Well first don't let hillbilies dissuade you. Royce Gracie is a master of Gracie ju-jitsu, a form of brazilian ju-jitsu found by his father Helio Gracie. (Though I feel his brother Rorion is better-side thought) Royce is respected throughout the martial arts community and is considered this age's Bruce Lee. He has never lost in the Ultimate Fighting championships (when he competed, around in '95) and beyond that his only person that battled with him to a draw was Ken Shamrock an equally respected person whom I believe is probabaly the best current Martial Artist. You see a skilled grappaler always beats a skilled striker (punch, kick, knee only person) making it the superior idealogy, however a good mix of both and an extensive knowledge of ground fighting is the only way to truely be succesful Grappling Arts (I study all, but primarily Sambo): Sambo, Shoot Fighting, Brazilian Ju-jitsu and some people consider Judo and Wrestling. For more information on grappling and Mixed Martial Arts (where different martial styles compete against each other) go to: www.mma.tv P.S. I feel this about injuring someone, if your just in a fight to prove your self (say at school) I apply a submission hold and the pain causes the person to tap or concede I'm the better man. In a real life confrontation I would apply a submission hold to either render the peson uncounciess (bad speller) or break/pop capsules in a joint. This makes it so I am capable of escape. Martial Arts teaches as a whole not to kill, but to damage just so escape is possible. I am quite capable of killing but only in a life or death situation would I do so. Thanx, Cactus
Cactus Jack ... Reminded me of the following: "Avoid rather than check, check rather than hurt, hurt rather than maim, maim rather than kill. For All Life Is of Value." - Yukiyoshi Takamura - Take care Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
Something to Add: Just something to add to this discussion as a whole: My quote. Bruce Lee abhored styles and ranks. "A green belt in one style could beat a black belt in another" is one of his quotes. My quote is talking about how you shouldn't have a "set style" and that you should adapt to whatever situation that you are presented with in a fight, adapt to the attacker. His Ultimate philosophy was "I do not hit, it hits all by its self" referring to his fist, it means a state in which instinct adapts to attacker and instead of thinking you land the blow where it needs to be. Big hobby of mine obviously. Anyone intereseted in more Read "The Tao of Jeet Kune Do" ~ Cactus
Adam, you're right about the definition of martial. However, what it seems to me that you've missed, is about is the meaning of a martial art, as opposed to a martial skill, such as firing a rifle or a missile. Much of martial art is about learning to control your mind and your body, where things such as focus and projection come into play. The art of martial art is involved with non-physical manipulation, of your opponent, and also of yourself. You seem to have recognised the physical aspect of martial arts but not the mental. This suggests that the hand-to-hand combat that they teach in the Navy was more a martial skill than a martial art. You seem quite a logical and rationally-minded person. This has lots of advantages, but often it can restrict people to just seeing what is obvious, with clearly-defined rules and bounds. Art is generally not of this nature. You don't have to agree with what I'm saying but I challenge you to at least consider it.
Very, good. you stole my post Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! next point: daktaklakpak mentions this above, when talking about how an increase in strength isn't always a good thing. You have to not forget about the increase in inertia which comes along for the ride. a bigger person may hit harder, but for that exact reason they are easier to take off balance. They have to use more energy to divert their own movement, so a little push here or there at the right moment can send a big guy flying, where a little guy would barely notice. Strength can overcome speed if properly channeled, and likewise, speed can conquer strength if aimed properly. Strength is certainly important, but there is a balance between speed and strength which has to be found. The most important step? low weight, high rep work outs. high weight increases size, and short-term burst strength, but you also require more energy to change direction. Low weight gives you smaller, denser muscle which doesn't tire as easily, allowing you to fight the entire fight strong. You also then get the physiological advantage of surprise when you start kicking a really big guy's ass around. you can win a fight in three strikes, with out hurting the guy, simply by scaring the crap out of him by moving so fast he doesn't know what hit him. *bam*ba-*bam*-m* "What the hellll was that!!???" this works esp well when the opponent is drunk. I once one a fight w/o even touching the guy. I did a lot of fast punches, stopping short of his face. He got so sick from the fast movement, that he threw up, and forgot all about fighting. [shrug] Qi Gung (qi gung, ki kung, qi kung, all the same thing) is an ancient doaist practice which is designed to move energy and breath internally to help find one's center. Once you have found your own center, throwing that big guy I mention above is much easier. Also, not being thrown is much easier. THe actual origins of Qi Gung are not fully known in the West. Taiji (Tai Chi) also has a muddled history, though it seems that the general consensus is this: A Chinese doctor (advanced in acupuncture and qi meridian medicine) wanted to know more about Qi pathways in the body, and how they reacted to physical trauma. So he bribed his way into the local jail, and practiced on the prisoners, recording everything that occurred while he was striking the individuals. He over time developed Dim Mak, a very deadly art which is designed around fairly soft, precise strikes which interrupt qi flow and can disable and even kill opponents. (any one who doubts this should find a guy who has studied Dim Mak and ask him/her to strike your right knee, inside left wrist, and below the right jaw line. He should know what will happen before he does it (if he doesn't don't have him perform this experiment on you, he may do it wrong and injure you.) My doubting ichthyology professor had a guy strike those three points, and my prof collapsed. the scientific explanation has been shown to be that you are tricking the body into thinking that it has suffered massive trauma, and it goes into shock.) The problem was that during this time (1300's), there was still a lot of inter-family fighting, and he didn't want Dim Mak to be used against him or his family. so he hid the motions in a slow style of "medicinal" martial arts, mixed with some Qi Gung and some DimMak reversal techniques, and taught that to his family. This was not, however, known as Taiji! It, over time, evolved into what is today the Chen Style of Taiji (though it is not exactly the same), but at the time, it was simply a martial art which base based on internal qi motion. The Yang Style, which is a slower version of Taiji based on more of the medicinal aspects of moving chi flow through you own body, is today the most popular form of Taijiquan (fist style of Taiji). IIRC, it was created in the early 1900's by the son or brother of the guy who revitalized the practice. Lau Chan or something, I forget his name. The Chan family, historically know as the founders of Taiji, disagree with this history, saying that Taiji was a style practiced on the mountain of Wudan by their ancestors. however, there is evidence to support the first version above, there is no evidence of Taijiquan being practice in Wudan until much later than the Chan family claims. As for the differences in sexes: 1)men's muscles mass is denser than women's, as mentioned 2)men have more upper body mass, on average 3)while women tend to survey the scene better then men (who tend to focus), they have a harder time finding openings in their opponent, because they don't focus on one item as much. 4)a women's center of gravity is higher than a mans, a distinct problem when learning how to kick. Most kicking practice methods are based on male anatomy. 5)due to the above, women tend to be able strike a more precise area, but with less force. Softer styles which rely on technique to pass energy from attacker to opponent tend to fit women better. keep in mind that the above is a generalization, and does not fit all women. it fits *most* women, however, based on basic anatomy. Also, women in general tend not to be as fascinated with the art of martial arts as men, and this does seem to be largely hormone based. Women who were subjected to high levels of testosterone in the womb tend to be more interested in physical activity, while women with less testosterone tend to be interested in the basic utility (how do I kick an attacker in the crotch?), and then they loose interest. someone mentioned Taiji vs Karate in terms of "tension" you hit the nail on the head as to the difference between internal and external style of martial arts. the three main internal styles are Qi Gung, Taiji, and Ba Gua. I also tend to place Yoga in there, because it covers pretty much the same topics and has the same goals. it is not for fighting an opponent, but it certainly helps in that endeavor. it also helps in breathing, flexibility, muscle density, balance, and metabolism control, all which are major point of the above internal styles. if anyone is interested in learning Ba Gua, and is in the Phily area, contact Lingshu@aol.com ------ ------- ----- Internal Arts Seminar with Master Luo De Xiu Philadelphia Area Seminar- July 26 + 27 Seminar attendees will receive instruction in Gao style Bagua Zhang and Hebei Xingyi Quan. Theory, training methods, forms and combat applications will be emphasized. Master Luo received his fundamental training from Chang Chun Feng's student, Hung I Hsiang. Hung opened one of the largest and most successful schools in Taiwan and taught for many decades. Master Luo went on to study with many of Chang Chun Feng's other students and Sun Xi Kun's student Liu Qian. cost: $200 w/ preregistration $225 at the door e-mail lingshu@aol.com for more information. ----- -------- ------ External styles are very useful for finding the basics, and learning how to fight (American Kempo is a very good style for learning how to disable an attacker quickly. it is a sport still, but each belt ranking requires that you learn different self defense techniques, almost all of which are pretty dang useful. testicle rips, eye gouges, face rakes, knee buckles, enemy joint control, etc...). Internal style while take your external motions, and magnify them 10 fold. Fill a balloon with water, then hit someone with it. that is the external style. Do the same thing, but add cement mix, and let the balloon sit for a week. then hit someone with it. That minor addition of lime and sand creates something more than it's constituent parts, because you dealt with the adding of those parts in a certain way. The way is taught by external style, the *certain* way is taught by the internal. both are useful together. Neither are very useful apart. edit:spelling
