WudangDragon

Shaolin Wolf (https://www.shaolinwolf.com) has a step-by-step illustrated walk-through of some Shaolin Quan forms. It also has details of many stances etc. Peace

I prefer to fight in a state of "Wu Hsin", and often use basic meditation as part of my training. Also, sparring, form practice, drills, conditioning and all of my Parkour practice become a form of meditation. Meditation through movement can be very difficult to achieve for some people in my experience, but is highly useful and effective. Peace.

As I have already stated, anything involving rooftops or heights is actively discouraged within the community. To see real parkour Youtube 'Traceur Zeno' or 'Traceur Chris Grant'. Both are training partners of mine, members of the Glasgow Parkour Community. Their videos will be some of the finest examples of true parkour you will see. Or better yet, seach on Youtube for 'Julie Angel': The first hit is the one you're looking for, it's a short parkour video filmed entirely in a very small area, with a huge volume of rails of varying height - Watching Forrest and Dan moving between the two is a beautiful and accurate representation of Le Parkour. Obviously there is an element of danger, but when trained correctly this can be narrowed down to the extent that it can be negligible to the dedicated and sensible practitioner. It is similar to martial arts - your training is very dangerous (sparring etc.) but by training correctly, within the rules, the danger of you sustaining any real degree of harm is reduced to very small proportions. Also, when I say Le Parkour is not dangerous, I mean to a real Traceur - a serious, sensible, dedicated practitioner who knows their boundaries and bases their movements upon what they know they can, or cannot do. Naturally there are freak accidents, or unaccounted for incidents - a particularly slippery rail, or a loose brick for example, but through serious training even the dangers presented by these obstacles may be reduced or reacted to in such a way as to minimise their potential to cause harm. Peace.

Parkour is NOT dangerous, let me say that. If you train correctly you do not get hurt - I've trained for 5 years and am yet to receive an injury. /to begin your training, check out ome sites and see some of the basic movements, and learn about the art. Then find somewhere to practice the movements, improve upon them, drill them religiously, then string them together. Find a group of traceurs in your local area (there WILL be one, trust me ) Check out http://www.parkour.net

[quote name="Justin Treadaway Have you ever seen a real kung fu practitioner in combat' date=' not tournament? We don't do jumping spin kick and stuff, most of our kicks will be to knees and groin.... Also circular is our deflections not our punches, almost all of our punches are linear, you have to realize kung fu is both hard and soft, circular and linear, internal and external , thats why there is so much focus on yin yang. It kills me on peoples perception of kung fu. Also the longer and better you get the shorter the circular deflections get, you want your opponent to barley miss you so he fully commits, they are deflections and are a heck of lot faster than a typical block, because when we deflect we barely even touch the punch its about footwork and never interrupt the natural flow of things.[/quote] Mr. Treadaway, in context of kung fu, puts it perfectly.

I just stumbled across this article and it piqued my intrest, as I have been a dedicated traceur for around 5 years now. I feel there are some points that I should make before offering my own two cents on this topic. Le Parkour, or the Art of Movement (L'art du deplacement) is a French discipline, the objectives of which are escape and reach. To this end, Le Parkour is simply the art of purely efficient movement through one's environment. Le Parkour has nothing to do with flair or aesthetic movements - flips and spins etc. as these are detrimental to uninterupted forwards movement, negatively affecting the efficiency of the practitioner's motions. Le parkour mixed with flips and spins etc. is called Freerunning, or Le Yamakasi in France. Freerunning is what is generally seen being practiced upon rooftops; most traceurs never step foot on a rooftop as the odds of escape from such a plateau are very slim. Training on rooftops is also very dangerous and is actively discouraged within the parkour community. Anyone can train in Le Parkour, the same as in the MA's - you start slowly and small, gradually building your way up as your health, fitness, proprioception, kinesthesia and proficiency in the discipline increase. For those who say le parkour might not be efficient as a means of escape from a confrontation, I offer the fact that le parkour was born on military obstacle courses (cours de combatant; A.K.A. Parcours) and developed by the French soldiers during the Vietnam War, to escape from opposition guerrilla units and under pressure of fire. (Raymond Belle was one of these soldiers, he taught what he had used in Vietnam to his son, David who further developed the art (such as adapting techniques for more urban landscapes) on French streets with his friends and is accepted as the father of Le Parkour as it is known today.) When one cannot fight, or is in need of escape for any other reason, le parkour is perfect for this end. Another application related to martial arts/self defense of le parkour could be tactical retreat. The Japanese Shinsengumi, when outnumbered, used to turn tail and run in the days of the Bakumatsu. Naturally, the fastest of their opponents would catch up first. At this point the Shinsengumi fighted would abruptly stop and turn, slash down his opponent, and continue running until the next attacker caught up. This would be repeated until the Shinsengumi fighter emerged victorious. This tactic is easily adapted using parkour and martial arts. I beleive those trained in combat should be prepared for those times where combat is not an option and retreat is required, and vice versa. After all, there is always a better fighter. However, should you meet this better fighter in combat, the odds of his being more proficient at parkour (eg. being able to catch you even though you are trained in escape) as well as a better fighter are very slim. I think the best way to be safe on the street is to be well versed in both combat and combat evasion (confrontation de-escalation, escape etc.). Thats my two cents anyways

The Elvis Gi's sound ridiculous, but oddly aluring at the same time. . . Eww, thanks for sharing - it's useful information, but yeah - deffinately eww. Personally, I don't wear a Gi, what with being Chinese martial artist and all. I've always had the impression that Gi's would be rather constricting; I know that's not the case, but it's just a feeling I get - maybe someday soon I shall don one. I think flashy uniforms can be a part of all martial arts. Uniforms make people feel part of something larger than themselves, a collective, a group, a legacy, a tradition etc. and it is only natural for one to want to look good. Hence differing and occaisionally somewhat odd styles. Kung Fu, for example, is often shown being practiced by those wearing the traditional suits - cuffed trousers and a mandarin jacket - in every colour imaginable. Silk and satin are also popular. I guess in variety and individuality we find the beauty of life .

I'm not familiar with that particular weapon, but from the description, yes - Tony Jaa used something the same, or extremely similar to the Mai Sok in the cave fight scene near the end of Ong Bak. Peace

Thanks for all of the feedback people, it's greatly appreciated! On the subject of grades lower then black teaching, all I have is my own experience. As a green sash (that's 5th grade) I teach two children's Chinese Kickboxing classes along with another green sash (our Sifu watches and gives advice etc. from the side) and assist Sifu with the teaching of the Kung Fu classes. In the kung fu classes we take the warm up / stretching, referee/co-ordinate the occaisional sparring session and lower grades are instructed to ask myself and the other Assisstant Instructor for help/advice if Sifu is busy working with another group. We are the most senior students - there are other green sashes in the school, but Sifu trains us as young instructors as well as students - he says it is due to our loyalty and commitment to the school, work ethic and applied effort. We are quite involved in the running of the school as well, we help make decisions about classes, help build up the Kickboxing syllabus (mainly through trial and error) etc. In return for helping out we are taught for free, do not pay for gradings, all of our equipment is supplied for us and Sifu often pays for our entry fees to tournaments. He says he is sorry he cannot afford to give us a proper wage for our help, but personally I feel that the trust Sifu has given me, and the sense of pride I feel for this aknowledgement of my training, whilst not the reason I train with full effort, is more than enough payment for a few hours teaching a week. Thats all I've really got to offer - sorry it took so long to say it all

Exactly, when standing in front of what appears to be a sea of students, it's very useful to be able to differentiate between students at a glance, and tell who is learning what, and which groups need work. In our system, Lan Jung Kuen Lau Gar Kung Fu, the sashes run thus - White Blue Orange Green Yellow Purple Brown Black

First off, let me say I am, and always have been, predominantly a Chinese Martial Artist (and therefore have no use of the Dan system) - I realise this is no excuse for my ignorance but perhaps you wont think of me too harshly - after all, we all here seek knowledge, right? So to the point - I know what a Dan is (or at least I beleive I do); A certain grade or level of black belt, moving progressively upwards numerically to differentiate between them - 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th ( Ni Dan, San Dan, Yo Dan, Go Dan) etc. However, I don't know the actual difference. I always assumed (pre-martial arts experience) that a black belt "knew" all the techniques in a style, and that was that. This method of thinking still holds to a degree, possibly due to my training in Gung Fu (either with no sashes, or with black sash being highest). Is therefore, the difference between Shodan and Nidan further refinement of one's movements? A deeper understanding of the art? Or are there new techniques/movements/forms to be learned? I thank you all for any and all feedback Peace.

At my school we train everything on both sides, with a view to becoming an ambidexterous fighter. Also, as stated, it really screws with your sparring/competition opponent if you can change stances in the blink of an eye and remain with the same combat ability level.

I just read through this thread and caught myself up with your story from start to finish, and I think that given the girl's decorum in the dojo (rudeness should not be tolerated, especially not to someone with a position of authority), the punishment, her expulsion, is the best thing that could have happened. Rudeness, questioning the Sensei, disloyalty to the club; it's a laundry list of martial crimes if you ask me. She got her just desserts. Good on the sensei for taking action (albeit somewhat delayed).

For combat, either Jorn Sau or Charp Choi. To perform during training, either Kay Boon Sau Fa or Far Kuin (my current).

"Kung Fu" literally translated means "Hard work" and it is used in the original context to describe any art which takes 10 years or more of training to master. As such, for a kung fu style, 10 years is the general length of time it takes one to know the basics of an art.