Martial_Artist

Excellent information Don.

Who believes? I do. Not as any spectacular power demonstrated in movies--or more popularly anime--but, more refined, more subtle; more precisely: passion. Oh, the countless times I have felt the music flow through my body as mind and spirit unifiy and create energy, the pure force of human genetics. Movement and thought blurring into one. Something so poetic in expression of power, ki, chi? I think not, but passion, emotion...soul. Taking the energy that flows from one object into another, harnessing it, and unifying with it, that I believe in. I suppose I could define it into something a bit simpler, less poetic and reduce the romance behind it. Physics. Kinetic, potential energy and force. These things exist. An object sitting completely still has no kinetic energy, but is near limitless in potential energy. Movements and states of mentality define what kinetic and potential energies can be harnessed, unified with. Taking your mind to a different plane can open certain chemical reservoirs in your body release special chemicals allowing you do things. *Think adrenaline, for instance. The fight or flight state of mind releases that chemical* Moving your body in a manner so as to take the energies created from your movment and the movement of your target help to channel the kinetics and potentials. That, I believe in. I believe in it because I live it, I feel it, and I enjoy it. It fuels my movements and fires my emotions. It gives refinement to the punch, the kick, the movement. Although, I don't call it ki, chi, qi, etc,; and I don't think it some mysterious power I know it exists.

http://www.karateforums.com/forums/viewtopic.php?topic=3168&forum=25&48

Are you serious? Why would it not be? Of course a knife is an actual weapon in martial arts, as is anything else designed for combat.

You're right bitseach we should cut the nuts off every man out there. Remove testosterone completely. We'd save the world, peace would dominate, oh wait....population would decrease, humanity would flail itself into nonexistence. Unless women then grew a pair(through the miracle of modern science and bioengineering) and made man obsolete. :razz: :lol: What a strange sight that would be.... ps You know I'm just funnin. Don't take this too seriously. _________________ Aut non tentaris aut perfice. Aut inveniam viam aut faciam. [ This Message was edited by: Martial_Artist on 2002-07-02 15:30 ]

Something a bit unorthodox, but I enjoy doing... Go to a swimming pool, hopefully one not too crowded, or better yet private. Kick underwater as hard and as fast as you can. Watch your form and technique. See how much power and 'explosiveness' you can get underwater. Make sure your form is good, like you're standing on dry ground, you don't want to get lazy with balance just because you're in the water. This will help. (and not just with kicks either)

The younger the better. Don't take that too literally, though. Just because someone starts young doesn't mean that they'll have the same comprehension of martial arts as someone who may have started later. But, starting young is better. Like learning to punch and kick the same time you learn to read or write. It becomes second nature, the movments that is. Do you actually consciously THINK about reading or writing? Most of it is probably inate nature. Like speaking. Same with young martial arts training. But that only goes as far as the basic principles and concepts. Just like the finer parts of reading, writing, and speaking aren't learned/comprehended until later years. So with martial arts. Later on the fine points of martial arts are learned and perfected, but it is that foundation in the beginning that gives an irreplacable advantage. But that advantage only goes as far as the person using it. Meaning, even though someone started young if they don't take that foundation and develop it, it will not take them where they want to go and not be an advantage at all. Nevertheless, younger is better. But, for rank advancement, How can they advance in rank without a philosophical understanding of the technique? So, teaching young is not a problem, it allows the student to develop and learn martial arts second nature, as something natural and not foreign to existence. So, when dealing with young students they only advance to higher levels when necessarily they demonstrate a mature understanding of the martial art and the power they possess because of that martial art. A black belt should never be given to anyone young. I don't feel anyone in their teens could possibly fully understand, or have the maturity to wield, such an awesome responsiblity. Within or after the 20's is more appropiate. After that long of living a great deal of understand and maturity SHOULD have been gained and the student ready to assume the rank and responsibilty of Black Belt. But that's my opinion and it's a bit off the topic, but related nonetheless.

T_R, No prob. Nothing personal, right. No harm, no foul.

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

:- )-:, Accurate description.

Yes, that's right. You've reminded me of something, KickChick. Think of it like this. Fast-twitch muscle = sprinter. Slow-twitch = marathon runner. That's the type of muscle development you're looking at. Burst power is what we're looking for in kicks. Like a sprinter, burst power. We also want to develop endurance in our kicks, to give us the ability to kick multiple times, in cases of multiple opponents. You've got to work hard for it. It doesn't come easily.

It all really boils down to personal taste and use. Like G95Champ said, everything has pros and cons.

Yes, traditionally the nunchaku were not made with metal, duh! Neither was a chain used, truth to that. Length of cord was the point to my ridiculous drivel. The cords were longer than the ones commercially available today. Wrapping the chain around an opponents neck, with a chain 7-9 in is no less as effective as with a short cord. The latter being less effective in other parts of combat. If all you plan to do is choke your opponent out then a choking cord would be a better choice. If there is more to the combat than just choking then you'd better stick with a longer chain than the ones commercially available. Japanese, okinawan, southeast asian, or any other regional system of nunchaku makes no difference. A nunchaku is a nunchaku, it moves in a certain manner, there are certain rules governing its movements, laws of physics. There are movements made by the nunchaku that are more efficient and efficacious than others for certain instances and circumstances. I practice the art of martial arts, in their purity. Physics only happen in one way. Men have two arms, two legs, regardless of the attack they throw, regardless of the style attached to it, it is still a man behind that movement and his body moves no different from mine. I profess no style, I denounce styles as limitation and boundary. I am a martial artist of the purest form. My movements have nothing wasted, have nothing short of efficiency and efficacy. The same for the weapons I choose to use. Whether it is knife, bo, sword, or nunchaku (a word given to an item irrelevant to its origin for my purposes) They all have movements and uses governed by laws of physics and human form. Whether okinawan or any other form of weapon art is used, the person wielding that weapon is only limited by how he knows to use that weapon. Regardless of the name attached to the attack, the attack is still held by a man using that weapon. Therefore, I am styleless. I, therefore, possess every style. I am not limited by boundary of technique or style. I move as perfectly as the human body has been designed to move. My mind has not boundary in style. When I wield the nunchaku I wield it not according to movements that have been taught me from a style or pattern. I wield it as efficiently as the human body can. The perfection of the human form is my guide. There is nothing WILD to what I do. Everything is calculated and precise. Don't feel sad if you don't comprehend this, I don't expect you to. I don't care if you do. But I do care that where my knowledge comes from be clear. Martial arts in purity. It doesn't really matter. You will continue in what you do and I in what I do. I am not trying to convince anyone that whay I do is better, nor am I here to preach my gospel. I offer what I can in a communal environment to help others. Whether they accept that or not is irrelevant to me. Whether other people know me or about me, irrelevant. I only share what I wish and disclose what I feel appropiate. I suppose it doesn't matter, short vs long. You can do what you want. I'm sure you have experts on the subject. But, don't blind yourself so much that you won't realize the earth is round. If I sounded aggressive, I apologize. I am not. Maybe, just maybe, all this is unnecessary and you have just had a bad night. Thinking with an unclear mind never allows proper comprehension. If you don't know me, or have never heard of me in martial arts circles, it is only because I don't care much for it. I am not a modernist, or traditionalist. I am a martial artist and seek not to gain recognition, but to help those I can. I respect those seeking to do the same.

Used as a farming instrument. Correct. Have you ever used that farming instrument? I have. I have harvested rice in Southeast Asia, the Philippines. The cords are 7-9 inches long. They also have a prong protruding from the side of one of the sticks. Try doing it with a short cord and your work is futile. Also, they've been harvesting rice in the philippines in the same manner for hundreds of years, most of the areas are still way underdeveloped. So, traditional chucks, based on rice flailers would then have had long cords.(7-9in.) Also, having been to Japan, where rice was once harvested using archaic methods, and in some very rural areas is, the cords are longer than the cords that come on commercially available nunchuks, which by the way are primarily from Taiwan and are manufactured to sell on the mass market and are not designed for combat. For fighting, if that is what you intend to do with them, the better choice is a longer chain. If not, or if you don't care which is better, the short chain/cord.

Actually, your post has key principles set in the core of health and fitness. Explosive leg muscles. The lack of power in your kicks is probably due to inproper technique. Proper technique will increase the power of your kicks. You've got to be able to harness the energies of your body, both kinetic and potential. Following through is just a part. You've got to have focus in your kicks. It goes far beyond being able to break a board. (BTW, not that you mentioned it, but the ability to break a board does not translate into power within a fight) A living target hits and takes damage completely different from a stationary board. Some exercises to help you develop power in your kicks. Do more heavy bag work. Put your body into your kicks. Use your hip. Time the movements of your body so all factors time into the kick at the moment of impact. Your hands, don't let them flail about. Also, train with a partner holding a kicking shield. Have him move back as you try to kick him. Learn to judge your kicks according to his movements. Hitting a moving person is quite different than a bag. Use the bag to develop strength, use the kick shield and partner to develop power in timing. Also, to help with speed, kick away at the bag with a single kick at least 10x. Try to do this as fast as you can, but don't lose form. Hope this helps.

Howdy

Howdy

I have used nunchuks in a fight before. Those short cord chucks don't wrap around and allow you to grab anything. Not unless the assailant is just standing there letting you grab him. You don't need to be attacked by a sword to appreciate chain links. A knife, or bat, or any weapon for that matter. A chain sure does a better job of joking your opponent or crushing bones in the hands/forearm. It also does wonders if your opponent gets his fingers locked up in them. 11-12 links is perfect, if you use the small links that come on commercially available nunchuks. The links should range from 7 1/2 to 9 inches. If you use larger links, 9 links total, or around seven visible. Use anything less and you're setting yourself up for some mishaps. Sure, the chucks swing nice and everything with shorter links, but that's just a false sense of security. If you try to wrap a short cord/chain chuck around a baseball bat you'll have a hard time getting control over it (unless you wrap around the grip part) Hey, then again, it all boils down to what you're going to do with the nunchuks. Demos and shows, display and fantasy a short cord/chain is fine. It doesn't really matter what length if that's what you do. If you think you'll use them in a fight you'll want the longer CHAIN. Try sparring against someone with a shinai, kali sticks, or any other distance weapon using a short cord and you'll quickly wish you had a longer cord. Imagine that fight real and you'll want chain without question. If your opponent is unarmed, then it would be pretty pointless to try and trap their arm with the chuck instead of just hitting them. Nunchuks are sold with a short cord/chain because it makes them easier to use in demonstrations. Traditional nunchuks, those used in battle, have always had longer chains. There is a reason for that. Think about it. I suppose you can do what you want. I'm just giving the best advice I can from experience. Just trying to help.

And what does this have to do with Combative Martial Arts?

If you plan to use it against another weapon, there are no advantages. Need chain for that. Not the cheap short linked chucks available on the mass market, but long 11+link chucks designed for fighting. The chucks nowadays are designed purely for show. That's why the chain or cord is so short. Links, done right, don't bind up either. I've been doing nunchuks for about 15 years. I started with chain. I've dabbled in cord, and I still stick with chain. IF, however, you're into competitions and the like, then cord is nicer. But for fighting, it's gotta be chain.

I'm not sure, but why don't ask this guy, he's pretty informative. His website is great. http://www.realultimatepower.net

I've noticed this brought up on several different threads and I have to ask: If the art doesn't matter and it's totally the artist then what does it matter what art you take? Or why do people take one art over the other? Strewn on several different forums are arguments as to which style is better, TKD vs Kung F, karate vs everything, etcetera; or "Everything equal which art would win?" and so on and so forth. If that is the case, art is inferior to artist, then why doesn't everyone just build strength, speed, stamina, and agility and then duke it out that way? Why even bother deciding on art, and just take anything out there? It doesn't really matter, right? It's the artist not the art, right? If that's so true, then why the argument? Why the unclarity, the confusion? Surely every art can't be classified as equal and the result of victory being totally attributed to the person. Without doubt the person plays a major role, but is that the only role to be played on this stage? If, according to general concensus (gathered from various different posts and threads), it is the artist and not the art, then why fret over which art to take in your area? It really wouldn't matter, would it? I mean, after all, it is the artist and not the art. So, take anything out there and you'll be fine; just be sure to be a good fighter, right? Anything? Anythoughts? Am I alone in seeing the holes in this type of logic? Perhaps, it lies much deeper than a common acceptance of "it is artist rather than art" but is in burrowing oneself in a general need to conform rather than admit shortcoming. ps Most of this is written in the rhetorical and with the intent to cause provoking thought on the part of the reader.

Personally, I think you should train both ways. Barefoot, to condition your foot for martial arts. Shoes, to further that conditioning. I don't know about anyone else, but I have yet to get into a street fight barefoot. Usually I am fully dressed. However, I once had a fight in a locker room when I was totally naked...but that's better left alone. You can't be complete without doing a bit of both. Your feet have to know how to move and balance on their own, ie barefoot. And they also have to know how to do that with shoes on. So a balanced training program is best. 2 cents

Welcome aboard!

Howdy, howdy,