White Warlock

There have been reports presented indicating both the positive and negative effects of a daily glass of red wine. What's important is not merely the reports, but who presents those reports and who sponsors the research. I have not spent the time to research this, so i cannot offer any insight other than what i presented above about doing your homework and using common sense when doing so.

San soo is just different. Wing chun is just different. Really, the ways and hows of thinking and applying requires you to adjust. No matter when you end up going to study either, you'll find the transition a tad disorienting. However, because you've already obtained a significant degree of training (i'm assuming) in a Chinese martial art, you'll soon find yourself noting similarities and you'll be far quicker in being able to merge the two systems. They are both excellent systems, but also get some groundwork in there somewhere. Study wrestling, judo, bjj, or sambo to make yourself more well-rounded.

I mean breaking boards is cliche', and it's not really a thing you want the kids to try and replicate at home, or while walking home (visualize a few picket fences now in need of mending). Since it's not something you spent time in, you may also end up displaying improper technique. I would say, stick with what you know, and do it well. A hands-on demonstration (participatory) has far more longterm impact than a 'show.'

An informative link on metals for you frakis- http://www.angelic.org/highlander/metallurgy/grades.html

Just to start it out with a san soo plug... Kathy Long's foundation art is san soo. And if you don't know who she is, be ashamed. Chuck Norris' foundation art is tang soo do. It was the system he studied almost exclusively for decades before studying other arts. Van Damme having studied ballet is correct. When he entered into making martial art movies, he only had 'actor training' in martial arts. He has since had actual training. Jet Li studied wu shu exclusively Jackie Chan studied wu shu, as well as other martial art systems. Steven Seagal is an 8th degree bb in aikido. he also studied karate (what type, i don't know) and obtained ranking (specific rank, i don't know). His movie antics are mix of both. Jeff Speakman is a 6th degree bb in goju ryu karate and a 6th degree bb in American kenpo karate

hmm...

Paul, how about.... 'not' breaking boards?

Wrist grabbing as a starter is actually a common action of wrestlers, allowing immediate sensitivity to their assailant's temperment and readiness. And yes, a bad habit for street. Regarding the tape that Reklats posted... From the point the bjjer had locked up for a takedown, the confrontation was decided. The karate practitioner was seriously misguided to think of moving forward and directly into the bjjer's range of dominance. He should have maintained his position and let the bjjer attempt to enter. As well, he lacked some common sense for a one-on-one, parking himself with the wall to his back. Also, his center of balance was way too friggin' high.

WhiteBelt brings up an excellent point. Pain is always a factor, and while repeatedly striking hard objects may somewhat desensitize, or mutilate, your nerves about the knuckles, you may also have adjusted the degree of force you apply when hitting, to 'avoid' the pain associated with hitting. This falls in with the hard/soft principle of striking, in which you must endeavor to strike with a hard part of your body against a soft part of your opposition's body, and vice versa. One of the reasons for this principle, is to avoid having to 'fight' your own mind. If you know you are striking a soft part of the opponent's body, with your fist, you will be far less likely to hold-back, knowing there is a significantly smaller chance of obtaining pain. What is it that Tony Robbins likes to say? The two main motivating factors in life are 'pain' and 'pleasure?' While i don't necessarily agree, the threat of pain does indeed become a de-motivating factor when striking.

... yourself in a headlock?!? I'm sorry, but theory does not make up for practice. Wing chun simply doesn't 'practice' ground techniques to the degree that bjj does. Also, bjj goes far more indepth into such than wing chun does. While bjj wouldn't necessary compliment wing chun, it would open up your repertiore. I think the hard part would be in 'adjusting' to the different concepts presented, but being rigid is never a good thing... so welcome the differences.

Agreed, it was b.s. Seems the blonde guy wasn't attempting to be hostile or combative and the other guy initiated the confrontation. Also, as Eras3r noted, when the blonde guy had him in a headlock, the so-called spectator threatened to break his nose if he didn't release him from the headlock. The same so-called spectator then started 'coaching' his friend to do more damage. All in all, this was simply not cool and the guy who beat up the blonde guy should serve some 'wake-up' time for his behavior, with his friend getting some community time for encouraging and threatening to do bodily harm, as well as later damaging property (breaking the board). I noticed as well there were some competition personnel there, so that blonde guy has a pretty good chance of sueing the sponsors of the competition. As to the skills applied, pretty dang slow, sloppy, and unskilled on both parts. The initial wristgrab was a test of the blonde-guy's aggressiveness, which was insufficient to keep the rest from happening. The double leg takedown was when everything pretty much started. It was applied like a wrestler would, with the same glaring mistakes. Unfortunately, the blonde guy didn't know how to deal with it, other than to go for a headlock. The headlock would not have occurred had the other guy not charged in with his head as he did. After the blonde guy was threatened to release the headlock, or get a broken nose by the spectator, it was pretty obvious the blonde guy didn't have a choice other than to take a beating in this not-really one-on-one. All he could do was try to limit the amount of damage received, or face a far more dangerous double-up.

frakis, just noticed your Sig. Stainless steel is good for display, because it will stay shiny and pretty, but it is a brittle metal and not recommended for 'actual' use.

There are anti-perspirants and then there are deodorants. An anti-perspirant, applied liberally to your feet, may help but make sure it is in powder form. You might want to also try wearing Dr Scholl's socks, with the little rubber grippers on the bottom. The fact you are slipping alot makes me wonder what kind of floor you are dealing with. Cheap mats can cause this, as well as you possibly having an allergy to the material. I like wrestling shoes as well (mentioned by others), but i do agree it's not always appropriate.

As long as your knuckles aren't locked up, or dragging across the floor when you walk, i would say you're normal and have merely developed a tolerance, as Vito indicated.

modern day boxing, wrestling, and sambo carry on remnants of techniques applied in said ancient competitions. Pancratium, in and of itself, was basically the name of the no holds barred competition, and not an outright style of fighting, per se. It held far less rules and restrictions as the so-called no holds competitions found nowadays. I.e., eye-gouging, limb-removal, and tearing out of organs was 'allowed' and actually did occur, according to available information on said events. And yes, as Mentel mentioned, deaths occurred as well.

hmm... unable to download the file. everytime i do, i only get a portion of it, with the rest not being displayed. ah well...

san soo = tsoi li fut hung ga I would disagree, based on the fact many other systems, or approaches to combat, have been presented with different origins. Also, i have found 'no' system that has indicated it originated from tsoi li fut hung ga. In fact, the opposite was presented in one place, stating that Jimmy Woo had earlier on been a practitioner of tsoi li fut, and then modified his studies with his own 'observations' as a... thug. The similar origins of both systems seem to substantiate this. The statements of san soo practitioners being merely thugs is clearly bogus. But i understand much of this labeling is based on statements Jimmy Woo had made on more than one occasion, in which he had indicated having worked as a 'thug,' or 'collector' prior to moving to the States. These comments are not to take away from the art, which i have studied as well and found to be one of the most comprehensive of the systems i've had the opportunity to study thusfar.

Hi Master Jules, I did a little research on both of these items and found what they do is increase the fluids surrounding the joints. While this may indeed alleviate the pain associated with rubbing of the the arthritic bones against each other, or against adjacent muscles/tendons, it's important to realize that it has been argued it can also 'increase' the amount of calcium build-up at joints (due to deposits from the excess liquid), which in turn can accelerate deteriorization, as well as provide a 'false' sense of wellness, encouraging overuse of injured joints. Until such time as qualified and detailed long-term effect clinical studies have been made, i've opted to avoid both of these.

Thanks Italian Guy and thank you Patrick for publishing this article. I made some silly grammatical corrections. Not sure if that was acceptable or not, but missing commas bother me.

This post was originally published as an article in a dedicated KarateForums.com Articles section, which is no longer online. After the section was closed, this article was most to the most appropriate forum in our community. The mixed martial art competitions, which have dominated the minds of many martial artists for the past decade, are also a mixed blessing. In their presentation, they awakened many to the fallacies of techniques and the errors in presumption. However, they also trivialized some of the more lethal of techniques as being inapplicable in the ring merely because they are inappropriate, given the setting. Awareness has been brought forth on the importance of eclectic studies, as opposed to concrete specialization. As well, mixed martial arts has provided an endless stream of debate as to what works, what doesn't work, who is bigger and who is badder. But, in many cases, what it has failed to do is recognize who to learn from. In this day and age, with all the mixed martial art competitions, there is one grand wrong occurring. As our attentions are on the young and vibrant fighters, smashing their fists into yielding flesh and causing bodily fluids to shoot out into the ravenous crowds, elder instructors are being dismissed, lost in the fanfare and exuberance of predacious spectators, ignorant of even the most basic combat skills. It is the box office magnates that are deciding who are the masters and who are the posers and it is the fans who flock to them, praising the young winners and openly chastising the losers, or the non-combatants, as the elder masters are now being called. Countless fighters, and a few brawlers, are building names for themselves while they cover their expenses. Modern day prizefighters showing their wares and entertaining the ignorant masses for a paycheck. With this comes the assumption that these prize fighters, at the peak of their physical performance, are somehow better instructors, more knowledgeable martial artists, than those who have practiced for decades longer and who now teach quietly throughout the world in schools, in parks or in their garage. Their health and vitality having declined over the years, these venerable instructors, gems of knowledge and insight, are lost to us. For, while we encourage the spectator sports of physical confrontation and brutal testosterone, we discourage the deeper insights and more important aspects of martial art studies. Those of entering into oneself and finding core answers to the actions of man, as a whole. We dismiss the knowledge obtained by our elders and, instead, surround the young martial art stars... reaching through the crowds to obtain a signature or a smattering of sweat. Pop stars of combat, these overnight heroes, have taken center stage while yet another entertainment mogul counts his changes and gloats. Yet another capitalization on the martial arts. Yet another get rich quick scheme. Master Tri Thong Dang brought to my attention the vast amount of knowledge an elder martial artist attains. I met this diminutive elderly Vietnamese gentleman during or around 1997. He had just published his second book and was in the process of completing his third. I had already read one of his books, Beyond the Known, and found it to be a charming folk tale. It was centered on the experiences of a youth undergoing acceptance as a student into a martial art master's home. The subtle insights in this book, and the second book of this series that he completed later that year, hinted at a vast knowledge hidden behind the hands that had written these works. Personal responsibilities forced me to leave his instruction. He pulled a copy of his tai chi book, signed it and I left, vowing to return. I eventually did return, over a year later, only to find that the doors to his dojo were closed. I asked around and found, to my utter dismay, that he had passed away. A small, quiet man that I had known for so short a time and yet he had made a far more lasting impression than any other instructor I had ever encountered. Time is a merciless entity. We dismiss it and yet it takes away from us at every opportunity. Great masters are being lost to us and we do little to preserve their knowledge or what they have contributed to the martial arts community on such a microcosmic level. A thousand videos exist of our newfound masters, most of which have yet to reach their 30's and yet only a handful exist of the true masters. Those who have dedicated their entire lives, five times the experience of even seasoned artists, cannot be reasonably captured in video or in print, but the mere fact we do not try... begs the question. Are these elderly masters to be lost in a quiet, lonely senior citizen home? Are they to be forgotten, pampered and given a nursemaid? Do we dismiss them as grandparents and lose forever the vast knowledge they have accumulated in their studies? Is it the way of modern martial arts to learn only from the students?

only if you inflict serious bodily harm Umm, assault doesn't require 'contact.'

Welcome. to answer your questions, we would need a friggin' clue as to where you are.

lol, i like it. Reminds me of the, "which part of 'no' didn't you understand?" line that i adopted from a friend's dad.

Ahh, but we don't train for the 'average' fight. If such was the case, then why spend decades stepping into the mat and taking great pains to receive great pains? In the case of an average fight, it is true that we will likely not require 'endurance,' but for the unaverage fight, without maintaining a good physical condition, we would have given ourselves an undue disadvantage. One that could have easily been prevented.

*burp*