fangshi

I started when I was 4 , just a late bloomer I guess.

My advice would be to join a school with a great teacher. Many martial arts train in weapons . The style will dictate the kind of weapon but if you have no huge preferance look around your area . See what is offered. Find a great teacher. A great matrial art experience is sure to follow. Most schools that train in wepons display them openly so you will know what weapons you will be trained in and you can decide if you are interested. Most schools teach weapons after a certain time period of training has passed so be sure that you do not over look the empty hand form that is taught.

The age of the child is ready to begin a study of martial arts really depends on the maturity of that child. The style is not so important as the teacher. A good school will have an experienced teacher teaching the childrens classes. Where some schools simply use the childrens class as a training tool for potenial promotions to higher ranks that is probably not where you would like your child to be. Ask about the philosophy of the school as not all are equal. Morals ethics and self discipline should top the list. You should also include your child in this decision as he/she may have certain interests that you are unaware of.

LOL ! That was great.

I like the old Hong Kong movies. The kung fu theatre movies that only come on late at night. Really corny but I loved them as a kid and still find myself staying up to all hours of the night to catch one every now and then. My favorite is The Five Deadly Venoms.

Seen an old b movie called the 5 deadly venoms (one of my favorites) One of the five studied the frog style . His skin was impenitrable. Very cool for a movie but have never heard of anything like a frog style in real life.

Your welcome There are thousands of strength building exercises . Some better than others but which ever path you choose the most important factor in strength building (or anthing else for that matter) is not to give up. The only real way to fail is to quit. Everything else is a work in progress.

Protien is important as it builds and repairs musles. No more than 1.8 gm of protien / kg of body wieght is needed and that amount is for heavy training . There are plenty of good supplements out there , some taste better than others . Make sure to look at the nutritional value chart to make sure you are getting the nutrients that you are looking for and nothing else. Some are higher in carbs , calories , sugars , and sodiums. All of which you may wish to avoid. As far as food sources go for low fat protien sources . Also look for protein sources with Omega 3 fatty acids .

Good job ! Yes the foundation is the strongest part of any structure.

I know there can be problems associated with tight fiting undergarments for long periods of time. Besides comfort I am not aware of any issues with loose fitting undergarments. In my personal experience I do feel that there are times when athletic support is better but I also know people that use nothing at all as far as under garments when training.

Well , there are probably a million different ways to answer this question. The best answer I can give you is to start simple . Do what is most comfortable. You can sit in a staight back chair or on the floor or a mat , in sieza or aza . You can stand or lay down. You can move or not move. I would suggest sitting in a straight chair. Just relax . Breathe. Let your eyes relax. Soften your gaze. Breathe. Follow your breath as you slowly inhale . Hold for a few seconds and then slowly exhale.

KI is not some mysterious force nor is it impossible to explain in scientific terms. Ki just is . Ki is the yin as the physical body is yang .

Try using a heavy bag . It will strengthen all the muscles that are needed for the strike . BE SURE TO USE PROPER TECHNIQUE! Go slow at first and always stretch.

Training in the forest is great for a relaxing and meditative experience , but , for most of us a dojo is far more realistic . I like to do both . Learn in the dojo and practice (when I can) in a quiet wooded area , it is very gratifying. I have done some training in the dark but only as advanced training . It is a whole different ball game.

Not going to go against what a doctor says but do have a few suggestions. 1 Wait - injuries need time to heal 2 Be flexable- when you are good to go be sure to do plenty of streching in that area. 3 Go easy- Be sure to take it easy at first. Start with easy stretching and then basic and simple techniques at first. 4 Balance- When you are ready to get back into the swing of things and wish to start strengthening your ankle start with balance exercises. standing on one foot and leaning forward to back side to side , just enough to feel pressure on the lower leg will begin to build strength in ankle area. There are many other exercises but they may be a bit advanced if your injury is not healed. REMEBER build the muscles around the ankle will help reduce the risk of injury BUT focus on flexable joints that is KEY

Heavy bags are great for activity specific strength training . It will build stronger technique in delivering strikes . I have also used it in cross training . As I have added it to weight training. When doing sets of leg strengthening exercises finish each set with a flurry of kicks that enficize (sp?) that muscle group. ie leg extenions - front thrust kick. I find that it works well. Almost like a super set type exercise.

Anyone have any experience with disk herniation ? Have been on the shelf for a few months now & still very little progress. MRI says L4-5 disk herniation with compression and displacement of S1 nerve. Is there any sort of exercize or technique that can be used to help? I am almost out of ideas. Thanks for the input !

If you can hang somthing on a wall than get the rubber part of an old tire . Cover the tire tightly with canvas , enough to give good resistance.

First of all good luck on your venture . As I am sure that you are aware competing at such a high level takes much physical discipline . Most study for long hours over many years . Strength , endurance , technique and experience are all crucial to sucess at this or any level . However , you must also discipline your self mentally as well. Determination , focus , realxation are also key to success. There must be balance ! "A man with one chopstick goes hungry" author unkown.

Just to add on to some of the external and/or technical methods of increasing the power of your strikes research the body drop method of the iron palm , also used in the one inch punch.

The fact that we die is what makes life so wonderful. Each moment could be our last and must be cherished. To be afraid of death is to be afraid of living life. Do we live to die or do we live to live?

From my discussions with the teacher the style is American Kenpo or kempo. The teacher has admitted to a preferance to up fighting but does teach locks , throws and grappling to a certain degree. I think I may give it a try as it is one of very few options within a 45 min radius. Thanks for the input !

Is kenpo a hard karate type style ? with straight or circular movements? My skills are based purely on speed , footwork and position. As well as proper execution. I know that speed striking is part of kenpo which works well for me but to stand head to head with most is certainly something that I would be at the disadvantage. I did take the intro course and it was enjoyable however when sparring found that I needed to rely on my footwork more than the other guys in the practice.

Not sure if this is the right forum to ask this but not sure which one is. Have recently moved to a small city where there are not many options as far as MA training. There is a kenpo school in town with a solid rep and was looking for some input on how well the style translates to a person of smaller stature with not a great deal of physical strength. Any input would be great! Thank you in advance.