Ted T.

The lesson isn't in the winning but in the doing. Go. Have fun. Go again. Relax. Do your best. Go again.

When yo start to exercise, your muscles fil with blood. this leaves your brain a little empty and so it gets a bit oxygen starved. so you yawn. The number one best exercise to learn for a ma class is - learn to yawn thru your nose with your mouth clamped shut. (I kid you not!)

It's all been said: kick low, kick slow and kick for a long time. Good luck,

Ummm, the short answer is you can't physically do it. Not safely. Not successfully. Don't waste time looking for physical answers to an impossible question. Here is how you fight multiple attackers properly: 1. You avoid them. 2. You don't get drunk in public. 3. You don't hitchhike. 4. You learn a behaviorally based sd system that uses psychological manipulations and verbal judo to save yourself. This is a true story from a number of years ago in Montreal. A young lady was jogging and saw a van scoping her out, driving slow and returning around the block. She ignored it (her mistake) and was scooped by 4 college kids. They were drinking beer and were going to drive her out into the country and rape her. The van was outfitted with a mattress, they were not first timers. She was scared spitless but not witless. After a bit, (the drive was slow, thru town) she asked for a beer - "If I'm gonna have to do this, I might as well relax a litte." They thought this was great so she drank a bit of beer and spilled a lot and got another bottle and told them they didn't seem to be really bad guys after all, she'd probably like them if they weren't going to hurt her. After a bit more beer she told them she was really relaxing and getting ready to party, the only thing missing was her (not really a nympho) roommate who just loved to party and drink and get it on. She talked about how hot the friend was and how much fun it would be if they could go get her so they decided to go do that. She took them to her apartment and they all walked into the living room where her brother and six friends were watching football. They survived but payed a big price. And that is the number one way to defeat multiple attackers...use your wits.

From my teacher Gordon Muir: Ted I saw a series of posts concerning Master Chen and his teaching methods. I'll try to address as many of the issues as I can remember Master Chens approach is to first teach the circles. These provide the foundation for everything that follows. The circles are also known as silk reeling or jibengong (foundation practise). Master Chens practise of form and partner work varies from slow to medium. I rarely see people practising fast. The cruel truth is that ones body and reflexes have to change so fundamentally that one cannot move fast without making errors for a long time. That is why we focus on the foundation material and move a bit slow in the beginning. As people progesss their practise speeds up. Form is eventually done with fa jing at a fast tempo. Partner drills are eventually done at close to full speed. For my impression of why someone should attend an intensive or camp with Master Chen please see the following. http://www.chentaichi.org/whycamp.php Hope this helps. Gordon Muir

We put it together with our winter training - turn the heat off in the dojo the night before and leave a window open, then dojo opens at 5:30 and train to 6:30 shugyo style for one week. Every day for one week, ending with an hour on a local beach, during daylight and a "meditation' under a nearby waterfall! I can't spell the noises people make just thinking about it,

I just dropped into this discussion and way back on page one I read this: and I can't believe it! Since less than 1% of our North American population trains in a martial art, who the h+++ is winning all the brawls??? And what about those untrained who whip the trained?? "WAKE ... UP, PAL! Avoiding the fight is a ... technique, and not just a self-defense technique, either. It is an absolutely essential survival technique." — Peyton Quinn Ok, now maybe I'll go back and read some more...

Check out: http://www.jkd-kbh.dk/video/karate.wmv

Hi, I don't know of Johnny Pierra of San Francisco. O'Sensei Richard Kim, a Shorin-ji man died in late 2001. His Zen Bei Butoku Kai was an umbrella organisation that covered Goju, Shorin-ji and Shito Ryu karate but as fas as I know, never Shotokan. He was friends with Nishiama (I think it was) and they co-taught at seminars and stuff like that, but he always taught Shorin-ji. One of Sensei kim's oldest students is teachingin Daly city, not sofar fromyou: INSTRUCTOR: Kyoshi Ken Shockey, 8th degree black belt, Martial Arts Institute of Daly City, Performing Arts Center, Room 11, 200 Northgate Ave.

Our Hangetsu is very slow and under dynamic tension for the first half (very Naha) and then explodes into action, (very Shorei), and I like it a lot. Always willing to get a new take on things - I hope you guys do your exchange here!

" I was wondering if his class / camp normally practicing with full take downs (especially at that speed)" I don't know, no take downs at the seminar I was at tho the style is very martial. "and if the form is taught to be practiced at that speed." The speed is fast - the tradition is that in the 1800's when a real tai chi master was the slowest around, that when Chen (Fah kuh, I believe tho I can't spell it) was invited to demo, the audience were told to bring chairs because such a master would take a long time. When he ripped a long form off in less than ten minutes, he cause a consternation but the elders were able to see that he did not break any tai chi principles. " How much emphasis is placed on nurturing?" No idea, sorry. "Is push hands considered "playing," where both people are *trying* to aid the other along with themselves (not just by teaching), or is it more of a thing to "win," after you've done some work to get the movements down? " I've just been introduced to Chen style push hands so I'm just learning the how of it...I assume that they play on both levels you mention because you learn cooperatively and you contest competatively and I know they are very serious competitors. Mr. Muir would know much more!

I posted that topic yesterday and today Patrick very politely informed me I was violating the 'no advertising' rule - I'm on so many forums I do get confused about who allows what...rumours that I'm senile are premature! Yes, I've been to Master Chen's seminars and I found his teaching style to be quite open and understandable, and paced well for beginners. I only have one video, his Ji Ban gong or foundations which has a lot of demonstration but little teaching on it. Look at the links on http://www.chentaichi.org/TaijiTradition.php for my teacher, Gord Muir or try Gord Muir <gmuir@telus.net> for better info.

I did not read any of the posts in this topic. I started teaching in 1977 and have run my own club continuously since 1993. I hope when I read this I do NOT recognize either myself nor any of my students!!!

Nahhh, close but no prize. The real answer is that most martial arts don't teach any fighting at all. (Some Senseis do, tho.)

My Chen style teacher's teacher is Chen, Zhonghua, and, since he lives in Calgary, he gets down into our corner of the country quite often. The Tai Chi Tradition Annual Camp in Victoria, BC (April 23-29, 2005) will be less than 20 k from my place...if anyone's going - look me up! But back to the topic, it is commonly heard that yes, tai chi is good for self defence if you have 20 years and fight mostly other tai chi guys. If not, my advice is to go cqc!

There are two goals in karate... the first and foremost is "How to end the fight with one punch, now!" The second is more of a corrollary, "What kind of martial arts system will help me deliver my one punch kill to the target the best?" Other systems will practice how to deal with the one punch kill but karate deals with how to deliver it. What has modern science of 'kinestheology' done to improve this?

A military instructor who was concerned that his students' lack of precision and lack of attention to detail would jeopardize their safety in battle, asked his platoon to follow him across a field, and to do only what he did. Half way across he told them that they were in the middle of a mine field and they had only two ways to get out - to follow their footprints back out exactly or to follow exactly in his footprints to get across. Needless to say, the platoon was very motivated to pay attention to the exact detail of where he placed his feet. This is not a new lesson of course, we have heard it in our training halls since the martial arts came to this country. "If you have to cross a minefield, shouldn't you follow exactly 'in the footsteps of those who have been there and survived?" This is what I call "flying a kite." A kite lifts and soars on the wind only until the string breaks or is let go, then it crashes sooner or later. It may cover many miles on its' way down but down it is coming. The string in our case is tradition, the use of past successes to survive and overcome new difficulties. Tradition really does have the value of keeping us centered and safe in many situations and frees us from having to repeat the mistakes of the past. If you break the connection with tradition, you are at the mercy of the wind and with no internal ability of your own, soon crash. It is the pressure of the wind, new fads and ideas, held back by tradition, that allows the kite to soar. Nevertheless, our scenario begs for a question to be asked, "But what if your enemy has come in the night and moved the mines in the minefield so as to create a trap for your platoon?" The answer to this question I call "flying like a bird." New situations demand creative answers. Everyone wants to be a bird, not a kite, because birds seem to be free to choose and we worship freedom today over heaven, as naturally as sparks fly upward. In fact, the freedom a bird has by not being, held back by the string of tradition is not just the freedom to explore but the freedom to make mistakes. If the mines have been moved then the person who is the best at a new method of mine detection is to be followed, not the old leader, but no one should follow too closely until he proves himself or they just may go up with him. Without traditions we are doomed to repeat the mistakes of the past endlessly, dying foolishly in the name of freedom. We all know a wild adolescent, impetuous, fun, lively, crazy and willing to try anything. We also worry that they just may not survive the next wild thing they try. We try to guide them with our traditions but their world is a new place so we also try to allow them the freedom to create the best answer to their life's new problems. The martial arts can be seen to be in an adolescent stage in North America. Our penchant for freedom has created problems for the old masters who know the value of 'kite flying' but it has also brought a creative atmosphere to many systems. Growth means change, life means change. The Japanese Samurai are the epitome of the traditionalist spirit but in their last great effort to regain control of Japan called the Satsuma rebellion, their swords were defeated by a smaller number of peasants armed with guns. Did the guns win the war? Not at all, the win was attributed to the unthought of fact that the peasants displayed the fighting, spirit and tenacity of the best Samurai tradition! Tradition and flexibility; kite and bird. No person acts only like a kite or a bird, sometimes we trust tradition and a conservative approach to see us through and sometimes we are creative and break free of tradition because the rules don't aply any more. So let us not scorn others of different traditions or new ideas. Let us also not rush into mine fields with no thought or study of the problems. Some of the, mines in the field before us all are the current fads and changes happening in the martial arts scene as a whole: commercialism run rampant over honest value, Hollywood becoming the definition of the spirit of the martial arts, the proliferation of tough guy (little or no training needed) matches labeled as martial arts contests, the advertising of aerobic martial arts as a 'fighting skill,' and concerns about the proliferation of so-called masters without proper credentials. False masters were traditionally hurt too badly to continue but:creative thinking may have to be applied because this old traditional string has been broken and the field is open to charlatans of all nationalities.

I wasn't going to reply to this with my favorites because I don't read "literature" anymore, but since it has dropped to the level of including Forest Gump in literature, ok. Here's what I recommend: great light reading... Let me introdue you to Barry Eisler, http://www.barryeisler.com/ and his character, John Rain. The stories are full of fights, intrigue and spy craft. Fights are martial arts based and well written. And very entertaining. I've read the books and met the man and he's a class act. And funny. Bit of Bio: Mr. Eisler earned his black belt in judo from the Kodokan International Judo Center in Tokyo. Today he lives and works in the San Francisco Bay Area and continues to travel to Japan frequently. Rights to the Rain books have been sold in 12 countries, and film rights have been purchased by Jet Li.

You don't say how old you are....it matters. When I was twenty and on the university wrestling team, I was 6' tall and 130 lbs, (ouch!) I could not gain an ounce! I finally got up to 130 *, the botttom of my division and tried to get to 137 lbs but no go, no matter what I did. BUT, five years later at 25, I suddenly put on about 80 lbs of weight because I had dropped all training and was just hanging out... A real ouch! Be careful of the bad eating habits you develop when you are skinny!!!

He was an idol of mine in the early 70's when I started training and he still is - got a chance to train under him? Take it or regret it!

The genitles are filled with small tubes and things. A serious bruise or swelling can cut the blood supply to an area and cause all kinds of serious complications. A Doc is in order...

From my limited and narrow pov, LINE is not FAS. If the style advocates counters, it is not FAS. If it advocates fighting unarmed against a knife, it is not FAS. If the attitude is that the fight should be over before he knows its started, that's FAS. FAS suits me a little better than does LINE.

My friend Tony said: "If your stance is perfect, you are not moving fast enough!"

God told me to take karate...

It is not a style, it is what happens when two people fight at touching range before stepping back or grabbing on. It has come to represent the WWII approach of Fairbairn and his American counterparts, Sykes and Applegate...often abreviated as FAS. Fairbairn wrote a combat manual called Get Tough and Applegate wrote a manual for the marines called Kill of Get Killed. Some links that may or may not get you to something interesting are: http://www.ejmas.com/ http://www.stormpages.com/handtohand22/page5.htm http://stickgrappler2.tripod.com/cqc/cqc.html http://www.vrazvedka.ru/main/learning/ruk-b/fairbairn-01.shtml http://www.gutterfighting.org/Main.html (http://www.gutterfighting.org doesn't work??) While the techniqes are found in every martial art, the concepts of how to fight are a radical approach to that found in most modern dojo, kwoon, or whatever. These concepts are designed to overcome the sparring mentality of most martial arts which gets the practioner killed when facing a real fighter. They include pre-emptive striking, forward driving force with no consideration for what your opponent is doing, just attack, and attacking only very vulnerable targets, eyes, throat, groin, knees. etc. As simple as it is, it's effectiveness depends upon the person using it, the situation and the fickle finger of fate (named Mr. Murphy).