vaporman

Doing is to learn.

Nothing like going in public to know what you look like. As for leaving or staying or anything else if you force it its probably best to move on.

Respect.

''And most likely the Shoalin Monks may not have shared how they do them'' The net is great to learn things but some things can and probably are missing from the net..A good friend lived and trained with shaolin monks and some things my friend told me were simply not on the net after looking.

Its ok to seek people for guidance but in the end learning is self thought by doing and no one will do it for you.Eventually you need to find your own path.

''dependent upon the practitioner!! '' In the beginning and end there you are, always with yourself, Anything you do comes back to you,Looking for the truth and answers they all trace back to you,you and i are centers everything else is outside so to speak. In all searching and meditations, training to burn out 100s of times, and experiences the thing i found was myself path after path so whatever i believe at the present moment is the my truth weather true or false good or bad until something comes along and changes perception. Maybe slight off topic but very much applicable.

''Also stupid Kiai's.'' For practice they can be useful but in real life if you do that you give your breath or position away, personally a slight hissing sound is all you can hear most times. Did them in karate but felt so stupid and the fact that if you didn't do them loud would be bad,lol.....

How about working with him in private first? Use your judgement.

'''And now, almost all day I can't stop thinking about karate. Even at night, if I accidentally open my eyes, my arms move on their own blocking and punching. And not only that, I don't know if this is weird, I have been learning techniques, and each technique that I learn, I'm getting more and more afraid with respect to how deadly the technique is. Is this normal?'''' Yes its normal!

This is why neck training is as essential as anything!

Awesome post In the garden or simply in nature doing absolutely nothing but enjoying warm wind twirling around my body, leaves brushing against the skin,It is here i found enlightenment and being one with nature a part of the system.Hence training and spending time in nature makes sense and feels the best.

'''It might be worth finding a good physical therapist or someone to take a look at you. ''' This. Pain is an indicator something is not working right,Most of the time it will be muscles either cramped and or weak. Have been having serious back spasms for a week,treated the area directly with little effect but it turns out that by moving in FULL range of motion in this case squats i quickly realized my upper hamstring was tight so releasing that should reduce or fix the problem. My spine was actually bent 2 inches in a C curve from the front looking at the mirror it was visually obvious how a spasm can twist,turn,compress,lengthen certain parts(Bone structure) and then the whole system compensates for a while then other spots become trouble before you know it you are tight like a really clumpy knot that's hard to undo because were to start? Then inactivity looks alright but that makes the problem worst.

Thank you bushido_man96 for the further clarification. Aside from the written law depending on the situation its easy to see why it could be extremely insulting.

Thank you that makes sense

''Where I live, getting spit on is considered battery'' How can getting hit with water/saliva be battery? Just curious. Either way use your judgment/common sense/gut feeling w/e, Sometimes looking deep into there eyes with a serious look is more than enough to make em realize what kinda tree they are barking up(or how stupid they are acting), they would either look down and turn around if not you may expect further conflict. Our past can and probably has a lot to do with the way we react and everyone can experience the same thing differently. Having been in similar situations and wanting to tear the other persons head off. Why? because 10 years of eye pain then this guy throws a lit cigarette butt onto my eyeball cherry first...but being in a big crowd and squinting for a few seconds the person was never recognized and that's ok.All it took was a few seconds of distraction(my gf at the time holding me and talking me out of it) to realize that my animal instincts were in full effect. From the moment i get the urge to act on it there's about 2-3 seconds that are critical ime and if you pass these w/o ending a life or getting physical then everything should be ok as far as those primary instincts are involved.This goes both ways the idea is to snap out of it,get snapped out of it or snap the other person(s)out of it as fast as possible.Fight or flight. vap

''Many martial artists are unaware of their power'' Breaking shows one exactly how much skill you have in one or more particular strikes/moves, Including power. If you break rocks with x amount of force then using this force or one of the few kinds( Breaking rock and wood requires different technique because of flex and breaking points) is your choice in whatever situation you face as you are your own master for the most part. Totally agree with the winding up part because one might actually hinder his/her power by becoming tense to early mentally and or physically(takes time that you may not have later when putting it to use). Personally i like to be to alert and relax, Minimal tension with proper movement speed increasing right until impact, Finally exhaling and tensing right before impact. Its ok to do one or 2 pretend/practice strikes before the break to gauge distance or whatever but you should be ready to break after that one practice move because the mind was also prepared.But if you need the mind then its not yet automatic so keep practicing until the required time you need prepare to break shortens as short as possible, Then becoming automatic or as quick as possible.Conscious practice/doing usually becomes subconscious activated meaning automatic because the muscle memory has already been mapped. Thinking on the spot takes time and energy, the less you need to think the more you can focus on the current given situation. vap

Sure ego has to do with everything. Fear of dying is ego based and wanting to thwart off an attacker in one shot for the chance to live is the ego wanting to live.Ego can be your best friend or enemy. It is the end result of all your training, you either break material or yourself, the stronger you become overall will mean you can crush more stuff. Do you need to break to become able to break or be effective when need be? Maybe not but how will you ever know? Its a result that's it, proof that is physical. For me its a life saver meaning its better to make use of emotions and channel them into something rather than someone. It is an outlet!! Keeps me in check because i tame my own ego.Your worst enemy or friend is your own self..sure i get hurt sometimes but i am fighting myself all the time, even to get out of bed because it is life, IMO all of it is and to separate things into boxes is also the ego wanting to understand!! For me its all or nothing and to break is to put all you have in it in that instant, same like washing dishes the attitude is interchangeable to all aspects of life! Whatever your path is it is yours, What you take and leave from others experiences is your choice. For me i tend to go for the truth in everything as fast as i can, When i continued my journey into this subject it was the same to dig deep in the subject theoretical and practical, either by testing then reading about it or reading/seeing pics or videos and testing after both work but one is usually safer,maybe. The internet, Books,friends, Family were and are always good sources of info but take everything with a grain of salt until proven otherwise. I take/use whatever i can find from any system some things stick and a lot goes to the bin, The power of choice! My favorite system is karate for the strikes and its raw effectiveness, Simple but hard due to the repetitions required. The front kick for example (Knee to sternum and release forward) is very simple and its my main kick but takes years to get any sort of real power. So if it takes so long to get good at simple stuff why bother doing anything else than something that has real results. Because these skills mostly need to be maintained for life it become necessary to weed out the extra weeds to get that nice watermelon.Hard cannot exist without soft and vise verse, Yin yang. Conditioning and being able to break is part of it even if its just an after effect(Mental and or physical)The human body is best at adaptation until a certain point, keep bellow this certain point and train/practice there, The longer the more the body becomes resistant to the stress.The body needs some to function right but to much is detrimental,finding this line is paramount. Train/practice for whatever you want to do in life. I want to be able to deliver a blow powerful enough to knock out a horse if need be on an instant because if i need a second blow it will probably be to late and the altercation goes to the ground, The last place i ever want to be.. What if a bear attacks you? Run? They are so fast! they will be on you in a flash then what? hit them whit whatever you have it might annoy the bear and he will leave or just take you to the ground anyways. Point is anything can happen and being ready for it increases odds of survival, even if its climbing a tree then train climbing trees. Yes bears climb but at least it will come head first so the option of kicking it in the face is,well optional. vap

Awesome! Very accurate!! vap

Look on the ground.. rocks and sticks. Been throwing rocks more than any other thing my whole life, at least 25 years experience and its the only thing i can say that has come close to any sort of mastering(Right hand) the left is improving though but still mediocre lol. Always noticed that rocks were everywhere so learning to throw them was #1 skill set personally starting 5 years old. Now sticks are always fun, pick em up and smash em against trees Now a rock might be used while holding in hand to smash also so a stick but throw the stick and you got a spear.

Hey bushido_man96 thank you brother, See you around

Excellent post Hawkmoon. To add to this, Epson salt is recommended for hot baths because the magnesium in it gets absorbed through the skin better then the stomach and people who sweat a lot or do regular workouts can benefit the most and also anyone can probably use it for relaxation, but always consult a professional for safety. As for stretching good form is important too regardless the stretch put as much effort into it as anything a conscious effort, most times holding the form/stretch for 30 seconds to a minute while breathing deeply and correctly through the abdomen area. Learning about hatha yoga and practicing it regularly will loosen the body because of all the postures and techniques, Yoga should keep you moving fluidly for life regardless what you do especially people who train hard it might even be necessary for the long run! Talk to a professional for advise for your situation. Treating trigger points with hot baths helps to because the blood flows good,Mild stretching can help introduce back the full movement of the muscle, Mild is the key to hard it might do the opposite and cramp worst!Be in tune with your body all the time doing these keep your mind in check.. There are opposite muscles to every muscle so if you lengthen one shorten the other side (opposing muscles) as to keep tension on the stretched part to keep it for going back to its original position and giving it time to heal in the proper position. Example; You have a tight biceps, The muscle is maybe massaged and or stretched, After the biceps is loosened tension is introduced in the Triceps with usually full range movement and contraction in the end of rep,10 reps is alright. Very light weight or elastic band could be used for the tension in opposing muscles otherwise the movement is done with the body only like a pretend triceps curl or pulley extensions only the muscle in contracted within itself.Hope this makes sense lol vap

Thank you mazzybear , tallgeese and sensei8!! Happy to be here too brothers and sisters let the experiences fly vap

Both, Sandbags does both at the same time. If your injuring yourself slow down your speed correct your motions. One can only hit has hard has he/she is conditioned,Safely. Initial conditioning can takes years and is generally maintained afterwards, Never mastered,It is for life. Take your time it will come, Be consistent.

To protect...Yourself, Your family, Friends, Your village, Your country...

Find a job that allows 4 hours training time any day.. Keeping healthy, Strong, Flexible,Maintain/increase bone hardness Feel alive experience as much as possible More love