem to believe that their problem is unique and that the teacher should make special allowances for them.  They are, they believe, different from the other students who are out on the floor.  They have special needs.
     Basically, prospective students who enter the training hall with excess baggage come in one of two flavors.  There are those who ask that they be given special treatment and who believe that the teacher may, in some way, be able to "fix" their problem(s) or work around it.
     Then there are those who approach the school and teacher much as one would approach a waitress.  The school and the teacher are, insofar as they're concerned, primarily a business.  They order up what they want and how they want it and fully expect the business proprietor to comply.
     In both cases, the inquiring student is usually very surprised (and sometimes shocked) when I make it clear that no special allowances are made for anybody.  That's just the way it is in the world of martial arts.  If you have a bad knee your kicks probably won't ever be as good as those of the fellow standing next to you but you'll still be expected to give it your best effort.  I've had students who wore prosthetic arms and legs and they were expected to learn how to execute all the movements and techniques of the art with their prostheses.  And they did very well!
     Martial arts teachers usually respond to the "extra baggage" applicant in one of two ways.  Some teachers will tell the student that they'll find a way to "work around" their problem; they may be excused from certain aspects of training that they find too difficult.  This kind of approach is, in my opinion, the mark of a weak instructor. 
     The other type of teacher will politely inform the student that he or she will simply have to learn to make do; that exemptions are made for no one, regardless of the baggage they bring with them.  I think that this is one of the marks of a superior instructor.
     Someday, I'm going to put a basket inside the front door of the training hall and post a sign on it: "Leave Extra Baggage Here."