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Any traditional MA's in the house???

RenegadeRows

RenegadeRows

Well-known member
Just curious to see how many of you guys/gals practice traditional MA's. I'm studying Chinese martial arts; hung gar and taijiquan.
 
Yupyup! Lots and lots of forms and sparring w/o gloves (No punches to the face.)

So what's Hung Gar like? I've tried kung fu before but only got the basic five stances form before I had to quit to do something.

I wanted to try tai chi too to balance everything cuz every single thing I was training was hard. I ended up doing Iai-do instead. Very, very good for focusing the mind.
 
flobot said:
Yupyup! Lots and lots of forms and sparring w/o gloves (No punches to the face.)

So what's Hung Gar like? I've tried kung fu before but only got the basic five stances form before I had to quit to do something.

I wanted to try tai chi too to balance everything cuz every single thing I was training was hard. I ended up doing Iai-do instead. Very, very good for focusing the mind.
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I saw the FightQuest when they trained with the kyokushin guys. Very no frills approach. I would be worried about those punches to the chest, as it's known an upward punch to the sternum can cause heart attack!

Taichi and hung gar are both close range fighting. Hung gar is southern shaolin. There are 4 "Pillar" forms: Gung Gee, which is the first form, and an epic 300 moves to build endurance and a base of the form. Tiger/Crane, which has tiger and crane movements (hard and soft), 5 Animal form (snake, tiger, crane, panther, and dragon.), and the last which is called Iron Wire form is all dragon form which is internal. Primarily close range so alot of elbows, trapping, etc. The style is known for a solid horse stance and also "kiu sau" which is a bridge hand exercise to build forearms and hand strength.

The form of taichi i study is the short beijing 24 form. In the 50's the Chinese government got all of the yang style masters in China to reduce the long form (108 movements, 15 minutes to complete) into a shorter form that would enable citizens to learn easily and practice daily for health, in order to lower health insurance in their country. It takes about 5 minutes to perform, and i practice it with fighting applications as well, which is rare at least in most tai chi places in america where the emphasis is on health.

Both styles have strikes, but also Chin na (joint manipulation/ locking) and shui-jiao (throws, wrestling.)

What is Iai-do?
 
Iai do is the art of drawing a sword.

It differs from kendo or kenjutsu because the forms always start with your sword sheathed.

Also it's less combative than kendo or kenjutsu as the emphasis is on defense and being one w/ your sword.

I guess iai-do, kenjutsu and kendo all go hand in hand. If you want to be a complete swordsman, you need to learn all three. Iai-do would be the 'gentler' cousin of the other two arts but no less 'deadly.' (I wouldn't think of drawing a sword in public though lol.)

Hung Gar sounds interesting,w here do you train? And I didn't know that tai chi had combat applications although the forms Do look like they were designed for fighting despite being down in ultra slow mo.
 
flobot said:
Iai do is the art of drawing a sword.

It differs from kendo or kenjutsu because the forms always start with your sword sheathed.

Also it's less combative than kendo or kenjutsu as the emphasis is on defense and being one w/ your sword.

I guess iai-do, kenjutsu and kendo all go hand in hand. If you want to be a complete swordsman, you need to learn all three. Iai-do would be the 'gentler' cousin of the other two arts but no less 'deadly.' (I wouldn't think of drawing a sword in public though lol.)
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That sounds awesome. I've always liked samurai swords. Do you own one? What kind is it?

Hung Gar sounds interesting,w here do you train? And I didn't know that tai chi had combat applications although the forms Do look like they were designed for fighting despite being down in ultra slow mo.
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I train at my house, but travel every 2 months for a weekend and study with my sifu in CT. If your interested in the name/info you can PM me. Yes tai chi has applications although it's not easy to learn. But essentially you have 37 moves and you practice the moves over and over, using full body power and perfecting body structure. Taijiquan actually translates into "Grand Ultimate Fist". I've seen since i've started my strikes have had more power in them, starting from a solid root/stance, my waist twisting very fast and hand snapping out. I attribute to this to studying tai chi. I love hung gar, there's nothing like a fast paced system based on a tiger LOL, but I think Tai chi is my "everyday" system - i use it all the time, to remain relaxed and balanced while shopping, at work, or visiting friends. It carried over to my everyday activities.
 
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I have a Paul Chen replica sword and a mass-produced WW2 Japanese sword. Both are 1050 steel. Older ones are wayyyyyyyyyyyy too expensive.

Do you have a tai chi contact here in Vancouver, BC? Iai-do is similar to tai chi if you say there are only 37 moves.

The basic sequence for an Iai-do form is:
Draw-Incapacitating Blow-Killing Blow-Remove Blood-Sheath

Throw in a block here and there and body positioning (Kneeling, standing, sitting, turning around) here and there and that's Iai-Do. It's like bowling or golf, easy to learn but very difficult to be a master of. Things like the speed of the draw and the precision of the cuts.
 
I just started up taking something. I originally wanted kyokushin, but ended up with judo, and I'm very happy.
 
flobot said:
I have a Paul Chen replica sword and a mass-produced WW2 Japanese sword. Both are 1050 steel. Older ones are wayyyyyyyyyyyy too expensive.

Do you have a tai chi contact here in Vancouver, BC? Iai-do is similar to tai chi if you say there are only 37 moves.

The basic sequence for an Iai-do form is:
Draw-Incapacitating Blow-Killing Blow-Remove Blood-Sheath

Throw in a block here and there and body positioning (Kneeling, standing, sitting, turning around) here and there and that's Iai-Do. It's like bowling or golf, easy to learn but very difficult to be a master of. Things like the speed of the draw and the precision of the cuts.
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I'd look into this one: Invalid Link Removed

Their page says they practice bagua and weapons/push hands so it seems they teach it as a martial art, and not as a healthy dance. :)

Traditionally there are 37 core moves, yet the form is 108 ... because alot of them repeat themselves. However there are "short forms", basically reduced versions that are quicker to perform. I prefer those.

Paul Chen sword, the hanwei one? I was looking into getting a Masahiro sword to hang on my wall
 
I started off in traditional MA when i was a child, due to my father being a 3rd degree BB in Karate. I got up to green belt w/two purple stripes, then was bored and started wrestling/basketball in grade school. Not enough sparing i guess lol.

Being a very competitive and athletic person, I often think/feel this BB is not enough and contemplate in starting MMA or traditional MA of sorts. My challange would be time, but there are three decent MMA gyms around my schedule.
 
Kosen Jujitsu in the house. I would never leave that place to try brazillian.

The teacher is pretty relaxed on if we wear a gi or not. Now that the weather is cold I will wear it.
 
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